ON SHOW KILLERRides SHAUN & TRACEY PASK

Words - Paul Beck

Pics - Paul Beck & Chad Silvey

Long-time Hot Rodder Shaun Pask, has owned all kinds of cool and unique cars. His latest, this Hemi-powered Hiboy, certainly turned plenty of heads at the recent Street Rod Nationals in Sydney.

1934 Ford Coupe

Over the past 40-years, the Pask garage has been a revolving door of Rods, Customs and Racecars. There’s been way too many to list, but most recently there’s been a series of Willys coupes including a ’33, a ’39, a ’40 and of course a ’41 Gasser. There’s even been a Valiant Gasser known as “Knuckle Duster” and a big-block ’55 Chev that’s been part of the family for some 37-years! This nostalgia-styled ’34 three-window Hiboy coupe is just as cool, if not, his coolest build yet! Shaun’s still not sure why he started another full-tilt built after completing a huge undertaking on the ’33 Willys prior to starting this one. I’m sure now though, that he is glad he did.

The build started with a stage 3 rolling chassis and steeled-out Rod Bod’s body that a mate, Wazza, had sitting in his shed in Townsville. Having done some trading in the past, it was a short phone call that saw the deal done and the body and chassis loaded up on a truck bound for Brisbane for Shaun to get stuck into. The body was handed over to Craig Bloomer and Jim Varney to get the fibreglass perfect for paint, deleting any imperfections in the process. Satisfied that the body was as good as it could be, the custom mix,

Cool Caramel, was laid down. Before too long, the body was bolted to the chassis. Kamo at Atomic Fabrication had already spent time reshaping the steel hood to match the aftermarket grille shell as well as fabricating the hood sides that allow the Hemi to poke a head out of each side, in a little teaser of what is providing the power. He then had the car again to design and fabricated the fenders and brackets that cover those 15x4 and 16x5-inch Vintech steel wheels with Firestone rubber.

Whilst in his workshop, Kamo brought Shaun’s interior design into life, hand shaping the unique brass and alloy panels that are a highlight of the interior. A mix of body colour, brass, alloy and black vinyl make the interior a great place to be with everything added performing a duty. There’s nothing inside that doesn’t serve a purpose. As they say, less is more! From the eBay-sourced Autotechnia seats to the unique octagonal steering wheel, enough gauges in the dash to get the job done and the desirable Hurst Lightning Rods shifter, this interior is on point and a perfect addition to the build.

This car was always going to have a big block Hemi and Shaun scored this one from a mate, Nick Levitt, who had bought it in from the US. Knowing it was a good running, stock 392 didn’t stop Shaun from sending the engine to Geoff Hayes, where it was stripped down for a thorough inspection. What they found was a standard bore in mint condition that could have been reassembled and cruised, but while it was apart, the pair decided to freshen up the old engine anyway, adding some performance parts in the process. The standard steel crank was kept and swings original rods with 10.4:1 forged Arias pistons inside the factory block. An Isky cam with a nicer idle was added along with a highvolume oil pump and Hot Heads sump. The factory cast iron heads remain in place and offer a place for the Hot Heads four-barrel intake with 750cfm Holley carb to bolt to. Shaun then called on Dan Swanney to fabricated the headers and exhaust system to expel the gases when the MSD ignition fires the Hemi into life and burns that 9-octane fuel. Shaun has no idea how much horsepower the aspirated Hemi makes, and to be honest, he doesn’t really care!

Bolted up to the back of the big block is a brand new, B&M Street & Strip Turbo 350 auto that uses a Hot Heads adapter to mount to the Chrysler engine. The converter is also a B&M item. Driveline Services built the tailshaft to send the power through to the limited slip 9-inch diff. There’s no glitz of glamour when it comes to the ‘34’s underside, just tried and true hot rod engineering. Up front, there’s a SoCal drop axle with hairpins and shocks from the same catalogue. A HQ steering box gives a nicer feel when out cruising. Braking is left up to Commodore discs and Ford drums, all controlled by an XY master cylinder.

After a two-year build, Shaun and Tracey were keen to debut the coupe at the Yamba Hot Rod Run. With just a final inspection to do before attaching the HEMI34 plates, the coupe went through that process without any hassles, getting ticks all round. At Yamba, the Coupe scored a spot in the Top 10, Top Interior and Commerce Choice. Shaun wanted to stress that his wife Tracey was an integral part of not just this build, but all builds they undertake. “She’s an important part of any build, playing her part in building, driving and racing our cars!”

THANKS TO: First and foremost, my wife Tracey! Geoff Hayes – Engine Build. Driveline Services – Tailshaft. Jim Varney & Craig Bloomer –Body and Paint. Kamo at Atomic Fabrication – interior components and fenders. Dan Swanney – Headers and exhaust. Precision Powder Coating. G James Glass – fitment of all glass. Custom Auto Electrics. Tony Dack and Craig Barber for their continued help.