Rat Rods, you can't go to a show or cruise-in these days without running into one. What once was the blue-collar working stiffs domain is now an aspiration for even the wealthiest of hot rod enthusiasts. Early rat rods were built out of whatever was on hand or could be picked up cheaply from swap meets and junkyards . There were no fancy high dollar paint jobs in the budget, so usually primer or nothing at all was the feature color.
Ironically now-a-days there is big money being spent putting together rat rods that are meant to look like junkers.What was once a derogatory term for an unfinished cobbled together, non-period correct mish mash of parts custom build, is now a term and style being embraced by the masses.
Some folks can be heard grumbling about this style, claiming that its just another fad that has hit the scene, and it will be over just as quick as it became fashionable. While others like myself enjoy seeing this style of build and happy to see it grow.
I do admit that there has been a point of outright silliness to some rat rods I've seen, with an overdone amount of festoonery and theme items added. There is also a valid concern that instead of seeing some of these old cars brought back to even nice driver quality or fully restored , that they will be hastily turned into rats just for the sake of jumping on the trend.
On the other side of the coin, there are plenty of cars and parts that once just sat in a heap and left to rot somewhere are finding new life on the road . This build style has also brought together more of the haves and have nots to the same shows. It also seems to have brought more projects out of the garages and driveways and on to the road and shows, instead of being hidden away until completion.
Some of the creativity that has come out of this style of building is born out of just plain old makin-do with what you have, and the re purposing of stuff from beer cans to tractor parts has shown that with a creative mind and mechanical aptitude, their doesn't have to be a mad dash to Billet-R-Us.com to create a unique rod. It is forcing guys to think out of the box.
To me it is a sign that there is still creative and talented hands and minds still very much keeping the American Rod Kulture alive and thriving. It is great to see the talent and inspiration that can be found in some of these builds. It is also a great example of how a cool car can be built without a big budget, which in my opinion only helps inspire more involvement in the Kulture.
So love them or hate them, it looks like the rat rod is going to be around for a while. Rather than just pass them by, why not take a little time and really look them over, you may be surprised, amused or even blown away by some of the creativity that goes into building these unique and often one of a kind customs.
