$20 entry? I was shocked but I did find a few mouldings I needed for $45 which I thought was a fair price until I added the $20 entry and $75 of gas and $20 for lunch! All in all it was a fun day but Turlock has changed. $20 entry WOW!
It used to be $10. Last year $15. $20 was inevitable. As far as lunch, last year I bought 2 hot dogs, chips and drinks.......$55! There were a few deals but I wasn't really looking for anything particular. I just went to accompany my stepson and to enjoy the event.
Drove down to Turlock from Seattle last year. Factoring cost of gas, hotels and meals along the way, the entry fee was a drop in the bucket and is long since forgotten. But I do remember the great time and cool stuff I got.
We used to fly from Connecticut to go to Turlock. We didn't complain about the entry fee, it was part of the cost of the weekend. We always scored on our purchases. The last time, after shopping all day Saturday, we went to the local FEDEX and loaded 2 large FEDEX boxes, approximately 3' x 3' to ship home using my FEDEX account. The money spent was well worth it. We had a great time, saw a lot of stuff that you never see on the East Coast, and usually in much better condition. My health at age 83 precludes me going to Turlock again, but I always told people that if I could only go to one swap meet a year, it would be Turlock. I now live less than 1 hour from Carlisle and Hershey, and I go to both, but Turlock is still my favorite.
Just a teaser from 2016 Turlock just before heading to FedEx. Great place to find stuff. Thank you Nick!
Lots of empty seller spots and not too much to buy unless you have a C10. I will say, the 10 dollar breakfast burrito was a great deal!!
Some perspective on admission fees, based on costs in my area: First-run movie: $20 Trip to the zoo: $30 (no animals for sale) Art Museum: $35 (no art for sale) Round of golf: $50-$100 (all you buy here is grief) Half-day fishing (fuel, bait, launch fees, etc.): $50-$100 (no guarantee of fish) NHL Hockey game: $260 (might get a souvenir puck if you're "lucky"; keep yer head up!) Concert by big-name artist: Sky's the limit! (Over too soon or not soon enough, depending on artist) At last year's Turlock, by contrast, $20 bought me a full day of fun. My phone told me I walked 12 miles, and I filled the truck with stuff. Frankly, my only regrets are couple things I passed on that I now wish I'd bought.
I was at Turlock meet in 2008. At the time it was busy meet, though for a cheap midwestern guy, asking prices were there . How does the attendance compare to that era now a days?
The consensus among the regular sellers I talked to was that the seller attendance was better than last year, but the buyer attendance was down considerably. The cars for sale area was pretty full but not much of interest to me. I tagged along with a buddy who is a regular seller and I sold a bunch of stuff that I no longer needed. Unfortunately, I didn't get to roam around much. I went home with more cash than I went with, in spite of the $55 lunch. $17 for a big sausage on a hot dog bun. I can't wait to see the food prices at the NHRA Winternationals.
It was full house. Parking lots full at 10am I parked about 3/4 mile away the closest spot I could find
some spots have been reserved by long term regular swappers. if they do not show up they do not re-sell them to others
That little red coupe was very cool but the chassis work and welding was terrible. Another case of “now what do I do with it? Leave it as is (was) or keep the style and correct the issues”
I was tempted by this T Bucket. Perfect for me, even the color (minus the pokey flames) Notice the short wheelbase, the real Americans on the front with disc brakes. I’m not even sure I would clean it up much more than was already done.
Yes, Photos would be great to see. I'll get there some year, and after the cost of the airfare and lodging the LAST thing I'd think of bitching about will be the cost of admission and lunch. Bob
Turlock is still on my someday list but I may never make it. On the cost of entry , I think that most clubs that put on events be they be swap meets, car shows or ? will say that fairgrounds and other venues get the biggest share of that fee. The local big club that puts on the big local event gets hit for more money every year often for pretty lame things. The venue has total control over food and beverage sales. Meaning that it is their regular vendors selling food and beverages or select vendors who pay the venue a pretty hefty fee. My niece had her taco truck at the show the last couple of years and was busy all weekend. I don't think she raised her prices. The Model A club held their spring swapmeet at the fairgrounds for 50 or so years and moved to the grounds of the antique farm equipment museum two years ago. No doubt costs had a big part of the move.
Turkic was on my list for this year, but you guys scared me off with reports of potentially bad weather, and it’s a pretty long drive from here in Tucson. Sounds like I made a mistake by not going. Hope I’m still in good enough health to attend next year.
I sell at Turlock and it seemed like foot traffic was down too on Saturday. Sunday it was pretty quiet. I don't know what the actual numbers were but it felt like attendance was down. My 13 year old ran my sales in exchange for a 10% cut, he's totally stoked to be part of it and is excited for the next swap! There was some great deals to be found. A lot of stuff I didn't need but was well priced. The usual expensive stuff that people bring year over year. Scooped a big and little numbered SW tach to match the speedo for my 'hot rod' dash for $40 which I was pretty stoked about. Found an original '32 floor shifter tin for $10. Someone put some pretty nice original '32 roadster floor seat risers next to the garbage, which I was amazed to find and even better were parts I needed for my own '32! Big scored for me was a nice old magnesium Halibrand 301 with the 10 bolt side bells for $350! Turns good, missing the quick change gears. It's pretty heavy so I'm expecting a differential and not a spool but haven't had a chance to crack it open to see. It came with a little red wagon to drag it back to my spot which I later sold for $20. All in all I had fun and it was a good time.
^^^^ The big spotlight in picture #2 above - I bought that, cheap ...... not sure why? Part of a future kinetic sculpture? It was in sight of our space, so I had to look at it all day. It called to me, and I just couldn't resist.
I have made purchases like that in the past and oddly enough it was also a light. Someone rigged up a big 20's or 30's headlamp with a sweet Bauch and Lomb headlight lens to an old power supply box with an old/off switch. It's currently my bedside lamp.
Thanks el Scotto & bchctybob! Your positive reports keep Turlock on my "Bucket List", someday I'll get there. Bob
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