I’ve posted a video once before about Ed “Big Daddy” Roth which I urge you to watch (if you haven’t seen it already), especially before reading the build I’m about to show you. I’m not here to give you a history lesson, but I think it’d be pretty cool for the younger guys who might not be into the older stuff to get yourself up to scratch with the early days of custom car culture and familiarise yourself with names like Roth, Barris, and Winfield.

So anyway, the story goes that one of Roth’s crazy creations from 1964, the Orbitron, was recently found in an almost abandoned state in Mexico with it’s iconic triple-light nose chopped off. Apparently it had changed hands a few times after it left the spotlight before being used as carnival transportation and finally finding it’s resting place outside an adult book shop. A car restorer found the car and negotiated the sale from it’s current owner, bringing the car back to SoCal to be restored to it’s former glory by the guys in the know.

I’ve barely touched on the story so please make sure you hit the link at the bottom of the article to get the full lowdown, there’s a lot of information on the site and I hope you find the time to read through it. Kudos to all involved for saving this bizarre bubble-top beauty from what might have been it’s ultimate demise.

In the 60′s, upon completion…

As it was found, bruised and battered, a shadow of its former self…

On its way home…

History being recreated…

Completed chassis, this is what $40,000 of chrome looks like…

Back to its former glory. The three coloured headlight beams all converge in one spot to create a white light.

CLICK HERE to find out everything you need to know about The Orbitron, make sure to check out the History and Restoration pages.

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Speedhunters have just done a nice writeup on Ed “Big Daddy” Roth as a part of their “Misfits and Mavericks Month”. Whilst reading through the comments at the end of the story, I noticed someone posted up a non-descriptive Youtube link related to the subject. When I clicked the link I was greeted with a full length movie/documentary over 1hr in length. If you’ve got the time, I highly recommend watching this piece. Not only does it focus on Ed’s crazy creations, but it also touches on the history of hot rodding and how it boomed into a successful commercial industry, something I find very interesting. 1950′s California sure would have been a fun place to be growing up as a young gear-head.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gys-6znFEC8