The Dick Flint 1929 Ford Roadster: Build Your Own Track Grille Nose

One of the most revered hot rods of the 1950's was the famous Dick Flint Roadster. A Fire-engine Red 1929 Ford, it possessed two of the standard-bearers in custom rodding design. One was the 1932 Auburn dash panel...

And the other was that front end. That beautiful piece of speed sculpture dubbed the "track nose".

Without it, it's just another sharp, cool jalopy from that era, but with it, it's a Hot Rod Magazine cover gal, and just recently, the newly-auctioned record-setter (it just sold for over half-a-million dollars at the last SRM Auction).

So unique, and wondrous was this nose-job, that at least two national magazines gave you step-by-step instructions on their own variations of this design, and, for the first time ever, here are those instructions. 

So pick up the torch, refill the Acetylene tanks, and get ready to turn your Model A into an A+!

The first article is from Rodding & Re-Styling, 1956, and the one below it is from the Custom Handbook #5, 1962. Enjoy!

 

Cover Art 1935 Automobile Trade Journal

1942 Harley Davidson Speedometer in 1936 Ford Hot Rod Dash

From Hop Up Magazine, January, 1952

One of the joys of looking through vintage hot rod magazines is seeing the free-style attitude that so many builders possessed in hot rod and racing's Golden Era of the 1950's.

"If it fits, works, and looks cool, let's do it," was the prevalent stance back then, and perfectly exemplified in this dash starring in a 1936 Ford roadster. Matched with a full-run of added Stewart Warner gauges, this centerpiece speedometer from an early-1940's Harley motorcycle adds just the right unique touch to make this instrument panel stand out from it's brethren.

1942 Military HD (picture courtesy of Just A Car Guy blog)

Here's Some Random Cool 1960's Drag Racing And Stock Car Pictures

Vintage 1938 Delahaye French Advertisement Art

1952 CYCLE Magazine: A Year Of Covers

Lucille Pieti, Chrysler's "Most Beautiful Engineer" In 1953

Lucille Pieti was a brilliant, beautiful engineer for Chrysler, who, because of the the tenor of the times, was trotted out by Chrysler as if she were a trained show-pony, with patronizing gibes about recipes and dresses thrown in with compliments on her brain-power.

She was the first female at her college to get a Mechanical Engineering Degree (one of the 0.17% of those who were women nationwide awarded degrees in that field), and graduated with classmates who painted her drill-press pink and made jokes at her expense. She tied in with Chrysler early-on, and that determination paid off with a position after her schooling.

Unfortunately, she tired of being "That Gal in a Guy Job" and quit in 1955. She eventually returned to the field many years later, and lived a long and productive life, passing in 2011.

Here's an interesting feature on Lucille, and the difficulties she dealt with living in a very different world than the one we do today... Chrysler’s “Most Beautiful Engineer,” and the industry’s forgotten sexist history, By Justin Hyde

1969 Ford Mustang Fastback 427 Drag Car Launch Shot

Sam Auxier 1969 Ford Mustang 427

Don't Run Over The Damn Kids! 1920's Connecticut Public Service Message

This seems like an ad for some new evil sporting event.