NEWS — classic cars

What do tattoos, rat rods and hot chicks have in common you might ask? You must have missed the wipe down!? Miss RED stopped by to give Charlies Hot Rod a quick wash…Hmnn…Ok. What brought this on was a visit from the guys at Rat Rod TV to film a little car was episode. The ’30 Model A Tudor has been the shop car for Studio 21 Tattoo, Las Vegas, Nevada for a number of years. This little rat rod has received so much attention over the years. What a fun way to promote a tattoo shop, right?

This awesome little rod originated in Sioux City, Iowa. Charlie picked this little guy up on Ebay back in August of 2006. Many improvements have been made on this guy including new rims and tires, front suspension upgrades, full Tijuana tuck ‘n roll interior, and a new roof package  to name a few. Additional paint including the vintage looking 21’s on the doors and some great looking pin stripes by @bigmeas.

This rod is registered as a 1930 Model A Ford. Though not totally street legal, it’s close enough to stay out of a lot of trouble. No mufflers is not usually an issue, unless the driver puts his/her foot into it too much. It has cheater slicks on the rear which are supposed to be legal, but the jury’s still out on that one. Charlie has been ticketed for excessive noise and slicks on the rear. That’s ok though. Stuff happens!

It’s so nice of Miss Redd to stop by and give the rat rod a little tender loving care! The guys in the parking lot didn’t seem to mind either. It’s always refreshing to see a pretty lady with a bucket of suds and a sponge! Next time we need a wash, we’ll know who to call!

The transformation began from Austin’s backyard junk to Mike’s rat rod. From Mike’s words: I was talking to Austin one day and mentioned I was starting a car project and I had bought an old chevy 350 motor. He then went on to tell me he had this old 36′ ford cab and truck bed sitting in his backyard collecting dust! I asked why it was just sitting back there and he explained why. I offered him money to buy it from him, some money and a “I – Owe -You” for an original painting later. I got the cab and bed over to my friend Ian’s shop, PAID 2 PLAY over at the Las Vegas Speedway. Ian is very good at building hot rods from scratch so I started giving him money periodically to build mine. I really liked the rat rod look so I kept the original rusty look. Ian built the frame from scratch and put everything together custom. It was fun seeing all the parts come together and finally getting to drive it for the first time. PAID 2 PLAY did an amazing job on my 1936 Ford pickup rat rod. I got my logo stenciled on the doors and the top, then scraped off to give it a vintage look. The bed of the truck was covered with really nice wood panel flooring to cover the suspension and everything else to give it a clean look. The white wall wheels finished it off.

Lone Star Round Up, Austin, TX

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