Sneak Peak

New Video Coming Soon

The suspense is terrible. I hope it'll last.

Secret Santa

Best "Secret Santa" gift ever?

Contents:
- 3 Ninja Stealth Black Throwing Knives
- Carrying case with belt loop
- Package of groundhog targets (life sized)
- "Knife and Tomahawk Throwing" by Harry McEvoy

Aaaaaand it's on the road

Just in time for winter. Ah, who am I kidding? I at least got to get some good drives in. May actually take it out again on Sunday if it's supposed to be 45 and sunny, and the earlier week's rain has (hopefully) washed all the salt off the roads.

Here are some pictures from a professional photo shoot. Apparently it's going to be in a restoration/hot rod magazine. I'll believe it when I see it, but whatever. At some point I'll shoot a video on my flip cam and then you can all cream in your jeans when you see me driving it down the road.

Enjoy!

Oh, so naughty!

Totally lucked out and found Scott Co plates from '47.

Probably my favorite picture of the shoot.

Pay no attention to the missing grille bars. I have them, just haven't put em on.

Note the gun in the gun rack. Must be the only "gangsta" rolling in a '47 IH.

Pay no attention to the missing hub cap.

Good shot of the antiqued lettering we put on it. Note the 5 digit phone number.

And blonds dig it too.

Note the chopped up fenders in the bed.

More From The Garage...

Slowly but surely we're keeping at the restoration. Ordering parts, cleaning old stuff up, telling lies, and drinking a few beers. At this point my mechanical skills are dubious at best, but my trouble-light holding is still on point. Here are some more photos:

Click on the pictures for hi-res views. YOWZA!

305 Chevy small block engine

Freshly degreased and powerwashed. To give the motor a unique look, we decided to put International Harvester valve covers over the top of the Chevy ones.

Custom made motor mount, bottle of Dew.

Well you can't put a Chevy Orange motor in an International, can you? We opted for "International Harvester Red". Sandblasted the old valve covers. Painted up nice! We'll put dummy bolts in the holes to make it look like it's bolted into the heads.

Dummy breathers just to give it a racing engine look. Hoping it will throw people off. Painted the intake a gun metal gray to offset the red and accent the chrome. Will do a chrome air filter, too.

Now, if it was just installed...

.

Down at Checkered Past

Okay, we're back. Got the ol' binder down to the shop. We got the hood off before I could snap a pic, so you'll just have to imagine it.

A much higher res picture here. You can get a sense for the condition. If you click for a bigger pick you can see a pretty cool Studebaker rat rod in the background.

The flathead, sans intake and exhaust manifolds. Engine plate shown on the firewall. 214 cubic inch, rated at 73 horsepower. RAWR!

Pay no attention to the rusty running board. It never did anything to you.

Almost all the hoist can handle. Had to cut the cross member where it attached to the back of the motor. It had to go anyway.

Almost...

Aaaaand, it's out.

Remarkably lighter!

Complete with a filthy transmission. We kept the gear shift stick and will put it on the new transmission. Also will reuse the original horn.

A couple of lonely dudes...

1947 KB-2 International Restoration

Welcome back, kiddies. What a better way to rejuvenate my blog than with a self-serving post about restoring an old truck? I encourage you to follow along while I use big words to sound like I know what I'm talking about -- or you know, just look at the pictures.

I got this beast in October, and after towing it home from Lynnville, IA, it has sat idle in my garage. Not running. Not having brakes. With a broken rear spring. But goddamnit, the thing was mine, and I'd always wanted an old truck. As soon as it was towed home, the wife just looked at it, smiled, and shook her head. Her only talk of the truck usually involves the words "Sanford" and "Son" - most typically in that order.

Now I can hear you asking yourself, "what does he know about working on cars?". I don't know much, but I'm willing to do what I can and hopefully learn some stuff along the way. (Also a little known fact: in 1997 I was voted the best Trouble Light holder in three counties). I realize it's now March and it's been five months since the Craigslist purchase. It has given me plenty of opportunities to sit in my garage and stare at it while I drink High Lifes and smoke cigarettes. Sometimes I even sit in it and make VROOM VROOM noises. The horn still works, so I'd frequently honk it when imaginary women waved at me as I drove past them.

The truck was all original when I got it (oops, just found out someone put a different rear end on it). The original flathead engine, drum brakes, wood bed, chain mounted tailgate, crank out windshield. It wasn't without some customizations though - it has a friggin' gun rack in the back window. I'll say again, IT HAS A FRIGGIN GUN RACK IN THE BACK WINDOW.

Long story short, the original engine is somewhat close to running. It needs some valve work done and new rings. Much to the chagrin of many old schoolers, I've decided to put a small block Chevy engine in it. I have my reasons and you have yours, but ultimately the SBC makes more sense for me. I'm saving all of the old stuff, so hopefully a guy who's into the original stuff can put it to good use.

Specs: 1947 KB-2 International Harvester pickup, GRD-214 flathead six motor, three speed transmission on the floor, heavy duty Knox box

Well, here are some pics. I apologize for the quality. Most are taken with my crappy cell phone. Some are taken with my camera, and I'll be trying to use that from now on. Without further banter, here they are:
The front end is really why I bought this. It's a '47, but IHC was still doing a pre-War body style. Notice the pointy front end and all the chrome grillework. I have all the parts that are missing.

The aforementioned "Knox" box. It was an upgraded box, apparently with heavier gauge steel.

Big fenders!

Fairly rust-free considering the age. It helps that it sat many years in a barn. Bonus part: the engine was covered in coon/cat shit, the glove box was literally a mouse nest. I guess the gun rack failed to scare them off.

Until next time, when we'll have it in Checkered Past's hot rod shop....


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Sup, doods?

Hey! Check it out!

http://www.dalesqc.com

http://www.exileonclark.com/2011/01/two-minutes-of-hate-2011-cubs-higher.html

Holla at you later!

Sr. Eternal Stench

Happy Anniversary to Mrs. Eternal Stench!!

special thanks to Daft Funk for the design

Oh, So Close!

6" separated me from the likes of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Joe Kelly. It was my home course of Highland Springs, and I was playing with the Roboner and a few Rolls. A windy par 3 that had me wishing I hadn't lost my 9 iron, I selected "The Ocho" and gave it a nice, easy swing. I landed about 15 feet from the hole and the ball looked like it had eyes for the hole. Too bad it didn't.

Chicago Hawkeyes

Not sure if any of you went to the the Hawkeye football game in Soldier's Field a few years back. The whole place was a sea of yellow. It was a pretty awesome experience, aside from sitting in the north end zone, where we were unable to escape the hot, August sun and got a nice sunburn for our troubles.

Word on the street is that Iowa is returning to Soldier's Field once again to take on Northern Illinois. First game of the season in 2012. I'm definitely going back. I even co-wrote a recap of the experience with fellow TMS bartender and surly old Jew, Chaim Witz. You can vicariously experience the whole thing again here.

Here's your chance to run into all of those frat boys from Iowa City that you just loved. Where else will you ever have a chance to start telling obnoxious stories of their pasts, in front of their wives/girlfriends no less, about their college exploits of cronyism, sodomizing, and cheating on tests. Trust me, I bet all of those Pikes and Sig Eps will just LOVE that shit. ("Hey man, I bet you have your paddle hanging on your wall in the basement, right?! Yeah!! GRRR! JAGER BOMBS!!")

Editor's Note: even though that Herky picture is from the 80's or 90's, you gotta admit that it's killer!