debster

Sorry. No dead body. Yet. This is a love story. 😉

Awesome photo. This is exactly the type of shop I'm envisioning. Do you know what year the photo was taken? Also, anyone know whey they started adding pits to garages? My grandfather had a garage on LI in the 1940s, and my mother tells me that's how they used to work on the cars.

Yeah, he does own the shop, and he's alone at the time. So the only victim (and witness) is the window

Great story, Ron. And agreed, mechanics are some of the smartest and kindest people in the universe. In defense of my character, the day that he's working on the car he's also dealing with a lot of other stuff and being unable to get it going (as I said, he's not really a good mechanic) is just one thing to many on a bad day.

That's exactly what I was thinking. They weren't all big. Still doing research into exactly what kind of phonograph was in the car (and I may have misspoke in saying "Victrola") but I'd sort of like it to be a portable model ... and I believe those were just starting to come out in the 1920s (photo below). But unless any of you also collect old phonographs, that may be a question for another forum!!

Ah, but here's my thought ... maybe my mechanic has gotten pretty good at fixing Fords because he's seen them before. But then he's got to get this Maxwell going and next thing you know, he's flinging wrenches out the window (he's got something of a temper). Credible?

This is great, thanks. I'm liking the Maxwell. The trunk doesn't have to be big enough for a body (sorry, guys!) just big enough for a Victrola and a stash of records. I was thinking Model T, but if I have the opportunity to bring in a car that fewer people are familiar with, I think that's a plus. Although authenticity is the goal here ... and as I understand it, Model Ts were the most common at the time. True?

Hey guys -- I'm hoping you all can help me figure this out. I'm working on a novel set in the early 20th century in which one of the characters is a (novice and not very good) auto mechanic. He's working on a car in 1923, one that belongs to a traveling salesman and has an integrated trunk. So I'm trying to ID a model that was built a few years before that, maybe has a reputation for breakdowns, and has a trunk. Back in July (I think) Graham Man referenced a business coupe -- which sounds like the perfect fit -- but were they made prior to 1920? Appreciate your help!