RansomEli

The prices for model car paint, both the teeny bottles and the spray cans, are truly shocking. By the time you purchase and assemble the average car model you have about $50 invested.

Really nice work. Somehow, old cars and Lionel/HO trains go together. Show us some pics of your gluing jigs. They could help me and other klutzes.

The Chickasha swap meet ends, not with a bang but a whimper. I've been going for 20 years. The early years were terrific - lots of brass cars & parts and always at least one unrestored barn-find for sale. There used to be a regular who sold nothing but pre-15 Stanley parts. It started going downhill before Covid; Covid just accelerated the process. What killed Chickasha? In my opinion, it's in the middle of nowhere - hard to get to and nothing to do when you get there. No good restaurants, small selection of hotels (that doubled/tripled their rates for the meet). Bakersfield was a cake walk compared to Chickasha. Turns out I bought more brass stuff (headlights, sidelights, bulb horns, etc.) in the past years over the internet than at Bakersfield or Chickasha. Maybe that's what really killed those meets. It's the end of an era and the beginning of a new one.

"Headlamp bar is mounted upside down". Nice catch, Walt. Now that you pointed it out, I can't help but notice. The red paint is a bit too bright, but I wouldn't go so far as to repaint anything. Nice chrome - that will save you thousands. The fly in the ointment is that the car has been stored since 2016. If you can carefully inspect and rehabilitate the engine without much expense, then you would have a good deal. And I have a '29 135 with the lion. I love the ornament and wouldn't remove it for the world.

You might want to plan a visit to the Acoma Pueblo (aka Acoma Sky City), about 60 miles west of Albuquerque. You've never seen anything like it. Acoma Pueblo is the oldest continually inhabited settlement in North America -- people have been living there since at least 1200. Take the guided tour. It's well worth it. Also, the Green Chile Stew in the Visitor's Center is pretty darn good. https://www.acomaskycity.org/page/home

Each state has a different procedure for handling cars without titles. You need to find an Illinois attorney or title expert who can give you precise advice on your specific situation. This may sound harsh, but the Illinois DMV doesn't care about your problem. You'll have to pay someone to help solve getting a title in Illinois. Or maybe tell you can't get a title from Illinois.

Thanks for the info. I'll keep David's name in my files, but for now my problem has been resolved.

I like it. If it didn't have an automatic, this Corvair would be sharing my garage alongside my two Franklins.

If the car runs well, that is a really great price. Thank goodness I just bought a car and don't have any more room for another. Very cute.

While you're waiting for the swap meet to open, you could alway take a short trip to the Train Depot park and visit the 50-foot tall tribute to the 1983 movie "A Christmas Story". The world's tallest leg lamp.

Bring A Trailer. Be prepared for questions like, "Has the IMS bearing been replaced?", "What are the paint readings?", or some inane comment about Al Capone. I'll be following the auction with interest.

Thanks for sharing pictures. The blue AMX is the best I've seen, especially the interior. Most of the AMX interiors I've seen have been very blah. This one is really nice.

What year is the Eldorado? Apologies. I must have had too many drinks at the bar. I thought the car was a Caddie, but after downloading some pics it's actually a circa-1974 Pontiac Grand Prix. In my defense, about half of the captions about the car call it a Cadillac. Whatever, it's the dominant presence in the bar. And the chicken-fried steak is still the best you can get. Here's some photos.

You know, of course, that the AACA Forum charges by the word for posting any technical information requests. For heaven's sake, when asking a question, be as verbose as possible. The more information you give, the better answer you'll get.

From my 1930 Timken Tapered Roller Bearing Catalog: Packard Custom 8, 6-40, 6-45. Front Wheel Inner Outer cone 3383 2687 cup 3320 2620 The catalog has no listing for the rear wheel. Hope this helps.

Is the shifter mounted to the left of the center console? Seems weird.

May I make a recommendation? If youse guys are going to repaint the car, Orange Metallic is not a good choice for a first time painter. Start with a non-metallic color that will be much easier to spray and repair when you make mistakes. Sounds like an exciting project.

I say this reluctantly, but the Buck Owens' Crystal Palace serves the best chicken-fried steak I've ever had. Even in Texas. Worth a special trip. The bar has a full-sized Cadillac El Dorado convertible hanging against the back wall.

alsfarms and trimacar, Thanks for holding this conversation in public. You are sharing valuable information with the rest of us beginners.

I would advise against buying parts from eBay unless you can be sure they are OEM. I purchased front suspension parts for my 1998 Toyota Tacoma from eBay. They lasted less than one year. I then replaced them with discount OEM Toyota and MOOG parts from US, non-eBay vendors. The parts have lasted over 3 years and show absolutely no wear. The problem with eBay is that you don't know who manufactured the parts or what the quality control was. I will buy OEM parts from eBay, but I've read there's also a problem with counterfeiting. You usually get what you pay for. Now, I ignore the real cheap prices.

Wow! What a great collection. I'd hate to purchase all those hub caps in today's market. One interesting hub cap in the 17th photo. There's several REO hub caps and one imitation: RIO. It's funny to think that someone could make a profit selling fake REO hubcaps. The RIO fits a circa 1927 REO sedan. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the response. Chickasha has been in a death spiral. I'm hoping Bakersfield will be better.

It looks like the Pyro market is correcting. Previously, Pyro kits have been around the $40 level, which I just refused to pay. Now, they are hovering near $20, which is more reasonable. I just picked up the following Duesenberg SSJ at that price.

Does anyone know if there is going to be a pre-war swap meet in Bakersfield or Tulare this year?

Thanks for the information. I've got a lead on a rebuilt box. If that doesn't work out, I'll follow up with the above recommendations.