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Hot Rodding is Dead, again, but not really?

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  • #16
    My observation based on personal experience:

    When I'm at the track in the staging lanes I drive forward to the next waiting position (it often takes a while to move thru the lanes) I stop, hop out of Mutt, pop the hood and wait for interested people to show up - it doesn't take long. EVERYBODY wants to see what's under the hood of an S-10 with a Mercedes Tri-Star on the tailgate and rattly, Diesel noises coming from under the hood. I often get more lookers than some of the high-buck 200 MPH+ rides. My guess is that people are particularly interested in a home-made project with an interesting combination of parts and pieces.

    Mutt will likely never make a magazine but my point is, regardless of that, there's a LOT of interest out there in the real world for guys doing interesting builds in their home shops. I'll bet Squirrel gets a lot of that same attention at the events he attends (I know his cars are the ones I'd be checking out) so yea, hot rodding lives but it lives outside of the mainstream media.

    I realize I AM an old fart but I see some of the kids expressing interest and I'm cheered by that.

    Dan
    Last edited by DanStokes; March 16, 2019, 08:06 AM.

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    • #17
      the Zip Tie Drags are fun...I've been to 4 of them. Really neat stuff shows up.
      My fabulous web page

      "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

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      • #18
        Aside from the ink Mr. Forbes got in Hot Rod, this is one of the last true home built articles Hot Rod has printed in my opinion...



        Hot Rod and other rags have catered to the check book writers club for a while, and 6-7 figure builds have become commonplace. I used to look forward to the 'Hot Rod To The Rescue' articles, but for some reason they've done away with that. Marlon Davis still prints good info, I hope he sticks around. On a side note.. The thing that gets me is how they try to keep subscribers. They sent me a renewal 2yrs for $29.95, 3yrs for $39.95 with $5 off of each with online renewal. If you pull the subscription card out of the magazine itself and get 2yrs for $20, and 3yrs for $30 if you sign up online. Do they think people are that dumb? (That's a dumb question I guess!)

        I don't rely on magazines for builds anymore, I come here. The guys on this forum build far cooler stuff than any magazine will ever print.

        You get threads like... (to name a few)

        Barry's 300+k mile daily driver Chevy truck, and the improvements and maintenance he does to keep it going.
        STINEY's kids 78 Turbo Regal. I'm still tryin to figure out where he found one that still has rear frame rails and a running Turbo V6!
        langleylad's Cougar build, that cars gonna be badass when it's done.
        MP&C's 55 wagon and all of the metal working knowledge he shares.
        Pretty much anything Aaron, Loren, and Squirrel build...

        When magazines stop printing realistic average Joe builds then the average Joe goes elsewhere to showcase his wares. That's where places like Bangshift come in. The guys on this forum are true hot rodders. I just hope Lohnes & Reynolds don't sell this place to the check writers guild.


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        • #19
          Originally posted by tardis454 View Post
          Aside from the ink Mr. Forbes got in Hot Rod, this is one of the last true home built articles Hot Rod has printed in my opinion...



          Hot Rod and other rags have catered to the check book writers club for a while, and 6-7 figure builds have become commonplace. I used to look forward to the 'Hot Rod To The Rescue' articles, but for some reason they've done away with that. Marlon Davis still prints good info, I hope he sticks around. On a side note.. The thing that gets me is how they try to keep subscribers. They sent me a renewal 2yrs for $29.95, 3yrs for $39.95 with $5 off of each with online renewal. If you pull the subscription card out of the magazine itself and get 2yrs for $20, and 3yrs for $30 if you sign up online. Do they think people are that dumb? (That's a dumb question I guess!)

          I don't rely on magazines for builds anymore, I come here. The guys on this forum build far cooler stuff than any magazine will ever print.

          You get threads like... (to name a few)

          Barry's 300+k mile daily driver Chevy truck, and the improvements and maintenance he does to keep it going.
          STINEY's kids 78 Turbo Regal. I'm still tryin to figure out where he found one that still has rear frame rails and a running Turbo V6!
          langleylad's Cougar build, that cars gonna be badass when it's done.
          MP&C's 55 wagon and all of the metal working knowledge he shares.
          Pretty much anything Aaron, Loren, and Squirrel build...

          When magazines stop printing realistic average Joe builds then the average Joe goes elsewhere to showcase his wares. That's where places like Bangshift come in. The guys on this forum are true hot rodders. I just hope Lohnes & Reynolds don't sell this place to the check writers guild.

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          • #20
            I really like to go to the annual TorueFest... It shows that Hot Rodding is alive and well! Check it out! http://vintagetorquefest.com/
            Patrick & Tammy
            - Long Haulin' 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014...Addicting isn't it...??

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            • #21
              Originally posted by silver_bullet View Post
              I really like to go to the annual TorueFest... It shows that Hot Rodding is alive and well! Check it out! http://vintagetorquefest.com/
              That's an hour and half away, and I never knew it existed. I'm going to try to make it this year. Thanks!
              I'm probably wrong

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              • #22
                keep in touch,,, they have agood swap meet as well... it's rain or shine, so be prepared...
                Patrick & Tammy
                - Long Haulin' 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014...Addicting isn't it...??

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                • #23
                  I've got one last build left in me but I'd better be getting on it
                  Thom

                  "The object is to keep your balls on the table and knock everybody else's off..."

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                  • #24
                    Originally posted by squirrel View Post
                    It sure ain't like it used to be. But you can still do things the way we've always done them, if you want.
                    Sort of . . . An increasing amount of that "traditional" stuff takes a huge budget these days. Some stuff, such as stripping down and non-composite weight reduction, is still cheap. Low-performance stuff is still pretty cheap. Homebuilt dragsters are still somewhat affordable if you do all your own fabrication and resist adding a lot of non-stock "period correct" parts.

                    If you blow off the ridiculous strictures of "period correct," there's still some commodity-priced parts that can be used on pre-emission antiques in a quasi-traditional style. And late-model un-traditional engines are still way cheap.

                    If you live in a place where big brother isn't sniffing around under the hood (still a little freedom left in a few corners of America), you can build a "dirty bomb" late model for reasonable money . . . but emission compliance is not cheap.

                    The costs go down, also, if you're willing to risk building on an unpopular platform.

                    "Traditionalists" sure aren't getting much out of a junkyard now.
                    Last edited by Gateclyve Photographic; March 18, 2019, 08:14 AM.

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                    • #25
                      The strictures of "period correct" are not ridiculous. They are just part of a different niche than most folks are into.

                      Yup, not much old stuff is available in junkyards in many places.

                      But you can still have a lot of fun for cheap, if you want. There are lots of pre-emissions cars available to play with, for not much money. As you say, you have to accept that it won't be what most folks are into. Which is also fine, because what most folks are into is getting pretty damn boring.

                      My fabulous web page

                      "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

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                      • #26
                        Originally posted by squirrel View Post
                        The strictures of "period correct" are not ridiculous. They are just part of a different niche than most folks are into.
                        Paying Coker $500 for a "period correct" tire or $3,000 for an obsolete intake or $1,500 for a set of carbs when newer, cheaper non-period-correct stuff performs better is as ridiculous as a one's wife or GF wearing a pair of Manolo Blahniks to the county fair . . . . High style? Sure. But not really a great bang for the buck and often less than practical.

                        To be sure, it's fun to see re-enactors do that. But that doesn't detract from the ridiculousness and impracticality of it for most ordinary joes. And the well[-heeled "period correct" shouldn't be looking down their snooty "traditional" noses at those who make the scene in late-model machines, IMHO . . . .


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                        • #27
                          Paying $80k for a new Dodge so you can go almost as fast as a home built, mostly period correct Chevy II built for under $20k is ridiculous. But it's still a lot of fun, and I'm sure glad there are so many folks willing to step up and do it. Have you priced Hellcat tires lately?

                          My fabulous web page

                          "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

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                          • #28
                            If you valued labor at market rates, that Chevy would cost a lot more than $20K

                            Also, most guys don't have a supercharger set-up just laying around, so that's $3K just for the base kit for an ordinary, average guy. http://dyersblowers.com/1694.html

                            Hellcat versus homebuilt is a false dichotomy anyhow. Lots of stuff in the middle.
                            Last edited by Gateclyve Photographic; March 18, 2019, 09:32 AM.

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                            • #29
                              I can appreciate what they do. It’s not what I’m into at this moment, but I appreciate it. There is going to be jerks in any scene, Harley, sport bikes, ricers, hot rods. It’s not the scene it’s Some of them are jerks. I’m not that uptight or stringent about things... if it’s cool or fast then it’s ok by me. Life’s too short, don’t worry about “them” have fun and make yourself happy.

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                              • #30
                                Originally posted by Gateclyve Photographic View Post
                                Hellcat versus homebuilt is a false dichotomy anyhow. Lots of stuff in the middle.
                                yes, you're the expert at presenting the false dichotomy

                                I spent 150 for an old intake, and 150 apiece for Coker tires.

                                My fabulous web page

                                "If it don't go, chrome it!" --Stroker McGurk

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