Customs Why are customs dying?

That`s what I have in my Avatar. Never wanted it go look like a Merc. Just a late 60`s Custom. With a door knob grille and 57 Caddy hubcaps.

 

here's my 2 cents. theres still a few of us out there. im 37 and have had custom cars since i was 16. the part of ct that im in its still not too hard to turn up a 50's car thats buildable for a semi decent price. im not saying that you can buy somthing cherry for a grand but theres still stuff around. i have a 56 olds hardtop that is a mild kustom and very traditional minus a aluminum radator and a alternator. still on bias ply and i drive it pretty often in the summer. im also in the middle of building a 55 starchief hardtop. so the moral of my story is there is still some younger custom guys left. it may not be as popular as it once was but its still alive......john

 

Gospel Hamber...High Fives...The Hamb without Customs is like a Day without Sunshine...It's All Art of a different Canvas at the end of the day and there were rivalries between and funny true to today...I embrace it all...they existed side by side thankfully...and with the discussion lately...too me there should be a Balance...one influenced another and they coexisted in the same tracks...

 

Both cars are cool as hell. Mild customs like these are probably the more prevalent of the genre. But the fact remains I have no idea what drivetrain or suspension is in either one of them.

 

Hotrods too, IF they have a hood...

 

It’s one of my favorite pastimes at a show. I walk around asking if guys need a jump.....they just stare blankly.

 

I agree with you up until the very end of that post. Customs are best with their hoods down, and it is body mods, not engine or suspension mods, that make a custom. These cars have it. Nosed, shaved, custom headlights, presumably decked.... all the essential stuff, and they look great. They're also clearly lowered.

Where you're wrong is in saying that engines and suspensions don't matter, because here they do. If that Olds is on air ride, clipped with a MII, has an LS in it or even a SBC (to a degree), it's not welcome on the HAMB, and discussion of the car has to be limited to the few body mods the car has, if it can even skate at all. So it matters very much, especially if swapping in something other than the exorbitantly expensive first-gen Olds and obsolete Hydro or Jetaway might be the only way that custom stays on the road for the owner, or might help someone else who is trying to bring one back as well. The reality is that for someone who puts together a custom that is traditional appearing, if they can't discuss a significant amount of the work they've done to make the car function, they're probably just not going to go through the trouble of posting at all and walking on eggshells that their thread is going to be edited or locked when a hardo with some junk box, or better yet, no car, bitches that it's "not traditional".

 

the 56 has the original drive train, stock brakes and suspension, the pontiac was origianl drivetrain untill the end of last year. now its in the middle of getting a 59 389 with 3 deuces, the orig hydramatic and still has stock suspension and brakes. both cars are lowered with dropped springs and lowering blocks.

 

I think we are confusing the HAMB forum rules and the definition of traditional customs. I don’t get wrapped up to much in the under hood stuff.

My 55 will have a 2000 Ford Explorer drivetrain, mainly because I am planning on driving it everywhere.

If you know Floyd and Becky Dutton and their Edsel wagon, they are my role models. They spent 9 years building the car and then they probably put 100k on the car once it was finished. That’s what we are planning. Retirement is 5 years away and at my speed, it may take every bit of it.

 

Same. If someone wants to lay in the dirt then talk trash about my suspension... thats their problem!

 

I was 18, maybe 19, in the picture of the chopped shoebox. 2004ish. It was my daily for 3 years. 226 flat six, 3 on the tree, stock style suspension. It was great. The coupe on the other hand has OT suspension and drive train. Why? I'm almost 36 and have 2 little boys and it will get driven daily, and coast to coast hitting national parks the whole time with the family and a trunk full of luggage. But will be very traditional to look at. It is not 100% trad but I still call it a traditional custom. 53 olds tail lights, nosed, decked, shaved handles, custom grille, custom interior and so on. All work will be done by me except chrome.

 

Yep.
There is a couple custom threads with hundreds if not thousands of car pics.
Trad styled at least on the outside. Underneath?
Probably not. I’d bet the vast majority don’t fit the rules underneath.
The “modern engines” part makes sense but I guess it’s the suspension/brake parts is confusing.
Anywho, I would bet there are more Mercs being built now than decades ago. At least according to some of the other forums I hang out at.

 

@
I also was on my way to CCR2021. But as misfortune would have it, a young lady hydroplaned into my 51. That ruined my trip. But I’m alive and doing Ok, so I’ll set my sites on Indy 2022. We grayhairs are doing our part to keep it alive and events like the CCR are providing Us with exposure. Keep the torches lit fella’s and Gals. Great days are yet to be had.

 

Ouch, that hurts.

 

Oh good Lord….glad you are ok.

 

That's rotten luck... It's good you're keeping a positive outlook. Have you had a chance to fully assess the damage? Is it repairable?

 

Hangin in Mark, thanks for asking. She hit me so hard, I went unconscious an come too, in the middle of I-70west 24mp. Fortunately my Son was able to get me to the side of highway. I want to thank everyone that I was traveling with from PA. For their thoughts and prayers. and to Kevin Anderson and all from the CCR for their concern. Also my Guardian Angels, My son and his Girl Jodi. and the driver of the 18 wheeler who controlled his rig without colliding with the other traffic, or running over Us. My man, if I could, you would be the Driver of the year. My Hero!

 

It takes 70% of the value to total it. But, we’re going to try to fix it. I’ll buy it back, and see if I can make it right. As I make my list of things needed, I’ll be looking at the H.A.M.B. for parts and pieces. I encourage all that read this, to become an Alliance member. Support will keep the hobby alive.

 

Dang, Mercman, glad you are Okay. On the subject of engine and transmission, I have been strictly traditional so far, but the idea of jumping in and driving 10 hours with air conditioning on with no worries. . . Pretty hard to pass up.

 

Glad your ok.
A guy on the merc FB parts page had some doors. Sometimes NOS pieces show up.
The 70% is subjective.
You can keep it under the 70% and keep the car and paperwork.
Buying it back as a total really ain’t hurtin the value. If you don’t have a rebuilders license, you will have to pay for a shop with one to have it inspected.
Don’t accept a parts only title from the Ins.
All states have different laws. Don’t take the adjusters word for it. Look up your states guidelines.
Good luck.

 

Damn man, we had heard that someone had an incident on the way to the show. That's a damn shame. Glad you're relatively OK after that, looks like a hell of a shot.

 

That Merc really hurts to see, looks like a very nice car too. Ironic that pic would be posted in a thread about "customs dying" but I sure hope that one can live to drive another day. Glad Mercman@bulldog is OK.

 

I talked to 4 different people until I got the straight facts and pictures from the Thompsons. Called Kim and Nancy(previous owners of the Merc) and told them when I got back. Weird thing happened on the way home from Indy. A car passed me on a two lane. A few miles up the road they hit a dog. It was also laying in the middle of the road bleeding but alive. A few cars pulled over to get the dog out of the road. I continued driving, flashing my lights warning oncoming traffic. I could only think about you in that situation. Good to hear you`re O K.