No, I didn’t resort to using kindergarten potty humor as inspiration for this title. That would be every last one of my other articles, except this one. Instead I’m talking about this slammed little LEGO surfin’ rat rod built by Isaac Wilder. He took inspiration from Jack Dick’s Surf Wagon. The stickers, now that’s where the Pooh reference comes from. They were pilfered from the Winnie the Pooh set that came out a few months back. Pretty sweet, right?
To see a rat rod in real life is quite a unique experience not soon forgotten. People can be left confused, upset, bewildered, awestruck, and amazed in one fell swoop. It is clear that LEGO builder Sérgio Batista understands the rat rod asthetic perfectly. This sick roadster is rusty, chopped, slammed, gutted, and you’ll probably need a tetanus shot just to look at it. I’m smitten, but then again I like ’em a little dirty. Rat rods, that is. I was talking about rat rods. Anyway, check out two other rat rod articles, both penned by me. (Hmmmm, no one else here is into rat rods?) While you’re at it, have a gander at more vehicles constructed by others.
The M35A2 is a powerful military truck aptly nicknamed the “Deuce and a Half” for weighing in at two and a half tons. However Tim Inman’s rat-rodded version has shed some considerable weight. It’s been lowered, chopped, channeled, stretched and bobbed (removed second rear axle). The result is a mean rat-rod that loses its military function but retains its color and some of its prior identity. Maybe it’s more of a peace offering now?
But before you go thinking such silly ideas a rear view reveals a gas can, fifth wheel for towing and a skull taillight cluster letting any would-be peacenics know this ratted-out deuce still means serious business.
To be sure, there is a motorcycle culture and as anti-establishment as they seem to be, they follow a certain set of rules. The trike is sort of a fringe entity, a head-scratcher, among a group who are already on the fringes themselves. Similarly, there is also a car culture. They may appear to be counterculture but a car enthusiast putting boatloads of time and money into a showstopping “trailer queen” has sort of become “The Establishment.” Enter the rat rod. This is a growling, filthy punk of a car born to flip the proverbial bird at the established norms. You’d want a tetanus shot just to look at one in person, let alone sit in one. What’s great is, with very little money and found parts, they also steal attention, and often top prizes away from the expensive showstoppers. With this in mind, here’s Pat Lacroix’s Rat Trike.
