Tag Archives: Show Rod

Express Checkout

Hot rodders in the 1960s were TLCB Elf levels of nuts. From fire trucks to beer wagons, ‘show rods’ as they were known dismissed notions of getting in, seeing out, steering, and other such formalities in favour of ludicrous caricatures, and few were more cartoonesque than this, Ray Fahrner’s 1967 ‘Boothill Express’.

Based on an 1850s wooden funeral coach fitted with a Hemi V8, Ray’s creation looked so wild onlookers at the time doubted it could actually drive. Which it couldn’t. Annoyed by the naysayers (although they were correct), Ray’s team built a second ‘Boothill Express’, this time engineered to run, and took it to 130mph on the dragstrip. Which must’ve been terrifying. Still, at least if it all went wrong the coffin was right there to accommodate the remaining body parts.

Pictured here alongside one of the numerous toy versions that were inspired by the real car, Lino Martins has recreated Fahrner’s iconic funeral coach show rod brilliantly in brick form, including the Model-T steering, open bench seat, coffin curtains (with tassels), and the mid-mounted Hemi V8. Join the express checkout queue via the link above, and you can click here to find out more about the outrageous 1960s original.

Druid Princess

Lego Druid Princess Hot Rod

This odd-looking vehicle comes from Flickr’s Tim Inman. It’s a recreation of one of Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth’s show rods from way back in 1966, ‘Druid Princess’. There’s lots more to see at Tim’s photostream – click here to make the jump.

Vanbulance

Lego Vanbulance Hot Rod

Uh oh. Our previous post today didn’t end well. Luckily Lego-vehicle-building legend Lino M has recreated real-vehicle-building legend Tom Daniels’ 1974 show rod ‘Vanbulance’, enabling us to patch up the Elves. OK, that’s a lie – the Vanbulance is completely useless for anything medical, but it looks cool and has a huge engine so the Elves are a little less grumpy now. See more on Flickr.

Popcorn Wagon

Lego Hot Rod Popcorn Waggon

It’s hot here at TLCB Towers and we’re feeling a bit lazy. However, the good news for us is that this find comes with a description already written! So, over to the model’s creator, Lino M, to explain all:

“A strange phenomenon existed in the ’60s and ’70s called the show rod. Basically these were outrageously themed hot rods that could start with anything from a bathtub to a set of bunk beds and, from there, pushed the limits to what a car can be. While guys like George Barris and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth were on the forefront of this movement, one of the most famous show rods was the Popcorn Wagon designed by the lesser known Carl Casper. Was it practical? No. Was it over-the-top? Most definitely. Does it look like it was designed by a 10 year old boy with an overactive imagination? Heck yes! But that was the point of the show rod. While kids and adults enjoyed building the outrageous model kits at home, true to all Carl Casper creations, the original car has never been sold to anyone. Can it go fast? No one knows. His creations have never even seen a drop of fuel or oil.

This LEGO replica roughly resembles the original (with some minor changes) and was built for the LUGNuts Summer Of ’69 challenge all about 60’s era cars.”

And there you have it; our laziest post ever. Thanks Lino! Check out his Popcorn Wagon on Flickr via the handy link.