Hot Rods The Meaning of Craftsmanship in Hot Rodding

I don't try for perfect, never have. I try for right, or something damn close to it. Just that might take me two, three or even four tries. But in the the end, I am happy with the results. Gene.

 

just keep at it, you will know when your work is good enuf for you.

 

I've noticed that most cars have a combination of requirements....some higher priority than others. For example, a car that is built to participate in drag-n-drive events has to be fast, and be a reliable driver. And if it's also built to be a traditional car, then there is a whole other level of aesthetics that have to be right.

It's a fun game, and if you take it seriously, it turns into a very complex art project. Which can be a lot of fun.

 

When I was in my apprenticeship, we watched a movie called,”The Roll Of Drums”. It was about safety, and it’s premise was to stop for a moment, (to hear the roll of drums), before doing something that was potentially dangerous, and give the situation a second thought.
With craftsmanship, it’s easy to take short cuts, that really lower the craftsman level, but don’t save much time. I guess my thought is to stop and think...take the time to do things right. Like going to get a straightedge, instead of doing it freehand. Or go over a get a combination square to make sure the bracket is 90 degrees, instead of 88!
Don’t get me wrong, I really like some of the rough around the edges builds, it’s just hard for me to cut those corners!

 

Craftsmanship can have different meanings in Hot Rodding. If you are building to an era or restoring something that was built in the 50's or 60's, absolute perfection, may not always be the goal. There weren't that many, Art Chrisman or Doane Spencer quality built cars back then. I recently restored a P-38 Belly Tank Lakester that was built around 1952, and to make it resemble it's original appearance, I stick welded the chassis, although I have had a Tig for nearly 50 years. Although I am in awe of the work of a Jackie Howerton, I am also very impressed by the creativity and execution of so many on here, using basic tools and an eye for detail, coming up with pleasing results. Good luck in your quest !

 

Interesting topic. My criteria for a hot rod is it has to be safe, has to be modified and the details need to be period correct. I like all the parts and hardware including hose clamps, guages and switches to be period correct. Thats just my personal preference. As far as craftsmanship I like solid straight forward work.
Im just gonna come out and say it. I feel like the fabricator style hot rod is the new billet. A car filled with dimple die panels and crazy tig welded brackets looks modern to me. The over fabricated car and the my car thinks its an airplane car feel like exagerated versions of traditional. So I guess my point is while good craftsmanship is the goal, over refinement for me is not the goal.

 

I started out in the 60’s in the Air Force as a crew chief on a Skyraider, at Hurlburt Field in Florida. Detail, organized methods, and a little OCD have served me well. Both in aviation and my cars. A cool hot rod or race car aren’t much different than an aircraft! Besides being 20 years old and taxiing a raider with a 3350 cubic in engine was awesome. Also learned about oil usage, a tight engine used @8 gallons an hour.

 

I think craftsmanship and our definitions of it change over time. There was a time i thought the work i was doing was great, 4 yrs later i was embarrassed by how rudimentary it was. I think to strive for high quality work is the goal, kind of like with life, youll never attain perfection but if thats where your sights are set then before you know it youre hand building parts from scratch better than the "pros"

 

Took more digging than I thought, but I found those Buttera articles, well, most of them. And I was a little off on the time frame, but they’re a good read regardless. Cheers!

 

This is an interesting subject, to which I have given significant thought. I have been called a craftsman, and while I appreciate the sentiment, I can't say I'd agree. I would categorize myself as "an aspiring craftsman", and not sure I'd ever change that title for myself, but I digress.

I think a craftsman is the pursuit of perfection, yet realizing you'll never achieve it. That is the curse of the craftsman. That being said, there are qualities I've noticed in people I would consider craftsmen, versus people who consider themselves craftsmen. Generally, I've observed true craftsmen to be open to new ideas and methods, no matter who they come from. Craftsmen realize that even someone less experienced than them, can still come up with fantastic ideas and methods. And they also realize that any method may or may not work for everyone, and utilizing the method that works best for you is fine, even if it's different. The result is what is of importance. And because the result is what is of importance, they would not have shame in adopting a new method if it works better for them regardless of the source. Additionally, even if a new method doesn't work for them, maybe one small aspect of the new method does, and they can use that part to improve their own. These men, I don't normally hear call themselves craftsmen. They simply do what they do and don't boast about it. The work speaks for itself.

Conversely, what I've generally experienced with people who think they are craftsmen, is that their method is the only right way to do it. No other method will be entertained. And that is why these people never amount to true greatness in what they do. They plateau, because they did not allow for further personal growth.

The point is that true craftsman have humility, and I think that is paramount.

Now, there have been alot of good points made on this thread already, which I'll touch on and maybe expand a little. And also point out a few of the dangers.

One of these points is doing what's appropriate for the job. That is something that was a challenge for myself, and the rest of the shop, and even later hires, after we won AMBR for the Mulholland speedster. You feel like after that, anything less is not doing the level of work you can do. You feel like not meticulously crafting every component is doing less than you can. But, because you aren't doing such a detailed job doesn't mean that the work is inferior. That's an important aspect to remember.

The next is not being afraid of failure. That is very true. You can't grow without experimentation, and with experimentation comes failure. And sometimes you just screw up. I have had times where I have spent hours trying to save a piece because I have put time into it, and after finally throwing in the towel, and starting over, have gotten into a better position in minutes. Unfortunately, there is no way to describe when you need to throw that part away. Simply putting in the time helps there.

Patience was also mentioned. That is true. I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a patient person when it comes to working in the shop. However, sometimes it's required, and must be endured. Since I'm not the most patient, I try to develop techniques that get me a result faster, which just so happens to be good for our customers as well. This seems like a good time to address a common misconception about professional vs. home builders. I have heard countless times about how professional builders can do what they do because of their equipment. The equipment used in a professional shop does not do work that's impossible for the home shop. They do processes that can be done by hand, the reason the machines exist, is to speed up the process for a business. So, with patience, anything made in a professional shop can be made at home. With the exception of things made with a mill or lathe. Or a CNC, which doesn't really apply for traditional stuff.

One thing that was mentioned which I don't agree with is a natural ability. With the exception of having problem solving abilities. I never had any natural abilities to do what I do. I worked hard for years for that ability, and I believe that anyone can do the same. But, I have realized that problem solving is what can be the hindrance. When you boil it down, hot rodding and customizing is problem solving. They are problems that we invent, but problems none the less. We make these various parts all fit together in a way they were never supposed to in a cohesive way.
That's problem solving. I've learned there is a certain way of thinking to be able to do that.

@Robert J. Palmer mentioned a couple things that are important. The first being that he sees flaws in his work that others don't. This is HUGE. This relates to what I mentioned before about craftsmanship being the pursuit of perfection, while knowing you won't achieve it. Within the pursuit of perfection, as your abilities increase, as do your critiques. The more focused you become, the more focused you become. If that makes sense. You become hyper focused on this single part you're making . Which in something like a vehicle that has many parts, may not be a big deal. If that one part had to stand on it's own, it may be different. The vehicle is a sum of all its parts, so sometimes you have to think about the product as a whole. Will that one small imperfection you see be noticed by anyone in the scheme of things? Probably not in the end result, yet you will still want to correct that wrong in the future. That's part of the drive, But the whole needs to be realized.

A danger of the pursuit of being a craftsman has been mentioned already, and it's nothing to scoff at.
"Perfecting" a craft takes time. So, in the sense of building a car with that mindset, your skill set can improve drastically in the scope of a single project. This can lead to the "perpetual project" You may need to keep your growth in mind during your progress of your build/progress. It's easy to keep redoing things as you progress. Some things, you will have to be ok with doing things different on the next project. Otherwise you end up doing things over in the perpetual project I mentioned.

Something else I feel like I should mention if we are discussing trying to "perfect" the hot rod, is that there are psychological aspects to that as well. Building extremely detailed show cars has taught me about things that you can't unsee once you realize them. Sometimes you go to a show and you see a car where you know that it's aesthetically pleasing, but you don't know why. What is different about it and the very similar car next to it? Things like clocked bolts seem like a small detail, and some people think it's ridiculous, but people pick up on things like that subconsciously. The brain picks up on patterns. Sometimes a good car isn't only about the craftsmanship, but attention to detail.

Hopefully all that makes sense and isn't the rambling of a hot rod psychopath. Haha.

 

Well Said Cretin.

 

Cretin's point about professionals and the amount of tools needed is so valid. When I built a house with my ex father- in- law for the first time I was shocked that he carried all the tools he needed to frame the house in a 5 gallon pail, plus a saw and an extension cord. Heck we framed the first 1/2 of the house with no power on the site, used a chain saw to cut where we had to. Knowledge and experience is much more important than number of tools, in many cases the
only difference is specialty tools increase speed not quality.

 

Yes, and the thing about tools is they are only as good as the person who is using them. I have heard the let's see Chip Foose build a AMBR or Bobby Hearn (TEO Pro Car Chassis) win races/championships without the tools and equipment.
You put people of their skill in a 24 square garage with basic hand tools, a welder, a torch, and a grinder they are still going to build good looking/fast/winning cars.

Do some what disagree with @cretin about natural ability. I have seen many people who are very talented machinist, welders (not fabricators) etc... but no matter how many times they build something it comes out wonky, and out of proportion. Yes, they have worked very hard for the skills they have, but they lack the eye, vision to see where they are going or the finished product. I am not sure that can be taught.

Now before the hate starts, I respect for anyone who uses their skill to build a car. Starting with a pile of parts and building a vehicle that moves under its own power is something very few people could do.

 

I used to try for perfection on my own stuff and never came close. Got pretty good, turned it into my profession and got a lot better. I agree with most of what Cretin has to say. But the part about plateauing is really accurate. Some people are always open to learn new skills and never stop improving. But I’ll tell you that gets old after a while. Doing it at work and having a pretty open timeline for a customer who is paying by the hour for top notch work is one thing. But it’s hard, at least for me, to put that much effort into it all day at work, then to come home and have enough energy to do the same on my own car. So while I do my best on the clock, at home it’s a different story. My welds need to be good but not beautiful, my sheetmetal needs to be straight but I don’t really care how much filler goes on top of it, and I’m not going to be re-engineering the whole chassis just to do something different and cool.

I started a late T roadster a few years ago that I was making every effort in to impress. But the desire to keep going on it just didn’t last. A lot of why was knowing exactly how much time was required to build the whole car to that same standard. I know guys who will allow themselves many years to build a car, but I really lose interest if it gets to a year or more. I enjoy doing the quick builds with all the right parts in all the right places these days a LOT more than the ones where you geek out on every little custom bracket or 1/2” of sheetmetal customization.

 

2 quotes stuck with me in my pursuits.

"The difference between a good job and a perfect job is about 15 minutes."

"If you don't have time to do it right where will you find time to do it over."

When I hear someone say, "...no such thing as a perfect car..." I think defeatist or the like. Of course there is perfect. What does it say when your observations are tailored to find something wrong vs the enjoyment or inspiration that comes of it? Want a mind blower? A car like a Model A has better fit and finish standards than some heavy classics. Why? Mass production. Service parts. A fender from Kansas City had to fit the car from Detroit (different Ford plants). That's perfection. My heater hose clamps are old Sherman brass. The rest are typical cad plated OEM style. Is that wrong? Imperfect? Should they all be the same? No, no and no. "Well WTF, they're not the same!" That's right, and shouldn't be. The heater is an accessory. Why would it have "stock" heater hose clamps? Yeah, I took '15 minutes' and aligned the screw placement and clamp direction. I made sure my old Sun tach and vacuum gauge under the dash are in the same 'X' 'Y' and 'Z' position. I coulda just hung em on the bottom like 10,000 others would do. Maybe 1 in 100 people looking will notice, and that's fine. Most won't because it "feels" right to the eye. The dash curves out in the center and up on the ends, yet the bracket/mount gigs are both old Sun. That took more than '15 minutes' and was worth it to me.

Is the above craftsmanship? Maybe, I dunno, maybe not to me and yes I know that makes me seem smug, snobbish, egomaniacal, and perhaps arrogant or elitist. I'm none of that, I just like to challenge myself now and then to hit the mark. And on my original paint rod some could say such stuff seems outta place. But I knew certain things were determined well ahead of the start and I can see the finished car in my head. On some things I can see it great detail. I want the inside nice, new, comfy, fresh. The outside is all OG. Under the hood is fresh too. So, to me at least, perfection is hitting the mark. In restoration it's exact to an OEM standard. In customs and rods it's what you see. If you can mix the 2 so none of jumps out or intrudes on the rest? To me that's craftsmanship. Anyone can be trained to weld, hammer, paint or service/rebuild old parts. How bad do you want it? Do you have the right amount of ego in you to challenge yourself? Enough confidence to avail yourself to outside services needed? We tend to abhor the CAD designed hot rod for reasons we won't waste time on. Anything can be perfect if you have 15 minutes to get it there.

Let me clarify that 15 minute thing. That's every task. Laying out a door panel, building an exhaust system, running wires, plumbing brakes. Form follows function. Or as Sir Henry Royce put it:

"Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble."

Not sure if any of that was being asked. I always prefer to inspire vs train.

 

I got two stories .

first one. When I just started out as an apprentice we had a mid 70’s Vette in the shop we did an auto to 4sp conversion. Put a hydraulic slave and master on it my boss tasked me out to fab up a bracket for the slave and a mount for the master to the fire wall.
I spent the better part of the day making these two parts, my boss left me to my own devices to think and fab them up, when I was done they where works of art. All proud I went and showed him. He approved and said great work, But !! You spent 6 hours making up 2 brackets. Between labour and materials the customer is on the hook for $700 bucks !! ( customer did not pay that, this was a teachable moment for me according to my boss)
You could have made 2 simple brackets in about 2-3 hours and your done, you need to take into account what you are doing and to what level it needs to be done to. That’s the sign of a true craftsman. Not everything needs to be absolutely perfect and have a ridiculous amount of time invested into it.

Story 2 happened yesterday . We sell a line of Chinese forklifts at work and have always had an issue with the walk behind units getting stuck in odd size skids, the manufacturer states “ they are built to the same standard as everyone else on the market. I took a good look earlier in the week and noticed I could remove about 1/2” from the bottom of the forks and then lower the forks by that much
The manufacturer balked back saying “ it is what it is” but my thought is why can’t it be better ? That’s a craftsman as well .

 

Knowing when to hold back is also a a big part of craftsmanship.

I heard an interview with John Buttera. I can't remember all the details he was building drag chassis for someone (Pat Foster was involved). He talked about being assigned to build a butterfly wheel, after hour of machine/fab work presenting it to his boss. who looked it over and said "That's beautiful work" than slammed it the trash can and said "Now build one that won't kill the driver in a crash!"

 

Craftsmanship sometimes goes unnoticed.... This '35 Standard was built 35 years ago, and driven daily for many of those years, by the builder and still current owner. This picture was taken before we polished the paint, which is original to the build, 35 years ago. This hot rod retains all of it's original wood, which old Chevy owners know is lot's.... It sports a 365 hp 327 and 4-speed tranny. Doesn't get better than that !!!!

 

Robert, I remember that story as told by Cole Foster, Pat's Son. Pat was running the fab shop for Mickey Thompson, and they were building Mickey's LSR Streamliner in 1968. Pat gave John the task of making a steering wheel for the car, and gave him a rough idea of dimensions, and layout of switches and so on. John worked on milling it out for a couple of days, and showed it to Pat. Pat looked it over, took note of the square corners, and said "it's beautiful", and promptly threw it in the trash can, and said, "now make something that won't kill Mickey".

 

I really appreciate you digging these out for me - great reads! Cheers!

 

Holy Crap!! I couldn't remember it was Micky Thompson!! I feel the need to hang my head in shame!

 

As I remember it was in either Street Rodder or Hot Rod, it was a collection of interviews with other builders and people that knew John well, telling their stories about him.

 

Was it when he passed away?

 

Yes.

 

Hey, Dawie;
Good thoughts.

Cretin;
Food for thought. Thanks.

Buttera's HotRod articles were some of the best thought-provoking teaching they did since the early 70's, maybe late 60's. Long my favorites.

Anderson;
"My welds need to be good but not beautiful, my sheetmetal needs to be straight but I don’t really care how much filler goes on top of it, and I’m not going to be re-engineering the whole chassis just to do something different and cool." .
I get the welds part, + not needing to be just different/cool. I don't get the "Don't care how much filler on top". Since I can't do metal-finishing(not even close!), I'm having trouble w/this: If you have the skills, is it just a matter of time involved? I get it's not a pride thing, & I'm not a fan of bare-metal - except for a quick pre-paint pic if the quality is available - but could you explain abit more please?
TIA.
Marcus...

 

A quote goes; “the road of perfection is an endless journey”. With that goal it seems the first thing a good craftsman has is a plan. This saves expensive wasteful revisions and side trips. Next, is the ability and to see when something is wrong and the courage to stop right there and not try to muddle through it. Being a craftsman is a goal in any line of pursuit and it seldom comes without time invested. Some folks never improve their skills and get by while others are always learning.

No doubt, car building has its levels of perfection with an intended show winner different than a grocery getter. I have seen many cases where the desire to perfect a vehicle, which was originally far less than perfect, ended up as a unfinished money pit.

As far as tradition maybe I was fortunate to see a lot of well done hotrods in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, while certainly there was nappy stick welded fab work on others, there were metal guys who could metal finish anything perfectly and some excellent fabricators. Setting out to do nice work was the road to being a good craftsman then and now.

 

The type of welding (gas, stick, MIG, TIG) doesn't matter one bit...it's the QUALITY of the weld! MIG is fast, but I would guess that a high percentage of the welds we see on builds would never pass inspection. TIG is slow by comparison, and while it looks good, for most stuff it's overkill in the looks department. The latest technology and techniques don't ensure quality... craftmanship does!

 

I think the lines of such topics blur amonst each other. Individuality exercised well is one form, restoration as spoken above is another, hands-on talents are another yet. A couple references above also mention what should and shouldn't be done to the enth degree. Let y'all in on a secret. When I do wood work in these big heavy classics I use good wood glue and deck screws. Yeah, I do, deck screws. They're tough and bite in like a mutha and you'll never see em. A quality AND process upgrade in my view. "Yeah but damn Jocko they used slotted wood screws." Yup, and to me it isn't craftsmanship to fuck around cranking in slotted screws by hand that takes 3 "motherfuckers!" and the occasional WTF just to say "...I know it's there." when they won't be seen until your great gand kids are your age, if ever. Blurred lines, yes?

Here's another aspect to consider. How easy will it be to service? You fuck around for 3 or 4 days and make this super wazoo double throwdown floor/trans tunnel and do mega award winning TIG welding to make it permanent. Gonna make clutch or trans service a real bitch, no? That's just a quicky thing I could think of in our old cars, and yes I know not all floors are meant ro be removed. My wife and I pulled the motor from my racer one day. This was a _2 _a_a_o (not saying the brand and year outta respect for the gospel). With hand tools, including drain time, it was on the ground in 47 min. Yes, I set it up for that, no it wasn't a full chasis car with motor plates (always fast), it was a stock framed bracket racer with full OEM front sheet metal. I considered the speed of engine removal when I built it. Plumbing and wiring was practically modular in design and yes knowing in advance there was nothing to figure out. I'll be building a 3 pc fan shroud for my 39 just because I like the look of the square to round sheet metal processes. I'll make it easy to install also with drop in slots on the bottom and brakets on top. Why? So I can service the ignition without it being in the way. I can lay it back, do the work, stick it back on. What if I have an issue on the side of the road?

So yeah, the lines can blur one another as you try to hit your mark and display some skill along the way. Not all craftsmanship is actual product.

 

We live during an incredible time for elevating the level of craftsmanship. Anything we want to learn is available.

Perfection, I've realized, is rarely the standard. This is especially true from some very talented folks I've learned from. The qualities they possess, like patience, a relaxed attitude, enjoying the processes, and a willingness to make mistakes allow them to develop high-end skills and resulting work.

Many people (sometimes I still am one) are so interested in the final outcome that they're worried they'll mess up only to get disheartened.

When we watch what some of these "masters" teach I think a lot of people focus on what and how of the process but not the way the craftsman is approaching the work.

I raised in a high-strung environment and in the shop, when something went wrong, it never worked well.

In the last couple years, I noticed a good pal of mine metalworking. His vibe was relaxed, problems came and got solved, there was not the tension I felt.

Then, I started looking at other craftsmen I respected, same thing, none of them were focused on perfection but if my work came out like theirs, I'd consider it perfect!

Slowly, I'm making a transition over from tension to enjoying the process. And the weird thing is, my skills have slightly improved AND it doesn't so much matter. It's pleasurable to learn and I'm excited with making the project better than it was.

 

I was reading about Ettore Bugatti.
He would come into the fabrication shop in the mornings, and inspect the custom made bench vices on each workers bench, if he found any file marks on the vice, it meant that the individual worker, was filing in a manner too fast for his liking!

He would admonish the worker, and have him stop work on the piece he was making, then instruct him to remove the marks on the vice, and restore the vices finish to the way it should be, before continuing on the part he was fabricating!

No doubt, this was way too anal retentive of Bugatti, but he demanded excellence in anything that wore the Bugatti marque!