Event Coverage Bare Bones open house

Bare Bones is a small paint & body shop in Bellaire, TX. Bellaire is a small city within Houston. They have their own courts, city council and police force. I'll never understand how that's possible, but that's not the point of the thread.

The shop appears to be doing some great work, judging by the projects I saw inside. One was a '27 tub powered by a flathead. Unfortunately, the crowd and band kept me from getting pics of it, but it's on the Bare Bones website. www.barebonespaint.com

As the name of the shop suggest, the theme of most of the cars in attendance was a no frills approach to hot rodding. There were some good examples of budget and imagination. Here are a few of the pics I took. These are the HAMB friendly pics. If you see a car in the background that interest you, send me a PM and I'll see if I have it. So, here we go.

 

I was there with a few of the Cam Grinders... Tim and the crew at Bare Bones were very cool... and they had some real nice projects in the shop... Definitely worth checking out if you're in Houston/Bellaire area.

 

Some more.





"Shock Rods" seem to still be being built. I don't get it and probably never will. I have a theory, but it's mine and won't be discussed here.

I met an old timer yesterday and we talked for about an hour. Mostly me listening. He told me how when he was a kid, there were two kinds of lowered cars. The rich guys, who could afford to have someone cut a few coils and the regular guys, who had a torch and heated the coils. He laughed that the only way anyone knew for sure was that the regular guys car would thump every time it hit a bump.

But he also explained that in Houston during the 50's and early 60's the younger guys rode in primer, but only until they could save or barter for a paint job. I had heard this before and it was good to hear it again. But what he said before he left is what made me think. He explained that what's hurting the car scene now, are the divisions that have gotten invented. He said, back in his time, all there was were rods and customs. Just like the magazine of the same name. Basically, all the different genres are bull shit. You either have a hot rod or custom.

His opinion was that separating and pigeon holing was kind of stupid and would probably end up ruining the hobby. He thought the term "rat rod" wasn't fair to the guys that build good cars and want to enjoy driving them until they can finish them. But he also said an unfinished car would NEVER be in a show. It just wasn't done and finished meant paint and polish.

He and his buddies went to shows to admire what could be done and then they'd go home and try to do it themselves on a pump jockeys weekly income. He said the primary goal should and would be to do whatever it took to make it to burger joint and that was Prince's on Main Street.

So, I my constantly changing opinion on the unfinished car got a little enlightenment. It's funny, but that's what I grew up with, but had drifted away from. So, I'm going back to what got me into cars. Muscle cars, hot rods and customs. The labels are to sell magazines.

 

Great coverage Fred, thank you.
Somebody seems drawn to that duece 5-window!
Say, I see a neat lil' T-bucket in the background with a pecker-wood on the side of the cowl, got any more of that?
P.S. You just added a third demographic; muscle cars? (it's ok, me a fan 2)

 

The tales of that T Bucket are in my albums. I still have a soft spot for muscle cars because that's what was in the show rooms, when I was just learning about cars. As an Air Force brat, watching G.I.'s cruise around the base in my "dream cars" was a daily occurrence. My friends and I used to make a game out of what car was coming by the exhaust sounds.

The '32 looked like what I would build, if I had the money and was into 32's. It's not bad for a glass car. I say that because I didn't know that, until a friend told me later on. I hate the glass/steel crap, so it was cool to be fooled.

It was cool having to park next to it. Kinda like the ugly chick hanging out with the prom queen and getting the left over admiration.

 

I always enjoy conversations with the guys that were involved with hot rods when I was a kid,,the only problem with this line of thought is I am now being approached by the young guys asking me questions about the old days! HRP

 

Come on, HRP. You knew that day was coming.

 

Didn't make it out there. I found a German beer garden in Pearland on 518 and went there for lunch. Bad idea luckily wife was designated driver.