Limited-Edition Print (13"x19")of 570
Signed and numbered by the Artist
J.E. (Buggs) Threadgill's "Rat Rod" ruled Oklahoma City in 1957. While this little 33 Plymouth coupe might have been the epitome of a Rat Rod stylistically, there was nothing Ratty about it. "Buggs" (as he is known by his friends) built this car by hand. It featured a square tube frame, and the headers were fashioned from electrical conduit. The body was channeled six inches and the drivers door was welded shut. The passenger door was cut off so it would open over those long headers. Buggs was a member of the Huston Rod and Custom Shop, and was one of the guys who organized the first drag races in Texas in 1955.
This painting depicts Buggs qualifying for the A/ Altered class, at the 1957 3rd Annual Nationals in Oklahoma City. He was runner-up at that event, loosing only to Carl Grimes in his Fiat altered. The car normally ran a Olds engine on Nitro, but NHRA had banned the use of that fuel. So for this race, engine builder Wayne Roberts dropped in a injected 392 Chrysler Hemi, which ran on gasoline..
1957 certainly was a time when "Rat Rods" ruled Oklahoma City...This is truly a "Classic" piece of Drag Racing History
