Thread: good/bad manufacturers

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Originally Posted by ckyle29

Howdy all,

While my true love has always been the 66-67 GTO or Chevelle SS, I'm not really keen on paying upwards of $15 grand for a rusted out old hulk that needs a complete restoration so that essentially all you are buying is a frame. So i'm at the Good Guys car show last week in Fort Worth and the 34 Ford started to call my name. What I'm looking for are pro/cons of the different manufacturers, in particular anyones experience with Showme Rods & Customs or Redneck Street Rods. Other than what I've read on this site, is there anyone else besides Gibbons to really avoid? Any insight is greatly appreciated.

Cary.

Looks like you are a newbie here so welcome.

There are a lot of good manufacturers and, unfortunately, just as many lousy. Wescott's is always one of the top to consider - and really the one that the others try to emulate, wheter they say it or not. But, they tend to be expensive. Heritidge(sp?) would be one to stay away from and you seem to already be familiar with Gibbons crap (a formerly great name). We can give you some guidance here, but really the best way to get good information is to ask guys at shows THAT BUILT THEIR OWN CAR how many problems they had in fit, form and finish. My current car is a Brookville steel '30-'31. You read a lot of good things about their '32s now, but they are not for the faint of heart and all of their products need lots of work. Good luck -

More for the beware list is Street Beast. Along with anything sold cheap with no internal structure, like you sometimes see on ebay.

Top of the chart for good 33/4 would be Outlaw, followed by Poliform. Wescott would be there but he doesn't make one unless you're looking for a roadster.

Then if you want a 33 3 window in Aluminum, and can wait til mid next year or so, SAR should have theirs ready by then. Prototype is due in about 5 months.

Here is a site that has a listing of mfgs.
www.seattlestreetrods.com

I built the 34 using the www.rodzshop.com

The guys are right about the need to buy a good quality body from someone like Wescott. It's one thing to buy a cheap T bucket body (like I did) but another entirely to buy something like a '34 body. There is so much more that has to be right on a more complicated body like the '34..........door fit, window openings, vents, substructure, etc.

Any money you save up front will be put back two-fold at the end when you prep it for paint or try to get things to fit and work. Spend a few bucks more up front and you will have much lower blood pressure in the end.

Don