Hot Rods The very best trade you ever made

My best "parts for parts" trade was a working Delco 6 volt generator for a '53-'54 Corvette exhaust manifold. In the "timing is everything" department, I pulled into a convenience store to fill my tank, and another guy was there for the same purpose with a battered Ford pickup loaded with transmissions to go to the scrap yard. I asked him how much they were giving him for them, and he replied "Eleven bucks a piece". I said, "I'll give you eleven bucks for that one right now and lighten your load". It was a wide ratio Muncie four speed. It even looked good inside once I got it home and checked it out.

 

This one was when I was in high school and I still don’t know what the reasoning behind my dad’s decision…….

I traded a ‘63 1/2 Falcon hardtop V8 car for a ‘66 Big Block El Camino both were really nice cars. The El Camino was a hot rod and had plenty of the go fast goodies (nitrous, etc) and was fully optioned. This is where it gets interesting…… I could have traded it for an equally nice ‘63 1/2 R code Galaxy 4 speed car that was bone stock about 6 months earlier and he said “hell no you’re going to kill yourself in that thing”
I promise the El Camino was WAY FASTER than the Galaxy ever thought it could be but he would not let me get it

 

I traded $800.00 for a 201 Halibrand 2" open tube quickchange. It is BRAND SPANK'N NEW from spinner to spinner. Rotors, hats and calipers, all new. Her husband died. He was going to build a Bonneville car. I took it off her hands to help her out. Your opinion. What's the value of the Q C ? PS; It's in the 50's sprint car chassis I am building. Frame being painted right now. It's going in my showroom.

 

I've never been a very successful trader but this was a good year. I bought a really nice 32 Ford sedan project at the Lincoln NE swap meet that caused some problems. A friend offered his running/driving 32 Ford pickup for the tudor. We did the deal and I think he's enjoying building the tudor and I've driven the pickup almost everyday since I brought it home. Probably die with the truck. It's a winner.

 

Traded A High Mileage 1966 Caprice With 396/Turbo 400 For A 1960 Rochester Fuel Injection..

 

I traded a much abused 71 Kawasaki 500 triple for a 25k mile 350/300 hp and a Muncie 4 spd with a new Hurst Comp plus shifter. Put both in my 62 Impala and sold it 2 yrs later to pay college tuition…. I’ve regretted selling it for the last 55 years!

 

I don't like to trade anymore, even when I think I'm getting the upper hand of the deal, in the long run it ends up being I got the short end of the deal ! haha

 

Traded a garage door for a 350 trans. Another time I ended up with a set of wheels and tires, and an engine crane; but I don't recall what I traded for it. Oh yeah, then there was a Camaro for my '29 cc pick-up which is still in eternal mock up... Not sure of the current status on the Z.

 

Traded my ‘50 Dodge club coupe with a 318/727 combo for a ‘23 T with a 283/th350. The T was on an original “boxed” T frame. Before and after pics…

 

I traded a bicycle for a 56 Ford 2 door Ranch Wagon.

 

Back in the early 70's when I lived in Des Moines, IA, I bought a 57 Chevy Bel Aire two door hardtop with 327 and Hurst shifted three speed (and no brakes) for $165. It did have a dent in the quarter, was a little rough but not bad. I really wanted a thirties coupe, preferably Ford. I'd watch the papers and found a guy (Bruce Wolfe) with a 38 Chevy Coupe, I went to look at it (it was an IKEA car...all disassembled), he found I had the 57 as well as a straight axle with disc brakes and we made the trade. The 57 had a title and the 38 didn't I was not a good trader, never was a fan of tri five Chevies so maybe it worked out OK. The 38 in question is pictured in the avatar. I am sure Bruce did much better on the trade than I

 

I traded eighty five bucks for a Holley #3245.
Now if you know what that number represents then you know that's the holy grail of OEM Holley carburetors.

 

How about my worst trade! I traded my 1953 Cushman Eagle for an 8 track tape deck!





Bones

 

In 1991 I traded 10 old twenty dollar bills for a running 392 hemi from a '58 New Yorker.

 

That sounds like my trades!

 

I helped a buddy move some of his shop stuff. He had a heavy duty Blast-It-All 40 x 24 blasting cabinet. When I asked how much he wanted for it, he said, "I'll let you have it for $300 if you let me use it when I need to." I spent about $150 fixing it up and have used the crap out of it. He's used it once.

 

I traded my Edelbrock manifold and 4 barrel Holley carb for a complete 6 pack set up. It was the aluminum factory manifold with carbs and air cleaner. This was in 1971. The guy had it on his Dodge and couldn't get it to run right. I rebuilt the carbs with new kits from Chrysler and ran the set up for 35 years.

 

Back in the 90's, I traded a set of valve covers for a 28-29 Ford pickup box. Held on to it for 20 years and then sold it to a guy for $100, five years later he was moving across country and did not want to take it with him, bought it back for $100 kept it for 3 more years and took it to a swap meet and sold it for $200. I was always going to build a truck around it. Never did.

 

I traded a 40 Ford rear end for an Offenhauser two pot intake. The rear ended up in @onekoolkat belly tank racer and the intake is sitting on the shelf waiting it's time

 

3 decades ago I traded to my hot rodder barber (RIP Bud) a rusty Model A door for a haircut and $10.

It might not have been an earth shattering trade, but the smiles it still brings me 30 years later makes it one of my very best.

 

Not a trade but a deal! Back in the days of the dinosaurs, (mid 60s) I used to drive by used dealers and eyeball the back rows for projects to flip. Spotted a 61 Ranchero and stopped to look. Dealer said he couldn't do anything with it yet as it was a bank repo. He started it and it knocked like the mains were missing! And wouldn't move forward or back, 2spd Fordo.

I dropped by the bank and worked a deal. Grabbed Dad's wrecker and brought it home. Torque converter studs broken out of the converter and no fluid. Replaced the converter, new frictions in the trans and done!

Swapped it for a cherry 51 Chevy PU that needed engine work and got much cash too.

BTW, the dealer was pissed at me and the bank.

 

Traded my 60 Olds ragtop for a black 55 Chevy.



Also just recently swapped my 59 Vette for a perfect 39 Ford Woody.


Both felt like fair trades -- no one got taken - I just really like the cars I ended up with.

 

Buying stuff and getting a good deal isn't a trade either.

 

Bought ot car with broken flexplate and converter for 250.
Then bought used but good parts for 70.
A friend help fix that car very nice looking and i trade it two cars and 2000.
Gave other ot car for my friend and one grand.
Other trade car was chevy pickup with 454 and broken transmission.
Fixed the transmission and sold it 10500.
It was a heck of a deal.

 

One of my best trade deals included three vehicles and cash in the end. Started with a $1200 62 bug that I traded for a 55 F100 and $500. So, I had $700 in a running and driving 55 F100 that I then traded for an OT S10 four wheel drive that I then sold for $4200. I thought I made a killing on those deals.

 

Not mine but a guy I knew years ago sold his first gen Camero to some girl that was wanting a hot rod after she graduated high school. They kept in touch and before you knew it they were dating and eventually got married a couple of years later. So he got her money, the girl, and his car back.

 

lostn51 that is pretty funny.

 

I traded 75 hard earned bucks I received for cutting grass and picking up returnable coke bottles along the side of the road for a 1932 Ford coupe a mere 61 years ago, those bargains don't exist anymore. HRP

 

Man, I've wheeled-and-dealed so much in my life, it's hard to come up with one best. I've been fortunate to have a few. A somewhat recent one that comes to mind was a single 1935 Ford wire wheel traded for an absolutely mint 1931 A grill shell.