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Customs Customs gone wrong

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by snoc653, Feb 25, 2024.

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  1. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 35,087

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    There a good number of them running the streets of the PNW in the mid 60's. One with a stout 327 that showed up on the Renton Loop on a regular basis in 1966 was a handful.
     
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  2. 57JoeFoMoPar
    Joined: Sep 14, 2004
    Posts: 6,374

    57JoeFoMoPar
    Member

    I can see this quickly devolving into a customs-bashing thread by hot rod guys who can't think beyond A body on deuce rails.

    And I can think of at least 3 chopped tri-five Chevs that look fantastic
     
  3. HEATHEN
    Joined: Nov 22, 2005
    Posts: 8,859

    HEATHEN
    Member
    from SIDNEY, NY

    I once found a '63 Lemans convertible that someone had grafted '57 Chevy fins to.....now, THAT was bad.
     
  4. Moriarity
    Joined: Apr 11, 2001
    Posts: 34,303

    Moriarity
    SUPER MODERATOR
    Staff Member

    Personally I couldn't care any less that you don't like my car. I am glad that not everyone likes traditional customs, that just means there are more for me. What really fucking pisses me off though is the STREET RODDERS here that seem to feel the need to post their negative comments on every custom thread that comes up. I really do not understand it. I have never, ever posted a negative uncalled for opinion about any of the hot rods on this site. If I don't like them I simply scroll on.....
     
  5. 5window
    Joined: Jan 29, 2005
    Posts: 9,718

    5window
    Member

    Sounds fair. But the average person on line,regardless of the topic or website trends towared the negative.
     
    Lloyd's paint & glass likes this.
  6. 5window
    Joined: Jan 29, 2005
    Posts: 9,718

    5window
    Member

    You can't trust STREET RODDERS, but some of us are HOT RODDERS
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2024
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  7. 57JoeFoMoPar
    Joined: Sep 14, 2004
    Posts: 6,374

    57JoeFoMoPar
    Member

    You're not "wrong" in the sense that if you don't like customs, who am I or anyone else to tell you otherwise? That's just a matter of personal preference. I don't really like cantaloupe. It doesn't make me right and people who do enjoy it wrong, we just have different taste. But if someone were to say that it's not a fruit, then we're going to have a real disagreement.

    Customs are every bit a part of this hobby and sub-genre of the automotive sphere as hot rods. Yet somehow we find threads here like, "why so low?" or "why chop tops?" And that "gaudy" style of customs that you dislike could be just as distasteful to your hot rod brain as the boring and homogenous hot rods that lack creativity often are to the custom guys.

    The issue with the "gone wrong" part of this thread is that for many examples, there's nothing wrong at all. It's just not your taste.
     
  8. Customs gone wrong. That is the perverbial question. I ask only this, when you say wrong are talking about the overall aesthetic or just one specific item on the vehicle?
     
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  9. snoc653
    Joined: Dec 25, 2023
    Posts: 696

    snoc653
    Member
    from Iowa

    This is a valid question. Let me start by saying, To me. Customs have 2 major considerations. There is the craftmanship and the aesthetics. For those saying we want to just bash customs, please go back and read my original post and many of the subsequent posts. I pointed out that the craftsmanship looked ok. The car to me looks like it wasn't thought all the way through. If you are going to shorten the car, do it with a consideration to proportionality of the finished product. Note, I liked the 56 shortened Nomad but the 57 misses the mark. Many looked at it and didn't like what they saw. I'm not sure if they could articulate what they didn't like. But when we post a gone wrong, too much, or even a not enough thread, we should endeavor to explain why we felt what or why we felt that way. I thought I covered the proverbial answers in the original post. I apologize if I gave the impression I wanted to just bash customs. Now my question is: if I tried and failed mixing true custom and true hot rod features on the same car, say French the lights, shave the doors and lids, chop the top on my 51 Styleline deluxe and then put a gasser straight axle, skinny front tires and rounded the back wheel wells and had fat tires sticking out, wouldn't people be right in questioning what I was thinking? Or would we defend it saying the people questioning it, obviously don't like hot rods or customs?
     
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  10. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 35,087

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    My buddy often used the term "Radical" when he was describing a car he had seen. 99% of the time it was hard chopped to the point it looked like a herd of Orca Betties had camped on the roof and had a dummy blower sticking out of the hood because it sat on a raised box on the engine. He would go nuts over that crap.

    The ISCA show judging sheet may be the biggest problem with a lot of customs and ruined a lot of nice 50's and 60's customs when they got redone because they had aged out of show competition. More scoops, not so great chops, headlight swaps that don't really work. but all get extra points on the sheet if they looked well done.

    As far as the Shorty tri 5 wagons. The couple of guys that I knew who had them in the 60's had bought them cheap off the back row of a car lot and shortened them to build a fun but a bit squirrely car out of them. The one with the 327 would pull the front wheels any time you wanted to. It was quick in a city block long street race too.

    I,ve never actually been around one that was built but guys used to say the trick with the Tri 5 wagon or post sedan. was to chop the top just down to hardtop windshield height for a better look. I'm actually sure that it will work but it sounds good.
     
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  11. 57JoeFoMoPar
    Joined: Sep 14, 2004
    Posts: 6,374

    57JoeFoMoPar
    Member

    I understand that bashing customs wasn't your intention, but it was obvious that that's where others would take it. And I agree with Moriarty that shorties aren't customs in the traditional sense of the term, they're just modified vehicles.
     
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  12. KevKo
    Joined: Jun 25, 2009
    Posts: 991

    KevKo
    Member
    from Motown

    To Moriarity’s point, lots of people feel they need to express their opinion, AND think everyone else needs to hear it.
     
  13. DDDenny
    Joined: Feb 6, 2015
    Posts: 20,543

    DDDenny
    Member
    from oregon

    Perfectly stated, and I can't remove the quote but I will delete my original post.
    Not intending to stir the shit pot!:D
     
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  14. jimmy959
    Joined: Oct 16, 2011
    Posts: 168

    jimmy959
    Member

    Whoops! I didn't know that was your car. Sorry about that, I thought I was just offering an opinion on a random custom that you liked in particular.
     
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  15. Moriarity
    Joined: Apr 11, 2001
    Posts: 34,303

    Moriarity
    SUPER MODERATOR
    Staff Member

    its really ok man.....
     
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  16. Bandit Billy
    Joined: Sep 16, 2014
    Posts: 13,968

    Bandit Billy
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    That is no shit! I know I have made a couple of negative nancy remarks about that Uncertain T but only because everyone kept calling it the holy grail of Hot Rodding. That seemed to indicate we all revere and/or hold in some sort of reverence. Don't force your opinion on me and I won't cram mine on your thread.

    I have learned to like and enjoy custom car creations. Not every one of them and certainly not every mod they chose. But once in a while someone gets it right, and I am left wondering "why wasn't it built like that to begin with".

    We don't do political drivel on here and I am thankful, but we too have two sides of the aisle when it comes to Hot Rods and Customs. Utilize your ears more than your mouth (or in this case your keyboard) and you might actually learn to appreciate something new and cool.
     
  17. BJR
    Joined: Mar 11, 2005
    Posts: 10,638

    BJR
    Member

    Time to kick him off the island. :p:D:p
     
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  18. SDhotrod
    Joined: Oct 11, 2008
    Posts: 663

    SDhotrod
    Member

    I like customs of all kinds but to be honest, I like mild customs the most. When a car is modified so much that it throws of the proportion and balance of the car, it just looks wrong to my eye. Just my opinion, I could be wrong.
    Everyone has an off day once in a while.;) LBAutorama450.jpg
     
  19. Just my opinion? But how can a Rod or Custom go wrong? The main reason we build our cars is to build something that we like. It's not to build a car that everyone else likes. The auto manufacturers have already done that. If you like my car ? That's great. If you don't like it? that's great too. So many people ask me? Why I would chop a rare 1934 Dodge delivery? I say because it's my Hot Rod, and I'm not ever planning on selling it. You'll never see another one chopped. So I say build, or buy what ya like. But I would never put down someone else's car. I love Rods, and Customs. Just some I like better than others. But yeah, we Cut Up Cars! It's what we do. :rolleyes: lol 121.jpg 077.jpg
     
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  20. BJR
    Joined: Mar 11, 2005
    Posts: 10,638

    BJR
    Member

    Sometimes the cars are built to what the customer wants not what the builder likes.
     
  21. What Ron Funkhouser said.

    Ben
     
  22. Isn’t written anywhere that a custom is supposed to “improve” the car
    Or make it look better.
    It’s an artistic creation/expression of it builder/builders.
    Or to just do something the factory didn’t.

    the Mona Lisa is a painting of a woman. Its purpose isn’t to excite your desires.
     
  23. lostn51
    Joined: Jan 24, 2008
    Posts: 2,421

    lostn51
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from Tennessee

    Honestly I’m a gearhead and I love them all! Cars are like women not all of them trip my trigger, but they are all fun to look at :D

    Barry Lobeck told me the difference between a mild custom and a full custom was commitment. A full custom has every panel altered in some way ie “chopping the top”, and it takes real commitment to alter the top in any fashion. Now take the car that Bill Hines is standing in front of, it might not be the most beautiful car that he has ever built but if you knew his work ethic and the quality of work that he did you can appreciate the car itself. It’s not my cup of tea but I would love to own the car especially one that the man has touched just for the history and bragging rights.
    If you look at Marks ‘55 it was built in the late 50’s early 60’s ish and the chop is done beautifully. I’ve cut a tri five before and the Achilles heel is the windshield. I love to alter sheet metal like the next guy and really enjoyed cutting 3” out of it but the windshield scared the crap out of me. Back when Moriaritys’ car was cut you had only 2 ways to do the glass, either wax it and sandblast the excess off or sink it into the firewall. That took some serious commitment! I was lucky enough to have access to a guy that could cut it and somehow got lucky and it fit perfectly LOL.
    But getting back to the subject that the OP started I think we are looking at some of the things that we see that should have been an after thought. Something that doesn’t really float your boat but in a constructive way. It doesn’t mean the car is butt ugly but if you had to do it all over again you would change this or leave off that.

    Okay kids I’m off my soapbox now it’s time to return to the regularly scheduled program :D
     
    Last edited: Feb 28, 2024
  24. Thank You Sir,

    Absolutely NO offense taken! I am not the kind of person who gets offended by anything & I knew you were just posting the picture of my "Stubby" , because you saw my thread about it recently, not to bash it.

    @corncobcoupe ...I knew you were bustin' my balls & I laughed!:D After all I did call your purple Stude "Barney the Dinosaur" when I delivered it:eek::p

    Honestly I would never have cut one down myself & yes from some angles it is a bit ugly, but they did a decent job on the build as far as structural, so it ain't gonna break when I launch it! I bought it because I never owned a straight axle car before & I wanted something that had that Gasser look, was hard to drive, with a stick & would give me the adrenaline rush I crave......It Checks all the boxes, but I can see in the future (if I keep it) the Big Block from my OT Nova going in it when I buy a really big one for that car.

    God Bless
    Bill
    https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ar-transport-hauling-open-or-enclosed.614419/
     
  25. Sky Six
    Joined: Mar 15, 2018
    Posts: 12,948

    Sky Six
    Member
    from Arizona

    Let's just reboot. I am a fat tire in back and little tire in the front type of guy. I am a big noise guy. BUT, If I was at @Moriarity house and he asked me to drive any of his stuff, I would be on it like white on rice. Hell, I'd mow his grass just to use the custom lawn mower. I said that the AZTEC was gaudy to me. That was an opinion and if it came off wrong, that was not my intention.

    The bottom line is that we are all in this together.:)
     
  26. Everyone wants to bash on Bad Chad’s cars I will admit that am not a fan however are his cars any worse that any of the custom built in period?

    Frank Maratta’s 1940 Mercury “Mystery”
    upload_2024-2-28_9-22-43.jpeg
    upload_2024-2-28_9-21-43.jpeg

    As I have said many times you can’t pick and choose the part of history you like or dislike to make a judgement you have to look at history as a whole.
     
    Last edited: Feb 29, 2024
  27. Ned Ludd
    Joined: May 15, 2009
    Posts: 5,294

    Ned Ludd
    Member

    The earlier (? top) iteration has a sort of German expressionist cinema vibe going on, though it falls apart aft of the leading edge of the rear fender opening.
    [​IMG]
     
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  28. Sorry I could't help myself.:rolleyes::rolleyes:[​IMG][​IMG]
     
  29. These statement hits the nail on the head!

    At this point in my life, I am a vintage racecar guy but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate customs or their history.

    The same goes for hot rods, I am not a fan of the west coast style, but that doesn't mean I think everyone needs to build an east coast style hot rod.

    This hobby (I consider it a lifestyle) has gotten to a point where people think there was/is one way to build a car and any deviation from that is wrong.

    We all have our own taste, and just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's wrong.
     
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