Jay Wolf

Barry, Maybe he thinks you have one in your parts washer. Or that you are the man who has everything.

They did that on Overhaulin once, you might look up back episodes of it. Season 3 Episode 5: Illegal Fowl The Overhaulin team steals a 1965 Ford Thunderbird from a Deputy Sheriff, with the help of his wife and his eight teenage children. The lawman is put to the test by the team's pranks, including a very tense moment at the junkyard with a car crusher.

But you forget the misspelling are some of the best buys. I had a friend who collected "Motor Manuals" his best buys were buying "Moter Manuals". I have another friend who collects some kind of rare china plates . he get his best deals from someone who misspelling it. If you misspell something your item is not going to be found by the search engine and you will not get the money you would have if you spelled it correctly. I once bought 3 "hydrolic" cylinders for a back hoe(worth about $300) for the opening bid of $10 and $80 to ship) The misspellings work for me.

" I'm guessing the ad agency is looking at it as a big success..." the purpose of and ad is to have people remember it and talk about. It's Working.....

We went out for a cruise this evening. Just like the old days mom and dad in the front and daughter in the rumble seat texting her boy friend on her cell phone. She took this picture with her cell phone.

I used to do the new every 2-3 year battery game till I bought a Battery Tender for each and have plugged in at all times. I have not replaced a battery since and the one in my 6v 55 Tbird is 6 years old. When the car sets with a Teapot it has to crank a long time to start it, no problem with a 6 year old battery. Same with the batteries in the Trailers I used to replace them almost every year, but 12 v battery tenders on them took car of that, I can say the same for my Motorcycle batteries. I am a firm beleaver in Delton Battery Tenders. (not cheap trickle charger).

A storm moved in and I wondered if I would make it home before the rain, but I did. I took the long way home and drove 30-40 mph up along the Wabash River, (still high almost at the road a few places) Cruising just listening to Y-block, beats any radio or MP3 player made. I got to thinking I wonder how much sound has to do with our car choices. I love the Putt-Putt of a Model A that is why I idle mine at about 200 RPM. I also don’t think you can beat the sound of a 55 thunderbird with stock exhaust. With the exhaust exiting at the top of the deck lid, the top down and low compression 292 at low rpms, You just can’t beat it. It makes me wonder do I pick my cars subconsciously by the sound. After I watched “The Science of Sex” on TV the other night it makes me wonder about a lot of things we do and why. The Thunderbird had not be driven or started since last November. I had to crank it quite a while to fill up the teapot and get it started. I need to drive it more as my wife and I plan on driving it to the Lebanon TN show in June, which will be a 500+ mile trip pulling a little luggage/top trailer. I think I drive the Model A more because it is easy to get out of the garage I park it in. The Tbird in our attached garage and I have to move a Cougar and 2 motorcycles to get it out. I would flip the two but I have a top hoist mounted on the ceiling over the bird so I can remove the hardtop by myself.

It warmed up so at lunch I popped my top. I have been driving my Model A too much. I keep double clutching the Thunderbird.

Several years ago I had a machinist make me a set for my 1916 Elgin. Make sure you and the machinist are on the same page. I left the process up to him as he had made some for some of my friends. I thought he would just take some steel and turn it down on the lathe and I would have a king Pin. If I would have just put it on I would have had no problems. BUT He put a modern 1/8 zerk grease fitting on the top. The old one had and I wanted a 1/4 grease cup on it. Figuring he didn’t have the grease cup so he just stuck the zerk in for me in case I didn’t have one I removed the 1/8 zerk and could see what I thought was a 1/4 to 1/8 adapter in the top under the zerk.. I tried everything to get the adapter out. Figuring he must have locktited it I decided to drill it out and retap it. When I drilled it I ended up with 2 pieced of metal the pin and the cap. What he did was buy hardened steel rod then drill and tap the end and put a steel cap the correct shape on it (round with a flat side). And bolted the two together with a hollow bolt and put the zerk in the top center. The shape and size of the pin didn’t allow him to bolt it together with a bolt large enough to put a ¼ fitting in it. So I do not know what the correct answer is, I just know if you want it to look original don’t do it the way I did.

I drove the bird to day first time out of the garage since Nov. Too many cars not enough time.

Most Insurances allow for shows, parades, and antique auto events such as cruises and runs. If is was a National organized event you should be OK.

It’s a nice day so I drove the Model A to work again today. Has AACA ever given any thought to a “Drive your old car to work day” Like the AMA does with its “Ride you motorcycle to work day” Pick some summer day like Henry Ford’s birthday July 30. AACA birthday November 4, would be little cold in some areas. Since it would be an AACA special event even insurances policies with a drive to exclusion should be OK. Just a though. When I drive to work I am always surprised how may people I have known for years come up to me and tell me about their old cars, I didn't know they had. If it's nice tomorrow I plan to drive my 55 Thunderbird.

I think the Lane Auto museum in Nashville is having a Micro car exhibit coming up soon.

close-up

Can anyone identify the car on the left. It's going to be hard as it is only about 1/2 there.

"Please remind me to pull up the water handles." That reminds me of the first time I ever put mine in the water and I have never seen one in the water. This was after a 2 year back from the grave restoration. I picked a ramp close to my parents cottage short and very steep water about 3-4 foot deep. The water handles had rode up on over the locks not behind locks like they should have. I drove in with my trusty dog at my side and water was squirting in both doors. When I tried to back out the rear bumpers hit the ramp and I couldn't get out. I was next to a pier so my choice to let it sink in 3 foot of water or drive out in 20 foot of water to turn around and hope I make it back. I heard the water hit the fan so I shut it off and bailed out. But they the dog was walking on the hood claws out stay dry. The Amphicar really didn't sink totally the front was in the deeper water but the hook (and life jackets in the trunk) keep the front bobbing on the surface. The rear tires hit to bottom with the water right at the bottom of the distributor. I got my brother we got on both sides of the car and held up under the doors and let the bilge pump pump out the water. Once the door bottoms got above the water level it stopped leaking so we let the pump totally empty the Amphicar. We walked it out away from the pier and turned the Amphicar around. We hook a tow line on the front hook I hope in and we pulled Amphi to dry land. Reproduction door seals were not available at the time and I had added another piece of foam to rejuvenate the old seals so the latches could go behind the stop like they should have. I removed the extra foam I had added and took it back out later with only a small trickle coming in the door. I have also gone cruising and forgot to latch the doors but but my pants usually got wet so I knew I forgot. I filled the cavities under the doors with foam so any water leaking came inside the car where I could see it leaking. Later I also added and inspection hole on the front floor so I could see any water in the hull. As far as synchronized reverse the water transmission is is a separate lever like a power takeoff. This picture was taken just before all camera were abandon and operation save Amphicar began. She is hard to see but there is a black dog in the back seat.

You can do that and you do, When you driving boat it is automatic, but when your driving an Amphicar your brain says hit the brakes. Then it registers thye don't work and you go for reverse.

This one thing I never got used to: Remember "Amphicar BRAKES don't work in water"

A story I have that relates. In the late 70’s I was showing a 64 Amphicar. We were at a show in Terre Haute IN at the park along side of the river. Since the Amphicar leaked, after I got out of the water I would always park it on and slight incline and pull the plug to drain the water and put the bilge plug on the dash so I wouldn’t forget to put it back in. It was a big show and very crowded, they also had a hovercraft show in conjunction with it. The boat ramp was getting packed with hovercrafts and my daughter and I went out for a cruise on the Wabash River, and after about 5 or so minute I notice the Amphicar getting a little sluggish. I looked on the dash and there was the bilge plug, in my haste to beat the hovercrafts to the boat ramp I had forgotten to put it in. Now there was about 15 hovercrafts totally blocking the boat ramp and we were cruising the Wabash without a drain plug. If you not familiar an Amphicars bilge plug is not the small ½ - ¾ inch one like on a regular boat it came in 2 styles big and bigger the one I forgot to put in was about 1 ½ in diameter. It was the old style Amphicar with the smaller brass bilge plug. So we had to cruise the river with a large hole in the bottom. The bilge pump did keep up but it was a tense 5 minutes (seemed like an hour) or so till the hovercraft clear out enough so we could get out. And then we did we had to go between a couple of hovercrafts and they we kicking so much dirt and sand we could hardly see and hovercrafts don’t steer very well. A word of advice Show Cars and hovercrafts don’t mix. Hovercraft were trying to drive the around the show and kick up dirt and sand and almost hitting car it was a mess.

Making Plans for the Southeastern division National Special Spring Meet in Lebanon, TN. My oldest has left the nest and my youngest will be in France as an exchange student so it will just be the wife and I. We plan on packing up the 55 Thunderbird and heading south Thursday morning. We will most likely pull a small trailer behind the Thunderbird as it has no luggage space and if the weather is nice I would somewhere to haul the hard top when we take it off. I have made my reservation at the motel. The trip is only about 240 miles (6 hours according to the GPS)) so we will be able to take our time and drive all 2 lane back roads and have time to stop and smell the flowers. Leaving Vincennes, IN our trip will take us though such great towns as Monroe City, Petersburg, Winslow, Mayville, Spurgeon, Lynnville,, Boonville, then cross the Ohio in to KY at Owensville to Bowling Green, Franklin, Portland, Gallatin before arriving at Lebanon. We should make it in time to check in the Comfort Inn and head to the meet a greet reception at Classic Cars. We hope to attend both tours Friday before attending a Hoedown in Fiddlers grove. I plan on Judging Saturday was well as showing the Thunderbird, attending the dinner before heading home Early Sunday Morning. Anyone going our way is welcome to join us for a nice Thursday drive in the country.

I had to climb out the sunroof, I couldn't get the door open. No! I have not been drinking!

Lower Ohio Valley Evansville Region of the AACA went to Ray Skillman Collection Saturday. It is well worth the trip. Ray Skillman photos at http://159.218.3.3/03-28-2009%20Skillmans%20AACA/index.html

The location has me buffaloed. Back in the early 70's I worked in a Humble Gas Station. We had a front end alignment checker that look a lot like that. You drove over it and it told if you car was toed out, toed in or OK. Accuracy within and inch I bet. With that said, the location does seem to fit a device of that kind.

Who had the first rumble seat? What year was the first rumble seat?

I found this on the web. http://autorestoration101.com/2009/01/15/kwik-poly-wood-repair-for-auto-restoration/