Well now that just depends. leaky plumbing now that just scares the hell out of me. Maybe I am selfish but I am more concerned about that then the price of building a hot rod. OK all sillyness aside, there are 200,000+ people on the HAMB, a good percentge of them are under 30. If a third are under 30 that would be about 66,666.666666666666666 so lets just round it to 66K. If I live to be as old as my grandad that is another 30+ years. If half of those 66K live to be as old as my grandad that is another 70+ years. So that is 33k more or less that are at least interested in "traditional" rods & customs. Now there may be a few that get influenced by them and also get at least interested in "traditional" rods & customs. They may get to our point in life and say, "Well GEE Willackers whos going to carry the ball when I am gone," and still have another 30-40 years to ponder it. I just don't see it being that bleak no matter what the cost becomes. Of course I could be mistaken. Well then look for me at the train station.
"Get yourself a cooler and lay yourself low..." Aerosmith-"Same Old Song And Dance" Why? Because that's what this is. Be in it long enough you'll hear this angst as many times as I have. Be in the biz and you'll hear it so much you wanna bitch-slap the next one who brings it up! The whole ideal, whether it's antiques/restoration, hot rods, racing, kustoms, you name it, will always sustain itself. There's probably MORE people into this than any of us know. Regarding Hershey, I hate to induce a degree of logic to a philosophical discussion, but when a meet happens mid-week, WHO DO YOU EXPECT TO SEE THERE? Oh yeah, older retired or independent types because the vast majority of young'uns can't get the time off. You see more of em on Fri/Sat when most of it's winding down. I was raised in this stuff so it's a natural progression, or that self-sustaining thing I mentioned. We can't begin to imagine how many are doing this now. I'll bet a larger percentage of the population than ever before. I may have gone this way naturally but I can't say for sure. I was exposed to HOT ROD, Car Craft, Rod&Custom, Old Cars Weekly, and of course Hemmings Motor News (when it was a little book). I guess if I was raised in a golfing family I'd be a golfer. Maybe a bowler, hunter, boater, amature pilot, blah-blah-blah. Things are shifting again and stuff's comin out we didn't know existed. Look at the latest volume of "barn find" cars that pop up here and in books/sites by the score. Another generation is departing. Their heirs sell the stuff, we get it, it goes into play. As always some get it, some don't. It's unique, individual, creative, imaginary, ground-breaking, aesthetic and historic. If it was common who would give a shit? What we do, both here and in every tangent that mixes in, is something that never will be mainstream. If this is about the angst of high prices, get over it. Study inflation, supply and demand, historical volume. There were 4million Model As. There was under 500 Duesenbergs. Somehwere within that sentence is your answer. The rest has been discussed over and over and over and over and...
Sounds like you might spend some quality time with your grandson. At 55 I didn't consider myself and old guy yet. Amazing how your perspective changes on that over the years but there are things I need to start working on our I may never finish them.
Can't speak for the rest of the country but around here, hot rodding is well represented by the younguns. Hell, if you would have been at the h.a.m.b. drags, you would realize that the hobby is thriving. Under 40 crowd was a large percentage of the people there and at the Friday night party. As for the prices on parts, I've been bitchin' about that for over 40 years... Hot Rods are here to stay...
You are CORRECT. It is a shame. I push for the younger guys to be involved. Many want to start their own projects, But cant afford it....I get very ill when a vendor gives me a price... I feel like telling them THIS ISNT A BARRANET JACKSON PART...WTF
If we can get more chinese & mexican made repop parts to flood the market , that will drop the prices on parts & keep the movement going!
The hobby is alive and well. Look at the steel bodies you can buy. Dennis Carpenter is selling a steel 40 Ford coupe body shell for around $15,000. This includes doors fitted and a trunk lid. Twenty years nobody would think this was possible. In the eighties the hobby was at a real low point and it survived. Hot rodding is all over the world. I did not realize It was a world wide hobby until I started reading the HAMB threads Invest your money in what you enjoy and if the market goes bad who cares. An old guy told me this 30 years ago and I think he was right. My newest car is a 1990. Family members tell me I should buy something newer. I would rather spend my money on an old Ford than a new car.
To me it seems it is cause by a couple of things. One is just supply and demand. When these parts were cheap, when was that? 70's? How many model As have died since the 70's? Back then the older guys were searching out 40-50 year old cars to hot rod, the younger guys now are searching out the same cars but they are now 80 years old. There's plenty of cheap "hot rods" out there to buy for the younger guys that are 40-50 years old, but they are muscle cars. The second part is the internet. Now everyone has a price guide, anyone can sell their stuff 24hrs a day 365 days a year. I don't think so many people rely on swap meets to clean out their barns anymore. I'm one of them, If I don't sell something I immediately think, I'll just throw it on ebay when I get home. I also think the relative price of a car and a persons salary is quite a bit different than 40 years ago too. $58k for the top camaro now!? My dad has told me stories of his college buddies having new vettes, new camaros, etc. and this wasn't any high-end college either. This trickles all the way down to the bottom, so trying to afford any daily driver and a hotrod at the same time for a kid these days is tough.
don't worry, cause i am here! (da da daaaaaa). i'm fifteen and loving the hot rod world. though i will admit trying to get my friends into this stuff is difficult. trying to make people in general "get it" is a task rarely done. " no, that's not glitter it's called metalflake. and, yes, it's supposed to be spelled with a k, the reason i have Cadillac hubcaps on a ford truck is because i like them and they are cool. and for god's sake i'm NOT GOING TO PAINT IT!
Here is my observation... I am 45 and got my first car when I turned 13 by the time I turned 16 it was running and driving. I spent my teens and 20s cruising first in Ft Lauderdale on the beach, then when we moved to SoCal it was Riverside. My family moved back to Chicago and I was always at Dukes looking to set up a street race or cruising Archer Ave. (back then the closest drag strip was 2 hours away) Car shows to me were always boring, I wanted to drive, Race, do burnouts etc... I have noticed that while it is nice that all the local communities have started official "Cruise Nights" all they really are is evening car shows they are weekly in most cases and every community seems to host one, but once you have been to 4 or 5 of them you realize that they are just the same cars over and over (Boring). The real "Cruising" that reeled me into the car hobby is long gone. The only glimmers of hope I see are events like the Hunnert car heads up and the Iron Invasion where they had the DIY stunt show field. I mean really who wants to walk around and look at old cars over and over and over. That is fine once or twice a year, but I think the hobby needs more "action" events like Poker Runs, Reliability Runs, run what ya brung drags etc... And some REAL cruising
murman I look at cruise nights as a lot of fun and I enjoy seeing the same old cars. They all seem to have little changes now and then. If you go with the attitude they are boring they will be boring. I enjoy the conversations and sometimes a car comes out of the woodwork or from a different town.
Yes...you are right....have seen it a couple of times and part of it was my immediate family items...just did not have the room to save it.
The major problem I have is most cruise nights are in affluent neighborhoods, especially the ones near me and and I am tired of listening to Wilfred Von Deeppockets talk about how he this guy do this and that guy do that and how it is such a great deal to pay 500.00 to get his 1932 Unobtanium 3W detailed! That is fine and dandy for Amelia Island and Pebble Beach, but for cars that started out as basic transportation then became Jalopies to be handled with kid gloves is disenchanting to me who has been around the hobby for 30 years, I can see why many teenagers could care less. Especially when their moms Mazda mini van is actually quicker than a built flathead from the stoplight. Unfortunately I see the old car scene losing its soul, it is being snuffed out by the Police and the Barrett Jackson crown along with the smog Nazis. I have my daughter on the right track, she is 12 and has been helping me since spring on getting her 53 Plymouth Suburban together. She is also taking some Pinstriping classes with "Jive"
So you like to drive rather than sit. I get it. Are you the only one you know with a car to cruise? Yeah, that's what I thought, no. So here's what we used to do to enjoy the drive and kill time until the late night racing began. At any given night there would be from 2 to 6 of us that felt the same way. We'd "haunt" all the different spots, some as far as 30 miles away. Sometimes we'd just drive by or loop the place, sometimes we'd stop and fill up a buncha spots. We were a bit like hot rod gang bangers. Look around, pick on cars to try and instigate a race later, sometimes bump ito old friends and bust each others balls. The scuttle butt that followed was kool. "These guys showed up again..." and "Were you here when those 3 cars showed up last week?", ignorant to the fact I was one of em! All of this what you make it bro. The cost of fuel has many folks content to just hang out. Also, if that's what they like and are all smiles, why are they happier than you seem to be? The guy you want to talk to is hangin out over the top of your bathroom sink. My guy is a fuckin asshole. Every morning he tells me what I may not want to hear
I went to the annual Halloween party a local car club hosts this past Saturday. sa I've noticed a lot latley, even at 44 I'm one of the older guys there. A lot of them seem to be "sceensters" or "hipsters"; dressed like Fonzie except with tattoos, but that's better than "ricers".
No No not cyanide , as Aldius Huxley said, "take a gam instead of a damn." Oh this Brave New World that we live in. Or maybe mommas little helper would be appropriate, that little yellow pill.
Originally Posted by 56don I didn't feel like reading the whole seven pages but just wanted to add my depressing observation: The most depressing thing I have noticed over the years is that young pretty girls seldom come out to the hot rod events. That used to be my favorite part of the hobby.Those are the ones we need to get involved in this so I can admire the beauty again. Now all the females are my age and I am sure they think the same way when seeing us old fat gray farts. damn neighbor aint that the thruth. me and my cuz went to decater cruz-in a couple months ago. i told him " come on man there may be ladies there for ya!"after walkin around for about ten min. he said i forgot the old part when i was talkin about the ladies...lol What car shows are you guys going to? I always see hot chicks at any car show I go to...sucks to be you guys!
If the paint is good you are bound to see at least one attractive lady at a car show, and you will probably go home with her as well.
Maybe you don't cull nothin Its all in the eye of the beholder. If thats you in the avatar I can see why there is as least one hot chick at every car show you go to...
Honestly, I'm not worried. For every overpriced part/car I see at swaps I find someone reasonable. There are getting to be a lot of cooler older folks that mentor the youngsters, and in some cases, give them parts and advice to get them going. I've gotten lucky on getting a killer project car from someone close to my age that gets it, and we all try and help each other out when we can. Also, plenty of talented folks on here and around that show how to make stuff as opposed to buying up everything and slapping it on our cars. These are challenging times, but also exciting times for hot rods and kustoms. My 2 cents.
I had to double check the date of the original. Post in this thread. I assumed it was after Hershey THIS year. Are the kids really into supras? I mean they ain't made that car in 10 or 15 years. I see what the tuners are into, but I can't remember the last time I saw a supra. maybe I got blinders on.
I can see where everybody is coming from.Yep prices are depressing.BUT,patience is foremost.Seek and ye shall find.Knock and the door will be opened. Reminds me of a friend that I grew up with.Gearhead from birth.His folks were Mr and Mrs Warbucks.BUT,he always had to work for what he got.Just about the only thing that his Dad gave him was the old maint shop for his business.`Course it was a biggie.50x50 steel building.With all of the old shop eqp.The first three cars that he got were GIVEN to him were a 29 Model A roadster,a 40 Ford coupe and a 30s Packard Limo.All were drivers.Over the years,he accumalated a pretty good collection of goodies.Still has them all today.Most of them started as basket cases that took him forever to find parts that were usable.He did probably 85% of the work himself.And loved every minute of it.And they are all drivers. So,keep the faith.Things will be fine.By the by.I just turned 67 yesterday. Good luck.Have fun.Be safe. Leo
I am 27, people ask me how many kids ya got? "I have cars not kids". I will have children someday but now is not when I want them. I have had my 30' 5 years since I was 22 My 28' roadster pickup 3 Years, and my new addition the 28' coupe 7 months now. There are quite a few young people I know with old Iron runnin around Bakertucky..... Just depends on how hard you work for what you want and setting realistic goals.
What's the matter with ya'll! Fuss,fuss,fuss!I loved cars at 14 and 76 and still do and if you're wealthy or poor it doesn't matter! Do what you can do with what you have and have fun.Pretty gals look great to all of us and so do pretty cars be they Rolls or Allstate.(wish I had one of each)naw I don't either,it's all I can do to keep my 2 going.
22 and keeping it alive till the day im a grey hair old man. i eat cereal for diner some nights just so i can buy that vintage part at the swap meet on the week end its not going too die with me i wont let it . some place there will be a young guy that will have his hair greased up and be looking like a cool cat . and that will be the one i will sell my parts too for good prices . ive come too notice i always get killer deals because the old timers see what im doing and they know i will keep it going . and i know about 8 others that are close too my age and do the same things . you might just not be seing us becuse were tuckd away building our cars yours are already finish d and your out having fun in them .
Yes, I got that car off eBay in Feburary. The seats had been destroyed by a possum, found his Skelton in the car! It's completely down to the frame now and will begin rebuild soon. Although Uncle Sam is telling me to go back for 14 months! So it may have to wait.
damn neighbor aint that the thruth. me and my cuz went to decater cruz-in a couple months ago. i told him " come on man there may be ladies there for ya!"after walkin around for about ten min. he said i forgot the old part when i was talkin about the ladies...lol What car shows are you guys going to? I always see hot chicks at any car show I go to...sucks to be you guys! [/QUOTE] didnt say car show said cruz-in.!actually it just sucks being my cuz.me im kinda happy with what i got!! cars, bikes 2 big shops about 100 ft from the house which is also mine.2 grown kids out of the house....lol...and a few grandkids.and my most prized possecion...my beautiful little bride of 34 yrs...but your right ... it sucks to be me!!!! lol
I thought that was it. I talked to the guy on the phone and nearly pulled the trigger on it myself. That is going to be a nice car. Stay safe when you leave the world and keep thinking about the car and what you are going to do to it when you get back.
The Jalopy Journal
