Model A turned into hot-rodded art deco

What can be said about a Model A that hasn’t been said before? Better question: What can be done to a Model A that hasn’t been seen before? This is what Andy Leach, owner of CAL Automotive Creations in Bennington, Nebraska, had to ask himself when a header-fabrication job snowballed into a full-kill build for the 2017 Detroit Autorama--ultimately, landing him a seat as one of the Great 8 finalists for the coveted Ridler Award.

Early Fords have been the de facto hot rod canvas for nearly a century, and for good reason. Henry and his factories produced more than four million units, which made them cheap and plentiful for hot rodders and customizers, but after seven decades of chopping and channeling, you begin to feel like you’ve seen every single one of them. Cognizant of this, Andy took the challenge on when owner Ted Hubbard reached out to him to fabricate a set of stainless headers for his 1930 Ford Model A.