The Wally Welch Mercury (Ayala Bros. version)

Great car! I love the Ayala style so smooth and flowing a very organic look to their cars. Great to see some custom stuff back on the board as well the last couple of weeks have been a little lean.

 

Of course we would all gladly take this car in either version, but it's that damn Hop Up cover that almost demands for it to be lime. That shot is so iconic custom wise. It's interesting that Rik had tried to convince the current owner to do it in the first version to no avail.
Again, great car either way, but man would that fucker just murder if it were done to match that Hop Up cover.
The story about how Joe found it is in that article in Street Rod. Most stated the general deal, but I will add a little. I am paraphrasing (on beer no less) but, somehow a kid on a bike in Joe's neighborhood had seen the Merc in a backyard in the east LA? area. " Hey, I know you like old cars, I know where theres one like some of the cars you have", says the kid.
Joe sorta doubts it will be much of anything but goes to check anyway. Welch Merc is in a backyard next to a tree covered in rolled house paint to protect it from the elements.
Inside dope says he got it for a song-even back then!!
D.

 

I forgot to mention that another reason for Justin Mozart to take the car back to its Barris version - instead of the original Ayala versions - was that as far as he could find out the Ayala version never had a Custom interior. The Ayala's finished the car just in time for the 1951 Motorama Show but apparently did not have time to get a custom interior done for the car.
Justing wanted a nice truck&roll interior... and figured it would not be correct to do that in the Ayala version.

 

Lovely car! it was awesome to see it in real life at this years GNRS.....but as many have said before, it would have been even better to see the gold Ayala version....but as long as Justin has done an incredible job restoring the Barris version somebody should clone the Ayala version instead

Another great thread Jive Bomber!!

 

Did you guys notice the jacket that, i suppose Wally Welch, is wearin in the last picture?
In front of the car w/ the trphy in hand.
Jacket says Butchers.
Were the Auto Butchers just Butchers in the early days? just a "for shits and giggles" question.

 

No, not as far as I know. It has always been Auto Butchers.
In this photo you can see - on the guy on the right - that the word Auto is in outline on the right above the head.
It is also in the photo you are revering to... only it does not show in the small version posted.

 

i knew you knew it, i'll try to make'em clearer w/ the imaging editor.
Thanx.

 

Some scans of the May 1988 article in Street Rodder Magazines.. thanks for Willard Partch for sending them...

As found

 

My memory is a bit hazy... but at least, I did remember that I've seen it as it was found!

 

Weez is that you with the leather jacket on? What a ruler!!!

 

One thing I always tripped off of is that the left side headlight is about an inch higher than the other side! The Ayalas must have lost the tape measure that week-

And yes, Jeffrey- that's me in the horsehide jacket, chinos and desert boots with long hair...I think that was as 50's as I could get in 1989 or whatever that was- haha-

I was pretty impressed with the car in purple at the time, though I was cringing at the lack of ww's and sombreros, and the grey velour interior. Also remember it had a big block with a gear drive that whined pretty loud too.

 

Beautiful car for sure. The Ayala Bros were amazing craftsman along with a slew of other builders of the time. No shortage of customizing gurus on the west coast that's for sure. What the fuck happened on the east coat? That Merc would have been butchered!!! I mean I love them too but they are not nearly as pleasing to the eye as their west coast counterparts.

 

This is a killer picture right here!

 

Wow. I never noticed that before now. It's plain as day in the Streetrodder photo.

Regardless, it is the car that inspired me to re-style my front end...

 

Lookin pretty cool there Weez.....

Here are a couple of shots I did of the car and Joe for my pinhole series....

 

That's just a great look,it's subtle,yet it smacks you upside the head.

 

The purple Barris version ... Live from the Palo Alto Concours D'Elegance:















images from HEMI32's iPhone

 

favorite car of all times, glad it survived the years would like to see in its original kustom version myself.

 

The recent pictures of this car look good but this is the picture I cant get out of my head,especially since it was at the Pan Pacific.

 

Amen, that old lime-gold pic blows me away.

 

That is a great picture Jeff. This is a car that really should have been done in its first version interior or not. It looks perfect in that lighter color.

 

I agree but I dont know if I believe the whole interior reasoning.I think they didnt like this color I dont think the interior had much of an impact on the decision to go with the purple.With the lime gold color a nice white tuck n roll job would of been fine and looked good or they could of went anyway they wanted.If im not mistaken Gil's 40 merc had a gold or yellow color on a black car.Well its the owners choice his car,his money but I just think that this mercury would of made a very heavy impact on the world of customs if it would of been brought back in the Ayala style.

 

I agree. I think Rik also said the owner didn't like light colored mercs which is cool. It awesome that he went to the time and expense of bringing this car back in either version.

 

Yes ,I was standing next to Rik when that conversation took place and I do agree and im glad to see that it was brought back no matter which version.I just think that I want to see one of these early mercs restored in that lime gold color,like the way they looked when they first hit the street.

 

Well there is only one choice left and it doesn't seem like anyone is going to be able to pry that car out of the current owners hands anytime soon to restore it.

 

Such an amazing car with "then" state of the art front fender/head light treatment that set it apart from the rest. It was an honor to have it in the History of the Merc gathering as well as this years History of the Customs - Then & Now display. Mr. Mozart told me that he decided to go with the second version of the car because he felt "Mercs look best in dark colors" . When asked what i thought , i like Rik suggested the first color. At the end of the day its still a great significant car thats been saved.

 

FYI ... The car was shown @ the Palo Alto Concours D'Elegance without a finished interior (i.e., still has the grey cloth front seat, etc.).


Sent from my iPhone using TJJ app

 

The car was supposed to be scheduled for a full custom interior by master upholsterer Tom Sewell earlier this year. The the GNRS CUstoms Then & New show got in the way. I had expect it be done by now.
Looking forward to see it with a new interior.

 

I kind of always tripped out on the fact that this car is painted in its 2nd(Barris version) but yet he ran the Auto Butchers plaque? just wondering