Ron Carlsten Jr. is from Phoenix, Arizona, and he calls his classic 1932 Ford 5 Window Coupe the 227
Bullet Coupe. He calls it that because it had 227 bullet holes in it. Ron said he and some friends were in the garage one night, and they had a few
drinks and decided to count all the bullet holes.
I was hoping for a Bonnie and Clyde type of story about the bullets,
but alas that was not to be. Ron believes it was nothing more than
target practice.
How Ron would end up building a classic Deuce Coupe hot
rod, however, might be as good as the Bonnie and Clyde story anyway.
Ron and his friends started getting into early hot rods because all
the old guys were throwing away the traditional components. “They wanted
independent front suspension and air conditioning and power steering
and power brakes,” he said. “And they were like ‘I don’t want that
straight axle, that’s a piece of junk. Here you can have it.’”
Ron and his friends developed their ideas about hot rods from reading
magazines from the 40s and 50s. “That’s a hot rod,” they thought.
“That’s what it should be.” The first one Ron built was a 1930 Model A
coupe.
Three cars – a 1933 3 Window, a 1934 5 Window, and the ‘32 – had been
found half buried in a dry river bed in the “Four Corners” area. Someone found
the cars, dug them out and brought them back to Phoenix. Ron stated that once all the hot rod guys passed on it, that’s when he was able to buy
it.
The Coupe was in rough shape when Ron purchased it. There was no frame,
just the body. He first put a reproduction frame underneath, but then he
found an original frame that was in good enough condition to restore,
which he completed with the help of Steve Szymanski at Industrial
Chassis.
The front spindles are 1940 Ford parts, and have 1940 Lincoln drum
brakes. The brakes are coveted hot rod parts. They give the traditional
hot rod look, but are self-adjusting, which was pretty high-tech for
1940.
In the rear, Ron is using 1936 wishbones and a 1940 transverse spring
to mount a Ford 9″ rear, complete with a center section painted in red
primer and standard drum brakes. The 9-inch has a Posi differential with 3.00 gears. The front wheels are very rare Ford V8-60 wheels, 16” x 3.5″ wide. Ford
only made them for 6 months, for cars with the 60 horsepower V8s. Today,
a pair of these might cost as much as $1500. Brand new Firestone bias
ply 4.50/4.75 x 16 tires from Coker Tire are also period correct. The
rear wheels are 16” x 4” Fords, with 7.50 x 16 Firestone tires.
A 350 cubic inch small block Chevy with an Edelbrock Carb. provides the horsepower for Ron’s
cruising, and it connects to a Turbo 350 transmission. The short
block is completely stock, as Ron wants to maximize reliability and
ease of repair. The Coupe’s exhaust is really unique. The manifolds are Fenton split
exhaust ram horns, a very rare component, which were used on the
1957 Chevy Black Widow stock cars. The two outlets from each manifold
merge into straight-through exhaust pipes.
Those pipes are made from
1936 Ford drive shafts. These drive shafts were tapered, and hot rodder's
learned to cut off the ends to create a great looking and sounding
exhaust system.
With minimal creature comforts
and lots of rust – and 227 bullet holes – a lot of people at that time
mistook the Coupe for a rat rod, which Ron did not like. “It’s not a rat
rod,” Ron would tell folks. “It’s a traditional hot rod that isn’t
finished yet.”
Ron stayed on track and finished the Coupe in time for the GNRS. The ‘32 was given an award by Geezup L.L.C. as
their pick of the entire show. And it was included in the Rodding USA
magazine coverage of the show.
Ron has got his next project planned, a ‘32 Roadster, which he considers the pinnacle of classic hot rods. It’s going to be a
pre war Hot Rod. A flathead motor, wire wheels, and not dropped. It’ll
be like a 1930s to early 40s style build.
Thanks Ron for sharing the 227 Bullet Coupe with us !
Photos courtesy of Ron Carlsten Jr. 2021
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