Vehicle Description
A lot of folks thought the day of the T-bucket was over, but recent
strong sales (we've sold several in the past few months) suggest
that everything old is new again. This particular 1923 Ford
T-bucket nails the look and the feel, combining the classic
truncated Model T pickup body with a smooth-running Chevy V8
powerplant up front.
If you're doing a T-bucket, you need to go full retro with it. That
means eyeball-popping paint, plenty of chrome, and a top that looks
like it was penned by the Ratfink himself. All the T-buckets are
fiberglass these days, and this is no exception, and it absolutely
nails that modified Model T look. Finish quality is quite nice, and
you really can't tell it's fantastic plastic until you knock your
knuckles on it, and it captures all the detailing that the Model T
offered, from the framed "tailgate" to the outline of a door on
each side of the cab (there is only one door, of course). The
bright red paint is perhaps the most striking element of the entire
car, and there are no graphics or even any pinstripes to distract
from the very impressive workmanship. Delicate little billet
taillights, a painted Model T radiator shell, and King Bee
headlights with crystal clear lenses are all pieces of the formula,
but each car still seems to look different from the others,
including this one. It's a fresh build and it shows.
The interior is simple, but you'll probably appreciate the black
vinyl upholstery when you're out for a cruise, because A/C is not
available in a T-bucket. Strictly a 2-seater, the interior is
neatly finished with pleated upholstery in a snug-fitting bucket
seat built for two. Somehow they managed to give this one a
steering column angle that's comfortable, not city bus weird, and
bright white-faced Ford Motorsports gauges are spread across the
dash. That tall black canvas convertible top is removable, creating
the open-air T-bucket look, and the shrunken "bed" out back houses
the gas tank. There's no radio, no heater, and, well, nothing but
engine and the barest of minimums to operate it, and that's
entirely the point.
The engine is a chromed 350 cubic inch Chevy small block that's as
much as styling element as powerplant. Built by Total Performance,
it features aluminum heads, a pair of Edelbrock 4-barrel carbs and
those outrageous velocity stacks with K&N filters on top, and
the look is instantly identifiable. The sucker runs extremely well
and it's fully sorted, so it starts easily, idles well, and is
happy to trundle through traffic without overheating thanks to a
beefy radiator stuffed into that cut-down radiator shell. It's
backed by a TH350 3-speed automatic transmission and a Ford 9-inch
rear end, which hangs from a set of hairpins, coil-overs and a
Panhard rod to keep it aligned. Up front, the traditional dropped
axle on hairpins is one of the coolest features, since you can
watch it working from the driver's seat. There are also front disc
brakes grafted onto the tubular front axle and another set of discs
out back, so it has impressive stopping power. And since the whole
point of the T-bucket is to push the limits of tire, this one wears
hugely staggered 24x5.00R15 front and 33x21.50R15 Hoosier tires on
traditional Cragar mags.
Is the T-bucket back? Given how easily they sell, there's clearly a
large group of guys out there who still think they're cool. If
you're one of them, give us a call today!