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History The Kellison

Discussion in 'Traditional Hot Rods' started by Ryan, Apr 6, 2009.

  1. Wowcars
    Joined: May 10, 2001
    Posts: 1,027

    Wowcars
    Member

    Are you fucking kidding!?!?!

    Personally I don't care for them built for drag racing. The lines don't work for it. The #61 car you posted Ryan is gorgeous.
     
  2. Always lusted after one of those
     
  3. You got that right. He's tearin' up the "drag cars in motion" thread. great pics!
     
  4. TomWar
    Joined: Jun 11, 2006
    Posts: 727

    TomWar
    Member

    In 1961 or 62 I helped Bob McNulty get his Kellison ready for the Oakland Roadster Show. He Painted one color and didn't like it, so repainted. I think (old age) it was silver in the show, and he won a very large trophy for it. It was built on a Thunderbird chassis. Attached are a couple of Pictures that I have.
     

    Attached Files:

  5. TomWar
    Joined: Jun 11, 2006
    Posts: 727

    TomWar
    Member

    Sorry here are the pics
     

    Attached Files:

  6. ^^^^^^ Complete and total GARBAGE !



    There was a nice Kellison at Del Mar last weekend. 514" Ford! built on a Cobra style chassis. All in all a decent little car.
     
  7. studeboy
    Joined: Feb 12, 2003
    Posts: 539

    studeboy
    Member

    Wowcars, you took the words right out of my mouth. He can't be serious. Has he seen a Streetbeast car. They can be picked out of a crowd at 100ft.

    Factory Five does build some pretty nice stuff though. The newest car (33-34 Ford) was in Street Rodder mag a few months ago. Looks like a well engineered piece. If I ever bought a Cobra "kitcar" it would be a Factory Five or Superformance.

    Eric
     
  8. skywolf
    Joined: Jul 1, 2006
    Posts: 1,867

    skywolf
    Member

    Can anybody help identify these cars ? I'm not sure if it's the same car.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  9. Racewriter
    Joined: Nov 14, 2008
    Posts: 780

    Racewriter
    Member

    I have four friends who have built SB cars - 3 Cobras and a Willys. All have been happy with the kit quality, buildability, and factory support. So yes - I'm serious. I'm also aware that their street rod bodies are built in one piece, as opposed to a separate-fender construction, and that the educated eye can tell the difference. The conversation was about buildability (vs. the old kit cars that ended up unbuilt more often than not).
     
  10. spiffy1937
    Joined: Apr 9, 2006
    Posts: 733

    spiffy1937
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from Florida

    Are you joking or serious about Street Beasts?
     
    Last edited: Apr 6, 2009
  11. I built a Beck 550 23 years ago. Not much to it. Almost done off the pallet. Still have it. But my fickle heart has moved on to hot rods.
     
  12. Does anyone else see hints of the Charger show car that came a little later?
    Check out the fender vents and rear profile.
     
  13. How do I find the start of this thread ?
     
  14. I know were two of those things are. The apidamy of a kit car and the demise was they were just a pretty face over a tried and tired chassis. Neat model.........

    PS, I have been threating the owner of one (about 100 feet away) that I was going to push it down the hill and watch it get picked up by the trash company......

    Kellison = trash.....
     
  15. Ryan
    Joined: Jan 2, 1995
    Posts: 21,627

    Ryan
    ADMINISTRATOR
    Staff Member

    To each their own I guess... I think they are gorgeous... and apparently, Kellison bodies have owned over 10 records at Boneville at one time or another. That's proof of substance.

    In any case, I want one.
     
  16. Cshabang
    Joined: Mar 30, 2004
    Posts: 2,458

    Cshabang
    Member

    i've wanted one since I first saw one...
     
  17. BStoltz
    Joined: Mar 30, 2009
    Posts: 123

    BStoltz
    Member

    I've never seen or heard of one of these before................... very cool design.....
     
  18. stude_trucks
    Joined: Sep 13, 2007
    Posts: 4,755

    stude_trucks
    Member

    Man, that is some literal trash talking. But also maybe sounds like a possible win-win situation could be in the making.
     
  19. crosleykook
    Joined: Feb 15, 2006
    Posts: 190

    crosleykook
    Member
    from sackamento

    The Kellison is one of the best looking cars ever built imho... And I'm not just saying that because Kellison was a hometown boy. I fell in love with the cars from his ads in the old magazines and then noticed the Kellison address: Folsom, California- about 20 miles from me. Kellison had started building his cars on Sutterville Road right here in sacto-- about 3 miles from where i'm sitting. He relocated to Folsom and then later to Lincoln. His family still lives there i believe.

    I've seen a few Kellison bodies at swap meets around here and have always been on the lookout for info. I wandered into the vintage Porsche shop down the street from me to check out a Carrera Panamericana car they were building and in the course of talking about sports car stuff I mentioned kellisons. the guys all laughed and it turned out that one of them had worked for Kellison for most of the sixties. I was picking his brain about the cars and he was pretty unimpressed, saying that Kellison really just slapped things together.

    One example was the dune buggy bodies that Kellison offered-- when JK saw the Manx body (the very first 'production' dune buggy) he bought one, used it to make a mold and immediately began producing exact knockoffs. Someone pointed out that his knockoff even had the serial number from the Manx copied in the mold, so the guy I talked to was in charge of getting rid of the Manx ID marks on the early bodies and fixing the mold.

    Even if that's true, the kellison coupe design is one of the best of its time. Supposedly you could order one to fit Crosley proportions, although I've never seen one or even heard of one being built. I don't want to think about how much i'd be willing to pay for one if i ever did find it...
     
  20. If you dream of a kit car , try the factory 5 super car. Everything the kellison wished it was but even better looking.........
     
  21. oldebob
    Joined: Oct 21, 2008
    Posts: 782

    oldebob
    Member
    from Spokane WA

    A buddy of mine has a hamb friendly Kellison. He bought a body when they 1st came out in '59 or '60. Not really a car guy but he bought a totaled '58 Vette and built off that. That is the only Kellison I ever saw that got finished. He still owns it and drives it.
     
  22. vertible59
    Joined: Jan 25, 2009
    Posts: 1,058

    vertible59
    Member

    Used to sit in the high school library with a copy of one of the "little Pages" behind my school book. Others thought I was studying, but I was looking at the Kellison, LaDwari, and Almquist Deuce roadster ads and dreaming the impossible dream.
     
  23. I thought I was done but this takes the cake. Kellison coppied the myers? Bruce lives 4 miles from me and he is one of the best guys you could ever meet. I will never understand how a person (company?) can piss on that man, but hey.......

    Sad to see such a following of a shitty car that was produced with a chopper gun (could be hand laid, but questionable) and a zero negative mold. The body is not history , it's capatalism at it's best........

    Fuck those pos's...............
     
  24. plodge55aqua
    Joined: Jan 4, 2009
    Posts: 1,710

    plodge55aqua
    Member
    from Alberta

    My self, I like oddball cars.. But I think for myself.. I would pick the knock off Cheetah as the first pick it just has the stance of a Nasty Car.... and the Kellison as a second if I were to do a Fibreglass Car..
     
  25. farm boy
    Joined: Oct 25, 2006
    Posts: 178

    farm boy
    Member
    from reedley

    Yea!! the bill thomas cheetah. That's the one I was trying to think of.
    One parks next to our station wagon at fishermans warf in frisco, mid 60's. now that was one loud, bad ass car!
    Guess some one in arizona, someplace is building them again,
    OLY
     
    zzford likes this.
  26. DocWatson
    Joined: Mar 24, 2006
    Posts: 10,273

    DocWatson
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Damn man! Ok we get it, you don't like the ethics behind the car but there is no denying it is a sexy shape. Even you have to admit that, or you could say you don't and we'd all know you were lying!
    Doc.
     
  27. ratdaddytattoo
    Joined: Apr 6, 2009
    Posts: 63

    ratdaddytattoo
    Member

  28. ratdaddytattoo
    Joined: Apr 6, 2009
    Posts: 63

    ratdaddytattoo
    Member

  29. Agree, they are one of the sexiest profiles ever penned - I always thought they'd be a real bear to see out of when backing up but man, what a roofline!

    Steve
     
  30. skywolf
    Joined: Jul 1, 2006
    Posts: 1,867

    skywolf
    Member

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