Dave Baker is a lifelong hot rodder. Years of going to shows with his Dad when he was a kid formed a deep connection in his brain that would never could be shaken loose. His wife, Lisa, has the bug as well. Together they had built some custom cars and motorcycles, but after attending a show in Paso Robles, California, Lisa got a serious drive to build a custom. Since Dave grew up in the Bay Area going to car shows with amazing customs and hot rods built by legends in the making, it had always been on his bucket list. And so the search started.

The couple ended up scoring a 1950 Mercury. Dave admits that the car was not nearly as nice as it today (a profound understatement, I’m sure), but that the project ended up taking on a life of its own.

The Baker’s sold off some Harley’s and used a fair amount of their savings to make this build possible. At some point through the process, they stopped looking at the dollars as much. There was so much talent put into the car and the build process that the end result became the only focus. “This was going to be the one,” Dave said.

The Bakers’ car has won many awards and has been covered in many other publications since it was finished in 2004. To get deeper into the story of the vehicle, we fired off a bunch of questions to Dave, to which he responded with great details. We’ll get to the car’s specs after.

How long have you been into hot rods and customs, and how did you get started?

Dave Baker: I’ve been into cars for over 50 years, it all started by going to the indoor car shows in the Bay Area with my Dad in the early 1960s. I was heavily influenced by the custom show cars of the day built by George Barris, Gene Winfield, Dean Jefferies, and Ed Roth. To say it had a profound influence on me would be an understatement.

What customs have you built before your 1950 Mercury Coupe?

DB: ’50 Cadillac, ’60 Cadillac, FLHC, and Softail Custom (FLHC appeared in Easy Rider magazine)

Did you name your current vehicle?

DB: Yes, Goldrush, for two reasons: it was named for the paint color (Goldmine Pearl), plus we live in Northern California’s gold country.

Has Goldrush won any awards or honors?

DB: Yes, 11 magazine appearances, three covers, two features. We won the Custom d’Elegance Award from George Barris personally at the Grand National Roadster Show in 2009, and was selected for the prestigious All Mercury Gathering in Sacramento. It earned many best of show awards and received awards at every outing we participated in.

What interesting things happened throughout the build?

DB: I originally took the car to Ben York at Roseville Rod & Custom to have the top chopped. I intended to take the car home after that. One morning at 6:00 am Ben called me and said “you have to come here right now and hung up.” I thought the shop had burned down or something. I arrived to see the most beautiful and proportionate chop on a Mercury I had ever seen. Ben had pulled an all-nighter to finish the chop and it was spectacular. From there, the collaboration was on. Long story short, the car never left Ben’s shop for the next three years. One thing led to another and the result is the beautiful and truly special car you see here.

What’s your favorite part or modification?

DB: There is a ton of custom fabrication on this car, but the hand-formed chrome side trim and the B-pillar side window trim are two of my favorites. They really showcase the level of craftsmanship in this build.

What part would you like to change if you were to rebuild it?

DB: Nothing.

What was the main order that you did the modifications in, and why?

DB: It was a ground-up build so we started with a new custom square tubing chassis and went from there. Pretty much as you would expect.

What motivates you to build?

DB: First the fun! And then we wanted to build a custom car that would represent the spirit of the cars I saw as a kid in the ’60s with my dad. Eventually we hoped to create a car that would stand up to the test of time. I think we have succeeded in both, and I think this car will be around for a long time.

Is there anything else you want to add to the story, or any personal comments? The more you can add to the history or story of the car the better!

DB: Many special people came into the build along the way. It was like they realized it was something special and wanted to be part of it. Alex Blanco spun the grill bullets, Laura “Rusty” Parker made the solid bronze Flying Eyeball metal sculpture on the dash, Dave Stoltz hand-formed the window trim and B-pillar molding, and Ben York Sr. created the spider web design grill backing plate, and many, many more. And of course, Ben York Jr. and the talented team at Roseville Rod & Custom who did the heavy lifting on the project.

The most inspiring part of the project was the people we met along the way. George Barris, Gene Winfield, and Blackie Gejeian to name a few, some of the very people who inspired me all those years ago. I learned that Sam and George Barris grew up in Roseville, and that George always liked Goldrush because it was a custom Merc and it had been built in Roseville.

And, of course, Ben York and his team who are like family to us now. Ben has god given talent and the integrity and generosity to go along with it. He can build anything you can dream of in metal and that is a dangerous thing! He and I were on the identical wave length regarding the vibe we were trying to capture on this build. It was an experience of a lifetime.

Goldrush has been presented online and featured in magazines all over the world, including the U.S., Japan, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. It has made its mark in custom car culture, and I believe that 50 years from now people will still be talking about Goldrush and it will survive the test of time.

At this point in time Lisa and I feel it’s time for Goldrush to start a new chapter, and we are looking for the right collector to pass the torch of this iconic automobile.

Specifications

Chassis Modifications:

Suspension Front: Mustang II

Suspension Rear: Custom link system

Control Arms: Tubular

Steering: Rack and pinion

Air/hydro Accessories: Air Ride Suspension, Accuair Controller

Frame Mods: Custom square tubing chassis

Brakes: Wilwood

Builder: Roseville Rod & Custom

The Bakers use three sets of wheels to give the car a different look and feel when they want to.

Wheels and Tires

Wheels, make and size: 15 x 6-inch steel

Tires, make and size:  Firestone Bias-Ply Wide Whites

DB: We actually have three sets of wheels for the car. Painted steel with ’54 Buick caps, a 17-inch Five-Spoke American set with 50 Series Blackwalls, and 15-inch painted steel wheels with radial white walls and moon Bonneville Discs. We change them to suit our mood. They really made a difference to the cars attitude and appearance. It’s all just for fun.

Body Modifications

Shaved: Four-inch Chop, B-pillar removed and hard-topped, corners rounded, doors, hood, gas filler, trunk shaved, rear window opening reshaped, hood pancaked and louvered, bumpers narrowed and set into body, custom grill surround, front clip made into one piece.

Miscellaneous: 1954 Buick license plate over rider with 1957 Chevy front bumper bullets as exhaust outlets in rear bumper. The over rider and 1957 Chevy bullets were project starters, I bought those at a swap meet very early on and laid them on Ben’s floor with the back bumper and we both said “cool.” Front bumper narrowed and turned upside down. These body mods were performed by Roseville Rod & Custom.

Paint

Brand and Colors: House of Color Goldmine Pearl over white base coat

Miscellaneous (Pinstriping, air brush, etc.): Pinstriping by Jim  XYZ and TJ Pagano

Performed By: Paint by Jason Haskins Hot Rod Body Shop

Interior

Seats: Stock seats with springs inverted for headroom, Ultra-leather custom upholstery with cheetah Ultra suede trim and headliner

Dash: Stock dash moved back 6-inch to accommodate the 6-inch engine set back, Ididit Tilt Column and ’56 Chevy Steering wheel reduced in diameter

Gauges: Dakota Digital

Stereo: Pioneer

Misc: Pile speakers and subwoofers

A Chevy 502 cubic inch big-block provides over 400 horsepower and rumble to turn the experience into 3D with surround sound.

Engine/Drivetrain

Engine: Chevrolet 502

Intake manifold: Edelbrock smoothed and powder coated white

Carburetor/Injection: Chrome Edelbrock 750

Header/exhaust: Sanderson

Ignition: Pertronix

Transmission: GM 700 R-4 by Phoenix Transmission, smoothed and painted white

Shifter: Lokar

Rearend Type: Currie Enterprises 9-inch

Dyno results: 456 horsepower

Misc.: Block smoothed and painted white

Performed By: Dave Baker and Roseville Rod & Custom

Goldrush has had countless hours poured in to it over the years. First with the build process and now with showing off all that hard work. The award-winning car is definitely a top shelf car that was built with such quality  it will be around for many years to come. This is definitely a case of, you get what you put into it.

See more about Dave and Lisa Baker’s 1950 Mercury Coupe Custom at www.thegoldrush.com.