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Hey, Bleach! Thanks so much for replying again! You know, I was beginning to think I had lost my mind. I THOUGHT I had asked about this clock once before, but when I tried to find all old posts and/or threads I had done, it wasn't there. I wondered if I had just imagined the whole thing. Thanks for relieving my mind! (indeed, ALL my old posts and threads were not there when I searched for my activity under my profile. Is there a better way to search for old threads I had posted or participated in?)

I've had this clock for years, but I've never figured out what it fits. :confused: Anyone recognize it? It is marked "VDO" on the bottom of the clock face, and "Made in Germany" at the top. I was thinking maybe VW, Porsche, or other German car...probably of the 1950's. But some other folks suggested Studebakers of the same vintage. AACA forum members have helped me solve many other automotive mysteries, and I have been able to help others as well. I like it here!

Thanks, Rustyderby! Much appreciated.

The external push rods made me think that this could be a fairly old engine. Cool, eh?

Hello. I recently hit an estate sale, conducted in a dusty/dirty old barn. Prices were very, very cheap...for mostly rusty old dirty stuff. So I quickly started making a big pile, and simply bought everything that looked interesting. But now the hard part begins...trying to identify some of this stuff. I got one old "jug," (or cylinder) for an older air-cooled engine. I could find only one jug and two cylinder heads...no crank case, etc, etc. But I have no idea what this stuff is. Can anyone help me with this? At first I ASSUMED it was part of an air compressor. But both heads feature spark plug holes. What do you think, gang? Any help will be DEEPLY appreciated.

Sorry, once this grille shell was identified, 3 or 4 people wanted it. I have shipped it to a new home. On the positive side, I learned that there are several owners of '33 Terraplanes doing restorations right now, so you may be able to correspond with them on this forum, if that is helpful. Good luck!

Thanks, Mike. I understand that Lexington also had success on the race track, and Pikes Peak. I have wanted a Lexington radiator emblem for a long time. This may be as close as I will get. LOL

You know, I've got a modest radiator emblem collection, and one emblem which I have always wanted but not found is a good Lexington. (I prefer the enameled originals). I might need to just hang this ol' cap on a nail in the garage, near some of my emblems. It might be the only way I'll ever have one. More photos for you:

I was visiting Nashville, TN, a week or so ago, attending a bluegrass music event with a buddy. He suggested that we might want to visit the antique shop belonging to the AMERICAN PICKERS TV show guys. It is located in the former Marathon Automobile Company factory, and I was interested to see the place. Much to my surprise, the shop was tiny (maybe 50 feet by 75 feet or so?), but I was NOT surprised that it was jammed with visitors on a Saturday afternoon. You couldn't move in there! But more interesting was that a huge percentage of the items on display were antique car items and complete old motorcycles, and related parts and accessories. As you would expect, most items were priced pretty high, but I soon spotted a cardboard box sitting on the floor, filled with 1920's era hub caps. Most price tags were gone, but one or two were marked at $30 each. It didn't seem to matter what the brand or condition (for example, there was one of those old aluminum threaded caps for an early Chevy WITHOUT the bowtie...obviously an aftermarket piece...priced the same as nice nicer hubcaps). But when I looked a little closer, I noticed that one of them was machined from heavy brass...a wire wheel hubcap! When I turned it over and wet my fingers to wipe off the dirt and dust, it was plainly for a Lexington motor car with Buffalo wire wheels. Cool, eh? When I got it home and washed it in soap and water, I saw that it was for the right side of a "No. 5" Buffalo wire wheel-equipped car. Pretty neat, eh? Does anyone have any idea if it is likely to be in much demand? The spring and the locking pin move nicely, with plenty of spring tension too.

Photo showing small metal tabs still in place:

Inside view of lower "V" area:

A couple of folks asked to see some additional photos. Here is one showing the underside of the bottom "V" area: The metal is very solid, with surface rust. I have not even wiped off the dirt, so there is flaky rust and peeling chrome here and there.

Ivan, No, it is not yet sold. But one other restorer has asked for more detailed photos, which I hope to send to him today. Then if he is still interested, I will work with my buddy to establish a price. If he does not take it, I will offer it to you next. For the record, there are 3 hot rodders who want the grille shell, but the way I see it, they can use about any old neat-looking grille...whereas a restorer must use the exactly-correct grille. So I do plan to give fellow restorers the first shot.

Hmmm. That's too bad. I hate thieves and theft in general! Scrap metal prices are quite high right now here in Ohio, and thieves are stealing every metal item they can find. Then if they get caught, they merely say that they are honest scrap dealers trying to make a living, and they thought the stolen item was abandoned for anyone to take. Prosecution in such cases is rare, and not very severe. If these vehicles were stolen very recently, they might have shown up at a local scrap metal yard, where they could possibly be reclaimed by govt officials.

Funny... Those cars have been beaten, rolled, shot, and abused in every way possible. But to a guy like me, (living here in the rust belt as I do), there still seem to be items there which might have some value to someone. For example, if someone had a '41 Ford in decent "complete" condition but badly rusted underneath, that old white carcass might be a great parts car! And the Dodge has some sections which still look solid enough to cut patch panels or sections out of. I note that the Ford still has at least one lever-action shock absorber on it. Years ago I used to take them off of junkyard cars (if they still worked with good hydraulic-resistance action), and they sold pretty well at swap meets. And with today's enthusiasm for "rat rods," I wonder if that old Dodge could somehow hit the roads again? :cool: I still love to look at old abandoned cars like this. Thanks for the pix.

Hello. I need your assistance, folks. I have a nice older dash clock, marked "Made in Germany" and "VDO" at the edge of the clock face. It seems to have a code stamped into the back, which might indicate a date of 1959. See photos: Some friends and collectors I know suggested that, "Made in Germany" was probably a clue that it was VW or Porsche (of course, Germany had many other brands of cars too!), while another guy told me that Studebaker might have used VDO-brand instruments. So that is why I put those 3 car names in the headline. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated. Thanks SO much!

Hello. Folks on another forum kindly helped me ID a nice old grille shell that I have, as a 1933 Hudson Terraplane. Following are some photos: Can anyone tell me if there is any demand for original 1933 Terraplane grilles in good shape? Or, is it maybe "too rare," with little demand? Can anyone help me to figure out what it might be worth? A local hot rodder has been after it for a while, but he wants to put it on a "rat rod," and may have plans to cut or modify it. I posted it on the Jalopy Journal forum, and immediately two folks sent me PM's wanting to buy it, but again, both of them are rodders. I like hot rods just fine, but I would hate to see an original grille shell in good shape cut up, IF there were restorers desperately searching for original grille shells (after all, hot rodders could use many different grille shells for their purposes, but an owner of a '33 Terraplane resto project would require this specific unit). Thanks in advance for any assistance anyone can give.

Biscayne, The MOST important thing is to determine for sure if the car has a clean history. Sometimes cars were stolen long ago...but usually this is not the case (most stolen cars get chopped into pieces immediately, and all VIN numbers destroyed). However, sometimes people simply abandon an old car...leaving it on someone else's property, or etc. Then the car might lie around for 20 years or so, and finally someone might decide to sell it...without ever having legally owned it (IE: Such as a landlord with a car that was abandoned by a long-gone tenant on his rental property years ago, etc). Another common occurence is when someone owes money on a car for the loan, but fails to make all the payments, then hides it so it cannot be repossessed. In these cases, however, the cars are eventually reported stolen anyway. If you really want the car, then ask a police officer to run the VIN for you, to make sure it doesn't show up on a stolen list. Cops are always actively interested in recovering stolen cars, and you should be able to get someone in your state to check the VIN. If it doesn't show up stolen, you are PROBABLY ok. You can buy the car with a notarized bill-of-sale, signed by the seller. Just be sure that the bill-of-sale states that the seller states in writing on the BOS that he/she does own the car, and does have the legal right to sell it. Make sure you or the notary sees a legitimate ID of the person doing the selling, to verify that the name on your BOS is the name of the person you are buying it from. I'm no lawyer, but as far as I understand it (as a layperson), by having that notarized Bill-of-Sale in your possession, the worst that could happen to you would be if it turned up stolen from some other state, and some day in the future someone might claim it. But it would be pretty tough, I think, for anyone to try and hassle you for receiving stolen property (because you have done some due diligence before buying it). But if you get that bill-of-sale as I described it, and have the VIN checked before you buy, the odds are very good that all will be well, after you get a new title through a bill-of-sale state. (Keep in mind that this bill-of-sale maneuver only works for cars that are 25 years old or more, in most states).

Thanks so much, everyone, for your assistance on this. I am very grateful indeed.

Interesting...I posted these same photos in another forum (about old hot rods), and two people sent me photos of what appears to be my same exact grille on 1933 Hudson Terraplanes. Cool, huh?

I have a really nice used grille, which I have assumed was a 1933 or 34 Dodge pickup grille. But a buddy of mine looked at it, and said he was pretty sure it is NOT (he doesn't have a Dodge..it was just his impression). Anyway, I am determined to figure out what grille this is, before possibly selling it. Some guy has been asking me for it, but he just wants to put it on a "rat rod," and if it happens to be a hard-to-find rare old original grille, I would kick myself if I let some one cut it up for something like that. More pix to help you ID: This grille shell may have been plated at one time. It is approximately 32" tall. Any assistance anyone can offer will be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you all in advance.

In Ohio, you must have a title for cars. So if you make a fabulous barn find, purchasing an old car from the original owner (for example), who lost his title long ago, you cannot get a new title legally in Ohio. I once researched and wrote a long and detailed article about this in CAMARO CORRAL magazine. I sent an assistant to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in Columbus, where the director escorted him on an arranged tour. He witnessed state employees shredding hundreds of old titles, as fast as they could go. The rule was, if a title has not been used for a transfer of ownership or the registration of current license plates for 5 years, then that title was destroyed, with no records kept of it anywhere! So if you have an old project car in your garage with no tags on it for over 5 years, and then lose your Ohio title, you are out of luck. It's been this way in Ohio for many years. To solve this problem, Ohio car collectors have learned over the years to legally "sell" their cars via bill-of-sale to people in states which only require a bill-of-sale for older vehicles...like Arkansas or Georgia. Then the person who "bought" your car through the mail can take your notarized bill-of-sale into his or her title bureau in their state, and obtain a title in their name from that state. Then they can legally "sell" your car back to you, sign the title on the back with a notary's witness stamp, and mail you back the title. Then you take that title to your Ohio Registrar. They will send you to a local car dealership who will inspect the car to be sure that the title matches the VIN #, etc, and certify the car as "ok." Finally, Ohio will issue you an Ohio title in your name. It goes without saying that you really are selling your car to another person, and technically there is risk in that. Also, you had better be VERY sure that the car was never stolen in its history, or you will have serious legal issues. I have been talking with folks at SEMA, hoping to get some new laws proposed for Ohio to resolve this silly situation. But such things take time.