Richard Rini's 1951 Mercury

The Merc as it appeared when Richard Rini bought it in the Summer of 2020. Photo courtesy of Richard Rini.

Richard bought the Merc from Jamie Hall of Angola, Indiana in June of 2020. Jamie originally bought the car from Brad Salyers of Kentucky, who had purchased it from a guy at the The Ducktail Run in Gas City, Indiana. Before selling the car to Richard Rini, Jamie told Kustomrama that he sold the car to a friend for a time and bought it back to find out that the California paperwork had been thrown away. While Jamie owned it, Anthony White found some old photos of the car in the Bill Usedom Collection in the Rik Hoving Custom Car Photo Archive. Taken in the 1970s or the 1980s, these photos showed a white iteration of the Merc. Photo courtesy of Richard Rini.

When Jamie sold the car to Rini, nobody knew who the original owner or builder of the car was. He knew that it was redone to its current state in the 1980s, but he didn't know who was responsible for the rebuild. Photo courtesy of Richard Rini.

While Jamie Hall owned the Merc, Anthony White came across some old photos of it in the Bill Usedom Collection in the Rik Hoving Custom Car Photo Archive. Taken in the 1970s or the 1980s, these photos showed a white iteration of the Merc. Photo from the Bill Usedom Collection, courtesy of the Rik Hoving Custom Car Photo Archive.

A rear end shot of the white iteration of the Merc. Photo from the Bill Usedom Collection, courtesy of the Rik Hoving Custom Car Photo Archive.

Lost and Found

1951 Mercury owned by Richard Rini of Chandler, Arizona.

Old California Custom

Richard bought the Merc from Jamie Hall of Angola, Indiana in June of 2020. Jamie originally bought the car from Brad Salyers of Kentucky, who had purchased it from a guy at the The Ducktail Run in Gas City, Indiana. Before selling the car to Richard Rini, Jamie told Kustomrama that he sold the car to a friend for a time and bought it back to find out that the California paperwork had been thrown away. While Jamie owned it, Anthony White found some old photos of the car in the Bill Usedom Collection in the Rik Hoving Custom Car Photo Archive. Taken in the 1970s or the 1980s, these photos showed a white two-tone iteration of the Merc. This version was nosed and decked, and the hood featured rounded corners. It still ran the stock grille and headlight rings, but the rear of the car had been dressed up with fenderskirts and Packard taillights.

Do you recognize the Rini/Hall/Salyers Merc?

When Jamie sold the car to Rini, nobody knew who the original owner or builder of the car was. He knew that it was redone to its current state in the 1980s, but he didn't know who was responsible for the rebuild. During the rebuild, the door handles were shaved, the headlights frenched, and the stock grille was replaced with a single floating bar. The beltline that goes down to the taillight was also reworked during the rebuild. The dual spotlights were also removed before the car was painted blue. When Rini bought the car, the Pearl White could still be seen on the dash as well as when the door panels were off. Richard is currently researching the history of the car, trying to find out who the original owner or builder was. Please get in touch with Kustomrama at mail@kustomrama.com if you recognize Richard's Merc and can help us fill in its history.