Curt Albertie of North Muskegon, Michigan, does not seem to be particularly diplomatic when you first meet him, but that's not always the case. For instance, when he decided to build a track roadster, he already had a '34 coupe occupying half of the garage. If the other half were to house the project car, the wife's work vehicle would have to be relegated to the driveway during the horrifically cold Michigan winter. That in itself was a tricky negotiation. Curt's solution was to give the roadster to his wife as her own personal cruiser. Maybe she's the one who should get the credit for the diplomatic achievement! Who wouldn't trade a few cold mornings for an ultra-cool roadster?
With a '34 coupe, Curt set his sights on an open car. A fan of the traditional, Curt sought something that would echo a bygone era and still perform at a level that would be in tune with modern highway requirements. Curt found a project car that Jim Littlekin, a resident of Indiana, had started. Health issues prevented Jim from completing the coupe, but he was willing to sell Curt the project. Curt engaged friend and long-time hot rod builder Charlie Gould and they drove to Indiana and put what appeared to be approximately 1,000 parts onto a 6ft utility trailer and wobbled off to Michigan. Not much had been welded or assembled, but the collection process was over.
Curt and his pals, Charlie Gould, Rich Peterson, and Ken Tindall, tackled the old-fashioned car in the old-fashioned way; they did it in Curt's garage. Their process was traditional-put it together and tear it apart over and over, cutting and modifying until the car looked right. At one point in the process, with the chassis completely painted and assembled, Curt and crew decided that the stance was just not hacking it. Hot rod perfectionists that they were, they tore it all apart and resorted to the implication of the legendary "Michigan Adjusting Tool," a Sawzall, to cut the finished chassis once again and start over.
Curt is a diehard Ford guy, so the employment of a 4.3 Chevy Vortec V-6 motor in his lakester causes him no end of discomfort. The powerplant does, however, have a credible pedigree. Curt said it was formerly used by the United States Navy, properly designated as a boat anchor! As previously mentioned, the guy is a little abrasive.
The homebuilt theme is evidenced by the use of very traditional parts, such as '37 Ford spindles, Wilson Welding '39 Lincoln 12 Bendix-style brakes, and '40 Ford-style repro brake drums. The simple adapters that enable the use of the '35 Ford wire wheels come from Vern Tardel of Santa Rosa, California. The really cool-looking dash pod is a child of necessity. The void between firewall and aluminum dash is filled with the battery, which has remote jumpers on the powerplant side of the firewall, and a Kugel Komponents reverse-mount braking system. With the exception of the paint job by Doug's Auto and the upholstery by A-SKINZ, both of Grand Rapids, Michigan, all the build was done ol' school style in the confines of Albertie's garage. Curt credits Charlie Gould with the louver work in both the aluminum hood and in the rear of the fiberglass body.
Not every part of the car came from an identified source, since many items were picked up at swap meets. The color is Jaguar Green, and the paint on the wheels is said to be of unknown origin.
Homebuilt without ceremony or pretense, this ultra-cool and obsessively traditional roadster is the product of a bunch of hot rod guys keeping warm and busy during the long Michigan winters.