Bernard Kron

Here are some finished pics of the Rat Rod I just completed for the Rat Rod theme table at this years NNL West next weekend: Also, here's a suede '49 Ford that might be appropriate, done in the middle of last year: And lastly, a Deuce 5-window highboy in red primer from this past December:

I missed this somehow. Woulda been inspirational during my recent aRt Rod thrash. You know this look so well. This should work out Just Fine!

Thanks for the link, Bill. I've added it to my favorites to help keep me informed on trends in the trade from a Designer's perspective. With the heavily legislated conformation of today's cars the designer's job is a difficult one at the best of times. I particularly like the fact that the example article you linked referenced quite contemporary and "mass consumption" examples which helps give us an insight into a Professional's perspective on things.

Thanx! To quote myself above (LOL): Have a look!

Thanx Richard. To get white lettering you have 2 choices: Choice One is to use a decal printing service that can use printing technology that can print white (and metallic) inks. Choice Two is to print your own decals on white decal paper. The decal paper which you refer to in your comment is almost certainly clear decal paper. Unfortunately conventional home printers such as inkjet and laser printers "assume" a white background (the paper stock you would normally print on) in order to print white tones. So in this case if I had printed on clear decal paper the logo would have been body colored. This second alternative requires the areas that would normally be body colored to be matched to the paint color. This second method is what I did - so I in fact did print on decal paper, but it was white decal paper The downside of this method is that white decal paper is a great deal thicker than clear and the white edges inevitably show to some degree. (I have tried any number of white decal paper stocks and the problem is universal.) In the ultra-close, high resolution photos I created you can see those edges. That's what you commented on. Fortunately, in scale and viewed normally this flaw is much less apparent. Incidentally during this past year I tried mightily to find a reliable decal supplier that could print my art from the 600 dpi bitmap images I normally create and provide me with single layer decals with white or metallic areas printed to clear. To date my search has been unsuccessful. I will forgo naming names or detailing my experiences but suffice it to say it involved some pretty well known potential suppliers. Decals are an important element in many of my modeling projects. Apparently, I will need to learn to create vector graphic art to use these services, a skill I do not currently possess. It's either that or bear the additional cost and time to have the artwork redrawn in vector form.

Thanx again guys! Thanks Dennis. Funny you should mention the small block. I actually started two motors for it, the SBC you see and a Flattie as well, but I thought an expensive to build antique flathead was far too "serious" and bucks-up for the "Genuine Stolen Parts" concept. I felt a slightly warmed over small block with the aggressively showy headers but little else was much more to the point. I was quite conscious about finishing the motor in factory GM engine orange with standard valve covers and a single 4 barrel. And wouldn't you know it, when I brush painted it with Testors Acryl the paint went on perfectly. I briefly panicked that I wouldn't be able to get it to look dirty enough!

Thanx! C U There Bradley!

Thanx Bruce!

Thanks to you all for the incredibly generous comments! I have to say this project went far, far better than I had expected it to. This is not my comfort zone, or at least it wasn't when I started out... I used some rod-building techniques I had used before and that I was proficient in, so that helped - the chassis is one of those, and the interior another. That helped enormously in getting me "grounded". It also helped to have done the '41 Plymouth Barn Find gasser to learn weathering techniques. But I still wasn't sure I could come up with a convincing Rat Rod. I know on the Theme Table at the NNL West there will be some spectacular Rat Rod models. This style lends itself to incredibly detailed and elaborate work. Despite the rough finishes it is very technical. I can think of several truly fine modelers who will use this year's Rat Rod theme to strut their stuff! This was in the back of my mind as I attempted this. I just didn't want to create something that didn't look the part. I think that perhaps by sticking to my Hot Rodding roots I just may have pulled it off! It was fun to build that's for sure. Thanx Bill. I was concerned I might not be able to build an "authentic" Rat Rod. As it is it trades on a Hot Rod stance and on proportions I've used before and may not be as exaggerated as some are able to do in this style. Can a Rat Rod be conservative and still be true to the style? I still want to build a proper Ed Iskenderian/Black Widow style lowboy turtle deck T bucket with cycle fenders - in black of course... C U at breakfast, Curt! Glad you dig it. I think I'm beginning to get the hang of this modeling thing... Thanx Phil! That's the proportion thing that Bill pointed out. It's my Hot Rod roots kicking in I think.

Thanx Art. C U there!

Thanx again guys! This project was Tons 'O Fun and had the desired effect - I learned a lot about weathering that I went on to use in my Rat Rod for this year's NNL West. I susoect I'll be adding weatrhering to my bag of tricks in future builds.

In other interviews Gene Haas has explained how he thought he could use the U.S. racing community's model of achieving competitiveness by crafting a disciplined and well run effort using the best of the existing suppliers, good drivers and excellent if rather ordinary preparation. All it requires is a good set of operator's manuals and the skill and experience to use them well. This certainly works in most formulas. But F1 is struggling even now to avoid exactly that, It's why constructors must still build their own chassis, or at least have a bespoke one built for them (as Haas has with Dallara). The brakes Haas talks about must have been a real surprise for him, being a "standard" off-the-shelf part. (I believe Hass, in fact, has an interest in the Brembo distributor for North America.) But the way they are used, as he describes, are anything but standardized, You don't just bolt them on and go. Whole systems must be implemented to support them; even the driver must adjust his approach to get them to operate effectively. I suspect the feedback from Grosjean and Guitterez must have been a bit withering at first. But, to his credit, he seems to be learning fast. He may not enjoy his first year at the back of the pack running with the Manor boys, but most of the wannabes and hedge fund guys have been shaken out of F1 in recent years and the real racers are the ones that remain*, perhaps Manor Racing most of all. I think Gene Hass will respond well to that and will up his game accordingly.** I hope so - I especially hope he can afford it! *Unfortunately the hedge fund guys still own the sport - but that's a discussion for another day.) **I would love to be a fly on the wall in conversations he might have with Frank and Claire Williams!

This project is completed and will make it to the NNL West 2016! Thanx to all for .following along! The Under Glass post with lotys of pictures of the finished product can be found here: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/111423-29-ford-a-bucket-rat-rod/ .

’29 Ford A-Bucket Rat Rod This model was built as my contribution to the Rat Rod theme table at the 2016 NNL West held in Santa Clara, California. It’s a veritable feast of kit bashing and scratch building, Starting with the modified Ford Model A Roadster Pickup bucket (ex-Ala Kart) from an Ertl issue AMT ’29 Ford Roadster kit, I dove deep into my parts box and kit stash to get this thing done in time. Here are the details: Scratch built parts: Chassis except for center and rear cross members. Fuel tank. Interior except for dashboard, shift lever and steering wheel. Steering system. Kit bashed parts: Modified 1929 Model RPU bucket and firewall from Ertl-issued 1929 Model A Roadster kit. Center cross member, dashboard and windshield from same kit. Monogram 1937 Ford Van Delivery front spring and front axle, ends heated and bent for 3” drop and I-beam drilled. Rear taillight and license plate from same kit. Rear axle, drive shaft and rear brakes from AMT 1934 Ford 5-window coupe. Steering wheel, wire wheels and front tires from same kit. Rear tires from Revell ’40 Ford Standard coupe. Grill and radiator from AMT ’32 Ford Phantom Vicky kit, cut down by half. Aftermarket and parts box sourced parts: Headers and skull-topped shift level are resin items sourced on eBay. Small block Chevrolet engine from my parts box, of unknown origin. Rear cross member and rear spring also from my parts box, possibly from Monogram ’30 Ford coupe or similar. Headlights are resin pieces from ThePartsBox.com. Paints and finishes: Hippy Eye Chop Shop logo self designed, Genuine Stolen Parts courtesy of the late Ed Roth, all decals home made. Body and fuel tank basic color is Krylon Gumdrop purple. Undercoat throughout is Duplicolor Red Primer. Frame, firewall and wheels finished in Testors Gloss Custom Red Metalflake enamel. Upholstery finished in Testors Acryl British Crimson, then weathered to simulate distressed leather. Weathering powders courtesy of Bragdon Enterprises. Miscellaneous parts finished in various shades of Testors Metalizers and Krylon premium Chrome. All surfaces sealed in Testors DullCote or Tamiya Flat Clear Acrylic. Thanx for lookin’, B.

I wouldn't either, Skip. But you can see pretty much the entire Rat Rod "cookbook" in these cars with the exception of extreme rust. In effect the Rat Rod style is a tribute to these images. The extreme rust aspect is the movement's own contribution to the idiom, formalizing what was largely an accident of time. As regards rodding and customizing in the Northwest, I only got here from the East Coast when I was 18, but even then I got the impression that there was far more going on west of the mountains in Portland than Seattle, at least on the street. Of course the drag strip scene was important in Seattle. Eastern Washington was always a force in rodding.

The worn paint and/or primer, stripped down, "gow job", "jalopy", aesthetic has been around since the beginning of the hot rod and kustom movement. It’s an outgrowth of limted budgets, cheap old cars, and work-in-progress. Aggressive rust, however, is a modern trend which emerged at the turn of the current century, probably as an extension of the emergence of old barn find rods and customs. Here are some early examples: 1920’s "gow job": Pre-war (1937) “supe job”, prototype of the classic hot rod: Home from the war in 1946, rough ‘n’ ready but fast: By 1950, when this picture was taken, The Look was well established in most of its particulars: Hoodlums, late 50’s: Hoodlums?, late 50’s:

Gotta admit, it's one Cool Hot Rod...

Beautiful ensemble. The lighting on the photography is also a treat to the eyes.

Stunning work on all of them. In their way these kits have great "bones", sort of impressionistic renditions of the style of the period in which they were created. I think it's especially impressive that you managed to keep much of the kit (lack of) detail and chrome plating and still dramatically upgrade them to modern style models. Personally, I especially like the Gilbert & Markin drag car for its authenticity. What kit is it from and how close is it to what's in the box? But the 2 Deuce pickups are true jewels, no doubt! EDIT: Quoting myself - "What kit is it from and how close is it to what's in the box? " A more careful re-reading of your description and a trip to the DPMCC instruction sheets reveals that the Gilbert & Larkin car is actually quite close to the Lindberg Ford Model T Pickup and that all the parts for it are in the current re-release. Your judicious change of rolling stock and fine execution make a huge difference. Switching out the tires and wheels creates a surprisingly authentic late 50's altered! That's what I meant about the "bones" of these kits. Did the decals come in the kit?

I think as a fad things have calmed down a bit in Rodentville since this thread first was started in 2011. On the other hand the Rat Rod style has definitely had a big influence on all things Rod and Kustom, especially in the Traditional sphere. Here at MCM several of the true masters of the form have either become less active or have moved on to other things. For myself, I’m only just now taking on the challenges of Rust ‘n’ Crust and general Ratness. Over the past year I’ve done an increasingly worn looking series of projects, culminating with my current build, a desperate thrash to get a car done in time for the Rat Rod theme table at this year’s ,NNL Wesyt on March 12th. Here’s where I’m at with a couple of weeks to go: In order to learn the Way Of Rust I recently did this Barn Find ’41 Plymouth Gasser:

I’m on the home stretch! I got the chassis completed including the suspension, drivetrain and the radiator and grill. I made a bench seat for the interior and a bare metal floor (actually styrene sheet finished in Metalizers, steel for the undercarriage side and gunmetal for the interior side). The seat was made from styrene quarter round and styrene corrugated siding sheet. The seat is finished in Testors British Crimson and weathered to look like distressed leather. The grille shell is cut down to about half size and comes from an AMT Phantom Vicky kit. All that’s left is the lighting system, a steering wheel and the steering linkage, some windshield glass and a shift lever. I should have final assembly done sometime this week. I think this car will actually make it to the NNL West. Thanx for lookin’, B.

Here's a link to his Under Glass on fordsixty's '31 Model A LMP Car: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/18723-31-model-a-lmp2/ Here's what it looks like - hard to forget! And here's his "'53 Grand Sport Sedan" - equally impressive (see http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/18073-53-grand-sport-sedan/ ) :

Morph Cars, eh? I've always felt that this sort of creative freedom is a part of the car modeling tradition that distinguishes it from most other forms of modeling. As a late arrival to the modeling revival I missed this tuff the first time around, but it's what I always like so much about your work, Scott. I'd love to see more in this style. These cars are Too Cool! I remember an IMSA ground effects style '30 Ford Sedan from a few years back here on the MCM .forum, in red-orange if I recall, It was a stunner. Full side pods and everything, and it really worked aesthetically. Can't remember who built it, but they had done a whole series of older bodies as road racers. I hope you finish your narrowed LSR 'Vette some day...

Thanks everyone! I think Gene may be thinking of crazryrichard who really excels at this weathered rod thing. I'm a pretty improvisational builder. I sketch out the broad strokes in my mind, mainly things like proportions, theme, color, texture, etc. and the major technical stuff, like the chassis layout and, in this case, the weathering. That's why the first thing I did after choosing a body was to prep and paint it, to see if reality matched the theory. But something like chopping the grille shell is not something I'd do until I had the motor and body in at least mockup form, because the amount I cut it down will be determined by the relationship between the motor and the cowl. It's not particularly challenging - I'm just cutting off the lower part - and I'm using spare Deuce shells from the parts box so it's not like I'm using a high-value aftermarket part. It'll get painted to match the body and tank. Really, getting some consistency in the coloring and weathering was my biggest worry, but so far so good... The weathered chrome thing is a real keeper, BTW. I'm planning on using it in more conventional projects when its appropriate.

I always look forward seeing you guys each year. Glad to see you back, Scott! The clock is ticking for NNL West but progress is being made. Most major parts constructed so far have been painted and weathered. The motor is built except for some small details like ignition and fuel system. The chassis was finished in Testors Gloss Custom Red Metalflake enamel and then weathered with Testors Dullcote and rust and dirt weathering powders. The fuel tank was finished in the same manner as the body, using the salting technique over red primer, then a coat of Krylon Gumdrop purple and Testors DullCote followed by weathering powders. The motor came from my parts box. It is a largely stock Chevy small block finished in Chevy Engine Orange. The 4-barrel carb is from a Revell Deuce kit, the air cleaner from my parts box and the headers are resin items purchased from the eBay Sci Fi Movie Props. They are very high quality and were delivered quickly. Highly recommended. I drilled out the ends and finished the headers in Krylon Premium Chrome, then gave them the Dullcote and weathering powder treatment. I used this technique on all “plated” parts, first stripping any kit chrome where there was some. The firewall, windshield and dash are Ala Kart pieces from the AMT ’29 Ford donor kit. The firewall was finished to match the frame and the windshield and dash received the same weathered chrome finish as the headers. The wheels were finished in the same manner as the frame and the tires weathered along with the wheels. The major work left to do consists of completing and installing the suspension, wiring, detailing and installing the motor, chopping, painting and installing a ’32 Ford Grill, fabricating an interior and adding lights. So, still quite a bit to do but I think I have a shot at making my self-imposed deadline. Thanks for lookin’, B.