Customs Pre '35 customs

History or explanation of a specific car is always of value. Sometimes we can't figure out what has been done to a car but we know that we like it and it sure would be nice if we knew.

 

I have to agree. For every well designed and executed custom you see, there's ten more that fall short. And the other thing to remember is the term 'custom' is more elastic than many are willing to admit, just like the term 'hot rod'. There's always been a lot of blurring going on, many cars can fall into either category depending on the viewer. A custom doesn't have to have skirts, and a hot rod can have fenders.

I've always been more of a custom fan, but the scarcity of fresh design, well-done cars has always been a disappointment. Not to sound harsh, but the endless minor variations on pre-war taildraggers and chopped Mercs you usually see today has become boring. Yes, the fit/finish and attention to detail has reached heights never dreamed of 'back in the day' and is to be admired, but the designs have stagnated. When was the last time you saw a sectioned car, or a well-done set of rolled pans? Tony Miller's '40 is a refreshing exception, as was Keith Charvonia's '51 Kaiser. A few more current HAMB project cars that would qualify would be Flynbrian's T-Bird and CadMad's pre-war Caddy.

I've wandered a bit off-topic (pre-35 customs), but the same issues apply. While I fully get the 'traditional' aspect of the hobby, a 'traditional custom' as most define it is an oxymoron; customs were always about exploring the design limits with an eye towards art.

 

Flattery will get you pretty much anything you want.

 

Tony, I singled your car out because you have taken the time to finesse every detail. This is where most customs fail; while a specific modification may look good on it's own, it doesn't always 'mesh' with the rest of the design. One too-prominent feature, a body line that doesn't 'flow' with the rest of the car, too many different design elements, there's myriad reasons why a design doesn't 'work' and most people will be unable to say what's 'wrong' with it... if they even notice.

One thing that somewhat surprises me is given the number of guys out there these days who have amazing metalworking skills is that one of them hasn't teamed with a good designer and produced something fresh yet with a traditional 'look'. I have an art school background (alas, my drawing skills aren't what they once were) and have numerous designs in my head, but health issues/lack of money will keep them there....

 

One of the things that I remember the old guys ( old guys being a nominal term here) that hung around the old man's shop when I was really little is that all hot rods are customs but not all customs are hot rods. When you get right down to it, some men have determined whether mistakenly or not that if it is custom built it is a custom.

There is a very early example or at least early to me that has stuck in my mind about forever, I don't have a pic except in my mind and today we could consider it to be too cartoony. it was a closed cab pickup and the pic I am seeing in my head would have made it an A. it had a really smart looking valve in head and the truck was literally sliced and diced and stitched back together again. I remember the old man saying that it had been chopped, and channeled and sectioned and the pic in my head has it with real zephyr looking rear fenders. Would have been very late '50s or very early '60s.

Now the question becomes was it a custom or a hot rod? Some may have called it an abortion, but it was definitely customized and hot.

@Crazy Steve you mentioned Flyin Brian, I have has that little guys so made at me he couldn't see straight in the past, he got over it (uh I think) and he does beautiful work and that is a fact. 50frauds work is top notch too at least what I have seen of it. perhaps both are a straying from the focus of the thread but it is good to get a breath of fresh air from time to time.

 

A few names come to mind that do what you're describing. I think Chip Foose really does, despite the bashing he takes on here. Dave Kindig has his moments. Steve Moal tries, and I think his workmanship is first rate, but his design judgement generally leaves me cold.

 

I have the utmost respect for Foose, but he just doesn't do 'traditional' well. Troy Trepanier is a more extreme version of Foose, while Kendig is a paler version. Moal..... in some ways I like his designs, but his over-fascination with 'detail' on his cars generally detracts from his cars rather than add to them.