Buildin' A Better Beater - Tech

Scott Whitaker's high-profile three-window is a perfect example of a purpose-built beater. Scott took great pains to make sure his Dynaliner coupe represented the look of a well-broken-in hot rod right from the start, so he'd be able to drive the car without fear of a bit of road rash-and drive it he does!

Before completing the high-end California Spyder '29 roadster project for STREET RODDER in 1999, Eric Geisert already knew he'd probably never want to have such a highly detailed car as the Spyder again. In 1996, he began putting together his Ravon Retro Rod, a '32 three-window that uses a coupe body from Ravon Street Rods, and built it to '74 specs. (He even found a Muntz eight-track player for under the dash.) In the past 11 years, the car has never once received a wash job (it's the original black gelcoat under those layers of dust), and it was shown as part of the Deadliners car club display in its unwashed state at the 2004 Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona.

The patina'd or beater look doesn't always have to sport a worn-through paint finish; a coat of primer or a flat or semigloss finish will do just as well. The beater look is a definite throwback to a time when cash was tight and things like shiny paint and lots of chrome plating were reserved for show cars, not drivers. Jeff Cetnar's Amsterdam, NY-based '31 A pickup is a perfect example of a cool blue-collar hot rod.

Josh Shaw and his dad are the street rod hobby's patina gurus. This hard-working duo has worked their magic on untold numbers of beater rods and race cars nationwide.

Here's a cool example of some of Josh's handiwork-you've got to admit that artwork and lettering like this will set any hot rod apart from its contemporaries.

Another, though much harder, way to achieve the barn-find look is to come up with a real barn-find. This one was spotted at the Goodguys show this past September in Rhinebeck, NY, and looks like it was driven directly from the barn to the show.

The basic trick to achieve a patina'd finish is to speed up the natural wear on any existing paint job by rubbing through the top finish and exposing some of the undercoat. If you're starting from scratch on a fresh panel, Josh suggests using different color primers in different panels like the hood, decklid, or tailgate. This will give the impression of different areas of bodywork the vehicle may have received during its lifetime. Here, as an example, is a shot of one of the doors of my '52 F-1. This thing has numerous coats of different colors applied over the years, with the latest being a coat of rattle-can primer.

I'm going to create a bit of patina up at the beltline (where there would typically be wear from years of arms resting on the windowsill. This will be achieved by a bit of light wet sanding. I started out by grabbing a few sheets of wet-or-dry paper in 400-, 220-, and 180-grits. A couple of drops of dishwashing detergent in a bucket of water to help lube the paper (an old wet-sanding trick I learned in my youth) and I was ready to see what kind of damage I could do.