I’ve always felt that it took a certain amount of courage to take a perfectly good car and cut it up. Imagine having a classic Ford or GM car and deciding, rather than put in the time and effort to rebuild or restore it, to turn it into something completely new and unique. It is like taking a car and creating a Frankenstein vehicle out of it.
“Chopped” rides were part of the Hot Rod generation which grew up in Southern California following World War II. Young men had the desire to race and prove themselves and their cars but often lacked the money to buy a new ride. What they started doing was buying old 10 year old or older used cars, lots of Fords and Chevys and used whatever parts they could find and manufacture in order to make something lean, mean and most importantly, fast.
Custom shops began opening up all over Southern California highlighting the skills that some people had for turning a junker into a work of art. Perhaps no one in this first generation of hot rodder custom builders was as famous as George Barris. Proclaimed the King of Kustoms by many, as I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, Barris has created some of the most famous custom rides ever seen. Among them are the classic Munster Koach and the Batmobile among others.
There have been some marvelous Hot Rods and Chopped beauties at all of the shows this season and as I show images from these last few events I’m going to highlight some of these works of art. Expect to see dedicated blogs about these unique rides in the coming weeks, starting today with some of the vehicles on display from the recent Clermont Sportsman’s Show. Hope you enjoy. Feel free to let me know which one is your favorite by leaving a message here or shooting me an email at turnerbudds@yahoo.com.
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