Pete and Jake’s is proud to be a part of the 2018 Street Rodder Road Tour. So much so that we thought our friends would enjoy this nice article and photos about the project written by Ron Ceridono and photographed by Robert McGaffin, Brian Brennan, and Yasmin Fajatin of Street Rodder Magazine. Enjoy!

“Since the inception of the Road Tour program we have built street rods from the ’20s-’60s in every conceivable configuration in an effort to reflect the scope of our hobby. This year the 2018 United Pacific/STREET RODDER Road Tour 1932 Ford pickup Presented by Ford Performance Parts is bringing us back to our roots with the traditional combination of a closed-cab Deuce pickup and a solid-axle chassis. We’ve again called on the talents of Dean Livermore and the crew at Hot Rods by Dean (HRBD) to put it all together.

Under all the new sheet metal is a chassis from Neal, Phil, and Jeremy Gerber’s Roadster Shop (RS). The frame is based on reproduction 1932 ’rails that have been boxed their entire length, fitted with a Model A–style front crossmember, and a vintage style X-member for the ultimate in rigidity.

To go with the build style of the truck we wanted a traditional dropped axle front suspension that would provide the smooth ride and excellent handling qualities so we turned to Pete and Jakes. They’ve been supplying solid axle suspension components for 1928-1948 Fords since 1974 and know how to make them work. To that end they supplied a complete chrome front end kit with Super Bell I-beam, monoleaf spring, hairpin radius rods, Panhard Bar, and tube shocks. The steering gear, shafts, and U-joints came from Flaming River.

On the aft end of the frame is a polished Winters quick-change that’s held in place by heavy-duty four-bars designed and built to fit the RS X-member and a Panhard rod that attaches to the rear axle’s center section with a custom bracket. A smooth, controlled ride is guaranteed with the use of adjustable AFCO coil overs.

When it came time to pick wheels and tires for our truck there was no debate; Eric Black’s artwork nailed the look and Coker and Wheel Vintiques provided what we wanted. The tires are Coker Firestone Deluxe Champion blackwalls, 5.60-15 up front and 7.00-16 in the rear. After being discontinued by Firestone, Coker Tire acquired the molds, refurbished them, and after obtaining licensing agreements put these classic bias-ply tires back into production.

To complete the look we were after the tires were mounted on Wheel Vintiques Gennie series wheels; 15×5 in front and 16×6 in the rear. Patterned after 1940-1948 Ford wheels, they are offered in primer, various colors of powder coating, all chrome, and chrome rim with a bare center, and are available in a variety of sizes and bolt patterns.

The crew at HRBD has been busy building our Road Tour truck with their usual attention to detail and there will be some surprises along the way as well. Of course you’ll have to watch the pages of SR and streetrodder.com to find out what they are. In the meantime, start making plans to join us on the 2018 United Pacific/STREET RODDER Road Tour Presented by Ford Performance Parts.”

Photography by Street Rodder

Written by Ron Ceridonoon March 28, 2018

Robert McGaffin, Brian Brennan – Photographers