There might be many reasons to worry about the future of this
great hobby. Shortsighted government regulations, high fuel prices and shortage of actual old tin to work on come to mind.
     But thanks to dudes like Langford, B.C.’s Blair Dowsley and Dave Hargraves, a disinterested younger segment is not one of them. Members of a small club in Victoria, B.C. called The Pushers, Dowsley and Hargraves have been into old cars since they were in high school. More than a decade later it’s clear that passion still exists.
     Dowsley’s Freaky Tiki ’29 Model A sedan and Hargrave’s ’36 Chevy pickup are definitely old school, but  they’re not exactly what they seem.
     They’re not rat rods, though that’s what both wanted to build when they undertook these projects more than three years ago. “Everything mechanical is new, every nut and bolt,” says Hargraves. It’s obvious that the pair were very clear on the concepts they wanted and meticulous in fulfilling them.
     Let’s start with Hargraves’ Chevy pickup. Discovered in a farmer’s field and purchased for $200 it supplanted a ’35 Dodge pickup that Hargrave already owned. “The ’36 was in better shape and it fit what I wanted to do. I knew the look I was after  from the start,” says Hargraves, who actually restores vintage Ferraris and Mercedes at his day job. “But it was supposed to be a little greasier. Something I could build in a couple of months for $5,000.” By his own account two years, two girlfriends and $40,000 later he has this slick ’36 Chevy pickup.
     The foundation of this trick truck is an owner built chassis constructed with 2x4 square boxed tubing. It was tapered down to resemble a Model A chassis, z’d four inches up front and kicked up 14 inches out back. The rear suspension is a parallel leaf spring setup supporting a 1960s Ford Bronco posi-9-inch with 3:55 gears. Up front is a 1940 Ford transverse leaf setup, with a 4-inch dropped I-beam axle and owner-built and drilled radius rods. A ’69 Dodge Dart steering box was used, but after some ass-backwards steering signals, the guts had to be replaced by gears from a 1962 GMC truck. “They were both Saginaw boxes, but the worm gear teeth were cut differently,” says Hargraves. The wheels are also ’40 Ford, but the rears had the centres cut out and set back deeper.
     The cab was chopped 7 1/2 inches and channelled 10 inches in the front and seven inches in the back to give it an aggressive rake. The box is stock, but has two feet removed and the front is curved to mesh with the cab. The tailgate was owner built. The firewall is also custom built. The grille is a ’36 Ford truck unit but it’s been cut in half and sectioned to resemble a ’33 Ford car grille. Headlights are ’35 Ford with taillights coming from a 1957 Austin Healey. The car is painted with black lacquer primer. Victoria, B.C.’s Christian Head gets credit for the nifty pinstriping both outside and inside the ’36 Chevy. The interior sports ’51 Bedford delivery van seats covered in black and white vinyl. Second World War airplane seatbelts keep you’re butt planted during maneuvers. Tom Stegar — door panels — and Colin at Top Stitch — seats — get credit for the interior work.
     To motivate the ’36 Chevy Hargraves started with a ’62 Chevy 327 fuel injected Corvette motor with camel hump heads. The fuel injection unit was replaced by a ’60s vintage Edelbrock tri-carb intake topped by a trio of Rochesters. Compression is 10-1, with Pink rods and a nodular steel crank.  The 327 is mated to a Muncie 4-speed. Hargraves figures the engine puts out 400 HP and that the car weighs in at about 2,000 pounds.  Yep, it goes like hell.
    While he likes the performance, Hargraves says it’s the truck’s attitude he likes best. “I think it looks evil,” he says. “It looks mean even when it’s not moving.”
    That’s the kind of evil we can all embrace.