57 Hood Rocket Pole

[58CameoAZ]

I Think we should all VOTE YES or NO

My hats off to all you 57 Owners with HOOD ROCKETS
Its like Baseball,Hotdogs,and Apple Pie to ME!!!! and of course CHEVROLET

Please Cast Your Vote
and i Hope all you 57 owners might Opt to put them on your hoods if you can
FIND, AFFORD,or they get RE-Produced Someday!

.

[63 & 64 Bowties]

Okay, is there a point to all this?

[Highsider]

My truck isn't shaved, but I like the clean look.
So, no, for me.

[Kim57]

I've never really thought much either way about them.
Not putting them on mine though because they don't fit the style of my build.
Kim

[G&R's57GMC]

Yes the rockets are repopped and NOT made of unobtainium .

If my '57 GMC was a Chevy and had all the deluxe trim I would put them on.

But if it was a street rod and shaved I wouldn't put them on.

It all depends on the vibe of one's truck

A friend of mine back in the day had a Black '57 short bed with all the trim and rockets, That was one sharp looker .

[58CameoAZ]

Originally Posted by 63 & 64 Bowties

Okay, is there a point to all this?

Maybe

[mr48chev]

Well my opinion has already been voiced in another thread and it stands.

What I see now is too many guys that are new to the car or truck hobby and or may have come over from the HOG brigade after they got bored with leather jackets or grew up in certain areas of the country falling into the trap that because the "cool guys" bolt on every trinket and accessory those trinkets and accessories become a necessary item.

It reminds me of the brand new Harley owners crowding each other out of the way at the Screaming Eagle chrome rack at the Harley shop looking for more trinkets, crap and lights to bolt on their newly bought bikes to "customize" them. Hang around a bunch of HOG members and you hear that "It's all custom, I have every cover replaces with the gold screaming eagle covers now and I bolted extra lights on the luggage box.

If you are after the East La Bomba look all of those chrome trinkets are cool and belong with the package as part of the package.

If it is fully restored to a Deluxe original right down to the full disk hub caps and wide bias white walls they are great as they are another "factory accessory".

Old school look is rather iffy because at the "old school" I went to the first thing you did when you got a car or truck was strip the extraneous stuff off for the clean dechromed look. The guys who thought bolting on extra accessories was "improving" your rig usually were older guys from the Midwest who had come here as Migrant workers and stayed. When a migrant worker was a guy who traveled to work the crops rather than being of a certain ethnic background. They usually put "back home" in every conversation at least twice.

What I don't get now is the number of guys who don't grasp the concept of staying on theme when building a truck or car. Not those junky "theme trucks" decorated up to look like something they never were but keeping the build on track with all pieces of the build flowing from front bumper to rear bumper. I don't see much of it here but I do see it on FB a lot. Full billet trimmed engine, billet dash insert with digital gauges. Custom billet wheels and then they put every bolt on trinket on the outside of the truck ever made including hood bullets, big gaudy sun visor that is not the proper one for the truck and angled down for the "cool guy from the hood" look and everything except a couple of racoon tail hanging from the fish pole antennas. It often reminds me of seeing that "competition class" roadster that showed up in coverage of a lot of indoor ISCA car shows a few years ago that was supposed to be a full on drag car but had big brass headlights on it rather than the undersize "headlights" that the guys who actually raced in that class at the strips ran because that class required headlights to be in place at the time. It looked wrong but he won car shows with it.

It still comes down to one thing. Does this look right with the total build of my truck as it sits now or does it look stuck on as an afterthought?
.

[Russell Ashley]

Regardless of Mr48"s opinion (which I very much respect) I want every piece of chrome that was originally available for my truck. I want it to look like I would have done it when the truck was new, which is consistent with my "original look but with modern conveniences theme". I don't want any JC Whitney junk, just original accessories, so my answer to the survey is definitely yes.

[Old Crow]

I'm with you Mr48. I like my Harleys and my trucks to be old and look as stock as possible...on the outside.
Wheels/tires, V-8's and a nice stance for the trucks. Less chrome, mild custom paint and big motors for the Harleys. I generally paint the air cleaners to match the bike and the exhaust BBQ black.
I will admit I did go kind of overboard with the fringe on my 92" stroker Shovelhead.
So sue me.

[OrrieG]

This is the kind of rocket pole I like

[joedoh]

personally I say doowhatchoolyke and dont worry about people who dont like it. if someone is offended by your hood rockets, offer them a full refund for everything they spent on your ride and spend three times as much on worrying about it. (that math is easy, 0x3=0)

I dont mind the harley guys either, I havent found them to be cretins loudly proclaiming their right and might in the world of customizing, most of them are really down to earth guys who worked hard for what they have and dont care about bench racers and people with nothing to show complaining about their rides. It gets a little tiresome hearing people at shows say "you know what you should have done" or "the way we used to do it is", but hey, there is always someone who cant that will spend their time complaining about someone who can.

[mr48chev]

Joe it isn't the old school bikers I was referring to. If you want an entertaining Saturday morning drive to a Harley Dealership and stand back and watch the new HOG aka Harley Oweners Group members who just bought their first Harley load up on chrome or billet or chrome and gold trinkets to stick on their bikes. They aren't real bikers they are Harley owners.

It was the "I have to have one of those and two of those and that fancier one over there" mentality that I was referring to. Not a lot of thought put into it, just the fascination with loading on shiny stuff for the sake of loading on shiny stuff.

Russel likes chrome trinkets and the more the merrier but his truck is not all that far from stock so it works. Restorers have loaded on every available factory option or dealer option on their cars and trucks since day one. A lot of them do tons of research to make sure that their hood ornament or mirrors are the "correct" ones for their particular year of vehicle and the particular model they have.

As I said earlier I grew up in an age where you took the chrome off your car or truck rather than putting it on unless you were putting it on the engine. A lot of my friends had their cars nosed or decked or had other chrome removed and the holes filled one panel at a time at the local body shop as they came up with the cash to have a bit of work done. The owner even would spray the car with black primer for between 10 and 20 dollars if you had it all sanded down and taped it yourself at his shop. Once in a while you would see an old man with extra chrome bolted on but at least in this town there weren't that many of them that did it.

[magicoolbus]

I vote yes to the hood rockets. My efforts for my truck are to add as many of dealer add-on accessories as I can. I have only added the ones found in the "1957 Passenger Car and Truck Accessories Installation Reference Manual." Here's my list in the order found in the manual:

* Seat belts-Can't think that this is a "east La Bamba" trinket that anyone would do without, and yes, it has chrome brackets and buckles.
* Gasoline Filter Unit
* Backing Lamp
* Glove compartment light switch
* Tail and Stop Lamp - Yes, they only came with drivers side.
* Under hood lamp
* Cigarette Lighter-oh heavens, more chrome.
* Hood Rockets - Nuf Said.
* Radio antenna and radio install with overhead speaker
* Door Handle Door Shields
* Directions Signal Lamp
* Parking Brake Alarm
* Windshield Washer
There are more to add, and I am looking for all of them. For me it isn't about the Chrome, it is about recreating a truck that has the options that would have been added by the dealer for a more discerning buyer, not the minimalist farm truck.

[Russell Ashley]

Is that manual on line anywhere? I've never heard of it. You have the same idea for your truck that I have for mine. I'm sure that somewhere there was a 57 3100 truck sold that had every available option, and that's about how I want mine.

[magicoolbus]

Hey Russell,
I don't think you can find it scanned, but the manual is available from a multitude of places. Amazon, Ebay, most repop sellers etc. It's 210 pages. The accessories book and the factory assembly manuals are my two most viewed resources.
JB

[crossfire84]

I say what ever floats your boat, I'm keeping mine stock on the outside with just a small mod. And yes mr48 I did put buick portholes in my hood because thats what i like. And thats ok if people don't care for this mod. I did it for me and thats all that matters, All is good.

[bowt1ed]

Ditto. What ever floats "your" boat. It would be fairly boring if everyone had the same taste, vision of what they wanted to end up with, and means of making it come to fruition. Personally, I have taken away great ideas from several "tastes" of other TF (and AD) trucks, and although not everything I see is for me - I respect them all. That' s all I've got to say about that...

Cheers, Jim

[Rude Dude]

1955 to 1957 even with all the factory options there really is not a lot of chrome so if rockets is what you like good for you. I really don't care for them unless it is an originally equipped Truck like a Cameo version installed at the dealer or factory. That being said that's what makes this hobby great everyone has a different view what they like on there truck. Adding what appeals to your taste I will not knock anyone for what they install, I am very respectful of ones style to what suits them except brands. I recently went to a local car show were the owner had a Ford bed on a Chevy truck to me that down right just wrong.

[OrrieG]

Over the years I have came across vintage correct aftermarket accessories like tissue dispensers, wiper fluid squirters, compasses, etc. Did not want them for my trucks or cars but did not have any problem selling them for good prices to those who did. Recently I have been thinking about adding some running lights across the front of the cab roof to fit the 4wd theme, probably in the 1% of guys here that would do that, but like everyone is saying what ever floats your boat...

[roger55]

I like them on a Custom Cab but mine isn't one.

So with a painted bumper, grille and headlight bezels as well as no chrome trim around the windows, I think hood rockets would look out of place on my truck.

[Rude Dude]

They are reproduced at only $549.95
http://www.classicparts.com/1957-Ace.../#.VJIBFMt0wu4

Originally Posted by 58CameoAZ

I Think we should all VOTE YES or NO

My hats off to all you 57 Owners with HOOD ROCKETS
Its like Baseball,Hotdogs,and Apple Pie to ME!!!! and of course CHEVROLET

Please Cast Your Vote
and i Hope all you 57 owners might Opt to put them on your hoods if you can
FIND, AFFORD,or they get RE-Produced Someday!

.

[Russell Ashley]

Originally Posted by Rude Dude

They are reproduced at only $549.95
http://www.classicparts.com/1957-Ace.../#.VJIBFMt0wu4

They show as being out of stock. I sent a note to their customer service and asked if they are available but haven't heard back yet.

Nice job on the seat, BTW, RD.

[Russell Ashley]

I got this from Classic Parts:

Russ,

Our website will let you order anything that we list online. Whether it is in stock or not, you can still place that order. The accessory hood ornaments are still on a factory back order. I would estimate availability no sooner than mid to end of January. If you place an order for these items, they will automatically charge and ship once they are in stock. I hope this information helps. Let me know if you have any further questions.

Thank you,