VIDEOS PHOTOS Barry Weiss’ Cowboy Cadillac from Storage Wars

On A&E’s treasure-hunting reality series Storage Wars the second-most exciting moment is when they cut the locks of the abandoned storage units and the doors go up, revealing the mysterious contents inside. The first-most exciting moment? Seeing what kind of vehicle “The Collector” Barry Weiss arrives in!

As we mentioned in a previous post, Barry made his fortune selling wholesale produce (seriously) and has used that money to feed his collecting obsessions, including his love of rare and unique automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, pink scooters, and any other form of transportation imaginable.

Although Barry doesn’t own all of the vehicles you see him drive on the show, he does have a sizable collection that is estimated to be worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $500,000, including his most famous ride – the “Cowboy Cadillac.”

Barry Weiss’s Cowboy Cadillac is a custom 1947 Cadillac originally built by legendary car designer Frank DeRosa. Barry purchased the car after selling his purple Frank DeRosa custom 1951 “King of Mercs.” Frank DeRosa’s daughter shared some of Barry’s history with her dad’s cars in the Jalopy Journal forum where some were questioning Barry’s choice of tribal flames for the paint job:

When he sold the “King of Mercs” he flew up here and bought that Cadillac UNFINISHED on site. Barry says he gets way more chicks driving those cars than his vette or jag….go figure ~ He’s a true maniac but has a heart of gold and luvs that car! He loved the stripes but just wanted to change it up a bit for the Ponoma show.

Here’s a photo of the car with the red pen stripes it had before Barry changed it:

And another few after photos:

Frank DeRosa’s daughter (I’m sorry I don’t know her name) comments that Barry uses his DeRosa customs as his “every day” cars, which I thought was funny – but not as funny as some of the other threads on the forum that often used the phrase “drove it like he stole it” when referring to Barry! (Sounds perfect, right?) Here’s a description of the “Cowboy Cadillac” from someone that apparently had firsthand experience with it – and with Barry:

Frank DeRosa built car like others Barry has owned. It is as radical as it gets. One of the most uncomfortable rides I have ever been in and I have been in my share but still a blast to cruise around in esp when Barry is piloting. Have seen that car evolve from when he first got it. Its pretty insane. Mostly a piece of art in my opinion. Definitely form over function.

And don’t think for a second that Storage Wars was the Cowboy Cadillac’s big break! It actually made an appearance in the Outkast music video for their song “Roses!”

(The Caddy makes its first appearance right around the 2:25 mark)

And just in case that brief appearance didn’t satisfy your Cowboy Caddy appetite, here are a couple videos of Barry and a pal cruisin’ the city in the ride: