A Russ Nomore Streetrods fiberglass ’34 Ford three-window coupe body was used, and James and his brother, David, performed all the necessary bodywork and the spraying of the gloss finish. To the ’glass body a ’37 Ford truck grille was narrowed and shortened to fit the ’34 Ford metal hood. (If the sight of a ’37 Ford truck grille brings back memories that might be because James was influenced at an early age by Jim “Jake” Jacobs’ similarly equipped ’34 coupe.) James’ coupe hood required modifications at the rear to fit the reworked cowl section that was extended 2 inches. The top was chopped while a roof insert was added and the rear wheelwells are raised. What hot rod would be complete if there weren’t a staggering number of louvers punched into the decklid? More aircraft touches include the fuel filler and cap mounted directly behind the driver on the sail panel with an aircraft-style trunk-mounted gas tank. While giving this hot rod a visual going over make sure to look closely as you will spot custom front framehorns with turn indicators made from airplane wingtip lights built into the framehorn ends. There are also front and rear “thin line” bumpers with a push bar “T” in back. The headlights are the vintage Guide BLC while the always-appropriate ’37 Ford taillights make for ideal rear lighting. (A little history: The BLC represents Brown, Lipe, Chapin Co., which was a manufacturing plant for the Guide Lamp Corporation. They manufactured headlamps, bumper guards, and hubcaps for the eastern U.S. for GM.)

A custom frame was put together by the Wolk brothers using Pete & Jakes Hot Rod Parts components while the ’glass body finds itself channeled over the ’rails. From here a mild drop Super Bell I-beam axle is used with early Ford spindles and wishbones, a Ridetech leaf spring, and a Borgeson steering box. The ’40-41 Lincoln-style finned drum brakes come by way of the Boling Brothers while a dual reservoir master cylinder is part of the operation. In back there is a 3.08 geared Winters quick-change held in place by quarter elliptic springs and a Pete & Jakes ladder bar setup. The rolling combo includes ’40 Ford 16×5 and 18×5 steelies all enclosed with Coker/Excelsior Stahl radial rubber measuring 5.00Rx16 and 7.00Rx18.

The ’34 Ford channeled coupe is powered by what seems normal in the world of hot rodding, a 350-inch small-block Chevy fed by an Edelbrock intake topped with a 600-cfm four-barrel. Igniting the fuel is a GM electronic ignition with ACCEL spark plug wires and exiting the spent gases are 1-5/8-inch tube headers dumping into 2-1/2-inch exhaust pipe that runs back to a pair of MagnaFlow mufflers. An electric fan is used to help keep the small-block happy. The Chevy V-8 is backed up to a Chevy TH350 operated by a Gennie floor-mounted shifter.

Inside the coupe has a definite hot rod appearance. The dash surrounds a modified ’31 Cadillac insert now fitted with six Stewart-Warner instruments mounted within an engine-turned panel. A nifty touch to the dash are the custom art deco air registers (once the factory ashtrays) that work in unison with the Vintage Air A/C system. The coupe’s wiring was placed by James working with a Ron Francis Wiring kit. The Speedway Motors steering column is twisted through a four-spoke Bell Sprint Car wheel. The bench seat comes by way of Glide Engineering and is covered in black vinyl stitched by Johnny Torres of Torres Kustom Upholstery with lap belts.

The channeled coupe proves once again what it takes to have a great-looking hot rod is to understand stance, wheel and tire combo, the right color, and attention to detail. This ’34 Ford three-window coupe has it all.