Art & Inspiration Hand built brass cars... works of art!

Hey all! The last time I posted on here I was working with my Fathers collection and finding homes for some special pieces... well, I’m back at it again

This time, I have a VERY valuable collection of super-rare artwork built by a gentleman named Chuck Meschter. He has quietly been building these spectacular cars from scratch over the years. Each one take months for him to build, and are worth a decent amount of $$. Each car is coach-built to what the buyer wanted, and my Father had a particular theme... mostly they were cars that were featured in Magazines or ones that he had seen in person or liked.

I am attempting to find a good home for them... as I said, they are really pieces of art... they were Thousand$$ to build each, and I feel the right buyer may be difficult to locate, but that is why I am turning to you, the H.A.M.B.

One idea I had was to try to track down the owner of each REAL car, and see if they would like to purchase a model of it... that may be a daunting task though.

I’ll attach a picture of one example, which is the 1932 Ford built by Tony LaMasa... The “Ricky Nelson Roadster”... was featured in Rod and Custom, Nov 1957

Any ideas or leads anyone here can provide
would be excellent.... here is a link to an article done on Chuck... many of the cars pictured in the article are actually part of this collection.

http://www.benchrace.com/html/6.9.html

Thanks!
828-808-1558

 

...Dayuum those are pretty cool and the blue roadster rings a bell...

 

Yes they are some of the coolest cars I’ve ever seen... I updated the thread above, but that car was featured in Rod and Custom, Nov 1957

 

Museum interest? I'd like to see the collection kept together (if it were mine, that is) and maybe donated to a museum with the caveat that they be returned to my family or estate and not sold off...

 

...The Work of Artist / Modeler Chuck Meschster

Thanks to Hamber @FleaBiscuit and His Dad for Sharing This...





The Tony LaMasa Roadster

https://kustomrama.com/wiki/Tony_LaMasa's_1932_Ford

Credit to Photographer's, Owner's
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@FleaBiscuit...why not take a pic of each and archive them within this thread?

I mean they are all period correct and Hotrods/Customs to boot...so cool...

It would help to have the names of the Hotrods to Identify leads...

I would suspect each and every one of those brings up hits within the Hamb, Kustomrama and or The Custom Car Chronicle​

 

Heres some info on the Artist/Modeler

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...r-too-tall-ganahl.983332/page-7#post-11116058

 

Wow, those are nice. Hate to see a collection like that separated, but it’s going to take some deep pockets to keep them together.

I like the museum suggestion. Peterson, maybe? Or Chicago’s museum of science and industry?



Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Those are amazing!

 

Hamber @Lowlife has a Model made by Chuck Meschter...and it so happens to be the revered Spalding Bros. Roadster recently completed in Copy by the Talented @Marty Strode



https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...r-too-tall-ganahl.983332/page-7#post-11112893

Credit to Photographer, Owner
​

 

Thanks for the replies everyone! I’d hate for this to get separated as well, but I think that’s going to be the only way of my Father getting what he wants out of them. I’d LOVE for them to stay together and be seen in a Museum setting, but he isn’t interested in donating them... so they would have to be purchased, which I don’t think is going to happen.

Next time I’m at his place I’ll get some better images/info of all of the cars and see if we can match them all up

 

Big Thumbs up there...Was your father a Hotrodder? I did visit that site and ported this over as many here do not wander...








@FleaBiscuit maybe @Ryan might want to do a Thread showcasing this interesting story...I hope your Father is still with us and in good Health...


Say Hello and Thanks to Him from Us Hoodlums...

Do you have pics of your Fathers Hotrod Days? That is Golden around here...

Thanks again...for sharing this...

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So damned cool! Man, if my Dad had these and I inherited them, they'd be with me til I passed.

 

Dad is telling him to sell...Darned Artists...

 

...The Work of Artist / Modeler Chuck Meschster

Thanks to Hamber @FleaBiscuit and His Dad for Sharing This...





...Bill Niekamp Roadster...Hotrod Royalty

more in Great Thread at link below...

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=19972




...Lew Thompson Coupe...Hotrod Royalty

more at link below...

https://www.hotrod.com/articles/app...om-1932-ford-5-window-coupe-vanished-decades/




...Dick Flint Roadster...Hotrod Royalty

https://www.hemmings.com/blog/2013/...nning-dick-flint-roadster-to-cross-the-block/

That's Stogy's best guess but the info is on the bottom of the real deal I'm assuming...Brilliant Craftsman...


Credit to Photographer's, Owner's
​

 

I met Chuck at a Barnes and Noble when I was holding Dean Batchelors' THE AMERICAN HOT ROD.
He handed me his card as he explained his craft and his interest in this particular book to me.
Though I couldn't really wrap my head around what he was doing(until I saw an exerpt in ROD AND CUSTOM about him) I handed him the book.
Very nice man, Very special memory, Ronn

 

Maybe Bruce Meyer?! What a Craftsman, these works of art should be shared. Thanks for sharing with us.

 

If I owned even one of them, I'd have to devise some type of turntable that turned it over as well as around.
The man is the Faberge of mini hot rods.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainme...m-faberge-egg-flea-market-20140320-story.html

 

These are absolutely stunning, as mentioned it would be wonderful if they could be kept together, it is your father's call.
They must be valuable individually but as a collection of hot rod history they must be so much more valuable.
I hope your father gets what he wants from them, thanks for sharing this.

 

They could easily fit into this miniature museum in Carlsbad, California....https://www.craftsmanshipmuseum.com/

 

May have been posted elsewhere.

 

These are really the COOLEST!!! What skills and craftsmanship!

 

If the collection can't stay together it would be nice to see some of them with the cars that they are modeled after.

 

Do you need the cash, or tired of displaying them? I’m trying to understand the need to sell them. Actually really none of my business, but I’ve never understood putting monetary value on collections or hobbies. Somethings just have no value to me I guess. I just like looking at them.

 

Amazing work. I'm embarrassed to say I wasn't aware of his work. I'd sure like to own one but I suspect it would be out of range for me. Are there any other places his work has been published? A magazine reference would be cool to me, perhaps I can find some back issues. Thanx, Gary

 

There are many Incredible High detail Modelers and but what makes this Thread so much more interesting is that the subjects are truly Hamb Era Hotrods that is by all accounts Pretty Darn Rare

Chucks Works also have a Tether car appeal and even a bit of Folk Art appeal as they are Slightly Animated...

That Ardun is incredible...

I agree these are worthy of a Museum such as you have shared...but a Hotrod leaning Museum would be even more fitting.

 

See if Peterson Museum would be interested

 

...The Work of Artist / Modeler Chuck Meschster

Thanks to Hamber @FleaBiscuit and His Dad for Sharing This...








...I believe this to be in the mix...

Credit to Photographer, Owner
​

 

I have a few interested buyers, so I am making plans to go by my Fathers house tomorrow with my photo booth and turn-table, and will be taking pictures and 360 videos of all of these cars.

If you (or anyone else) know how to contact him, and if he'd be interested, i would be happy to talk to him. 828-808-1558 I'm sure these would be rather interesting to him.

This is one of the things i'd love to do, but we'd be looking for the owners of the cars to purchase them in that case, which may not be on the table from their perspective... i know that if i owned any of the real cars these are modelled after, i'd do whatever it took to own the model also, especially with these being the pieces of artwork that they are.

Its my understanding that Mr. Meschter preferred to sorta 'fly under the radar' a bit with his work, and never really publicized it much. I'm actually quite surprised to even see that article about his work in that e-zine i linked in the original post.

As far as i know, Peterson is not interested in purchasing.... only accepting donations. But maybe one of their contributors would be interested in purchasing them, and then making them available to Peterson?

Yes you are correct.... and thank you for taking the time to dig up a lot of these photos and pics of the real cars you have found... Before my Father had decided to sell them, i always thought it would be fun to do that, and get a copy of each magazine and display with each car somehow...

 

Thanks very much @FleaBiscuit...The Hamb is the perfect place to share these valuable contributions to the celebration of some of the revered mix in Hotrod in perpetuity...

Furthur thanks extended to You and your Father for granting this opportunity to appreciate what he has enjoyed for so many years...

Just Golden

I will assist and I'm sure others will chime in to help as things evolve...to match them up as best we can and with the knowledge base here I'm sure we'll both learn something we weren't aware of...

It seems Bruce Meyers 3 Dog Garage does not have a contact email...perhaps there is another site...

https://www.3dog.org/




...I think this might be the Dark Green 32 prior to the Grille less race version. Anybody confirm? The drip rail ends at the door on the DG version but this again could have been a part of a second wave of mods...

Credit to Photographer, Owner
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