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Hot Rods Anybody under 30 building?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by JimSibley, Aug 21, 2021.

  1. I don't care what anyone is building, if it's performance oriented, ill lend my shop and my help.
     
    Greenblade, 34 5W Paul and JimSibley like this.
  2. Flathead Freddie
    Joined: May 9, 2021
    Posts: 806

    Flathead Freddie
    Member

    This is great ! I'm not under 30 and have never left 12 when I bought my basket case 34 truck with cut up frame and engine laying in the back . This taught me communication skills in the real world , how to coordinate with suppliers , deal at the bargain table , how to research , study engineering , listen to my peers and be a boy scout about it and it's given me a wonderful life I enjoy and learned to work very hard and be diligent to make my art happen . Congratulations young man your in with a whole lot of real proper people who all have alot going for them even if money is low we are still rich with life and accomplishments and enjoyment . This is a project for your enjoyment and your resume no matter what you decide to do in life you building this car is going to teach you how to believe in yourself and be a leader capable of making decisions . I like the stance of your car a real muscle rod . Hope to see you one day at a show or on the highway and remember keep your foot in it
     
    redoxide likes this.
  3. Flathead Freddie
    Joined: May 9, 2021
    Posts: 806

    Flathead Freddie
    Member

    When I was 12 no one knew about me either cause I was in the garage . When not in the garage I was 8n auto shop and the vocational school then at 16 went to college to study automotive systems . No one really ever saw me and they still don't till I'm done with a build we take it too the shows then I disappear again for the next build .
     
    mohr hp likes this.
  4. redoxide
    Joined: Jul 7, 2002
    Posts: 756

    redoxide
    Member

    Im 57, started at 14 , retired at 51, always strugled with the cost of stuff but if you want it you find a way. A little overtime and a lot of moonlighting to raise the extra cash , real cash ,none of the fiat currency lol

    Even when I started the cost of projects was always just slightly ahead of the earnings , so it was a struggle and still. I still offset my builds against the odd deal, selling parts and doing work for folk .

    There are a few folk in the "older" generation that might have the readies for a high buck build but I would guess that most of us are still harking back to the halcion days when even the kids that could buy a 29 roadster for $20 only earned a few cents doing work after school , fast forward 60 years the ratio of cost to earnings is probably just about the same , perhaps there is an illusion that all us old guys have it made and life is easy .. Granted were not starting out , but If I want a new project I have to pay exactly the same as the next guy, funded from hard graft and a bit of judicious bartering :)

    I dont hold with the crits on the HAMB from fellas with fully turned out cars that a little rust or patina be it fake or otherwise is a lazy route to hot rod building . Its been proved time and again from the hundreds of black and whites that all old hot rods werent show winners. Young guys back in the day built there stuff in time with there spare $s Paint wanst always at the top of the list . Wealthier college kids from healthier backgrounds and a trust fund had better cars , and so it goes around .

    I built my last coupe for under $10,000 that included the purchase of the body, I built the chassis from scratch, and used cast of flathead running gear, the great thing about the guys building independent front end cars with OHVs ..:) Its still just a wee bit more than I can comfortable afford but even after 40 years its still hard .

    I worry if there will be another generation of hot rodders and if not where that leaves the cars we all own.. If no one wants them they become garage art . I wonder, between the cost, apparent lack of interest and the electric uptake and climate fear mongering just what future there is left .. 20 years would be cool .. and if it meant keeping the flag flying in the future I would give my car away to the right hot rodder if I got to old/decrepit to drive it .. :)

    Starting point .. Its all I could afford ..

    05-C11-D48-62-A7-4312-A518-C7-C15-E02-C924.jpg
    Same body after a shit load of effort , sheered the pinion shaft in the rear end a few weeks ago so its parked up waiting for me to find the time to rebuild the rear end .

    Scored a good used crown wheel and pinion for $150 .. even at a mature age I still have to look for bargains and put in the graft .:)
    DSCF6587.JPG
     
  5. 34 5W Paul
    Joined: Mar 27, 2020
    Posts: 308

    34 5W Paul
    Member
    from Fresno CA

    I salute the youngsters who are into cars - they are rare. Even more rare to be into traditional hot rods. I have 17 nieces and nephews and 2 kids. Of the twenty, not one is into hot rods. The one most into cars has built an OT drag oriented Mitsu twin turbo that runs 10s. My 22yo son is probably the only other among the 20 into cars and he has an eighties Bronco 5.8L 4x4 but he has no time. Full time job and full load in college.

    Decades ago my Little League coach was totally into traditional hot rods. None of his cars stayed in his family. When I see traditional hot rods, the average age is pretty far up there.
     
  6. G_Don
    Joined: Feb 17, 2017
    Posts: 107

    G_Don
    Member

    I'm 27, just lowered my tub and plumbed the juice brakes. Gotta figure out the e brake and the steering and should be good to go until I want to change something else. lol
     

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  7. I’m 19 and currently studying automotive restoration at McPherson college in Kansas. I’ve been into restorations since I was 13 starting on mopeds and motorcycles and now cars. I think it’s awesome and while there aren’t too many young people to do this kind of work there definitely are some if people look hard enough. I can’t wait to find a restoration shop to work for. I love it all but especially love metal fabrication and custom body work.

    Here’s my project. I have a whole thread on it if you go to my page for anyone interested.
     

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  8. MTL Tony
    Joined: Dec 15, 2021
    Posts: 169

    MTL Tony
    Member

    im very new here.
    im 39 though so maybe this doesnt even apply to me. i never had anyone showing me a damn thing about cars growing up. i had to fix my car because i was poor and couldn't afford to take it to a mechanic. i went about 15 years without a car at all. about ten years ago i got a motorcycle that was my main transportation. growing up having a classic car was always a rich man's game. then four years ago i saved up and bought a 74 dart sedan for 2500 bucks that needed things, but i could figure it out as i went. im still pretty damn broke all the time, i work in the community sector, i dont make big money. found my HAMB appropriate truck about a month ago and am starting to build it. ill sell my dart to fund the build. but i literally didn't pay anything for it otherwise i would have had to sell it. even up til the day i was pulling it out of the place i found it i wasn't sure id be able to build it because it might have been missing too many parts that frankly id never be able to afford.
    old hot rods is definitely a rich mans game these days for anyone that isn't "connected" or has a "guide". used to be a working class guy could raise a family and have a hot rod as a hobby, not so much the case anymore. a lot of what was said in the beginning of this thread is spot on about availability of parts and the people holding on to them wanting them to be their retirement...which is completely understandable.
    if i had never found this truck...id never build a flathead up. i wouldn't be able to afford it, the entry price is way too steep. that said...im all along for the ride and so far loving every minute of it. i like to fix shit, i like to work on shit, and i now have two decades of self taught fabrication skills on a non-professional level that put me in a place where a ground up build doesnt intimidate me. but it also aint gonna be pretty right away. maybe in a decade.
    i know maybe a four or five guys around montreal that are doing their own work and building their own rides my age. we are very few and far in between....lotta old cranky dudes though thats for sure.
    dont be offended by that comment tho....if youre not an old cranky dude...youre not. if you are....then well, maybe dont be? ive cold walked into a couple smaller shops or tried talking to guys about their rides and have been treated like absolute garbage and on the other hand been offered a beer when i roll up and they see my interest. sadly, more often than not ive received an unfriendly welcome and i suspect my age doesn't help anything.
     
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  9. Lakeside65
    Joined: Aug 17, 2021
    Posts: 214

    Lakeside65
    Member


    I wanted to circle back here now that I've sold my C10 and started two HAMB friendly projects. A 40 ford tudor family cruiser that is getting some updating and a "whatever body I can find on model a rails" roadster that is on hold until the 40 is done. Check them out!

    Projects - Rosie The Red 40 | The H.A.M.B. (jalopyjournal.com)
    Projects - Ramshackle Roadster | The H.A.M.B. (jalopyjournal.com)
     
    MTL Tony likes this.
  10. hrm2k
    Joined: Oct 2, 2007
    Posts: 4,837

    hrm2k
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I have a friend that just rolled 34 years old and Became a parent for the first on Christmas Eve of last year.
    8 years ago we built him a 53 Chevy on bags….typical first build. A little over a year ago, I put my stuff aside and we built him a 1962 Impala. Short of pulling the engine, we replaced everything. Installed a killer air system, new electric. he is chomping at the bit to build a TROG car
    He is now washed in the blood……he is no longer a drift car guy

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  11. Lakeside65
    Joined: Aug 17, 2021
    Posts: 214

    Lakeside65
    Member


    Man, that sounds like me to a T. From the baby being born last year to the bagged for project all the way to the TROG car lol.
     
    hrm2k likes this.
  12. Deadbird
    Joined: Jul 28, 2005
    Posts: 1,181

    Deadbird
    Member

    My 29 year old son in law is currently building a 65 El Camino and just picked up a super clean 30/31 Model A roadster project. My 26 year old son has a 62 Thunderbird that he bought off the HAMB. Not much happening to it at the moment, but it's not going anywhere. There is a glimmer of hope.
     
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  13. MTL Tony
    Joined: Dec 15, 2021
    Posts: 169

    MTL Tony
    Member

    Fwiw my son is 15. He doesn't particularly "like" hotrods or mechanical work but he knows how to bleed brakes, rebuild a carb, tune a single cylinder motor, and will get his hands dirty while complaining about it the whole way.
    I like to see it as training him for what may come in the future when we gotta figure out how to fix shit because everything is broken
     
  14. oliver westlund
    Joined: Dec 19, 2018
    Posts: 2,352

    oliver westlund
    Member

    33, just missed the cut!
     
  15. hrm2k
    Joined: Oct 2, 2007
    Posts: 4,837

    hrm2k
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    @Lakeside65 congrats on the family expansion. Good luck with your TROG car
     
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  16. Greenblade
    Joined: Sep 28, 2020
    Posts: 554

    Greenblade
    Member

    I'm 20. Working on a Rambler right now with my Dad. Most of the cars I like and want aren't very HAMB friendly. Although there is an old traditional Ford my Pops has sitting around that I'd love to work on when I finish the Rambler. That'd be much more Hamb friendly
    IMG_2064.jpg 20210706_190650.jpg 20210727_165716.jpg 20210727_165611.jpg
     
  17. buick bill
    Joined: Dec 18, 2008
    Posts: 856

    buick bill
    Member
    from yreka;ca

    if that rambler aint hamb friendly , we need to change the rules . its un american! . and i think its a true classic as well !............does that bumper have the n-15 exhaust option ? if not id fake it !
     
    Last edited: Jan 15, 2022
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  18. VooDu52
    Joined: Oct 12, 2021
    Posts: 25

    VooDu52

    Im 35, ive been around cars and shops since i was in diapers. I have built several cars and trucks of all styles. But i agree with previous posts on the fact that this site over has a very narrow "acceptable" style. That in its self will cause this place to slowly fade into oblivion and all the knowledge with it.

    At the end of the day, my personal vehicles are built for me and my approval only, not someone sitting behind a computer or phone screen. If someone else thinks they are cool, awesome. If not, i dont care at all.
     
  19. Ahughes
    Joined: Mar 15, 2023
    Posts: 9

    Ahughes
    Member

    I guess I am a little late to the discussion here, but I am 23 and a McPherson college student. I'm currently cobbling together a 53 Willys Aero with a nailhead, its a budget build for sure, but a lot of fun! Its nice to have the HAMB as a resource, but nothing compares to the old magazines!
     
  20. Commodoreswab
    Joined: Feb 12, 2011
    Posts: 337

    Commodoreswab
    Member
    from West TN

    43 here doing my best as a single dad (boy age 8) trying to make ends meet and homeschooling, needless to say money is tight. I have always been around old cars and have become more and more disgusted with many club members. Oh sure they may point you in the direction of the $500 tail light you might need but if you decide you want an alternative that just isn't acceptable. Then you receive the "well maybe you just need to sell the car if you can't afford it". Just a silly thought and the result is that the clubs die. My son is working with my help on his first car, not hamb worthy as it is prewar. What body he will choose is still up in the air and he has time. Meanwhile chassis work starts which includes tearing down "garbage" I have managed to scrounge over the years. Yesterday he pulled the head and intake (I did help break some head bolts free) using the 2 trick wrench to gain better leverage.
    IMG_2023-09-04-16-27-11-415.jpg

    IMG_2023-09-04-17-44-56-574.jpg
    I recently scored a 29 Buick coupe in a trade and intend to run it as a tow car for the 26 speedster. He is very excited even knowing driving speed is around 45. We have saved up to be able to do some events but usually end up camping instead of staying in a motel to save money. We are working on getting the Buick running in time to do a motor camp (1920's camping) which "may" be the future as car clubs die and hotels price out the little guy.
    196FF8CD-11F8-479B-A3BD-3418E2EF2033.jpeg

    If we can't get the Buick running in time we can still trailer the speedster there.
    IMG_2023-06-21-16-33-18-837.jpg
    Yesterday a neighbor stopped by with his teenage son to see some of the stuff I had out. I offered my assistance in helping them find/build a speedster as that was their interest. There is hope for younger generations but you need to look from their perspective and how you can help. T's are still the cheapest way to get into the hobby and it grows from there.
    IMG_1708.JPG
     
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  21. winduptoy
    Joined: Feb 19, 2013
    Posts: 3,321

    winduptoy
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    mmmmmm, @bolo_lovain ....so the site should become more like you instead of you becoming more like the site....

    good luck on your hunt for a T....I like that vision
     
    loudbang and caprockfabshop like this.
  22. Seems like a lot of the people that are under 30 (or around that age) either have a connection with someone on here or someone with a car background in general. Funny part is some look at the mid late 90s as the HAMB traditional era to pull ideas from. It's interesting to see my generation be influenced by the cars/builders of the 30s-60s and some of the newer generations being influenced by the 90s cars/builders. Hopefully in another 20 years the next generation will be influenced by todays cars/builders.

    Ahhhh, the circle of (hot rod) life............
     
    Last edited: Sep 5, 2023
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  23. caprockfabshop
    Joined: Dec 5, 2019
    Posts: 532

    caprockfabshop
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I just turned 30, but bought my first car at age 13 (1962 Rambler Classic), and I've probably owned 10 HAMB-era cars since then. In addition to the work I do with pre-63 Classic Car Restorations, my dad got me into the hobby since I could walk and hold a flashlight (it's a stereotype, but it's true!).

    I've met very few young people who are serious into old cars that didn't have a family member or friend that got them hooked at a very young age. Most my age are interested in 1990-newer cars, and that's ok, I have a lot of modern interests too, but working on a carbureted old-school car has to be a passion, not just a fling.

    As to this forum being too restrictive with it's criteria, that's why there's the thing called the "internet", there's literally a forum or Facebook page for every era, style or model of car. So the HAMB is doing it's thing, and continues to grow and evolve. No need to change our rules to accommodate a 1970 Challenger build... There's dozens of places to share that thread.
     
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  24. jnaki
    Joined: Jan 1, 2015
    Posts: 9,291

    jnaki

    Hello,

    Here is a point in fact. Hot rodding, customs and drag racing seemed very important to our teenage lifestyle back in the late 50s to the next level after high school and college. Jobs, military, marriage all interrupted the path ahead for some. But there was more to life as we were now smack in the middle of a trail to the future.


    Little did we realize that we were always in the minority of activities as teens/20 somethings. As we thought our lives centered on cars and modifications, the rest of the 90 percent of the folks were now heading off in their own normal lives. We were the smaller portion of society and did not know it… Or we did know it and did not care about other’s opinions. We were all striving to become individuals.
    upload_2023-9-25_2-29-48.jpeg
    As our “real” live started to creep into our post high school lives, there was some realization that perhaps a million other people were already on their paths and we were just swaying off the middle for a little bit longer. Hobbies are nice and a lot of people have them. Hot rods and custom cars gather attention due to the fact that they are different than 90% of the cars on the road. But, the lives of those that do continue to build and design those hot rods is still a hobby and not the mainstream for everyone.

    Outlaw motorcycles are called the “1%” group. They are just different. Hot rod folks are in a similar category since it is a hobby and not an every household project that gets work done on it, on a daily basis. Very few are making it their permanent vocation. The custom car folks are in a smaller percentage, yet, due to the style and use for their hobby. The custom cars are not the normal daily drivers to the ordinary workplaces.

    Jnaki

    So, what it the big deal about the young getting involved in the hobby? Some parents have created a situation for their kids to follow what they have been doing before the little toddler popped out. Hoping for some parental guidance for the growing up years in doing something together. (A dream in itself.) If the goal of the parents is to create an individual with thoughts, values and a path to find for themselves to make their way, we need to be there. But, allow them to create situations and present themselves in the best possible way to others.

    Remember, despite the 1000s that show up at places like the hot rod national events, it is still a minority in the public’s eye. For every 1000 hot rod folks, there are a million other places they are having as much fun and experiences in their normal lives. We are all in a hobby oriented way, some more so than others, but still there are more people doing other things to make their lives move on in our society. YRMV

    The world wide values still exist for family lives, but the influence of media is quite an odd influence. Why must 20-30 something folks sound as if they are not educated, using slang and thinking all others “get it?” The style of clothing and appearance is also different and seems to be a deterrent to future job applications. Before the pandemic, several youngish to older folks were talking about the future of their lives and of their sons/daughters. And even for the toddler grandchildren running around the yard.

    One of the funniest things said, was a mention of the clothing and appearance of most 20-30 somethings to the general public. Slouching posture, low slung pants, overgrowth facial hair and sloppy, baggy clothing made popular in videos was a deterrent to making normal connections in jobs, long lasting relationships and families.

    The comment from an attractive young mom was… “We are supposed to be impressed with the foul “f” language in every sentence, the sloppy appearance and attitude that the world owes them a favor, when we see the groups hanging around thinking they are the next coming?” Wow, from the mouths of babes!!!
     
    lumpy 63 likes this.
  25. lumpy 63
    Joined: Aug 2, 2010
    Posts: 2,603

    lumpy 63
    Member

    One of the youngsters I posted about earlier just bought an early 60s V drive ski boat with a 394 Olds . He's going to rebuild the engine and tow it behind his daily driver 57 Chevy pick up. He's also well groomed , his pants don't sag and he says please and thank you:cool:
     
    jnaki likes this.
  26. lumpy 63
    Joined: Aug 2, 2010
    Posts: 2,603

    lumpy 63
    Member

  27. CycleTech
    Joined: Oct 24, 2020
    Posts: 159

    CycleTech
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Got this picture from my wife at work the other night with the quote,
    " I think he watches you to much"
    It is my 4 yr old grandson fixing his car. Making his father hand him his tools.
    He loves when we work on my '56 and his Model A.
    Brought a smile to my face.
    thumbnail (9).jpeg
     
  28. ActionYobbo
    Joined: Mar 28, 2022
    Posts: 206

    ActionYobbo
    Member

    My 2 older boys both almost 30 are into early 60’s cars and one built his and one bought his
    So I got a builder and a buyer
     

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