I've noticed a lot of interest in kustoms lately and its kool to see guys wanting to be part of the Kustom family. Kustoms don't have to be expensive to build. We are blessed to have a lot of kool donors that would make a kool projects. No they are not all "full" kustoms but building a "mild" kustom is very affordable and family friendly. Mild kustoms are the back bone of the kustom hobby. For example, you don't have to buy expensive aftermarket parts to be kool. Sixty's style kustoms are very affordable. For example; shave off some emblems, mirrors, cut a coil spring, maybe add some lowering blocks, add chrome reverse wheels with spiders and skinny whites, add some chrome bullets and you are on your way to building a mild kustom. I see kustoms that you can tell they don't have the right foundation with building a pre-64 kustom. This is a kool article from Popular Customs magazine (Spring 1963 issue) I have seen other articles that I would like to post that would be a good start in building a kustom foundation. Stay tune I will be posting other articles...
Spreading the Kustom gospel! Great caption: "Anyone who creates an outstanding custom car must expect to be the center of attention."
Hooray for customs! Never heard the '48 Stude above referred to as the "Modern Flynn" before, always heard "Modern Grecian". That's a new one to me.
I'm Thinking Anything can be Kustom or Hot Rod. What ever a man has or likes will fit the bill if it Floats His Boat. When walking around at a big show I see some butt ugly cars IMO which means nothing and I surely keep this thought to myself, I do see and appreciate the effort, time, money involved. The Diversity of our Great Hobby is what makes shows, cruises interesting and I enjoy most of the people. I enjoy the HAMB for it's History, Pics, tech and IMO best site for Car Crazy's.
yep, can even do some mild custom work when 13 on your Sister's '54 Ford four door - took off emblems, and filled holes with bondo (used tape on back side to hold in place - Ha!) with some primer, add rearview muff, chrome exhaust tip, etc - ideas from mags, supplies from JC Whitney -next time need to ask permission - Dad painted on the whitewalls - at 15 got first car of my own to fix up
Some cars just lend themselves to being customized a lot better than others do. The methods may have improved but the dechroming and cleaning up nose and deck treatment and maybe a mild lowering job is what might work best on a lot of cars that aren't normally considered prime custom material. The idea being that when you park next to an all the bells and whistles stock rig the stock rig should look overdone in comparison.
I read and re-read Pat Ganahl's writings over the years way back when suggesting....nearly begging...folks to build and drive mild customs. All I did was dream of the day I could get my hands on a car and start building one of my own (and begging my dad to let me start early LOL). Now if I could just finish what I started.... LOL
Great topic! And the article reprinted is an excellent one, even if some of the photos are not really good examples of what's being discussed. Lots of food for thought. From my perspective - having lived through the heyday of custom cars - I notice that a lot of potential customs today are being ruined by over-zealous and under-skilled enthusiasts, most of whom seem to want to chop the top even though they have no earthly idea how to do it, much less do it well. As a result, many good cars get junked instead of being brought back to the street as mild- or semi-customs. This is truly a waste. So, I think the most important bit of wisdom that can be gleaned from the magazine article is to select a car that already has good lines if your metalworking skills - and your ability to appreciate good proportions - are limited. Good potential customs are getting very hard to find in good condition so if you don't know what you're doing, don't do it. Pick a car that already has pleasing proportions and just "clean it up a little" as most guys did in the past. That's the real key to success in custom car building...in my most humble and aged opinion.
Thanks guys for your feedback, I thought it was a kool article. I was a very confused guy when I started getting in to kustoms. My traditional side was fighting my friends style that I was running around with and the trendy 90's style kustom. Over the years I made a lot of mistakes but it was only paint, metal etc., it could always be fixed. Dave brought up a good thought about building a mild kustom. That is what I did for years until I could afford at chopped Merc. I love seeing the Mild Kustoms events. This is what I was driving around every day since high school up top the late 90's I sure miss hearing that barking six cylinder.
The Jalopy Journal
