the ed roth post is great so i thought i would try one on kustoms or customs which ever you prefer. whats your favorite and why? mine is the hirohata merc,i know, kinda cliche but thats the one that does it for me. the moonglow is a close 2nd.
I think when the Barris's started cutting up the 49/50 mercurys is my favorite era in customising . maybe even late 40's , due to cars like the Matranga merc and the Lopez ford . I like the clean unclutered style of letting the bodylines and flow of the metal tell the story , rather that obnoxious paintjobs and cartoon scoops and bodywork done just for the sake of doing it ( winning car shows with the most things done to a car . . . ) Anyhow I like that time , the " organic years " where the cars looked like big jelly beans , seamless , flowing , no barbs or hickups . Shit like this . . .
It is so hard to pick one there are so many great ones. I would have to say Moonglow and Grapevine(the first couple styles before the wild paint) are right up at the top.
Anything from Valley Customs, good looks and class and smoooooth. Bertolucci was also a customizing god. Some early Barris stuff while Sam was still around.
Duane Steck's Moonglow for sure. It is a kustom that a "normal" person could have built w/ the help of a body man friend. I love Barris' stuff...but it was almost too much. They were the "gold chainer" cars of yesterday. Watson's cars were amazing as well. These were the good old days (coming from a guy who is a wopping 25 yrs. old). Paint was cheap. Shop labor was cheap. Joe Average could have a killer paint job and actually afford to feed his family.
My all time favorite custom is Chuck DeWitts 50 ford convertible. I'm superised no one has built a clone fo it. What ever happened to the original car? anyone? Billy
Not much of a custom guy but the Westergard 36, 3 window with LaSalle grille is my favorite....less is more.
My favorite is Stuckey's original version of the L'il Coffin. Second is the Ala Kart. Then comes the Hirohata Merc. JIm
Oh man, favorite Kustom, Hmmmmm................that's a tough one! There are so many great ones. Here's a list of my Top 10 favorites. 1. Paul "Snooky" Janich's '41 Ford 2. Buster Litton's '49 Ford 3. Buddy Alcorn's '50 Merc 4. Bill Carr's '55 Chevy--"Aztec" 5. Johnny Zupan's '56 Ford F-100 6. Clif Inman's '57 Chrysler 7. Mike Young's '60 Impala 8. Hub Harness' '60 Buick--"Cinnamon" 9. Hub Harness' '59 El Camino 10. The last kustom on my list I don't know the owner's name. It is a '56 Chevy that is white with gold scallops. It has '60 Chrysler taillights, dual lake pipes on each side, and a '56 Lincoln front bumper (I think). It also had an Auto Butchers E.L.A. plaque in it. I saw it last year in Paso and it really kooled my heels!
Anyone got pictures of the Matador (40 Ford, I think) ??? I really dig that car...forgot who built it at the moment, but I liked the way it was squeezed, pinched and blended into something wicked cool!! One of my favorite 40 Fords of all time!!
el matador was built by bill cushionberry in 1960. buster lintons ford is definatly one of the best shoeboxes everbuilt, and also leroy goularts winfield built shoebox. the hirohata is starting to get into the over customized category but for some reason, to me, it all works.
We have done this a bunch of times, but at least I get to show my screensaver for several years one more time.. This is my favorite era; the late fifties when Larry Watson ruled it all. Otherwise, Early kustoms: The Buddy Ohnesian Merc, the Matranga Merc and Harry Ogdens 41 Buick. Early fifties-mid fifties: Moonglow 54 Chevy, and most of the 49-51 Mercs the Barris bros touched. Late fifties: wild: Cushenberrys Marquise Mild: everything Watson, the black James' 57 Buick, Floyd DeBoers 58 Poncho and a bunch of others.
I luvs em all! But top of the list is one that's got a little something from pretty much each and every one of the old time Kustom artisans is the R&C Dream Truck.
My all time kustom is the el matador and Lenny leger from mass. Built a 49-50 ford with quad headlights and edsel tailights chopped right down. It was rightous!
I only have one car that is a Kustom, so of course it is my favorite. It was built in Missouri in the late 50s or early 60s. We bought it running and driving for $57 in 1967 and drove it a couple of years with no problems. My best friend took the flathead out and it has been sitting a long time. I had to cut down 3 12 inch pine trees to liberate it. 1950 Ford
drd57 great link. those two shoe box fords are awsome. and bones notebooms stuff rules too. hope your feeling better.
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