New project..?? WHERE do you get your inspiration from?

[pre-cal]

So, you want to build a new project. Somewhere along the lines of a callooker, or maybe a gasser... Where do you take your inspration from...do you dare to go new ways to make your car stand out?
Obviously there are certain rules that make a looker what it is. Ass up - nose down, big and little wheels, not too bright color etc etc, but as we all know there are so many other ideas that can be used, in regards to interior, chassis, outside appearance, type of wheels, old tires or new tires etc. Tell us how you get the ideas? Do they just jump into your head or do you read old custom mags, the callook bible, look at other cars, hot-rods, old racers etc.etc..TELL US!!!!!!!

Personally...I get a few ideas from the very first issues of "Hot VWs", or they do often as mentioned earlier...just jump into my mind. Also, I am able to picture the car finished in my head, something that is a great asset if you are unsure how it will look when done. There is no right or wrong when building cars. You only have to rely on yourself, and the work that goes into things, to get that special detail 100%.
Also a good tip when building is that you don´t tell anyone what details etc your car will have. I have made this mistake a few times, just to find out that someone have used the idea before my car is finished.
Remember that when you have desided how the car should look, that you go through with your own plans and don´t let friends help you with working out what is best to do.
In the end, they have built your car, and not you....also, at the finished stage you might regret that things turned out as they did, but then it´s usually too late to change anything anyway.(((

But back to the topic...TELL US!!!!!

[Gregor/DFL]

Well, I think a good inspiration also is a view to other "scenes" like the Hot Rodders e.g. There are certainly some "standards" as you mentioned, but problem is that everyone has these standards in mind and with that,lots of cars bein around are just variations, only using slighlty different colours and wheels. For sure the most imprortant thing is to be happy with the result, but to take a view outside vw is a nice inspiration for me, even looking at "modern tuning cars"- you´ll find some soultions in detail there which can easliy be adapted to an "old" Volkswagen...

[Kobus]

hmm... i guess my inspiration comes from many things... books and magazines from in the past, cars i have seen... but most of all it's a result of the blender in my head 

   i also picture how the finished car will look like in some sort of "mental image"...       if i would build a bug right now, i think it would look like it came straight out of a late 70's Hot vw's !         

[ESH]

I think anyone doing this thing really has a need to 'do' or have several cars, there are many inspirations and you can't have them all on one car. When I think of the VW's I have seen and really liked there must be something in the order of 20 or so cars that come straight to mind and then a load more that are filed in the back of the mind. At the end of the day it comes back to some of the stuff that was said in the 'why are you into Cal-look' thread before it got junked by some purile crap, friends. The guy who come's over when you've had enough with it and says 'let's sort it', that's what keeps you going to the shows and reading the magazines that give you the ideas. With the actual execution ideas come from all over like Gregor said, everything from 30's racers to current tuners though I think it's fair to say that a tri-plane spoiler will never be OK. 

DIGGING THE HEAD BLENDER! 

[Zach Gomulka]

I'll get lucky and find a cool vintage speed item for cheap, with every intention of reselling it to make a bit of profit, and then I start thinking how cool the part I just found would go with this part and that part on this car painted this way and lowered that way... I own a ton of old parts intended for cars I dont even own yet!!
Here is an old power pulley I picked up at the pre Classic OCTO show a couple years ago, and a American Racing wheel I got at Denver a week and a half ago. Someday they will find thenselves bolted to a clean late model looker...

[TiDi]

I start from one of my favourite car the Greg ARONSON / Jim HOLMES '63 and for the details I take inspiration from old racers and old cal-lookers no recent car or recent aftermarket part was take in consideration

and now from an embryonic form it is quite in the final form

I'm thinking like kobus I want a car that's look like it came straight out of a late 70's Hot vw's !

[herrvee]

culture is the most important to have before begining a project.If you dont have , probably you will make mistakes regarding the race accessories as autometer (too new) or MSD ignition if you want to built a 70's project. motor with long stroke, big heads were not the standards at this era. the easy way to not make error is to observe these old faded photos and read the article from all the periodicles existing at this time.
My looker is very inspired from the 70's. I spent a lot of time finding accessories from this time. I wanted them not new but with this natural patina made with time.
all the pieces are genuine ones excepting the scat 36hp doghouse fan shroud.
even tires are old ones. driving is a little hot sometimes with this old technology but it is my choice.
when I bought the car I dream about the style to give to it and then I have built it.

[Luftkraft]

Hi herrvee, awesome car! It's got real attitude, and that's what it's all about. This IS old school.

[jick]

i'm in the final stages of finishing my old school 59 cal look car....its mango green, genuine empi 5's or erco's, 2276 ida's etc etc....

so i'm figuring my new 64 project needs to look much wilder......i'm playing things a little close to my chest right now but the inspiration is ...........imagine a full on gasser / cal looker angle chopped & flared arches with heavy influences from the hot rod 60's show car look, but with the detail of the present day(randy gates or darrell baker style)....cars like lil' snort, motion minicar, small wonder...mixed with larry watson, john d'agostino, homegrown hotrods.

i'll keep you posted.

[Lee.C]

culture is the most important to have before begining a project.If you dont have , probably you will make mistakes regarding the race accessories as autometer (too new) or MSD ignition if you want to built a 70's project. motor with long stroke, big heads were not the standards at this era. the easy way to not make error is to observe these old faded photos and read the article from all the periodicles existing at this time.
My looker is very inspired from the 70's. I spent a lot of time finding accessories from this time. I wanted them not new but with this natural patina made with time.
all the pieces are genuine ones excepting the scat 36hp doghouse fan shroud.
even tires are old ones. driving is a little hot sometimes with this old technology but it is my choice.
when I bought the car I dream about the style to give to it and then I have built it.

I like your way of thinkin dude - This is just what I set out to do with my Manx everything on it is "period" I too spent a LONG time finding just the right bits, 2 years almost 

Also jick I like the sound of both your cars and I can't wait for the next update