The Brotherhood of the Rusty Nuts

Bulgarian Mopars

2009-07-17T13:33:00.003-04:00

Recently stumbled across this Bulgarian classic Mopar web site. Spied a couple of odd cars that really got my attention.

http://classiccars.zonebg.com/Bulgarien/Konkretno/amgalch.html

I Can See... I Can See!

2009-06-29T22:02:00.005-04:00

It only took me a year but yeah, I finally got some fluorescent fixtures (thanks Mark) installed in the garage. You know, it's a lot easier to work when you can actually see what you're doing.

Let there be light!

Hemi Ford

2009-06-23T20:04:00.006-04:00

Almost makes coming to work worthwhile to see this, though rat rods really aren't my thing. This motor though, it seriously needs to go into a real car. Something with big ole' Virgil Exner fins on it I'm thinking.

He could always replace it with a 225 Slant Six.

Miss Belvedere - An Update

2009-06-09T14:32:00.006-04:00

Miss Belvedere, Tulsa Oklahoma's entombed 1957 Belvedere Sport Coupe that was unearthed in 2007 is still in New Jersey undergoing stabilization work. Accurate reports on her progress have been hard to come by so I was pleased when I came across this update over at the Hemmings blog (click on the 1st photo to go there, and be sure to listen to the MP3 interview with Dwight Foster that's included in the article).

edit 6/23 - additional photos

Miss Belvedere - history and DVD

Stand. And Deliver.

2009-06-06T22:24:00.002-04:00

Some assembly required!

Bueller.... Bueller.... Bueller

2009-06-05T13:44:00.005-04:00

We caught Ferris Bueller's Day Off at the local mall when it was first released. Summer of '86. Great, typical eighties fare. And Funny. Still. I've got an ancient, original VHS copy that I watch every so often... it takes me back. A different time. A different attitude. A different life.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Week 57

2009-05-31T22:03:00.000-04:00

Drive-In

2009-05-31T12:42:00.004-04:00

Was forced to sit through the Night at the Museum (sequel) so that I could finally get to see the new Trek movie. And although there were several things that bothered me, as a child of the original series I have to admit that overall I wasn't disappointed in the least.

Week 55

2009-05-16T17:09:00.005-04:00

Back to work! Set out today to remove the passenger side doors and hardware. Which I accomplished. They're in really nice shape with only some minor rot at the bottom which will be easy to patch. Taking the doors off would be an easy enough task if not for the door travel limiter, which is riveted on one end (a feature unique to the '57 model year, the 58s having a different setup from what I understand) and requires grinding to remove. It's time consuming since space is tight and I wanted to make sure I was only grinding the rivet and not it's mounting bracket. I also had to rassle with the door hardware... both the window crank as well as the opener took a lot of coaxing to remove (first time since the car was built no doubt). Again, a slow process as I didn't want to break them. After it was all said and done though I got them all off, intact. Whew.

Trains

2009-05-13T07:20:00.001-04:00

Not automobile related but I needed to post these somewhere - and since locomotives have internal combustion engines and wheels I figured I could get away with it. And well, it's my blog. ;P

Taken with my cell phone camera from the rickety wooden overpass that's near our home, these are the antithesis of contemporary rail photography. My answer to certain "railfan" photography websites that accept only the most perfectly lit and composed shot. Folks who've managed to elevate the word "uptight" to whole new levels. *heh*

365 !

2009-04-26T16:38:00.004-04:00

No Explanation Necessary

2009-04-22T01:21:00.002-04:00

'Nudder Update

2009-04-21T15:56:00.006-04:00

New look for the blog. Whaddya think!

Quick Update

2009-04-21T11:35:00.002-04:00

Yeah... I'm lazy. ;)

I am making a parts run this Saturday. Hoping to snag a drivers door and a couple of body panels to replace the rotted out areas on Elizabeth. I'll have more news on that this weekend.

Visions

2009-04-09T20:05:00.001-04:00

Or hallucinations! This freshly Photoshopped pic of a '57 4dr sedan will give you a pretty good idea of what I hope Elizabeth will come out looking like when this is all over. Missing are the wings of course, and I'll be replacing the stock grill emblem with the '58 "V"... but, well you get the idea.

Oh, yeah. The decision has been made to keep her outer appearance (including side trim and taillights) more or less stock '57 Belvedere. I've spent several weeks going over photos of both '57s and '58s, from every angle and the more I think about it the more I find myself preferring that look. Two decisions remain: whether or not to paint the front lower grill the body color or stock silver, and whether of not I'm going to paint the area below the rear deck lid, in between the taillights white as the factory did for the Belvedere or the body color.

More on this later.

Year One

2009-03-23T11:14:00.002-04:00

It's been a year since I found Elizabeth, and made the deal to bring her home from Georgia. Thanks Pete!

If you're new to my blog or have not had the opportunity to do so yet, take a few moments and scroll down through my entries form the past year. Informative, and comical. ;)

Stay tuned. More hilarity to come!

Thinking Warm Thoughts

2009-03-01T01:45:00.003-05:00

Supposed to warm into the sixties next weekend!

Miami Beach, Florida 1962
time to break out those old Gleason records!

Mid-Winter update

2009-02-09T18:16:00.002-05:00

Unheated garage = won't be much news until Spring arrives to warm things up around here. I did stop by Saturday to check in and was relieved to see that the garage had suffered no damage from the ice storm, and that everything was just as I left it. Whew!

Also, the blog's a year old this month!

The Official Yearly "I Hate Winter" Post

2009-01-30T16:27:00.005-05:00

Haven't been to the garage in weeks as January has been brutally cold, at least for us. Then, to make matters worse, Mother Nature decided to give us a severe beating this week in the form of a day and a half worth of freezing rain. The photos tell the tale.

We've been without power since 4am Wednesday.

I'm ready for Spring now. *8-(

More 6.1L Hemi pictures

2009-01-09T23:04:00.006-05:00

I have been playing around with Picasa and wanted to share the photo album I made of the the pictures I took of the 6.1L Hemi.

Hemi Rat Rod

2009-01-08T20:01:00.004-05:00

This is one sweet Rat Rod. I found it surfing YouTube videos. When the 6 (yes 6) strombergs come to life, your hair will stand on end. Enjoy!

6.1L Hemi Head

2009-01-07T19:51:00.003-05:00

Pictures of the 6.1L Hemi head. I am in the process of obtaining the pictures of the engine when my grandfather obtained it. Enjoy!

Week 36

2009-01-04T13:38:00.003-05:00

No major earth shattering news this week - spent some time Saturday reorganizing the garage and moving things around to make room for the engine stand I plan to purchase before the end of the month. I would have had it already but it's sold out at my store of choice. Picked myself up a handy-dandy "service cart" instead which is already stocked with my tool boxes and air tools and the whole thing fits nicely under the workbench. When your shop is as small as mine you gotta make sure you put every inch to good use.

Still working on getting Elizabeth's right side doors off. Got all the interior door trim removed, along with the quarter glass behind the rear door. If the weather cooperates next weekend I should be able to finish up.

Week 35

2008-12-27T18:38:00.005-05:00

Seventy plus degrees out today. Not too shabby for December 27th and a perfect day to be down at the garage. The pictures tell the tale.

Next week I'll work on the other side. :)

2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8

2008-12-26T12:24:00.005-05:00

Here's a video to go with Steve's Friday night "Late Night Ramblings" post featuring the car that had that awesome motor in it.

click here

And while you're at it, go visit the Dodge Challenger page over on YouTube too.