The Long Beach Model T Club and the Orange Empire Horseless Carriage Club came in for a tour. Bob Egge and Neil Matranga showed them around the shop. Ending in the famous Babbitt Foundry.

Founded in Long Beach, CA in 1954, the Long Beach Model T Club is dedicated to preserving and maintaining Model T Ford vehicles of anciant age and historical value. The club also serves as an accurate and technical source of information concerning Model T Fords for the benefit of its members and the general public.

Today, Chris from Checkpoint Automotive stopped in with his 1931 Chevrolet 3-Window Coupe. While chatting with Chris, the car was restored in 1982 from a very solid original car. Chris was the care taker of the car for many years before purchasing it from the estate a few years ago. “It runs as good as it looks.” Chris states thanking Egge for helping him build a solid reliable engine. The dash still has the original paint and the odometer reads the original miles on the car at 33,215!

The 3 Window Coupe sold for  $535.00.  57,741 3 Window Coupe where produced out of 623,901 total production of Chevrolet cars in 1931. Dual side mount and wire/wheel options are rare on a Chevrolet, but to have both is extremely rare especially on a 3 Window Coupe. These options are normally found on Sport Coupes or Convertibles. In the late 20’s and early 30’s dual side mount-wire wheel options where typically found on the expensive models.

John poniedup to the shop today to see if we had heads for his HEMI drawn carriage. Essentially a hemi on a frame with a permanently attached carriage trailer. There is a 10 gallon tank under the buckboard and steering and such is hydraulic to the front framework. To crazy for words.

Bob came by our booth at SEMA to show us these photos of his awesome AMC. He recently rebuilt his original Hurst SC/Rambler 390 with Egge pistons. Here is a picture of the car was at the Detroit Autorama in the Chrysler Employee Motorsports exhibit.  The car had the engine that was done in conjunction with the senior tech editor of Hot Rod magazine, Marlan Davis.  It appeared in the March, 2004 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. Thanks Bob for sharing your notable Rambler.

1934 Terraplane 6 Convertible

The installation of your new pistons on my 1934 Terraplane is almost done. I used #0 pistons, since the engine got dry sleeves, after a major engine problem in 2000. After we bought the car in Copenhagen and drove from there to Germany, the cam follower for the fuel pump broke off, got between camshaft and valve lifter, which broke the camshaft into 6 pieces, which in turn ruined everything in the crankcase like pistons etc. The spare parts for repair I bought at your store. After that, the engine was running, but with a lot of other problems to be taken care of. Again with the help of Egge and the ROC / Railton Owners Club in the UK we traveled extensively i.e. 10,000 km until the increasing blow by made us look into the engine and found to my amazement the broken piston rings. I needed new pistons and rings from you, which were installed, this time checking the piston ring gaps and now I am in the procedure to finish the repair by putting the cylinder head on etc. The car is, according to an expert in antique cars, the one of six known vehicles of the 1934 Terraplane 6 convertible, which is still running on the road. The other 5 are in museums or collections.

Again, thanks to Egge, for the assistance to keep this early marvel of engineering excellence running!
Friedrich Goes, Germany

What do you get when you put a Flathead V-8 60 and a Toyota tranny in a bucket roadster?

Well, if you're William Seal you get this fun little hot rod that you drive all over the place! William stopped by the Egge Shop to pick up some parts for his next project and shared this little jem with us.

Enjoy the photos.

Here is my 1933 Model 57 Buick four-door sedan, which is under restoration using Egge pistons, valves and valve springs, and roller tappets.  The car has its original two-tone blue paint.  Special features are the side-mount spare tires on each front fender, the wire wheels, and, instead of a back trunk, an openwork metal trunk rack that folds up against the back car body.

I bought the car in Denver in 1973 in honor of my father’s favorite Buicks of the mid-1930s, remembered well from my family’s annual summer drives from Kansas City out to our cabin at the foot of Pike’s Peak in Colorado.  I drove the ‘33 sedan lightly during the mid-seventies and then stored it for thirty years while I concentrated on other car passions.
The attached photos were taken recently during my rediscovery of the Buick and its rescue from somewhat dusty storage! 

As my son and I plan the work on the engine, it appears to be in excellent condition. Here, from the right side, is the massive cylinder head with covers removed from the valve system and spark plugs.  The straight-eight design and construction uses 16 push rods and rocker arms.  The fuel pump is on the left and the distributor behind the generator.

The cylinder head with covers on, from the right side.  One of the first restoration activities that I did was to order the 8 pistons, 16 valves and valve springs, and 16 roller tappets from Egge Machine Co.

The instrument panel is set into a wood-grained metal dashboard.  From left are ampmeter, oil pressure and water temperature gauges, speedometer and odometer, and gasoline gauge.  The mileage shown – 47,347 – is not realistic considering the wear on the car.

Note the Buick emblem on the dashboard.  A rubber floor mat was standard.

The ’33 Buick ignition switch is located on the steering wheel column. The interior body and seats are in taupe cloth.

In answer to "other projects?", none except the Buick are "in the works" right now.  However, many completed in previous years, since high school days in the late 40's -- from a '28 Pierce Arrow and a '19 Buick to two '38 MG SAs (the big ones).  My fondest attachment is for my grandfather's 1926 Chevvie coupe, still taking family for spins in the mountains around our cabin at the foot of Pike's Peak.  I'll send in pictures of "Tillie" sometime later, for she has Egge innards, too.

—    Larry and Joyce Herold, Denver, CO

218 flatty bored 30 over with a 230 crank.  High compression Edgy head from 7:1 to 9:1

Egge Pistons, bearings, rods, all went into this car. I'm very happy with it.

This car, with the parts from your company, made to Detroit and back to Mt. View CA two years in a row.  That's driving, not trailer.  Went to Woodward Dream Cruise twice out there, and going again in 2010. 

I did all the work in a single car garage.  Lowered the car in the front almost three inches, had to build a skid plate for the oil pan.  Lowered one inch in the rear. Changed from 6 to 12 volts, has Vintage Air AC, power windows and door locks. Converted the old radio to modern 12 volt stereo with 10 disc cd changer.  LED tail lights.  More goodies and the list goes on and on.

Thanks for taking a interest.

John

1956 PLYMOUTH BELVEDERE
ORIGINALLY HAVING A 277 V-8 , AL CONVERTED IT TO A 318 V-8 AND 904 TORQUEFLITE TRANS FROM A 1976 PLYMOUTH VOLARE. ADDED AN ELDEBROCK INTAKE MANIFOLD AND CARB ALONG WITH SOME CHROME VALVE COVERS AND A B & M FLOOR SHIFTER. CAR WAS LOWERED 3 INCHES ALL THE WAY AROUND. THE TWO TONE PAINT AND THE “SPORT TONE” SIDE MOLDINGS MAKE THIS CAR A REAL LOOKER.

Doris MayDay, Pinup Artist and blonde bombshell came over to Egge Machine Company recently for a photoshoot with photographer; Mitzi Valenzuela. With a slight disruption in production she posed for shots in the warehouse, gasket garage, cnc cells, and workshop. Gary brought his roadster by for some added flavor. Check out the photos and let us know what you think.

We have had several requests to put our latest series of ads online for all to see!

Melinda Miles our Hot Rod Deluxe, Parts with Appeal poster girl and good friend is expecting a baby girl. We thought to take the opportunity to do a photoshoot for Spring. A call to Melinda with the idea was all it took. She enlisted her Uncle David Hickey who is a fashion photographer for the Playboy series "The Girls Next Door" and we used her and her husband's shop: Walden Speed Shop in Pomona, CA.

The Ads are out in publications such as: Engine Builder, Hot Rod Deluxe, Hemmings, Rod and Custom and many others.

We'd like to know what you think.

Neil Matranga, Egge’s product manager has been involved in the vintage car hobby for most of his life, it all started with his grandfather being with GM/ Oldsmobile from 1949-1996. Neil has been involved with the Great American Race and the Hot Rod Power Tour. He has also built cars for the SEMA show. Neil has been in the automotive industry for nearly 20 years. He loves to work on, drive and hunt for parts for his diverse car collection. You never know when you will see him at a local swap meet or driving one of his cars. Here are a few of the cars he enjoys.

1903 Curved Dash Oldsmobile, Neil found the car in San Diego CA, in 2002. The 1903 Curved Dash Olds was first American that was assembly line built car and the first car to be driven from coast to coast in the USA. Neil restored the car in 2002-2003 and it is now owned by the legendary Joe Mondello.

1912 REO the Fifth 5 passenger touring, 4 X 4.5” F head 4 cyl engine. Neil found the car in Pasadena CA, in 2004 and had to have it. The car still has the original paper mache body. The 1912 was the first car to be driven from coast to coast across Canada and was the last car that Ransom E. Olds designed. The car was restored in 1963, and in 1965 it won a National 1^st place at the Los Angeles AACA car show. Neil loves to tour the car with the Horseless Carriage Club. It has been on tours in Napa Valley, Solvang, Julian and Temecula plus many local tours. The car was also the feature center fold car in the Horseless Carriage Gazette in 2005. The car has received a mechanical restoration in 2005; Neil drives the car about 1,500 miles per year.

1965 Oldsmobile Cutlass Convertible, Neil found the car in Irvine, CA. in 1990, it only had 72,000 miles and was 100% original. It was his daily driver for a year then in 1991 he started the restoration. In 1993 the car was completed in 1992 and won many Best if Show awards. The car was featured in the Oldsmobile book “Setting the Pace” commemorating their 100^th year. 

Chris has a yard full of vehicles and these listed below are his daily drivers just reliable enough to make the whole 2 miles to work. A bit of a recluse, Chris was shy about us writing this up, so we had a bit of fun with it. It’s not that he is a millionaire collector, but quite frankly no-one wanted to buy the cars, so he just kept them.

We feature his oldest, some say classic, 1968 Chevrolet C10 Step side P.U. with 'environmentally unfriendly' factory 307 cid V-8 engine, 'slip n' slide' power glide transmission, brakes that stop when THEY want to, and a super-custom Kraco swap-meet stereo.

1977 Chevrolet “no”-Luv truck 'one of seven' left known in existence! Considered a throw-a-way vehicle by most, Chris has kept it only to someday drop in the 350, which rests on his living-room coffee table.

1991 "Numbers Matching" Geo Metro, 'one of only 700,000' built! One of only 43,856 left known in existence! This little beauty will get 48 miles to the gallon. That’s 24 trips to work. Sure the ice-cream push cart can get here sooner, but it will still get you there. If he is ever late to work, we understand he is taking the 3 cylinder Metro that day.

His 1994 Camaro Z28 is the “chick magnet”, although he admits it must be a non-ferrous variety.

His most modern car, a 1996 Chevrolet Impala SS is the date car where the comfy interior makes that ladies feel “at-home”. And ladies, don't be shy,  you are welcome give him a call here at 800-866-3443.

People were here for the love of Hot Rods-Kustoms, Live music, burlesque, art shows, 50's fashion, and of course the tattoo show covering three floors inside the ship. 280 of the best tattoo artists in the world were on hand from 30 States and 25 Countries representing all the tattoo styles; where a car show and music become an integral part of the event, mingling with the artistic expressions of the artists at work. Pinups clad in corsets, Classic Cats with Pompadours, Mohawks, fashion Mullets, full sleeves and back pieces. Not only is the breathtaking view of the gigantic Queen Mary, the beautiful water, and the amazing Long Beach skyline quite a task to take in all at once, but all the fashion statements and lavishly adorned people are quite a spectacle as well. This convention was both a sort of art gallery and community festival. Seven years ago the ship was overtaken by the underground subculture of all things Kustom and modified. From tattooing to pin striping and tantalizing show goers with tight corsets the 7th Annual Ink-N-Iron Festival was laced up and in port!

Egge’s SpeedShopMall.com is a unique online experience where visitors earn points to redeem in the SpeedShopMall.com stores. Visitors earn points when clicking on links within the site or playing in the arcade. Companies in the automotive aftermarket are opening stores daily. More than just a shopping destination, the site has entertaining and insightful editorial content as well. Industry Icons, tech articles and an event calendar support the needs of  auto enthusiasts everywhere. You can also download catalogs from participating companies andplay in the arcade. At the Speed Shop Mall you can also view garage segment videos from the hit Speed channel series My Classic Car with Dennis Gage. Stop on by, sign-up for our monthly mailing, and enjoy your drive.
Visit www.SpeedShopMall.com today!

Here are some photos from the Set-up day at SEMA 2009.

Egge was there at the First-Ever Petersen Auto Museum Swap Meet. Here are some photos of the swap meet and some of the crazy cars they have in this world-class museum.

To help celebrate our 95th year we decided to update our showroom and get ready for the next 95 years. A warm patina on the walls, loads of product shelves and a new slatwall all help to create a welcoming place for our visitors and customers. The slatwall will be outfitted with new products for sale. The shelves under the windows will be home to: "Egge; The First 100 Years" a timeline and memorabilia display. There will also be t-shirts, accessories, and hard parts showcased. In the far corner from the front door is a corner unit and book cases for magazines, and automotive books for sale. That corner will also have a tall table and four chairs for guests to peruse our catalog while waiting for their order to be assembled. On the wall with the door to the restroom will be a flat screen tv which will run a loop of My Classic Car and Egge Videos.

When in Southern California we invite you to stop on by the show-Vroom and possibly take a tour of our manufacturing facility (appointments requested).

The guys from South Bay Touring A's came by the shop today for a tour of our foundry, babbitt and machine shop. Follow along as these gentlemen get schooled on old-world craftsmanship with new technology.

Did you know Egge manufactures valves for vintage domestic engines? Egge’s machine shop in Santa Fe Springs offers small run valve manufacturing for custom and stock applications.

They start with hardened stainless steel blanks, which differ from the stock forged steel valves. Stainless steel is much more stable and doesn’t stretch or bend like forged steel under extreme heat/cool cycles and more stable in the life of the valve as well. Forged steel tends to lose hardness in time.

Egge’s stringent quality assurance program ensures that the quality is very consistent with a 90% “low-tolerance” and the remaining 10% falls within 50% of the tolerance gap noted in the specifications. For example in a valve stem of .3725” specifications state that the tolerance must fall between a +0.0010 oversize and -0.0005 undersize. 90% of our valves are at .3725” and the other ten percent may fall within +0.0005 and -0.00025.

We also measure each valve for concentricity. Concentricity is the consistent measure of the seat angle to the shaft. The valve is laid in a device to keep the shaft straight and a sensor is placed on the valve seat. A slight spin to the valve notes any bumps or fluctuations of valve seat circle diameter. The valve scope shows an enlarged silhouette of the head to check the angle of the seat and the chamfer around the head.

All of this detail refers back to Egge doing smaller runs. With smaller runs they are able to control the quality and have the opportunity to really look at the product and make decisions, which help to keep the tolerances low and the quality high.

When you are ready for new valves for your vintage domestic engine, consider Egge Machine and Speed Shop. They can create enhanced stock versions or custom applications with your specifications. Each one, hand made in Santa Fe Springs, California, U.S.A.

Call your Egge for a free catalog of domestic engine components and nostalgic performance parts for your classic car, 800-866-3443 or visit www.EGGE.com for more information.

We all have someone who shared their passions. In Tony’s case it was his uncle Delmar’s love of the automobile. Del liked them all. From  MG’s to Ramblers and occasionally a bike or two. Del’s passion was shared on Tony’s older brothers as well who brought home copies of Motor Trend and Hot Rod from the local library. Tony’s story is similar to most of us in the industry. Building models and drawing cars, customizing their bikes and skateboards and then in the late 1970’s taking out the baffle on the moped to make it at least sound faster. His first car was a 1970 bug complete with “cinder-block” lowering kit in the front trunk, then a 1977 Fiat X-19, 1967 Galaxie convertible, 1968 Chevelle Malibu, 1964 Dodge Dart GT, 1987 Suzuki Samarai, 1992 Ford F-150 Nite, 1994 Ford Thunderbird GT, 2000 Mustang, 1953 Ford F-100 and now he owns a 1956 Fairlane Businessmans Edition, 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 Hemi, and 2004 Harley Road King Custom. Tony and his boy are currently building a 1972 Harley Rapido into a side hack and customizing a Worksman tricycle.

You may find him on the weekends cruising his Fairlane or riding his Harley to cover events for his website: BlacktopMagazine.com. As Marketing Director at Egge Machine and Speed Shop he has been known to say that he was quizzed on passing vehicles during family road trips and now he makes a living with that “schooling”. When you see him out there, feel free to tease him about the Samurai, or the Fiat, and ask him how to install the “cinder-block” lowering kit in your car.

Good times at the 2010 Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show. Egge was there between the Petersen exhibit and the New Products display area. On Thursday March 11, Egge held their first-ever seminar at the show: "Building Value in Vintage Engines". There were over 3 dozen participants who responded to the panel discussion. Panelists include: Jim Barber from Classic Automotive Restoration Specialists, John Gunnel, author of The Standard Catalog of V-8 Engines, Ted Svejda from Monaco Vintage Motors, and Del Austin and Neil Matranga from Egge Machine and Speed Shop.

The tradeshow kicked off on Friday morning with the Petersen Lifetime Achievement award breakfast honoring Jack Roush (see video on our gallery page). We saw our friends from Steele Rubber, SSBC, Eaton Detroit Springs, Flaming River, Edelbrock, Lokar, Dynamat, and Hot Rod Chassis and Cycle.

Look for the Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show in March at Indianapolis Convention Center next year.

Egge Machine and Speed Shop was there when Jack Roush was awarded the Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2010 Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show in Indy.

On Friday January 15, 2010 Egge Machine Company hosted a tour of their facility forSteve McDonald, Ethan Landesman, and Montana State Senator John Brueggeman from SEMA Action Network brought California State Assembly Member Tony Mendoza.

The goal of the meeting and tour was to share the value of the aftermarket industry to Mr. Mendoza who authored a bill that would require anyone who enhanced their vehicle both in performance and design to register it as a race car and the fees would go into an anti-street racing program for California.

SEMA got word of this and quickly responded to Mendoza's plan and shared with them the scope of our industry which the Assemblymember dropped his endorsement of the bill. This shows how SEMA is out their fighting for our industry.

During the tour Assembly Member Mendoza and MT State Senator Brueggeman each poured a piston with - lets say "interesting" results.

One last note, if you are ever in the Southern California area and would like to tour our shop, please contact Tony Colombini to schedule a tour.

Take a walk through our shop and meet the people behind our foundry, milling, valve manufacture, babbitting, and pump remanufacturing departments in Santa Fe Springs, CA.

The 10th Annual Cruisin' for a Cure is the largest one-day charitable car show with all proceeds going to fight prostate cancer. Held on September 26, 2009, the show boasts appx. 3000 vehicles registered and last year over 700 men were tested with a PSA or DRE for prostate cancer. Ten years ago the show started here in Orange County, CA and now has events across the country. In Southern California, scores of men are survivors due to the early detection of prostate cancer. Enjoy the video.

Chris Jacobs from HubGarage.com interviewed our very own Sam and Tony at the 2009 Grand National Roadster Show. Click play to see the video.

An unusual mold for an unusual piston. The E663 is a Farmall Tractor Piston. Egge, known for their nostalgic engine components also has permanent casting molds for AG and Motorcycles.

A recent visitor to our website asked: How are the pistons different in this Flip-Mold" procedure?
The pistons are not necessarily different.
You get a better casting when poured from the top of the piston. As the aluminum solidifies it pulls material from the gates and the larger the piston, the larger the gates are needed to pull the heated aluminum from. When opening the mold, we need to remove the center piece. We can't do this from the bottom, so the entire mold is flipped to remove the center structure.

In hydraulic molds (which is our usual) the center of the piston drops down thus no flipping involved. On the hand molds we need to turn the mold over to release the inside piece of the mold. Timing the cooling is important in these hand molds. Flip too early and material moves around in the mold. Flip too late and there may be cracks as we pull the casting from the mold.

Many people, including some of our most seasoned customers don’t believe that we actually manufacture pistons here in Santa Fe Springs, California let alone in the western hemisphere. Not only are we the oldest American manufacturer of engine parts, we are the ONLY manufacturer of cast aluminum pistons. This month, we present a shop tour as we follow the production of the E279 piston for 1942-54 Desotos with a 236 or 250 cubic inch 6 cylinder engines, from a raw ingot of A-332 aluminum to loading on the delivery truck to your door. A-332 aluminum is a high silicone mix aluminum perfect for piston manufacturing.

Here is a short video of the boys pouring pistons at Egge Machine and Speed Shop in the Santa Fe Springs, CA facility.

Photoshoot with pinup model Doris MayDay and Mitzi Valenzuela shooting. www.MitziandCo.com.

Best Gasket is our Egge Expert chosen gasket manufacturer. Best makes engine, transmission and rear axle gaskets for vintage American automobiles from the 1930’s through the 1960s with few exceptions. In a discussion with our Egge Experts John and Jim here are reasons why they prefer Best Gasket: Coverage; Best offers kits for models other gasket companies don’t stock. Quality; Their GraphTite rear main seals work really well especially over the conventional rope seals. Likability; People like them. The folks at Best Gasket are easy to work with and if there is a problem they are proactive in finding a solution.

We had the opportunity to take our cameras behind the scenes and meet with owner Armin Brown as he gave us a tour of their facility. Did you know? Armin is also the Lead and Rhythm Guitars for The Torquays whose music is featured with two songs; Twitchin' and Pit Stop on the video!

Located in Whittier, CA; Best Gasket is a relatively small company with a focus on manufacturing gaskets using the highest quality modern materials and a dedicated team to put them all together. Dies are created by re-engineering existing new old stock. Material ranges from rubberized cork to steel reinforced graphite or copper. The use of material is economized for instance when they punch a bunch of timing cover gaskets the discarded material is used for fuel pump gaskets. They have several rows of dies, which resembles a hot rodders library. In a larger adjacent room was row upon row of gaskets to sell individually or in the next room there is a team who assemble complete engine kits. As cool as all this sounds, don’t go and call them for an order. Best Gasket only sells to the trade and Egge is one of their premier distributors. Call our Egge Experts, you are sure to get the correct set and at the best price right here at Egge Machine Company.

A Soggy Southern California Car Show.

The 2009 Mooneyes X-mas Show at Irwindale Speedway was a bit wet. Hard core hot rodders and a sprinkle of bettys made for a unique southern california experience.