Hank The Crank - RIP

[earntaz]

From Jayski -- Sad News - Hank Bechtloff: Henry George Bechtloff went by Hank, which due to his chosen line of work, became known as "Hank The Crank." Bechtloff, who had recently turned 76, passed away Sunday, January 3, 2016. Bechtloff grew up in Southern California. Bechtloff and one of his friends had a shop in the bay of a local gas station where the two worked tuning engines. In 1957, Bechtloff went to work for the CrankShaft Company near downtown Los Angeles. In 1971, Bechtloff opened his own company, which was appropriately named Hank The Crank Inc.(SEMA). Hank The Crank Inc. made crankshafts for many NASCAR teams from the 1980's into the 2000's. He worked with some of the greatest names in the industry such as Richard Childress, Robert and Doug Yates, Smokey Yunick, Dan Gurney, Don Garlits, Danny Lawrence, Keith Simmons, Randy and Keith Dorton, Richard Petty, Warren Hodgdon, Bobby Allison, Bobby Labonte and others. Bechtloff developed technologies in racing crankshafts, connecting rods, pistons, piston pins, piston rings and bearings.