[Car Show Award Question]

If you do decide to give out awards/trophies, do not ask your local Mayor or a politician to pick a car for an award. Several years ago a local show had a "Mayor's Choice" award. The Mayor didn't know a spark plug from a lug nut and picked a Bugatti, VW kit car for a trophy and it caused quite a scene. Many people vowed never to attend this show again and attendance did drop the following year's. It took several year's to get the show back to where it once was. If you are just starting out something like this is the last thing you need to happen.

[The ultimate Woodie accessory]

We are heading to Mystic CT, the weekend of July 20-23 for the National Woodie Club/Mystic Seaport, Woodie and Wooden Boat Show. The last time they had the show we couldn't believe how beautiful some of the boats were. I thought the maintenance on a station wagon was a lot, I'm told it's nothing compared to having a wooden boat in salt water.

[Bad News...Vermont Registrations/License Plates]

Is this why there are so many drivers in New York with Pennsylvania license plates on their cars?

[The ultimate Woodie accessory]

N.O.W., it's almost too beautiful to put it in water. 

[26 Model T]

Model T Fords aren't bringing a lot of money. I have seen several, very nice, restored vehicles that sold for around $7,500-$8,000. They are basically a Sunday morning bagel run car or a parade vehicle (if it doesn't overheat), 25-35 mph car. Slow, mechanical brakes and lack of comfort features limit its use. It might be a nice car for Pennsylvania two lane roads, but be courteous to the traffic behind you and pull over to let them pass.

[Surfboard rack for a 47 Chevy Fleetmaster Woodie]

I didn't know that there was a right way to put the surfboard on the roof. If I had one on my wagon, I would have put it on the wrong way simply because it looks more  aerodynamic with the curve facing down and the skeg in the rear. Learn something every day. Is that Sonny's black '40 parked on the wharf in Perkins Cove?  

[Surfboard rack for a 47 Chevy Fleetmaster Woodie]

I was talking to a friend that has a 47 Ford Wagon this morning and he tried one of those racks that uses suction cups and straps that hook under the rain gutters. He said that the "Cobra Grain" roof material would not allow the suction cups to grab. He got about a mile from his house and saw the surfboard moving around so he stopped and had to put the board inside the car and return home.

[Surfboard rack for a 47 Chevy Fleetmaster Woodie]

 409, the last thing you want to do is screw up your roof material or the welting for the look of a surfboard. There are people that advertise roof racks in the Woodie Times, but they require rain gutters. I'll pull a few back issues and see what's available.

[Surfboard rack for a 47 Chevy Fleetmaster Woodie]

What a lot of the Ford guy's do in incorporate the blind nuts and fabricate some sort of bracket. Unfortunately you don't have exposed blind nuts, so you are going to have to get creative if you want to mount a surfboard on your roof. I'm sure you are like most Woodie guy's and don't want to drill any holes in the wood. I gotta agree with Marty and never liked a surfboard on my roof, your car is too nice. You don't list where you are located but the National Woodie Club is having their East Coast National Meet  at the Mystic Seaport in CT. The Meet starts July 20th and the Woodie show is on Saturday July 22. Were hoping to get 50-70 Woodies. Are you a member of the NWC, if not we would love to have you as a member.

[Fire Trucks and Fire Truck Parts Vendors at the Hershey October Events?]

I believe the vendor that Restorer 32 is talking about purchased a Maxim 100' aerial ladder truck from our city when it was taken out of service. He always was located in the HERSHEY Red Field, towards the stadium. Every year he had a board with pictures of fire vehicles for sale and I would stop and see if the ladder truck was still posted. I believe it was finally scrapped and he always had firematic equipment for sale.

[Steering wheel spinners]

Some stand up fork lift's still use them.

[Dry Ice Blasting]

I haven't seen it in any automotive situation but I did see it used, it was done to a building that had fire damage. The area that was blasted was structurally sound but had severe char on the 2"x10" roof rafters.  When the dry ice process was complete the wood looked like new wood.

[1940 Lasalle woodie restoration pictures]

Well, being that the car is so rare, nobody will know the difference. So now that you have the door fabricated as a mock up in pine, are you going to use a CNC to fab the parts in ash wood?

[1940 Lasalle woodie restoration pictures]

With the missing doors, what do you plan on using for window risers and vent window hardware?

[1940 Lasalle woodie restoration pictures]

Beautiful work Tom, please keep us posted on your progress! Will the second and third row seats be removable like on Ford wagon's of that era?

[Hershey 2023- we are Rookies- where do you stay?]

I find it so much easier to use one of those "Granny Wagons" rather than a backpack. I've witnessed everything from snow showers to 90 degree sunshine, so you should be prepared for every kind of weather, listen to the local HERSHEY weather report. HERSHEY has its own weather systems. I have a framed copy of the weather map from the USA Today newspaper from October 11th 2013 on my garage wall. HERSHEY had a record 9.5 inches of rain on October 10th and 11th. The reason I have the framed weather map is because the entire east coast is clear and sunny except for a dime size, green rain circle over the HERSHEY-Harrisburg area and it did not move in two day's. I remember calling some friends on Thursday telling them not to come to HERSHEY because or the torrential rain and they said the sun was out 40 miles away and hadn't rained a drop!

[Hershey 2023- we are Rookies- where do you stay?]

Lodging isn't as bad as 30-40 years ago since the HERSHEY area has been built up so much. Remarkably, two friends went to HERSHEY last year and called a hotel two weeks before the start date and got a room. I would not wait however, get a room as soon as possible. This will be (God willing) our 55th year.

[Florida Car Museum Evicted by State College With Only Few Weeks’ Notice]

First of all, let's stop with the politics. Sports are a huge moneymaker for college's, especially in Florida. If the college owns the property and decides to build a sports complex to lure athletes to enroll in their school it's their choice. Even the smaller colleges in Florida such as UCF are now making huge money every time they play on TV. Ten years ago no one even heard of the school, once they started bringing in better and better players things took off for them. The bottom line is that the school owns the property and can do what ever it want's with it!

[What was this Westcott part for?]

Possibly a switch for dual magneto's?

[Painting a vehicle - is there any clear that will spray over enamel?]

Be careful, many products aren't compatible with other products that aren't their's. The last thing you want, is to have the clear attack the base coat and craze it or do something else to the finish. I would do a test patch in an area that is kind of hidden to make sure it works without a problem.

[There's a Corvair Covertible in there.]

Another, "It's not for sale, I'm gonna restore that car some day"!

[Super rare Keller Super Chief found in junk yard]

Bhigdog, if you are on the A.A.C.A. site, you already know the answer to your question. Why restore a Model T or Model A? Slow, can't get out of its own way. Mechanical brakes, unless properly maintained won't stop. Mostly used as a parade car, if it won't overheat. But people still restore them. Why restore a multi-million dollar car? Can't drive it, one ding or scratch and it's over. You need a trailer and a tow car to lug the trailer around and you need a big enough property to store the trailer! Can't take the grandkids for ice cream, don't want to dirty the interior. When you get down to it, no car is worth restoring, but it's what we do as our hobby! I for one would rather restore a car that is one out of four made and bring this car back to life, over a Model T with 15 million made. I also agree that the guy that found the Keller should step back and let reality sink in and possibly sell the car to someone with the resources and station wagon knowledge and experience.

[Super rare Keller Super Chief found in junk yard]

I would love to do the car, but I don't have the room. The body needs a guy like New Old Wood to work his magic on and bring it back, better than new. From the look's of it the wood is mostly flat with some curved parts that look fairly simple, with no finger joints. If I had to guess it looks like the body is oak, so it's readily available.

[Super rare Keller Super Chief found in junk yard]

There is a great article with several pictures of the restored Keller, Super Chief owned by Sam Barnett in the January/February 2022 Woodie Times. It is very rare vehicle and it deserves to be brought back to life. Does anyone have the contact information for the gentleman that made the video?

[More harm than good? passing these 5 covered cars for 5 years now.]

Keeping a car cover on for any length of time is not recommended, it even states it on the paperwork you get with the cover. Even the finest material will abrade the paint over time. If they aren't "breathable" covers they will trap moisture and promote mildew and rust.