Tin Man gets a new Heart

This morning, Chris Parese and I loaded the Pickle onto a car hauler that he was able to line up for me. It was off to the home of Ron Deneke of Ron'sJustChevys. Just when I thought I had people figured out, someone goes and surprises the hell out of me. During a previous conversation with Ron, I had mentioned to Ron that the Pickle was a project with my parents and that not only the car, but the project itself, had a lot of sentimental value to me. So Ron surprised me and said he would measure everything out, weld it all in with a mock engine then pull it all out. He said he wanted me and my parents to be able to drop the motor and tranny in ourselves, so that it was still "our" project. Unbelievable. My pansy-ass had tears in my eyes. Needless to say, Ron has a life-long customer in me. Here are just a couple of pictures as it was dropped off at Ron's house.

Cart Before the Horse

I got some cool stuff for Christmas. Granted, they are a little premature since the Pickle is not even running. But I am still excited.

I got my shifter knob. It was a gift from my parents when we went to the Good Guys car show in Phoenix last November. It is a drag racer with a German army helmet and some old school breathing/fire gear.

My brother, Matt, is an amazing painter. He painted this miniature of Wyatt Earp for me. He won second place his first time out in a huge modeling show in California.

So Matt already has some cool ideas for the knob.

Additionally, I got a necker knob, suicide knob, or Brody knob...whatever you want to call it.

Here in Phoenix, back in the 50's and 60's, there was a Bob's Big Boy at Central Avenue and Thomas Road. Cruisers used to start at the Phoenix Public Library at Central and McDowell Road. They would cruise northbound on Central. Just past Encanto Boulevard the curb lane traffic used to come to a stand still as the cruisers patiently waited their turn to pull into the parking lot of the Bob's Big Boy. Once in the parking lot, they would slowly drive through to see and be seen. Then it was out the other side and southbound on Central towards the library parking lot, which was the turn-around point. So to commemorate those days, I got the Bob's necker knob.

Front Clip Frenzy

We had to remove the front clip to make room for the new engine. With my lack of even a basic knowledge of how the front end was attached to the frame and body, this was a daunting task to say the least. We took a lot of photos and tried to keep as much ot the interior structure together as we could (a great idea by Dad).


Numerous bolts and screws were so old and/or rusted that they had to be cut out or ground out.

But ultimately we were successful. I am just not sure where to put all of the parts. Thank God I have an understanding wife. Luckily, her hobby includes showing Great Danes, which means we have four Great Danes. They are all inside dogs and they take turns sleeping in our bed with us. So, although it is not needed, it provides me with a little bargaining power.


So we were able to get the front clip off. We took our time with some putty knives and screwdrivers to try to get the 58 years of road grime, grease, and God-knows-what-all from the suspension and undercarriage.


We started out early in the morning, and when it was all done, it made for a long day.

Some Vintage Slide Shows I Put Together...

Phoenix
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And some 50's Hot Rod and Customs Shots
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