Is there any way to truly be era correct when building a rat?

335windowchevy · Jan 1, 2012

Thank you for so many awesome pieces of advice. My main reason for wanting to go fairly period correct is that I was talking to a show promoter about my plans for my car, (this guy runs a carshow and all entrants have to have approval before they are allowed to show, to make sure they are period correct) he asked me why I wasnt planning to run air ride and channeling it to the ground,(not no but heck no) I can only imagine what would happen if I had a blowout or lost an airbag at 70 in a car channeled on 15 inch wheels.
It just seem that those most bothered by billetrods still know little about true vintage rodding, and make blatent mistakes when claming something is period correct.

Im looking for the spirit of the 50s rod, but with a few of the modern conveniences of today, id like to have heat for one, a well insulated cab and a modern sound system hidden away so i can enjoy some music on a long cruise.

What I love about the ratrod in general is its hand crafted appeal, and the almost eclectic uses of home grown parts, i want a ride that has the look and lines of the fifties with the eclectic touches or rat culture.

I will be buying those books, for more of a reference to get the look im going for, but i plan to keep with hotrod tradition of bucking the system and building it my way.

Flipper_1938 · Jan 1, 2012

daddy crab said:
keep it simple no billet almm, no billet rims and pre 1965 all should go well!!![ddev

No billet wheels?

hotrodbill · Jan 1, 2012

The problem I have is what so many people seem to think is "traditional".

I constantly see "traditional" applied to, what I call, Magazine Cars.
The cars you would have seen in magazines of that era.

While the cars that Gene Winfield, George Barris, Bill Hines, Larry Watson, Ed Roth and the likes are really great cars, I do not think they are representative of what the Average Joe was building at the time.

They do not represent that era any more than what Boyd Coddington built represented the 1990's. It seems to me people take the Magazine Cars as the blueprint for what everyone was building, when in reality they were simply inovators that showcased new and exciting designs.

I would have to recommend the book, Tex Smiths Roaring Roadsters. It is chock full of pictures of TRUE era built race cars and hot rods. They are truly home built hot rods, very scary contraptions, and a hodge podge of junk parts. Some are obviously unsafe death traps, with barrel hoops for roll bars, frames made of rickety scraps, and bumpers made of boards or 1" tubing.

Consider this....they did not have Plasma Torches, angle grinder cut-off wheels, hand held band saws, MIG or TIG welders, or a lot of other tools that we take for granted. In my opinion, to build a true "period correct car, you should have to use "period correct tools" like oxy-acetelyne and arc welders, and "period correct materials" like Laquer paint and lead fillers.

bob w · Jan 1, 2012

I built this '31 Model A pickup in 1959 so it is "period correct". 303 Olds out of a friend's '50 Olds. Made the trans adapter out of a flame cut piece of 1/2" steel plate. 1935 Ford trans that previously was in my 1935 Ford, 1948 Ford front and rear axle. Copper spray painted firewall and eventually a black lacquer spray can job on the body. I first installed a flathead, then the Olds and finally a 265 small block Chevy. It rode terrible, wandered all over the road and rattled terribly. But it looked great parked at the local root beer stand.
Obviously, it was built with "period correct" tools, and not many of them, even.
Older guys with more money did better than this in the mid 50's.

Sam_Fear · Jan 1, 2012

Cool picture Bob!

busteddrum · Jan 2, 2012

I think you should build whatever trips your trigger and then find the shows/clubs/forums that support your vision, if you want support. To hell with everybody else. Some of your ideas that suit you will not be supported by the most vocal adherents to "tradition" so be prepared.