What is your favorite year and style of a Shoebox? 49, 50,51? Crestliner, Deluxe, Custom Deluxe? Chopped Stock or Convertible? Channelled, Sectioned? What grill do you like best? Stock, Chevy Teeth, Custom grill? Lowered, stock height, on Air or old school? Streelies, chrome reverse, mags, hubcaps or wheel covers? Factory Bench, custom Bench, Buckets, Tbird seats? No Bumpers, stock bumpers 49 Plymouth bumpers or other bumpers? What engine Flathead 8, Flathead 6, SBF, SBC, BBF, BBC, Chrysler small block, Hemi or the dreaded LS or LT swaps? Do you like them Hot Rodded, Stock, Custom, lead sled? Stick trim, no trim, custom trim? Coupe, Business Coupe, Club Coupe, Tudor Sedan, Fordor Sedan? I think I got everything in there. Let’s see your examples, if you have, or had a Shoebox feel free to show yours. Do you know anyone that doesn’t like a shoebox? I like lowered, factory grill 1949 or 1950, if it is a 51 I want a custom grill in it. I like them Chopped and Unchopped as well as a drop top, if it is chopped the back side windows must look right. I think I go against the norm in that I like Long roofs on a shoebox the space in between the window and the trunk seems too big to me on a coupe. Plus, I own a 40 Ford Coupe and I want some room in other cars. Stock trim is fine with me no trim is good as well. But I like tastefully done trim and especially like Buick trim on them. I’m a lead sled tail dragger type of guy on a shoebox. As for an engine, I’ve never been picky on engines people put on their cars, because it is after all their money, their ride and their choice. Both of my Shoeboxes have 239 V8s in them. I bought them that way for a purpose. I bought one because it needed a whole lot of work and I could experiment with and have fun. I wanted to build a low budget ride with it, you know stay under a few grand in the build save up parts and build it on the cheap. And I didn’t say rat rod just a cheap ride not a trophy magnet. Indian blanket interior, maybe, just maybe if affordable enough t-Bird interior, lowered/chopped, epoxy primer with a high gloss metallic roof maybe with a design in it. Build it the same way as kids did back in the 50s in a driveway type of car. My other shoebox is a well maintained version and it will have only slight, reversible customization suck as pinstriping, lowered, dual exhaust and some Benton’s on that 239 for the perfect sound.
Here's my wife's 50. More hot rod style, has 351w, 9 inch..fun car And here's a 51 that I got running when it was stock and the guy transformed it into this.
I like the coupes....I think they look even better sectioned, not chopped. The right sedan with the rear vent windows deleted can look good too. I prefer the "refinement" of the '51. For different grills I like the solid cal custom or a '54 Ford with or without the center. Of course, the '50 Pontiac is cool too. I'm more of a hot rod guy, but some of the customs are nice - like this one Here is a pic of my lady with mine at this weekends Milltown show Mine has a stock 283 with the original 3 speed - I just bought an NOS set of 15x6 raders for it, but will need to change the rear end if I want to run them in the back as they only have 3 1/8" of backspace. While I like the current set up, I think the car deserves more - just looks too "unfinished" to me.
I don't have any pictures of my two '51's, one was a coupe and the other a 2dr sedan. If I'd kept the coupe it would have eventually got sectioned a la Ron Dunn's car. I quickly ditched the enormous '51 taillight housings and was hunting down a '57 Buick grille. Scrounged up a set of window stainless as the stock car didn't have any trim around the glass. '51's have a lot of improvements over the '49's and '50's.
I want to delete my rear vent windows, it is in my plan's. They bring to mind a four door tri-five chebbie where they have that extra little window that tells you immediately " hey look over here I'm a more-door" . I like that top one and it taildragger stance. Those aren't stock headlight trim rings are they? I like them, I like your car too although I wouldn't want to be in charge of keeping it clean and shiny. Someone is doing a good job in that department!!!
those bulky taillights are what turned me off, I looked at a few 51s that had the 49-50 taillights they look much better . I think it is the same reason I like the 49-50 Mercs as well the taillights. That damn stainless on mine is playing hell trying to get my rear glass replaced. it blew out on a hot day here in Tennessee. Many wouldn't touch it because of the trim while others said they would but have a rubber molding in case the stainless didn't work. The rest of my windows have it why would I spend $100 extra for a plain one? People want the most amount of money for the least amount of work these days I guess
KUSTOM is spelled with a "K" It absolutley is, I have a hard time trying to spell it with a "c". Even my 55 Courier Sedan Delivery spelled it with a K. Thought I would blow some peoples minds with a squarebird bumper with a Merc grill in it upside down lol. It absolutley did! people came up to it and didnt know what kind of car it was lol.
The Jalopy Journal
