pkhammer
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Posts posted by pkhammer
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On 12/22/2023 at 8:50 PM, StanleyRegister said:
This is my biggest problem. Walking past 2 miles of asphalt to see 1/2 mile of vendors. I tend to go for several days, and there are still vendors who don't get me in front of their stand. I'd have enough energy to see all of them if they were next to each other.
I understand that businesses like to be found in the same place, but some kind of single global consolidation would only make a 1-year upheaval in that. I understand that people like to be next to friends, but is that enough of a reason to give up the 20% or more of buyers that don't see you because of the unoccupied sprawl?
Just visualize all the vendors being adjacent, and the crowds of buyers that would be concentrated in front of them all.
This is a tremendous area of concern for me that I feel MUST be addressed to insure the future of the swap meet. In recent years we've seen the swap meet go from filled spaces on each and every row to some areas that look like a ghost town. This is going to have a snowball effect if not corrected. Buyers are going to quit coming because they are not going to walk down row after row of empty spaces to get to the few vendors that are set up. The lack of traffic to vendor spaces means lack of sales, so then those vendors quit coming. If food vendors don't make good sales because of decreased traffic, they too will quit coming.
I don't have all the answers but I think a committee should be formed to look into ways to address it. I set up at another swap meet where when you register, you must list the type of parts that you are selling. One swap meet asks for photos of the types of things you intend to sell. Some strong wording, that empty spaces could result in lost privileges to purchase spaces in the future, may at least help deter this from happening.
I frankly cannot understand why good money is being spent on spaces that sit empty all week. I have heard people suggest things like the weather, covid, or other life events must've prevented these vendors from coming. Ok, I could accept that if 10% of spaces were not filled, but I'd venture to say between a third to half of spaces were left empty last year. If 9000 spaces are sold, that means 3000-4500 went unoccupied.
Maybe space cost should be raised to $200 per space, with a $100 per space refund given to vendors that are actually set up and selling all week!!
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49 minutes ago, erichill said:
I got the answer to this price dilemma as well as guaranteeing the future of The Fall Meet. All the vendors coming now sell us all your stuff dirt cheap so we buy more and you take home more cash and cover your booth space. Then ten years from now when we buyers all realized we bought way too much stuff because it was cheap will then take it all back to Hershey to sell.
You all can thank me later. 😊
I've been trying this approach to selling for years and I still get beat down on price! 😁
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I believe the first Overland car would've been the 1903 Runabout like this one. The one in the photo above appears to be a 1904-05 model.
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I vend at Hershey and if I based whether I continue to go solely on economics, I would have a hard time justifying it. As costs increase (food, fuel, hotel, spaces) and sales decrease, especially post-pandemic, I have seen my costs go from around 10% of sales to around 25%-30% of sales the last few years. Compare that to selling online; ebay takes a total cut of about 14% +/- of my sales so I could argue that I'm better off selling from the comfort of my living room chair. But this is Hershey. I look forward to Hershey more than any other event the entire year, not just for the sales, but for the whole experience.
The number of empty spaces bother me every year way more than the cost of participation. I look around and it makes me think the swap meet is dying. I for one will do my part to keep it going as long as I am able.
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Hoping to see a seminar schedule soon. This would be very helpful for planning the weekend.
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I have a friend at work, he still works as a full time machinist in his early 80's. He is a widow now and never had any children. Just recently he has started to find new homes for his cars and motorcycles, most of which he has had since new or least nearly new. He just sold his '55 Chevy to a young man that has not only shown interest in the car, but has proven himself to be a meticulous caretaker that will likely never sell it. If I make it to his age, I think I'd be doing something similar, that is if I owned anything that anybody would actually want!
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I got my drivers license in 1979 and had my fair share of late 50's thru early 70's cars and trucks over the next several years. All were well used but gave me decent service with not too many headaches. I married my awesome Wife in 1986 and over the next ten years or so we mostly had vehicles that were from 1980 to 1992. Crummy... crummy, worn out junk by 100k or before! and we took care of our stuff. In 1996 we bought a 1993 Honda Civic DelSol that we still own and use regularly, and that started a string of super reliable vehicles that have served us well.
Current daily drivers.
1993 Honda Civic DelSol (Wife has loved this car for 27 years now and cannot stand the thought of parting with it)
2004 Dodge 2500 Quad Cab Cummins turbo-diesel purchased new (260k miles and have done little more than regular maintenance. Best vehicle I've ever owned by far)
2014 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 3.6 purchased new (148k miles nearly trouble free. Rock solid reliable)
2023 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 3.6 purchased new. We liked the 2014 so much we bought another because starting in 2024 the 3.6 will no longer be available with the 3.6/auto combo.
Reliability-wise, our current vehicles are far and away the best ever. The WORST ever was anything from the 80's to early 90's.
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Now we finally learn why Chevrolet developed the mouse and rat motors!
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I contacted the seller and we have been having an online chat. I'd like to go look at the car in person but suspect it'll be sold before I have the opportunity.
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I agree with others that despite it's shortcomings, it is priced to sell. I am about three hours away and may go look at it, but suspect it'll be gone before I have the chance.
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6 minutes ago, jp1gt said:
As I see it most resto shops are doing high end cars. It is easy to go over the cost of the car.
Not always high end cars. I know four shops pretty well that do restorations, one does nothing but Model A Fords. When I last visited this shop I discussed this very subject with the owner and was told his clients know up front that for a frame-off full restoration, the cost would most certainly exceed six figures. If upgrades like overdrive, full syncro trans, or electronic ignition was added, the price just goes up from there. We all know what a restored model A is worth, yet he has all the business he can handle.
Another shop had a mid-sixties four door Plymouth Valiant in for a full restoration. Car was in sad shape but the owner had sentimental attachment to it.
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Joke from the late Little Jimmy Dickens:
"My Wife said she wanted something that would go zero to a hundred and sixty in under ten seconds for Christmas. I bought her a bathroom scale".
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1 hour ago, TAKerry said:
Could have seen a ford, but def. dont remember any girls. LOL.
I did! She was slowin' down to take a look at me!
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My Wife asked for a gun (for protection), a chainsaw, some large trash bags and a shovel (all for yard work). She also suggested I increase my life insurance, just in case. 😲
I have a friend that got his Wife a set of new tires for Christmas about 20 years ago. She still bristles up when the subject comes up.
In reality, I, like @TAKerry found a keeper. She'd much rather have something old car related than jewelry, handbags or shoes. She'd rather tour Greenfield Village than go on a cruise. She'd rather hang out at Hershey than go clothes shopping.
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I'll vote for route 66 as well, depending on the area traveled. We've done sections in Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona. Stayed in a Wigwam, stood on the corner in Winslow Arizona, Spent the night at the Blue Swallow. Great memories. Also visited The Henry Ford, Greenfield Village and The Gilmore last fall. The northern Terminus of the Blue Ridge parkway is a half hour drive from my house. Have done the entire 469 miles many times. Don't miss the "Wheels Through Time museum" in Maggie Valley, NC. Highly recommend all of the above.
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I have no doubt EVs are here to stay. The technology is evolving quickly and will continue to evolve. Yes, there will be growing pains along with change, there always is, but 10 years from now it would not surprise me at all if half (or more) of the vehicles on the road will be EVs. I personally resist change at times but will also not stick my head in the sand and deny it's happening. It has certainly happened in my work over the last 40 years! I stubbornly started using a computer about 25 years ago and now cannot imagine life without one.
Here is what I'd like to see happen before I will be ready to purchase my first EV:
1) Extended range. I'd like to see 700-800 mile range or more out of an SUV. We travel a lot and need luggage space. If I plan to travel 10 or more hours (500-600 miles) in one day, I really don't want to stop once or twice to re-charge for an hour at a time. Sure, I need to stop and re-fuel now but what does that take, 10 minutes?
2) Costs go down: Some of the prices I see for the vehicles and even more so, replacement batteries, scares the heck out of me.
3) Towing capacity: My 2004 Dodge 2500 Cummins diesel will pull a 10,000 pound trailer to Hershey one way (3 hours, 45 minutes/230 miles) with a 1/4 tank of fuel left over. A new Ford lightning towing at full capacity would need to be charged every 100 miles, or twice making the same trip. if each charge takes an hour, that makes the same trip nearly 6 hours!
4) More charging stations: Sooner or later most restaurants, hotels and attractions will have charging stations. That means when we travel, we can let our EV charge at the hotel while we sleep at night and be ready to go another 10 hours the next day.
I'm pretty sure that eventually, all of these things will come to be, but they aren't here NOW, so while I'm not ready to be an EV owner NOW, I probably will be eventually. All I need to do is wait for the technology to come along a bit further.
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10 minutes ago, arcticbuicks said:
i would be afraid to show pics of all these.....get flooded with "hey can you send me pics.....im looking for a hupcap "
You'll notice my original post was three years ago. At the time I had over 700 hubcaps I was trying to get rid of. I did get some inquiries, but I was trying to find new homes for them so I didn't mind answering questions, better then throwing them away. Forum members were very helpful identifying the ones I didn't recognize which was very helpful. In any case, the vast majority of them are long gone now.
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I was only three years old in 1966, so I look at these prices and it kind of blows my mind. I got my first car (truck) in 1979 when I got my first part time job, making 2.90/hour. I bought and sold a number of cars over the next few years and here are a few noteworthy ones.
1979 -1st car (truck) -1957 Ford F100 V8 Custom cab, good used condition -$425
1980 -1970 Plymouth Duster 318 V8 three speed on the floor -good used condition -$450
1981 -1967 Pontiac GTO, original paint, solid body and strong 400 V8 -needed brakes and tires -$500
1983 -1968 Oldsmobile 442. Solid but a few dents and dings. Ran well -$250
In 1983 I think I was up to about 4.00/hour. Me and all my friends drove stuff like GTOs, RoadRunners, Camaros, Chevelles and Mustangs to high school in the late 70's and early 80's. I guess they were just used cars then.
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3 hours ago, RansomEli said:
Elitist question of the day:
One of these is not like the others:
I'm a Model A Ford fan, and I think it was nice of the Model A owner to associate with those of a lesser status. Model A owners are generally nice people. 😃
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Here is the largest sign in my humble collection. Measures a full sheet 4' wide x 8' high. I always wondered if this motor oil was related to the Hudson Automobile. I haven't found a lot of information but it seems they were not related. If anyone has any information, please share.
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On 11/19/2023 at 8:04 PM, alsancle said:
My garage from 20 years ago.
I'll be happy to take your garage from 20 years ago if you're tired of it! 😋
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17 minutes ago, Mark Shaw said:
If Thanksgiving is at your place and you have good weather, take your friends and family for a ride in an old car.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
If I only had one in running condition! 😃 Well, we do have the Wife's '93 Honda DelSol, but I can only get one passenger in at a time...............
Wishing everyone a Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving!!
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43 minutes ago, rocketraider said:
Sometimes, by the third or fourth attempt, the light bulb would come on.
Being in the power generation business, that was a good pun, intended or not. 😁
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Yes, let's stay on topic please. Sometimes typed words can be taken the wrong way and a phone call or face-to-face discussion clears up many "mis-understandings".
I do a lot of buying and selling to help support my old car hobby, and like @Highlander160 can get steamed when someone suggests I am just in it for profit or am ripping someone off. In my heart I know that I try hard to be fair when buying or selling and once expenses are paid and the work is done, it is much more about the hobby and doing it because I enjoy it than is it for profit. I know there are guys out there that seemingly try to get rich on every sale they make, but that is not the attitude of all of us that do this.
If it weren't for people like me, Hershey swap meet would just be a big empty parking lot every October.
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Hershey 2024 space costs
in General Discussion
Posted
I think this approach would work fine for a smaller event, but at a swap meet the size of Hershey, I could see dozens and dozens of trucks and trailers backed up trying to get onto the grounds Monday morning while vendors are shown "one-by-one" where they are to go. Right now you simply drive onto the grounds, go to your spaces since you already know where they are at, park, and start setting up. I think parking vendors on a first come first served basis could potentially have vendor traffic backed up for a really lengthy time. I drive four hours to Hershey and I don't want to sit in my truck in a long line waiting behind dozens of other vendors waiting for someone to show us where our spaces will be.