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1932 Ruxton, or how I became an unwitting restorer.


Barry Wolk

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This was the first installment of the reassembly of a 1932 Ruxton. The rest of the story is here.

http://www.thelincolnforum.net/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=44158

I will post updates in this thread.

I have a car collector friend that has rare and unusual cars. He called me one day and told me that he was flying to Flint, Michigan to look at a very rare 1932 Ruxton, purportedly finished while the company was in bankruptcy.

He was told that the car had last run in 2006, driving 75 miles round trip to the Meadow Brook Concours. The owner told the buyer it went through 3 quarts of oil on the way home so he parked it and put it on blocks. It turns out there was nothing wrong with the engine, the restorer had hooked a vacuum line to the oil pressure sending unit line so vacuum was sucking the oil out of the engine and into the intake. When he parked it he didn't bother to drain the water out of the engine. More about that later.

When they put the car on the ground they found the brakes locked up. It wouldn't run, so no cross-country carrier would want to transport a car that doesn't go or stop so I offered to get it going and stopping for him. I told him I would give him 10 hours of my time to get it going.

I was actually pretty close to 10 hours when I drained the oil and found some unidentifiable slurry. I put in fresh oil and installed a new battery to do a compression check. I found I had compression, spark and a temporary fuel supply. My last step was to put water in the thick radiator. I poured 2,4,6 and then 7 gallons of water into it, thinking the water jacket and radiator must be huge. It was only when water came pouring out the front and rear mains did I realize that everything I was putting into the engine was ending up in the oil pan.

Well, that became a fix of a cracked block by using engine concrete, only to find out that there were spun bearing. So, the engine came out, got disassembled and sent to an engine builder. The bell housing went for crack detection. I figured I'd sand blast the engine compartment area, but that would make a mess so I removed the body so I could blast the whole frame. That meant taking apart every single suspension part and sand-blasting it in preparation for powder coating.

This is what I started with.

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This is what it looked like last time I saw it.

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When I get the frame back I'll post the build.

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Wow Barry! That is some undertaking and you are doing great work on it.

Just got back from reading your thread on this over at the Lincoln Forum. Amazing.

By the way, it looks like the roof for that Ruxton mounts in the same as for a Chrysler product of the same era. If that is true then you may not need a trim piece around the edge of the roof insert. Certainly not one that takes 200 pop rivets to hold in place. A typical Chrysler product roof insert installation is described at http://www.ply33.com/Repair/roof

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That is nearly identical to the roof on the Ruxton. I'm told that, these days, marine canvas is used as an underlayment rather than chicken wire.

BTW, I'm looking for someone to do the paint on this beast.

Wouldn't know about that, I reused the chicken wire that was there.

Did the Ruxton come with a wire attached to the chicken wire leading down one of the windshield posts? That is how the Chrysler products were so that the chicken wire could be used as a radio antenna.

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Many cars used the chicken wire as a radio antenna. Factory installed radios were pretty rare at the time the Ruxton was made, though. Ply33, were Chryslers set up with that wire down the windshield post as early as 1930, so that radios could be installed at the dealer?

I don't know. The general setup of the roof was different on the '30 and '31 Plymouths so it might be that '32 was the first year for that. But my most detailed information is for '33 which does not answer your question.

My thought was that if the roof construction was the same as my one year newer low priced car and my car was factory equipped with the radio antenna then possibly the '32 Ruxton, a high end car, might also be.

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The chrome is going to the shipper first thing tomorrow. The billet drums are crated and ready to go.

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The replacement lugs Positive Tool made were made to an average measurement of what was taken out. Clearly, someone in the past has substituted longer lug studs not realizing that the lug nuts were bottoming out on the studs, not compressing the wheel against the hub. On close inspection you can see that there weren't many threads in good condition in the original lugs.

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I started Zinc plating the lug nuts. The finish can be buffed out easily, if you like them shinier.

Left/raw steel, center/after 5 minutes of plating, right/after light buffing.

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I plated them two at a time. This kept the solution from entering the threads and leaving a deposit.

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I did 8 and left for the night. I came in this morning and realized that I had committed the cardinal sin of skipping a step. While I used a metal prep (acid) I didn't use a degreaser. That left little areas of rust that were protected by grease. This was the result. I owe the owner 20 minutes to de-plate (reverse the process depositing the zinc back on the sacrificial bar) and start over. It was then that I discovered that the plating was thicker on one side than the other, so I rotated the nuts half-way through the 5-minute cycle. I was able to figure out how to use the timer on my iPad, so I was in business. However, to give credit where credit is due, I didn't even know I had a timer on my iPad, until my wife told me. I got out some Marine Clean degreaser, then used the fast-etch and wet-tested all of the finished product.

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I discovered that there is a drain hole in the lip of the wheel that coincides with 180° from the valve stem. I think that pretty much confirms the intention of the manufacturer to have the split in the split ring clocked in this manner. If the split were anywhere else the the drain hole would be blocked. I clocked the valve stem so that it was near where the maximum tire pressure information in on the tire. 180° from there is the split in the ring and the words "Lester Tire" on the blackwall. The recently manufactured tired have the DOT information stamped near the rim on the inside, hardly noticeable.

One step closer to rolling.

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I should be able to permanently install the front hubs after reassembling the brakes. A clearance problem existed between the polished cups and the back plate that was previously damaged. On the other side there was a 32nd of an inch gap, but there was none on the passenger side. I was afraid that it would rub eventually so Rob at Positive chamfered the hole at a 45° angle just wide enough so that the gaps matched.

I cleaned and repainted the platter and reinstalled it, only to break a tiny U-shaped clip that no parts store has anymore. It'll be in Monday. Once that's done I can button up the front tapers and hubs and finish that off.

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I've been out of touch for a few days. I got a call from David Woodhouse, Director of Lincoln's Design Studio asking if Lincoln could borrow our Mark II convertible as inspiration for the design team. Seriously, how could I say no? I was told that it would be placed in their meeting room, which is right off the Studio, which is about the size of a football field. Reliable Carriers picked the car up at 10:00. David wanted to thank me personally and asked that I show up around 3:00. I got there a little early and they were covering a number of the prototypes, but I got to see a few of their upcoming offerings. Pretty impressive stuff in the pipeline. I also got to see the CNC in operation carving a clay side mirror. That was pretty cool. Some of the interior mock-up were so real I couldn't tell what was leather and what was painted.

I shipped the car with the top up and wanted to put the top down for display. While I was wiping it down I had a great conversation with one of their managers. This is what I've gleaned. No rear-drivers for the foreseeable future. I raised the question of getting rid of the MK-Whatever silliness and it was agreed that it was both confusing and lacked the delineation of a car's rank in their hiearchy. I was told that the design team would like to get back to romantic and familiar names. I asked about bring back the "Continental" name and received a sly smile in return. In fact, the clay they were working on may have been that very vehicle. It was very big by today's standards and really had a Bentley air about it with some very nice nods to previous Lincolns. While not the slab sides of the '60s cars, you could certainly call it a slab side.

They wanted to put a rope barrier around it our car. I though that was unnecessary. While some of the designers were so young they looked like children to me, I'm sure they'll behave themselves. A little drool never hurt anything.

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I did do some Ruxton stuff. Positive Tool finished all of the parts I asked for. This is the new pulley with the vibration damper attached.

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The existing water pump shaft was shot, so they made a new one, and made a brass spacer to take up the slack in the slightly worn bushing.

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I once again marvel at their craftsmanship. I searched the worls over for a replacement grease cap for the rear axle, but none were to be found. The original had a hex nut on the end, but would have been very complex to duplicate as the original was a stamping. I asked them to simply make me a cylinder with an interior thread on one end and a knurl on the other to get a grip on. This part will always be hidden, but it's too well made to not show. The threads are a tiny bit tight, which is perfect. I'll use a dab of threadlock to make sure they stay on.

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This is why I don't do body work. I wouldn't have the patience. The door on the left got the lower skin. What looked like perfect sheet metal elsewhere, obviously wasn't.

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This is the finished product. The doors are coming up from Ohio on Saturday. I couldn't be happier as the doors are about 35% of the total surface area of the body.

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I believe I have a body man that will fill and block sand the rest of the body over the next 3 weeks. He's an old friend that started his own business, but doesn't have room to take this into his shop, so he'll work on it here. At least that's a step in the right direction.

I have 3 tires done. I found it really helps to have an extra pair of hands.

I've asked Greg to press for a finish date on the engine.

I'm getting there.

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This is one of those jobs that you get good at, just as you finish it. Back in the day the guy that did this for a living was probably the most welcome site to about 99% of the population. I can't imagine doing this in the middle of a muddy country road. That's likely why many cars carried two spares.

I'm going to fill them myself after getting the procedure approved by my Ruxton mentor. I have some tie-down straps That I'll strap around the tire in two directions as a safety precaution, but I really can't see how a ring could come off once the tire is at proper air pressure as the ring is cradeled and forced to compress by the tire when under pressure. Better safe than sorry.

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Josh Highley didn't want to risk the doors being damaged in shipment so he and his father drove them up here from Cincinnati. His work is really quite incredible.

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Back to normal.

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The dash panel Josh fabricated from the remains of the original is as smooth and shiny as a piece of glass.

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I've had this tool for 40+ years. I can't remember how it came into my possession, nor what it was designed for. The tapered end has a dull point like an alingnment tool used in steel work and the prying end is what had me baffled. It seem now that it might be a tire tool as it worked perfectly on this job. In order to "clock" the split in the ring 180° out from the hole for the valve stem it had to be rotated but the tire's rubber bead was pressed up against the fresh chrome ring and wouldn't budge. I used the same wood shims I used before to create a wood slide, rather than rubbing against the rubber. A number of taps on an Oak drift and I was able to line them up perfectly.

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I put about 10 pounds of air in the tubes without the valve and then let it all blow out. This is to allow the tube to work out any kinks before final inflation. I wrapped a 25 foot nylon rope tightly around the tire in many directions and sheepishly inflated the tires to 25 pounds, careful of where I was in relationship to the ring. Had it come loose it would only have been my fingertips in harms way. Putting the first finished tire on the car made me feel real good, but lowering it to the ground and being able to push it around on flat ground with just my fingertips was exhilarating. It had to be dragged into my shop with a hi-lo when it first arrived as two burlies couldn't budge it.

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I'm still hoping the body filler work will start as promised. I moved the chassis into the storage area and moved the body over, into that space. Getting rid of the hoist makes everything easier to get to.

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Awesome work Barry! That car is going to be so gorgeous when you are done with it. I can't blame you for being sheepish around those wheels while filling the tubes/tires. Being an ex-Firestone employee and having to deal with split rims really taught me some lessons about projectiles. We always had a cage.

Edited by keiser31 (see edit history)
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The project is now back on track. My buddy Jocko showed up, as promised. I learned more in 10 minutes than I had assumed about body work in my whole life.

Jocko had been following my progress and decided it was time for him to jump in and save the day. He's committed to working 2-3 days a week until finished. He estimates being ready to shoot the body and get it ready for paint in 3 weeks.

Here's what's astounding. I had to learn to feel the surface properly. I had always used my fingertips on the metal. He says a soft cloth between your palm and the surface is far more revealing. Within the first minute an area I pointed out to look "pretty good" turned out to be mediocre, at best. All he did initially is block the area with sandpaper in two direction which revealed many high and low spots. I tried to catch what was so plain to the eye.

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He says the flat file doesn't lie. This would look terrible without fixing it.

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Ater two hours of hammer work he was able to eliminate the need for Bondo and will just use a metal glaze, which is a super-fine ground filler that will smooth things out with very little build up.

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While this looks terrible it's incredibly flat, and that's what counts right now. Jocko says the least mount of material betwen the metal and the paint the better. That makes sense. I asked how they were able to get the body smooth enough the first time and he confirmed that they used primer. I assumed it was sprayed on, but he tells me it was trowled on, left to dry and sanded smooth. That explains why I found nothing but paint and lead.

I tried to make the obvious dimples go away by filling them, but then proceeded to sand them flat on a curved surface. He removed the filler and, using a hammer and dolly, made the surface match the surrounding metal.

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The chassis is pretty much done. Until I get the engine back I'm pretty much done, so I'm going to sand-blast the hood pieces after chemically removing the paint. I'll remove the rivets from the fender braces and have the front fenders dipped and e-coated, or somehow protected until the body is done.

Today was a good day.

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Awesome work Barry! That car is going to be so gorgeous when you are done with it. I can't blame you for being sheepish around those wheels while filling the tubes/tires. Being an ex-Firestone employee and having to deal with split rims really taught me some lessons about projectiles. We always had a cage.

I grew up in Dad's tire recapping business. People underestimate the damage a split rim can do if it flies apart. If you're leaning over one when it flies apart you aren't looking at bruises. You are looking at a broken arm if you're lucky, decapitation if you aren't. Those cages are built as heavy as they are for a reason.

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Thanks!

Sent the tires off to the shop to be spun to find the best two for use on the front end. The rears will be more forgiving of a wobble.

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I got my first lesson in body filling. He determined that the area on both sides of the lead seams required some filler.

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He didn't wait long to start shaping the surface. Using a coarse body file he removed the lines left from spreading the filler and then went at the surface with 80 grit in two directions. This area is now about as flat as can be.

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The original panel installation wasn't exactly perfect so there's a bit of lead in the front corners.

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Another batch of filler. Yellow paste with a blue catalyst and the perfect batch is lime green.

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This squared things up nicely. The blue tape reminds him that the area needs a little more work.

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He wants to finish the roof and then put the body on a 3 foot tall platform to do the rest of it. Once he's far enough along he'll prime the whole body, shoot some color along the body and reinstall it permanently before final blocking is done. He wants everything bolted down and locked in place before paint.

We discussed having the rest of the sheet metal chemically stripped and e-coated. Much of that would get sanded off on the outer surfaces, but will protect all the areas you can't get to with primer. Apparently my time stripping and facilitating the repairs to the body in advance of Jocko's involvement has move this along considerably.

He'll be back next Tuesday. In the interim I will bleed and adjust the brakes, which buttons up that system.

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My Photobucket account has been funky, so I haven't posted any updates.

I took the tires to be tested for runout so I could determine which to use on the front. The wheels all had evidence of sheet-metal weights being welded to the inside of the wheels, but some had been removed or they rusted through and fell off. The two best tracking tires had wheels with no weights and would have been unbearable above 35 mph so we went with stick-on weights which I'll simply paint black. It's a necessary modern fix if it's going to be driven.

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I had Greg come by for a couple of hours to help finish off the braking system. I had him check every nut and bolt from stem to stern. He found one bolt that could have been tighter. All cotter pins were in place and the emergency brake worked perfectly. I installed stainless bolts to hold the wheel cylinders and gave the brake fitting a last tightening and the copper crush washers crushed andI overtightened the fitting and kinked the line. Luckily, Greg's shop is 5 minutes away and I had enough of the NOS brake line left, so I had a new line fabricated by the time he got back with his flaring tool.

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We adjusted the brakes. The first step was to snug the brake shoes to just barely not touch by adjusting the cams in opposite directions. The upper shoe-setting cams also get adjusted We used a .025 gauge wire used for cleaing welding tips as a gap tool. The cams were adjusted until we felt resistantce to it's withdrawal. We then readjusted the the bottom cams so that they barely didn't rub. Since the drums and shoes are arced perfectly, as the drums are new and the shoes are built for new new drums. They were a proper fit, with a very slight rocking of the shoes in the drum. These brakes will have a very short break-in period as they will have instant grip. I was thinking about the brakes on my '33 Continental. While the activation method uses different mechanical advantages I was thinking about brake size. Just using the surface area of the contacted area of the drum I figured that the 10" x 1 1/2" patch on the my car is 47.12 square inches for a 2200 pound car is .0214 square inches per pound. This car has 2" wide brakes and 15" diameter brake drums. That's 92.24 square inches for a 4,000 pound car, or .0236 square inches per pound. Not a huge difference. I'll have to keep that in mind.

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The front driver's side bearing was a slip fit and could have spun if left alone. The machine shop said they couldn't knurl up the diameter of the bearing because it's case hardened. Some mechanics will mar the inner surface of the hub to keep the bearing from spinning and some disrupt the surface of the bearing itself. I weighed all of the options and used a Locktite product designed for the purpose.

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With the brakes adjusted it was simple to remove the drums and do a final lube on the original bearings that control lateral movement. It's a bronze bearing race between two hardened and surface-ground plates.

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The bearing stack is followed by a spring washer that allows for some lateral movement and spacers that set the spring washer to the right height. Tightening the taper sets the spring tension.

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Jocko has showed up every day, as promised. He's nearly finished the roof prep work. This is 15 hours of work. It's as smooth as glass. He says this is an important part of the car as flaws can be seen from afar. This car is so low that some can look down on the top.

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This is exactly what my work would have looked like, but it would still have been bumpy. The top is now ready for a build-up of primer to fix any remaining low spots. It feels very nice. Actually, I don't feel anything at all.

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Now he''l work his way around the car down to the body line. After that we'll boost the body up a couple of feet to let him have easier access to the lower section of the body.

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I ended up back at the machine shop. I took the brakes apart and took them the other brake platter to be beveled. That gave me a perfect gap and just enough taper length. However, I still had a rub between the drum and back plate so they chucked the front hub into a lathe and took a sixteenth off the edge.

http://s244.photobucket.com/user/barry2952/media/1931%20Ruxton/MVI_2007_zpsaf6eeed4.mp4.html

The brakes were pretty easy to disassemble, having done it a couple of times, but this was it.

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The moment I've been waiting for. Well worth the runs to the tire shop to pick the best wheels for the front.

http://s244.photobucket.com/user/barry2952/media/1931%20Ruxton/MVI_2012_zps0fda6ed8.mp4.html

The suspension is now done. I put the cotter pins in the castle nuts. That's done. I was dreading the final tightening procedure because I got figures from 30 pounds to 230 pounds. The low figure is based not wanting to do any damage to the hub and 230 pounds being a modern taper torque. I was advised to use a Locktite product by some, others recommended WD-40 and the majority responded that dry was the best, so that's what I did. The second bit was the torque. I set my torque wrench for 30 pounds. By the time it clicked the hole in the axle was half-covered past the slot in the nut. By the time I rotated the nut to the next slot I had reached 110 pounds. I torqued the other side and it lined up at 100 pounds. That felt about right to me. As difficult as it was to go one 60° turn I don't think I needed to go another.

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I do have one other task. Now that everything is lubricated I'm going to change out the modern-day zerc fittings for the readily available period-correct fittings. With the modern lubricants I used we'll worry about a lube job in 10,000 miles. :)

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Jim said that this was likely the most original Ruxton he'd encountered. It's probably the least-used, too, as nothing mechanical was terribly worn. I've been reversing most of the "fixes" it's attained in 80 years, but I took it that parts like that were original.

However, I can certainly see why you'd want to mount the horn to the engine. The vibration from the horn is horrendous and turns the firewall into an obnoxious sounding board. I'm sure that will improve with carpeting.

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I supposed being an assemblage of leftover parts,

From what I'm told by Jim there were plenty of parts to choose from, but only 3 cars were ordered made by the receiver. It was likely just the mating of finished chassis and bodies rather than an assemblage of parts.

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post-67970-143142374048_thumb.jpg The engine picture in post # 33 of the horn might be from my late uncle S.R. Miller's Ruxton in his museum in Elkhart, In.

Ray was my Mother's brother, I grew up visiting him often and since he was only 6 or so years older than me, I always struggled calling him UNCLE, hehehe.

Dale in Indy

P.S. I have a complete set of pictures of all his cars, that he had sent to me.

Edited by smithbrother (see edit history)
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