49-51 mercury cruiser skirts

Has anyone ever heard of Jimi Dean Cruiser Skirts? I recently bought a pair but can't find any info on them. The guy I bought them from said they were rare, like 1 out of 25 made specifically for 49-51 Mercs. Supposedly Barris used them on some of his Mercs. They kinda look like bubble skirts to me. Any info would be helpful.

 

With a name like that Jimi(spelled like Hendrix) Dean Cruiser Skirts I'd find it hard to believe they weren't made last week somewhere in the midwest, that is midwest California.

 

jimi dean bubble skirts were hand made by a black man in the midwest he may have been the frist to make them a few years back i saw a pair go for a grand if they are the real deal you made a great score maybe someone on the hamb could tell more about jimi dean wrong name iment jimmy jones too early in the a.m. i had breakfast on my mine

 

i could be mistaken but i thought they were made by a jimmy jones in the detroit area i have not seen a set personely , but i talked with mike alexander at leadeast one year and he mentioned this guy when we were talking , i asked about the 57 chevy they did for dave jenkins , , try the search -for jimmy jones bubble skirts ,i think it was discussed , or a visit to riksters site ,there's gotta be some info there -joe

 

Jimmy Dean makes sausage, or died in a Porsche in the 50's. Jimmy Jones made skirts known as Jimmy skirts or Inkster skirts ( my hometown) Mr. Jones is no longer with us. He would pull roofs off cars, heat the metal over a fire and hammer and dolly the metal into the desired shape. There are some cars here in the Detrot area that run them and I have seen some show up at swaps from time to time. I even know where there are a few sets stting around that the owner will never part with. Use the search function on this forum to learn more. Jimmy Dean? sounds like someone trying to make a buck from the 50's fad

 

Steel or glass? If they're steel,and they look and fit good,I wouldn't care what somebody called them...maybe the seller got the makers name wrong...

 

Never liked them. I think they take away from the lines of a 49-51 Merc. Bubble skirts are even worse! Seems like more of an East Coast thing. Not a lot of West Coast guys into them. If I found a pair of Jimmy Jones Skirts,i'd hang them on my wall. NOT on my car,LOL....Different tastes,you know...

Here's three examples of nice cars with skirts that ruin the look of the car to me;






Look like mud-flaps on a Mercedes,to me!

 

Thanks for all the info so far. I think I am on the right track now. Most likely the guy who sold them to me was confused. I have found a lot of info linking Jimmy Jones to needle nose skirts/bubble skirts. These are steel. Just not sure if they are JJ originals or repops made in the fifties (foxcroft, stylex). I will look closer to see if there are any markings on them. The search continues.

 

Post a pic of them! So we can all be jealous of your find,hahaha!

 

you are right jimmy jones was his name

 

Here they are. I looked at them closer and they definitely seem to be hand made. No markings though. They may be the real deal? I'm not even sure if that is the right direction they mount?

 

I'm with Bad Bob on this one. If there's skirts on a Merc there should be Knees below and Boobs above them.
The Wizzard

 

Hey Sleddin...Theyre the real deal.(Jimmy Jones) A perfect example of how to mount them can be seen on the Dick Bailey chopped merc by the A Bros on the cover of the Feb 62 Custom Craft.Also look on my Dick Dean threads for the yellow and brown chopped merc fpormerly owned by George Beluzcak

 

Nice score. The skirt lookiing in the window of the Flamed ride looks pretty good

 

I kinda like them, I might run a set if I came across them (avoids making eye contact with Bob).

 

Notice how alot of the recent shit glass ones dont do all the way back to the bumper.

 

Anthony (00 Mack), how would the skirts this guy bought be mounted, ie. how far back? Seems like if you go too far back the skirt will then transition over that vertical seam in the back, wouldn't that look weird?

 

Hey 00 Mack, If you have them could you post the pics you are referring too? I can't seem to find them. Thanks

 

"hey that's cool"

 

Anyone have a line on a set? No repops.

 

The point goes right up to the door edge so the back doesn't overlap the transition seam. Could you post a picture of the inside so I could see the mounting hardware.

 

This is how they mount.

 

I thought Jimi Dean made sausage?

 

I'd love to buy a set like the ones pictured, pm me anyone has some for sale. I'll take pics of my '51 with stock skirts and the cruiser skirts and then go from there.

 

Guy in Detroit was hand making them back in the 60's. There were a couple mentions of him on the HAMB, here's one:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=307595&highlight=jimmy+jones+skirts

 

I'd like a set of those Kevin. Oh and I haven't forgotten about the other part we talked about my friend was busy over the holidays I'm still in.

 

No it was Big John.

 

I'm with Bad Bob on this one.... thems some ugly skirts.

 

I think a lot of the newer repop ones look bad but some of the older stuff is intriguing.

 

if they are real jimmy jones skirts there should be no welding on them anywere. he was a master at shaping metal but he could not weld, I have an original set that my uncle had built for his car from jimmy himself, at the time he was charging a buck an inch each to make them, my set are 64inches long so........ I will post pics in the next few days