Rat Rods Off or on topic

[Don Coatney]

I dont want to hyjack another thread so I will start this one. What is a rat rod? On other forums I frequent use of the term rat rod is frowned upon but in my opinion several members of these other forums build and drive rat rods.

What rat rod means to me is a drivable vehicle that has no new paint or body restoration done. All are heavily modified usually chopped beyond safe limits and slammed lower to the ground than the law should allow. Most have exposed engines and no fenders but have both open and closed bodies. The radical ones are in my opinion built with unsafe work practices as the objective appears to be using parts from as many different vehicles including tractors, bulldozers, etc. and any other "art work" the builder can incorporaate.

Opinions????????????

[greg g]

For me a rat rod is something thrown together using stuff laying around, to make a bunch of non driving stuff driveable. A hot rod is a car built with parts collected to meet a plan, and is either built from another car as inspiration or pattern or to a plan, with well thought out performance, mechanical and safty systems, a finished interior, all glass, and could pass a reasonable safety inspection. A street rod is a check book car built primarily by some one other than the owners, their family or friends. a resto rod is a stock looking body with updated mechanicals to improve safety ad driveability.

[Norm's Coupe]

I think the term "Rat Rod" is just something someone came up with maybe in the 90's.

Actually, a rat rod is usually one that doesn't look all that great either. With that in mind, think back to the 40's, 50's and 60's. The old hot rods of the day were not spit and polish like they are today. They were just old cars people built from scrap cars into a drivable hot rod to look cool. They were either painted with a primer or not painted at all, depending on how good of a part time job the high school guy had, or how rich his parents were.

[billwillard]

It all depends on the builder. I know guys who have what they call rat rods that are built to the highest standards you will ever see. I also know of rat rods, hot rods, stock built and street rods that I don't even like standing next to for fear they will fall apart. We all have the look we like. I like them all. Thats just me. Build it right which means SAFE above all. I like cars and women and for some reason my wife won't let me have another women. Is she a poor sport or am I just lucky?

Bill

[47heaven]

Ah...a rat rod. From what I have seen, a rat rod is nothing more than a half-ass job done on a car. Kind of in between finished and unfinished (more towards unfinished). Sometimes rat rods are nothing more than customizing attempts on cars that went wrong, so the owner had to patch it and cover it up the best he could. Just my two cents.

[blueskies]

[blueskies]

[TodFitch]

"Rat rod" also seems to be a tag on eBay for any part that a hot-rodder doesn't want. But might, with the "rat rod" in the title draw a little more money selling it to someone who hasn't got a clue. Like, for example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1934-Plymouth-w-s-wiper-motors-rat-rod_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a1205Q7c66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a0Q7c293Q3a2Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem110349417300QQitemZ110349417300QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_500wt_1059

[Norm's Coupe]

"Rat rod" also seems to be a tag on eBay for any part that a hot-rodder doesn't want. But might, with the "rat rod" in the title draw a little more money selling it to someone who hasn't got a clue. Like, for example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1934-Plymouth-w-s-wiper-motors-rat-rod_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a1205Q7c66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a0Q7c293Q3a2Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem110349417300QQitemZ110349417300QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_500wt_1059

That seller must be one of Coatney's buddies. :D

[Don Coatney]

I like cars and women and for some reason my wife won't let me have another women. Is she a poor sport or am I just lucky?

Bill

How come Tim Adams has 2 wives?

"Rat rod" also seems to be a tag on eBay for any part that a hot-rodder doesn't want. But might, with the "rat rod" in the title draw a little more money selling it to someone who hasn't got a clue. Like, for example:

Looks like my neighbor is selling a few old plymouth parts and a car,

[Frank Elder]

Have wondered that myself, Don ain't tellin'!

[Plymouthy Adams]

you guys have it made..this is Valentines Day..this is costing me double...

[Andydodge]

The Rat Rod term came from the coining of the Rat Bike terminology by Easyriders magazine back in the early 70's, they used to have a featured "Rat Bike" each month as a counterpoint to the increasingly overdone show bikes that were coming into vogue. As for the term "Rat Rod", it basically was the same response to the overdone show/billet/power parked hotrods of the mid 80's onwards.......however has been taken to the utter extreme as some sort of end goal......personally I refer to them as Crap Rods........pieces of junk that give real street/hot rods a bad name........Oh and that rubbish that "back in the day" they were all primered is more crap, sure there might have been UNFINISHED cars running around with primer and such still getting built but thats not how the owners wanted them to stay, if they had a choice in the matter.

........my Oz 3 cents worth......AndyD....who has a shiney,painted,chromed,upholstered........HOTROD.......not CRAP ROD.......end of soapbox rant.

[randroid]

Gents,

Chuck Barris & Ratt Fink is what comes to my mind when I hear the expression.

-Randy

[Norm's Coupe]

you guys have it made..this is Valentines Day..this is costing me double...

Double your pleasure, double your fun, and it will always cost you double.

[Fireball]

I'll just copy my yesterdays thoughts from another topic, since I haven't change my mind.

Welcome ****, the style you are after looks just OK, but RatRod doesn't. To me those are only lazyass pieces of junk. Each to his own, but that's my opinion, I just don't find anything cool with cars that have cancer allover, barbwire fixes, dangerous welds, rotten brakes etc. just for looks and street credibility.

Patina is awesome, as is heritage and old skool, but most of the so called ratrods are just something else. Totally lacking the attitude the builder was after

[Don Coatney]

Pete;

Is this a bycycle?

[48Dodger]

I think most miss the culture behind Rat Rods. When you do your search spell it "RAT RODZ", you'll get better results. Exagerate the 50's look, get a lot of tattoos, and build an exaggerated looking hot rod. In most cases the car has sacraficed safety for the "look", not all'em though. In the early 70's, a Rat Rod was an unfinished Hot Rod...in the 80's the term broke off and the counter culture was born. BILLETPROOF is a nationaly run club which promotes the Rat Rod belief system. These are their car show rules.

" RULES

1964 and prior TRADITIONAL style rods and customs ONLY

No visible billet anything! Especially wheels!

No digital gauges

No IFS on fenderless cars

No trailered cars

No mag wheels made after the 60's

Traditional looking choppers and bobbers ONLY! (No modern West Coast Choppers, OCC style bikes)"

Everyone has an opinion, which is why there are different clubs. I went to the AUTORAMA with a date, and she couldn't understand the point of a 20,000.00 paint job, a 30,000 motor and a 15,000.00 interior on a car that had no roof. lol. Could I argue? Sure. Did I. No....lol. I'm thinking she'll love the BILLETPROOF show.

48D

http://www.ratrodz.com/index.html

http://www.billetproof.com/

http://morbid-rodz.com/

http://madratter.com/index.html

[Don Coatney]

Allen Maines is the editor of Old Skool Rods. I have had many long conversations with him about cars. The blue coupe pictured below was owned by him. In his magazine are all low budget homebuilt rods. The cars in the magazine are never called rat rods although in my opinion they are rat rods.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Don..that is not a rat rod per say...it is an example of a guy building a traditional on low budget...the rat rod willhave such things as rusted panel, chairs from out back the bowling alley, beer can tail light housings, spiders and stuff like that pasted/welded all over..fred flintstone floor pans..and the need to have tetnus shot pretty much before looking it over close...if by chance you must park next to one take precautions to have the area sprayed for tin worms so as not to infect your car...

[bobby horne]

............I noticed on ebay these "Rat rods", sell for around $10,000............I believe the term "Rat" came from "Ratty", meaning low bucks looking, ratty looking..or rag looking..

[Plymouthy Adams]

I am not so sure about the selling for 10 G's but sure a lot of asking prices hover in that area..have never seen one exchange hands...and on the HAMB...these are never sold in the magical money area as they claim..smoke and mirrors..part of the illusion (dellusion)...have seen these at many show...and in my opinion properly dispicts a car in the rat class...of course closed sedans in very poor state of repair and body condition/paint/accessories also fall into the rat class...

[Tony Cipponeri]

A buddy of mine " Fast Freddy " is a great welder and wrought iron maker. Freddy did a lot of body work on the side, he built a model A sedan a few years back in three weeks. I don't have any pictures of it but he built a frame, with NO suspension, big block chevy, about two inches offf the ground. The rear tires were inside the body ( big Slicks ) he had to radius the body for the tires. He made valve covers for it to make it look like a Hemi, He trailered it too a couple of car shows and sold it for big money. To him it was a joke. Tony C

[Normspeed]

Gents,

Chuck Barris & Ratt Fink is what comes to my mind when I hear the expression.

-Randy

Randy, George Barris built customs. Chuck did the Gong Show:D

Don C, that blue coupe seems a little above rat rod level. Not a bad little car although I think he cut off the bottom of the girlle shell in a straight line, kind of odd looking. I recall a write up on that car, and what perplexed me was, it made reference to a number of pals that parted with some nice parts (including the car!) so this guy could build it, and the article ended up with, now that it's finished, it's for sale...????? That kind of puts a damper on the share with your friends stuff.

I read Ol Skool Rodz magazine and always see something neat, like the recent Finnish 26 T named Stuart Little, powered by a sidevalve engine from a Stuart M51 tank. Run whatcha Brung!

[Normspeed]

About rat rods, I kind of chuckle that these guys sort of come off as rebels, but are really conformists down deep inside. One guy gets a tattoo, they all get tattoos...one guy bags his car, everyone rushes out for airbags...and those tractor grilles...Please make them stop! Enough already! The first one was neat, but these folks are like lemmings!