One of the remarkable things about Back To The 50’s presented by the Minnesota Street Rod Association is the fact that that there is no awards program. It’s all about the fun, and the nearly 12,000 rods that roll in on Friday roll out on Sunday on equal footing. Even so, for the past three years, Street Rodder has included Back To The 50’s as one of the ten prominent car shows where we award winners in the Painless Performance/Street Rodder Top 100 program. Each of the owners of the 100 cars we select during the season receives a custom embroidered Top 100 jacket. At the end of the year, one of the 100 will be selected as the Painless Performance/Street Rodder Street Rod of the Year.
We awarded ten street rods at Back To The 50’s. Here are five of them. Check back soon for a look at the rest of our picks from this event.
1932 Ford Three-Window Coupe | Paul Walecki | Waukesha, WI
Shadowed flames over Molten Bronze paint draw attention to Paul’s highboy Deuce. The owner-built coupe blends traditional and contemporary styling with a ‘glass body on custom ’32 ’rails with front and rear 4-bars. Beefy radial tires roll on 16- and 18-inch Billet Specialties wheels. The open engine compartment holds a gleaming Chevy small-block with a tunnel ram intake and dual 4-barrels, tied to a TH350 trans. The modern interior is finished in cream colored leather and includes custom buckets, a banjo wheel, and a fabricated console for the Lokar shifter, Classic Instruments gauges, and Kenwood stereo. A TV screen in the trunk lets Paul play video of the build process.
1941 Willys | Allen Kipka | Roseville, MN
Allen lives five miles frowas his first year as a participant. He bought the Willys two weeks before the show. It had been a father and son project for George and Jody Mills from Connecticut, using a Dennis Taylor fiberglass body. Underneath is a well-detailed Art Morrison chassis with a Heidts frontend and Chris Alston FAB9 rear. A Willys deserves hefty rolling stock and this one features 31×18.50-15 Hoosiers in the rear and 26×7.50s in front on American Racing Hopster wheels, with disc brakes at all corners. A Corvette 4-barrel 427 big-block is backed up with a TH400 transmission. The Cobalt Blue paint (a 2007 Chevy color) is contrasted by the cognac leather interior upholstery.
1951 Mercury | Larry Fryfogle | Appleton, WI
This flamed Merc was homebuilt in traditional custom style, starting with the body choice and continuing with the 4-inch chop, Corvette grille teeth, quad lights, dual frenched antennas, winde whites, and low posture. Front fender flares are from a ’56 Chevy, reversed on the Merc. Larry shaved the body of all trim and harware before spraying the Synergy Green paint. The ’59 Chevy dash was narrowed to fit and modified with dual power gloveboxes. Thunderbird seats and upholstered in white faux leather. Interior door handles are ’49-’51 Merc hood ornaments. The car’s nickname, The Bean, is in honor of Larry’s granddaughter Hailie
1931 Ford Pickup | Jeff Bjustrom | Minneapolis, MN
Jeff’s initial plan was to have a patina’ed rat rod that he could drive at his cabin. After it was finished by Vescio’s Customizing & Restoration, his Model A pickup was a wild show car wearing HOK paint and winning an award at the Detroit Autorama. The ground-scraping stance, chopped top, and 18- and 20-inch Rushforth wheels with 275 and 295 series BFGs makes a vivid first impression. A closer look reveals the custom interior with aluminum and leather bomber seats, custom console and a flavor combining retro race car with modern street rod. The Chevy 350 is finished in traditional style with three 2Vs with stacks. The only downside is that it’s now too nice to drive at the cabin.
1962 Nash Metropolitan | Roger & Barree Boettcher | Andover, MN
We’ve seen a lot of Nashes, but none as customized as Roger and Barree’s ’62 Metropolitan. It was stock when it was towed into their son Troy’s shop 14 years ago. Custom body mods include welded seams, shaved suicide doors, molded grille, frenched headlights, ’54 Chevy taillights, and Hot Red paint visible from space. A Fatman chassis with a Mustang II frontend and a S10 three-link rear uses RideTech suspension to drop the body over the Torq Thrust wheels. The 4.3-liter Chevy V-6 is the little car’s big surprise. The interior was entirely redone in camel leather buckets, center console, a Billet Specialties wheel, Pioneer stereo, and TPI-Tech gauges.
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