Nothin' like a good ol' flashing spark plug tattoo. Damn, I like all the usual images associated with hot rodding. Pin up girls make for great hot rod subject matter if you're thinking of new tattoo ideas. I've had a pinup on my forearm for years and I never get tired of her. In fact, I think I'll consider getting another one soon. I work with some excellent pinup artists at our studio so it's not hard to find someone to do it, just hard to find the time.
There are infinite images that can be associated with hot rods. Many people prefer the Big Daddy Roth style cartoon stuff. Very cool! I think I have one of those on my leg. In fact I'm sure I do! It's huge! Love the colors in some of those pieces. The Von Dutch flying eyeball is and has been a hot rod icon for years. Always looks good as a tattoo if it's done well.
Some choose to have their favorite car permanently etched into their skin. Be particularly careful in picking your artist if you want a tattoo of a car. Many tattoo artists try to do these car tattoos and they don't come out looking so good! Check out the artist's portfolio and make sure he can do a car.
I can't tell you how many Cadillac emblems I've done. They always look good if it's done large enough and well executed. Chevy bow ties of all sizes and colors seem to be popular. Can't go wrong with some of the old school automaker logos. Some of the art from the 40's and 50's really translates well in to tattooing. I really enjoy working with some of these vintage graphics. They make great reference when designing a car tattoo for sure.
I'm currently working on a couple sleeves that have checkered flag backgrounds in them. It's a really interesting way to do a unique looking racing or hot rod style tattoo. Smoking tires always look cool. I recently did a forearm pinup girl with crossed checkered flags and giant boobs popping out. Another happy customer! Giant boobs seem to make everybody happy.
I got tired of seeing the skull and crossed pistons a while back. There are just so many out there. Still have a few requests for this tattoo. I'll have to admit, they do look cool when done well.
To sum it up, if you are thinking of hot rod subject matter for a future tattoo, just try to find an artist with a portfolio full of cool hot rod images and he likes car stuff himself. It just makes getting the tattoo more fun if the artist likes the subject matter too!
