I like it! Especially the transmission/driveshaft tunnel. My only question is the padded tuck and roll along the sills. I wonder how well that would wear with regular use.
I have always thought that to build a car that is timeless that subtle is the key. That said that five seven reminds me of Jose's '59. His interior was a blue and white Tijuana job. Popular in the '60s.
Moriarty posted this car on the Kustom Blues? thread Monday. I was taken aback by the period correctness and the classical appeal of the 57. I posted the following: Damn! Tri-5 chevys make great, traditional Kustoms. This one represents the image of what would be seen in parking lot or on the street back "in the day". One thing I like about it is that it is recognizable as it's stock counterpart: a 57 Chevy 210 2 door post. The practicality of retaining the door handles are appreciated by me. I felt that my post was remiss in the fact that I did not mention that I felt the interior was inordinately overdone in relationship to the level of customization done on the exterior of the car, and in particular, the trunk. I am a sucker for those candy stripped interiors. If I would have seen this car in the Kroger parking lot in '62, I would have been excited about seeing the interior in its splendor. I would not of expected this grand of a job, but not totally surprised. The trunk is a dead give-away this car was intended to see some show duty. It is kinda' cheezy with those fluid cans painted and displayed. Certainly, Bucky would not be driving to Kroger with the gas, oil and water cans not secured. It kinda' makes the image of the car being a heroic daily driver diminish. I believe the trunk is the one part of the car that needs to maintain it's utilitarian aspect. Besides, when a trunk or hood is up when the car is on display, the custom car aesthetics are blown to hell. I believe in showing WHAT the car is, not how MANY, UNNEEDED features it has. I like trunks that are clean, neat and fresh, with the the truck staying closed until it is opened for a utilitarian need.
What makes the headlight bezels look different is that they don't have the black paint in the lower recesses (below the headlight).
I think this car was built in Port Arthur, Texas by Buckys Paint Palace and its in Hamshire,Texas now
The cans were for show points only. They wouldn't have been floating around in the trunk when cruising normally. Jose's '59 had an upholstered trunk, and it was the only car he owned. it was always meticulously clean. The cars that always got me even when I was a little kid were the ones with the upholstered fender wells. Even a little kid knows that the white 'hyde isn't going to stay that way long on a car that gets driven.
Yeah! Those upholstered wheel wells get me too! Talk about overkill! Is Jose's 59 here on the hamb anywhere?
No, Jose came home from Nam in a box. I don't know what ever happened to the car. We had a lot off fun in that car before he got drafted. Him and his dad built it when he was a kid in the early '60s. Everyone always called it "The World's Lowest Chebby"
This picture didn't do the car justice,it was the first Candy Apple Red that I had seen and it was around 19663 0r 64. I saw the car about 5 years ago and it needed to be freshened up but it was still intact except I don't recall seeing the lake pipes
I remember my brother giving his 57 Chevy taillights a similar treatment. He used a metal mesh that had diamonds. They still sell it at the hardware stores.
Engine choice and exterior are fine,the interior is overkill.It dates the car and wherever it is today,I guarantee you that aspect is long gone.You date a car by what is wrong with it,but "right" is timeless.A friend of the family showed me a Kustom his late brother left him.I guessed the year of the cars build based on the interior....the rest of the car was perfect.
I'm lovin the 3 on the tree.......I would have thought that putting a FI 327 in the car that a 4 speed would have been installed!
Yes, but it isn't polished. It is painted black. So I guess he either replaced the factory mesh with polished stainless, or spent the time polishing the factory stuff. Its custom, but maybe not worth mentioning in a national article. Of course, not having the original print copy, it is merely conjecture as to what was said there...
Outside is tasteful, subdued, well thought out. Inside, well, I guess it was in style in it's time, but too many stripes for me. I love tuck and roll, but that's just too many narrow strips. Would love to see some color pics of the interior, in black and white it reminds of those garish mid 70's "patriotic" red, white, and blue interiors and paint jobs that were so overdone back then.
The headlight bezel treatment just shows how a very small alteration in the 'right' spot can make a change in the looks of a car. Probably didn't cost much either. No money just a little labor.
Once again, we discuss "taste". The infamous to each his own topic. IMHO, while the car itself has a pretty tasteful exterior with many subtle mods, (I could do without the spots on this particular rendition) the interior is pretty gaudy, almost garish. The tuck 'n' roll is cool, but the colors make it too much for a car that is otherwise mildly customized. Reminds me of a barbershop quartet. A black or some other solid complimentary color of material on the same interior design would be more to my personal liking. But such was the craze of that era. Either love it or hate it, you can still pick up some ideas and inspirations from this example. I appreciate what's been done even if I don't particularly care for it. I've made many decisions on a build because I saw an idea I had rattling around in my head applied on some else's car and realized it didn't look as good as I thought it would.
This is no boulevard cruiser, but a "Mild Custom" show queen. And damn near perfect as such. (Are those wheel wells chrome?) BUT...that grille! Dude, it doesn't fill the space! What the hell were you dri...er, thinkin? Now, this is a grille!
The interior is the last item on most builds and all the money has been spent on other features. Somehow this gets overlooked and the stitcher is somehow expected to do his thing for nothing. Bob
I agree on the grill and the bullets on the bumpers should have stayed or at least fill that flat spot so it flows with the bumper.
I am at this time rebuilding a 287 engine from my 64 AMC Rambler 770 Classic and just dig when you go to a car show and see a old car with everything original on it so that's what I'm doing with this car it has a torque tude insteade of a drive shaft that makes it different as well.
I was thinking maybe Bucky was leaving room for some trick parking/turn signals, but never got around to it.
The Jalopy Journal
