How much work until its not a rat rod?

Are they laughing WITH you or AT you? Bad accidents get attention too, it doesn't mean you should try and have one.

Sure, that is the other come back line for the rat rod. "Everyone was checking me out." Actually, they may have been wondering how it got through the damn gate and in order to REALLY see what the hell it was they gathered around it. Like flys on shit?

The first rat rod that showed up at the Nats about 10 years ago is having a really good laugh at the idiots who took his joke seriously. Ya gotta love it.

 

How tall is your pomp, and pant cuffs?...don't forget your rag or bandana..haha and now that I prolly pissed off a lot of people....I'll say, I got murdered for saying the RR word, and I was against it then as much as I am now...but whatever..OK, guess the shits about to hit the fan?...best of luck with your truck

 

danny is a good kid, hes in a pretty good rock/punk/hillbilly band. he has good ideas and some good folk helping him along. he aint got no pomp and i think he wears vans. hes a hell of a lot more serious about this lifestyle than most of you.

 

Danny,

In my opinion once you detail and paint it it'll become a traditional hot rod .............Don't worry about it, just do you thing and do it right. After all wants in a name, go for it......

Cruiser

 

When I bought the truck it had most of the orignal things on it. The only problem was that most of it was beyond something that I could repair. The fenders and running boards looked liek they had been shot up with ashotgun or something, then beat with a baseball bat. THe grill looked ok until i took it off and realized that it had been glued, yes I said glued, together. So what I am looking for now is a 34 chevy grille shell. I do want to used the orignal lights because they were in very good condition. THe hood was in pretty bad shape, but I am still thinking about using it. The bed was in great shape, but I knew a guy that was restoring a 41 and he only had a bed that was already sut down, so I traded with him because, like you I do love the looks of the 41-46's. I just didn't think it would be right to cut up a bed when that I really needed it to make his truck look right.

THanks for the questions. I do agree most of your responses. I really agee with the guy who said that a street rod in primer will be called a rat rod, and I do think that we need to not get angry with the people who are giving us comments but calling our work a rat rod. I really like the idea of trying to educate them about the word.

 

hmmmmmm I wonder who this could be with the offspring symbol under his name.

 

Paint doesn't make it a hot rod... the entire process makes something a hot rod.

In my opinion:

HOT ROD: Classic style built with parts that you CHOSE to use, even if it took years for you to find specific parts.

RAT ROD: Quick built style built with whatever you could get.

Would I find it odd/obscene to see a Toyota 4 cylinder engine in a rat rod? NOT AT ALL! That's what the whole point of the car is.

I think that's the thing people need to be educated about... it's not that one is better, or that one is a real car... they both are.

It's just that they are completely different scenes.

 

You check out other dudes shoes?

Man, I don't even know what kind of shoes I wear, let alone someone else. haha

 

well good...I don't have a pomp either, and I also wear vans..In fact, I tend to blend in with society....He asked a rat rod question, and I asked him a rat rod question back..I also listen to rockabilly, psychobilly, etc...Those of you that know me know I'm also a total wiseass...so...It doesn't sound like its gonna be a rat rod...like I said, best of luck with it...And, until a week ago, I was a hot rod builder( as in traditional) professionally, plus cars are all I do..no other hobbies, whether its trad hot rods, trucks, my 65 comet, etc..and I've been around cars since I was born...so, I think its kinda "serious" for me

 

Man, the "compensating for lack of something" bullshit sure runs thick in this thread.

 

I am going down the same road as you with my '46 Ford. Your story sounds just like mine. And I have been wondering about this very subject for a while. You beat me to it. Mine was in the same shape and I decided to get it only because I had seen a "rudy truck" in a magazine. It was the one that Corky Coker now has. It was the same cab and all and I could see how I could actually save this piece of junk and get it back on the road. Going back to the original body would not have been possible. It was too far gone. The cab is rough, but with some patching, will look good. i too plan to finish it and paint it. And not flat black either. The only salvageable parts I got was a flathead, a 3 spd trans, a cab, and a frame. The frame was too rusted to support a stock truck, but with some bracing and boxing, it will be fine under a much lighter vehicle. Trying to return this thing to a stock body would be rediculous. That is why the previous owner sold it to me for so cheap. He told me "it wasn't worth shit", but I had to take it as part of the other stuff I bought just to get it out of his yard.
I get a little frustrated when so many people, typically from out west where it is dry, say to "just put the stock stuff back on". As if i can just walk into the first junkyard I see and find a row of old trucks. They don't exist here. They returned to the earth a long, long time ago. The oldest thing we have in our yards are mid 70's. Occasionally, you will find a 50's sedan, but they are too far gone to try to save. Especially not a moredor.
Ok, I'm done fussin'. I figured you might have gotten a lot of that same thing too. There are fiberglass parts from speedway to build it to look like a '40. But for that kind of money I'd rather build a real car. My choice then would be a Brookville A.
Someday.....

 

I forgot to mention. I have looked at lots of these trucks and only a few come close to looking right. So many cut the bed down and then rip the front end off. They look terrible like that. too stubby and the roof is too tall. In my opinion, the best way to fix all that is to cut that cab down. The best ones narrow it, but that's not in the cards for me. You at least have to chop it and channel it quite a bit. Not necessarily a frame scraper or those odd rods with big n' littles but a negative rake (how does that work?). But you have to get the cab down. Also, it needs to be longer but not too long. Pulling the rear end in some with a shortened bed may work, but not if it is too close to the cab. I may even leave the rear in close to the same spot and shorten the bed mostly in the rear. It still needs plenty of overhang though. That is one of the worst mistakes is a bed that ends 6" from the rear tire. Up front, they look ok with the axle in the stock location, I plan to do mine suicide. I am curious to see how this will look. i want to keep the axle close to the grill, I don't like the super stretched ones that have the front axle hanging a foot away from the end of the frame. I know that a lot of folks will still hate trucks like this, but if the proportions are right, maybe it will a little more easy on the eyes than some of the junk people have thrown together.

 

guys who wear crocks freak me out.

 

Guys who are so concearned about another mans shoes freak me out.

 

well you better find one mister.

 

ive had guys come in my shop all bad assed, tattooed up, hard smack talkin wearin yellow crocks!! just get out. dont say nothin else. yes. i am concerned.

 

You seem kinda obsessed with others peoples attire.

Are you sure you should be a fashion designer instead of doing car stuff?

 

what do you mean should be?

 

Hey, I spent 13 years as a fashion designer!

You guys are funny. What about hot rods?

 

LOLOL.....

How tight are yer wrangler jeans & size of yer hat ? Dont forget the size of yer silver buckle !!!

Or wait, Maybe its How big are the pockets on yer cargo shorts & how many Woodies are on yer button up shirt ? & dont forget how many buckles ar on yer sandles !!

Or maybe, How sharp are the pleats in yer docker slacks & how pink is yer izod polo shirt. Dont forget yer Penny Loafers !!

Damn Guys...... When are ya gonna get off the Profileing Greasers & such ??

As for when it will stop being a RAT ROD ?? when ya put the original fenders & grill back on it !!

 

I recently saw a shirt at a car show that said " Its not a rat rod its just not fucking finished". That is great! Build it the way you like it, you have to drive it!

 

Glad to see another cat from dixie on here that knows the situation down here. It is tough to find cars around here that aren't beyond repair. Most of the stuff in this area is so rusted that it would take alot more to fix it than I know how to do or can afford to hire done. One thing that should be noted on here is that this is my first build. AND I work at a coffee shop in a mall and its nota starbucks. I don't really have that much money to spend on hiring someone to do everything. I am hiring a Witt at Red Wrench Customs in Tuscumbia Alabama(Look at that plug) to do the frame work, to chop, and to channel it. After that my old man is gonna help me do the work to the engine and i'm gonna paint it.

Another thing is, I need a 41-46 cab. I don't care what kind of shape it's in, because I just need the top so that I can chop mine. If anyone knows where one is at a good price, let me know.

Also, there is alot of things on here about what people are wearing

 

damn!!!! i am still confused!!!!

 

All I know is that when I log on the HAMB these days there's hardly any names I recognize.

 

KIRK!... you've been fired because the pics on your frame thread aren't on anymore.

email them to me if you could please.... mpls_a2_gti@yahoo.com

 

who cares! build what you want!

 

I'll try to send them tonight.

 

Thanks man!!!

And on the topic at hand, at the end of the day it doesn't really matter.

Who cares what someone else calls your car? If you're building it for the right reasons it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.

 

BLAHAHAHAHAHAHA....I'll get right on it...


and Desoto, no profilin greezers, oh sorry, greasers...haha, but I bet that "starter kit" you have posted would be a HUGE seller.....hahaha

 

This is my first "hot rod" build. If I am allowed to call it that. I got it along with a 51 ford sedan and a bunch of flathead stuff. I have 5 complete engines and some extra heads. I got it all from a guy that was closing a shop in Andalusia. Some day I will build a Brookville A roadster, but that is a long time from now. I like to try out ideas and stuff on a less expensive or interesting project first. If I chop and channel this thing and it turns out looking like crap, then I won't cry over it like I would an original Model A or Deuce.
I've built other stuff. Trucks, Mustangs, a bike. Mostly stuff not HAMB friendly. Not my first rodeo. But there is still a ton of stuff for me to learn. I absorb flathead tech like a sponge. I found this place while searching for answers about the engines I bought. This place kept popping up and I have been here ever since.
I built my bike as a cheap test for some ideas I had. I didn't want to build a HD with a rigid frame and apes and find out that everyone was right. That it would be dangerous to ride and unbearable. They were wrong about that one, and I got to find out for cheap. I also found out that I like drag bars better. Same goes for this project. One thing I want to find out is if the 3sp that is so traditional is bearable for a daily driver or if a T-5 is the way to go. I may even try the 3spd OD from the 51. Then when I build the real deal, I will know exactly what I want.