Ford & Mercury 1941 - 1948 customs & mild custom

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=836585
Does anyone know what happened to the Arctic Sand 48 Ford custom? It was on the cover of the July 1957 Rod + Custom Magazine.They show it on the back page of this months Rod + Custom magazine. It was from the Detroit area. The owner was Ken Peterson of Lake Orion And he worked for General Motors. The magazine said it was built at the Clarkaiser shop. Dave Miller



The car met its end some years ago..I am friends with one of the owners after Ken Peterson.. I am going to have to get the more complete story from. The clone of it was known as Arctic Gold. Reasonably good job for the era. The owner of it died this past year. I don't know what became of the car.

Saw the Artic Gold in Springfield Ohio in the 80s at the KKOA show looked good!


If my memory serves me I remember the original being for sale in the Detroit News want ads in the mid 70's. I saw it right after I bought my Clarkaiser original.


I believe that it was in fairly rough shape at that point. I heard that it ended up being scrapped due to it's condition.
Don't know if this is when FASI's friend owned it or afterwards.
Great car. I would love to get my hands on the clone...
Torchie.

Goran Lassell
San Jose, California
1948 Mercury

Naturally, when many think of a custom Merc, visions of '39-40s and '49-51s come to mind. Obviously, the Second World War caused a gap in manufacturing between the two year groups, but even still, Ford's Mercury division did make models pre– and post–World War II, which begs the question, why aren't they as notable custom-wise? Well, in my opinion, it's fairly simple: they're nowhere near as attractive.
1948 Mercury Coupe Rear Right View

Well, opinions—including my own—can often be swayed. And in the case of postwar/pre-'49 Mercs, mine has indeed changed after seeing Goran Lassell's full-custom '48 coupe. I wouldn't go as far as saying my infatuation with the Hirohata and Matranga hardtops is in any jeopardy, however, I do have a new respect for what I normally considered an ugly duckling. Goran, a hair pomade manufacturer and car exporter, is now on his third go 'round with his '48: first rendition, a low-buck cruiser; second, an update with green suede; and now its current finished state, chopped and tastefully resplendent metallic gold, courtesy of Sacramento Kustoms.

When asked to bring us up to speed, here's what Goran had to say: "I bought the '48 in San Jose, California, in 2008 as an empty shell with a Mustang II already set up. I had an SBC 383 stroker and Turbo 350 automatic installed together with a new air-ride system and new electrical wiring, then drove it as a low-budget rod with almost no interior for about nine months before I met Jesse Miller at Sacramento Kustoms. I had been looking around for someone to do the chop on it. Everybody said it would be very costly and hard work with the style I wanted, but when I met Jesse, I knew he was the guy for the job—he totally got the point about the stretched quarter windows, and even took my thoughts about the car further ('46 Buick grille, '53 Buick headlights, and so on). I wanted a long, sleek look, so we decided to not skirt the car to avoid the bulkiness, but welded the rear fenders on and bobbed the trunk, making the opening follow the body line. We kept the original rear bumper but fitted it with a '52 Kaiser overrider customized with the taillights in the bumperettes. The front bumper was changed to a '50 Mercury, fitted and equipped with a '55 Chrysler bumper guard. Then the car was painted in a semigloss green pearl, and the dash/window garnish in '36 Ford yellow. Inside the Merc we put a custom-fitted '50 Ford dash with a '40 Lincoln steering wheel on a LimeWorks column. We used a Thunderbird-based interior that we had Paccos in Roseville do in pearl white vinyl together with an incredible custom-made headliner.

Read more: http://www.rodandcustommagazine.com/featuredvehicles/1306_1948_mercury_coupe/

When most people think of a custom Mercury, they think of the iconic 1949-1951 design. After seeing Goran Lassell’s brilliant 1948 Mercury Custom, you may want to own a 1946-1948 model. Chopping a 1948 Mercury presents a challenging and difficult assignment. Achieving the right height, balance and proportions is not and easy task on this car. The quarter window has to be made to flow into the overall design, and not look too small or too tall. The body modifications on this car are many, but the over-all effect is a smooth, sleek and elegant car.



The front of the car features a 1946 Buick grill with 1953 Buick headlight bezels. The roof is chopped 4” in the front and 6” in the back. Under the bobbed trunk lid is a compartment trimmed in wood. Under the hood is a Chevy 383 stroker sitting on a Mustang II front clip. The whole car is on air-bags and is finished off with wide-white walls and polished 1950 Plymouth wheel covers with custom bullet centers.



The custom body work was done locally at Sacramento Kustoms in Sacramento. Goran has won many awards with the car, including the prestigious Kustom D’Elegance award at the Long Beach Motorama, and it was most recently shown at the Gambino Kustoms Sit Down Car Show in San Jose.







http://www.examiner.com/article/custom-1948-mercury-personifies-craftmanship-and-elegance

This 1940 Mercury convertible was purchased five years ago from the grandson of the third owner. The current seller has since put together an amazing amount of history on the car and its travels, though not without some mystery still remaining. The Merc’ was just shown last month at the Grand National Roadster show, and has also been featured in Hot Rod Delux, Kustoms Illustrated, American Rodder, and Old Cars Weekly. It is now sorted out as a nice driver with factory flathead power and interesting details throughout. Find it here on eBay in Monterey, California with the reserve already met.



The seller purchased the car with no grille, minimal interior, and worn burgundy paint. There are many similarities between this car and a Mercury convertible built by Jimmy Summers, as shown in this photo gallery. The windshield chop and sectioning work are particularly similar. The car is shown below on a California used car lot in 1967 as purchased by the previous owner’s grandfather. It is believed that the Carson top was stolen around that time, but the shape is hinted by the window frames.



The interior has been given a clean white tuck and roll job, and the 39 dash is believed to have been installed all the way back in the 40′s when the car was first altered. The satin paint was shot after the body was thoroughly blocked. We’d think about taking in burgundy similar to the tattered paint that it was purchased with. The transmission is manually shifted on the tree and the rear seat area is blocked off.




Power comes from the stock Mercury flathead V8 with a single screened carb. The engine finish looks appropriate for a drive and the generator, fuel pump, and oil filter are all period correct.

1941 Ford Convertible originally restyled by Barris Kustoms for John Vara in 1948. The car was nosed and decked, the handles were removed as well. The body was Channeled 8 inches it was dropped another 3 inches by inserting a level rear crossmember. Stock springs were retained for bumpless riding. Due to the extreme ground clearance, the front fenders were raised about the same amount to make sure the wheels still could turn. The hood sides were discarded and the edges were flared into the new fender lines ending into full Fadeaway Fenders. The entire front was welded into one piece, hood and fadeaway fenders were cut from sheet stock. The headlights were frenched and a new grille shell was created which housed two modified 1948 Pontiac grille bars. A 1946 Ford gravel pan was molded to the rear fenders and a pair of 1946 Ford bumpers were installed. Both bumpers were mounted compared to the side of the car. The rear license guards housed a pair of round motorcycle taillights. These were later replaced by inserted taillights custom made from red Lucite, similar to the one on Jesse Lopez' 1941 Ford. The deck lid corners were rounded and the license plate was recessed into the bottom of the deck lid. The body was sectioned by cutting material from the bottom of the body, the rear fenders were molded-in with a smooth radius to the body. The door openings were reworked so they would open all the way to bottom of the body. The windshield was cut 4 1/2 inches, and the car was fit with a padded top fabricated by Louis Chavez of American Auto Tops. Bill Hilborn of Inglewood upholstered the interior in red and white plastic. Exceptional for this interior was the small bar incorporated in the rear seat.[2] The dashboard was smoothed and chromed with accents of hand crafted clear red plastic trim pieces. Dual Appleton 112 spotlights, smooth hubcaps and 1946-1948 Ford fenders skirts wrapped up the style. Once the bodywork was done, Barris painted it dark metallic maroon. The total height of the Ford was only 56 inches. The build cost John over $ 5000.


Not long after the car was complete, John traded it with Johnny Zaro's 1940 Mercury pluss some extra cash. Johnny replaced the smooth hubcaps with Cadillac Sombreros. He had Barris Kustoms to modify the grille. The 1948 Pontiac grille bars were replaced with a newer 1949 Pontiac grille which had its vertical bars removed. Studebaker teeth were installed beneath the grille bar. At this point, the small round taillights were remove. By December, 1951, when it was featured in Hop Up, it had been painted Tokay beige. Johnny regret the color chose and had it painted deep Polychromatic maroon with a lot of gold powder and many clear coats for extra shine.


At some point, it was advertised in a car magazine. Springer Jones of Mitchell, Nebraska was the current owner. By then it was powered by a 1948 Mercury engine. The asking price was $2345 or best offer.


The car is still around today, fully restored back to its former glory. The new owner updated it with a pair of 1949 Plymouth bumpers, otherwise it is exactly as it was when Johnny Zaro owned it.

Hop Up December 1951
Custom Cars Trend Book No. 101
Hop Up March 1952
Motor Trend December 1952
Trend Book 208 Custom Cars 2012 Annual


http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?title=John_Vara%27s_1941_Ford

“string of pearls” an early doug thompson build.

1941 Ford 5 Passenger Coupe-Chopped and Dropped

7" Chopped Top Done Years Ago. 6" Lowering Blocks
Eggplant Dark Purple with Ghost Flames, White Tuck and Roll Interior
Mustang 2 Front Suspension, Ford 9"
Coker Wide Whites on Caddy Sombrero Hubcaps(Chrome Stainless)
Louvered Hood-Lots of Louvers
Appleton Spots
Desotto Ribbed Bumpers Front and Back
Lakes Pipes
Frenched Packard Tailights
Skirts
1970 Mopar 440 w/727 Trans-Runs Strong
Ron Francis Wiring

Ma petite contribution   

1947 Ford Coupe Custom – Chev 400 Small Block with 350 turbo automatic, hurstshifter, chopped 6”,frenched headlights, louvered hood, tilt power steering and brakes, electric doors and trunk. 22000 miles. Located in Ontario Canada


 Body
 

• Top chopped 6”
  
• Door posts slanted forward
  
• Latches in door pots
  
• Frenched headlights, park lights and taillights
  
• Dual antennas in fender
  
• Hood and trunk filled – hood louvered
  
• Rear fenders moulded to body
  
• Rear splash pan moulded to body
  
• Front splash pan moulded and forms front bumper
  
• Grille moulded in
  
• All trim and handles removed and filled in
  
• Electric doors and trunk
  
• V-butted windshield
  

Paint
 

• Cadillac Crimson Maple
  
• Light Quartz Firemist
  
• Clear Coat
  

 


Frame
 

• 1980 Malibu front clip-disc brakes
  
• 1980 Malibu rear clip-drum brakes
  

 


Running Gear
 

• 1975 Chev 400 Edelbrock intake –dual exhaust
  
• 1975 Chev turbo 350 –automatic – hurst shifter
  
• 1980 Malibu 10 bolt diff
  
• 1979 Chrysler Rad
  
• 1986 Camaro electric fan
  
• Custom built gas tank
  
• Aluminum covered firewall
  

 


Wheels – Tires
 
·         15 x & Chev steel wheels
·         215-75R-15 Uniroyal radial
 ·         15 x 7 Chev steel wheels
·         215-75R-15 Uniroyal radials
 


Interior
 

• Seats 1979 Chrysler
  
• Door panels by builder
  
• Headliner by Dale “Spoof” Edighoffer
  
• Dash filled
  
• Individual gauges installed
  
• 1978 Buick speedometer
  
• Interior lights
  
• Tilt wheel
  
• Stainless rear view mirror
  

 


Wiring
 

• Rewired by original owner with complete wiring diagrams included
  

 


1950’s Accessories
 

• Fender skirts
  
• 1959 Cadillac taillights
  
• 1956  Dodge Lancer hub caps
  
• Dual dummy spot lights
  
• Peep rear view mirror
  

bobo a écrit:Ma petite contribution   

Koool  :super:  :

je ne sais pas pourquoi mais j'ai une certaine simpatie pour c models la   

bobo a écrit:je ne sais pas pourquoi mais j'ai une certaine simpatie pour c models la   

Moi aussi j'aime bien ces modèles  , mais tu en n'a une???   

Predicta a écrit:

Moi aussi j'aime bien ces modèles  , mais tu en n'a une???   

Oui effectivement j'en ai une   mais elle n'est pas aussi jolie que celles la