Hot Rods Folk art jalopy? It’s not a rat rod

I'm saying that is 100% jalopy built with a degree of skill and planning with what he had to work with.
It looks like it started life as a 36/36 pickup or maybe a panel that had been wrecked when he got it and evolved over time. I'd say they cut away everything that was damaged and then made enough of a body to drive it.
You have to wonder if it had doors or partial doors on it at one time.

I don't see any rat rod, I just see what a guy with a limited budget put together with what he had to work with and then changed around a bit at a time as time went on and he could improve it a bit.

 

The seats might be early bus or panel truck seats.
They could be bus or commercial or small plane seats as all planes didn't have bomber seats set up for a parachute in them.

 

I guess so.
I liked its simple adjustment method


the owner says 36 car for the cowl.
The dash and steering wheel look like car items

 

People used to be masters of cobbling crap together out of necessity.

 

It is great Anthony , thanks for taking the time to post it.

 

As you say, it was built out of necessity or because that was all that was needed to do the job. R.Rs are thrown together for the shock value or to say "Look how much taste I don't have and my total lack of common sense regarding safety".

 

It’s not a RR...it’s the first bobber truck!

 

That was a Hooptie around these parts. Every orchard had one or more these devils around back of the barn. Looking at the pictures just makes me want to " Punch It!"

 

Agree with your sentiment, it’s like getting bogged down trying to categorize music. But the fact remains that we need proper terms for proper discussions. Anthony is making an important point here that this, in spite of first impressions, is not a RR.
Trent and a few others got it right:

 

Lots of good parts on that Jalopy and can see a couple of kids having fun in it

 

That we would have called a hot rod or jalopy in the early 50s. Vermin rods had not been invented. A work in progress, I say.

MOST of what most folks on here call Hot Rods are , in reality, street rods. Or customs.

Ben

 

We had a 28 model A with the back half of the cab gone and a homemade wooden bed that was in the trunk and extended out the back a ways. Used it when hand picking sweet corn when I was very young. Dad would put it in 1st gear, line the wheels up in the rows, get out and let it drive it's self while we walked along shucking corn and throwing them into the backend. Can recall several rigged up things like that.

 

Back when I was a kid my uncle had a bunch of these such rides around his farm but that is where they stayed. Yeah, They were cool but they didn't leave the farm property and I wish I been old enough to have saved one. I sure can dig this ride but I haven't seen the word safety used too much to describe it. This one reminds me of a very similar ride I saw at a show about a decade ago that had a couple of aluminum lawn chairs bolted to an expanded metal floor.

 

Would of been cool watching the build. I was the kid building go carts with mc engines, flapper brakes on the rear wheels and all the dangers my mom warned me about. never got mangled but close a few times. Just as much fun building them.

 

I’d drive the shit out of it.

 

No expanded metal here. Nice solid floor firmly attached and real seats complete with government approved safety belts.
Probably something omitted by the majority of the rides built then.

 

True piece of Americana!
I'd drive the Hell out of that.. Thanx for posting..

 

I went to school with a guy whose older brothers built several cut downs. They would find a 50's Chevy 4 door, take off the front clip leaving only the inner fenders and rad support, cut the top off just above the windshield, and the rest of the body as well, only the cowl remained leaving the floors and seats. The exhaust was a straight dump off the manifold, no lights other than a brake light. Then they would terrorize the many dirt roads in the area. When they blew it up or destroyed it, they'd cut up another. I know they did a few 55 four doors and some others.

Back in the days before mandatory insurance laws came into effect, cops didn't travel much in the country on the back roads, and as Merle Haggard said, a joint was a bad place to be. Couldn't get away with that now. I had a few VW based buggys in the early 80's that were about the same deal, only I had roll cages on them, no tag, no insurance, two KC highlights for headlights and a trailer light for a single brake/tail light if we got out after dark. Not now, everything has to have the same stuff as a daily driver.

 

Well put.

 

Long before the mail order hot rod. I'd love to own it. So teach me something here, what's the difference in a jalopy and a rat rod?

 

Thats like asking which oil to use.
the term jalopy has been around long before rat rod
I guess a jalopy is a young man or kids attempt to build something that resembles a race car they may have seen in a news real or paper.
Usually made with and what they had access to.
For me a rat rod is something built intentionally crude for shock factor.
My personal build style is to dial in stance, make it go and stop and drive it as close to found as possible. For some that’s a rat rod. If it has “shiny paint” it’s a hot rod.
I’ve seen and repaired “hot rods” and street rods that were as poorly built and engineered as what many call a rat. But because someone slapped some bondo over the bad and sprayed some paint, it’s “rat” status is removed.
I don’t care what you build as long as it functions and operates correctly.
I don’t paint mine for “fad” reasons. I grew up with old rides and my rides are built to resemble what I remember growing up (except stance)
The rat movement is a response to the highly over built street rods. A “rebel” style to oppose the “trailer queens”. I find that sentiment funny. I attended a national rat show and was shocked on how many trailered cars that were there. Instead of being too nice to drive, many were to poorly built to drive.
I watched a lot of rebels push cars on trailers as I drove my “rodent” from the show.
This particular car I posted here, if its truly as represented by its owner, would fit the jalopy or cut down category. Rat rod fans love it, street rods fans probably hate it, hot rod folks that understand it should just appreciate it for what it is. Some long gone kids automotive dream.

 

I have to agree with the lack of rebar expanded metal spider webs and skulls. It is not a RR. Around here they were used to go to the local back woods bar where chain saw fights broke out. Yea, they had them in the back and when arguments got out of hand and the fists were cut up out came the chain saws and they were started. Running full throttle standing face to face waving them around and screaming. Most backed down from the ones I saw but heard on occasion some went at it. Viola was the location of them but the bar burned down and was never rebuilt so that area is more quaint now. Rock Lick Inn, The Hole, and others like them are gone but not forgotten. Rock Lick is still in business but I haven't been in there for years.

 

I could use those wheels.

 

I've said it here multiple times, I've built a bunch of cars that were labeled rats, don't really care what somebody else labels it, but because i couldn't afford an aftermarket front suspension, or because i painted it flat black, never meant it was a rat. It was an unfinished, beater, jalopy, hot rod. I can't begin to tell you how many times I've heard a model A called a rat.

 

I think just someone's point of view Lloyd.

Ben

 

Well said, Anthony.

Ben

 

It is odd about RR v HR, I was leaving a 7/11, geez, must have been 15 years ago. There was an early 30’s Chevy PU idling, sounded nice. Truck looked nice. Not painted, but looked well built.
I hung out till the fella came out of the store and told him “Nice HotRod”. He looked right at me and said “It’s a RatRod”.
Oh well.

 

Looks like big fun to me, I am sure the kid who built it was the envy of all his pals, and the chicks!!! just think of it !!!

 

I build what I like with what I have or round up.
It gets called a rodent. I could give 2.rats rectums less what it’s called.
I have a big ole grin driving em.
I helped build a 33 5w for a customer that eventually turned into a good friend. He wanted a “rat rod”. So we built him a rat to his specs.
New chassis, stretched 32 heavy axle, hair pins, 9 inch ford with ladder bars. Big inch Chevy big block with a Richmond 5spd. Vintage air and a Paul Atkins leather interior. What made it a rat? It was painted flat black.
a 6 figure, pro built rat.
Lol.

 

Yep.
The kid made laps in the kart till the chain came off.
I’d drive the wheels off both as is