Features: Paint (2/4)

When building a custom ride, whether it be a street or rat rod, hot rod, lowrider or lowrod or simply a custom car for cruisin’ on the weekends—the paint was always an important concern. Generally, once the bodywork was completed, the cars were sometimes painted in unusual colors.

Transparent, but wildly colored candy apple paint with aluminum glitter within the paint is applied on top of a metallic undercoat, first appeared in the 1960s. But, there was a problem with this method; it took too many coats to produce a brilliant effect, which in the hotter climates would eventually begin to flake. Car customizer Joe “Candy Apple Joe” Bailon, form northern California invented this method, process and style of paint job.

Soon, customizers began to add decorative paint to the car after the main coats was finished of any flames extending rearward from the front wheels, scallop flame and hand painted pin striping of a contrasting color. The base color, which is most often, is a single coat of a simpler paint. At some point in the customization process, flame jobs were introduced into this customization world. Applied later on in the process, the flames eventually spread to the hood, enclosing the entire front end. The flames begin at the bottom of the front fenders and follow the wind patterns up, over the hood, and down the side of the car. And since then have progressed from traditional fire/flame colors of reds, oranges and yellows through to the blues, greens and body-color "ghost" flames [insert pic of ghost flames]. One particular style of flames, called "crab claw flames,” which is still prevalent today, is attributed to Dean Jeffries.

Because custom painting has become such an important component of the custom car scene, many shows and competitions are awarding trophies for custom paint and paint design.