My truck is back...

[hemigeno]

... and it had a "special guest" loaded on it last Thursday.

There's a long story behind why I haven't had my 2-ton truck around much this summer, having mostly to do with poor spark plug choices and a need for a really good tuneup.  Anyway, the engine work was completed last Thursday at Norm Brandes' shop in Silver Lake, WI.  To shake the truck down and put it under a load, they decided to load up Norm's 1965 A990 HemiCoronet.  That's the genuine, Grade-A article on the back of the truck there, boyz...  NOTHING like hearing a 13.5:1 compression Race Hemi fire up with open headers.  Norm hauled the car out to a show-and-shine event in the small town where this particular car sold new!  People there not only remembered the car, but what it used to run on the dragstrip back then (high elevens).  It's capable of running low elevens as it sits right now, although Norm hasn't had it on the track in almost 10 years.  It's spent the last 8 years in Floyd Garrett's museum in Sevierville, TN, and Norm just got it back from Floyd's in the last little bit.

Here's a few eye-candy pictures:

[69charger2002]

screw the car. that truck is so sweet!
trav

[Todd Wilson]

How come you got Power Giant mud flaps?   


Todd

[Just 6T9 CHGR]

Lookin' good Geno.....I just got finished reading about Goldberg's clone in Mopar Muscle....nice to see the real deal.   How's the truck running now?

[WingCharger]

 

I have never seen a more pefect picture.

[rt green]

nice. love the car too

[moparstuart]

 

[PocketThunder]

Why did you have to go all the way to Silver Lake, WI to get your truck worked on? 

[TeeWJay426]

That's a mighty impressive combo, Geno! Looks GREAT! 

[hemigeno]

How come you got Power Giant mud flaps?   

Actually, this truck was built during the Power Giant era.  The truck's original Driver's Manual has that moniker plastered all over it -- in fact, that's how I had the mudflaps made.  I scanned in a logo from the Driver's Manual, and sent that to a place which custom-manufacturers the flaps.  Here's what I sent them:

[69*F5*SE]

If we could all just have a hauler like that it'd be a perfect world 

[hemigeno]

Why did you have to go all the way to Silver Lake, WI to get your truck worked on? 

Norm's the only nutcase machinist/engineer I knew crazy enough to take the time to set up a dual-quad carbureted stroked Polysphere engine application on a 2-ton truck      Besides, he has some really, really cool toys as you can see.

I got to be good friends with Norm when he and I worked together on the engine for my R/T.  He provided a BUNCH of hard-to-find engine components for that project, like date-correct block/heads/intake, a brand new Kellogg crank, etc.  Norm was into Hemi stuff back in the early/mid 70s when you could hardly give them away, and his shop attic is full of some pretty rare hardware.  He's the kind of machinist that does his work in a white shirt and never gets it dirty.  That doesn't mean he's not a hands-on mechanic, it means he's a very particular neat-freak.  In my book, that's a plus for an engine mechanic.

It's right at a 6 hour drive from my house to Norm's shop.  Since I don't have to go there just all that often, it's worth the drive for me to work with someone like Norm.

[hemigeno]

Lookin' good Geno.....I just got finished reading about Goldberg's clone in Mopar Muscle....nice to see the real deal.   How's the truck running now?

Thanks, Chris!

The truck is running better from the standpoint of no detonation and no oil drops being blown out the stacks getting all over anything on the back.  As far as power goes, it's about the same.  The difference is, I can actually drop the hammer on it in a hill/pull without any spark knock.  That was the goal.

I'd love to take a car to Carlisle on the truck sometime.  With this latest round of repairs, I'm a lot more confident it'd make the 800+ mile trip out there.  However, I'm thinking the show folks will insist that it be parked with the rest of the trucks rather than with the Chargers where I'd prefer to be.  Oh well, one of these days...


Thanks again,everyone!

[TUFCAT]

screw the car. that truck is so sweet!
trav

I'd say its the other way around    - sorry Geno...but the A990 Coronet is SWEET! Actually, they're both outrageously cool in their own way! 

[Ghoste]

Me too, always loved the A990's.

[TruckDriver]

that truck is so sweet!

I like the car too

[41husk]

Geno, just leave the coronet on the truck and brieng it to Monster Mopar.  I'm sure you can find some one to drive the hemi charger for you. (like me)

[hemigeno]

screw the car. that truck is so sweet!
trav

I'd say its the other way around    - sorry Geno...but the A990 Coronet is SWEET! Actually, they're both outrageously cool in their own way! 

I agree totally.  As much as I like my own vehicles, Norm's A990 is a fantastic piece of history and one awesome sounding & looking ride all rolled into one.

Geno, just leave the coronet on the truck and brieng it to Monster Mopar. I'm sure you can find some one to drive the hemi charger for you. (like me)

I was trying to talk Norm into letting me keep the Coronet for 8 years like Floyd Garrett did - heck, Floyd hasn't given him near as much business for his machine shop as I have.  Somehow or another, Norm wasn't buying into my logic the way I had hoped...    

Unfortunately, I had to help them unload the Coronet so I could replace it on the back with the 2004 Stratus I drove up there.  It just doesn't have the same effect.

[Charger_Fan]

Geno, that truck is just THEE POOP!   I've just gotta build a cool old truck like that one of these days.
Thanks for the pics.

[Shakey]

I always liked that photo you had with your red Charger sitting on the back.  Very nice!