I'm sure at some point we've had a thread on the H.A.M.B. that thoroughly covered the Polynesian. The Valley Custom built '50 Olds is a legend similar in status to the Hirohata Merc, Kopper Kart, Inman Chrysler, etc... Put simply, it's a car that is ... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
Beautiful car. The grille/bumper treatment is my favorite of any custom, and it could not possibly be more simple. It is Valley Customs' finest work, and that is saying something. Speaking of custom '50 Oldsmobiles, ever take a look at Ray Goulart's Olds?
The Polynesian is a great custom. It was restored nearby to me and debuted in a special customs class at the Glenmoor Gathering, a local concours, back in 2005. Here is the thread I did about the show with pictures of the Polynesian: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=71346&highlight=glenmoor+gathering&showall=1 Last I heard the car was for sale if anyone is interested.
I always felt that that "bumper" was too heavy to use as a "grill". My eyes keep pushing it down closer to the ground. Otherwise, a beautiful custom.
One of my all time favorites. Always a big fan of Valley Customs, the sectioned shoeboxes they turned out (see example) always got my attention. The Polynesian is a perfect example of the "less is more" school. Simple, understated elegance.
Another great execution from 'Valley Custom' although, I always think the roof looks a bit too thick. They did a high percentage of beautifully designed and fabricated customs that, as you say, have stood the test of time.
For the most part customs follow a proven form that resembles a slow liquid like shape taking form from the pavement and inching out. It seems that everyone was striving for the same shape but on their own terms and with individual details to separate them. The Polynesian (and other sectioned cars) deviates from this design. To me is takes cues from Art Deco styled locomotives because of it's induced speed like look put into it's design. They (sectioned cars) always stop people in their tracks (and most don't know why) but this car in car particular is special. Everything meticulously thought out from the grille opening and bumper that dissects it the the sections seats that prove the car was thought of as a whole and not just one certain aspect. It definitely grows on you if not at first but with time. Section jobs can really hurt a car if they are not proportionately done with relation to the rest and this is the ambassador for them all. Beautiful and timeless I will always have a spot for this one in my heart. Love it. The rear tail light trim always makes me think of Vegetable Steamers which is a side note but it's really the thing that sticks in my head when I think about this car. Funny Right?
"The rear tail light trim always makes me think of Vegetable Steamers which is a side note but it's really the thing that sticks in my head when I think about this car. Funny Right?" It's a funny thing that pretty much the only thing I never really liked about this car were the tailights. JeffreyJames analogy to a vegetable steamer must have been the reason, as I wasn't much for veggies back then. Sub-conciously I must have made the connection to the cursed veggies and that is why I don't like the tailights! Otherwise, this car is just spot-on perfect. And, now that I really have learned to love veggies, the tailights have taken on a new glow (pun intended) so they, too, look a-okay. Valley Custom - simply the best of the best.
I have never been a fan of the front end of this car. I find the front bumper to heavy & the grille opening reminds be of a large mouth bass.
I am probably one of the few but I never really cared for the Valley Custom cars. Incredibly built but I always found them top heavy and thought that the pronounced rooflines took away from an otherwise sleek design acomplished by sectioning.
The Polynesian, IMO, blows the Hirohata Merc outta the water..... It's the perfect blend of modifications and restraint. One of my favorites for sure.
its a sexy car for sure, its definatly hard to section a car and keep the proportions looking good, and i always used to put down all sectioned cars... but the more you look at a car like the polynesian, the more you can appreciate its form... at least for me anyway!
I have to agree with oldandcrusty this car drives me nuts. I cringe when I open magazines and see that headlight/tailight trim also I think it has been sectioned way to much!! Even though valley customs was known for that!! Trying to match the sleek lines of those big 3 drawings.. I still have to give them respect for going out of the box on this one!! The car does have some nice features and some of there other cars where absolutely stunning too!!
I can remember a few people concerning LA Roadster Jack Stewart and Polynesian Jack Stewart say that they were not the same guy?
I remember reading a big write-up on this car, in an old car mag, many years ago. It covered the entire build. Seems like it may have been spread out over several issues. It was very detailed coverage on the sectioning, etc.
This thread is timely and I apologise if I am hijacking it. John Ballard of Anderson, Indiana, the builder of the Polynesian II (the clone of the Polynesian) just passed away on the 6th of Feburary. He was 71 years old. The clone is not exactly the right color because John was working from photographs only. He never saw the real car (at least while they were building it). John also owned the 41 Willy's that won "Best Engineered" at the 1971 Street Rod Nationals. At the time of his passing he still owned the Willy's, although it was torn apart for a number of years.
I meant to mention in my earlier post that there is one ugly thing on this car - and I mean REALLY UGLY!! It's those damned yellow seats! Yuck! (image courtesy Rikster's site)
The second versions grill would look good in the 1st one maybe.Its hard to picture it. The rear ''fins" tail lights dont work in my mind.
One of my all time faves as well. And you nailed it with the phrase "Simple, understated elegance." This is what any custom should strive to embody.
Interesting how much disagreement there is over this car. I have always thought that the front end is beautiful, and I don't have a problem with the proportion of greenhouse to body -- until you get back to the quarters. The quarters look pinched; the skirts don't help, and I don't care for the taillights either. I think the rework in post #23 is awful, and didn't improve the car in any way (I had never seen that before). I think it would have looked better with some "hips" -- if the quarters had been sectioned 2" less than the rest of the body, so that the fender line kicked up where the rear fender bulge begins, and with the rear wheels left exposed (no skirts, maybe even radiused wheel wells to match the front). We'll never know, I guess.
I think it was the clone I seen once and I will just say it looks better in person than in pics. I am one of those that have always liked this car too.
Great post Ryan... as always. I have to agree with 50Fraud on this one. It always appeared to me that the body was pie-cut sectioned with to much taken out of the back portion. In my opinion the rear fenders are not tall enough for those tires. However I love this car, and I'm really happy so many magazines back in the days featured in in so many ways. I always looked as this one (as well as many other Valley Custom cars) as a sort of factory concept car. Valley Customs built so many neat parts for this car. Also very happy that the car has been completely restored back into its first version.
i have that issue,,,,,it really goes into quite a lot of detail,,very unusual for the time,,,i think the article is 20+ pages...and very inetersting.........
Everyones thoughts and comments are interesting. Many seem to look at what doesnt meet their expectation or taste. What many are forgetting is that this/these cars are the ones that exposed the custom car to the rest of the world. Hirng a commercial illustrator to do a series of renderings before the build was almost unheard of except at a manufacturer level at the time. You can look at any car and find small details that may not look good in pictures and are dead on in person or vice a versa. Then add in the customer that is initiating the build. Hes paying the bill and will from time to time will make decisions that jeopordize the entire concept. Build a car for someone and you will see how quickly this occurs. Builders like Valley , Barris and the rest had to walk a thin line between customer and concept. The other part of a great custom is it provokes conversation . A great design stops you in your tracks and causes you to start to analize what was done , discuss if the flow right , how did they do that, what were they thinking. Valley Custom Shop designs are still doing this today.