For as much as we are a family in street machining circles, there sure is a lot of infighting in our brood.
Need proof?
“Shiny car” guys hate rat rods. Rat rodders hate craftsmanship (too much? Am I showing my allegiances?). Pro touring folks hate pro streeters. Tubbed lovers hate “coners” (i.e.-autocrossers). It seems that for any particular style of custom auto, there are four or five other groups of naysayers pointing out the flaws, impracticalities, or both.
So what happens when you take some of the key elements of pro touring, roll them together with some of the foundations of classic street machining, and throw in a pair of steamroller meats tucked up into some pro street tubs out back just for good measure? We aren’t sure what you call it, but whatever it is, Rich and Kathy Bryant’s 1965 Chevelle is it. And it is pretty cool.
Truth be told, one of the only things keeping the classic silver Chevy from outright classification as a traditional pro streeter is probably the set of massive Schott Mod5 billet Wheels. The 18×8-inch fronts are fitted with BF Goodrich G-Force T/As, while the genre-bending 15×20-inch rears are shod with new-school 31x18x20 Mickey Thompson Sportsman SR radials.
“I’d consider my car pro street,” Bryant said. “The big wheels are different than the older style look, but to me, it is like anything— things change and evolve. This is just another example of that,” he added.
While the rolling stock is certainlyone of the things onlookers otice first, Bryant’s ride is far from just a classic car with a set of flashy wheels. The build started four years ago when the Bradley, Ill. resident had first acquired nother—and far rougher—’65 Chevelle. Bryant had started to execute his plan to build a cool new-age pro street cruiser. However, once he got started, it became clear that the rotted remains of a
