how not to build a hotrod

Well today I was in my shop working on my custom AD and day dreaming (I find my hands do their best work if I'm not thinking of what I'm doing)Anyway it came to me as in a flash all the cars I"ve seen over the years at car shows,cruise nights and proudly displayed for sale by their owners as " for sale,great cruiser" that are truly unsafe to leave the yard machines . engines held in by 1/4-20 bolts if that,welds that a share cropper wouldn't use on equiptment to get in a crop before a tornado. And many more suicidal attemts at getting that perfect rod on the road.Don't get me wrong i understand a buget bet a little common sense is cheap insurence.Enough of that just want to know if anybody besides me has seen such?and would like to here your stories or experiences along these lines.please post pics if you have any worthy of HOW NOT TO BUILD A ROD. thanks

 

you should have fixed your title, it says how "hot" to build a hot rod.

But to me, do it right, the first time. No deadline is worth compromising safety, no matter what, unless its a trailer queen that doesn't get driven I mean.

If you dont know how to properly do something, find someone that does, to give guidance & advice, or even to show how it should be done.

 

maybe its just inexperience or a lack of knowledge. I didn't have anyone to teach me about stuff like that. I made a lot of mistakes..........still do. It usually takes me two or three times to get something done right.

 

two or three times its all good at least it sounds like you take the time to get it right so many don't . thanks

 

I do the best I can with what I got...........

 

thanks fixed title (must have been in a hury to drive ,took short cut , got stung)ha ha

 

You've just hit on the best reason yet for "paying it forward". If you're unsure of your skills the last thing you want to do is build a potentially dangerous vehicle and put it up for sale. Just the legal ramifications can be a nightmare. Imagine being sued because one of your modifications caused injury or worse, death. I'm a firm believer in older, experienced builders taking a novice under their wing and showing them the correct way to build a hot rod. I got much of the information that makes up the basis for my skills from older builders that were willing to share their knowledge. Now, I'm more than willing to pass on what has served me well for over 4 decades of being involved in this madness.

Frank

 

thanks Frank, I agree with you all the way . I put this up in the hopes people would share some of their personal contacts with this very problen in the hopes that it would be a wakeup call for the "I don't care what others think,it's good enough for me." group that seems to be growing in this hobby.

 

Having too many projects. peace

 

3 problems:
1) Lack of patience. Everyone has to have it NOW, no matter if it's right or wrong.
2) Not enough people even know the difference anymore.
3) People build shit cars (among other things) just because the "old farts" tell them they shouldn't do it that way.

People pay a LOT of money for me to teach them how to build things right...and then some will argue 'til they are blue in the face about why they shouldn't HAVE to do it that way. Amazing....

 

A sure-fire recipe for "how not to build a hot rod".

1 - Be distracted by too many other things.
2 - Screw around too much.
3 - Don't work or save money.
4 - Screw around too much.
5 - Smoke too many beers, etc.
6 - Screw around too much.
7 - Figure your gonna live forever.
8 - Screw around too much.

Oh...you were talkin' about the safety thing.

Never mind then...

 

every time this comes up the thread is deleted

 

Because too many Hambers get their noses out of joint after someone posts a picture of their car.

 

Peruse a few issues of the rat-rod-oriented zines available these days.

Then don't build your car like that.

Wasn't it Noteboom who called them "fucking halloween mobiles"?

 

Ok,
T bucketts without front brakes.
Closed cars without functioning windshield wipers cause RainX works as good.
home made brake lines that arent properly double lipped and flared.

 

I picked up an old issue of Rebel Rodz (from like 2008....love the feature model)....a guy in there actually admitted to using 2 car batteries and a coat hanger to make some of the frame welds! Just for a crappy look! I dont know if he made initial passes with a good MIG or stick welder, and I dont know what the welds looked like, but c'mon....the dudes back in the day used the best equipment they could get their hands on, even if it wasnt that good.....I doubt they tried to make a piece of shit

 

this should be titled " the view"

 

#2 you hit it. same thing w/building contractor's All the info in the world available, to lazy to look it up , too dumb to know right from wrong , to afraid of being put down for asking....& generally , just not caring!!

dave

 

don't forget big heavy cruisers being pulled from woods fields and bone yards running original master and wheel cyls with maybe a 5 dollar nos dryrotted rebuild kit for hydrolics.following you.

 

the scariest thing to me.....When a guy thinks he did a great job and is super excited and in all reality the car is far from road worthy. exwestracer got it right "2) Not enough people even know the difference anymore"

 

Yep..know a fella that can't weld to save his ass but he thinks he wrote the book on it and you will never convince him otherwise, this type of defiance rolls into every aspect of building a safe road worthy car somewhere down the line with someone else in all phases of construction of the vehicle.

 

good catch yeah this for sure