I used the fender lips from a 52-54 Ford/Mercury front fender. I took an inch out of the center on mine. I did it to match the lip on the 51 Merc/Linc skirts and to give me a little more room for the wider front track width of the Camaro clip. I have a full how to on my build threads. Let any of us know if you have any other questions, would love to help!! Also check the lips on the Plymouth Savoy. A little less drastic than the Ford/Mercs.
Ether, thanks I gotta feeling I might be going to your build threads a bunch when I get the right Merc home.
It's hard to pinpoint a "perfect" Mercury because everyone has their own idea of what that may be. I like my own an awful lot along with a host of others I've seen here and elsewhere.
Being a Merc-oholic,I have saved all the details that I liked done to Mercurys over the years. When I got mine,I was gonna do a subtle,James Dean style car. But after slddnmatt told me there was lots of parts missing from my Merc,I decided to make it look like it could have been done in the 50's(except for the flames). The driveline was already changed,so I went with what I had. I wanted the outside to look like it was just chopped,with all the trim,etc. It is as close as I could get it without putting the hood ornament,letters,trunk peice,and handles back on. They were already removed,so I just left it that way. There is NO SUCH THING as the "Perfect Merc"! It's based on preference,taste,and money. Each builder has a different idea of what's "perfect". What I like isn't what the next guy will like. If I had to choose one,that came as close to what I consider to be the perfect Merc...It would be,like I have said here before,Jeff Nepel's '50. You could take a B&W photo of his car,put it in ANY magazine,and wouldn't be able to tell when the pic was taken. His car is not dated. That's what I want for mine. If you talking about one that's more customized. There's lots out there to choose from for examples,the Hirohata being the most influencial. You need to do your homework,like ProstockJohn did and make your own example of what appeals to you. That's the best advice I can give you. Look at the HAMB Merc Club thread and see all the examples on there. One more thing.....If you are trying to do something that's different....DON'T waste your time! Everything's already been done. Might as well just pick the stuff you like and make it the way that expresses your taste.
Here is one of the cars I had in the back of my mind as I was building mine.. Bad Bob is totaly right about there is no perfect Merc. His own car is a perfect example... I would NEVER put flames on a Merc, but Bobs car is in my top 10 all time Mercs BECAUSE it has flames. See, even my own rules about what is a perfect Merc don't hold up to any real scrutiny. Perfect is in the eye of the beholder. -Abone. PS. Thanks for teh kind words about my old Merc..kinda miss that car sometimes..
It might not be the right place to bring up this topic but I will anyway...how many Merc owners/admirers have looked into ways to flatten out the dome in the roof? I was down in Austin last year at Mercury Charlies and for the first time was able to take a good close look at "Nadine". I noticed that the car had a smoother roofline than any other Merc without the pronounced bulge. When I asked Charlie about it he just smiled and said that not too many people even notice that aspect of the car. He told me that he did flatten out the roof by about 3/4 inch to take away some of the bulge. I really like the look of that roof and will be doing it to my 50 just as soon as I figure out the best way to go about it. Anybody else try this mod?
So many great Mercs, I love about 20 of them... But if I could have any Merc I wanted, my list would be: Hirohata Merc Sam Barris Merc Nadine by Mercury Charlie ....And 5-6 older builds... Best thing to do like Bob said is look at 'em all, and decide what you like. I've bought and resold some parts along the way, am very happy so far. Mine so far:
Wow Bob..... quite the compliment. I just tried to keep it simple and a lot of Mercury owner's dont do that.I wanted it all Mercury from the trim to the bumpers.I do agree though..... owner's just have to build it to what they think is perfect in their own minds.
Profile is perfect on this one I like them with the belt moldings left on seperates the roof from the body I think it really helps if the drip rail is shaved.
Gotta side with you on Bobs Merc I dig flames but could never flame one.Bobs is the only Merc I've ever seen that just looks right with them.No sence even trying the bar is unreachable.
A little more recent pic with the front down just a hair more then Bob's pic.Funnycar65....thanks for the compliment. John since you threw the old lookin black and white picture in the snow I had to throw up the Westcoast version of that.
That just proves what has been said before. We all have our own favorites. This happens to be mine. If you see that car from a front on 3/4 shot, it looks way different, so even the angle of a shot can change what a car looks like.
There are a lot of excellent Mercurys, but only one perfect one - flamedabone's old one. Not only is it drop dead gorgeous but it has a hot Pontiac in it. Just badass.
Never seen that shot of Abone's going into the trailer; i dig that Merc; he's a good man too. So many nice examples (and good folks too) here on the HAMB. Impossible to do it alone.
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