“Lil Dough,” one of the coolest custom rods from the ’50s, spent 30 years out of sight before it was resurrected and returned to the show circuit 20 years ago. This historic Hemi-powered 1933 Ford’s next appearance will be the upcoming Mecum Auctions event in Indianapolis, Indiana, in May. After that, it will have a new home.
In the late ’50s and early ’60s, this screaming red ragtop was collecting show trophies, gracing the pages of automotive magazines, and setting a standard for custom rod styling. But according to the articles in those mags, owner/builder Deaner Probst’s original intent was just to build a cool rod to drive on the streets of Jefferson, Wisconsin.
What Is a Custom Rod?
During the early years of this hobby, there was a clear distinction between a rod and a custom. In general, rods were earlier cars modified for performance. They were built to go fast at the dry lakes, the drag strip, and on the street. Customs were typically built from newer cars and modified for style, with extensive body changes, eye-catching paint jobs, imaginative details, and parts borrowed from other years, makes, and models.
By the mid-’50s, the lines between rods and customs were blurring as enthusiasts started adding custom styling to earlier hot rod body styles. The hybrids were called “custom rods,” and their popularity increased due to exposure in magazines and at car shows (where prizes were awarded for style, not speed). Lil Dough is a rolling catalog of custom rod details and a classic example of what the trend was all about.
Becoming a Custom
Probst bought the 1933 Ford Cabriolet that would become Lil Dough in 1957. He had it on the road within a few months, but tweaks and modifications continued for several years. The framerails were Z’d to lower the car and the original steel body was channeled six inches over the frame. Four headlights (“quad lights”), nerf bar bumpers in the front and rear, bobbed front fenders, Ford Model A rear fenders, and a 1932 Ford grille shell with a custom grille and more than 100 dresser drawer knobs (a popular custom style 60 years ago) are a few of the exterior custom details.
Original Steel With One-of-a-Kind Mods
The body was finished with 27 coats of Dakota Red lacquer paint sprayed over silver metalflake. Magazine photographs from the early ’60s show the front fenders and 1932 Ford grille shell wearing that same red paint, detailed with pinstriping, though those parts are now chromed. Those early photos also show two 1959 Cadillac cone taillights on each side of the rear license plate. That changed, reportedly, after the rear of the car was damaged coming off a trailer. Now, the rear fenders are molded into the deck and the taillights have been replaced by an oval cove built from an inverted Pontiac bumper valance, dressed up with a dozen knobs to match the grille.
The suspension includes coil springs at each corner, tube shocks, and a dropped and drilled I-beam front axle with hairpin radius rods. Wide-whitewall piecrust tires roll on 15-inch wheels. Vintage Pontiac Chieftain wheel covers are dressed up with two-spoke knock-offs.
Vintage Built Hemi
For power, Probst transplanted a 1951 Chrysler Firepower Hemi engine between the front ‘rails. The bored, stroked, polished, and ported Hemi runs an Isky camshaft and is fed by four Stromberg 97 carbs on an owner-built log manifold. The exhaust manifold was also home built. The Chrysler is backed up by a 1939 Ford truck transmission.
Stitching the Wild Nauga
The interior was stitched in classic Eisenhower-era custom rod style. Diamond-tufted Naugahyde covers the seats, door panels, floor mats, trans hump, and inner decklid. All that red and white upholstery competes for attention with a copious quantity of chrome plating. Chrome is all over the Hemi, as well as the firewall, grille shell, front fenders, suspension parts, and dash.
Show Car Heritage
After taking the First Place trophy at a car show in 1959, Probst started making the rounds with Lil Dough, bringing home trophies almost everywhere he displayed his incredible custom rod. By the time it won First Place at the 1962 NHRA Nationals, the car had collected 14 trophies from 15 shows. After a year of display appearances at Ray Farhner’s World of Wheels shows, the car returned to Wisconsin, where Probst enjoyed driving it for a while before parking it. Lil Dough stayed out of sight for 30 years.
What’s Next for the ’33 Ford Custom?
In 1999, Probst began a three-year rebuild on his long-ignored Ford. Since its completion, the car and its owner/builder have been enjoying time back on the hot rod show circuit. Now it’s somebody else’s chance to own one of the nicest custom rod survivors. Lil Dough will cross the block at the 2022 Mecum Auctions event in Indy, taking place May 13-21. This event, and other 2022 Mecum Auctions, can be streamed on MotorTrend+ (sign up for a free trial today!) and on television on MotorTrend TV.
Mecum Auctions 2022 Schedule on MotorTrend+ and MotorTrend TV
May 18-21: Indianapolis, IndianaJuly 28-30: Harrisburg, PennsylvaniaAugust 19-20: Monterey, CaliforniaSeptember 8-10: Dallas, TexasOctober 14-15: Chicago, Illinois
November 11-12: Las Vegas, Nevada
Keyword: Hemi-powered 1933 Ford That Defines ’50s Style Is Headed to Mecum Auctions