I have been getting this mag from the store. I like the mag it is a good read and has excellent pics. I would like to build a traditional car and this mag has given me some good ideals on what to look for. My question is for the Traditionalist (since I found what looks to be some contradictions) is this a good mag to go by to build a traditional car? example in the mag: In fall of 2007 issue page 8 his complaining bout ratrods (and I agree with some of his complaints). And in paragraph five talks about safety and one quote says "You should have front brakes." Other comments bout running warn out 305. Then you go to pages 76, 77, and 78 article but Aaron's coupe. This car running spindles (no front brakes, running a 350 blown motor, and 6 carbs). Tells us that the guy put over 20,000 miles on it. Sounds safer than a ratrod with no brakes and a 305?
To me personally there's nothing 'traditional' about a 305 or 350.. 265 or 283 even 327 would be better. I do think you need front brakes, as a kid(1980s)I remember seeing an ***load of T-buckets with no front brakes. I've looked thru the mag you talk about and it's not bad- along with Car Kulture Deluxe, but I get alot of my ideas from 50s & early 60s era magazines.
Most of the "traditional" hot rods and customs in the current magazines are a modern interpretation of the real deal. Stick with current Hop Up annuals, original littlebooks, and good books by reputable authors.
Oh I know the 305 and 350 are not traditional. It was just in the mag on one page you should run front brakes and then on another page there is a car with out and they did a 3 page article on it. I guess it was the contradiction that I found in the mag that made me question it. Thanks for the help, I guess I will have to pick a year and find some mags for that year. Right now I have a 65 283 in my truck. But I also have a 62 283 and a 58 283 maybe for the next car I build.
You cannot accept any mag as being "the gospel truth". They all have their faults, yes even Rodders Journal. At the end of the day, the editors are only human. At least, I think they are. You take out of any mag what you want to take out, combine that with a dose of common sense, and that's where your visualisations come from. Actually, forget the common sense part. If we applied common sense, we would'nt be mucking around with worn-out, rusty old piles of **** in the first place.
this question has came up a few times. i think the point brandon was trying to make, is that you dont need to build of a pile of **** that is held together with bail'n wire. you can build a good traditionally styled car on a budget that functions well for daily use. aarons coupe is a well executed 60s drag inspired build. and, yes. hop up is a great mag.
I understand. I would really like to build a traditional car for the road and was probally going to pick a specific year to go by. The article with Aaron's coupe. (I am not knocking the car, I think it is a cool ride, this is just a question). Correct me if I am wrong, spindle axle (no brakes) on a street car? Weren't spindle axles used on drag car?
if you want era specific, my suggestion is to do a couple of things... 1st. decide what your base build material is gonna be. model A. Model T. 40's chrysler, etc.... then... do your research. find a library near you that has m***ive archives of old magazines on microfiche. hot rod came out in 1948 start there. pick a few issues per year and begin to get a feel for the era specific style you like. once its settled, head to your local auto super swap and look for the old magazine vendor. buy a more than a few different ***les from the era you are trying to emulate and study, study, study. then study some more. the jeffries books are killer reference material also. based on 'internet era specific values' you may be quite surprised at how cars ACTUALLY looked in different eras. get familiar with the details and nomenclature. suspension and at***ude, wheels and tires, paint and chrome, etc.etc. ask lots of old questions. ask old guys. most importantly....HAVE FUN! PS> just for giggles...the term you're looking for is SPINDLE MOUNT. as in spindle mounted wheels. all axles have spindles, its the mounting of the wheels that makes the difference. it involves removing the hub and brake ***embly and re engineering the wheel bearings to achieve mounting the wheels. most guys used an anglia spindle because they were small and light and you could mount a motorcycle wheel (or lightweight mag) to them quite readily.
Geeezzzz!!! A 283 is not "traditional"?! The Flathead,Olds,Buick Nazi's attack again. Yeah, pick a year - don't have ANYTHING that wasn't available in (insert the year here). Right fan belts, check. Right spark plug wires, check. Right tach sender, check. Oh, no Tremec allowed. Welcome to "Corvette Land", boys. If you've got it and you like it, ****in' use it and have some fun. Nothin' personal to you for askin' but this "period perfect **** is getting ridiculous, IMO.
The word Traditional is too liquid of a concept. Instead, think of a time frame to build to. Pick a specific era and get the magazines from that time frame and build to that style. Many years down the road people will be building airbagged cars painted flat black with striping and leopard print interiors and they WILL be Traditional Early 2000's cars. Semantics are a terribly slippery slope. BUT, if you build a car specific to the mid to late fifties and people who see a black & white photo of it are fooled into thinking they are seeing a long lost photo shoot of a car from that time, you've really achieved something. But Traditional? That's like squeezing mercury between your fingers. Impossible to do.
Boy , Phil.....That Heart surgery really worked a treat, didn`t it? Perhaps some of the best advice I`ve read lately....
You should do this... you shouldn't do that... What you need to do is build a car that suits the purpose for which it is intended... "Purpose built" Is it going to to be a weekender, or a daily driver? Is it going to be an all weather, or sunny warm dry weather car. Once you've narrowed down what purpose this car is for, then you can look into the details. Traditional vs. What works This is one heck of a debate, Im not sure why...why does it freakin matter, as long as the end result is a car you like. If there's noone you need to impress, then dont sweat the details. Unless you cant settle for anything less than a car that looks, drives, and feels like it was built 50+ years ago, then go for it. However if you want something you can can have fun with, thats reliable, and downright easy to own then 100% traditional isnt the way to go. I havent seen a fully traditional car built cheaply (under 2500), thats safe and reliable. Somebody please proove me wrong. "traditional parts" A variation of the SBC, was introed @ 1955, you can dress up a SBC to look the part, but yet maintain ease of parts locating, and reliabilty/driveabilty/MPG's (Yeah yeah, if your gonna build a "hot rod" then you shouldnt worry about MPG's... unless you're rich.. then yea, ya gotta worry.) SBFs were introed in the 60's... same story...... SBMopars ditto.... Nice thing is you can stop off at most part stores and find what you need, something you'll want to consider should you be driving this thing more than 100 miles from home. Similar theory goes into the choice of the ******, and other drive line components. Just about any "traditional motor" can be built reliable, but your probably gonna pay for it. Traditional parts look great, and most work well, but keep in mind that they are out dated. Some old school parts cant hack todays driving requirements. In the early days of rodding, they updated the ol four bangers with the new flatheads, so whats so un-traditional about updating to a later model engine now? Dont skimp on the drivetrain and brakes to be cool, stay safe and build smart.
<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" width="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off"> I favor going the traditional route. Last summer I almost got into a serious wreck coming back from the Hotrod Hoedown. If my '46 didn't have disc brakes in the front, I would have crushed a rice burner that stopped short in the fast lane of a highway while trying to make an illegal left turn. There's no way I could have stopped as fast with the stock drum brakes. I like to drive my cars, but here in the East the roads are so congested with traffic and crazy drivers safety must be seriously considered. </TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on"> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
At risk of getting into a 'what's traditional' debate once more, just remember that Traditional isn't an either/or proposition. There are degrees of it. Treating it as a binary idea is dumb...
My thoughts exactly. I'm goin with a mild 60's theme for the Riv but, I will make some safety exeptions to make it a safe driver. For example, I'm gonna put seat belts in it.....
Pick a time-frame that makes sense, pick a style and stick with it. Make it safe and not a cobbled up pile of ****.... and have fun. My personal opinion... you SHOULD have front brakes if you have a car you are going to drive. Try and stop your car with the e-brake and see how effective that is... then do a panic stop with my kids in the car in front of you. Yes the drag race-insired car in the same issue had no front brakes... no, the column wasn't meant to be "set in stone" rules of the magazine, just some observations on the dilution of what was... and frankly this has been beat to death.. either you get it, or you don't. Altered Pilot gets it...
COOL!!! We've beaten the word "traditional" to death!! Let's pick on the word "Kulture" next!!! Why spell it with a "K"??? That's not very traditional...Ooops, we've already gone past that word... Why have Kulture in the ***le when there isn't alot of that sort of thing in the mag?...except for the artist profiles..and the pin-Ups...and music reviews....What is Kulture anyway? are K's as bad as Z's? Who would win in a knife fight?? I think K's would win because they're special, and Z's would be sleeping if you put them together. I don't have any tattoos. Spike
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