just got back from pomona swapmeet..it ****ed for me at least..hardly any ford parts especially shoebox parts...it's heaven for all the chevy guys ,but for ford guys..lame.....i guess long beach is better bet....any guys have a better source of a swapmeet for fords?
sadly either the big 3 or the la roadster show, both are only once a year. if you want to drive you might try the san diego swap, it's been a few years since i've been there................evilbay is killing the swapmeets.
Yeah all those years of hearing that's the place to go....all I saw where billet sbc parts and hotwheels. The lowrider guys bring some good bomb **** sometimes.
I agree, it did ****. Couldnt find any good Ford parts, except by shear luck, I bought a 27 model T body for 50bucks
ebay has killed or in the process of killing every good swap meet for old ford parts either big or small guys figure they can get huge money for any ford part. all because idiots with too much $ and too much time search out and pay huge $ for old ford parts that are showing up on ebay.
I could pay $50 in gas one way, $20 for a spot, sit out in the sun all day while people pick up stuff and offer me 10% of what I have marked on it, maybe sell $100 if I'm lucky, then have to pay another $50 to get home. Plus anything I want to eat. Or, I can sit home, throw it on eBay for a few bucks, let people fight over it until it's bid to 5 times what it's worth, throw it in a box, drive 5 minutes to the FedEx place and ship it off. The point is for me as a seller, people's at***udes are killing swap meets for me. No one buys anything and the ones that do want to get it for 10 cents on the dollar, so there's no point in going anymore.
That's why I quit hauling parts to swap meets years ago. Work for a week cleaning up parts, sorting out the ****, pricing everything, loading the truck, spending money on gas, food, swap space, only to have guys tell me they can get the same part at so-n-sos place for less then 1/2 what I was asking, so would I take 1/2 of that? Then you have to haul all the stuff back home, unload the truck and put the stuff back where you had it stashed. Most days I would be lucky to break even, until you figured in what I bought...Least I had the truck there to haul it home. These days, I won't even go to swap meets unless I'm looking for something specific, I carry a list. Then I really don't expect to find what I'm looking for, but its a chance to get away for a day. Some times I actually find something on my list. But every once and a while there is that one find that makes all the dud swaps worth while. Gene
Ray Taylor is moving his San Diego AutoSwap back to Qualcomm Stadium on May 30th (http://www.sandiegoautoswap.com/autoswap.html) it's definitely not the Big3 but it should be better than it was at Grossmont CC. I agree with previous posted sentiments about swap meets, by the time I load up all the **** from the shed and drag down to the swap meet, I'm about ready to turn around and head back home. Maybe I'm just not as hungry as I used to be but there sure doesn't seem to be much return on the dollar for all that effort....
I Can Understand That,but Just Ruins The Whole Idea Of Going Outand Finding Deals Like Before,,iam Gonna Try Long Beach,,if Its A Bust ..no More Swaps For Me..
All the swaps have suffered from of Ebay, and other online venues. I used to be able to sell a ton of stuff and also buy a ton of stuff at Pomona and Long Beach. Now I go to buy. Sometimes I get something, sometimes not. I do have a chance to get out of the house and hang out with friends, and see alot of cool cars, etc. You never know what will show up. If you arent there, you cant buy it. If you give up, thats one less compe***or to beat out.
I agree ebay is hurting us swappers but I still enjoy getting up at 4am, driving 50 miles to sit in the sun [or rain] and have the opportunity to say hello to all my friends and BS for a little while. I always pack a cooler of diet Dr Pepper for myself and I INSIST on having a great time. I generally fold up early and walk around to buy something. I still get a little thrill on finding a part I like but prolly won't use....store it for a year until I sell it for a loss. Doesn't matter. I've gotten outta the house and got to ******** with almost all my friends while getting some fresh air...I love swap meets and next Sunday morning, find me at the Saunders county fairgrounds. I'll be the guy having fun, haggling over the price of my worthless **** with a new friend... BTW, My gl*** is always half-full, not half empty.
I agree with lonely king about not really finding ford parts i went with a couple of buddy's of mine and there all chevy guys and they got what they needed and i couldn't find jack **** oh well at least i got a couple of miles of walk in me and a good time messing around with good friends
I'm with Rocky, it's about getting out, having a good time and hopefully coming home with some junk. Ebay may have made an impact on the swap meet scene but things change, AND the rules of supply and demand are working against here us as most of these parts are 50/70 years old, they ain't makin it anymore and demand has NEVER been higher than at this moment, there are multiple factors to be blamed or renowed for this demand ie "car culture" mags on the shelves in 7-11, auto oriented TV shows, etc, hot rods have never been hotter...
i don't know it all depends on what exactly your looking for. i saw a 51 ford convert, complete, fairly solid and rolling with just about all moldings and the whole convert top their for sale for $2,300, the price was marked down from $3,600 i beilieve. stuffs their just have to look really hard some times. i think their is way to many vendors that don't belong at the pomona swap, such as vendors selling watches, cd's, and other things that just take up way to much space.
Pomona used to be pretty harsh about non car parts.. I think theyve lightened up quite a bit on that. It is like a giant Chinese tool/ model car/ sungl***es swapmeet. Chevy guys have it made. I used to sell Ford parts there and people would tell me I was one of a handful that had Ford stuff. Still, to me its cool to go and hang out. Maybe some of you would like it if we had a HAMB hangout there. We did a few years ago, Imagine 10 or more guys shopping for the same stuff together... It doesnt really work well.
Pomona Was Strict Before ,but Now, You Can Even Park Any Year Car Now In The Show/sale Area,before Forget It..i Saw A Maxima For Sale There..with Spinners..yuk..oh The Best Part Was It Had A Big Raider Nation Sticker On The Back Window..yuk..whats That All About?
i thought the same thing. IT ****ED the only fun i had was honking those horns for sale haha they had a train horn that i had them honk and it scared to **** out of a few people haha i laughed pretty good because of that.
Tried Pomona, Tried Long Beach, Tried ebay, The only guy that has fenders for my '34 Plymouth was on the HAMB! No kidding!!! HAMB Rules!
I sell at both Pomona and Long Beach and very rarely miss one. It's not like it was 5 years ago for sure. I drove out there in the rain at 4:30 AM but it ended up being a pretty nice day. I did alright when the dust settled. The next Long Beach will have the new format. I think I have an OK spot as long as it's not close to that *** selling horns! Solo, I was next to that guy once and it drove me crazy. And I could tell everyone was having good fun with them. haha I sell AN fittings, braided hose, brake lines and that kind of stuff. Between e bay, jegs and s***mitt it's killing all the rest of us. Local speed shops and good swap meets are really hurting because of it. Oh well, just have to adapt I guess.
I scored today...got a floor mount tubing bender w/ 3 dies, and a hand held for 1/2 tubing for $75, ORIGINAL 55 skirts for the Chebby longroof...$40, like new parking light bezel for Chebby $5, and the dash ganish moulding for my A-truck...$20. 200 **** connectors for $10. Stewart Waner tach...$5. I was in at 6am, and out by 8 am before I got broke. Its funny, I was telling my bro-in-law who was with me that the swap meet is going the way of "everything." I swear, there was a boot that was selling fricken chineese rubber plants only, w/ one fuel pump next to them - crazy!! and yep, like usual, the vettes had thier place...from 55' to 06'. Pathetic. I tried to look for some of you HAMB guys...but had no luck. There should be a spot, the same all the time that we can wander over to to meet up.
I DO like the camaraderie of shop talk with the hot rodders that show up. Somehow, someway, I always learn something I didn't know before, however trivial it might be. I don't turn a fraction of the bucks I use to make years ago, but as long as it doesn't cost me a fortune to be there, I'll still vend a little and enjoy it!
when i said ebay was killing the swaps i meant from both sides, seller and buyer. that's all i heard all day was i could sell this on ebay for.... or i could buy that on ebay for.....ebay, ebay, ebay. to me the swap is about...well the swap...the hunt and being able to see, feel and yes even smell the parts (or cars). i like the end near the street, it has more **** (good ****) from peoples backyards and garages. i think they need to focus back on car related items only and ban all the damn wagons too. the new (post '75) cars have to pay something like $90 or $100 to get into the show/sell section when pre '74 is $25 (it went up again damnit!).....i still like the swapmeet though, it's like camping out in a junkyard .
The Jalopy Journal
