Homebrew Hauler

Occasionally at the local car shows you'll run across people that claim to have thrown something together in their own garage with nothing more than spare parts. Many times the item is a jalopy Model A that was mail-ordered with reproduction parts, or its a rusty mid 50's Ford or Chevy sedan with newer EFI drivetrain and a lot of goofy faux 'patina' to make it seem rustic and cool. Neither one of those scenarios really do much for me. The owners didn't really create it themselves. They added to it. Outrageous claims are common, but sometimes ring true. Case in point, Sarah and I recently wandered past this in Metamora, Illinois...

 

Yes, what you see here is a homebrew trike that's powered by a late 60's Chevrolet 250 cubic inch six cylinder and three speed. My hunch is that the powerplant came from an old pickup truck. The creator, seen in the pictures wearing the coolest leather coat I've seen in decades, built it himself...using fabricated steel tubing, a welder, and a few donor parts from a motorcycle. Now he rides the hell out of it. And he knows it inside and out because he literally built it from scratch.

 I want to say I admire those who combine their dreams with acetylene and oxygen. I want to say "atta boy" when I see someone create a running, driving machine from a pile of cast-off parts destined for a scrapyard. I also want to say "Oh my God, look at how long those handlebars are. They bounced when he turned them. Maybe they should be braced or something". 

Yikes. Still cool, though, right?

Here's to automotive homebrewers: May they occasionally have good taste, and may their insurance policies be paid up and in good standing. 

-D