leomara Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 I was looking at an old issue of Hemmings from July 1986. I cannot believe how many ads were there for cars, parts, literature and services, pages and pages of ads. Today Hemmings is still a fine publication but it's a ghost of itself when it comes to classified ads. Instead of pages there are only columns. Where did all that volume go? What has radically changed? Anyone tackling a restoration today should feel truly handicapped if they are not working on a Ford or Chevrolet. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 27 minutes ago, leomara said: Anyone tackling a restoration today should feel truly handicapped if they are not working on a Ford or Chevrolet. I have ALWAYS felt that way trying to find 1931 Dodge parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 The internet happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Actually alot more available for cars now than 25 years ago. Look at all the crap on ebay, once you wade through all the fits crap there is some stuff you wouldn't have found in Hemmings. That's just one site. I do agree though the old Hemmings had pages of cars like Desotos and now they barely fill a column if that. Patience and knowing how to find stuff the owner doesn't know what it is, pays off on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Skelly Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 another big change in HMN since then is so many advertised cars in the non-display ads are cars up for auction instead of by private sellers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Marketplace is changing faster than many of us can adapt.......things are better in some ways, worse in others. Time will tell. Think about this........how many magazines and news papers are in your house today, compared to 30 years ago. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SC38dls Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 The cash cow of newspapers were the classified ads. Pages with multiple columns of small ads turning over every three days or so and all cash. That gave newspapers cash flow. The Sunday ad sections brought in a lot of other cash but it was slower to come in as it was usually billed to corps. The online advertising took all that away and newsrooms cost a lot of $$$. Most magazines are using outside writers instead of in-house staff writers for cost savings. I work with the oldest automotive magazine in publication that started as a wagon freight hauling publication and switched to autos in the early 1900’s. It was a monthly of 90,000 circulation And over 100 pages per month. and in the last 10 years has gone to 2500 quarterly circulation at 36 pages. It will not be around much longer. it’s called progress! Right Dave S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_Mack_CT Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 I agree its changing as Ed says, I think adaptability is key. Look at Ford section for A and T stuff and you will see one, maybe two ads for parts from a hobbyist, rest are standard monthly ads from suppliers, rebuilders, etc. So while a Ford is not like say, an Essex for parts, it is changing for us as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Just a side note but years ago one of my fields was cryptography. One of the things developed was a way to send subscribers a special CD annually and then send the encrypted magazines monthly or weekly over the Internet. Only someone with the CD could read them and it could not be copied. No one was interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdome Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 2 hours ago, auburnseeker said: Actually alot more available for cars now than 25 years ago. Look at all the crap on ebay, once you wade through all the fits crap there is some stuff you wouldn't have found in Hemmings. That's just one site. I do agree though the old Hemmings had pages of cars like Desotos and now they barely fill a column if that. Patience and knowing how to find stuff the owner doesn't know what it is, pays off on ebay. Type " -fits " at end of your ebay search such as: 1932 auburn -fits That will get rid of all the disk brakes, tilt steering columns, and power steering pumps that fits your car. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 13 minutes ago, jdome said: Type " -fits " at end of your ebay search such as: 1932 auburn -fits That will get rid of all the disk brakes, tilt steering columns, and power steering pumps that fits your car. I have a few searches all refined so I only get most of what I want, except I need to refine my Auburn search a little more. I'm getting more hits for red heads than I expected but I don't mind wading through them. 😉 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdome Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 9 minutes ago, auburnseeker said: I have a few searches all refined so I only get most of what I want, except I need to refine my Auburn search a little more. I'm getting more hits for red heads than I expected but I don't mind wading through them. 😉 Try it some time. You can put the negative symbol in front of a common word in those annoying adds and no add with that word in the title will show up in your search. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepher Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 4 hours ago, auburnseeker said: Actually alot more available for cars now than 25 years ago. Look at all the crap on ebay, once you wade through all the fits crap there is some stuff you wouldn't have found in Hemmings. That's just one site. I do agree though the old Hemmings had pages of cars like Desotos and now they barely fill a column if that. Patience and knowing how to find stuff the owner doesn't know what it is, pays off on ebay. Still no actual Rickenbacker parts, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 5 hours ago, jdome said: Try it some time. You can put the negative symbol in front of a common word in those annoying adds and no add with that word in the title will show up in your search. eBay used to have an "Exclude Words" feature in their search criteria which very helpful, instead of wading through hundreds of unwanted listings. I don't know why they did away with thst feature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 3 hours ago, GregLaR said: eBay used to have an "Exclude Words" feature in their search criteria which very helpful, instead of wading through hundreds of unwanted listings. I don't know why they did away with thst feature. it is still there under advanced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Hemmings the magazine completely missed the boat twenty years ago. They should have immediately cut a co-branding deal with ebay motors. Now Hemmings the magazine is no longer relevant. Any rare or desirable parts in their classified ads are sold before the print edition even hits the stands. I occasionally thumb through one in the supermarket. There's nothing in the classifieds except long-term ads from businesses anymore. There's a reason why they've expanded editorial content instead of advertising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 (edited) Taking a step back to look at a broader context, 35 years is almost one and a half generations. And generational gaps are significant. Most old car guys have experienced 4 generation gaps so far. They haven't paid much attention or cared it went by fast. I see a lot of them holding their hands out at chest level, similar to a biped dinosaur, and wiggling their fingers to symbolize youth. Maybe some subtle points have slipped past them during those four generations. Raise your hand if you think I was smiling when I wrote dinosaur. Edit Fixed typo. Bernie Edited February 21, 2020 by 60FlatTop (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_S_in_Penna Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Just now, 60FlatTop said: Taking a step back to look at a broader context, 25 years is almost one and a half generations.... Actually, a generation is considered to be 30 years. Because women bear children usually between the ages of 20 and 40, the time between generations is considered 30 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leomara Posted February 21, 2020 Author Share Posted February 21, 2020 (edited) Talking about on line sites for cars, one big frustration I have is enter a year and make of car followed by for sale which brings up a myriad of ads. So you go to the site and 9 times out of 10 you are looking at something which was put out there months, no, years ago and long since has become ancient history. Why don't any of these sites have date stamp information? Edited February 21, 2020 by leomara More info (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 16 hours ago, leomara said: I was looking at an old issue of Hemmings from July 1986. I cannot believe how many ads were there for cars, parts, literature and services, pages and pages of ads. Today Hemmings is still a fine publication but it's a ghost of itself when it comes to classified ads. Instead of pages there are only columns. Where did all that volume go? What has radically changed? Anyone tackling a restoration today should feel truly handicapped if they are not working on a Ford or Chevrolet. The internet happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1912Staver Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 12 hours ago, zepher said: Still no actual Rickenbacker parts, though. I have a Rickenbacker aluminum hubcap. Probably one of the few parts that turn up from time to time. Need it ? Greg in Canada Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sftamx1 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 (edited) I've been in the AACA since high school, 1971. Like many of you I feel the internet has taken away our printed materials we all loved and looked forward to getting in the mail. I learned so much about cars from those old Hemmings Motor News,and bought many parts for my first project,a 1937 Plymouth. It was great fun sending a SASE to the many for sale ads, and checking the mailbox for the reply.In many ways I wish those days were still with us. BUT... I also embrace the internet for what it can be. A source for parts (and photos of parts!) nearly instantly. Many connections are able to be made as well, along with for sale and wanted ads on many sights including this one. It's fantastic to show a picture of what you need or have questions about,and get instant responses. Printed material seems to take a lifetime to get the same results, and often leads to "missed opportunities". As an example of modern tech at work, I was attending a car show out of town. During a brief shower, I was going thru Hemmings for sale ads on my smart phone. I spotted my dream car for sale,in a nearby state. I called the number, and within minutes got all the info and pics I wanted to make a deal. I knew if I hesitated the car would be gone,as they're only a handful known and seldom change hands. I closed the deal by sending an instant PayPal payment for a deposit,right from my phone... It all worked out perfect, even with me negotiating and paying from a remote site show field! The following week we went to get my 1933 Terraplane 8 convertible coupe, whose owner decided to part with it that day,some 50 years after he bought it! Without the phone and internet, I'm sure I would still be looking.... Edited February 21, 2020 by sftamx1 Error (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_Mereness Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Just depends what you are looking for, When I buy an Austin Healey part it is amazing what is made, the quality levels, and ... - same with I am sure Model A, T, and V-8 Fords. When I go hunting parts for big 1930's car it is a real mixed bag matched to sometimes unobtainium and .... As to a lot of it though - hate to say it, but the people are getting old and ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1912Staver Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Healey's have great parts availability , but in my experience quality is all over the map. Even worse at times with MGA's. Some parts are first class , equal to O.E.M. quality . But a lot of the body parts especially leave much to be desired. Greg in Canada Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 I greatly prefer documentation in .pdf form any more. My den has bookcases on all four walls and keeps threatening to become a first floor room. I have to measure service manuals and parts books by board feet. Even use the space above the computers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 1 hour ago, padgett said: I greatly prefer documentation in .pdf form any more. Sorry, no. The problem is that the documentation for the cars I care about was never available in electronic form. Any PDF version is just a scan of a paper original. Details (and whole pages) get lost in that process, not to mention the fact that most of those CD versions of factory manuals likely did not have approval for the reproduction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937hd45 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 22 hours ago, auburnseeker said: Actually alot more available for cars now than 25 years ago. Look at all the crap on ebay, once you wade through all the fits crap there is some stuff you wouldn't have found in Hemmings. That's just one site. I do agree though the old Hemmings had pages of cars like Desotos and now they barely fill a column if that. Patience and knowing how to find stuff the owner doesn't know what it is, pays off on ebay. That caught my attention, how do IDIOTS find and USE that "Also Fits" eBay option? Has the designer of that feature been found?...……………….. I just deleted my last two sentences. Have a nice day. Bob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937hd45 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 21 hours ago, edinmass said: Marketplace is changing faster than many of us can adapt.......things are better in some ways, worse in others. Time will tell. Think about this........how many magazines and news papers are in your house today, compared to 30 years ago. All of them, paid fifty cents for my first issue of Hot Rod July 1961, I was 10 years old at the time. Does look like the Collier brothers place at times. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 Sam and Miles ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937hd45 Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 (edited) 4 hours ago, padgett said: Sam and Miles ? No, Homer & Langley. I just Googled them and found out the last name was Collyer, not Collier of magazine and Florida county or ARCA and SCCA fame. https://allthatsinteresting.com/collyer-brothers Edited February 22, 2020 by 1937hd45 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesR Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 On 2/20/2020 at 6:22 PM, GregLaR said: The internet happened. ...and with that, the esoteric has become almost ubiquitous. Google search some very obscure historical figure from the 7th century and you'll get results before you can even finish typing his name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 8 hours ago, JamesR said: Google search some very obscure historical figure from the 7th century and you'll get results before you can even finish typing his name. And some of that information you find on the web will even be true... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 "Tell me three times" works for me - as long as I am not the source (see "canary traps"). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted February 22, 2020 Share Posted February 22, 2020 I went through the fuel system on my 34 year old Buick Park Ave and was able to buy the complete set of factory manufactured steel lines and flex connection lines for about $200 within a few minutes. Thirty-five years ago one wouldn't even conceive of that happening. And a new plastic window roller. Rock Auto and Ebay, respectively. The roller came from a diligent vendor on Ebay. And Ebay should be very thankful people like that use their platform. Left to the Ebay parts compatibility, I would find old issues of the J. C. Whitney catalog a more reliable parts interchange resource. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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