IN THE BEGINNING: I picked this car a few blocks from my house. I had seen it on Craigslist. It was pretty straight, no engine, trans, windshield or bumpers, oh and no papers. I made him an offer but he wasn’t as negotiable as I needed him to be. After texting back and forth over a couple of months he gave me one of those bring me the money today kind of offers I couldn’t pass it up. So, it was now mine. I already had project cars at home so it was hauled out to the parents house. Out of sight, out of mind you know.
My son was turning 16 the summer after I had made the deal on the ’56 and I thought it could be a great father/son build. He was wanting a truck, and wasn’t into 50’s cars so we found him a 1969 Ford F100. I had no interest in selling the sedan and started thinking about different ways it could be built. A custom, gasser or stocker/beater. Around this time I had blown the engine in my ’57 Ford wagon. The original 292 had given up its ghost. This led me down a very interesting road, which allowed me to cross paths with Charlie Burns and Tim McMaster. Charlie had an engine that Tim had built and he was looking for some cash to throw at his land speed car. This was perfect for me as you know, Y-Blocks aren’t as common as other engines. To find one already built on a stand was certainly fortuitous.
The 1956 Customline was originally a Y-Block/auto car. So, why not put a Y back in it?? I had a few other engine choices but the Y just seemed right. I now needed a build style. I’ve always dreamed of building a gasser. I think every hot rodder out there has this dream. So this is how the story began.
