29? Essex train wreck on ebay...

TwinH

Train wreck as in you know you havta look. Everybody should have a set

of those adjustable seats. Any guesses on what this brings? I hesitate to

post this on the other board enough though I don't think a purist is missing

out on anything on this particular ride. Truthfully, I like the stance and the

look,just chopped a little too hard to be practical and thats fine with me

as obviously practical isn't what they were after. Enjoy.



PS I'm guessing around 12K$



http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-1929-essex-sedan-hot-rat-rod-deuce-1932-ford_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6057QQitemZ4592283629QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVWQQtcZphoto

[Deleted User]

The potential cool factor is there! Chopped just a wee too much for my height! The foundation is there for a pretty neat old rod!



I'm figuring it'll go to $9,782.17. No sale.

rambos_ride

Well finally someone who built a true "RAT-ROD" and is not trying to pass it off as a custom!

It kills me though - the prices people are willing to pay for something like this or the "gray piece" - mostly because the top is chopped!

A chop should only run 2500-3500 - so I don't see the value here.

This car though is completely unsafe for 2 basic reasons

1) no sheet metal or transmission blanket around the trans which you are literally sitting on. I've seen tranny's blow up like a bomb with shrapnel going everywhere:eek:

2) A single 5mph rear end collision would make you a quad or worse yet - dead with those jack stand seat backs to impale your innards.

But if you want to campaign a RAT-ROD this is the one - rust and all!

[Deleted User]

But Dan....you gotta love some of the ingenuity! Even though it will probaly kill you! I just love the jackstands and the fuel cell behind your head.........if you are rearended, I'm not sure about a quad, I think there probaly won't be enough of you left to scrap off the road.



But I gotta love it (saying that I would definately make some changes)!



Jay

rambos_ride

jsrail wrote:

But Dan....you gotta love some of the ingenuity! Even though it will probaly kill you! I just love the jackstands and the fuel cell behind your head.........if you are rearended, I'm not sure about a quad, I think there probaly won't be enough of you left to scrap off the road.

But I gotta love it (saying that I would definately make some changes)!

Jay

Come on Jay - ingenuity ????

Saying a car this unsafe is "cool" is not much different than saying its safe to drive your car 100 mph without seatbelts on, bald bia ply tires and no brakes!

Maybe I'm just pissed because I just spent a year welding, fabricating and scraping seal on my 49 when it seems all I really needed to do was weld a bunch of crap on my car - do a shi#ty job chopping the top and leave it in-complete and get 20-30k for it.:D

rambos_ride

This one makes me think of a quote form Tommy Boy...



"I could put a guarantee on the box, but then all you would have is a guaranteed piece of sh#t"

hudsonjeff

These Rat Rods Are Attracting Alot Of Attention. I Personally Would Not Want To Own One But I Think They Are Very Cool. Seems To Me The Problem Is Dan Thinks He's A Master Builder And 99% Of Cars Others Have Done Are Junk If They Are Not Perfect. I Have Been A Body Shop Owner For The Last 17 Years And Have Seen Alot Of Good Jobs As Well As Bad But I Never Bash Anothers Work The Way Dan Does. Sometimes Saying Nothing Is Better. May Shop Is In An Old Hudson Dealership, 1950' Showroom With 2 Hudsons And Lot Of Memorabilia.

TwinH

Comes complete with a puddle of "vital fluid" (see pic)







Also note the complete lack of any rear view mirrors...



In its defense I'll say that its probably every bit as practical as most

all the "Pro Street" cars that ruled the 80's and prompted the

"fairgrounds cruiser" category... :rolleyes:

Unknown

TwinH wrote:

In its defense I'll say that its probably every bit as practical as most

all the "Pro Street" cars that ruled the 80's and prompted the

"fairgrounds cruiser" category... :rolleyes:

Yup, this car looks like quite the deathtrap.



Question: What is a "fairgrounds cruiser"?

rambos_ride

hudsonjeff wrote:

These Rat Rods Are Attracting Alot Of Attention. I Personally Would Not Want To Own One But I Think They Are Very Cool. Seems To Me The Problem Is Dan Thinks He's A Master Builder And 99% Of Cars Others Have Done Are Junk If They Are Not Perfect. I Have Been A Body Shop Owner For The Last 17 Years And Have Seen Alot Of Good Jobs As Well As Bad But I Never Bash Anothers Work The Way Dan Does. Sometimes Saying Nothing Is Better. May Shop Is In An Old Hudson Dealership, 1950' Showroom With 2 Hudsons And Lot Of Memorabilia.

Hi HudsonJeff,

Thanks for the comments - since you called me out by name I felt I should respond.

No I don't consider myself to be a "master builder" but I have been doing autobody work and car building a lot longer than you have - and if you consider yourself to be a professional - my qualifications are not any lower or less than yours.

I don't think anyones work needs to be perfect - I don't believe mine is and I'll be the first to admit it - I'll never win the Riddler Award... but I have no time for people who don't take pride in their work (whatever their skill level) and can't accept an honest straightforward opinion - good or bad.

Also, Jeff I have NEVER made a personal attack on anyone on this forum - I only comment on the cars and the work done as I see it and I let my own work speak for itself.

In fact I invite you or anyone else on the forum to personally contact me and let me know if they think my work/cars suck or I am doing something massively wrong or unsafe as it relates to car building - I welcome the feedback GOOD or BAD

Peace

Unknown

I think its definintely got some possibilities! Love the chop even though I would probably never fit in it. The wood floorboards would have to go and a trans shield installed (bow to Dan ). I see a set of Triumph or MG seats in it... :rolleyes:

Unknown

Sorry, got to agree with Dan, I love hot rods but that thing is like 5 pounds of Sh*t in a 10 pound bag. Not to mention that after all that work to build something different the guy sticks in a *yawn 350 chevy. Anybody can slam alot of crap together to be different, but that thing is a death trap. You can build a rat rod to be different and still be safe. You would not get 5 miles in Canada and get pulled over and yanked for a safety check if you were driving that. You can have the rat rod look ( rust and bad body welds are some peoples idea of a rat rod, not mine) and still engineer a safe and reliable car. Those seats are not safe and should not be allowed on the roads. When that guy has an accident, my tax dollars are going to pay for his medical bill when he is paralyed. Call me a prude but no way should that be allowed on a public road!!

rambos_ride

hemiEssex wrote:

Sorry, got to agree with Dan, I love hot rods but that thing is like 5 pounds of Sh*t in a 10 pound bag. Not to mention that after all that work to build something different the guy sticks in a *yawn 350 chevy. Anybody can slam alot of crap together to be different, but that thing is a death trap. You can build a rat rod to be different and still be safe. You would not get 5 miles in Canada and get pulled over and yanked for a safety check if you were driving that. You can have the rat rod look ( rust and bad body welds are some peoples idea of a rat rod, not mine) and still engineer a safe and reliable car. Those seats are not safe and should not be allowed on the roads. When that guy has an accident, my tax dollars are going to pay for his medical bill when he is paralyed. Call me a prude but no way should that be allowed on a public road!!

Actually its got a BIG *YAWN 305 cubic inch motor...

Me thinks the reason it hasn't been driven anywhere or shown - as the person states in the listing - is that there is no way in hades that this would pass a state or local safety inspection - I think hence someone elses reference to a "fairground cruiser" - tow/trailer it somewhere and drive it around the parking lot to the oohhh's and ahhh's of the crowd.

I don't necessarily hate the look of the car - I kinda like the view from the front - it's just poorly executed in my opinion and as stated before entirely unsafe in its current condition.

Unknown

The chopped look is cool, the mix of parts to get a different look is cool, but some rat rodders go out of their way to make the cars look rusty and old. I guess that is okay if you like that, personally I have had to drive cars that were rusty and old in my younger days and always wanted them to look newer and finished. Primer was something that I had to live with. I would not want that on my hot rod. For the amount of money that some guys pay to have their rods look unfinished, they could finish them! The other nagging question that I have is how do these guys get away with running straight exhaust on these things? The cops around here pull you over if they think your street legal mufflers are too loud. What would a 100 mile round trip be like with straight exhaust pipes blasting in your ears?

[Deleted User]

I can live with the unfinished body work. Even a small puddle of fluid, kinds looks like radiator coolant, would not put me off. And even though Dan and I don't see eye to eye on everything I do agree that this car has way too many safety issues to be resolved before I personally would want it. As for the top chop, I lived in Ohio for 20 years and I don't know if it has changed, but, the state of OHIO used to have a mininum windshield height and I don't think that car would be legal. It would be OK for a fairgrounds cruiser, and may be legal in another state.

Bob Hickson

rambos_ride

Wow!

8095+ individual page hits and up to $10,000.00 - yes that's 10 thousand USD! (when saying "thousand" think Austin Powers! ) and it still hasn't hit the reserve!

Like the car or not... the seller may end up having a really good holiday weekend!

More power to the seller 'cause they may just get the $$ they want and sell the car!

Of course it really is more a Ford + other parts - with the Essex body being about the only Hudson left on it and we all know how much more the brandX stuff goes for than if it was a full hudson street rod!