I'm thinking traditional like yours! I saw your Merc along with all the others at the Sacramento A/R. Don't get me wrong,I have a blast in my Tbird,I'm just hoping to "trade up" to something older. Now if you want to trade......
This photo shows the rear fender/taillight treatment a bit better. And its clear that Larry Dames modified the rear quarters (using stock components) when he fixed the major fire damage on the car. So the continuous line from the rear quarters to the center of the taillights is no longer there. And here is another one at the Barris shop. It looks like Sam is filling some "buckets" with water in the back ground. And a better look at the two guys.... I have no idea who the other guy is.... anybody?
Rik,Was his name Larry or James Dames?I think the car looks better with the 1/4 panels in stock form.Keeps the "merc" in the "merc".
Life magazine has updated their site with some great new custom car material from the early 50's.... Some More Barris stuff... If you look careful in this photo you can see the 1948 Studebaker "the Grecian" siting in the shop.. and the grille for the Fred Rowe Merc in front of it.... And a few of the rarely seen Bob Lund 1950 Mercury convertible with 51 rear quarters and 1951 Lincoln bumpers... Jack Nethercutt's 1952 Oldsmobile...
Great stuff once again Rik, who'd of thought to look at LIFE's archives to find stuff about customs? I sure hope you have your whole website/collection well backed-up and stored somewhere safe because this collection you've ***embled is priceless and if it got wiped out, it would be a huge loss for the history of customs. And...I always wondered who's Oldsmobile was in that colorized poster you did for Rodders Journal - it is hanging in my office and I look at it all the time while I work - now I know: Jack Nethercutt. I love the heavy, yet graceful, chop on it.
Awesome stuff. Thanks to everyone. Now, let's have a moment of silence for that Super Van photo. That **** is so wrong it's right. Anyone know where the Super Van is now?
anyone ive ever talked to agrees that sam was a worker, and george was more the representative for the duo in the old days. each one of the brothers worked their ***es off to build the barris name, with a team of workers at their side.
I really like your pictures and thanks for posting them. George and Sam have been a couple of my heros since I was a kid and will be as long as I live. They did some awesome work and some not so awesome work.
For everybody who wants to see more of the TwoChops photo collection click HERE to go to his collection on my site. A really great photo collection with many more fantastic old Barris photos (and many, many others) A few more Barris photos from the Life magazine archive... Two unidentified mild customs...
Aren't they 'restoring' the Super Van on the Chop-Cut-Rebuild TV show hosted by the other Dan Woods? I thought I saw that thing on their show sometime a year ago or more.
What I found interesting is that the 2nd pic of the sectioned Vic shows a big lower quarter dent. I always ***umed that the early customizers such as Barris had a better start than us contemporary guys because they were starting with mint bodied "new" cars and not having to do any basis bodywork prior to starting their customizing. Great photos Rik and as eccentric as George was/is (yellow windbreaker and all), the early Barris Customs are some of my all time fav's.
...the 'SuperVan' was restored at this place just north of Toronto..... http://www.guildcl***iccars.com/super_van.htm ...and there's more.... http://www.guildcl***iccars.com/Batmobile.htm
Wow! Those Life magazine photos are awesome! And the Bob Lund merc is gorgeous! Anybody know what color it was, and what the taillights are?
I dont know the color, but the taillights are the same as Sam Barris put in his own 1950 Buick. They are 1953-54 Pontiac Station wagon taillights...
I think that 51 Vic is the one that went to the s****per because the owner never showed back up and paid for it.
The first pic of this thread with Sam, Jeffries and Mysterio.....Where's George(?), Oh, he's inside lining up dates for later! Any more completed pics of the Streamliner? Sweeeeet.
Could the mysterious 3rd man be Frank Scognzoti (sp) himself? I've read that he was a cop and moonlighted @ Barris' shop. Also does anybody have more pictures of the radically chopped (looks like late 30's-40 Ford) coupe in the background w/ the hemi powered rear engined whatever it is? I would really like to see what it looked like finished. Thanks, J-
Not completed... but Barry Mazza has this nice one - with Sam Barris sitting in it - in his collection.
The Jalopy Journal
