R.I.P. Woody Cat

I had started writing a post about the fact that Woody had made it through September and we celebrated his twenty-first birthday a couple weeks ago. In the past six months though he had become deaf as a stone. He was still quite talkative, same tone as ever. He wasn't plaintive, just a bit slower in cadence perhaps. But, that classy cat chassis had a bunch of miles on it.

Over the week-end Woodrow took sight into the nether-land and then launched himself from this mortal plane. Gone.

In cat years vs. human years he wound up at one-hundred and one years. That's a pretty good number, if you ask me. I would have liked a couple or few more though.....

Godspeed Woody.

R.R. Shifter #9 Wolf with a D.A.

Here's a sweet wolf's head shifter knob sporting the proverbial ducks ass hair-do.

I'm diggin' the three piece walnut steering wheel.

This Just In.....

A professor at the University of Mississippi was giving a lecture on 'Involuntary Muscular Contractions' to his first year medical students. Realizing this was not the most riveting subject, the professor decided to lighten the mood slightly.

He pointed to a young woman in the front row and said, "Do you know what your ass hole is doing while you're having an orgasm?"

She replied, "Probably riding motorcycles with his buddies."

R.R. Shifter #8 Studebaker

My buddy Big Terry's Studebaker from out Le Guardo way.....he's not 'fraid to cross the river.

This particular rat rod has a huge in-line eight-cylinder Buick power plant. Tha proverbial STR8 8.

R.R. Shifter #7 Flintlock

I couldn't really tell what caliber this is. I'm guessing the same caliber as the round serving as the key-ring fob.

Wouldn't it be interesting that if you pulled that set-screw off of the back of the front stock, then pulled the whole assembly barrel first off the shaft of the tranny and loaded your key-fob round that you'd have a working heater! Kinda' like a Barney Fife rat rod shifter.

I'm just sayin'.....

R.R. Shifter #6 Bulldog

The Mack Truck bulldog as shifter with an absolutely killer machined billet aluminum alloy steering wheel. Aluminum alloy, yum yum. Check out the cool steering column bracing and bearings.

R.R. Shifter #5

Spud wrench anyone? Check out the door handle. Notice that there is no window crank. Heck, I'm betting that there's no windows. Some of these rat rods are akin to being on a motorbike ride as far as passenger amenities go.

R.R. Shifter #4

Sometimes, I suppose, that instead of it being all about the shifter it becomes more about the steering wheel.....

R.R. Shifter #3 Mr. Microphone

The roots of real hot-rod culture can be based on many soundtracks. But, the influence of Rockabilly can-not be denied.

The King of the Pelvic thrust (phallic) must be included as someone who had much feel for the Rockabilly thing, and he might have used a shifter like this one at the Gospel that is Sun Studio in Memphis.....Hound Dawg to you all, too.

Rat Rod Shifter #2

Happy Monday.

So, we go from the prior shifter that obviously had a lot of thought, alloy aluminum, and machining involved, to this shifter. This poor guy just ain't made up his mind yet and he's just gonna' go with a five-sixteenths nut for now. Not very phallic, really. But I'll bet it's hell on your palm during those double de-clutch moves.....

(click image to enlarge)

Patrese and Wife - subtitled

Retired Formula One Grand Prix driver Riccardo Patrese takes his wife round on a lap of the Jerez F1 circuit in a Honda.....turn your speakers down a bit. She gets cranked up about the 2 minute mark, watch how big her eyes get. And, notice how calm he is. Those loud vibrating noises are the rumble strips.

A Rat Rod Shifter a Day

After the rat-rod (r.r.) show this past Saturday I was talking to a friend and mentioned that I'd found myself intrigued with the creative ways that r.r. guy's (and girl's too) topped off their shifters in their rods (no pun intended. Really). Didn't matter whether they were column or stick-shifts. Some very fun stuff, questionable welding.

My friend didn't even take a breath, she said "Shifters, yeah phallic symbols." Bam, I had been psych couched in the length of time it takes a top-fuel guy to side-step the clutch. She's such a nut.

We might as well start here after that introduction. Here's pic number 64 on the flash drive, Rat Rod Shifter Number One on your television dial.....

(click to enlarge)

Emblem Ambivalence

Ambivalence, a noun , the definition as per the Webster Encyclopedic Dictionary of The English Language...

"Co-resistant of contradictory feelings about a particular person, object, or action."

This rat-rod had several marque badges attached to it. Pontiac, Nash (and no, that does not stand for Fearless) and another badge that Sam and I can't remember. It was a very ambivalent car as to it's true lineage. On the plus side, I think styling wise that this car could just as easily have been labeled with G A R or Chris Craft (look 'em up, seriously) marine emblems. Suicide doors on today's rod too kids, classy, but subdued. Well turned out. Style.

This vehicle's personnel area's were split by two distinct cockpits. They both had their own windshields, some shared controls, and complete gauge clusters, on their separate dashes.

According to Sam, "Two cars worth of dashboards, that's a way cool car."

Word.