T-Bucket History: Marty Hollmann’s Hugely Influential T-Bucket

Marty Hollmann T-Bucket roadster
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Founder at TBucketPlans.com
T-Bucket fanatic since 1957 when my 8 year old eyes became glued to a full page LIFE magazine photo of Norm Grabowski in the wildest hot rod I had ever seen! I later discovered the fascinating T-Buckets of TV Tommy Ivo, Marty Hollmann, Bob Johnston and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s T-Bucket inspired Outlaw. I was hooked for life on T-Bucket hot rods!

TBucketPlans.com originated in 2005 as a personal blog extolling the virtues of T-Buckets. In 2009 I blogged about Chester Greenhalgh, the "how to" genius who wrote the legendary, out-of-print “How to Build a T-Bucket Roadster for Under $3000”. That led to a friendship with Chester and our partnership in marketing the updated eBook version of his T-Bucket building bible. The T-Bucket fire burns stronger and stronger.
John Morehead
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Martin Hollmann is without a doubt the most underrated T-bucket builder of the 50’s and 60’s. I first wrote about Marty’s T-Bucket over ten years ago and since that time we’ve gained many new followers and added many new posts to our blog, so it’s quite likely this is the first time you’re seeing this. … Read more

Ted Brown: T-Bucket Chassis Designer Extraordinaire

Ted A Brown
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Founder at TBucketPlans.com
T-Bucket fanatic since 1957 when my 8 year old eyes became glued to a full page LIFE magazine photo of Norm Grabowski in the wildest hot rod I had ever seen! I later discovered the fascinating T-Buckets of TV Tommy Ivo, Marty Hollmann, Bob Johnston and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s T-Bucket inspired Outlaw. I was hooked for life on T-Bucket hot rods!

TBucketPlans.com originated in 2005 as a personal blog extolling the virtues of T-Buckets. In 2009 I blogged about Chester Greenhalgh, the "how to" genius who wrote the legendary, out-of-print “How to Build a T-Bucket Roadster for Under $3000”. That led to a friendship with Chester and our partnership in marketing the updated eBook version of his T-Bucket building bible. The T-Bucket fire burns stronger and stronger.
John Morehead
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It was five years ago today that we lost a man who was one of the most influential contributors to the everlasting popularity of T-Bucket hot rods. Ted Brown‘s sense of style has influenced hundreds, if not thousands, of T-Buckets. In May, 1968 Rod & Custom magazine referred to Ted Brown as “the original street … Read more

TV Tommy Ivo’s T-Bucket

T-Bucket headers TV Tommy Ivo
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Founder at TBucketPlans.com
T-Bucket fanatic since 1957 when my 8 year old eyes became glued to a full page LIFE magazine photo of Norm Grabowski in the wildest hot rod I had ever seen! I later discovered the fascinating T-Buckets of TV Tommy Ivo, Marty Hollmann, Bob Johnston and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s T-Bucket inspired Outlaw. I was hooked for life on T-Bucket hot rods!

TBucketPlans.com originated in 2005 as a personal blog extolling the virtues of T-Buckets. In 2009 I blogged about Chester Greenhalgh, the "how to" genius who wrote the legendary, out-of-print “How to Build a T-Bucket Roadster for Under $3000”. That led to a friendship with Chester and our partnership in marketing the updated eBook version of his T-Bucket building bible. The T-Bucket fire burns stronger and stronger.
John Morehead
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Latest posts by John Morehead (see all)

Shortly after becoming aware of Norm’s Kookie Kar around 1959, I was also struck by another T-bucket that had the “look” and received Hot Rod magazine coverage: “TV Tommy” Ivo’s Buick nailhead powered T-bucket. On a recent visit to the NHRA Wally Parks Museum in Pomona, CA, I had a chance to snap a few … Read more