Were there Rats "back in the day"?

[Ol Blue]

In the '60s, I remember a '40s Ford pickup with the frame and bed chopped off right behind the rear axle and the front half of the leaf springs used as trailing arms for a coil spring suspension, fenderless all around. By today's standards, a Rat Rod. If you read the HAMB, all cars from back when were built to high standards and were finished off with all "correct" hot rod parts. Anybody else know of any Rats from back in the day?

 

[Sam_Fear]

I was just a babe 'back in the day' so I can't help ya there. Though I have seen plenty of old pics that sure looked like what we'd call a rat today. Check out Greg@RME's new find - it's a 53 sedan that had a PU bed slammed into it. That's old school stuff there.

According to the HAMB, all ratrods are shoddy built deathtraps.

Oh yeah, missed your intro - welcome to RRR from Davenport IA!

 

[Ol Blue]

I was just a babe 'back in the day' so I can't help ya there. Though I have seen plenty of old pics that sure looked like what we'd call a rat today. Check out Greg@RME's new find - it's a 53 sedan that had a PU bed slammed into it. That's old school stuff there.

According to the HAMB, all ratrods are shoddy built deathtraps.

Oh yeah, missed your intro - welcome to RRR from Davenport IA!

Thanks for the welcome. When I was a kid, the neighbors had a truck like Greg's. A couple years older, I think, and 2 door based. All finished off with decent paint. The neighbor's son used to drive it in their pasture as a pre-teen. I never thought of it as a rod or custom because they just used it as a truck.

Gary

 

[Reverend D]

I think 'rat' is our term, not their's. Back then it was often called necessity. Say you're in BFegypt Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, etc etc and you need a truck. Your funds are like most of ours these days. You look out in the yard and there's a old sedan, or station wagon. In the next town some 50 miles away you could buy a old truck for 20.00 probably but that may as well have been 1,000 today. So you pulled the sedan or wagon into the garage or under a shadetree (ahem, where ya think that term came from?) and torched, hack sawed, chiseled the roof off, used some wood or a old tractor part or whatever to make it happen. Voila, you had something you could go fetch grain or feed or seed, hay whatever from the general store back to the farm. I saw many many examples of these sort of cars in the Sacramento valley area as late as the early 60's when I was just a little kid. The same sort of thing could be found anywhere there were farms or agricultural area's I'm sure.
Is that the only possibility, well of course not, but it does explain a lot of those sorts of cars. In some cases, sure it was a gearhead that got a hold of something and used whatever he could get his hands on to make it into something cool and what he wanted to drive. But I'd bet they just called them my 'Rod' or 'Hot Rod'. I don't think I even heard the word RAT associated with Rods until maybe the last 10-15 years I bet. And I'm not a stranger to cars or bikes been around them my whole life (52 currently). That's just my opinion of course, and others may have heard the word used earlier and in different places, I've always been on the west coast until 8 years ago when I moved to Arizona. I've visited elsewhere but not lived back east at all so my experience is just what I know about the west coast scene and my personal experiences. YMMV.

Regards,

Rev. D.

 

[PA41]

AS a kid in the mid 60s I remember 2 cars that'd be what we call rats today-- A rusted out, pink and black 4 door, 55Desoto that a bunch of us put together for about $50, using a 392 Chrysler Hemi, as a party car & to mess with 396 Chevells. (Ran heads up with them) Tranny went out pretty quick and we gave it to a JY.

Then there was a rusted out Ford A Roadster with a 401 Nailhead with 10" cheater slicks that was a dominant street racer. It wasn't thought of in a good way by many--not at all the style of the time. We were all Muscle car wannabes.. Ts As, Flatheads were all considered landfill material. You were not at all 'cool' if ya drove a jalopy. Performance was good, but 'style' ruled overall. About the same as kids today..

PA41.

 

[eyesore]

If you read the HAMB, all cars from back when were built to high standards and were finished off with all "correct" hot rod parts. Anybody else know of any Rats from back in the day?

That is total BS! Back in the day ratty cars were call jalopy's. All cars were never built to high standards and finished off with "correct" parts. Just like today, some people had plenty of money and some people didn't. Some people, including me, drove around in primer for years and never could afford a paint job and what are "correct" parts. That is exactly what is wrong with the hamb, so many of those guys weren't even alive back then but are now "experts".

Sorry for the rant!

ISore

 

[timbo]

Werent there nice painted/finshed HotRods and the primered unfinshed Jalopys? A lot of guys didnt have the funds to build a $$$ car so they did what they could afford, pull the fenders, no paint, tractor grill and seat,kind of like the rat rod of today but some take it too far. My dad bought his 35 Ford truck in the early 60s and it was sitting on a 40 Ford frame, sectioned about 13 inches and the bed was shortned a couple of feet. He said it was built in the 50s so I guess it was a Jalopy then. It now sits on a new frame for a 35 truck (the 40 frame was rusty and too far gone to repair) and has a new stock leanth bed.
Tim

 

[R Pope]

In 1962, my older brother was driving a '29 Essex chopped into a pickup with a wooden box, sitting on '33 Chev rails, with a 302 Jimmy 6 and wire wheels. We didn't call it a rat, we just called it junk!

 

[hotrod preacher]

one of dad's hotrods would be considered a rat in todays world for sure.....

back in 65 dad came home from his stint w/uncle sam and took a pile of leftovers and built a 47 ford pick-up with beat up raggedity fenders welded(?) with a coathanger, no tailgate to hold the bedsides straight and they flopped, no real seat/seatcover, "shopbuilt wheels" (ford 16" centers with a 14" buick/olds rim so he could run cheap recaps that were wider) and a 57 chevy powerpack 283/3spd for power.......and 4 std trans flywheels welded to the frame under the bed behind the rear wheels for "traction assistance"

i loved hearing stories of this thing when i was a kid, so i tried to make a similar truck -maybe a little better- with my 46......

 

[donsrods]

The only nicely finished cars I got to see in the 50's were the ones in magazines that featured hot rods from California. The ones in my neck of the woods (Pennsylvania) were mostly primered 50 Fords and ones like that.

We didn't have the money or the shops that did custom work like guys on the West Coast so most of our creations were what we would call ratty today. There might have been a few nice ones around but ours were welded up with torches using coat hangers for welding rods, parts scrounged off of wrecks at the local junkyard, and lots of homemade pieces.

The first finished hot rod I ever saw in my life was a beautiful 32 Ford coupe that had migrated from California to Pa, and it was amazing. Every nut and bolt on the car was chromed as were all the other parts like the motor mounts, starter, etc. I never knew a person could turn out a car of that caliber.

No, there might have been a few guys striving to perfect their cars, but by todays standards they were pretty rough and crude where I lived.


Don

 

[Shea Laking]

In 1962, my older brother was driving a '29 Essex chopped into a pickup with a wooden box, sitting on '33 Chev rails, with a 302 Jimmy 6 and wire wheels. We didn't call it a rat, we just called it junk!

I've seen pics/articles on the 'Net of one from the Canadian Prairies that sounds alot like this one...But maybe a little better finished?[S Can't remember who built it, "think" he was the owner/operator of a Texaco station "way beck when." Most recent photos I've seen of it were on Alan Gingles' website...The car I'm thinking of is bright red with black fenders.

Maybe we should call rats "necessity rods." Who can afford fiberglas?

Regards,
Shea

 

[workin class]

there is all kinds of history rewriting going on on the H.a.m.b. If you want as true picture of the past as we can get when DONT just look at the feature cars in the old magazines. Pay attention to the Readers Rides thats the real history as the readers cars out numbered the feature type cars 10 to one.

 

[Gregster]

I am PROUD of my car no matter who wants to turn their nose up at it , it's usually a guy at a cruise in parked next me with a $70k car , That no one is looking at !

 

[bob w]

Since I built my first Hot Rod (we didn't call them hot rods then) in 1958, I can speak about this subject for that time frame, in my area.

We all built our cars as well as we were able, given the skills, tools and money each indivudual had. Yes, many rods were "ratty", but generally, it was the best the kid and his friends could do. Most of the older guys that had full time jobs had nice paint and custom interiors.

The intention for us teenagers always was to finish the car with bodywork, paint and an interior. However, most of us didn't earn enough money to pull that off. So kids in my economic level (broke) rode around with rust holes, primer spots and army blanket seat covers. We also used rerefined oil and bought used tires.

When drag racing became popular in the mid-late 50's, for many kids going fast became primary and appearance took a lesser role. For that group given the choice of more speed versus a better appearance, speed won out. Of course, the guys with a few more bucks had both speed and good looks. Groups of guys formed teams in order to pay the bills for a good looking, fast drag race rod.

In my area there were no Rat Rods, just "unfinished" rods, most of which would never recieve pro bodywork, paint or a custom interior.

 

[workin class]

when I was growing up in the 70s up they were called beaters and were a large part of the Street rod movement. They were accepted and included by most.

 

[R Pope]

My brother found a can of silver paint and a brush and gave the Essex a few coats of silver. The wheels were red, of course! Locals called it the "Silver Streak" after that, even though it wasn't a Pontiac. Had a lot of fun in that old crate, though we seldom went to town in it, too much hassle from the Queen's Cowboys.

 

[Blue Eyed Devil]

We all built our cars as well as we were able, given the skills, tools and money each indivudual had. Yes, many rods were "ratty", but generally, it was the best the kid and his friends could do.

I think that hits the nail on the head right there, and it is where a lot of newbies lose their way. The goal was to always do the best you could, not to INTENTIONALLY make your car look shoddy or half-assed. Somewhere down the line it went from pride in your craftsmanship and what you owned to "Who cares, it's a rat rod right?" How many times have you heard that one before? IMO it's little more than an excuse to be lazy. I think it is that attitude that turns a lot of people of off towards this new pseudo-genre. The cars that guys actually worked on and drove while continually striving to make them look and perform better have become a modern-day cartoon of themselves...

 

[Sam_Fear]

We all built our cars as well as we were able, given the skills, tools and money each indivudual had. Yes, many rods were "ratty", but generally, it was the best the kid and his friends could do. Most of the older guys that had full time jobs had nice paint and custom interiors.

Add time to that list and seems to me that's what a todays rat rod is. Most of us want to build a cool ride but realize we don't have the resources of time and money to waste to get it done to perfection.

If somebody gave me ten grand to waste on my car, you bet I'd have lots of chrome and a cool paint job! Bet the rest of you would too. Ain't gonna happen, so I'm OK workin on my low buck cruiser.

 

[Kruuzin]

It's funny...yu see this all the time, whats a rat rod...I am not putting Sam on the spot here or any thing...I agree with the guy...

Welcome to RRR! Nice lookin' ride.

Here is a short check list to tell if it's a rat rod:

1. Home built?
2. Low buck?
3. Driven?

__________________
I don't know anything and I'm not afraid to prove it!
Current build - '48 Olds Dynamic78
Back burner - '63 F100

Then there is this one that I aggree with......also
Gregster.

I am PROUD of my car no matter who wants to turn their nose up at it , it's usually a guy at a cruise in parked next me with a $70k car , That no one is looking at !

Its what YOU like...I built my truck for like $15,000...new motor, rebuilt trans,,,sure I got issues,,,but you know any one with 24,000 miles on their car/truck do..I drive mine and if I was further south I would drive it more...I have yet to see a car on here that I don't like,,,cept maybe Wrinkle's...BWAHHHHAAAAAAA...but that just me cause Wrinkles will say to me ...BITE ME... thats what it is about being accepted for what you have done..and being pround of that...I'm not gonna like everything about every car here there or anyware...but again thats just me...i sure apppreciate what people can do....lotsa cool people on here as far as I can tell..
This is such a cool Hobby untill ya get JUDGEMENTAL..Thats My rant...LOL

 

[bob w]

No desire to be judgemental by me. I was merely telling everyone what our objectives were when building a rod in the 50's.
Today, a person can have the goal of building a Rat Rod. I love rat rods! That's why I'm on RRR so much. Creativity is not limited or stiffled when building one. A person can spend very little or a fair amount based on their desire. You can start with darn near anything.
At a show or cruise, there's so much more to look at on a rat rod than on most other types of builds. That creates spectator appeal.
I much prefer the 6 or 7 rat rods I have built and still have than have one high buck shiny thing. I don't drive 'em much but I sure have a great time plotting, planning and building them.