May 2003 Volume 21 Number 5

Transcription

1 May 2003 Volume 21 Number 5 Best of Show at the 2003 Knott s Berry Farm show went to Rich Anderson of the Shell Valley Company for the beautiful Teal colored 427 Cobra replica shown above. ACTIVITY NOTICE May 18, Brunch & Wine tasting event by Steve Cameron. (See page 4) May 31 June 1, Walnut Creek Art & Wine Fest. Show your car (Page 9) June 27-29, Medford Mingle. Contact Chuck Maddux 707/

2 Page 2 NCKCC News - May 2003 THE APRIL 19th PARTY AT CAMERON S By Steve Cameron Has this been a crazy winter, or what? It seems that no matter what the weather forecasters predict, the skies and winds were determined to prove them wrong. With this unpredictability in mind, we crossed our fingers and chose April 19 for our annual Coming Out party. The day before Easter wasn t the best date for many people, but we were constrained by the weather and other competing events such as the April AHA Show. were able to enjoy tri-tip sandwiches, delicious salads and splendid deserts out on the deck by the pool. We were treated to great stories and saw some impressive pictures of the Stager s, soon to be completed Mercedes 500K. Other cars at the show included the Hance s Mercedes 500K, the Wallters Mercedes 500K and the Cameron s Tomahawk. Ed. note: A big thank you to Steve and Pam for hosting this nice event. Unlike our party two years ago, this time we lucked out and placed the party on one of the few weekends this spring that benefited from clear skies and warm weather. Our turnout was a cozy group that included recent members, Gene and Valerie Stager, new member of the day, Steve Crist, along with current members Harley Koonz, Tom and Irene Wallters, Jim and Kathleen Standiford, Vern and Carol Hance, and Steve and Pam Cameron. We had a few guests including Michael Beaucage from nearby Davis, his brother-in-law, Art Grandy from London, and Tomahawk builder, Rory Bateman Above: Tom Walters, Harlie Koontz, Carol Hance and Jim Standiford share some ideas. Below: Gene & Valarie Stager discuss kit cars with new member Steve Crist. With the great weather, we

3 NCKCC News - May 2003 Page 3 "FUN UNDER THE SUN" (maybe someday!) By Gary O Connor Once again I aimed the Woodster south for the Association of Handcrafted Automobile's yearly show at Knott's Berry Farm, although I was a bit nervous this year. The weather forecasts were for rain, rain and more rain. I had prepaid our admission, two Saturday night dinners and Knott's tickets and didn't want to just throw that money away so Ian and I left Friday morning under cloudy skies. The trip was quite pleasant as the clouds kept the temps moderate, my newly built teardrop trailer towed nicely and the predicted rain never fell. A quick trip to the 'quarter car wash' (well, they USED to be a quarter!) cleaned 500 miles of grit and oil off. Saturday morning Ian assisted in prepping the car for the show which is free and held in Knott's north parking lot. Again this year cloudy weather kept some participant's car in the garage and some spectators home, but the predicted rain never fell. also installed a little hand-powered windshield wiper I'd fabbed up Thursday night 'just in case'. At the awards we were fortunate to win first in "Special Interest" and "Most Unique", but the skies continued to get darker. Once on the road we were able to dodge the ugliest clouds and I hoped we were going to make it out dry......then we hit the start of the Grapevine. The first sprinkles weren't bad and I thought if this is all its going to be we'll be fine. Well, it wasn't and we weren't. As we went higher the rain intensified until it was a full fledged downpour. Why do their predictions have to be accurate NOW?? I was busier than a one armed paper hanger trying to wipe the backside of the windshield with a towel and flip my little wiper. As long as it was just 'raining' it was okay but when it poured I was fighting a losing battle and since there are no bridges to sit under we soldiered on. The truckers (Continued on Page 9) Sunday morning was somewhat sunny and absent was the previous night's predicted couple inches of rain. As we packed up to go home the clouds got a bit darker, so I got out the duct tape and sealed the ends and edges of the wood. I also wrapped the trailer in a tarp since its surface is just masonite for now. I

4 Page 4 NCKCC News - May 2003 MAY 18 CRUISE, BRUNCH & WINE TASTING By Steve Cameron May is the month of warm days, mild weather and great top-down driving. After a terrific time last year, we decided to repeat our Delta Cruise and combine wine tasting with an outstanding champagne brunch. Our cruise will start out Sunday morning from Antioch, with stops at Ryde and Clarksburg. We will begin the cruise at precisely 9:45 a.m. from the Burger King parking lot located at 2440 Mahogany Way in Antioch. It is a brief 30 mile drive up the Sacramento River to our first stop. Just three miles south of Walnut Grove, on scenic Highway 160, on the orchardlined banks of the Sacramento River we will find the Ryde Hotel. Perched like a jewel on the river, the inviting peach-tone facade of the hotel literally stops traffic. The Art Deco motif and dramatic front walkway reveal twin patios fashioned with black umbrellas for al fresco dining. The hotel was built in 1927 at the peak of the prohibition era. As an opulent riverboat way station, complete with a beauty salon and barbershop, it was also rumored to be a bordello. The lower level was a speakeasy, offering bootleg whiskey and jazz to a clientele in search of a good time. There was even a trap door in the floor that allegedly opened to reveal a tunnel running under the road to a hidden doorway at the river s edge. It s not difficult to imagine the type of nocturnal activities that secret passageway has seen. Speculation mixed with fact generated a certain cachet among that era s privileged. The Ryde attracted celebrities of all types from presidents and politicians to movie stars and mobsters. In later years the Hotel became a boarding house for the men and women who built the Delta levees and pioneered the area s thriving agricultural industry. Over time, the Ryde experienced many incarnations and owners, including the Lon Chaney, Jr. family marked a Renaissance for this historical property. Under the direction of new owners, the Hotel resumed its original name and has undergone a major renovation. Of course we are headed to the Hotel for a magnificent 11:00 a.m. Sunday brunch with champagne. After the brunch, we continue up Highway 160 to Clarksburg for wine tasting at Bogle Vineyards. The brunch is only $28 (tax and tip included) and always sells out during the peak morning hours. Fortunately, we were able to secure reservations for the first 20 people that wish to attend. These slots will be awarded on a first come first serve basis. Since I must guarantee the reservations, please don t reserve a spot unless you know you will attend. I must have a final commitment by 8:00 p.m. on May 14. You can call me at (916) or me at nckcc@usa.com.

5 NCKCC News - May 2003 Page 5 Directions for the Brunch: Burger King in Antioch: Take I-680 to the Highway 4 East turn-off at Concord. Take the Somersville Road North exit. Head North (right) on Somersville Road, then make a right onto Mahogany Way. To the Ryde Hotel (14340 Highway 160, Walnut Grove, CA 95690, (916) RYDE): From Somersville Road, enter Highway 4 heading East toward Stockton. Merge onto Highway 160 heading North, over the bridge. Continue on Highway 160 past the towns of Rio Vista and Isleton. We will start on the East side of the river and cross to the West side after the passing Isleton. The Ryde Hotel is on the left. If you end up in Walnut Grove, you went too far. To Bogle Vineyards (37783 County Road 144, Clarksburg, CA 95612): If you wish, you can meet up with us at the Ryde Hotel. Continue in a northerly direction on Highway 160 from the Hotel, past Walnut Grove, Hood and Courtland. Stay on the West side of the river (South River Road). Turn Left on County Road 142 for a little over a mile, then turn right on County Road 144 for another mile. If you get lost, call (916) LATEST CHANGE - SAN LEANDRO SHOW DATE Sorry for the confusion, but we are back to September 6 & 7 for our show. Initially it looked like no one cared whether it was the first or second weekend after Labor Day - then some folks planning to attend the Cool September Days show in S. Tahoe discovered a conflict. So mark your calendar Sept. 6 & 7. NEW ACTIVITIES TO CONSIDER Chuck Honodel suggests an event in Tracy that he has entered the past 3- years and found enjoyable. It s the 17th Annual Bean Festival on August 2 & 3, On Saturday (10 am - 3 pm) there is a Poker Run and a BBQ costing $15. Sunday is a Show & Shine 8 am - 6 pm costing $20 ($30 for both - in advance) Chuck says the show is a streetside venue separate from, but close to, the other Festival activities. Sounds like a good place to promote our September show too. Call or the Editor for entry forms or call 209/ or 209/ for more details. Another idea from Jim Standiford is a tour of the NUMMI plant in Fremont, where Toyota Tacoma pickups and GM vehicles are assembled. This would be a 90 minute tour on Tues - Friday at either 10 am or 1 pm. Advance planing is necessary since they are already booked through June. Contact Carolina or the Editor if you are interested.

6 Page 6 NCKCC News - May 2003 CHRONICLES OF A HANDCRAFTED AUTOMOBILE By Joel Heinke Welcome back to my ramblings about the Ferrari 250 GTO project. One thing this project has taught me is to start thinking about three or four steps ahead of where I'm currently working. Since starting on the body plug, I've been working from the back of the car to the front. It came time to start on the roof and it was soon apparent that there was a need to have side window frames in place to build window openings and "A" pillars. To properly position the window frames, I needed to build door frames. To complete the door frame, I needed to determine positioning for the door skin. To position the door skin, the front fender surface needed to be built out. Bottom line, this months article is about building the passenger door frame and reshaping the front fender. I started on the door frame by making a trip to the local "U Pull It" junk yard. My objective was to find some sturdy, compact, self-contained door hinges. By selfcontained I mean the hinges have built in door stops and a spring mechanism to hold the door open when the car is parked on a sloped surface. many makes, foreign and domestic, I settled on a set of hinges from the back doors of a late 1980's 4 door Volvo. My reasoning was simple. Back doors are seldom used so these shouldn't be worn out, the hinges were self-contained and appeared very stout, and every year and model Volvo in the junk yard had the same hinges. Every other car in the place seemed to have a different hinge for every year and model. If I ever have the need to find replacements, I bet there's a decade worth of Volvos all with the same hinge setup. Shown above: The starting for a passenger side door frame. At this point, the door frame consists of a couple of hinges connected by tubing to a bear claw latch. After inspecting car door hinges on

7 NCKCC News - May 2003 Page 7 My plan for the door frame is to have a stout, but simple framework of tubing connecting hinges to the latch and positioned to provide additional side impact protection. I already had a horizontal roll cage tube in the lower door opening so I positioned the horizontal door tube much higher, above the latch and hinges. The doors won't have roll-up windows so they don't have to be hollow to accommodate a rolled down window like most car doors. Shown below: Fender with new fiberglass shell over the foam. The black horizontal slit just above the new fiberglass is a cut out to shorten the back portion by a half inch. Shown above: Passenger front fender covered with foam ready to be sanded to shape. The fender needed about an inch of foam in the lower area to give it the proper rounded appearance. After placing the door skin over the frame, it was apparent the front fender shape need to be finalized before the door skin could be positioned. The lower rocker panels on the front fenders had been lowered during initial body fitting in order to allow them to cover chassis tubes. During this lowering, some of the round shape went away. I added a rounded shape back into the fender using one inch thick rigid foam, sanding it to shape, and then covering it with fiberglass. During the process of re-shaping the fender, I also noticed the top of the fender where it met up with the door was too tall. On the GTO the maximum front fender height is just behind the front wheels and then they sloped slightly downward to the point where they flow into the door. The slope isn't great but it's definitely visible when viewed in profile. (Continued Page 8)

8 Page 8 NCKCC News - May 2003 (Continued from Page 7) I determined the height at the rearmost portion of the fender needed to be lowered by one half inch to provide the proper profile view. I cut a tapered slit about 22 inches long about 4 inches below the top of the fender along with an upward vertical cut in the middle of the fender. With a little bit of downward pressure, the fender now had a nice downward slope as it neared the door. I clamped it in place and glued it back together with fiberglass. Well that's it for this month. I had hoped to have the door skin mounted before month-end but didn't get that far. It's been a busy month at the Heinke household with two very active little boys, Easter egg hunts, and spring chores. I didn't think much progress was made this month until writing this article. Now that it's written down, it's apparent good progress was made. I can vouch that if it wasn't for this and the Kit Car magazine article, the Ferrari wouldn't be where it's at today. The need to have something to write about provides incentive to set and try to meet interim milestones for the project. These milestones make me find time for the project when I otherwise wouldn t. I suspect you might find similar incentives will help you keep steady progress on your projects. Maybe you don't meet all the milestones but the project will get done a lot faster than without some external stimulus. DUES ARE IN - 22 LOST MEMBERS Thanks to all of you have paid your $24 annual dues for I was afraid we would lose 38 members but a postcard reminder (instead of the April newsletter) brought the loss down to only 22 and maybe a few more will pay up. A new roster will be prepared and mailed about June with the newest membership list. WELCOME NEW MEMBERS April brought us four new members. Michael & Tirza Carr live in Milpitas, , and have a new finished Superformance Cobra powered by a 428 CJ engine. They are interested in all club activities and found us on the internet. Steve Crist lives in North Highlands, , and has a Jaguar XK120 powered by a Ford engine and manual tranny. He is intersted in selling his car in the near future. Norman Adams lives in Alhambra, CA, , and drives the Corvette based black Testarossa you have seen at our shows. You can now buy this car. (See For Sale section) Bob Pincus lives in Walnut Creek, , and drives a M-B SSK for which he would like to find a new home. (See For Sale section) Welcome Aboard to all of you!

9 NCKCC News - May 2003 Page 9 (Continued from Page 3) were very considerate of the idiot in the roadster and turned in far ahead when passing but most passenger cars would just douse us as they passed by and cut in front. I had to stay at about 40 MPH since that allowed us to stay somewhat dry while not 'outdriving my vision'. As we went down the north side of the Grapevine the rain started to subside but it continued and the cloud cover gave no indication of it letting up. We picked up speed (faster is drier) and passed Vern and Carol Hance twice as they cruised in the slow lane. It looked to me like Vern was having a few 'moisture control' problems of his own as he wiped the inside of the windows. Once on the flat and straight portion of I- 5 we could travel at 65, stay reasonably dry and my vision was no longer the problem, rather it was how long would my tape keep the innards of the body dry? After about 100 miles of steady moisture I was ready to call it quits. We stopped for dinner and the attendant at the adjoining gas station kindly let me park the car under the cover at the diesel pumps. As we ate I watched outside and the rain slowed to a drizzle. When we walked outside I could see that there was sunlight to the north!! We're goin' for it!!! The rest of the trip was uneventful (except for that piece of firewood in the middle of the lane "Maybe we're high enough to roll over it...thump THUMP!!!!!!...guess not!) I often wondered how I would deal with a serious rain storm and feared total delamination, but with the exception of one swelled strip and some varnish removal by the tape the car held up fine! Spending Monday in the sun made everything dry and happy!!!! There always seems to be an adventure out there waiting for all of us. Get out there and experience it. Y'know, if this 'car' thing was easy, everybody'd do it! ART & WINE FESTIVAL CAR SHOW 5/31 & 6/1 Once again we have been invited to show our cars at the Art & Wine Festival. This has become a tradition. We re located on a grassy knoll behind the main stage, and with potentially 40,000 people looking at our cars it certainly is a rewarding way to spend a day. Everyone receives a set of commemorative wine or beer glasses for being there and can enjoy a wide variety of food and spirits during the day. The dates and times are: May 31st & June 1st at Heather Farms in Walnut Creek from 10:00am to 4:30pm. Heather Farms is at Ygnacio Valley Blvd. and San Carlos Dr. Call Paul King to let him know whether you can make it Saturday, Sunday or both days or <aprhk@aol.com>.

10 Page 10 NCKCC News - May 2003 FOR SALE COBRA-. Registered 2001 Shelby <200 miles, smog exempt, Arntz styling, Butler quality. 351 Cleveland w/ 10 setback, Jag rear-end, 4-spd top-loader, Hurst shifter, H.D. half-shafts and strut assy. 52% wt on 12 Z-rated rear rubber, 10 rubber front. 6-piston 13 Wilwood brakes. Hood, trunk, doors molded inside & out. Finished eng. compt. Marty Krueger or mck427@msn.com (3/02) COBRA Ford power, Jag rear-end. Silver w/ black interior. $21,500 Call Bob Elster (1/02) COBRA/VW KIT Snake body fits on your 3 shortened VW chassis. $6,200 Call Wayne McAllaster (510) or medusa427@aol.com (4/03) DODGE PICKUP HD (3/4 ton) Laramie SLT, std cab, long bed, Cummins 5.9L intercooled turbo diesel, 5-spd trans, top of the line, lots of extras and power everything, great for pulling a 5th wheel, car trailer, or ski boat. 112K miles, runs and looks great. Joel Heinke (925) ; jandjheinke@earthlink.net (2/03) FERRARI Testarossa (Ladre kit) On stock 1988 Fiero - under 20K original miles. V-6, 5-spd stick, A/C, AM-FM cassette, Hayashi Racing wheels with VR rated Goodyears. $8,000 Call Warren Okamura evenings. (4/03) FERRARI Testarossa (Dazzling Black Convertible) 34K original miles on Corvette platform. One of nine, cusom built by SCM Motors for Mid-east royalty. at $85K each asking $30,000. (5/03) MERCEDES 500K 4-PASSENGER. This all metal replica was built by H.T. Price with leather interior, 400cid Ford power, auto tranny, A/C, stereo/cassette, wood steering wheel. Call Diana (574) Write Orange Rd., South Bend, IN (3/02) MERCEDES 500K PARTS - For Classic Factory 500K: (4) door latch plates, patterns for tall tail light bases and side window frames. Also windshield frame patterns for 4-pass 500K. Call Diana (574) Write Orange Rd., South Bend, IN (3/02) MERCEDES SSK (Gazelle) 2.3 Pinto powered, gray w/ red fenders, Auto tranny.. License &Smog thru 3/04. Priced for quick sale. only $3,000 obo. Bob Pincus /03) PANTERA Factory built, only one known to exist. Red w/ beige interior, Chev power.$35,000 Call Bob Elster (1/02) SEBRING 5000 parts. Two complete new bumpers w/ mounting hardware, set of fiberglass seat pans, chrome grille surround, chrome fender beading. $75 for all. Also new GM HEI distributor for $100. Don Owens (530) or e- mail owensdon@pacbell.net (1/02) STERLING powered by 63 Buick 3.8 liter V-8. Fast, reliable, smog legal. White w/ brown interior. Removable sunroof, stereo, CB. Gorgeous, one-of-a-kind looker. Ya gotta hear the engine snarl. Excellent condition. REDUCED TO $4,000. Roy Yates (2/01) LUXURY HOME with SHOP. 4-Br, 3-bath, 3,600 sq. ft. designed for casual or formal life style. Landscaped backyard and patio overlooks a 4,000 foot paved & lighted runway in this Air-Park development. Attached heated hanger and shop perfect for auto & plane enthusiasts to live in a friendly community. Located 30 miles east of Sacramento near mountains, skiing and water sports. Offered at $595,000 by Don Owens (530) owensdon@pacbell.net 2003 AHA Knott s Berry Farm Show 90 minute video covering cars and awards. Available as DVD disc $19 or VHS tape $16 postpaid in U.S. Send check to VMH Services, 3317 Ellesmere Ct. Walnut Creek, CA Or use a credit card and funds via PayPal to vmh@mac.com (6/02) CAR TRAILER - Specially built for Porsche Speedster. Suitable for other VW based kit cars with 53.5 inch track width. Wheel runner channels are 6 wide. $600 o.b.o. Vern Hance (925) or nckcc@compuserve.com (11/02) Cars for Sale ads in the Kit Car Sun are for members only. Rate is $10 for 12 issues. MERCEDES 500K (Marlene) replica. Soft and hard tops, 17,000 miles, pwr brakes and steering, 351 V-8, Blaupunkt radio/cd player, anti-theft alarm. Excellent condition. Reduced to $15,000. Maury Schwarz or (6/00) MERCEDES 500K Heritage kit, unassembled, body in crate. Burgandy exterior/interior. All options. Stub Chevy front end, 350 engine and auto tranny (not rebuilt) $14,000 Call Louis Boscacci (415) (04/03)

11 NCKCC News - May 2003 Page 11 CALENDAR OF EVENTS May 18 - Winetasting - Maybe Sunday Brunch at the Ryde Hotel. (See page 4) May 31& June 1 - Walnut Creek Art & Wine Festival (See page 4) June 7&8 - We are exploring a possible Car Show near Jack London Square June 27 to 29 - Medford Trip (Chuck Maddux) July 3 - Benetia torchlight parade (Chuck Maddux) July Bethel Island show (Vern Hance) August 7,8,9 - Hot August Nights and Reno Swap Meet. Info? August? - Hot August Niles show (Vern Hance) September 6 & 7 (Changed back!!) - NCKCC Car Show (Carolina Williams) September 10 thru14 - Cool Sept Däys show (Bob Bohaboy) October 19 - Winetasting - Livermore (Leanne Jones) October 24-26, Club Sandwich, Riverside Hotel, Laughlin. NV November 2 or 9 - Buffet (Leanne to investigate; Steve has a backup plan) MORE ON THE KNOTT S SHOW I had hoped to have some pictures of NCKCC cars that were at the AHA show, but we ran out of space. Check the PDF version of this issue on < I will try to post some photos there. There were 7 NCKCC cars on display; Dale Bates/Porsche, Claude Calderon/ Ferrari, Dee Farris/Tomahawk, Vern Hance/M-B 500K, Wayne McAllaster/Cobra, Dale McCormick/Ferrari and Gary O Connor/ Woodster. Club members sans cars included; Jerry Depew and Russ Thompson. Former members, Gabe & Paula Bell brought their Sebring from Arizona. More info next month OFFICERS AND APPOINTEES: Shane Williams, President shane_1997@yahoo.com Steve Cameron, Vice President nckcc@usa.com Vern Hance, Treasurer, Editor Ellesmere Court, Walnut Creek, CA vmh@mac.com Tom Wallters, Secretary TWallters@nptest.com Steve Cameron, Membership & Sacramento Chair 2 Woodriver Ct, Sacramento, Carolina Williams, Show/Events Chair The Kit Car Sun is published monthly by the Northern California Kit Car Club. Opiniors expressed by authors should not be be considered the position of the club. We are a non-profit educational organization and do not intend to influence legislation. SMOG UPDATE As of April 11, 2003, 203 of the 500 Certificates of Sequence were unassigned and still available. To check on how many of the 500 Certificates of Sequence are left go to