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Barris built 1951 Mercury ?????

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by EXK, Dec 26, 2010.

  1. Ok here's another Mercury we need some history help with. We got this 1951 Mercury from a collector who bought it for big money about 8 years ago and it was sold to him as a true Barris built mercury. He never got any real documents to prove it one way or the other but it did not realy matter to him as he just liked the car. He got very sick a few years after he bought it and had to sell off alot of his cars so he contacted me to sale a few of his cars with one of them beeing this 1951 mercury. When the car was here i could tell the car was orginaly built a long time ago and definitly had the Barris style & quailty of body mods done to it so i contacted George about this mercury but i sold it before he got back to me. The guy i sold it too contacted Barris and got most of the body mod's were done by Barris and documented. The chop is what is in question as George thinks someone else might have done it. Now it has a new owner wanting to rework it but before he does he would like to know all the history before making any changes.

    GB & Thanks, Rick & Carol Erickson of ExK
    Extreme Kustoms 951 678-3520
    www.exkustom.com
     

    Attached Files:

  2. hombres ruin
    Joined: Nov 21, 2006
    Posts: 3,305

    hombres ruin
    Member

    Thats a slick looking merc,quite nice.Any old papers,mag articles anything to go by?..Rikster will have to tackle this head on.Very interesting!
     
  3. Jalopy Joker
    Joined: Sep 3, 2006
    Posts: 31,174

    Jalopy Joker
    Member

    so, how much did it sell for? really kool look!
     
  4. cfnutcase
    Joined: Nov 29, 2008
    Posts: 1,032

    cfnutcase
    Member
    from Branson mo

    Nice car but the LTD taillights would have to go! They fit the car pretty well and I have never thought of using something like that in one, however they just do not go with the car IMHO. Jim
     

  5. 00 MACK
    Joined: May 10, 2004
    Posts: 3,680

    00 MACK
    Member

    Bunch of horse shit. Looks like the best EBAY had to offer in 2004.
     
  6. THE_DUDE
    Joined: Aug 22, 2009
    Posts: 2,601

    THE_DUDE
    Member

    Barris built every Merc, I thought you knew.
     
  7. storm king
    Joined: Oct 16, 2007
    Posts: 1,989

    storm king
    Member

    Barris built more cars than you can imagine. They just weren't all magazine cars, you know?
     
  8. Just find George Barris, if you can get him away from all the young girls, and have him sign it. Then, he built it.
     
  9. Royalshifter
    Joined: May 29, 2005
    Posts: 15,579

    Royalshifter
    Moderator
    from California

    I am not a Barris specialist but I don't think those spotlights would be mounted there?
     
  10. propwash
    Joined: Jul 25, 2005
    Posts: 3,857

    propwash
    Member
    from Las Vegas

    so, if it was Barris built - it couldn't be TOO old with those LTD lamps in the rear, unless they were added later. If it's a recent Barris build, then there' no need to dust off the archives.

    dj
     
  11. oldebob
    Joined: Oct 21, 2008
    Posts: 782

    oldebob
    Member
    from Spokane WA

    Any one know when the idea of butting up the windshield glass in the center actually started? To me that spoils a lot of the period look a car like that needs.
     
  12. Barris has documented they did the headlights,Olds grill, rounded hood, steel side skirts and the LTD tail lights. He did not gave a year of when they did the work but my guess would be in the mid to late 70's or even the early 80's. Just looking for any old pic's or any other imfo on this car and especialy on who did the chop as it is way different than most mercs done back then. It's more of a fastback style with a shoebox back window
     

    Attached Files:

  13. shock733
    Joined: Jan 19, 2009
    Posts: 199

    shock733
    Member
    from Florida

    car look great; does it matter who worked on it?? I don't ask a well endowed woman who made her chest, I just enjoy it for what it is.
     
  14. Agree 100%
     
  15. aussiesteve
    Joined: Jan 6, 2004
    Posts: 808

    aussiesteve
    BANNED

    Yep,every chopped Merc is a Barris car and every old Hotrod has bonneville history.
    Yeh Right!!
     
  16. Rikster
    Joined: Dec 10, 2004
    Posts: 5,795

    Rikster
    Member

    Perhaps the Barris shop did work on this car, but if they did, it was not done in the 50's.
    No shop would ever put a 1948 Grille in a 1951 car back then. The goal was to make the car look newer, not older.

    If the front and rear modifications where done at the same time it must have been done in the 1980's. And even if it was done by the Barris shop, it does not really matter... the shop had then lost most of its Custom Car magic already, and it could just have been done by any other shop. No extra points here.
    The "designs" of the modifications all scream 1980's to me. Modifications for the sake of doing something to it... for sure not an improvement. The chop fits in the same category.
    Just telling what I see in the photos... I have no documentation on this car.. so I could not really tell who did the work.
     
  17. Exactly Rik ,if Barris did the car in recent times it dont make a difference at all. Sam was already gone by that time and his time is when the "Barris kustoms" were coming out and getting built.
     
  18. SLEDLORD
    Joined: Dec 21, 2009
    Posts: 32

    SLEDLORD
    Member
    from OC

    I was bidding on that 51 on Gay-bay but thought all that Barris stuff was all bull shit. I liked the car except for a few things like the 1975 ltd tail lights but if Barris did them I guess I would have to think hard before removing them.
     
  19. 00 MACK
    Joined: May 10, 2004
    Posts: 3,680

    00 MACK
    Member

    When the fuck in the last 53 years did any one ever hear of or see the Barris shop perform a modification on a 1951 Mercury?
     
  20. Dar73
    Joined: Oct 26, 2009
    Posts: 106

    Dar73
    Member

    The location of the spot lights is just plain wrong, for that matter throw in the windshield, wiper nuts and the wheels go without saying. Although I kind of like the LTD tail lights, the elongated skirt and stock fuel door don't work for me. Sorry, I know you were looking more for history but I couldn't help it.
     
  21. cfnutcase
    Joined: Nov 29, 2008
    Posts: 1,032

    cfnutcase
    Member
    from Branson mo

    Another thing you have to remember about Barris cars is they were way different when Sam was there, he knew cars and knew how to make a car flow, George just did what he thought people wanted to see. Jim
     
  22. U-235
    Joined: Dec 18, 2010
    Posts: 452

    U-235
    Member

    Perhaps the Barris shop did work on this car, but if they did, it was not done in the 50's.
    No shop would ever put a 1948 Grille in a 1951 car back then. The goal was to make the car look newer, not older.

    If the front and rear modifications where done at the same time it must have been done in the 1980's. And even if it was done by the Barris shop, it does not really matter... the shop had then lost most of its Custom Car magic already, and it could just have been done by any other shop. No extra points here.
    The "designs" of the modifications all scream 1980's to me. Modifications for the sake of doing something to it... for sure not an improvement. The chop fits in the same category.
    Just telling what I see in the photos... I have no documentation on this car.. so I could not really tell


    I'd have to agree 100% I see nothing on this car that speaks of the old style "Barris built" It reeks 1980's....and putting a 46-48 olds grille (beautiful grille by-the-way)on a 49-51 Merc, is a little like putting fake 37 ribbed bumpers on your 50,s car....I love George...but I don,t believe he/or his shop ever touched that car....
     
  23. socalmerc
    Joined: Feb 24, 2008
    Posts: 475

    socalmerc
    Member
    from socal

    looks like something Vinnie from ultra limos would build. that guy used to hack up mercs and i think he was doing work for barris too
     
  24. 3x2rocket
    Joined: May 1, 2007
    Posts: 248

    3x2rocket
    Member

    I like the chop and the grill, don't love the taillights and what bothers me even more than the weird spotlight location is that piece of chrome beneath the windows... for some reason I can't stand it...
     
  25. koolkemp
    Joined: May 7, 2004
    Posts: 6,005

    koolkemp
    Member

    Lol ! Tell it like it is eh :D For me the Barris style left with Sam....
     
  26. mkilger
    Joined: Sep 4, 2009
    Posts: 424

    mkilger
    BANNED

    Dick Dean did alot of Barris work in the 80's maybe Keith would know?
     
  27. DocWatson
    Joined: Mar 24, 2006
    Posts: 10,273

    DocWatson
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    WTF??!! Barris DENIED doing the chop? OMG!
     
  28. axle
    Joined: Mar 3, 2001
    Posts: 3,982

    axle
    Member
    from Drag City

    Yep, back in 86' you'd pull in to a cruise night with this car and instantly hear the song below playing as the show promoter handed you repop fuzzy dice.


    <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xDXT7wC9jrc?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xDXT7wC9jrc?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>



    Sorry, A huge Barris fan but i think "Gold crests" or "Documents" are being handed out like Halloween candy these days.
     
  29. Skankin' Rat Fink
    Joined: Jun 18, 2006
    Posts: 1,496

    Skankin' Rat Fink
    Member
    from NYC

    ... I kinda like the tail lights! :eek:
     
  30. lordairgtar
    Joined: Oct 11, 2009
    Posts: 415

    lordairgtar
    Member

    The only thing I do not like about this car is the wheels and the location of the spots. I actually like the tail lights. They fit. I've seen a few cars done up with older grilles like this and I like the look. We all can't have 54 Chevy or DeSoto teeth in them.
     

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