Boy do i have a story about that... Bombs.... I think NICE not guady Chevy. Dont be a dick to cultures you care not to understand.
Hispanic is used in reference to being of historical/cultural relation to Spain. Nothing to do with ownership.
An old dude I knew 20 years ago who was at that time in his late 70's told be a Bomb back when he was a young man, was any cut up modified hot rod! Cuz they always sounded like they were going to blow up! (open pipes)
Here in NM there are a lot of the bombas. Here is my list of characteristics for the style: Typically a Chevy 37-54 (a 39 four door really is the top desired it seems), lowered but with stock wheels (not the small wires!), beautiful one color paint job (the 49-54 can have different color roof sometimes), inline six with split manifold, as many orig GM accessories as possible (not imported gookwagon junk), custom interior but with stock seating, more shiny chrome stuff is better, and extra lights on front (turn, fog, driving, etc). The car can be another GM make, but not really any Ford or Mopar. The 49-54 aerosedans are popular for post war type cars. The pre-54 GM pickups can also be built into the style. Lately been seeing and hearing a lot with big loud sirens under the fender or engine compartment. Artillery wheels are high fashion for a bomba. A four door is not looked down on. Last and not least is the guys spend a lot of time and effort to build the cars and they do have a lot of pride in their vehicles. Most like hot rods and other stuff as well, but not musclecars so much. Above based on my observations and talking with the guys at shows around here.
When I was a kid ( 16 or 17 ) on a Friday night we used to say, " let's go bomb the ave. " which meant to cruise up and down Wisconsin Avenue in Milwaukee. Or we'd say " let's just bomb around tonight ". I had a 57 Chevy with a 348 and 4-speed, my cousin had a 36 Chevy coupe with no fenders and my best friend had a 62 409 Chevy. We all refered to our cars as our bombs. That was in the early to mid 60s. We had no knowledge of where we got the term from but we just called anything that was hot rodded a " bomb ". I think the term has evolved into the cool very well done cars that have been described and shown earlier in this thread. Maybe these cars were called bombs in the 40s and 50s and if that's the case I'd like to thank whoever started it because we sure had some fun in the 60s just " bombing around ".
My own 47 Stylemaster is probably bomb material. So I initially did some looking around online about the term. To be honest, those guys' workmanship looks pretty awesome. My own ride is probably going down the bomb road somewhat. Not out of any real preplanned objective...right now I don't have the dosh to totally hotrod it out, so it's financially sensible to try and use what original parts that came with the car when I bought it. That's not to say in a few years I won't throw in a big ass engine, upgrade the suspension and brakes to handle the extra power, etc. But for now, the project is kinda just going in an organic development curve. People are too anal about trying to shove cars into pigeonholes and in the process are acting like arrogant aholes. There seems to be a lot of cross pollenation between the car genres. Some rides *do* fit snugly into a pigeonhole, but a lot don't. Ain't nothing wrong with that. I'm happy to respect and admire any guy that merely has a love of old vehicles regardless of their particular flavor preference.
Wow, this thread sure is getting off track. The link below will take you to perhaps the finest thread on bombs (as they are generally regarded here I believe) on the Internet. To use a well worn cliche, the search function is your friend. Now play nice Paul http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=231936
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=443764 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=231936 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=357818 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=139 Took me 5 seconds to find these threads...why is the same crap brought up over and over and over again...use your search function! Seriously!
bombs are basically traditional lowriders. because when you say "lowrider" now a days, people think of a caprice with hydraulics!!!
__________________________ A car that was a big car was called a "bomb or bomber." It was a phrase used not just in hot rodding, but an expressions used by everybody. If the car ran into you, it could do some damage. Also, the expression arrived from the WWII generation, as in " bombers ". " A Hot Rod that is unsafe is junk, simple as that. "
Yes, but even the so-called "traditional" lowriders are not so "traditional". My Dad was a Pachuco living in East L.A. in the early 40s until he went off to WWII and he told me that most guys didn't have a car and if they did, it was usually a Model A jalopy. My Dad was one of the very few to have a "nice" car. He had a job so he was able to buy a 34 Ford. Guys were jealous and were always trying to jack it up. My cousin on my Dad's side was a lowrider in the 50s and by then, Chevys becoming the car of choice for lowriders. He told me that back then, guys wanted their cars as clean as possible. In other words, they didn't load up on accessories like they do today. It was the opposite. The less stuff on the car the better. My 2 brothers started driving in the mid 60s and by then, those cars from the 30s and 40s were passe. They wanted newer cars, 55 and up. The newer the better and the basics were chrome reverse rims and those 3 spoke steering wheels. So getting to what's a bomb, well in today's terms, it's a Chevy lowrider, year 36 to 54 that's loaded up with accessories which are from the 30s,40s,and 50s but not traditional in the sense that guys didn't load up their cars with all that stuff back then. Of course there may have been a few cars that were loaded with accessories but that would be like loading up your car today with all kinds of stuff. There are a few but they look funny right? No different then.
Here is a car I rescued and woke up after it sat for 25 years. Sold it to a nice gentleman named Santos. He bought it to fix up for his 70 year old father's birthday. He wanted the car because it is a Powerglide car and his father had his left leg amputated due to diabetes. Its not my style nor the traditional HAMB style car but he did a very respectable job in the style of his choice. I was impressed with the work he did in a little over a year to the car. I'd think this could be called a bomb possibly?
Definitions of words change with the times and with Cultures. Every Culture uses language as it sees fit to represent its feelings, way of life and so on. I've become educated on what the term Bomb means to so many different people. As for the Chicano culture in my little nucleus called Southern California......Bombs, Bomb, Bomba are treasured and highly admired for the nostalgia of the 40s they emit. Chevrolets that literally do look like Bombs due to the curvaceous lines they have, add the dual exhaust with split manifold or fentons and they crackle,rap and pop like no other. A unique sound that puts a smile on most people's faces. I feel blessed to own a piece of automotive American History that never ceases in putting smiles on peoples faces when I go out cruising. Ohh.....and as for me.....the Bomba emits the romanticism related to the Pachuco era. I'll go out a ledge and bet that most Chicanos that own Bombas would feel something similar.
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