Rat Rods

I've always been a fan of rat rods -- hot rods imitating and exaggerating the early hot rods of the 30's and 40's, but usually left looking rusty and unfinished.

From the Wikipedia article on the topic:

The rat rod is the visualization of the idea of function over form. Rat rods are meant to be driven, not shown off. Sometimes the customization will include using spare parts, or parts from another car altogether.

I really appreciate the ethos of building a car with whatever spare parts you can get your hands on. It really cuts to the core of favouring simple solutions over complex ones. It also does't mean you have to compromise on workmanship or quality; check out the pipework on this one as an example. Attention to detail is just as important as on any other car.

The car shows around South-east Queensland usually have a good turn-out of rat rods. I've been to a few over the years, so here are some photos of the rat rods I've seen at the shows.

Wintersun 2008

img_2502 img_2506 img_2503 img_2507 img_2508 New England Rods & Customs

Wintersun 2009

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Greazefest 2009

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Twighlight Hot Rod Show 2010

For more photos from this show, check out my previous post.

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Found

I've also uploaded a few pictures of cool rat rods that I've found over the years to found.slightlytallerthanaverageman.com -- one, two, three, four, five, and six.

I've lost the original source for these, unfortunately. If you know, then let me know and I'll link as appropriate.

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