Always Looking...Always Watching

Those of you who have followed Suede and Chrome of the past two years know that I do a lot of "dreaming" on eBay. I enjoy finding interesting vehicles that are realistically close enough that I could "conceivably" purchase them and get them home with little to no difficulty. Once I find these vehicles, I may even bid on them. I will then watch these auctions to get an idea as to what traditional hot rods and rat rods are going for in the Midwestern United States. I guess this gives me some idea as to what I will actually have to pay if I can ever convince the wife of the importance.

At any rate, today I found an interesting vehicle in Monticello, Indiana. Monticello is near Lake Shafer in Northern Indiana. It is home of a little amusement park called "Indiana Beach". This is about a 95 mile drive for me. (Did you hear that honey?!)

Upon initial inspection of the photographs, this truck looks pretty rough. However, this seems to be the intition of the builders. I think if I were to purchase this vehicle. I would complete the body work and give this truck a few coats of a nice suede (flat) paint...possibly black or red or even orange. Next, I would clean up the wheels and have them powdercoated with a nice gloss color (probably red or orange). Finally, I would wrap those freshly coated rims in some Coker wide whitewalls. Heck....I might even decide to paint a cool "aged" logo on the door...something like Tipple's Rods and Customs and maybe even include the web address to this site.

For now though, I've 'tagged' the auction to watch it (currently at $3500) and included some of the photos and the description below for your enjoyment...(Hey...let me know if YOU decide to buy it!)

If you've been looking for a hot rod with a ton of attitude that's fast, fun, & reliable This Is It! Don't be fooled by it's looks. I guarantee when you start this thing up at a car show a crowd will form around it within seconds. When you drive into a show everyone just seems to stop doing whatever they're doing and gawk. I can't even count how many thumbs ups we've got when driving this truck. It doesn't matter where you park it, a Wal-mart parking lot, your work place, or even a bridge(yes even a bridge), a crowd will form around it. This is no piece of junk rat rod built by an amateur. This truck was built with driving it in mind. It has a very reliable and stout ford 302 small block and automatic overdrive transmission. It runs a cool 160 degrees with absolutely no overheating problems. As an added bonus to it's exceptional performance it cruises down the highway at 60 MPH at only 1600rpm getting 20MPG! With an old school 15.5 gallon beer keg gas tank and 20 MPG and it's modern, more reliable drive train long trips are not a concern like with most other "rat rods". If you watched the video you saw us driving on an Indiana road (if you know anything about Indiana roads you know how rough they are) at 60, 70 and even 90+ MPH(yes it'll go faster, I just didn't want to twist the speedo cable in two) with absolutely no problems maintaining control. I've seen numerous "rat rods" that I'd be scared to death to drive 90+MPH, but not this one. So it goes really fast, now what about stopping? NO problem. This thing will stop on a dime, every time. The truck has F2 ford front brakes that use 55' Ford dual piston wheel cylinders instead of the stock single piston design. The rear are stock 50' Ford drums. Feeding the wheel cylinders is a brand new 50' Ford master cylinder. This is not a cheap rebuilt that will begin leaking after a short time as most rebuilts do. Both front and rear brakes have new shoes, wheel cylinders, & hoses. I know I'm going to get a ton of emails asking what kind of grill shell it has. If you're interested in the truck and really want to know...bid to win. I will tell the new owner and he/she can have the enjoyment of striking up conversations with people about it. No, it's not a Ford, Chrysler, or Chevrolet, but it is very very rare. Even guys in their 80's that's been around cars all their lives are clue less. I've seen a lot of "rat rods" built with lexan windshields because its cheaper....big mistake. Lexan will wrap in the hot sun, it will scratch very easily, and worst of all it will begin turning foggy and hard to see out of. Not to mention lexan isn't the safest in an accident...Ouch! We did NOT use lexan. Both front and rear windshields are safety glass. That's the exact same stuff the OEM's put in your modern car. Yes, more expensive, but much better. As you can see expense was not spared. This truck was built right with numerous new parts (read the list below for more details). It was intentionally left in it's original patina and steel was left unpainted or distress painted to give it a mean, nasty, hardcore look, but this was no cheap throw together in 5 days build. The interior has an old school feel to it. It has a sectioned 50' Ford car dash. The speedometer & amp, oil, & temperature gauges all work and are lighted when the head lights are on. It has a custom made tall style shifter topped with a WWII style practice grenade. We sell these shift knobs! Check our other items! There is a military ammo box mounted between the seats to use as a glove box/armrest. The seats are what really adds the cool factor to the interior. Many people believe that the seats are true authentic WWII aircraft seats, but they are not. The seats were built by us, Iron Exile Hot Rods. They are hand formed using .063" aluminum. It took over 500 hand bucked rivets, 10 punched & flared holes, 54 hand rolled beads, 28 hand cut pieces, and 4 punched louvers to build these. They have a safety edging riveted on and an approximate 8 degree layback with a slight curve in the back. The seats are also distressed painted and have seat cushions made with high density foam wrapped with burlap with the U.S.Air Corps logo stenciled in. Be sure to add us to your favorites list if you'd like a set. We will be building more and offering them for sale on eBay sometime in 2008.

Engine
1983 Ford 302 with 81,000 actual miles
New belt
New water pump
New distributor
New distributor cap
New points
New condenser
New rotor button
New spark plugs
New spark plug wires
New fuel pump
New oil pump
New timing chain & gear set
New high performance camshaft 471 lift 276 intake/286 exhaust duration
New hydraulic lifters
New valve springs
New valve guides
New valve guide seals
New gaskets
New Holley 600CFM carburetor
New Starter
New radiator hoses
Finned aluminum valve covers
New alternator
Transmission
1983 Ford AOD(automatic overdrive) with 81,000 actual miles with new filter & fluid
New aluminum transmission cooler
Chassis
Custom made 2 x 4 x .125" with 2 x 3 x .125" front rails.
Frame is plate gusseted at the kick ups for added strength.
All ends of the frame are capped with 1/8" plate steel.
Z'd 14" in the rear
Double Z'd in the front. 4" at the toe board & 3" just before the front cross member.
Ford front axle
Ford split wishbones with heavy duty heims joints.
1952 F2 front spindles
1952 F2 front brakes with 55' Ford dual piston wheel cylinders instead of the stock single piston cylinders.
New wheel cylinders (front & rear)
New brake shoes (front & rear)
New steel brake lines
New rubber brake hoses (front & rear)
New king pins
New front shocks with F2 mounts
All grade 8 hardware
Removable transmission cross member
Removable motor mount cross member
F2 steering box
Custom made drive shaft (no vibration)
50' Ford 9" rear end with 4:10 gears & new fluid
Custom made ladder bar suspension with pan hard bar, coil springs, & shocks
New 50' Ford master cylinder (please note this is new and not a cheap rebuilt unit)
Caster angle set at 7 degrees
Tires are in very good condition with plenty of tread
Body
1937 Ford truck cab channeled 5" & chopped 6"
1952 Ford truck bed sectioned & chopped
All original patina left intact
Interior
50' Ford car dash sectioned
50' Ford speedometer (calibrated correctly)
Has working amp, oil, & temp gauges
Dash instruments are lighted when headlights are on
8,000rpm mini-tach
All steel floor with plenty of 1x1 bracing
Military ammo box as a glove box/arm rest
Custom made shifter with a real WWII style practice grenade as a shift knob (We sell these! Check out my other items!)
Has working door handles inside & out
1952 F2 steering wheel & column
Custom made bomber seats
Other
New 4 row high efficiency brass & copper radiator
New radiator cap
New 16" electric fan
Old school beer keg as a gas tank (15.5 gallon capacity)
Modified Model A headlights using 52 Ford truck inner headlight buckets and 54' Chevy truck headlight rings
Working turn signals (front & rear)
Old budwiser can as radiator overflow
All brand new wiring
New voltage regulator
Unmuffled lake style headers with 4" exit
Safety glass in front and rear windshields (not lexan which will wrap in the hot sun, turn foggy, and scratch easily)
Side view & rear view mirror
license plate light to stay legal
Locking rear storage compartment & battery box
Custom made tonue cover snaps in place over the motor if caught out in the rain
New fuel line & filter
New Battery
All new bulbs

This truck has a clear Indiana title. It is titled as a 52 F2 Ford truck because the F2 truck was used as a donor vehicle for major componets such as the front spindles, front brakes, backing plates, drums, steering box, bed & etc. The truck has already been state inspected and the title is in my name. It is a clear title that's ready to be signed over to the new owner. No hassles.