Walt G

Ok, here is the back the circles are very slight impressions probably to center the piece? Brass metal it is made of is about 1/16 inch thick. It was never attached to anything- no residue of any adhesive, solder, etc. Was chrome plated after the 3 enamel colors were in place. Due to the brass it is made of it weighs about as much as a similar size radiator shell emblem would ( about the same weight of of a silver dollar?) . This dealership went to a great effort to have this made - makes me wonder if there was a specialty company that produced these and perhaps some were made for other makes of cars/dealerships.

This is great, I just love it when the story comes together with the help of others. Made my week . thanks gentlemen Walt PS OK Now does anyone have a sales brochure in their collection that is stamped with that dealers name on it??

Sorry to see the car street rodded BUT so pleased to see the parts removed have a good home and will eventually go back into a car that can benefit from them.

You see no brake drums as the series 11 Franklin of 1925-27 had a transmission brake. Note the rear wheel no brake drum behind the spokes. Car is equipped with a long running board trunk as well ( this was not a stock item offered by Franklin) Hard to determine but possibly a 7 passenger sedan? due to the width of the rear door?

Great that this brought into discussion as to the actual use! Wonderful, makes us think and as stated above by 3macboys puts into perspective a period in time that things were different then we are used to. Great history lesson. The one I showed, as mention, had no way of mounting it - no holes, no studs etc. so could indeed have been a paper weight it is brass but if a paperweight wasn't used for to many papers!!!! And odd because there is absolutely no trace of any company name on the back that would have manufactured it. I have lots of odd stuff here ( I know some friends are thinking - sure you do because you are odd...... 🙄) Thanks guys, any other thoughts? Let's have them. Walt

Most of the dealership emblems I have seen are cast script made of zinc. The newer post war notice of who sold the car new are adhesive vynil this one has to be pre WWII era and is 2 x 2 1/2 inches with enamel in three colors. Made very much like the badges/emblems that were attached to the center of the top of a radiator shell in the 1930s and earlier era. Has anyone seen or have other dealership badges like this that can share for us to see? There is no indication on the reverse as to how it was attached - no studs of screw thread. I know that some decals to note the dealership were used as early as 1931 as a friend has one on his 1931 Plymouth sedan that was sold by a local dealer here in the town I reside in. Comments most welcome as to the history of these . Who made them?

Once again = Measurements please = overall length and width at place where running board would be. Hard to tell if these are 6 feet long , 5 feet 7 inches etc??????

THANK YOU - FINALLY someone who actually shows a ruler and gives us a measurement so we can try to help/assist to identify. 100% more affective then the usual What's Dis?

Even the front axle and shock absorbers are painted school bus yellow - ouch. But the Eclipse is due here in the north east soon so there are a lot of cheap glasses around that you can wear to watch the eclipse and also look at this car afterwards. Tan, brown and orange are not my favorite even though I own a car in those colors but T & B & O are a lot easier on the eyes. I like model L Lincolns, used to drive the phaeton that Austin Clark had fairly often. ( his car was black)

That Central Park, NY City photograph was taken by commercial photographer John Adams Davis at his favorite spot mid way through the park . car is facing west and you are looking north. Davis had a studio location in an office building not far away. About 15 years ago I went into NY to try to locate that same spot and did so , used other photos of the era that showed the tops of tall buildings to place the east/west road . It by then had grown over quite a bit but one could still see the crest of the hill/roll of the land and a few of the young trees now very much larger and mature.

I agree with this completely.

Cost of supplies: in 1972-74 I did a frame up restoration on two cars of mine , a 1931 Franklin Derham bodied victoria brougham and a 1941 Packard 120 station wagon. The cost of a gallon of nitrocellulose lacquer then was $150 a gallon - I imported it from England ( Bellco brand) because it was the exact right color also used on a current car being made then that matched the color of the old cars when new ( remember I am an art teacher so knew/know how to match/view colors) add to that gallons of lacquer thinner of good / proper quality , assorted grades of sand paper, and compound ( liquid and paste) . All this for the exterior sheet metal , chassis paint etc was all another job.

This is a major factor. If you can find them also consider if they are full time you have to pay health insurance, etc. I am not justifying what seem to be the huge cost but what did you pay to have work done on your modern car at a local repair shop that you use that does quality work? I use a shop for the modern cars that is owned/run by a pair of brothers who were my former students - thus I know what is being done is correct and no extra charges. It isn't cheap. But you pay for what you expect is the right thing and will last. I have been to the shop that the invoice is for and all I can say is "nil melior" - none finer. Great attitude by the people employed. The owner is a true "old car guy" and is as crazy as the rest of us. Think of the cost of other things - how many reading this go to Hershey every October - cost to get there, the hotel, food and all there to look at used obsolete car parts................

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Surface has to be totally clean and free from any oil, dirt or anything else or it may cause a reaction to let the decal flake off or deteriorate. I would wipe the area off with a bit of lacquer thinner on a rag ( not soaked) then wipe the area with a rag with water on it and totally dry off, let it air dry for a hour plus and then apply the decal.

This sums it up nicely and without demeaning the organization. Events are to expensive, younger people are not welcomed nor encouraged to attend with their parents or grandparents. Just to costly , but that is not taken into consideration enough by the ruling powers that be. Who will own and be the preservation custodians of these luxury classic cars 20 - 30 years from now? The need to generate interest is NOW without looking down from a lofty position and no bias if a person has some health issues not to attend every event even though the desire is there needs some serious correction of ATTITUDE. To me it is like teaching kids in school - they don't know yet what they may want to embrace, but giving them the path to see something and have the patience to encourage and welcome them is what it is all about. Try to comprehend what it was like when you were first interested in classic cars- who helped you and had insight and welcomed you and had the patience to do so . Lest we forget............................

Thank you Dave. I echo your statements totally. AACA LIBRARY is the place to see your period material or at least good clear copies of it preserved. Many clubs have their archives stored at the AACA HQ - Jen Wolfe and Matt Hooker are outstanding people to keep all of that period material safe but available to use. So are all the other staff at HQ, and the volunteers there. I have met Jen and Matt in person "nil melior" - none finer. Many clubs have collections of material , all well and good, but access can be difficult if not almost impossible . they do not have full time staff working on preserving the material but knowing what exists where and how best to make it available if requested. I am involved in the preservation of period material , have been for decades , not just about car stuff but also about local and state history. It takes a lot of effort , time and knowledge to know how to deal with properly acid based paper , what can be placed in what to preserve it, how light affects it, etc. You can't just throw it in an envelope in a file and say "there it is saved". That is like spraying paint on a pre war car with a rattle can and saying " there it is restored". Please think of AACA as the right location for your material also have the patience for those at AACA to properly accept and treat what you may want to contribute.

I agree! I recall with great pride when I saw Doug S. at Hershey after I bought my 1940 Roadmaster and he had the car ( I bought it in Ca. sight unseen and had it delivered to Doug's shop to be looked over , corrected if needed etc) He told me with a huge smile and shake of my hand - "If I saw that car first you wouldn't own it now". I had not seen the car yet as it went straight from Ca. to Doug's shop on the suggestion of Tom Goad who was a great friend and fellow 1940 Buick owner. I was so thrilled to hear him compliment the car that way. Doug is "Mr. 1940 Buick" for those of you that do not know that. I was in England when Doug got the car delivered and when I got home heard his phone call recorded message to me " the eagle has landed , have a great vacation". I will hold off posting a photo of my car, this isn't about that and I do not want to drift away from the car on profile here. Walt

I own a car similar to this but a year earlier - 1940 . Whomever is interested should ask if the removable B pillars that bolt to the post between the front and rear doors are included. Same body panels and much of the hardware was also used/shared by the large series Oldsmobile and Cadillac series 62.

Will people who are not members of CCCA or CCCA Metro Region be welcome to come view the cars? This means people from other car clubs not bus loads of spectators on their way home from the casinos , flea markets of non car parts, and with unsupervised hoards from the orphanage all with cotton candy in hand? Not trying to make light of the event by any means but a recent exchange of information I had with a great guy who was a new member got a negative response from that region when he asked if his 80 something year old parents could attend an event. I was also told that if I wanted to attend any further Metro region events I had to be invited by a member of that region and come as their guest . Please elaborate or mention what is acceptable as to who can attend. thank you.

Austin Clark had one of the early version prints mentioned here hanging in his library of automotive catalogs, periodicals, photos. I used to see it every day for several years when I worked for him in the early 1970s as his librarian. He also had a curved dash olds that was perched at the top of the roof over the entrance to his museum in Southampton , NY as an advertisement That car did get restored by I believe someone in Ct. who bought it.

Great you proved my point ! Thanks - read the second paragraph down of what Tom Hubbard said ": Reflecting the times.......". Well then as you stated "old man green" was what the cars were panted along with other conservative colors. Magazine advertising put cars in colors to attract the reader- often not offered by the factory but they did seek customers so a flashy color on any body style is what was put in a magazine ad. One of my professors in college when I was studying art was an illustrator in the 1930s - all this in the late 1960s early 1970s and he was the one who told us of what and how things were illustrated - I learned how to use an airbrush from him. Magazine advertising was there to capture the readers attention and eye to sell a product. they did what ever it took. The magazine ad of the pink color on the sedan perfectly proves my point, thank you, Sales brochures were closer to the truer colors of what was available when customers actually placed and order. Note that the one sedan is in red, compare it to the colors of the other 15 body styles .............the bright color - yellow is on an open body style a roadster. I agree that if a customer wanted a special color then for an additional fee they could order it but 9 times out of 10 they did not . Look at what the weekly wage was in the 1929-33 era and was anyone really spending and extra months wages to have a new car painted a not stock color? Very Rarely. Yes the phaeton you restored You chose to paint red and open cars most always were lighter/brighter colors. The car in question is not your phaeton restoration but a town sedan . I do not try to rewrite history, but as others here may possibly agree think that to be authentic period colors then have accurate - in color, shade and even combination of colors. Looks like we will agree to disagree.

My thoughts exactly but despite the split in the center bottom cushion of the front seat it is still a lot of $ with unknown condition under the hood, chassis etc. Car will have been here for sale for a year in about a month or so from now, so a few people agree with the idea - great car but a bit steep in price. I am thinking if they were interested in it they are taking into consideration the $ to get it to their location, state sales tax to pay on the purchase price and what condition is the wiring in, hoses, tires? Looks great doesn't mean it isn't dried out .Not trying to be negative just realistic.

I don't blame you that lion mascot is one of the best ornaments ever cast. The plain flat cap used on the series 13 of 1929 was "ok" and didn't distract the eye. I think Franklin realized that an accessory mascot of an airplane or a stylized bird was what made people look at their cars more. the accessory bird mascot for 1931 that was then adapted in modified form for the series 16 of 1932-33 was a spectacular piece of art deco design.

The Franklin accessory mascot of the airplane was available on the 1928 Franklin Airman after the flight was made. Never saw one on a series 11 that was placed there when new. The lion mascot was the one used. Yes, Chevrolet had its version of the airplane to honor the NY to Paris flight. Franklin in 1930 came out with an accessory airplane mascot as well that was fitted for extra cost and is pictured in the 1930-31 factory accessory catalog that was usually seen one at each dealer or at least every major dealership that sold Franklins.