I thought there should have been a thread already established for this but I can't find it. If one does exist, would someone please post a link? This car has an interesting history. It was originally built by Ed Belkengrin in Minnesota for his wife. He had won the only award given (Car Owner's Pick) at the first Nationals in Peoria with his full fendered duece coupe. ('71). The hiboy looked typical for those times. Then Phil Julo in Kansas City acquired it the next year and set about creating what I think may have been one of the earliest attempts to create a late-'40's traditional look, way back in '73 when that was just not being done. He stripped off an earlier metalflake show paint job to bare metal and painted it with nitrocellulose black lacquer (which is still on the car and in good shape to this day). !6" Kelsey Hays wires and track tires finished it off. Weldwheels founder Greg Weld personally created the wider rears. Let's see some more traditional dueces (of all eras).
Excellent point. I tried explaining this a a person recently that Black Primered '32s with red steelies were not happening in the seventies- and this reminds me again that the traditional examples were pretty few and far between- and when you did see them they were SHINY. The other interesting fact was that a lot of the cars that looked like the one in the picture were mostly NEW builds using fibergl*** bodies. The steel ones were all being used up on the "resto-rods".
I agree. Although my roadster is satin,my '34 Vicky is shiney black. 99% of the show cars ,and 98% of the street cars, in the 50's-80's were painted with glossy paint. Everyone took pride in their cars. I started going to the Detroit Autorama in 1960 when I was 15. Every car was painted. The only time we ran primer was when we removed emblems, door handles ,nosed or decked our cars. After we finished the bodywork, we spotted in the repaired areas right away with the matching color. We actually took best paint at the Detroit Autorama in 1968.Boy, I'm getting old.....
I understand the 60s to 80s cars were painted and loved, but if were talkin late 40s early 50s (post-war), the kids comin home from WWII werent worried about painting their cars, they wanted to go fast and thats it. well at least on the west coast. sure cars were painted but im talkin lakes. the hot rods were driven and raced and speed was the only issue. JimA, as a writer you can back me up with that.
When I grew up in the 50's, primer spots were cool in that it showed where you had done work like shaving emblems, etc. But it was a temporary thing until you could finish it and painting was the ultimate goal. Just like the teenagers of the 40's, we drove what we could afford. Some of us liked leaving it in primer forever, but only because we ultimately couldn't afford paint. The heavy use of primer on the traditionally syled cars is OK by me. It does represents one facet of the early days. But in those days, the goal was to have paint someday (at least in the Midwest). Jim, that particular car is steel.
I think my car is what many would consider both traditional and period. Either way I built it this way because it's the way I remember cars that I wanted.
What is traditional about the car? Most likely doesn't belong in this thread! 80's/early 90's style scallops, purple (screams 80's on a hot rod!) 60's style wheel/tires, non traditional engine. Nope, not traditional.
Austin guys know this one - some skinny cook owns it I think :-0 It's so "right" up close - like a well worn old bomber jacket. I couldn't look at it enough at the Temple races.
Excuse me,but we can still consider that 5 window traditional,the engine is traditional,its a 348,or is it a 409,not sure on that one,scallops,I thought that was traditional,plus its a steel car with a small channel,I dont think it matters when the car was built,it can still be traditional.
I think most rodders here consider traditional to be pre-1955 appearance and construction no matter when it was built. But there are lots of interesting "violations" to those traditions being built, because, hey, it is hot rodding after all. The Doane Spencer car shouts traditional for me.
Have you ever seen 80's style scallops (thats what those are!) on a car built in the late 40's-mid 50's? I sure haven't. Steel car, channeled, whatever, I have seen 100's of street rods that were steel and channeled, that didn't make them traditional hot rods.
I think we will have a good understanding of what traditional means by the time this thread gets its last hit!
I like to think of mine as "traditionally styled"...I'm sure the "traditional police" could have a field day noting discrepencies like hidden door hinges, smoothy hood sides, tube axle, etc, but hey... I don't claim it to be period perfect, just a fun driver that gets driven.
In 1970 I was building my first duece roadster and noticed that Scritchfield's roadster had hidden door hinges. I wrote him and he answered my letter telling me he thought they were rear door hinges from a '46 fordor. Not that that makes it traditional but I would say it doesn't make it wrong.
Cool story about the hinges. Some early hot rods had smoothed hood sides too...so maybe if i can provide photo do***entation of these things the traditional police will let me off with a written warning.
A couple of my ALL TIME Favorites........and inspiration for my own 5 window. Brent Bell's, Jim Busby ( sorry if i spelled that wrong) To me these car's are perfect in every way.
Here's a couple you might enjoy that makes the point above about midwest cars going from primer to paint. The first is my roadster from '56 and was the typical "kid just out of high school with no money" car. Basically a flathead powered primered beater. The next pic from '59 shows what a $1.85 an hour job can do for you. A new nailhead , some paint and decent tires show up but still not there. The next picture from '61 shows what a few more years of steady employment could do. it was "Show Time" with my now finished car and it had all the Hot Rod Mag/Calif. influence showing. This was also just the beginnings of the resto-rod craze so I was running stock tail lights, a V-8 emblem and a spare with a white cover that was the hot set up back then. The car wound up in storage for about 35 years and when I finally started to put it back together in '98, out of sentiment I restored the car back exactly the way I ran it in the early '60's so it's more of a museum piece now than a hot rod. It rides and drives like the sixties but I love it just the same High school beater What a little money can do Showtime Tulsa '61 Current version with partial hood and no spare tire and cover
Joel is, and has always been my hero. He still owns this cool roadster...one day I want a ride in it...(hint)
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