History MILESTONE CUSTOM CARS: Jesse Lopez '41 Ford

Man,the 70's were a great time...how to ruin a car.I said it before and will do again.The bright color absolutely doesn't suit the car and you clearly can see tons of lead on it,especially on the fadeaway fender line.The car looks very molded.Actually darker colors accentuate body imperfections even more so it really makes me wonder how the Stewart Ford would look if those early black & white pics would be colored...hood gaps are crisp too.

 

That picture was taken after the car had been...uhh...'restored' by Bob Drake. Actually, "repaired" would be more appropriate, because it had been hit by a train (!) when Jim Skonzakis owned it, or at least after he brought it to Ohio. It may have been a lot slicker when it left Ayala's.

 

I just realized I had another very nice pictures of the Jesse Lopez '41 Ford. At a outdoor parking lot show in the early 50's ('52 perhaps?) The lopez Ford is seen here at the lower right corner... and the flow of the top is something I love to see from the side but even from th top its absolutely perfect. To me it sure looks like that rear window is chopped a bit as well. I think stock 41-48 Ford rear windows are much taller, and Sam figured it needed to be cut in order to fit the lowered top and be in perfect proportions with it.
The rest of the cars at the outdoor show are nice as well... Boy how neet whould that have been walking around the Hirohata Merc, Busterl Litton '49 Ford, Chuck DeWit shoebox conmvertible, Tommy Thornburh '47 Studebaker and several other well known customs.

 

Sorry, just had to put this fabulous car up on top again.
It's my "Todays late 40's Kustom dose"...






Just wonder why so many skilled people admire these "period" kustom cars so
much and then build something else when building their own kustom cars?
The hot rods are usually much more "accurate" in style and detail. Just a
personal thought...

 

My Pops said it was the lowest car in the state,in the 50's He said it had steel casters on the frame so it could roll over steep curbs at the outdoor shows in L.A.Sparky

 

What the world needs is MORE pictures of this car...

Is it a 40 Tudor Deluxe Custom?

 

Always love it when the Frenz/Rikster vaults get opened up. Very cool pics, thanks guys. The Lopez car is beautiful-it made me think of Kirk!'s ride.

 

WARNING! WARNING!

DO NOT look at Riksters Custom Car Archive unless you have the whole day to spare. There is so much good stuff there. I will return again and again and again and still not see it all.

Thank you Rikster! I am inspired to set out with my mild custom Right NOW!

chili

 

What he said and don't look at the UK Kustom section or I won't be able to do the weird Sunday post anymore.

 

Kilroy,

This is as far as I know the Earl Bruce 40 Ford coupe (see below) with its rear side windows closed. The body work on this car was performed by several people including Valley Customs who did some body work and paint.




Thank you all for the nice compliments.
Glad you all like these wonderful custom cars as much as I do.

 

A Tudor is a sedan but that DeLuxe coupe in the pic is the Earl Bruce car

 

Thanks Rikster, I've seen the Earl bruce car and thout it could have been that car but with the angle of the pic etc, It looked like the back of the roof was a longer than a coupe.

Bitchin' either way!

I know what a Tudor is, I used to own one. But from that small ass pick I couldn't tell what was going on in the back...

There's a guy in Hollywood that has a car very similar to the Earl Bruce car, anybody know if it could be the same car?

 

As usual, the Rikster rules! Nice to see a tribute to the Lopez car. This car was the inspiration for my 41 ford. I didn't want to clone the car, but draw from it. That car definitely fueled the fire for the car I drive today. Its funny to me to see the long door/ short door conversation come up again. Awhile back, someone was gonna pull a club coupe (long door) body off of the frame and put on a buss. coupe (short door) body on! He figured that the short door would chop better than the long. Yes the buss. coupe turns out cool when chopped, but the club coupe just cannot be beat. Longer is better to get that front to rear flow that makes a custom a custom. I don't know how to post pics, but I think that Rikster has some of my car on his site. Lastly, everyone else is right, I don't know shit, and I just know what I like. D

 

I absolutely love your 41 Daron...


Early version with the stock grille and flipper hubcaps (the last is just like the Lopez 41... it too had single bar flipper first before switching to Caddy Sombrero's)



New grille and green paint... perfect

 

My 47 Business Coupe (the back seat was added later, but on its way out) is going to the only real custom fabrication shop in Maryland this saturday to have the top chopped, as well as the bottom door edges and quarters extended over the running boards. I have many pictures of chopped 41-48 fords, but the Lopez coupe is the only picture of a chopped business coupe I could find. Im going to take pics of the Lopez coupe with me, as the chop is so dead on. Ill be installking the Airride system in too soon. Thanks for the great pictures!

 

Rikster rules !!!!!

 

Here's a couple of pics of my 41 bus. cpe

 

dragnut...
Your car is one of the most beautiful "period" cars ever built in modern
times. I really miss out on the essential Appletons, though. But it's really spot
on. Personally I prefer the '41 front, but that's only me... The car is BEAUTIFUL !

Here in some good company a few years back...

 

That roof is to die for.

 

Hopefully the rumor that the Lopez car still lives is true. This is one of those few customs that (to me at least) just has an mystical aura about it.

And that Brumelback Ford's grill - wow! outfreakinstanding!! I love the weightyness of it and it sure has a great shape that really works with the rest of the car. I like it better than the Lopez car's Caddy grill which to me is a little odd of a combo that always fights my eye a bit, but that chop more than makes up for that small detail.

Dragnuts' car is right up there in their league tho' - beautiful! Always love seeing it.

Thanks again for another great custom post!

 

Thanks, when I met Dick Dean and Gene Winfield and their crews on my trip west for Ego-rama this year they were very complimetary also .

 

Hey Kilroy,
Yer not talkin' 'bout the Maroon '40 Ford with blanked out quarter windows
and fade -a- ways, repudated ta be built by Valley Customs. This car is/was
owned by a guy who works for Bill Hines.

 

That car is the Bob Greasman 40 Ford was NOT built by Valley Customs at all. Bob Greasman did all the body work himself while at work at the Brand Brothers Body shop in LA. Mark Drews - a great early custom car enthusiast - is the current ownere and he recently repainted it for the Pebble Beach concours for which it was invited.





At the Pebble Beach grass...



This is how it looked in the early 50's




And this is how it looked in the late 40's before the fadeaway fenders where created.

 

After a litle distraction... here are a few more photo's of the Lopez Ford not shown in this thread.


The Ford at a an early 50's idoor car show. Possebly the Oakland roadster show in '51. The car behind the Lopez Ford (left side) is anothe Barris built full custom, the Joe Urritta Sam Barris built '41 Ford.




Here is an enlargement of that wonderful outdoor car show. Look how the top flows into the trunk... this is art. It looks like the Lopez Ford has a nicely detailed engine compartment as well... some chrome is showing in this picture... would love to see more...




I recently spotted the car at an outdoor parking lot car show. In the background with the hood open. And tommy's 47 Studebaker in the front

 

Just got me wondering:
Are there '46-style front fenders on the Lopez' car, or was the original fenders reworked?

Anyone knows if it was chopped 4 1/2" all around or more in the back?

Finally, are there no colour photos of it? Would love to see that. The Lopez' Ford is on my top five customs list, I just love its sinister appeal.

 

Yes those are 46 Ford front fenders. And I have no idear if its a 4 1/2 inch chop all around. It looks to have been chopped more in the rear to me. And possebly even sectioend the roof a bit in the rear to get teh flow perfect. The door side window however is perfect paralel, so there the chop is even.

I have never seen a color photo of is... and just like you would love to see one. An original 50's photo would be perfect... but the restored original custom would be fine too

 

I have always loved this car...its a masterpiece.

 

That's the one i was thinking of...

God I'd love to re-chop it...

 

I want to join the "Wright Ford Lovers Club" too.Cool to have you on here dragnut,welcome.