Gow job versus custom

I'm not very familiar with the term" gow job " is it the same as a custom ?

 

Gow job generally refers to Model T Ford open cars that have been stripped down to essentials necessary for good looks and speedy looks.

 

Typically a stripped down Model A or T with a banger or flathead v8 built before WW2.

 

Thanks for the response guys . I learned something on the hamb again!

 

Hey modelacrazy would your pickup be a gow job?

 

You REALLY need to search for the gow job thread. And that shadow over your shoulder? That's a customs guy getting ready to thump yer skull with a pipe wrench.

 

Gow job was an early name for a hot rod. They did not like the name hot rod or hot rodder, this was a name used by newspapers and magazines to describe crazy kids squealing their tires in school zones and racing around corners on 2 wheels. Real hot rodders thought the name hot rodder gave them a black eye.

Gow job or hop up were the preferred terms. Gow and hop are old slang names for opium. I believe they referred to doping of race horses, a race horse than ran fast thanks to drugs, was said to be "gowed up " or "hopped up". The same name was given to cars modified for more speed.

A custom job was modified for looks and style. Speed was secondary, although some customs had hopped up motors.

 

Here's a gow job....

 

Great explanation. I never knew the root source of those terms.