Register now to get rid of these ads!

Event Coverage Street Rodders are getting old...

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by flynbrian48, Aug 22, 2010.

  1. Shane Spencer
    Joined: Oct 3, 2009
    Posts: 2,160

    Shane Spencer
    Member

    hahaa yeah buddy ! nother young guy on here. theres tons of dudes at a young age on here. im 20 and its awesome to see the culture grow into the younger crowd
     
  2. stanlow69
    Joined: Feb 21, 2010
    Posts: 7,348

    stanlow69
    Member Emeritus

    Ya--getting another new phone when the new model comes out and learnin how to text and recieving E-mails. I guess I`ve haven`t done that yet.
     
  3. flathead okie
    Joined: May 22, 2005
    Posts: 1,480

    flathead okie
    Member

    I went to Looieville and Okc and Springfield swap last year. My hip was hurting like hell every day, but I refused to rent one of those damn things. Pride I guess....................:D
     
  4. Vintage tin for vintage skin i always say. Yup..i gettin up there to.
     

    Attached Files:

  5. edweird
    Joined: Jan 4, 2009
    Posts: 3,186

    edweird
    Member

    listen to him. its coming!
     
  6. Restorers of 40's and older cars are dying off or in retirement homes. That segment of the hobby is hurting. Street rodders are getting older and the cars are too pricey. Muscle car guys are the new restorers. They are the guys who care if your 70's car is correct or your corvette has the wrong nuts and bolts or a date code wrong. Hot rodders and (forgive me), rat rodders are the new old car guys that love 20's to 40's cars. There will be more of them as a glut of rainbow colored street rods hit the market and the prices come down as supply exceeds demand and also as the young guys age and can afford to spend more on toys. I fear the swap meets and events will start to go away as the old guys age, but hope I am wrong. Personally, I prefer to drive my vehicles as in half the fun is driving there.
     
  7. Scumdog
    Joined: Mar 3, 2010
    Posts: 630

    Scumdog
    Member

    For a lot of young 'uns a car is just a 'thing' like a microwave oven or fridge.

    If it goes they're happy, if it doesn't they dump it and get another one.

    Have a look inside a teenagers car - look at the litter & junk, look at how often it is even washed let along waxed.

    Even the boy-racers (tuners to you Stateside types!) only want a car that is a pose-machine and in fashion with the minimal amount of effort - and they want it now, $100 cown and rive off in a $10,000 car, straight around to get blingy wheels, tinted windows and a boom-boom box, also all 'on tick'. Insyany gratification

    So their car has now cost them $15,000+, in five years it's worth $6000 and they're stiill paying it off, with interest it will have cast them nearly $19,000+.

    And still no idea on how to build a car and pay for it as they go.

    Sadly the world has changed.

    Hopefully more of these teenagers will get the real 'old-car-bug' when they are in their late 20's, early thirties or so and build a rod when in their late 40's.

    Then they'll be getting 'old' too huh!:D
     
  8. olcurmdgeon
    Joined: Dec 15, 2007
    Posts: 2,289

    olcurmdgeon
    Member

    So yesterday we were out in the cold breeze at the Fitchburg, MA airport for the Early V8 Swap meet. This event has been going on each spring for 43 years. Lot of their members are getting up there in age. So while we walked around, I couldn't help but stand back and watch the sea of club jackets going up and down the aisles. Lot of car clubs in the Boston area and New England. Mostly gray/white hair, lot of white whiskers. But they were all having a great time, as was I (I'm 70). But the young guys were few and far between. We rode down in Dick's chopped Merc with a younger club member and regaled him with stories, some true, about exploits of our youth. And we met a few son's of guys our age, who are true enthusiasts, but not that many. Not many vendors without gray hair either. you gotta wonder where is the echelon that will take over 5 to 10 years from now? We old timers are a hardy lot, we'll go kicking and spinning our tires into that "long night", but we are not immortal.
     
  9. 1959apache
    Joined: Nov 22, 2009
    Posts: 2,635

    1959apache
    Member

    I know a lot of these types, they just aren't very savvy when it comes to money; you can have a $300-$600 per month car payment and get 40+ MPG and then very costly repairs (over $1,000 most times) or you can have an old car that you have to put some work into that you own (no monthly payment) and it gets 15-25 MPG and is cheap to fix... You wind up saving a lot more going the old car way.

    I am 25 and now have infected a few of my friends with the old car bug. Their biggest concern is that they won't know how to work on something. I told them that if they want I will show them how if they want, just feed me beer. I kind of talked them into it when they asked how much I had into repairs on my '64 C10 and their jaws dropped... its just too cheap to work on these cars for me to work on something newer that costs 20 times more.
     
  10. choptop40
    Joined: Dec 23, 2009
    Posts: 5,113

    choptop40
    Member

    eat more fruits and veggies....most food today is killing you faster...lol
     
  11. OneBad56
    Joined: Dec 22, 2008
    Posts: 535

    OneBad56
    Member

    Two things are for sure:

    Yes we are getting older and so are the vendors to our wonderful hobby.

    Which brings up the second point. Many of these vendors don't have a succession plan in place or if they do, most of the time no one wants to continue with the business. And then it disappears....leaving us with one less vendor until....


    My two sons, now 32 and 30, have no interest in the hobby, or cars for that matter.

    So I've focused on my 5 year grandson, who just loves riding in the HRT, going to small shows, gets upset if someone else sits in the HRT, and loves the "old school" style hot wheels that I find for him.

    He just might get the HRT keys one day......
     
  12. Many of us greybeards are getting long in the tooth and are effected with all sorts of maladies compliments of heredity,accidents or just plain hard living,,but put us behind the wheel of curved or flat glass in a hot rod or custom and that teenage kid inside is set free. HRP
     
  13. That's non un-common. I come from a strong gearhead heritage going back 3 generations. Mechanics, sprint car drivers and builders, bodymen, Hot Rod builders and drivers...

    And it abruptly stopped with my dad and his brothers. I am the only "kid" out of all the cousins that sees a car as more than transportation or a housing for a huge stereo.

    I could speculate, but I really have no idea why that is.

    And the truth is: my kids may not care a thing about it.
     
  14. Donut Dave
    Joined: Jul 9, 2007
    Posts: 462

    Donut Dave
    Member

    I just turned 70 and planning ahead.....





    100th Anniversary <O:p</O:p

    1932 Ford

    (Wrinkle Ranch Rest Home)

    Optimistic Driver’s Club<O:p</O:p
     
  15. banjorear
    Joined: Jul 30, 2004
    Posts: 4,479

    banjorear
    Member

    Nice! Now that is an old TV reference. I was in 8th grade when Miami Vice came out.

    My buddy use to say, "I have more vices than Crocket and Tubbs." When I think about that, it cracks me up.
     
  16. I was a vender at the Fitchburg Ma meet yesterday, I sold two lots of parts to two different guys in their twenties. One bought all of my nos and rebuilt carbs and the other bought a few hundred muffler clamps. I think I gave them a very good price because i remember how hard it was to get started in this hobby.
    I also had 39 year old with me it was his first meet and he ran into an old hs friend who is in the Alter Boys. I think it's harder for younger people with families to find the extra money to get into this hobby.
    As the supply of old cars and parts drys up the prices only get worse. Seems like we all want to be able retire on our next sale. :eek:
     
    Last edited: Apr 22, 2013
  17. pitman
    Joined: May 14, 2006
    Posts: 5,148

    pitman

    Again!
     
  18. Zombie Hot Rod
    Joined: Oct 22, 2006
    Posts: 2,452

    Zombie Hot Rod
    Member
    from New York

    I've said before and I'll say it again. . . if you want young people to get into hot rods stop chasing them away with a grumpy old man attitude, and start appealing to them.

    A bunch of fat old guys listening to do-wop in lawn chairs preaching about how "their way is the only way" doesn't appeal to younger folks. . . it reminds them of a BBQ at the grandparents house that they don't want to be at.

    Everyone my age and younger who build cars seem to have two things in common. . . we all skateboarded and were into punk rock, two things all of the older guys hate.

    I had an older fella at a show talk to me about my '32 coupe and how much he loved it, then went on the criticize the shoes I was wearing and said that he didn't understand what "these Vans sneakers have to do with hot rodding" and stormed away mad.

    Old guys getting angry cause I have my hat on backwards, or my brim flipped up. . . I get that old people are grumpy and I personally don't care, most of the time I find it funny. . .

    . . .but I have brought friends to car shows who are on the fence about hot rods, or just starting to get into it, and I've said to me "I don't know how you deal with these people" and lost interest.
     
    Last edited: Apr 22, 2013
  19. A Rodder
    Joined: Jul 13, 2008
    Posts: 2,474

    A Rodder
    Member

    I don't have this problem luckily.

    But lets face it. Old cars and hot rods are a luxury item and even if we have some of the money to spend on them, there seems to be a lot more that occupies our time than maybe what was in the past.

    I have a wife that loves our cars and supports it 99 percent of the time, but at the end of the work day, she is ready for help with our kids.

    I have to respect that.

    Fortunately for me I can drag some of my stuff to my shop at work and work in them as time allows.

    If I werent' able ot do that, it would be somewhat frusterating to balance out cars and family. I have my priority's but I know I would be wanting more car time, and it just wouldn't be there.

    I definately can attest that even at 33, when we have a hangout at the shop or do something car related, we are the youngest by a solid 15 years or so, kinda always been that way. Some of the people we hang with are double our age, but they don't act like it.

    That is maybe just another perspective.
     
  20. pwschuh
    Joined: Oct 27, 2008
    Posts: 2,827

    pwschuh
    ALLIANCE MEMBER


    All excellent points. People (and their attitude) make or break everything. If we don't pass on our appreciation for something to the next generation, many (or even most) will not come by it naturally. There are few who will see a well-chopped '34 coupe and something inside just clicks. But those few are not enough to sustain the hobby at the level it is now.

    Someone already said the upside for future generations is plenty of cheap hot rods for the few left who can appreciate them.
     
  21. OneBad56
    Joined: Dec 22, 2008
    Posts: 535

    OneBad56
    Member

    Quite agree with your comments.

    Those real older dudes that have the perfectly restored Model T or A are not getting the prices for their vehicles they thought they would. Plus the interest is waining in the older parts like you use to see at the Swaps.

    Combine this with the fact that the boomers are more interested in the 60's to early 70's muscle cars as that is what they saw and grew up with. Very few were into the hot rods or customs in their early years. There were some into the 50's "sleeper" like a 55 with a 327 or a 57 Ford with a 427 under the hood.

    I was lucky enough to hang out with some "older" dudes who were into the hot rods and customs but they too started gravitating toward the muscle car era, as I did. The market back then was not strong either for hot rods and customs unless it was real iconic.

    Over time, some shows and swaps may/will "disappear" due to lack of members and volunteers. There a few smaller rural towns in Alberta that have taken over the shows as they see it as an economic boom for their town. They do find it hard too without gear heads volunteers.
     
  22. olcurmdgeon
    Joined: Dec 15, 2007
    Posts: 2,289

    olcurmdgeon
    Member

    I agree, you have to cultivate a field if you want a crop. Young guy that went with us to Fitchburg is doing a '46 Ford coupe, found a heater for it there. I told him I had some 1 3/4 defroster hose, new in package, I'd donate to his project. And my partner Dick, is helping another young club member with his project, they call Dick's basement shop the "Wal-Mart" annex since the parts there are easily available, many times for no cost. After all we have all benefited by someone who passed on, right? When the late Al Berry's estate was being cleaned up after his passing in CA, we rescued a 55 gal drum full of '97 and '94 carbs that were going to the scrapper. Gotta pass some of that along. The other day I was driving past the Children's Museum in town, for mainly early elementary crowd and I spotted two little boys pointing at my truck, jumping up and down and pulling their Mom's arm. I pulled over to the curb, allowed the boys to stand on the running board (running board, what's that?) and sit in the cab. You can bet they had a great time, icing on the cake of visiting the museum.
    And HRP, you are right on the money. I am caregiver for my wife, who has many issues. Even if I just tool down to Janeto's market for milk and bread in the hot rod, it puts a smile on my face, melts away the stress and worry, and not to wax too poetic, feeds my soul. That's why I don't do big shows, park in row shows, pay $40 bucks to enter shows. Wife likes to go with me, but can't stay seated in lawn chair for hours at a time. So we do cruise nights, come and go as we want and maybe just motor to the local ice cream shack, about 2 miles from our house, and which just opened (!) last week.
     
  23. Straightpipes
    Joined: Jan 25, 2006
    Posts: 1,084

    Straightpipes
    Member

    I've got almost 3 years older since this thread started.........

    The HAMB is for hotrod hoodlums, not for off roaders or the muscle car freaks and definately not for you Corvette dweebs......

    You know whats wrong with the world?? They don't have Plymouth trouble shooting contests anymore.......
     
  24. Lone Star Mopar
    Joined: Nov 2, 2005
    Posts: 3,811

    Lone Star Mopar
    Member

    Old or young I get along with all of em, it's all about your attitude.
     
  25. To a certain extent you are right,but a lot of us older guys have rode skate boards although they were not state of the are like you are accustom too.

    A lot of older guys sit in chairs because of bad legs,and broken bones,and just to piss the kids off I'm wearing Vans as we speak.

    Now,I DO hate the backward hat ,,,I done it when I was ridding a motorcycle but wear it correctly when I got off.

    I can't stand punk rock music and I'm also not too fond of Do Wop music.

    I learned a long time ago to be Be tolerant and respectful when you met people face to face,,it paid dividends for many years now,,I am blessed to have friends both young and old.

    I avoid both young and old guys with a chip on their shoulder.HRP
     
    Last edited: Apr 22, 2013
  26. sixpac
    Joined: Dec 15, 2002
    Posts: 553

    sixpac
    Member
    from Courtenay

    Elvis is scarey and the toe has to go who would dress up like that man oh man
     
  27. henryj429
    Joined: Jan 18, 2007
    Posts: 1,063

    henryj429
    Member

    Punk rock? Seriously? Punk rock was big in the early eigthies. People who were in to that are 50 now. If the older folks can't relate to them, then even carrying on a conversation with the Lady GaGa crowd is a lot cause.
     
  28. mustangsix
    Joined: Mar 7, 2005
    Posts: 1,403

    mustangsix
    Member

    Just an observation, but I went to the monthly car show in New Smyrna Beach last month, the same week that Bike week started.

    My wife and I both noticed how old the crowd and in particular the car owners seemed to be. Lots of us geezers shuffling around and very few younger people.

    I know we all talk about staying young, but the fact is, demographics will eventually catch up with this hobby if new blood isn't introduced. BTW, that same weekend the Daytona newspaper headlined an article called "the Greying of Bikeweek".....
     
  29. Another thought about the younger crowd,at least in my area,,It isn't the lack of money,,kids today are lazy and want instant gratification,,they don't want to get dirty and build something nor do they want to learn how to do simple maintenance.

    I have offer to help 2 young guys build a hot rod,,offered them the use of my shop and access to my tools,,one of these guys is my son-in-law.

    He moved his grandpas car in to my shop in mid December 2012 and was on top of the world to get started on just getting the car running again,to my knowledge he hasn't laid eyes on the car since.:rolleyes:

    He's to busy playing disc golf when he's not working. HRP
     
  30. cooger
    Joined: Nov 5, 2008
    Posts: 233

    cooger
    Member

    Damm, I was BORN with a 29" waist and its went up ever since.
    cooger
     

Share This Page

Register now to get rid of these ads!

Archive

Copyright © 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. Terms of Service. Privacy Policy.

Atomic Industry
Forum software by XenForo™ ©2010-2014 XenForo Ltd.