“Dirty Gertie” - Andrew Holden’s ‘53 International
When Andrew Holden of Delaware County, Pennsylvania embarked on his mission to create a one-of-a-kind rat rod, no one could have anticipated how extraordinarily detailed and unique his masterpiece would become. Holden unleashed his creativity with the build of his sick 1953 International R130, nicknamed Gertrude, or “Dirty Gertie” for short.
Holden acquired the ‘53 from a private party in New Jersey in 2012. Originally, he planned to build this International into a rat rod for cruising. However, when he was forced to pull the motor from his Cutlass for a rebuild, his friends twisted his arm and persuaded him to put the rebuilt engine in “Gertie” instead. This sparked the journey of creating a wicked multi-purpose rat rod, capable of providing head-turning cruises and rubber-burning competitive drags.
While “Dirty Gertie” has a 1953 International R130 cab, she hauls a 1956 Chevy bed and 1972 International bed fenders. Underneath, she’s carried by a stock 1989 S10 Chevy frame with QA1 single adjustable coilovers in the front and stock S10 leaf springs and QA1 single adjustable shocks in the rear. “Gertie” also has a narrowed 8.8 Ford Explorer rearend with a limited slip differential and 3.73 gears. For wheels and tires, the ‘53 is sporting Jegs front wheels and Rally wheels wrapped by Mickey Thompson ET drag slicks in the rear, which Holden swaps for 2018 Ford Explorer wheels for street cruising.
This blue-collar hot rod is powered by a 6.0l LS Chevy motor, the engine snagged from Holden’s Cutlass. Holden upgraded the motor with 317 heads with Brian Tooley Racing 660 springs, a Lil Johns Motorsports Solutions cam, a Holley single plane carb intake with a Holley Super Sniper EFI, and an LS series 6014 MSD ignition. Bored to 4” and with a stroke of 3.62, this LS yields a compression ratio of 9:1. Holden further souped up “Dirty Gertie” with twin 70/68 CX racing turbos, ultimately producing around 700 horses at the rear. “Gertie” is backed by a TH400, rebuilt by Charlie’s Transmission and Gear of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, with a reverse manual valve body, a 4200 stall torque converter, and a tranny brake. Not to be overlooked is the fact that Holden rebuilt the LS and fabricated the entire drivetrain in his driveway, nearly all on his own.
Holden’s remarkable creativity is evidenced throughout every square inch of this ‘53 rat rod. Besides the standard interior fixtures: ‘67 Mustang bucket seats, an ‘80’s C10 steering column and wheel, a stock S10 manual box, RaceQuip seatbelts, a B&M ratchet shifter and an S&W roll cage for a ‘50’s Chevy pickup, “Gertie” is embellished with numerous ingenious creative touches. A two-man saw blade serves as the windshield visor, the interior panels and doors are adorned with various street signs, and the carpet is a children’s road map play rug.
In classic rat rod style, the exterior is a mosaic of unique features. The cab of this ‘53 was brush-painted red by a farmer using good old-fashioned tractor paint, while the worn and faded black paint of the bed is wrapped by a plethora of unique street signs. Holden even went so far as to fashion a custom bed wing out of street signs as well. His ingenuity doesn’t stop there, he also painted the roll cage on the bed so that it looks like PVC pipe and the headlight visors were crafted out of two halves of a circular saw blade.
For hauling all of his parts, tools and gear to drag and drive events, Holden utilized a scrap 4’x8’ Harbor Freight trailer that he pullled the axle forward on, and shortened and encased with 50’s Chevy bed sides and fenders. He also moved the trailer axle forward. And for the creative icing on the cake, Holden completed the trailer with a floor made completely out of street signs and license plates.
As a true motorhead at heart, Holden proudly shared that he’ll race anyone on any surface. While he has yet to enter any prestigious races, he has advanced to 3rd round in two small tire contests, pulling off impressive quarter and eighth mile times in the low 10’s and low 6’s, respectively, even while battling the boost controller. He’s also recently competed in some drag and drive events and has laid rubber at several tracks, including the Cecil County Dragway by Rising Sun, Maryland and the English Mountain Raceway near Newport, Tennessee. Looking forward, Holden plans to become even more competitive by pulling the motor and stroking it to a 402 and swapping the Holley Super Sniper for the Terminator X.
Holden is incredibly grateful to his family and friends for their support from the build to the track. His best friend, Pete Gurnick, who tragically passed away in 2021, was always there for Holden, offering him a hand whenever he needed. Holden also credits Jason Muraska and Steve Raymond for their wisdom throughout the build, and Hobart Trent and Jeff Trivett for lending him their lifts for “Dirty Gertie”. Holden also wanted to give a special shout out to his mom, dad and step-dad for always supporting him with the build and showing their sincere interest and pride in his accomplishments as they’re always eager to attend Holden’s races. When asked what he’s most proud of with this spectacular rat rod, Holden remarked that his greatest pride has come from how much “Gertie” has brought his family closer and how many friends he’s made through the process. Keep your eyes peeled for “Dirty Gertie” in 2024 as Holden plans to attend at least one drag and drive event next year with the highly anticipated motor upgrades.
