Butler Rugard's 1947 Chevrolet Convertible

Photo by George Barris

Photo by George Barris

Jerry Fassett got the idea for the fadeaway fender extensions on his Chevy after seeing Butler's Chevrolet. Butler was also a member of the Thunderbolts. "He was killed," Jerry told Kustomrama. "They used to race down the river road. Two cars together. One night, he didn’t make it." Jerry wasn't there when it happened. He just knew about it. "My wife was a friend with some of the girls that lived down that way, and we used to go down there. I met him. I didn’t know him personally, but I met him when I saw his car down there. After that, I went back up to Harry." Harry had also restyled Butler's Chevrolet, so he ordered a set of fadeaway fender extensions from Jimmy Summers that he installed on Jerry's Chevrolet. Jerry's car, grey, with a chopped and padded top can be seen behind Rugard’s Chevrolet in the photo. Photo from The Jerry Fassett Collection.

1947 Chevrolet Convertible restyled by Harry Westergard for Thunderbolts member Butler Rugard of Sacramento, California. The rear fenders which were molded-in featured a set of fully lenghted fenderskirts. A set of Fadeaway Fenders set made by Jimmy Summers were installed. The taillights were frenched like the fronts. The front panel was modified to accept the lower portion of a 1947 Lincoln Continental grille. The car was nosed and decked. All the handles were shaved. The windshield was chopped and a padded top fabricated by Hall Upholstery of Oakland was installed. Bonnie Lowe was responsible for the black lacquer paint and the blue and white Naugahyde interior. W.C. Osborn built up a 3/4-race OHV engine featuring a Howard M-6 cam.

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