{"id":23934,"date":"2022-06-30T15:03:23","date_gmt":"2022-06-30T15:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.totalkitcar.com\/?p=23934"},"modified":"2022-06-30T15:03:23","modified_gmt":"2022-06-30T15:03:23","slug":"the-hot-rod-history-of-ed-mister-ed-wimble","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/2022\/06\/30\/the-hot-rod-history-of-ed-mister-ed-wimble\/","title":{"rendered":"THE HOT ROD HISTORY OF ED 'MISTER ED' WIMBLE"},"content":{"rendered":"

THE OUTLAW, FAST EDDIE AND MISTER ED \u2013 THE EDDIE WIMBLE STORY<\/strong><\/p>\n

[standfirst] Eddie Wimble is rightly regarded as one of the UK\u2019s greatest exponents of hot rod building. He is deservedly in the UK\u2019s National Street Rod Association\u2019s Hall of Fame, but unless you are into the hot rod scene or were reading Filby\u2019s mags back in the late seventies, the name of Eddie Wimble won\u2019t be known to you. I thought it was time to pay a little tribute to Eddie and highlight the great work he did. I hope you enjoy reading it \u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

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A bit of a clich\u00e9 (they should be avoided \u2018like the plague\u2019!) maybe, but Eddie Wimble was born (in 1951, in Brixton) to build hot rods. He was reading and digesting American hot rod magazines from the tender age of eight and by fifteen he\u2019d not only restored several rusty old Ford Pops and Austin Sevens, but he\u2019d also worked out that rather than waste his time he may as well build what he really wanted, from scratch.<\/p>\n

Never one to rush, Ed has always done things his own way and very much in his own time. This is something that characterised his career and perhaps because he didn\u2019t jump when expected, explains why his name isn\u2019t as well-known as some others.<\/p>\n

His first chassis was built in the attic of his parents’ home using little more than a hacksaw, a knife, fork and a set of files … \u00a0and ended up in the skip. Undeterred, he pressed on though and came up with something like he\u2019d seen in his American magazines, featuring a drop tube front axle and a twin-rail box tube affair with a Triumph TR4 engine and a Morris Minor rear axle.<\/p>\n

Indeed, he is quoted as saying: \u201cI had a 3in vice, a bracket on the wall for it, a hacksaw, a big hand-drill and a few files.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Apprenticed at a South London engineering firm by day, he\u2019d spend his evenings and weekends working on his cars, eventually moving to a rudimentary lock-up behind a launderette in Tulse Hill.<\/p>\n

As mentioned, he\u2019d read those hot rod mags cover-to-cover; inside and out and would always be an avid reader of the technical sections, where he\u2019d learn stuff that he could use on his own car. What set Ed apart was that if he didn\u2019t understand a particular aspect, he\u2019d simply make a transatlantic phone call and speak to the rodding personality (be it painter extraordinaire Art Himsl or rod builder, Dan Woods) who had written the particular piece he was interested in.<\/p>\n

He told Filby: \u201cUsually, I\u2019d get straight through and they\u2019d be really helpful. If I saw a particular paintjob for example, I\u2019d ask Art Himsl direct. Ask him how it was really done. They were always very helpful,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

His phone bills were often eye-watering though, as a result.<\/p>\n

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Due to this thirst for learning, Ed quickly became an expert and a UK authority on Ford Model-A, Model-T and custom painting. Wimble was always known for his ability to paint beautifully, often using those trick techniques he\u2019d read in the US magazines.<\/p>\n

His own car was progressing \u2013 albeit slowly \u2013 and to help speed the process up he bought a Jago T-Bucket GRP \u2018shell. He said that the body wasn\u2019t as accurate as he\u2019d hoped, so didn\u2019t proceed with it. He had planned to take a mould from it and revise it for his own purposes. Then sell replicas of it, which he later did, but not with that bodyshell.<\/p>\n

One day, out of the blue, he discovered one of only three original Ford Model-T tourers in the UK and was allowed to carefully take a mould from that \u2013 well, rather the centre section and patterns from the rear end.<\/p>\n

From this he painstakingly created what he wanted \u2013 an authentic American-spec roadster-style buck: \u201c\u2026 or as close as I could get it, anyway,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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A lovely image taken on a misty Streatham Common in South West London – showing Ed Wimble posing proudly in one of his creations<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The production-ready mould was ready in March 1970 and selling GRP bodies to customers helped fund his own build. He sold quite a few and was charging only \u00a330 a pop (about \u00a3325 in today\u2019s money), although he really hated working with what he called messy and smelly fibreglass.<\/p>\n

The first-ever Custom Car Show at Crystal Palace Park in January 1971 was the first time that anyone saw what he\u2019d been building, although it was exhibited on The Rodding Group\u2019s stand and was far from finished. It certainly received lots of positive comments though. Ed Wimble and his reputation for painstaking quality had well and truly arrived.<\/p>\n

As a result of the show appearance, he gained the nickname, \u2018Mr Ed\u2019 and was suitably encouraged by public reaction. It took another two years before the car was finally finished and the Triumph engine had given way to an Oldsmobile F85 V8 imported from Jordan … and fitted with every replacement upgrade part that had ever been made for that engine.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Minor rear axle had given way to a fully chromed Jag MkX IRS.<\/p>\n

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By now he was running an official \u2013 albeit still part-time \u2013 speedshop business, trading as Mr Ed\u2019s Custom located in Hermitage Lane, Streatham Hill, in 1972. The stuff he sold was typically exquisite and included twin-rail rod chassis, axles, suspension parts, chrome windscreen frames, spun aluminium fuel tanks and GRP T-Bucket bodies, while other glassfibre \u2018shells on the pricelist included a four-seater T-Bucket. His mother\u2019s death in 1972 hit him hard and he struggled to get over it. He was only 21 at the time.<\/p>\n

As mentioned, Eddie was a gifted painter \u2013 thanks to those hot rod mags! \u2013 full of the tricks that rod builders of the day wanted \u2013 and his services were in demand. For a start, another well-known hot rod builder of the day, chairman of Wolfrace Wheels, restauranteur and hot rodder, Derry \u2018Treacle\u2019 Treacy, had him on a retainer and Ed painted all of his notable cars, such as the outrageous Nick Butler-built, Sonic.<\/p>\n

Alongside the painting, Ed helped further make ends meet by taking on jobs such as glass embossing and signwriting, although did manage to finish his car in time for the 1974 running of the Crystal Palace Custom Car Show. The show sponsor and then editor of said magazine, Roger Fennings phoned up asking for a name for Eddie\u2019s car to help promote the show in advance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember spluttering and wondering what to call it, but then remembered a George Barris car that I\u2019d recently read about in an American mag, called Outlaw, so I called it The Outlaw!\u201d he recalled to Filby.<\/p>\n

As it happens, the car wasn\u2019t running but did look visually finished (actually I\u2019m not entirely sure if the car ever turned a wheel more than a few hundred yards under its own steam!) and went down a storm.<\/p>\n

It won Eddie the prize for \u2018Best Engineering\u2019 (it was a work of art) and came second to his rival Nick Butler\u2019s equally brilliant \u2018Nykilodeon\u2019 in the \u2018Best Model-T\u2019 category.<\/p>\n

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He\u2019d really achieved what he\u2019d first tentatively set out to do in 1966. It was as close to an American \u2018Fad-T\u2019 as you would ever see in the UK and won him loads of well-deserved plaudits. The \u2018shell was different from when it was first shown though and although still GRP, it was now \u2018sectioned\u2019 (that\u2019s lowered to you and me!).<\/p>\n

What was really becoming Ed\u2019s trademark was his perfect eye for detail, his finesse as was shown as he carried on making modifications to The Outlaw, such as fitting a jewel-like transverse torsion bar front suspension and a few tonnes of additional chrome … and show audiences around the UK were knocked out by the quality of the car. Meanwhile, Ed scooped up a good few awards along the way.<\/p>\n

His star was brightened further by TV appearances on shows as diverse as \u2018Nationwide\u2019 and \u2018Magpie\u2019 … \u00a0and also a very fleeting glimpse of the man and his car on Shaw Taylor\u2019s motoring show, \u2018Drive-In\u2019 with Wimble looking menacing and mean in the background. That look wasn\u2019t for effect either, as I think he was genuinely a bit upset as he was expecting a proper interview that didn\u2019t happen!<\/p>\n

In the first-ever National Custom Car Show at Olympia in London in 1975, Wimble turned the tables on Nick Butler by taking the award for Best Model-T, with Nykilodeon in second place. Wimble had well and truly joined the UK scene\u2019s elite group of builders.<\/p>\n

So encouraged was he that he decided to turn his hobby into a full-time business, becoming Mr Ed\u2019s Specialised Auto Design in a new workshop in West Croydon, which is when I first became aware of him. My area of South Norwood was quite a speedshop hotbed and also the home of another lesser-known hot rodder called Mackenzie James.<\/p>\n

Croydon was also the home of Peter Agg\u2019s Trojan operation who, in addition to being the official UK importer for Lambretta at the time, also imported bubble cars, made Elvas for several years and also made Bruce McLaren\u2019s roadcars.<\/p>\n

It was all Agg\u2019s fault I think, as to why I do what I do for a living, as I was totally enthralled at what I saw every time I walked past the factory gates, twice a day to and from school and while going to my dad\u2019s garage that was just down the road from there. I vividly remember seeing loads of automotive bubble cars in a variety of colours awaiting delivery to dealers. That was quite influential on a young lad who already loved cars.<\/p>\n

This is also when I first became aware of Eddie and his work. I think my late father knew him, or one of his friends, while I would talk to him while passing through. I think he wondered what the spotty kid was on about, but I don\u2019t care, this was formative stuff on an impressionable lad like me.<\/p>\n

Other products were added to Wimble\u2019s price list, such as a GRP T-Bucket \u2018shell that Ed altered to better suit his and his customers\u2019 requirements. He\u2019d seen it on one of his regular visits to the US. This one had its origins at Cal Automotive. He also offered other \u2018shells including a stock roadster, shortened tourer body, pickup beds, Turtle decks and a variety of chassis and suspension parts.<\/p>\n

Much of what he sold was made in-house, too. Typical of Ed he spent far too long on making his stuff, but he did it because he could, he wanted to and he wanted his customers to have the best possible products.<\/p>\n

Anyway, in 1976 after one year at West Croydon, he upped sticks again and moved to another unit in Streatham, a tiny place of just 600 sq ft but it seemed to work. Due to the success of his parts business, he had less time to devote to his own builds.<\/p>\n

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A beautiful archive image of hot rodder extraordinaire Eddie ‘Mr Ed Wimble in action at Santa Pod in his well-known ‘Incredible Hulk’ – pic taken in 1977! You can read a history of Ed’s career in CLASSIC KIT CARS & SPECIALS this week<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Custom fans were eager to see what Ed would follow \u2018The Outlaw\u2019 with. Other notable Wimble show cars were The Incredible Hulk (a Chevy V8-powered, competition-altered dragster) and another Model-T, called \u2018Freedom\u2019 – aka \u2018Mr B\u2019s T\u2019<\/p>\n

A planned C-Cab was scrapped after he saw how good Nick Butler\u2019s \u2018Revenge\u2019 was, although by the Autos International Rod & Custom Show at Belle Vue in May 1977, he did unveil a brand new ’23-’25 Model-T Tudor and a very authentic ’28-’29 Ford Model-A Roadster, which were available in kit form from February 1978.<\/p>\n

Why isn\u2019t Ed Wimble better known outside of the hot rod fraternity? Good question. Maybe he was too ambitious and too much of a purist for the fledgling UK rod movement, where most people happily settled for a Jago kit with the greatest of respect. His time came though and for several years his star burned brightly, or until about 1982 when he seemed to shut his rod business.<\/p>\n

He went on to set up Ed Wimble Design … and until fairly recently he was still doing that. There were some beautiful hot rod paintings on his Facebook page, stuff that was right up there with what Chip Foose produces on Overhaulin\u2019.<\/p>\n

Ed Wimble definitely ploughed his own furrow and did things at his own pace, but was always down-to-earth and, rather than employ loads of staff, he remained pretty much a one-man band throughout … BUT he definitely belongs at the same table as hot rod glitterati like Bryan Godber, Mickey Bray, Chris Boyle, Pip Biddlecombe and the magician that is, Nick Butler.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

THE OUTLAW, FAST EDDIE AND MISTER ED \u2013 THE EDDIE WIMBLE STORY [standfirst] Eddie Wimble is rightly regarded as one of the UK\u2019s greatest exponents […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23934","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23934"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23934\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkc.grainwork.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}