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Leland Grantz bought this Chevy new. right off the showroom floor. from Ernest Ingold Chevrolet. on Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco. Now. I'm going to stop right here. and tell you that if you want the entire story of this radical 50's kustom. you need to go to the H. A. M. B. and check it out for yourself. If you don't do the H. A. M. B. . start now. I can't begin to tell you everything that has been done to this glorious convertible. Once in the H. A. M. B. go to "Traditional Customs". then to "Gene Winfield Custom Found". READ IT ALL. I have all the original documentation. originals. that include the "pink slip". the original "paper plate". sales contract. warranty information. service policy. etc. Again. you must go to the H. A. M. B. to git the full story about Leland. This was Lelands baby. He hot rodded the mill. which unfortunately is no longer with the car (long story). and then in 1954 took it to Gene Winfield to have the car "bull-nosed". Seems Gene was the only one around that could do it without warping the hood. Well. nearly three years later. it emerged looking sorta like it does today. All of the body work. with the exception of the immediate grille area. was done by Gene. and is all lead. Check the picture of Gene's shop with the white Plymouth sedan delivery parked in front. This picture is interesting on several fronts. The delivery in front was Lelands work truck. which Leland's father bought new. and Leland learned how to drive in. Now check this out. the picture was taken by none other than Spence Murray. of Rod and Custom Magazine. He had just towed the R&C dream Truck to Gene's shop to have the hood cut to fit. Are you following this? If not. you need to study up on you kustom history. And again. you really need to check out the H. A. M. B. Two things pop out here. First. the R&C Dream Truck was in the shop at the same time as Lelands leadsled. Second. I found and restored the R&C Dream Truck back in 1978. Small world. Well. Leland drove around some in his kustom. but never completely finished it. The grille was never finalized. The front fenders were done. and the hood was done. but not the center of the grille. Let's go through some of the major modifications. Hood - 1950 Chevrolet with the center section and scoop from a 1953 DeSoto. and the scoop is functional. Front fenders - Front half is 1955 Plymouth. rear half is 1950 Chevrolet. Doors - 1950 Chevrolet modified to fit the curved windshieldWindshield - 1956 Ford convertible chopped about 5". and the cowl has been modified to fit the windshield. The bottom of the windshield was cut. so it actually narrowed the shape. and perfectly fits the Chev width. The windshield is now lexan. Front wheel wells - 1955 Chevrolet mated to the Plymouth fender frontsRocker panels - 1955 ChevroletRear Fenders - 1953 Oldsmobile quarters. right out of the box. much modified to fitTaillights - Openings by Gene Winfield with 1954 Buick bezels and lenses. spaced to match the opening angleGas door - Leland didn't like the Olds door. so he had Gene mount the original Chevy door on the inside of the fender (go find another)Rear bumper - 1951 Mercury. narrowed with reshaped ends to match the fenders. (long story here that I don't even like to talk about)Deck lid - moldedRear gravel guard - made from scratch to fit the body and the bumper. Top - Built using a 1950 Mercury hood. and a 1950 Chevrolet hood. Formed to look like a chopped convertible top. Padded on the inside. RemovableFrame - "C'd" by Gene Winfield. Had modified original suspension. 'till it was changed back in the 90's to a Heidt Mustang IIEngine - Chevrolet 350/350 using an open driveline rearAgain. if you are interested. go to the H. A. M. B. thread for full details. I can't begin to tell the entire story here. I met Leland and his family a little over a year ago. Leland and his bride both resided in a care facility. I had heard of the car. and just had to find out who owned it. Leland loved this car. obviously. as it was never out of his possession. from the day he bought it new. Unfortunately. it had never been totally done. So. after talking to Leland I decided the Chevrolowster must be completed. I cut a deal with Leland that basically I would finish the car. but only if he approved of everything that was done. Now. I could not do all the tough stuff. so I got together with Nick of at the Hot Rod Works. After a bit of arm twisting. he consented. And the rest is history. Every single thing that we did was ok'd by the boss. which was interesting. Picture me walking into a full service care facility with a 1954 Pontiac grille under my arm. My God. Leland loved it. and so did I. He was a little tough on the taillights. It had always had 1955 Pontiac lenses. which to me fit like a sock on a rooster. and he kinda liked 'um. But. after they were installed. I caught he sit'n in his wheelchair at the back. just feeling those smooth lenses. with a big-assed grin. I wouldn't have it any other way he said. with a tear in his eye. He said it was a twinkle. The front end work that Nick and I did was tough (go to the H. A. M. B. ) We used a 1952 Chevrolet upper lip. 'cause it doesn't have "CHEVROLET" stamped in it. and painted it body color after molding it to the body. The outer ends of the grille are 1956 Plymouth. sectioned to fit the 1954 Pontiac grille bar. The gravel pan is a 1955 Ford. much modified to fit. as is the bumper. It seemed like fate was working with us. since the angle of the hood scoop peak matches the lip of the hood. which matches the upper lip. which matches the Grille bar. which matches the gravel pan. which matches the bumper. My friends. it just doesn't git any better than that. All of the angles and dangles just seem to fit. The engine compartment is finished to a tee. and very smooth. The only thing that has not been totally completed is the wiring. It has a full wiring kit. with all the wires marked. full length. but I just haven't dotted the i's. It does run. very well. and sounds great. I have driven it around with Leland and I gotta tellya. I'm not sure who enjoyed it more. Remember. he has owned this critter for 65 years. Now. this has been very difficult for me to write up. Leland Grantz has become my very good friend. along with his entire family. He is my hero. in the true sense of the word. He gave his life to God and Country. many years ago. He was part of the 82nd Airborne just after WWII. and wasn't quite done giving when he got out. so he joined the Merchant Marines and worked on a troop ship during the Korean War. You just can't make this stuff up. I figured it was a very small token of my appreciation to see his car come to completion. After all. he gave of himself his entire life. Sadly. Leland passed on in November. but not before telling me that riding in his car. all done. was pretty much the last thing on his bucket list. And now it's time to move on. Call me if you have any questions. Thanks. Bruce (208) 695-3956 Leave a message if you don't catch me. Remember. I live out in the country. Leland's Chevy has been accepted down at the GNRS this month. so I'm only running this once. Good LuckOn Jan-06-15 at 07:39:49 PST. seller added the following information: Please contact me for any additional pictures.
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