Hot Rods This ain't no disco, this ain't no rat rod, this ain't no fooling around!

Wagons do not count in my book since you use those to take the sling shot dragster to the races or your roadster or coupe to the salt flats or dry lake bed.

While that does look cool I still do not count that as a hot rod. And if the shot was taken way back when then for sure there is no excuse to not have a coupe or roadster since they were all over back then and hell of alot cheaper than now.

 

The rebels were always the ones doing their own thing. But not to purposely piss anybody off. They were being themselves and didn't really have time to notice who was pissed off. They didn't care because they never even acknowledged anyone else. That's a rebel. The people who THINK they get it and start exaggerating it are the ones that ruin it for the rebel.

Being a rebel is a lonely job. You get more than a few rebels together and then you've got a fad. Rebels die when they get noticed.

 

When I started out as a kid having my dad show me how to build cars it was never my goal to piss off someone, but its kind of hard not to notice when the old guys come up to you telling you your car is not good enough or make the comment that when you are done fucking up that nice model A coupe and get tired of it call me and I will come bail you out and buy it from you. Those same old guys are the ones I passed on I-10 a year later driving to LA roadster show in 105+ heat going to the show while they trailed there billet eggs on wheels to the show. These are also the same guys the worry how to clear coat the patina on there cars, or come to the round up in austin again trailering there cars and not driving them 1200 miles one way. So my point is kind of like yours in the statement that it gets started by a few and then exaggerated by the masses and it ruins it for the guys that started it. My friends and I never considered being rebels, we just wanted hot rods since they were so much more fun than vw's and with hot rods the sky is the limit in what you can do where as a vw has a ceiling and at some point it still a vw.

 

It was taken back in the day 55 Rod and Custom to be exact. It was built for an owned by Chet Herbert. Pretty sure Chet Herbert knew what a hot rod was, and more than likely didn't care who slagged it for being a more door, since he was a bit busy kicking ass on the salt flats and pioneering racing tech that people here drool over..

 

Chet Herbert was a bad ass no argument from me on that one. Still its a four door and in my book its not a hot rod. Maybe I am a little stiff on my guide lines but the books by Don Montgomery prettly much define it for me. Don does have some photos of 4 doors and other cars in his books but his books mostly focus on coupes and roadsters and that is what I think a hot rod is in the traditional sence. Now Needlouvers, Elpalcko's and etc that have been shown or mentioned in this thread are what got us when we were young and then exposed us to what real hot rods are, so for that reason I hold dear to me those car mentioned in this thread as what go me started in this hot rod world.

 

Be careful, there's a lot of Grandpa's on here.
I think it was a NASTY big block, because I was researching what it took to cool one in Texas at the time. The patina was close to Ron's avatar. I can only imagine that they would not have cared, at all, what Ron thought.

The other one probably was the Hot Rod Hudson. (What the owners called it.)

 

He is right. 4 door can be a performance car, custom or sleeper or neat beater. His avatar is a hot rod, a true to the bone original INTENT hot rod.

 

"Hot rods in 1946 were roadsters. Coupes and sedans were considered family cars..." -Don Montgomery Hot Rods in the Forties

It's interesting how the definition of what a hot rod is (or isn't) has changed over the years...in the early to mid-40's it would have been a T, A, or 32-34 Ford roadster. By the late-40's phaetons, coupes, and tudors of the same era qualify. In the 50's most pre-war open and two-door closed cars would fit the bill...and so on & so forth. In the last 20 years it seems like the 'standard' has slid along to include Fordors, orphan makes, and even the proto-muscle cars of the early 60's. I guess the desire to be "different" (just like everyone else) hasn't changed.

 

4 door cars are like girls bikes. they're good for parts, but i wouldn't want to be seen riding one.

there are exceptions, of course, lincolns and cadillacs, as well as the above mentioned plymouth. i'm all for low-buck cars, but don't fill MY hamb with your 'dream car' '63 comet 4 door, i'm not interested...

 

winner winner chicken dinner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Ha! just found this thread again looking for something else entirely... I forget what now. This gets my vote for my favorite of this year. I also since the last time it was up scanned my favorite picture of my '48 ever. It was in my space in front of my business about '93 or so, and my then 14 year old nephew had an assignment for his photography class...

 

I think I understand the idea of staying "traditional." Back in the day, the goal was a finished and sharp car. But time has passed, and we now live in an increasingly disposable society. All over the world, there is a newfound fascination with vintage Americana. So regarding unpainted cars and patina . . . I love shiny cars and have a few, but there is something about perfect patina that can be satisfying and quite lovely.

Just like these buildings -- yes, those rooms would look beautiful all restored and perfect, but they would not have the magic and drama they have in this state of decay. Same with my truck -- it just keeps looking better and better, and I would never dream of painting it.

Joe

 

Saw cal look bug in traffic yesterday and made think of this statement in this thread. Maybe time to take a break from the HAMB and go back to the 80's

 

....kinda glad this old thread came back up; very enjoyable re-reading it. These have always been my favorite kinds of cars,...I'm happy to see these cars are as much accepted as the shiny/completely re-done cars.
...here's my pickup I was drivin when I met Pat Barnhart...

...and another one of my old favorites...Long live the beater!

 

I think working and driving a project is the best thing about this hobby. At the end of the day only one person has to be happy with and that is the person building it. 80's and 90's cars are getting reborn into what they should be. Never understood alot of the cars from that era the colors where the worst.