Mike Manno's 1932 Ford Tudor - A Lesson From Of Book Of You

It seemed fitting that the road trip to shoot Mike Manno's new rolling Bones-built Deuce Tudor start off on a spine-chilling late fall morning, long before the sun would ever come up. To say that the cars built at this little shop in upstate new york are unique would truly be an understatement. Evolving from spirit of the '40s and '50s, where Flatheads screamed across the dry lakes and salt at Bonneville, it becomes immensely clear that these cars are as individual as it gets and that each one possesses its very own soul.

For Mike, time has moved on at a pretty rapid pace since he was first initiated into the world of hot rodding way back in the mid-'60s by his older sister's fiance, richard Gideon, who would plant a stack of little books in his hand and hope he got the hint. It wasn't a hard sell, and soon after Mike would tear into any printed matter he could get on the subject, worshiping cars like the Orange Crate to this day (easily proving that he had a good eye for the wicked cool stuff). While in his teens and twenties, Mike wrenched on a few vintage steel projects, but it wasn't until a chance meeting with roy Brizio at the nationals in '95 that his life changed forever. Having purchased a gennie Deuce roadster body and chassis in the mid-'80s, his time spent with roy not only launched the design and build of his first Deuce at the well-known builder's shop, it was also the start of a great friendship. As the years continued to pass, Mike collected a dream garage full of Deuces, including a roadster and three-window coupe built by Joe Mead that were untouched in style since they first hit the street.

Being from new york, and also being a diehard traditional hot rodder, it wasn't long until Mike heard about the little barn in Greenfield Center that housed the rolling Bones hot rod shop and the notorious cars that were coming out of its confines. He joined up with the crew in 2003 and made the journey out to Bonneville-and that was all it took for the haunting light to dawn that he had to have these guys build his next Deuce for him. Talking with roy not long after his return, he was told of a mint Tudor body that had just come up for sale. Mike bought it and had it shipped back at almost the same time as Dennis Varni's Tudor was being debuted at the shop's winter open house.

The crew got busy designing one of their signature spines to act as a rock-solid base for the car to rise from. The welders were brought into action with a set of henry's 'rails, beginning with a pinch up front and a bob out back, while Model a crossmembers were added to the mix along with a fresh Brookville X-member. A '37 Ford tube axle was located and matched up with a pair of '32 Ford split bones, '39 Ford spindles, and inboard mounted houdaille rear shocks for front suspension duties. A posies front spring was added to keep it all smooth while plenty of whoa is compliments of early Lincoln drums, and a schroeder steering unit keeps everything heading in the right direction. Out back, nothing says hot rod better than a pair of '40 Ford axles mated to a vintage halibrand V-8 combined with '40 Ford binders, a Model T spring, and houdaille shocks. For a primitive, almost raw feel, the car rolls on all-black '35 Ford wires shod with Firestone wide whites that boast a 50-year-old look even though they are fresh units.

Deciding on the right power source for the Tudor was easy since nothing would fit the bill better than a blown Flathead. Adding a bit of spookiness to this chapter of the build, a vintage Flathead was located that had been long forgotten in a dimly lit basement that happened to have just the right sum of the parts needed. Stroked to 276 inches, it was filled with a 4-inch Merc crank, Isky stick, and genuine Edelbrock heads. For the icing on the cake, Mike added an Italmeccanica supercharger with twin stromberg 97-series carbs sucking air through a pair of short air horns. The Deuce would have no problem getting the power to the road linked to a Chevy s-10 five-speed box. Cutting up one of the nicest original Tudor bodies they had ever seen, the team did the old Detroit steel justice with a proportionally perfect chop that gave the car a personality that will last a new lifetime. It was then doused in a vat of PPG Midnight Black lacquer that was then patina'd to look like the original gloss was ready for social security. For the final touch, Dorie Depasquale of Gloversville, new york, was handed the reins to work her magic with just enough aged tan leather to complete this masterpiece.

Riding shotgun in the car with keith Cornell of rolling Bones during a shakedown run proved this Deuce's ferocity matched its velocity once the mag was lit, bringing its snarling blown Flathead to life. Seeing the smile on Mike's face as the Car shot past the shop was priceless, and it proved his dreams for one of the most wicked Tudors to ever roll had been reached.