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K

ken in texas

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Back in my younger days,I built what I called a dunebuggyfrom a cut down 46 ford frame(very short wheelbase)and ford flathead and later on put in a high compression 327 chevy v8 with big valves(12.5 to 1).Lots of fun, when I could keep axel,s in it.Had it street legal, but used it on the farm a lot (irrigating, towing behind tractor when moving to another farm ect).When I had time ,would tow it to Canadian River to play in the sand.It was very fast, and a little bit dangerous.Question is , did any of you guys out there build anything like this, or anything that was fun and useful.Would like to hear from you. I still have it but now needs lots of work,plus high octane gas.
 
I had a '58 Plumouth, 4-door sedan. I removed the doors, and the front fenders, cut off the body behind the center pillar. Then moved the rear axle forward to where the rear seat would be. I welded rims together for dual tires on the back. It was powered by a '59 Chrysler 383 Golden Lion engine.
We ran it all around, off-road, over local farms, logging roads, etc. Great Fun, built with what I could scrounge. Do not have it anymore.
 
I grew up in the suburbs of DC in an area that was surrounded by gravel pits from the construction on 95. At that time, i was 13/14 years old, the area was infested with bugs- VW Bugs. You litterally could not walk down the street without passing a bug you could buy for $50. All of my friends and i had 'Baja Bugs'- VWs with the nose and tails cut off with sabre saws and with big tires- long before we had our permits. We'd push 'em through the neighborhood to the pits, and race the beejeezes out of them.
By the time I got my license, my buddies and i would drive through the neighborhoods in my mom's buick wagon with a towbar in the back, and stop anywhere we saw a bug with weeds growing around it. We'd make an offer and tow it home on the spot. Before i graduated HighSchool I had at least 9 VWs behind the house, and a pile of buggies for the pits. Tons of fun! I sold a 56 small window on a late model IRS pan with a Judson supercharger on it to pay for my first year of college...then built a Formula Vee and began roadracing. THOSE WERE THE DAYS!
 
I made a dune buggy out of a VW bus, a lot of work. It didn't work that good.Back in the early 60's old cars were easy to get. We would tare up the fields behind our farm the area we called the mesa. No one ever got hurt. If we got stuck there was always a tractor within walking distance. Yes, thoes were the days. Stan
 
Built several when i was a kid ( me and good friend ) the last one was the best. It was a wrecked 64 Chrysler Imperial that we cut down and and made like a super short pick-up out of. Had it almost street legal til florida came out with a vehicle inspection. The 8 inch flat plexiglas windshield, no doors or wipers kinda made it too much work to get leagal, heck except for the 4x4 plywood bed it didnt even have a body, but it sure would fly! It had a 413 ci v-8 that was either 340 or 360hp, str8 pipes and dual tires on the rear that that were constantly going up in smoke. I drove it to school for all my jr year then gave it to my buddy when I moved to the keys. Have no idea whatever happened to it but would love to build another one when I get moved to north florida. I just dont know what kinda cars are gonna be available to cut down these days...OCG
 
Fun post!
Had a few Bugs myself. A couple of Kombi busses too. Never built a rat rod out of anything but got a lot of miles and had a lot of fun swapping engines, fenders, adjusting valves and tuning carbs on them. Where was Ebay when I had all those parts?
Around here a gas heater was worth more than a whole bug. Could tell a few stories about parties and weekends and road trips and pretty hippy girls in them busses.
Maybe another time :)
 

Had a 65 bel-air chevy four door, cut the roof off and made a convertible out of it, tho it didnt convert :lol: had a 454 engine in it that I got from a junkyard, that thing was a blast, Funny any of us are still alive!!!!!!!!!!
 
About 15 years ago my Bil gave me a Wisconsin 2-cyl motor that was on a highway sander he junked. It had a hydraulic pump on it. I had a woodsplitter I built that ran off the tractor so I used it for that. I wanted to be able to run a press in my shop so I mounted it on an old Jeep frame so I could move it easier. I had a hydraulic motor and I rigged it to move under it's own power. It evolved into a unique ATV that I use to spray weeds in my fields among other things, besides running the splitter.
 
Yeah, the good old days. Jr. high, 1977, I had a '65 Impala 4dr. buggie. Took the body off, shortened the frame down to 87in. wheelbase, 230 six and a Powerglide moved back and lowered as far as possible, the driveshaft was 18in. cap to cap. Used the rear seat out of a Chevy 9-passenger wagon and a Caprice tiltwheel, 1 1/4 gas pipe for rollbars and slices out of a barrel for fenders. Had some big old truck headlights and a rear window out of an Adams grader for a windshield. Weighed 2200 with me and fuel. It couldn't cope with mud, sand or snow, but on dirt, gravel, or asphalt it was a gas!
 
Two '58 Chevy Impalas. One restored and hopped up as a boulevard crusier to pickup hot chicks over in town when was in high school, and the other was the parts car. Chopped the parts car off behind the back seat, no hood, front end or fenders, but it still had a stout 283, steering wheel, seats and doors and most of the roof, oh yeah, still had bald tires that went around. Had a clear plastic 5 gallon jug that was strapped to the backseat as a gas tank. Wasn't much of a dune buggy persay, but sure did use it as one. Yeeee Haaaa through the fields and stuff at night. Wasn't street legal, so that's why drove it at night with one headlight duct taped to the radiator so could kind've see where I was going, sort of. Wasn't much of a chick magnet like the other, but sure was fun. That thing would sure get airborne. Yeeee Haaaaa!!! It just finally caught on fire one night and stopped in its tracks. Sold the other eventually, but wish I hadn't.

To be young and stupid again instead of old and stupid.

Mark
 
About 1968 one of my buddies gave me a rolled 57 Chevy. I took the body off and went to a junkyard and bought a 41 Chevy truck cab that had the roll out windshield. Mounted it on the 57 frame and shortened the frame (including shortening the springs) untill the rear wheels were almost touching the cab. Very short driveshaft. Welded two wheels together using spacers with the center cut out of one and reversed where you mounted the tires from either side (four wheel drive on the rear axles). Finally welded the spider gears together for real four wheel drive on the back tires. We called it a "bush buggy" and it would go about anywhere with snow grips on the rear. The original six cylinder was good but my neighbor gave me a burned truck with a good 283 so I put it in. We had a lot of fun with it. Only broke one axle because of the welded spider gears. David..........
 
Well I have not personally build anything that exciting. However the previous owners of my property did. In the hedge at the back of the property are the remains of some fun looking lot cars. There is 40's ford frame with a Flathead v8, a VW beetle chassis with a rollbar, and a 4x4 IH scout with a v8 and bench seat. No bodies on any of them, just the basics to make it run. It looks like none of them have run in the last 30 years, but they must have been a blast when they worked.
 
Cut down 46 chevy delux, Chopped triumph herrold,
Bizarre scooters including a hauthorn bike powered by a maytag engine on an old bed frame, and 360cc chainsaw engines on gocarts. Massive fun Danger is a middle name) JimN
 
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