Hot Rod Forum banner

Hirohata Merc............

6K views 33 replies 10 participants last post by  Beenaway2long 
#1 ·
Anybody got any indepth info on this car?I know it was built by Barris in the 50s and recently restored but where has it been between then and now.Any books written on this car?Any info would be great.Thanks
 
#3 ·
There`was an article in Old autos newspaper, (a local enthusiasts paper) that it spent a number of years up here in Canada. It was then discovered what it really was and restored............not sure of the truth in that story.
 
#5 ·
Thanks malc

Wow! That was a trip down memory lane going thru the gallery on the Barris site.....saw most of those show cars in person over the years.....

He is stillin good health, was on Car Crazy a short time ago, they did a "tribute" outdoor show of his cars.

Where's "Ala Carte"? Still my all time favorite. A tiny bit of updating and clean up (door handles etc.) and it would contend for the Riddler...or somebody ought to do it as a kit car.

You are amazing with the great links you post, can't imagine what all your "favorites" links are...
 
#8 ·
96' at Oakland is good enough answer for me, nostalgia cars were already big time by then, it's out there some where...

yeah, the Ala Carte hood needed to be fixed. It was 3 piece to show the motor and keep the show lines of the headlight bezels into the hood. looked kinda yuchy with the top piece on.
 
#9 ·
Ok, the Ala Kart replica, that was built and does exist. A guy by the name of Howdy Ledbeter built it. He lives in my town, he always has something cool over there.
Now I can't remember, was the original distroyed in the Barris fire? I know the "Kopper Kart" was. I seem to remember the Ala Kart in a picture all in pieces and that is the way it has been since 1970 or so.


The thing is, there was a replica (a perfect replica) of the Hirohita Merc as well.

How about the "El Matidor", now that we are talking about rebuilds. Have any of you ever seen the work that went into rebuilding that mess? And then the most bizare part,the guy puts a 5.0 and Mustang suspension??????? Why in the world would you want to go thru such work to restore the original body only to not end up with little more than a copy anyway?
 
#10 · (Edited)
malc said:
Calling on rotted out memory banks again, I think there was a replica of Ala Cart made, but they did´nt stay that true.
Some alterations were made in the length of the hood.
Reckon the original was restored.
Gotta find out.
....Ala Kart is owned by Roy Brizio and at the 50th anniversary show at Oakland it was there unrestored and looking kind of ratty and to me it was like lookin at a ghost,so bizzare to finelly see something ive seen in books all my life and then to see it 2 feet in front of you.It was off to the side in one of the walkways,people just walking by this worn out T bucket,not knowing what it was.Im glad I got to see it unrestored I went to this show too see 3 cars,The Hirohata Merc,Ala cart and Gray Baskervilles 32 Ford. didnt get to see Grays 32.Ala Kart 2 was built by Howdy Ledbetter here in Fremont.
 
#11 ·
I do remember seeing the ALa Kart at that show! Ok, how about the Deora Jeff, did you see that at the show this year (I know, not the "Oakland" show but it is all we have now) . One of the Alexander bros was even there to talk to you about it. That blew me away, one of my favorite sixties customs.
 
#12 ·
The Herohita ( clone ) was built and still owned by Jack Walker from the Kansas City area.

He owns several of the old famous show cars, and leases them out as feature cares at the big shows.

He also has the blue roadster pickup that Ray Farnner of Kansas City built. ( can't recall the name of it right now )

Some of Jacks cars are on display at the Starbird Museum in Afton Okla.

Troy
 
#13 ·
Yes I did see the Deora there,I didnt know if it was the real one and then I saw the green truck,I think it was the Grass Hopper and then I figured it might be the real deal.I think this truck won AMBR in 59 and I think its the only truck to win this honor.Speaking of that show what a waste of time,I wont be going back anytime soon.Although that black 35 Chevy was awesome.The flames on that thing were like none ive ever seen.

When I saw the Hirohata Merc at Oakland years ago was this the clone or the real car?
 
#14 ·
Probably the clone, it has been around for a long time. I think the org. was just discovered and restored recently.

Troy
 
#15 ·
Jeff, one of my favorites, Gene Winfields "The Reactor" was also there again this year. When I was a kid I bought a Petersons publishing "How to do body work and paint" book. Among all the lame "How to install a bubble window in a van" and crap like that was a number of pages showing the construction of this hand built aluminum beauty. It was the first time I had ever seen someone MAKE panels. I had never even thought about it, you could actually do that. The photos of Gene bending the hood panel over a round saw horse, him welding the seam down the quarter, these images were burned into my brain. I had not seen the book in a few of decades, I didn't know what happened to it. I asked my brother to be on the look out if he saw one pick it up for me. He did one day, I opened it up and it was like going back in time to when I was 15. Seeing that car in person and talking to Gene about it was wild.

Here it is when it was on Star Trek (gag me) it was also on Bewitched (Samantha was hot!).

 
#17 · (Edited)
The video I mentioned earlier does feature the clone A la Cart,
as stated before it was built by Ledbeter.
He built the car from scratch in 129 days, 130 if you count the time he took to decide to do it.The car is longer than the original and moved back on the frame, that was to get rid of the nose heavy look it had.
Barris and one of the original builders talk about the clone and are very complimentary. The original builder reckoned to trash about 5 fenders in making the car and stay on scedule was a miracle. The car was assembled the night before the show and fired up the first time, he got to Oakland an hour late !
The original was built from a quicky design Barris did on a napkin
and the owner did the chassis in San Fransisco while Barris beat the body out in L.A.
The original won two years running 1958 and ´59.
BTW the tape I watched was ´orrible, a British effort.
Another cool link http://www.timsykescruisenight.com/rods_customs.htm
this shows the Hirohata story
 
#20 ·
I have read about the Hirohita Merc all my life. As I recall, one of the more detailed and honest articles said the top of the car was a 100 point custom but underneath it was total trash. crappy welding, bordering on deadly and zero engineering, just thrown together to support the sheet metal.

And although I am an Ed Roth fanatic and the Mysterion, Beatnik Bandit and Outlaw are the three top show cars of all time, the Ala Kart is right up there on the top platform of the podium threatening to shove the latter two (NOTHING can touch the Mysterion!) off to lower levels.
 
#21 ·
I just got the first series of Overhaulin´on DVD and in the third program they make over a ´50 Ford. Chip Foose is at a car show giving out awards and "accidently" bumps into the Ford´s owner
Chuck de Herris, in the background can be seen an Ala Cart
which one, I don´t know.
 
#23 ·
[email]willys36@aol.com[/email] said:
I have read about the Hirohita Merc all my life. As I recall, one of the more detailed and honest articles said the top of the car was a 100 point custom but underneath it was total trash. crappy welding, bordering on deadly and zero engineering, just thrown together to support the sheet metal.

And although I am an Ed Roth fanatic and the Mysterion, Beatnik Bandit and Outlaw are the three top show cars of all time, the Ala Kart is right up there on the top platform of the podium threatening to shove the latter two (NOTHING can touch the Mysterion!) off to lower levels.
Willys, I believe the Beatnik Bandit is at the Harrahs auto museum in Reno Nevada. I saw it there a few years ago.

I have seen a number of the legends "naked" and I can tell you, they were quite rough by todays standards, that is for sure. But then "todays" show cars are still pretty rough under all the glitter and gold. I was at a big west coast builders shop barbecue and was stunned to see one of this most famous cars with a few interior panels removed. This is a Duece highboy that won "Americas Most Beautiful Roadster" about 1980ish. It looked like CRAP under the upholstery. There was no paint where it wouldn't be needed once covered, nice and shiney red around the edges of the deck lid with over spray falling in toward the middle and then bare primer! Then there was wires hanging all over with no looms, black taped every once and a while to something. The tubing supporting the body in the trunk wasn't eve painted as I remember. It was disgraceful as far as I am concerned.
Brian
 
#24 ·
Yes, the Bandit is there but now they call it National Heritage Museum. Bandit II, the Finkmobile and a few of his later custom little red wagons are there too. The Outlaw is owned by the Petersen Automotive Museum Los Angles California. Mark Moriarity (see this) has the restored Road Agent and Globe Hopper.


Here is the definitive site for Roth fans.
 
#25 ·
I don't know if you ever met the man but he was a real cut up. He used to man the T shirt booth at the Oakland Roadster show most every year. I would talk to him, but even hanging around listening to him with others was entertaining.

He even used an idea a buddy of mine gave him. My buddy rolled up in his wheel chair and suggested he do a shirt with a Rat fink in a wheel chair pulling a wheelie and smoken the tires. Sure enough, the next time we saw him he had the shirt on sale!
He was one of a kind, that is for sure.
 
#26 ·
Ed was an artest alright. I got to know him real good during the ten years we traveled the show circuit.

Did you know that when he was on the road with the show that he lived in his pickup and his little trailer that he hauled one of his cars and his T shirt booth in?

He gave me this poster on Masonite with a personal message on it about one of our road experiences. some where in several thousand photos of our travels I have a few hundred of him at work and play.

Troy

 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top