©2011

BoB’s News Bob Drake Reproductions News Service

Volume I, No. 1 FREEPuBlISheD QuaRteRly Old FOrds and HOt rOds

SummeR 2011

The Drake Team GalsFrom left: Heather, Karen and our other Heather are dedicated members of our phone sales crew. Chances are you’ve talked with one or all while placing your parts orders.

Catalog #26, our latest, features many new products and helpful tips. With over 600 pages, it’s our biggest, most complete yet, and full of the best early Ford & hot rod parts. Get yours today, free with any order or just pay $5 to cover postage & handling.

Rich, Wes and James, members of The Drake Team’s L.A. Crew, pose in front Drake’s Steel ’40. The coupe was a sensation at L.A., just as it’s been at other shows. Other crewmen at L.A. but not pictured was our new sales manager Pete and our good ol’ buddy Ed.

SummeR 2011BOB’s nEWs

notes from the road: l.a. roadsters 2011 Father’sDayisthetimeforourannualpilgrimageto the Fairplex in Pomona, Califunya for the L.A.Roadster’sShow.We leftGrantsPass on a beautifulsunny day and headed south on I-5. Our caravanincludedatruckloadofparts,ourvanpullingatrailorwiththegrenadedversionofthe“Steel’40”andGeneralManagerWesWebb’s’35Flatback.AllwaswelluntilaroundOrland(justsouthofRedding)whenWes’s’35gaveuptheghost.

Wesfiddled,diddledandthengotsmartandcalledAAAforaridetoSacramentoVintage.WhileWesandIwaited in the triplehotblazingsunforour rollbackride,Richard,JamesandPetewenttothenexttowntolookforacoilsincewethoughtthatmightbetheculpritthatcausedourdilemma.Therollbackshowedupandgotusloadedinnotime.Theboyshadreturnedwithanewcoilandthedriverofthetowtruckkindlyofferedto take us to the rest stop just down the roadwherewe tried thecoil fix.Thecar ranbut itwaspainfullyobviousthattherewereotherdemonslurkingabout,soofftoSacramentoVintage. Whenwearrivedwehadafewminutestolookaroundbeforeclosingtime.Ifyouhaveneverbeenthere,trustme,youwanttogothere.Theshowroomisawesomeandincludesafull-blownoldstylemaltshop.Ijusthadtimetobuya1:18versionoftheAmericanGrafitti’55Chevyformygrowingcollectionofmodelcarsbeforethebell

went off and it was time to hit the road. We made arrangements for another long-time Bob Drake employee, Johnny B, to pick up the car on his way down to Pomona. Back on I-5 we trucked on into the night and fought the pothole laden big-rig infested Grapevine hill. For those of you unacquainted with this North-South passage over the mountain into Southern California it is a lot better than it used to be. today a divided six lane highway replaces the 2-lane road of old where many a flathead died due to overheating. We finally arrived in Pomona about 3:00 a.m. and found Bob already there after his leisurely flight in from San Francisco. We got some much needed sack time, tanked up at the hotel buffet and headed over to Building 4 for set-up. the Roadster exhibition is in a kind of forced expansion due to some remodeling at the Fairplex. the area where we used to set up was torn down and so we moved into the large building where the Grand National Roadster Show is held in January. this also expanded the area for Roadster parking which worked out well as a record number of topless hot rods showed up. the l.a. Roadster membership is to be

by Ed Hill

At The Drake Team’s booth, Bob poses with his younger brother Scott, owner of Scott Drake Mustang Parts. Like his big brother’s company is to the early Ford world, Scott’s company is a leading international supplier of top quality Mustang parts.

Wes’ ’35 is loaded on the trailer.

SummeR 2011BOB’s nEWs

A rustic ’34 Phaeton hot rod sits beside a ’36.

A fine example of an original 1933 tudor showed up. Even though it’s not a roadster, it’s a very nice specimen of a ’33 rarely seen these days.

An original ’35 roadster (left) with it’s stock dash panel, compared to a ’36 (right) which originally had a similar flat dash panel, but is now fitted with a Drake ’40 deluxe dash. This has been a typical hot rod modification offering a larger glove box and more roomier locations for additional instruments and stereo features.

l.a. roadsters 2011highly commended as they handled all these changes like the old pros that they are. our space was right behind the clubs booth where the prettier side of the membership was selling souvenirs. our new 642 page catalog showed up hot off the presses. We hadn’t even seen it yet. We finally got the booth all done and set out for night life in Pomona which means pigging out at one of the fine local eateries. Saturday’s crowd was huge with lots of folks drooling over the latest version of our “Steel ’40” coupe. the finished product should be done very soon. It was also “old home” week for us as plenty of friends dropped by to say hello. Scott Drake, Bob’s brother of mustang parts fame even dropped by. all too soon it was all over and we were faced with teardown and packup. monday morning we were back on the road to beautiful Grass Patch, oregon with another show under our belt. We made new friends, formed good memories and had a very enjoyable weekend. thanks to all the members of the l.a. Roadsters for a great job putting on a great show for a great cause. Now we are back to work getting the “Steel ’40” finished and more new products for you.

SummeR 2011BOB’s nEWs

a Broken leg Won’t stop Me

Bob’s Birthday

by Heather Travis

Born in 1943, Bob Drake turned 68 years old on July 25 and shared this; “I’ve always been envious of my old Ford friends who’re able to own and drive the model year Ford of which they were born. . . .and wouldn’t you just know it, I’d be born in one of the few years that Ford didn’t make cars.

Back on april 16th heather, one of our sales representatives had an unfortunate accident severely breaking her right leg while wrestling with her daughter, Jordyn, all in good fun. heather’s story follows here in her own words. “I have a spiral break of the tibia and broke the fibula in two, and also a bone in my ankle. I sat for 10 days with the tibia clicking together waiting for surgery. this was probably the worst of it all. I went for surgery on april 26th, which happens to be my mother Judy’s birthday. She was such a trooper to sit and wait. I was told the surgery would be about 2 hours. It ended up taking much longer. I received a “tibia Rodding” where basically, they opened up the knee and hammered a titanium rod down through the hollow part of the tibia and screwed it together at the top, and down at the bottom near my ankle. unable to align my bones, they had to make an extra incision. I was in the hospital for about 3 days trying to get the pain under control after over 30 staples and $7,000+ worth of stainless steel implants in my leg. , I always dreamt of implants, but never thought they would be in my leg, ha ha. I’m doing physical therapy twice a week and getting better slowly but surely. I’m able to put about 25 pounds of pressure on it, while still on crutches. I saw the doctor again on the 18th of July and learned I’ll be back in surgery on august 2nd, to have screws removed, which will probably put me out of action again for a week.. I’m very glad to be back at work for now, even if it’s only part time. I would like to give a special thanks to my sister Nikki, my mom, my husband, Stuart, and both of my daughters, Jordyn and taylor, for stepping-up and helping me out with everything, including household chores, driving and just being there for me, as I’m still unable to operate a vehicle. It’s been a very emotional and physical trauma for me, but I’m on the road to recovery. I feel so blessed to work for such a great company. my co-worker, Karen has really been a huge force in taking-on many of my daily tasks in addition to her own. everyone at Bob Drake’s has been so understanding through this unfortunate time. Bob told me that I’ll always have a job here and they’ll hold my position. this means so much to me, especially during this time when jobs are so hard to find. I couldn’t ask for a better boss or company to work for. thanks again. :)”