Whats behind me does not matter

Holly Shit…what a kickass show!

It went far beyond any of my expectations...far beyond anyone's expectations. It turned out to be a huge two-city block event. By the start time of 5 pm it was already bursting at the seams and had flowed over the barriers at both the north and south ends of the event. There was plenty of BBQ, beer and steak sandwiches to go around for the steady flow of approximately 3,000 people throughout the evening. In fact we gave out just over 450 window stickers. I gotta mention and thank all those lovely pinups, rockabilly and hot rod girls running around in smokin’ 50s outfits.

Hot rods. Rat rods. Muscle cars. Classics. Gassers. Sleds. Bombs and Bikes. What a bitch'n selection of eye-popping rides and old rust! We even had a few cool semis and one crazy badass bus. So hands down, by far my favorite at the show was that old Willy's gasser. It was so clean it was as good as 1964. Also, I totally dug all the slammed 40s and 50s trucks. Speaking of… make sure to check out the slideshow below because there’s just too many cool rides to mention. You gotta see it for yourself.

Probably the coolest and most unique feature of this show was the co-host Hollywood Calling and their amazing gallery at 31st and Larimer. Showcasing his work was photographer Samuel Abraham who says his studio is just a cool place to get your ride shot - with or without a pinup. But at the show you could pick up vinyl prints, canvas prints and posters of some of the hottest hot rods in town.

Vendors were everywhere intertwined with the rich smells of food vendors from gourmet to bbq - and not a complaint from anyone about the variety or quality. West Side Sinners' Erin had her rockabilly fashion and accessories while Larimer Street's own Molly Youngblood of Youngblood Couture opened her doors to the public for the first time. The Rocky Mountain Roller Girls were out in force with a fantastic spinwheel game that included a number of really cool prizes. I think Joe and Kathleen at Weld County Customs probably had the coolest selection of custom hot rods on the block while Carnage Crew Car Club had the biggest showing of supporters. Also on hand were Shifter's Bar and Grill, Larimer Liquors, Evil Ace Customs, Nite Owl Customs and The Garden Spot. And I know I seen a Tubbies that sneaked in but that's ok cuz I think we know that old fart's brother...

Hosts of the show, ChiksontheHill.com (http://www.chiksonthehill.com/), Carnage Crew Car Club and Hollywood Calling Photography (http://www.hollywoodcalling.com/) would like to thank everyone who attended the car show and made it such an outstanding event. We’d like to give special thanks to eCustoms Printing for the banners & t-shirts, Nite Owl Customs for providing the burlesque team with a dry, indoor floor, the Ballet Mestizo for an amazing performance and everyone who contributed their artwork on the custom skateboards for the raffle. We'd like to give an especially warm thank you to Angels Unaware for the beer garden and supporting all those families with babies born with HIV/AIDS.

The show started with the remarkable traditional dances of Ballet Mestizo, a local Five Points non-profit benefiting neighborhood youth.

Big Mike spun the atmosphere for hours with great old rockabilly and 50s tunes as Denver's hottest pinups strutted their cherry-printed assets across a plywood stage. Then as night descended and the rain came down at about 8:30 - 8:45, GT & the Sidewinders played on into the night and rain while the ChiksontheHill burlesque took their fun and gratuitous show indoors...

 IT was in 1932 that Henry Ford stunned the automotive world by launching a mass-produced, affordable car fitted with a 65 horsepower V8 engine.

 Ford Australia released the same model a few months later on August 25. The Model B was already available with a 4-cylinder engine so the new car was called the Model 18.

Priced from 327 pounds, the car was an enormous improvement over the 4 and 6-cylinder models available at the time.

However, its launch coincided with the start of the Great Depression and sales were affected badly by the economic crash.

Ford sold only 740 in 1932 and 608 in 1933 before the launch of the Model 40, which boosted sales by a further 1229 in that year.

Sales literature boasted of 65 horsepower and 65 miles an hour performance. Prospective buyers were urged to “watch the Ford V8 surge to the front in traffic” and wonder at its “flashing acceleration to gain the lead and the endurance to hold it”.

 Types are classified by their displacement.

221

The original Flathead engine displaced 221 in³ (3.6 L). The engine block was cast as a single piece for durability (”monobloc”) and a single-barrel carburetor fed the engine during 1932 and 1933 and produced 65 hp (48.5 kW) and 75 hp (56 kW) respectively. In 1934 a two barrel down draft carburetor was introduced which resulted in 85 hp (63 kW). Production of the original flathead 221 lasted from 1932 through 1936. These engines can be identified by having the water pumps located at the front of the heads. A similar 221 flathead was used in Fords for 1937 and 1938 but the block was revised to have the water pumps mount to the block. The new design also relocated the water outlet from the front of the heads to the top center of the heads. Output was 85 hp (63 kW). The 1932 through 1938 motors used twenty one studs to hold down each head and are known as “21 stud” motors.

In late 1938 Ford introduced the “24 stud” engine, named because it uses twenty four studs to hold down each head. This engine was introduced at the same time as the 239 motor. The power rating remained the same. This engine was used through 1942 for civilian use and saw some use in military vehicles during World War Two. Collectively all 221 motors are commonly referred to as “85 horse” motors.

[edit] 239

Ford introduced the 239 in³ (3.9 L) motor in 1939. This was done to provide a more powerful engine for the Mercury cars which Ford Motor Company started making in 1939. This engine is very similar to the late 221 motors with the exception of having a larger bore and higher horsepower. Initially the 239 was rated at 95 horsepower (71 kW) but that was changed to 100 horsepower (75 kW) in 1941 with no real change in power produced. The 239 was produced through 1953 with a major redesign in 1949. The 1949 to 1953 motors have a revised cooling and ignition system. Collectively all 239 motors are referred to as “100 horse” motors. This engine was used in Ford’s transit buses during their short stint in the transit bus business from the late 1930’s to the early 1950’s

[edit] 136

A 136 in³ (2.2 L) version was introduced in the United States in 1937. The engine was produced in Europe in 1935 and 1936. Producing 60 hp (45 kW), the engine was used in the many standard-line Ford vehicles based on the car platform of the era. It was not very popular with U.S. buyers who were used to the faster 85 horsepower (63 kW) cars. The engine was very popular as a powerplant for midget race cars after World War II. This engine is most commonly referred to as the “60 horse” flathead, or the V8-60. It was replaced by the 226 straight-6 in the 1941 Fords.

[edit] 255

Ford’s final flathead was the 1948-1953 239/255  in³ (4.2 L) 255. The 255 was achieved by use of a 4-inch (100 mm) stroke crankshaft in the Mercury engines, producing 125 hp (93 kW) and making the merc crank a popular upgrade for hot rodders. The 255 is a model BG. They were available in the Mercury Monterey and the Mercury Custom. They came with either the Merc-o-Matic fluid drive transmission, or the 3 speed split overdrive.

While earlier Ford V8s had the distributor driven directly from the forward end of the camshaft, and so at an inconvenient location for maintenance, this final flathead used a right angle gear drive from the camshaft, placing the distributor atop the engine near the front and so readily accessible. The fuel pump was mounted centrally atop the rear of the engine, driven by a reciprocating pushrod from a lobe on the camshaft. High mileage engines were subject to pushrod wear that affected fuel delivery, corrected by the addition of a simple aftermarket cap to the pushrod.

A straight-8 can be timed for inherent primary and secondary balance, with no unbalanced primary or secondary forces or moments. However, crankshaft torsional vibration, present to some degree in all engines, is sufficient to require the use of a harmonic damper at the accessory end of the crankshaft. Without such damping, fatigue cracking near the rear main bearing journal may occur, leading to engine failure.

Although an inline six cylinder engine can also be timed for inherent primary and secondary balance, a straight-8 develops more power strokes per revolution and, as a result, will run more smoothly under load than an inline six. Also, due to the even number of power strokes per revolution, the straight-8 does not produce unpleasant odd-order harmonic vibration in the vehicle’s driveline at low engine speeds.

The smooth running characteristics of the straight-8 made it popular in luxury and racing cars of the past. However, the engine’s length demanded the use of a long engine compartment, making the basic design unacceptable in modern vehicles. Also, due to the length of the engine, torsional vibration in both crankshaft and camshaft can adversely affect reliability and performance at high speeds. In particular, a phenomenom referred to as “crankshaft whip,” caused by the effects of centrifugal force on the crank throws at high engine RPM, could cause physical contact between the connecting rods and crankcase walls, leading to the engine’s destruction. As a result, the design has been displaced almost completely by the shorter and sturdier V8 engine configuration.

Huge Striaght 8