Customs Who is building a new custom?

After the 10 page thread about customs dying is raging on, I wanted to do a little research.
I have a question for those custom guys out there.

How many guys are building a new custom? Is it your first custom or just another one for the stable?

Tell us about it and what you plan on doing to it?

I'll start.

We are in the process of building my wife a mild custom. She is driving the bus on what mods we do or don't do. This is our first custom. I'm generally a hot rod guy, but I have a new found interest in customs.

It's a 1955 Ford Customline. You can read about it here.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/the-mild-custom-transformation-mamas-55.1119265/

• We are lowering it, she wants a tail dragger type stance.
• All emblems shaved
• Nosed and decked, peaked hood
• Cruiser Skirts
• 55 Pontiac Star Chief trim
• Dual frenched antennas
• Shaved handles
• 57 Ford tail light lenses
• Frenched lake pipes
• Tuck and roll interior
• Finished trunk/tuck and roll
• Two Tone paint- Burgundy Pearl on the bottom and White Pearl on top
• 1954 Olds caps
• 1954 Chevy grille with extra teeth.

 

I am slowly trying to finish my chopped 49 Buick. Chrome is sent out for replating, and getting the body ready for paint.

 

My plan for this summer was to build a '62 Imperial with '61 quarters on it and some other custom stuff, but now that's shifted to building a new shop building. I definitely have that and a '51 Merc coupe that'll be customized, but I can't honestly say that either is getting actively worked on at the moment. I'm still very interested in building those cars, but they're sidelined at the moment.

 

That's understandable. I started mine a couple of years ago.

 

I got too many.
The first would be the 56 wagon.
Mild custom.
Drop it like the Watson 56s.
Possibly bell flower tips. Lose the bird on the hood.
Simple interior
49 GMC.
Dropped axle. Warmed up stove bolt. Drop the rear about an inch more than the front. I have some 53 Studebaker full hub caps. Kinda low rider style. Original interior and all the stock trim.
Long term is a merc.
I have a DeSoto grill and 52/3 ford headlight rings. has to be chopped. Drivetrain? Who knows. Yblock, FE, Hemi, flathead.
In between those are a couple other projects and a “adjustable ride height” 50s step van.

 

53 Buick Roadmaster
Shaved hood doors deck
Molded headlight trims
Portholes deleted
Olds front and rear bumpers
56 Royal Lancer grill
Mercury trim deleted
Caddy spears on door and qtr
Qtr stainless delete
Gas door filled
Fill moved to tail lights
Molded lake pipes
Modified Olds skirts
Lyons louvered caps/ 55 Chrysler Convertible caps

 

Watching with great interest. (See signature below - My panties are still a little twisted )

EDIT: Plan to drive to a couple of events this fall, then maybe a couple more subtle changes (my head is in the 1950's, but my body sometimes complains about the 76 tears of use...).

 

November of 2019. I got this far. Nerf bar fabricated (I had to send the welding out due to a pacemaker...) and the headlight buckets recessed. The back side of the 1953 Buick headlight bezels carefully trimmed (small death-wheel) to fit. At this point, I threw in the towel, and sent the Volvo out for professional help - Frenched headlights, custom grill (involved replacing damaged front pan), frenched stock taillights, fender skirts, weld up lots of holes, a little rust repair, some bondo removal, and a coat of white paint. And, rebuild the front nerf bar to follow the curve of the front. Approximately 50% of the improvements come from Ed's suggestions. We wrestled for a long while, I wanted primer, he came from a high-end metal work and paint background, he strongly wanted to paint it. In the end, I paid the extra bucks and gave the artist his due - no regrets.

Russ

 

I specifically bought my '60 Ford 'vert to build a custom. My build is going to be a multi-step process...

Step one. The car has already had most emblems removed (I think maybe as a cost-saving measure) and has a somewhat-worn diamond pattern black interior that I'm going to spruce up as a stop-gap. Paint is serviceable resale red that I'm trying to preserve for the time being. Wheels were going to be Wheel Vintique's series 64 chrome reverse until they became backordered months ahead, so it's getting a nice used set of Cragar SS for now. Tires will end up being triple-line whitewalls once the chrome reverse arrive. Rather than the usual grills seen on these (OEM, OEM with drawer pulls, or tube) I'm using a narrowed '64 Mercury grill. Taillights will remain unidentified due to year of origin but are perfect for this car. They will be the most difficult part to do. I have managed to acquire all the parts for this step except for the wheels. A 2" drop all around.

Step two will be upgrading the interior. Custom doorpanels, four bucket seats, custom center console, '63 Mercury dash, power windows and a '58-60 T-bird steering column/wheel. Pearl white vinyl (what else? LOL) in a TBD pattern. I've got the dash and seats, still working on the rest.

Meanwhile, there are going to be mechanical upgrades as time/money permits. Convert from the Cruisomatic to a manual 5-speed. Disc brakes replacing the wimpy drums. Electric wipers. Power steering (this car needs power steering!) and at some point it will need rewiring, if only due to the mods done. Maybe a stroker FE to move this barge with some real authority... LOLOL

Step three is still a bit fluid. If I can acquire the skills or enough disposable income, some scratch-built side trim, rolled pans front and rear, matching custom grills front and rear, hood scoop, reworked wheel openings, frenched antennas will be added. This car has a lot of wide, relatively flat panels that have 'warp me' written all over them so I don't want to make a mess. If I get cold feet, I may add just some of the easier bits of this and go back and 'refine' step one further and call it good.

 

It would be a stretch to say I am building, but do have the foundation. I hope to get some traction on my 49 Merc this winter. It will be a mild custom, nosed, decked, possibly frenched headlights, and nice and low with 51 skirts and 80" lakes. I plan to use a FE Ford in it. Steel wheels with bullet centers and lugs. I bought a piece here to eliminate the glob in the middle of the grille, and will most likely eliminate the over-riders too. Pretty simple plan, just want to make it clean and sleek.

 

Still parts gathering Saw this pic when I was 10. Bought a 33 Plymouth and did a concept with an x-acto knife. Got a trumpet horn coming this week. A pre 40`s custom with hopefully a 52-53 flathead 6 spitfire motor and a stock frame. Named Soldier`s Joy.

 

54 chevy. shaved , nosed , decked , chopped 3 inches, frenched, sunk antenna, louvered hood , trim delete, modified trim , etc.

 

I am working on a radical kustom. 1963 T-bird with a 215 Oldsmobile V8. The body will be shortened at the doors and narrowed 18 inches. Jag rear end and a Ford p/u straight axle that will be mostly covered with a 1960 Studebaker grill housing and deluxe grill. I am using a double roll bar from a Jap car and two south wind heater housing as headrests. The engine already having 11.25 compression will be built with a thump-er cam, ported heads and a 6x2 custom intake with Holley 94 carbs. The custom dashboard is hanging in my garage wall, It is made up of two 1959 Chevrolet dashboards welded together. This one is next in line to finish, just about done with my 1947 Ford Pu......

 

Great question....I suppose I'll prolly do a mild custom with my old 50 Pontiac. Thing is, I absolutely HATE fender skirts, visors and fake shit like spotlights and curb feelers. It'll prolly be lowered with the back up lights removed and whitewall tires. I may do dual exhaust for the straight 8.

 

That Pontiac is great!

 

Let's not forget the fuzzy dice

 

I’m building a 47/1 right now
Build thread on here

 

I am. There is a build thread.

 

I have this on the go.
I have been at it for quite a while. Originally a tudor, now converted to a three window coupe using the sedan roof and a trunk lid from 39 LaSalle.
3in roof chop, channelled over a custom frame I built, 350-700R4 Ford rear end. The dash has been modified to accept a 1950 Chrysler cluster.

 

I am, always have a custom in the works (actually2 right now). Been working on my 47 Chevy for years now. Mechanicals done, the heavy bodywork done. Just have to raise funds for chrome plating, and upholstery.
The 56 Olds will be done first. Converting it to a Nomad style wagon. Custom? Concept car? Phantom vehicle? Blurring the lines on this one! It IS chopped (1 1/2"), semi frenched headlights, 98 tails and side trim (car was an 88), shaved doors, nosed, not sure about decking, with that cool Nomad chrome. Lowered, skirts, emblems removed.

 

just a small bit of advice. A lot of shops are building “customs”. A lot are using aftermarket chassis. I have seen several nice clean original chassis for sale at these shops.
This particular merc chassis has dropped uprights and related steering mods. Also has front air springs (modern versions of the old Air Lift product)
It’s being offered at $2500. Good deal? Well I don’t know. I do know what the parts cost.
We would sell some of the OE chassis and running gear at the shop I worked at. Some got tossed in the scrap bin.
Keep this in mind as you scrounge for parts.

 

I'm working on a couple hot rods at the moment (although 1 is chopped, does that count?). But, plans are to blow apart my '49 Merc soon to start chassis work & some metal repair. Plans are either warmed up flathead & stock trans, or more likely 401 Nailhead (6 2bbls) & 4 speed. Already has '66 T-bird interior & lowered some. It will get chopped - eventually. There's more waiting patiently, but they seem to be a few years from getting the torch.

 

I have two custom projects. 53 Ford 2dr Customline. Static lowered with 4” blocks in the rear a 2” lower springs in front. Those springs are not installed yet, so it’s sittin on the bump stops. It will have air shocks all around, for a poor mans air-ride. The rear is aired up a bit in this photo. Will shave some emblems. Some new glass. I just got some 3” port-a-walls I’m itchin to put on. I plan a chrome bullet grill. New blue pait and gold scallops.

the 1950 Lincoln will get skirts, side pipes, lowering and paint. Maybe quad headlights. Maybe a chop if I can afford it. Both get nice interior.

The first time either one hits a pot hole and bottoms out, they get modern suspension upgrades. I don’t give a shit about traditional, when my back hurts.

 

Well, I have a '51 Chevy coupe body shell that has been sitting in my shop for several years (right around the time my youngest son was born...) and most of the parts to make it back into a car, including a photoshop of what it should look like when completed.
Maybe some year soon I will again find myself with free time and motivation? At this point it is becoming my retirement project. My wife used to work all summer and that's when I built my '53. Now she is off like me and, oddly, I no longer have spate time!

 

That ford looks kool. I looked for your biuld thread in the build thread index but i dont see it. Where can i find it?

 

seeing how i posted in the customs are dying thread, i might as well post here too. my 56 is a new custom, started out as a junk when i bought it in 2008, my 55 pontiac started out a little less of a junk but needing a full resto. bought it in 2015 i think,

 

That Olds is frickin STUNNING!

 

I agree. Looks like there are a lot of nice cars in the works. Keep them coming.

 

thank you

 

Now that this is back inside and tied down so it doesn't wander... I'm now doing bear claw latches.