Fantastic post, Ryan! I've read it including the links, and it's great! The facts about the '47 dash knobs are fasinating. I'll never look at them the same again, and will stop to ponder the numerous old items I see at swap meets now, both automotive and not, in a little bit different light. As I sit here reading all the replies, I went into the next room, unwapped the Loretta Lynn CD I bought the night before and inserted it into my state of the art high power digital 7.1 surround-sound stereo system, and turned it up. It took me back. With the shared insights and feelings I was reading, and the same old music my mom played around the house when my brother and I were just little boys in the late 60's, I was taken straight back there. It's wonderful how sights, sounds and smells can transport a person back, to hopefully a time of good memories, sometimes long forgotten. I'm reliving a cold afternoon, probably Thanksgiving or Christmas break. I'm in our small living room, taking a break from fiddling around with one of my model cars, listening to the scratchy LP records my mom's playing today, while sewing or something; Loretta Lynn, Lefty Frizell, Johnny Cash. I lift the lid on the old console Hi-Fi we inherited from my aunt. It was old to her, so she bought a new one (we considered her 'rich') but it was new and fancy for us. I'm watching as the old vinyl goes around, and can actually smell it. I get down on my knees and stick my head around the open back of the console to look at, and feel the heat coming off all the tubes back there. I can smell that too.... It's so true how we (the priveleged ones) can be in an old place, or pick up and hold in our hands an old object, or admire an old car, and have the experience conjure up such feelings described by everyone contributing to this thread. It reminds me of another time when my brother and I were little. We would sneak over to a neighbor's house a couple doors down. Actually he lived with his dog 'Skippy' in a back room of a large garage he rented. He collected old Cadillacs, most of them limousines, and parked most of them lined up, on the side of the long garage. There were other cars inside too. A couple of times we got inside when he wasn't home, through an unlocked door or a window, I don't remember. I do know it was here, that we encountered the first ever 'girly magazines' we'd ever seen. Imagine 60's Playboy mags for a moment. That's something as a little boy, you never forget! But, what I also remember, is climbing into the back seats of those old Cadillac limousines, closing the door, and imagining all the rich and important people who must have riden right were I sat. I'm sitting there, my imagination running wild, and taking in all the details of the interior; the decorative dome and interior compartment lights, the leather handle straps above the door, the fold-out foot rests, and the smell, that SMELL! The old velour upholstery and wool carpet, cotton seat padding, and that wonderful stuffy and musty aroma, that back then was like some kind of elixir, exciting and soothing at the same time. Then we climb over the large front seats into the front, probably fighting over the big beautiful steering wheel, and almost mesmerized my the wood grain, chrome, colored knobs, and various gadgetry of the immense dash board.... Our two younger brothers couldn't possibly even relate to this, and my sister calls me a 'pack-rat'. That's O.K., 'cause I know that I, like most everyone else here on the HAMB, are priveledged to be able to experience such feelings and sense of nostalgia, by the inherent history and soul, of the 'old things' around us.
Ahh man! now we will never get through a swapmeet!!! Its bad enough now! Now my wife will really want me to get her a wheelchair for swapmeets.
Hey, PHOTOFINK, speaking of swapmeets; do you wanna go to Long Beach Swap this Sunday? I promise I won't take too long "pondering" parts.
"I'm not lazy......just don't like standing and staring at metal for long periods of time, especially in the hot,burning sun." Signed...Mrs. Photofink
We'll find you a cup-holder at the swapmeet, bolt it to your wheel chair, stick a cold beer in it, and you'll be fine! Whata ya say? Or you can curl up in the wagon and hold on to all our "metal" for us. I won't even have to bring any bungies.
Ryan- you hit the nail on the head my friend. We have a house full of 'older stuff' (as my kid calls it- my wife's grandmothers dining room set from the 40's, our Bedroom set must be almost 100 years old and most of our quality furnishings have the older feel to them. Our last home was a 100 yr old victorian with a jaded history (so cool to know your house was used for something different!) so we are right there with understanding and appreciating the vintage stuff. Old cars, old homes, old hats -anything- its all about a more simple time and quality craftsmanship. Probably one of the factors as to why Im so anal about our shop's work- perfection still isnt good enough for me and I want stuff to last like it 'used to'. I guess that isnt a bad trait... One of our most fav things is checking out the local 'junque' store when we go out of town.
great read and thought provoking! many of the antiques in my shop were bought new. that happens if you live long enough. but the memories of my youth and the simple toys that I had are the strongest. my favorite was a multi-colored inflatable beach ball. you blew it up then folded the wick a couple times and tucked in a pocket. nothing today compares to the quality of natural rubber. on the same line I have a 9 inch grinder that a friend took home from the GM Assembly plant in 1951 to put new brushes in. when he got to work the next day it had been replaced with a new one, so he just left it in his car. the cord is natural rubber and is in great shape. every power tool in my shop over 10 years old has cords frayed and falling apart. I just changed the original motor in my 106 inch wet belt sander! it was manufactured in 1917 and I've used it daily for over 30 years myself. when it is said "they don't make them like they used to!" it's true......Jim
Great post, Ryan. I have memories of growing up as a kid in the 50's of a lot of things, including the cars of course, but also of the items around the house, such as the faucet knobs. I also remember the people that returned from the war[like the one with one arm missing, and me asking my father why he only had one arm and my father replying that he lost it in the war, and me feeling proud of that man. Remember our vets on Memorial Day.] I now have a 1935 Plymouth that I just bought and every time I sit in I wonder and remember. Yes, it will be a hot rod.
What more needs to be said? Americans were still dreaming. Enginuity, quality and integrity were the American way.
I've always loved old things. Just the fact that these things survived amazes me. We live in a 120 year old house and every once in a while I stop and ponder: Geez, this house was already 60 years old when WWII broke out! It was 88 when I was born! I have a stand up Gramaphone from 1913 that I restored 20 years ago. When I took it apart I found the original "Note the Notes" booklet that came with the gramaphone. It was used to write down what record was stored in each slot in the cabinet. There were selections written in the booklet in that fancy english style writing. Also hidden for decades were four very tiny nursery rhyme records. I love finding things like this! I also restored a "tombstone" Westinghouse radio from 1937. I can imagine a family huddled around it during WWII listening to the latest news reports. There's nothing like listening to the oldies on a radio like that. I'm trying to get my son interested in things like this but it seems if it isn't on-line or on X-Box, it ain't worth his time. It's a shame what this generation is missing... Todd
Old shit...my favorite. Triumphs and Toastmasters... On my way to the store to get some bread for my used toaster....flea market find the year we got married..1982. I wonder if the toaster will live longer than me? Oh, the stories it could tell....raisin bread...pop tarts....kitchen sex.
Good stuff there Ryan... My computer desk was never intended to be such, but it just happens to fit perfectly. I got it at a yard sale in Ft Smith, Arkansas several years ago. The man I bought it from told me he built it in shop class when he was younger...he was in his 80s. I got it home and cleaned it up a bit, and found his name, a date (1939) and the grade his shop teacher gave him for his efforts...It's pretty rough and I can just imagine what every nick and scratch came from...all the kids and grandkids that must have climbed all over it...solid piece but obviously well used... The same for my house, in a way, a late 50s two bedroom brick ranch style. The lady who lived here when we moved to Arkansas from Texas in 1979 had lived here with her husband since they built it, he had died several years before we met her. When I was a kid I used to come here on sunday afternoons and eat hotrolls that she made...she eventually started making an extra batch for me and we'd sit and talk about all sorts of things (she had old stuff here that fascinated me even as a kid), she sold me my first brownie camera when I was in second grade, when you could still get film for them. She passed away in the late 80s, and the house fell into the hands of people who wanted to modernize it...the craftsmen who made the kitchen cabinets would roll in their graves if they could see how they were filled and smoothed over then painted white and turquoise...for now the 1960 GE refrigerator I bought in TN fits okay, a bit small, but a single father and his son don't require a lot more space than that. I am trying to return the rest of the house to how it used to look, and actually have the dresser Maude (the elderly lady who used to own this place) had owned since she was 15...in the 1930s. Old stuff means a lot to me, but even more if I actually knew the people who owned it. Anyone ever take the trim off a woodgrained dash to find fingerprints underneath, where the people who built the car had "left their mark?" Ryan is right on with the case xx knife, the quality isn't the same today as it was back then, they're still nice, but I just don't get the same feeling holding something made in China as I do actually using something built here by people who cared about the quality of what they were turning out. That old radio? Man...as a kindergartner in San Leon, TX, I had an old shortwave radio my grandpa gave me, I'd sit and listen to stuff from all over the place. It had an AM band on it too, I'd listen to the border stations late at night, and the country music from that time. Everything these days is made as cheaply and as quickly as possible, and even though it may carry something called a warranty, nothing seems to be made to last. Manufacturers have made their deal with the devil (cough...walmart...cough), only to find he's jealous when they speak with the competition. He'll put demands on them that they can't fulfill and they'll either move to another country, or close their doors...either way, it's a losing game.
I have a friend whos grandfather owned a watch repair shop in down town St.Louis for many years. Korean War vetern and man of steel. I actualy had the pleasure of meeting him on one occasion on his walk to work. I will never forget it. And just recently his shop was taken by eminent domain to put in another damn loft apartment complex. Last I asked about him, my friend told me that his grandfather will at least once a week, take the bus down town and walk his route to his old shop. Wow, what a damn shame that shop is possibably the reason this old man is still kickin. Another trade gone way side to our throw away society. He still fixes them at home, when someone needs something done. Anyone needs an old watch fixed, maybe family heirloom. P.M. Me and I will fix you up with him.
WAY back in the day, the first car that I can remember my dad having was a 29 model A sedan. It sat in his garage for ever, only being driven on the occasional weekend. He was losing intrest in it because he just got a 56 chevy coupe. I loved that Model A. When it was not in use, I used to like to sit in it and pretend to drive it. I could smell the old. It felt sooooo comfortable with that old (I think it was either mohair or camel hair) musty interior. That old wooden wheel felt just right, and on quite a few occasions I fell asleep in that car. It was just right. that was when I knew that if it didn't have that REAL feel, that SOUL that something gets over age, then I did'nt want it. It's still that simple today. If it's got no soul, I dont want it. If it's not real, send it back. Tupperware cars are fake.
Well said. I blasted an old backseat ashtray for the Comet the other day. It was really rusty and I expected to have to paint it. After coming out of the cabinet and after getting hit with a little polish it looks great. Not show quality but it looks very good, shiny with only a few very small pits. All this with a 45 year old part. Try this after 45 years with some of the trim on today's cars.
Yeah both of my cars the 60 and the 62 have the same smell. Not filthy or musty just a particular smell of their own. My wife asked why I didn't put an air freshener in them. I told her they smell great to me already. Am I wrong for liking that "old" smell?
amen ryan, like the others , I was born to be a gearhead, And was around in the forties. I still have my mothers old toastmaster that we brought out from chi'townto L.A.. in 44'. I saw the USA in my Dads 39' pontiac, strt 8 cpe. [rte 66] As has been written in this thread so many other things I was lucky to have experienced. I rode my bicycle to the first hot rod show at the Armory in L.A., and recall the hot rods on the streets. My Dad would gas it when a roadster would come alongside at the stoplites, and I wud get all excited at the noise and burning rubber ! That did it! And then the tough young guys down the street with the flathead 34 coupe, that gave me and my buddie the ride of our lives. I bumped my head back at each shift! That nailed me good then.
In our town/area we went through "urban removal" in the late 70's so they removed hundreds of concrete lamp posts, a few of us saw the value and have installed them with modern fixtures for our personal use, now the cities spend hundreds times the amount per unit we spent to upgrade them on cheap imitations....Duh.. As a mechanic I see every day how we (society and the CEO's) waste resources to make a buck. Water pumps on modern cars have several machine operations and material thrown away so the mechanic doesnt have to know anything or get paid for his knowlege to repair it just bolt on a new one, I hope one day we all wake up! Sorry Im ranting again@#$%^
Ryan, I get it. I had a house built just after the War. 99% of everything in it was made from the '30's-'60's, incl. light fittings, wall hangings, window dressings, floor coverings, furnature, appliances, bakerlite phone, b&w wire remote TV. etc. etc. All functional. I had created a time machine! When I sat in my lounge room, dressed in vintage clothes, with the pastel vanetions closed, listening to an old '78 on the vintage record player; the accoustics, everything was like "back in the day'. I was born in '67, but I've lived in the 50's. Now I'm not so "period retentive", but it helped give me some PERSPECTIVE.
Excellent blog. As I have gotten older, I too have discovered a passion for things and people of times past. Perhaps the one thing, is what I have heard from so many of my older relatives and older people in general. It seems there was a time when people, for the most part, gave a damn. They shook hands to seal a deal and that was worth more than any piece of paper. A persons word meant something. I often wonder how lawyers made a living back then. The guy who fixed a car, actually fixed it. He didn't just "slap it together" so a person would have to come back and spend more money. It seems that Americans in general, were damn proud of who they were and what being an American meant. Things freaking worked when they made it home. It seems that there was a very high level of pride in building something that another person might depend on or need. I have a few old items that I have gathered over the years and they are grand in their simplicity. For instance, I have an ice crusher from the late fifties. It's so simple that it scares people. You put a few ice cubes in the top, close it, turn the handle and crushed ice is gathered in a tray below. Makes nice snow cones for my niece and nephew. They marvel at it. I also have an old, rotary phone on a dedicated line in my den. Again, it's so simple people just HAVE to use it when they find out it REALLY works. It's also good for hanging up on telemarketers. Think about it, when's the last time you really slammed the phone on someone and they could feel it on their end? Ryan, like you and everyone on this site, their is a great appreciation of things and values from the times now gone and it is reflected in our love of the vehicles we toil over and lose sleep working on. My hope is that I can pass some of what I love on to someone younger. Kinda keep it going, as it were. Perhaps my car will do this. Now wouldn't that be cool.
The Jalopy Journal
