Thread: So That's a Traditional Hot Rod????

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While strolling through Google links to Traditional Hot Rods, I found this definition;

"A traditional hot rod is put together to look like it was built (or could have been built) decades ago, by using as many parts as possible that were made no later than the Fifties or the Sixties at the latest."

I believe most of us would agree that this would probably be an acceptable definition. As with most things gone modern, this definition has been cast aside in favor of what others choose to define as traditional. There are exceptions, a few of the rides in Uncle Bob's stable are IMO truly traditional rods, done by someone who was actually alive and breathing during that era. Congrats, Bob, you got it right!!!!!

Now I'm seeing "traditional" rods with EFI, 4 wheel disc brakes, automatic overdrive transmissions, radial tires, 15 gadzillion watt stereo's, remote entry, digital dash, on and on ad nauseum. The definition has become obscured to say the least, and probably just used as an attention getter when describing the car whether there is anything "traditional" about the car at all!!!!!

Other things I've noticed on a lot of "traditional" cars is that no matter what it has for equipment and accessories, if it's in primer or some of the hi dollar lo luster paint than it's "traditional". What many seem to use the low luster paint for is to try to hide the fact that there body work is lousy!!!!! Nothing fits, sanding scratches everywhere, disproportionate body mods, you name it---under that "tradtional" patina is some really poorly hammered sheetmetal, in in some cases very low quality 'glass work!!!!

I'm afraid that to the discredit of some very fine traditional rods, the word traditional has become a classification cars fall into when the builder didn't have the time, patience, money, skill, or all of the above to complete the car in the way he wanted it to be so he just through it together quick as possible so he could drive it! Heck, those aren't imperfections, poor planning, or rookie mistakes, it's a TRADTITIONAL HOT ROD!!!!!! Just ask the owner, he'll tell ya excatly how things were back then and how they are just like that on his car, even though he's only 25 years old and the only traditional Hot Rod he ever saw was in American Graffiti!!!!

A know of many very fine, pristine, traditional rods, a dozen or so of them are pictured right here in the CHR Galleries. Just don't try to convince me that that poorly planned, ill conceived, ill fitting, out of proportion, flat black painted atrocious looking POS is a Traditional Rod, cuz it ain't!!!!

Soapbox back in the corner, done with my annual rant concerning the State of Hot Rodding.....

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Heck, those aren't imperfections, poor planning, or rookie mistakes, it's a TRADTITIONAL HOT ROD!!!!!! Just ask the owner, he'll tell ya excatly how things were back then and how they are just like that on his car, even though he's only 25 years old and the only traditional Hot Rod he ever saw was in American Graffiti!!!!

Seems to me that you just described a lot of the HAMBers....

Mike

Amen,brother Dave..No,sir,not being smart..Have seen/heard these arguments before,,all true..I look at some of these well built rods,with EFI,etc..and think..''Well.thats traditional...yup,traditional late 90s...
I know what you mean,Dave..I have had older guys tell me that the reason why they drove them around in primer,is because,usually it was their only car,,and like many of us,drove them while we modified them,and saved the money for parts,paint etc..
I,too,am sick of hearing a lot of these young guys saying that the ugly knock kneed ground scraper they are building is traditional..Yeah right..

Well said Dave. I'd agree with your statements too! I always "struggle" with classifications. And the use of "traditional" seems to be the new "rat". I guess Rat is no longer in vogue and traditional is the term to use now. I also don't understand flattened paint.. just a personal hangup I guess..

Originally Posted by 34_40

Well said Dave. I'd agree with your statements too! I always "struggle" with classifications. And the use of "traditional" seems to be the new "rat". I guess Rat is no longer in vogue and traditional is the term to use now. I also don't understand flattened paint.. just a personal hangup I guess..

My cars don't get classified, they're just my cars!!!!! Same classification all of mine have had since my first build.

i do not classify my car as a hotrod or muscle car. i just call it a badass car.

Second Amen for brother Dave..........
Disclaimer: The opinion stated below is my opinion, and just that an opinion, it doesn't reflect the opinion of the majority, it is probably not a popular opinion, but it is just that MY OPINION ONLY.

OK with the legal stuff out of the way, I think it's funny how "Traditional" has morphed into some text eze catchall of hot rods and customs. Traditional and 60's in the same sentence, to me, is contradictory. And then you have the one's that have to have pre 64 air in the tires to be traditional, but they get on ebay buy parts, fire up the plasma cutter, and have parts cut with a water jet......... My and only my def of traditional hot rod. Again please refer to above legal disclaimer.

1) Pre 1950 build. I'm talking the pre and post war roadsters and coupes. The first generation of hot rods. Everything else is a copy. Not a bad thing, but not the real deal just the same. I don't care if all parts are pre 1950, if it's built now it's a fake.
2) Flathead, or hopped up banger. OHV's were not in production until Caddie introduced OHV in 1949, and it would have taken a year or two for even the guys with some bucks to find those in wrecking yards.
3) Traditional = first generation hot rod or custom. NOT a way of building a vehicle. Just because you found a bunch of crap for free, did it under a tree in you grandmothers back yard, and painted it with red oxide primer with a bug sprayer, doesn't make that pacer "Traditional". Just an ugly POS with a bad red oxide primer paint job.
4) Rust does not = patina. In fact patina is just a fancy French word "Shi#"
5) Kookie Kar. I love Norms bucket. NOT Traditional! Cool but not Traditional.
6) Hot Rods were built to go fast. PERIOD! Even the roof chops on the street were just copies of lakes cars. Very cool but just coping a look of real hot rods. Everything done was to go faster. It wasn't a look it was practical. No fenders or running boards, hoods, heaters, radios, ='s less weight = faster. Chopped roofs = less wind drag = faster. It wasn't about cruising to the drive-in picking up skirts and hanging with your buddies. It was about going faster than you ever had before, about beating and going faster than the next guy, all the other guys.
7) If it's 2" of the ground it ain't traditional. Look at the little books. Only a few lakes car were low. If it was run on the street it wasn't. Bad roads and local laws, targeting punks "Hot Rodders" kept them off the ground. There were a few exceptions in the magazines, but very few.
8) And my biggest peeve. "Period Correct". gotta have all the perfect parts, but still not built like the period. Now despite that alot of the cars in the magazines back then were not put together perfect. IE welds, hand cut brackets and such. I wouldn't want anything unsafe. But I would like to see someone build a "period correct" hot rod exactly the way it would have been in 1950. With the same materials, and tools. No flame cut, plasma cut, water jetted, MIG welded, tig welded, cnc machined, and so on parts. Then that would impress me. And no damed computer and evil bay........

Whew........... Well now thats out of my system for the moment I want to say I am not knocking anyones ride. Built now or then. I even see some very cool and safe rat's. I guess what irritates me are the people that have to put a classification on a hot rod for example. A definition such as "Traditional" but then twist and warp that definition into what they feel fits, and then knock the ones that don't. And of course most of the ones so crazy about traditional are alot younger than I am. And I Ain't old enough to have been around anything "Traditional" even as a kid. You have to be 70+ years old to really know.

And not to start another rant........... but have you noticed the abundant barn finds, been in a barn or shed since 1964, but have a dirty set of ball milled valve covers on a sbc..............................

I love old cars and don't care what classification they are. I will admit that I go against the grain and often put my own little touch on something and don't care what others think. As an example, who in their right mind would put AMC power in a 55 Chevy? I know I am going to tick people off, the car is going to be way different than the average car out there, but it is mine and I am going to enjoy it. I have a 40 Nash and an 80 Spirit that I have modified or will be rodding. I use the term rodding for the Nash because it is older and even though I don't call it a hot rod, I do use the term rod because it is nowhere close to being stock. It has suspension from a late 70s Camaro and the motor is about a 74. Definitely not the type of stuff available for hot rods. There are so many labels for these cars that I don't even know what years and the types of modifications are allowed in them. There are hot rods, rods, customs and Kustoms (do these two words describe the car?), muscle car, street machine, rat rod and there are probably others that I have forgotten. I would say my Nash is a rod because of the age, but some may consider it a restomod because I am using newer components but they are all still over 30 years old. Not sure on the age for restomod parts. I think my Spirit would be a street machine because I dropped a v8 in it and its an 80. But the back end is jacked up like my Javelin was when I was in high school back in the 80s. Does that kick it into a different classification? Who cares. And the Chevy is going to be my rat rod, but I have a different understanding of rat rod than a lot of people. I think rats should be safe and there are a bunch out there that I am afraid to just sit in. If they have primer, I don't care. Same goes for the rust patina. But mine is going to actually have paint. I am also hammering out the dents because I do want it to be as smooth as possible. I am going to fix the roll bar because in a number of places, only half of the bars are welded. I can't believe it was allowed to race, but times were different then. The bottom line is people have different understandings of what the different classifications for cars mean. For me, the easiest classification of my cars is "mine" and I'll just keep enjoying my play time.

i have said this before and will do it again now.
i have no metal working skills or money
so by todays nomenclature i guess it would be called a ratrod
i dont know how fast it goes (fast enough to make me nervous)
it isnt traditional
and it aint pretty
but i achieved my goal of owning a car that is by far the most fun i can have with my pants on.
mission accomplished!

PS
hey dave.
dont hit me cuz my car is ugly!

I make no claim at my car being "Traditional". Sure, there are some "traditional" features, like the dropped I-beam front axle and transverse spring, but then it is all chrome, bling and polish. Then there's my choice of EFI vs carb - non-traditional for sure, but I've truly come to love the ability to tweak curves for fuel, spark, dwell (my latest success ), and cold start parameters. Add in that the body is 'glass and the case is slam dunk closed. Traditional?? Nope, not even close but I wouldn't have it any other way, and I love driving it and messing around with it in general.

Originally Posted by billy zz

PS
hey dave.
dont hit me cuz my car is ugly!

Ugly and lacking paint I can deal with, especially on a works in progress car. It's the guys who try to convince me that it's how they all used to look 'back in the day' that gives me grief!!! Ain't nothing ugly about your's anyway, just need to keep tweaking on it til you get it where you like it...

Now I'm disillusioned I thought I had built a trad rod, but with disc brakes on all 4 corners (safety), an OHV with auto transmission (OMG, not a flattie with a '39 floor shift), seat belts and gasp, windshield wipers(more safety), a drive shaft loop (I hate pogo sticks). Then there are the halogen headlights and LED park and brake lights, complete with, get this, d-i-r-e-c-t-i-o-n-a-l signals and a 3rd brake light. Then, just for giggles, tilt steering column, stereo w/mP3, a heater (WHAT - critter comfort?)

What I'm trying to say is that I really dislike labels when applied to my car. It was built for me and mostly by me for what I wanted it to do and to do pretty well. I'm constantly trying to find improvements in what I want - and yes, I do want it shiny. I really dislike some of that rusty conglomeration of discordant parts that many call a 'rat rod'. Now, rat rod is another term I dislike as for many, not all, it means that they can throw any part on any chassis and build a car. All the more power to them, but with the exception of some folks 'wondrous gaze', not really sure who they impress. Now, a properly 'executed' {rat} rod, using decent parts that flow together look fine - but for sure, I wouldn't want mine called a rat rod.

If you have a chance, take a look at what Hot Rod has featured on their cover this month - ever wonder how the 'premier' rod rag went to hell.

Thanks Dave S. We need a good controversial subject to occasionally warm the joint up a wee bit

i have been looking all over for a tiny heater/ac combo
and once it is insulated i have every intention of having tunes as well.
as far as rust goes.
it doesnt on my cars.
i broke my back getting rid of what some refer to as patina.

Oh mann, I just got downgraded to a streetrod from a hot rod.......

Sorry guys, its all I can afford anymore, no digital gauges here, tube axle, almost shiny black paint, no sanding marks, (some body work to be redone from my earlier days ) two pieces of billet ( pulleys ) all done in my dimmley lit garage at nite while trying to raise a family and put the kids thru college, I would`nt have traded the memories for anything....drive as you build it..creates a lot of memories.