The Order of the Kustom…

The beauty of being around hot rods & custom cars consistently for a few decades (yes, I’m getting old), is that no matter how thick-headed, I’ve still managed to learn some simple principles about getting one on the road. This came to mind when I was helping a young friend out with his recently-purchased stock ’53 Chevy. Within minutes of getting the old beast home, he was pulling off random stainless pieces and getting ready to rattle-can the rims red. He was so excited to get working on the old beast that he forgot to make a financial and a build plan on how to actually achieve his dream first. When he asked what I would do first if it were my car, I gave him my personal ‘Order of the Kustom’:

1. Get it running & stopping properly (even if your going to swap the motor in a few months) Do a full tune up, check the entire brake system, electrical, cooling, etc.  If it doesn’t run right, or constantly breaks down, everything else is a drag. I’ll usually drop in a Pertronix unit and an Edelbrock carb, for quick peace of mind.
2. Lower it. Before even touching the body, get it sitting right. Stance is everything. This is also my opportunity to replace shocks, springs, and bearings as needed.
3. New tires and custom wheelcovers. Its a personal choice, but a really important one. For me, bias ply wide whitewalls and some cool vintage caps win over skinny white radials and JC Whitney cheapies.
4. Exhaust. Yup, I still haven’t touched the body yet. Personally, sound is a really big part of a custom having presence. Steel duals with decent glasspacks can be had for pretty cheap.
5. Time for a shave. Even if I plan to chop later or do radial customizing, my first step for the body is to remove all hood, deck and side trim and then study the cars lines; even bumper guards come off if they are in the way. Any trim I replace (or put back on) should accentuate the factory bodywork. Too many shiny bits fight for attention, so less is more.
6. Grille swap, top chop, taillights, fender skirts… Anything else you do from here just keeps making your car better looking and more personalized. I always do interior as the grand finale, but anything else is up for grabs.