I live in Norway, Europe. I like mags that say something about what I love. Old Style Hot Rods. Narrows the pic I might say. I've got tons of info on here I could not have found anywhere else in such a short time. Would probably needed to reed every printed rag from 1950 to 1990 to learn something close to it. This "Janet" is just upset for some reason. Forget it. Next time you get one of those emails.. DON'T SHARE - JUST DELETE. I guess you will make a good living out of your web empire Ryan. And I'm happy for you. You started this, maitained it, developed it ....and continiously do. So....please make a deasent living from it. You provide us a product we love for gods sake. I'm subscribing trough the Alliance. AND I HAVE MADE FRIENDS ON HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Travelled to the US this autumn and met some of them. Zach CuznBrucie Bruce Lancaster ....and yeah Bruce Lancaster has given me loads of his knowledge over the years. Building my Flathead engine without your contributions on here would NOT HAVE BEEN THE SAME. I'm in to stay....and I might just buy Janets mag from time to time,...if she put's up one of here sexy girlfriends on the cover to atract my attension at the gas station. Hot Rods are fun....we can mend the fabric. Paul
Thank you for saying what I felt, and could not put into words. Reading those mags can make a novice feel that nothing they are doing is right, cause in the article all the stuff that could be fixed was replaced, and it was not just the articles, it was the culture of the whole mag from the editors page beyond. Except for Frieberger and PG as i noted in my post. Go re read the 1936 Ford build from R&C to see what I mean, that car in the original form they found it would be a great start to a build, and at the time was in better shape than mine, and they replaced everything... I esp liked the way they would not so gently remind the reader that you needed certain $$$ and equipment to build a car or it was junk.
I am hopeful some real change could come from this if certain print publishers are reading this thread. I think the publishers are controlling the strings as they control the purse. The bean counters are killing some of the great old titles off, not the H.A.M.B., nor the Web in general. I suspect (hope) that many editors are not happy with the course set by the guys in bigger offices. If they are reading this, there are logical conclusions to draw. Some conclusions that cannot be missed by even the most myopic are that the H.A.M.B. is providing very worthwhile content: technical, historic, event related, not to mention artistic as every Friday continues to amaze me. In addition to content, providing a platform for a voice, and the ability to connect with like minds, all in the absence of annoying and mind numbing commercial distraction, make this the special place it is. The scope and shear volume of information alone is impossible for any print magazine or even group of titles to duplicate. The communal part is beyond the scope of print, even though they have halfheartedly attempted. I think at least one publisher in the print world also screwed up its chance for a web presence. I remember back in the earlier Primedia days being able to search a tech topic and it would turn up articles from multiple Primedia titles from the archives, which I could then download. As a teacher, I used this in my high school shop. I also maintained 18 mag subscriptions to car, truck and bike titles in that shop. Letters to publishers requesting complimentary educational subscriptions went unanswered. I didnt pay for archived info, which probably upset the bean counters, but then again I exposed a lot of students to a lot of titles, and some of them went out and subscribed. Unlike the H.A.M.B. there is relatively little of the archived info left at SI today, bandwith seems to be occupied by pop-ups last time I visited. As noted, many publishers apparently changed their business models over the years, probably as a result of corporate acquisition bottom-line thinking, and choose to stream revenue from ad sales instead of from content sales. Live by ad revenue, die by it. The H.A.M.B. did not steal your ad revenue. Comparing the H.A.M.B. to print media is like comparing apples to penguins. My message to publishers: Many of us bought and still buy magazines. I think its been plainly stated here that whether we do or dont it is for content or lack of it. Hometown Hot Rod was a publication that made it on content, its business model in perfect tune with the hobby: a guy in his garage. Its demise, according to John Nolans closing letter was not due to financial reasons, but due to family priorities. As an aside, if any of Janets holy trinity of world-creating magazines go out of business, who among you expects a refund of the remainder of their subscription? Personally, I lurk the H.A.M.B. for content. So much talent here, and I am so grateful that it has been made public. Thank you Ryan, H.A.M.B. admin and fellow members
ryan that was the best use of white stripes music i have ever seen! thanks for letting me play at your little party earlier this year, because i would have had to drive to the west coast to hang with janet! okies dig ya to,cya herb.
I like this nutty place!!! Sounds like Janet is in the same group as a certain Hot Rod Magazine editor. A few years back after telling us that he'd do a article on the GTO he replied a month later saying " We've done too many articles already on gassers and traditional race cars and hot rods." " It looks like the trend is coming to a end." That was 3 years ago. I guess he was just wishful thinking.
Ive always felt that the HAMB has been for the guys in the trenches. We are the blue collars of the hot rod community literaly and figuratively. The "other guys" just arent relative to us, and we dont want them to be. If they dont get it already, im not going to explain it. You guys know what im talking about.
You can bet they are reading this. There may even be a memo forbidding editors not to respond. Many (not all) of the editors at those magazines really are serious hot rodders, many (not all) would change the direction of their magazines if they were given free reign to do it. But like you said they don't have the power. Publishers and VP's are the power behind the throne. Things may change a little, but don't expect much as long as the same players are at the chess board playing the same moves over and over.
This letter reminds me of the LA Roadster shows when they hated the Shifters, Road zombies, scaraed carts, lucky devils coming into the show in the swap area and having one hell of a good time. Most magazine people are ass hats and have attitude that I can't stand but there a few that really cool and do not let the glamous life get to them. I hope Ryan you see this and never become this when something comes along that would be precicved as a threat against the HAMB. I have been here since the begining and will stay as long as it stays like it is. I just sometimes miss the old HAMB when there was no converstation about a 65 whatever lowered with primmer and red wheels, or my lated s-10 swap out whatever. I really wish there was more stuff like what these fellows post. BASS Cole Foster Elplacko Flamedabone coolhand hellon wheels and others that i cannot remember right now.
Definately. How many times in current hot rodding magazines have you seen the HAMB referenced? I haven't been keeping a tally, but I do nkow that a LOT would be an understatement. Ryan, thank you for the HAMB! It's been an incredible resource, and I dont know what the hot rodding world would be like without it? Does anyone think that traditional hot rods would be as big as they are right now without this place? Me thinks not. When I first joined the HAMB, I think there were 60,000 members. I jsut looked, and there are over 100,000!!!!!! That should say something! Keep up the good work!
A few years back, Ryan posted some print mag vs. HAMB statistics...# of hits on sites, readership numbers, etc. How about an update and comparison with the olde statistics?? Or might that give Janet a stroke...
In my naive, outsiders way of looking at it, I have never understood how anyone could run something like a Car Magazine unless even their beancounters are Car People. Seems to me that decay is inevitable, unless there is that Common Goal. Glad to hear there are some smaller Magazines left, that look like they are run that way...
In my experience, we have multiple layers of writing now... There are near-puff pieces that simply show how to install a complete, nearly stand-alone product. These might even just be photos of a pro shop installing a Pinto suspension or such. Doesn't matter who writes 'em. We have expert testimony (sometimes a serious pro tech person, sometimes a business owner building transmissions or something) filtered through a writer. These are sometimes good, sometimes bad, but almost always contain observable mistakes because the writer was frantically taking down something he did not really understand. These may be an incorrect number or factoid or the annoying confusion of which cars something might apply to...because the writer is not a car guy. The same writer does the picture captions in which a Model T with deuce grill is described as a '32 Ford. We have tech written by the person who knows and does the tech...an actual expert telling us how to weld aluminum or such. I notice that just as in the 1950's, most of the actual gearheads write pretty damn well, much better than the professional writers understand tech they report... The hard core tech in the big magazines is often, as I said before, off in the dark corners while the puff occupies the good turf. Note that car guys are barely in the loop here, hanging on at the edges. I can remember picking up a Streetrodder a few years back, noting with anticipation a cover story entitled "How to Build an A-V8 Chassis"... The tech content in the multi-page story was surprisingly simple...call SoCal and order their pre-cut for Model A deuce frame, preferably in roller format! I'm sure Bishop and Tardel wish they could write that concisely!
I've read most, not all, of the replies here and I must note that I'm very proud of you guys. Most replies are very articulate, well thought out and very well spoken AND that is one of the main reasons I prefer hot rod related website message boards for my information rather then printed magazines. Instant feedback from the large number of true hot rod and custom folks that hang out here. A person doesn't get feedback from printed material, it's a one way street and very "flat" in my opinion. No heart, no soul, no personality. At least no longer any personality. There used to be personality in the pages of some magazines, Rodder's Digest for example but I just don't get the same warm fuzzys when I read a magazine that I do when I'm reading the HAMB.......and PARTICIPATING on the HAMB. Yes, thats right, thousands and thousands of MEMEBERS participating on this message board unlike a magazine which just has a handful of folks participating each month.......boring to say the least. I could compare the two all night but we've talked about all these points before, nothing new. The point of my comment was just to mention that I'm proud of the way lots of my fellow HAMB peeps stated their opinions on this thread. I'm proud to say I know and hang out with you guys.
For post #598 as far as the montage and its ending message... RIGHT FREAKIN' ON!!! Loved the tank being pushed off at B'ville. Was that the "old Crow" guys?
Ryan, THANKS sincerely for allowing us hoodlums an outlet.... Without the HAMB, I would certainly have a girlfriend with all of the free time I would have!!!! (She would probably be a little "lumpy" given how old my ass is!!!) My wife thanks you, too. E
Or perhaps with... QFT, Ian. Man, that's the unfortunate part, isn't it... the guy who gets hurt the worst out of these deals are rarely 'hired gun' CEOs who have 'golden parachute' clauses they exercise, and move on to another high-paying venture. Commiserations from another guy who had a 20 year marriage go down the shitter, and has been selling off his belongings to live off from due to unemployment. So, when I voiced my opinion that the mags basically didn't deserve success when they put out an inferior product, that doesn't mean I like to see all the guys who work there get hosed. Yup. Anybody who doesn't agree with Bruce... go read the tech articles out of any random ten HRM mags from the mid sixties. I guess what's maybe the crowning touch (aka: biggest fly on the horse turd) of some of these publications is that they not only manage to have a very minimal amount of hard-core tech... and also manage to screw up what little in-depth tech they offer (either as Mr. Lancaster described above, or by whoring out the tech to appease the large advertisers). No, they manage to not even be able to write well. Substance FAIL; style FAIL. I quit subscribing when I realized that the fact that the magazines' pages are neither soft nor absorbent meant that they had no redeeming value. -Bill
I learn more on this site in the past year then I have ever learned in a mag my whole life. Don`t get me wrong I enjoy a good mags but I find that they are mostly about advertising products and not about the home build stuff. I always built my own parts but today if it not new over the counter shit it is junk. The video shows it best. Here we take ourselves back to a time when hot rodding was about skills and not about who brand name parts you are running.
All you have to do is look at the cars at the cruz-ins and shows and you can see where the trend is going and has been for quite sometime .People gettin back to the real world instead of all the BILLIT .I am a old guy I have said it before there are lots of Talent out here and most of em are the young guys .As most of you ,just look at some of the cars being built damn sure aint built out of a box.but gets more attention than high$ cars. Its all a good thing cant Knock any hell I like em all.Ps there is a lot a people making a livin making them parts so dont be to hard on the billit cars
Hot rodding is everchanging the world, multimedia is a new opportunity, and allows 'us' to join elements of our 'fabric' like never before, kicking it up a gear as such in the process. We celebrate 'old', but in a new and refreshing way, that effectively creates a different and exciting chapter. The soul of hot rodding is universal, despite the world/period we live in, what was chased then is still the same today, just with new tools and methods, but the core result is the same. 'Industry' is evolving, and in my eyes the intent is no different today to when the early media pioneers changed the rodding world in the late 40's and 50's, we're just using different tools to achieve the same goal. We are neither 'riding off the back' or stealing from anyone. The video montage rocks, and a great example, winners are grinners in the trophy hunt..... Embrace the opportunity like there is no tomorrow, Janet has missed the life lesson, and will be left behind to wallow......now kick it up a gear please, and hear that engine sing. Cheers, Drewfus
The large corporate magazines have had plenty of time now to build their own websites to attract the online crowd, but they didn't pursue it because they obviously felt it wouldn't enhance their product. Now I don't know this for an absolute fact, but I can certainly surmise it, as they've (corporate magazines) done just about everything else to promote their product. How is it Ryan's fault that he saw a need and filled it, while the brain trusts missed the boat? ...and now with the first of what are sure to be many apps for mobile phones, the HAMB will continue to grow upward and outward, while some neanderthals sit with ink stained fists, wailing and puling as their circulation numbers continue to decline. Sorry Janet, it looks like natural selection is going to take care of you and your ilk. The independent magazines and small publishers will continue to flourish and grow, depending on their abilities to provide content and their understanding of who their customer REALLY is. Hopefully the little mags will put some effort into supporting their 'zines online too, 'cause that's where the READER BASE will find you, not on the ever shrinking magazine racks. Distributors will also go the way of the Dodo, streamlined into obsolescence. Mega publishing companies will disappear, and more enthusiasts will turn to their computers. It's called progress Janet.
Just looking at Drag cars in action. over 3 million views should be a good start. Hot rodding does go with the magazine ads and everyone is going to admit it, to some extent. look at all the bags, billet, mustang ll front ends. 90% of todays rodders are expecting their old cars to drive like the new daily drivers I'm one of the 10% that likeS the bounce and under steer.....but I love radial tires and gas shocks (hey no ones perfect) Back to Janet, in the 50's all the Olds, Cads, Hemi's were all the new fad, but the Flathead was still the king. 1957 a strong flat motor could still best Detroits finest in a street corner drag race. 1958 was the year that I had to admit it was all but over. (Janet, can you see where I'm going with this?) I still love flat motors and Hemi's, Cad's Old's and even the Packard, pontiac, Buick nailheads and all early motors. I'm also smart enough to know the small block Chevrolet has more followers than all other engines combined. there must be a reason, I'm sure that I'll always read some form of Magazine, even though they are somewhat like the flat motor going down in history as a novelty item and nostalgia collector. JANET GO FIND YOUR SELF A NEW JOB !!!
Janet reminds me of an episode of Roseanne, the name 'needlebutt' sticks in my mind. Don't know what else to say,, But I Wonder if Janet actually knows how to change her own oil?
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