I wish Doug would have left that thing lookin like that.Ever see what became of it?Worse yet,Ever se it in its current form?
Speacking about the Hirohata Mercury... Here are a few photos of it from the Barry Mazza collection. The first one is very interesting... It seams like this is the repainted version, and the hubcaps on it I have never seen on it before. Three bar spinners, and also the side mirror is added at this time. Charles Russell Price posted this photo in another HAMB post some time ago... great shot. Color is probably the same as previous photo, side mirror is also in place but the hubcaps are the Cadillac Sombreros as it was on the original built. Snaps hots of the Merc from Barry's collection.
A few more from the GT350Lady collection... Dick Gonzales 1955 Studebaker before the famous Larry Watson – Pearl yellow and white outlines – paintjob which appeared on the cover of the December 1959 Rod & Custom magazine... My friend Paul Kelly from Australia send me this scan of these three photos. He recieved a box full of old Australian Custom and Hot Rod phtos, and was suprized to find these among them. Appereantly they where send to Australia by an American pen friend. (as can be read on theback of one of the photos.) Top photo is the Jesse Lopez Ford... Back side
Rob Radcliffe took this photo of an old photo he saw at a car show. The car is Gill Ayala's 1942 Ford coupe racing at Santa Ana in 1951. This photo of the same car is from the AHRF collecion. And this photo is from the Life Magazine collection. This time the 1946-47 Ford bumpers that the car had the first two photos where replaced with 1949 Plymouth units.
Barris was commissioned to built this Cadillac custom to be given away at the 1952 Hot Rod Show in LA. The Life Magzine Collection has these photos of the car taken at the 1952 Show.
That's it. I saw it in pearl white but thought it was pale yellow. I was only 7-8 years old, his son brought pics from autorama for show and tell. Nobody liked it. I wanted to see it in person since Dad was a hotrodder/racer. I remember being nice about it to his son Joey. We were friends. I guess that's the meaning of "just because you can doesn't mean you should".
I remember this pic showing up in a late 60's Rod&Custom on the readers rides page, I forget what they use to call it. I always liked this pic, this car flows like butter down to the rear bumper. I dare somebody to do their sedan like that one today. This pic has been a long time personal favorite!
A special day.Just love the old B@W photos. TwoChops----------11 more in this series -----------------------------------------------
Rik, I wonder if that is the same car I took this picture of in 56 or 57. It looks like it had Moons on the back but 56 Olds flipper caps on the front. I too always liked the looks of this car as a taildragger and can still visualize where it sat at this show ..... Maybe he also ran it with skirts and that's why the different hubcaps. Although the photo you posted has Jan - 61 printed on it, I think it was taken before then because the license plate is a pre 56 version of the CA plate. In the photo I took it has a 56 plate on it. Bill
Great... now we see the front of this great looking Custom. Yes I also think that is the same photo, and yes you are right about the date on the black and white photo. My only explanation is that the roll of film was developed years after the photos where taken. Perhaps they got lost at some time. Looking at the cars in the background of the black and white photo makes me feel its somewhere in the early or mid 50's.
Some Barris customs in color... Some have been shown in other post before... From the Barry Mazza collection Frank Monteleon's 1941 Ford Chuck DeWitt 1950 Ford convertible This black and white photo comes from the Jim Roten collection... Now with white paint under the side trim... I like it. Herb Ogden 1941 Buick. Ed Sloan's 1953 Plymouth Johnny Zupan's 1949 Mercury Buddy Alcorn Merc... And this photo at the same day from the 00MACK photo collection Frank Sonzogni 1950 Mercury
This guy should of been arrested for torchoring this poor mercury like this. WOW !! This was on purpose?? I really dig the iroc mirrors!!!
This sled is one of the BADDEST and most overlooked customs EVER!!!!!!! This car is just fucking PERFECT!!!!!! Look at that hammered roof. This thread is getting heavy and I love it !!
WOW ! Look at the Chuck Dewitt shoebox at El Mirage!! Great pictures of the Buddy Alcorn merc!!!! Damn this board needed this thread BAD!!!!
I just see this thread and I love it.What really gets me though is that these are rare very historic photos.I would think that this thread would have triple the views and responses then it does.This is the real deal here and it seems like many people just dont care.I was talkin to a old timer at Art Chrismans shop a couple of weeks ago and he was telling me that real Kustoms only make up about less then 10% of the whole old car hobby,he was telling me that traditional kustoms are almost dead.I think the "main stream" general public of people want to see Car Culture Deluxe customs or rebel rods stuff,they want to see spiderwebs and frankenstein shifters rather then see real timeless Kustoms.I hate to say it but I think what that cat was telling me was the truth.
I love Kustoms.I Hope this thread lasts a long time.I never get tired of seeing these pictures like some of the other stuff on the H.A.M.B.I'm glad there are a few people who care eneough to preserve the history and share it with us 10%ers and I thank you.Jeff I also like your passion for Kustom's and the way stand up for them.I think your car would have fit in well in the arly days of Kustom's.Keep this thread going.
Thanks !! that was quite the compliment. You have a great sled yourselve,a real chunk of history.I tried to build mine to look like it was from the day,yours was built in the day.
You captured the look and the feel of that time period.Thank you.Someday I hpoe I can get my sled back to its glory days.
Those are great!! I am going to start digging through all my shoe boxes of old photos! Rick www.roomrods.com
Holy SHIT!!!! That Ayala 42 coupe is really getting me fired up!!!!! I cant get over the flow of that sled. Anyone know anything about it? Any info?
Hi Jeff, It sure is a fantastic early custom. Pat Ganahl did some writing about it in The Rodder's Journal issue Thirty Nine. In his first part of the Ayala Brothers story. It has a nice color photo of it too.
The Jalopy Journal
