Ok, Three weeks from today we'll be looking at piles of parts at the Hershey Swap meet. I haven't missed a year since 1969, anyone have a story to share with the old timers and rookies?
It will be my 27th year at Hershey being that my first year I was 7 years old and have loved it every year, the first5 or 6 years was more about finding toy cars to play with and riding roller coasters since they used to have the park open while the swap meet was going on but when I started actually looking at car parts the prices were still great and every part you could want was still available, I was into collecting gauges and after selling some off I'm still able to have some good stuff left for even todays projects without paying an arm and a leg. I remember coming out of there as a kid with my dad and leaving with arduns and intakes and all sorts of good stuff because nobody was using it......I wouldn't trade my Hershey week for a trip around the world.
Back in the '70's, there were two or three Hersheys in a row with heavy rain. Hershey is so important NOTHING would stop it, probably not even a volcano or earthquake. People trekked on with garbage bags made into puttees and parkas, parts sank into oblivion and rows of gigantic GM and Winnebago motor homes sank to their windows as the thousands of people marched on oblivious to all but parts--remember, nothing was paved back then. Think Bosnian refugee camp conditions. At least one vendor became rich by brilliantly dropping off his trailer of parts behind a gas station and buying every boot and tarp available at a surplus store on his route to sell instead. My all time favorite site was a long booth where that inclined road goes down past the stadium, an area that filled with water trapped by the ramp. The space contained 3 or 4 open bodied Duesenbergs parked in a row up to their hubcaps, millions of dollars worth of car looking like the back row of a junkyard. On a runningboard sat the owner, an older gent wrapped in a green garbage bag happily eating sardines out of a can overflowing with rain water. A hobo camp for millionaires. The guy probably spent $30,000 at the restoration shop the next week having the Duesies re-detailed and considered it the best vacation of his life. After that Hershey, a guy with a restored WWII halftrack in the show had an abolute blast towing dozens of motorhomes out of the mire. In those days, I was lucky if I could come up with $20 to spend, and I vividly remember walking away from things like $75 Auburn dashes that were utterly out of my reach--but I still enjoyed watching the rich folks playing, all those geezers with coffee-can size rolls of hundred dollar bills in their overalls. The encounters were great theater: Geezer #1, pointing to big beautiful chrome instrument panel for a classic: "How much?" Geezer #2, completely focused on his coffee: "Five." Geezer #1: "Umpph." Whips out five pound wad of water-soaked bills, peels off 50 hundreds, stomps off through typhoon with panel beneath his arm.
One year I took my new labrador retiever puppy. The puddles at the row intersections got so deep that she could swim across. The vendors all said "you should be ashamed of yourself for bringing that puppy out in this weather". I said "she should be damn glad I'm not a duck hunter". My all time best finds have been on the monsoon days. The sissys won't brave the weather and the vendors aren't hungry because there are thousands of customers. Someone will pay their inflated price. I stopped to look at a vendors stuff under an "easy up" after trudging past a sea of blue tarps hiding all of the treasures. There was a box of old gauges. Larger than I was used to. I knew the domed lens were desirable but they were bigger than the classic gauges I grew up with. The nos gas and amp gauge were ten bucks and he threw in the used oil pressure gauge for an extra 5. A nice start to my set. Incidentally, the used oil pressure gauge needed a new lens so I looked on the, new to me, internet. I found one through the classified ads of a cool site. The Jalopy Journal. com. Later I found out they had a message board. The next year I'm slogging through the slop when I spot the holy grail for me. The vendor propped up a Pines winter front grill insert for a 32 Ford out front on the main row. He hadn't had a customer stop for an hour or so. No price naturally. I knew the going asking price was a grand and up. I thought if I could get him down to 600 bucks I'd buy it. The vendor sticks his head out of the camper with a news paper protecting his head. You interested in that? I said I'm interested but how much??? He hims and haws for a while and said I need to pay for this spot give me 600 bucks and it's yours. The first time in my life when the vendor and I hit the same target price without the obligatory dance. I was pleased.
Not really a car part at Hershey story but a notable Hershey moment anyway..... A few years back I was walking and came up on a fellow I know......barely....and he was walking with a BIG Man in overalls and a T-shirt. He had human excrement ( POO ) all over his arm and up to his shoulder. He was looking to go to the washroom. I asked the fellow I know ' What's up with all that? ' He said his friend has a ROLL of Hundred dollar bills wrapped in a rubber band. When he went in the Porta-John....and took his overalls down to do what you do in a Porta-John ..the roll fell in the waste in the bottom of the Porta-John..... I asked him how much money was it? and he said.....How much would it take for you to dig around in a Porta-John ?
Hmmm...there HAS to be a way to turn being covered in poo into a potent bargaining tool... "Here (Stinking, filthy arm holds out crusty bills in a cloud of buzzing flies)...I'll give you $800 for that..." Vendor (backing away hastily, face covered with bandanna)--"NO, no...take it...no need for any money!"
I bet the overal-fella have this as a notable Hersey moment aswell. Kinda hard to forget I guess. Imagine doing business with that roll later that day. Poor dude
You guys got any more stories of cool old parts found in the hayday. .....and pics are always a pluss. Paul
Not Hershey, but a story told me at Hershey a year or two ago about one of the really big California swaps...Pomona?? There was an announcement on the loudspeaker...$10,000 cash reward for a blue backpack left in a porta-john. A high roller had left his cash wad--big enough to need a pack, not a pocket. Story was he got the pack and contents back and happily paid the reward from it. There are lots of people at these events paying spot cash for restored classics--and long lines of regular losers like most of us standing in line at the ATM, maxing out another card and wondering how the wife will react to THAT.
I'm in the same boat as Six Carb. I've been going for over twenty years & I'm in the early 30's. Started out picking up really cool, old Matchbox cars still in the boxes. I've been there years where the mud was so thick from the rain that the local farmers who where making a buck pulling out stuck trucks got there tractors stuck in the slop! Recently I've been camping out in a tent w/ my good buddy. He is now bringing his two sons along for two days. I can't wait until my 2 1/2 year old son is old enough to go with his Pop. I've seen guys with suticases handcuffed to the wrist. I could only assume that it was full of cash & they were doing a big number deal on some exotic car. Missing a good deal on parts story: '95 I passed on a fully polished & rebuilt SCot blower set-up for flathead for $1,200. A Thickston PM-7 intake w/ original air cleaner & head covers for $250.00. I didn't "feel" like carrying the PM-7 around for I was already holding a Edelbrock Super w/ 97' on it that I picked up early on the cheap. I was just getting into Flatheads & what the hell did I know. All in all, the best part of Hershey is meeting up with guys you see only once a year (at Hershey of course), relaxing in a few days of hopefully beautiful October weather, and a chance to track down & pick up some cool stuff for your car, project, or current projects. There truly isn't anything like it in the world. More recently, I've seen & heard a lot of European speaking guys hording up the old speed stuff. Those deals are pretty fun to watch. Some guy wanted to give a vendor European currency for a Lincoln trans. The guy told them to pound salt & the Euro guy got all offended. If you can go, do it! I'm talking two days off of work & I'm a teacher. F-the kids...I got to pick up more junk for my stash!
Not even a near nuclear melt down at Three Mile Island. One of the "should-a-boughts" that I look back on was the canned water. Someone had sealed cans with a certified and dated label stating that this water was taken downstream from 3 Mile island with the nuclear warning symbol on the side. A pure waste of money but a cool conversation piece today.
my parents walked the show the fall before i was born...aka while my mom was pregnant with me and i have gone every year i have been alive since then....im 23 now last year was the first year i had a strong interest in this old car stuff and actually had some money...i had saved 14 grand and had it in an envelope marked as "hot rod money" i spent a good bit at carlisle and then rolled up 8 grand to go to hershey...and spent every last penny....it was some of the best few days of my life...just buying erverything i could see that i wanted....i felt like those high rollers with the deusenbergs....but i was searching for lowley old ford "junk".... its nice that i only live 10 miles away...we hauled my 32 frame home at about 7am on wednesday...drove back and got the same parking spot by 7:30 this year i am poor again...not sure i am going to be able to scrounge 500....but i'll still be there every day....just pickier now zach
The Hershey Philosophy! "Parts will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no parts!"
I hate to do this Zach, 'cause I want it myself but don't have the coin. There is a chopped 36 5 window up by me. The guy has had it for 15 years that I know of. This morning I went by and it's outside with a for sale sign on it. I'll get you pics and details if you're intrested.
The story isn't traditional hotrod but is definitely traditional Hershey. I bought my split window VW in '77 right before Hershey. When I went to Hershey I was in tune to finding split parts. All of a sudden I realised the guy walking if front of me had 3 NOS split bumpers on his shoulder. He said they were $100 each, 1, 2, or 3, but he was on his way to deliver them. I followed and the buyer tried to lowball him so I was able to buy 1, spoiling the would-be buyers deal. I live 1 1/2 miles from there, think I'll walk over and wait for you guys to show up. Stop by the only Grabber Blue '70 Ford truck on the White field for some peanuts and Dr. Pepper. I can taste the Bricker's french fries right now!
'37, are we allowed to tell 2 stories? I bought a set of fairly rare pre-A porsche 16 inch wheels at another flea market a few years ago for the split. At Hershey during the rain I found the fifth wheel holding down a guy's tarp. He thought it was a '36 Ford wheel. He sold it to me for $5 and bitched the whole time because he was going to have to find something else to hold down his tarp. BTW, the guys in the half-track were invited not to come back. It seems some purists felt threatened by the 50.cal.
GREAT Stories guys! I think the Muddy Years were the best. Nobody said anything about the WW I Renault Tank the guy was using to free stuck vehicles one year. Real neat rig, single seater, in WW I camo. I've gone to Hershey broke, and come home with a fair amount of money, other years I've gone with a fair amount of money and arrived home broke. Either way you come home with a smile, and 360 days to waite for it to come around again.
Several years ago, my buddy & I were going through the old "Blue" field on the last day of the meet and I looked under a table and there was a very dirty gas globe. The owner, who was packing up to leave, says to me, "I want $40 for the globe and I've turned down $30, so don't even ask". I whipped out two $20 dollar bills and paid the man. I cleaned up the globe when I got home and it was a fairly rare 15" Cities Service - Crew Levick Oil Co. globe from the teens with thick milk-glass inserts. I kept it on a shelf in my barn for a few years and finally decided to sell it a couple of years ago on Ebay. Sucker brought a little over $1400 !! I've been going to Hershey for 26 years and wouldn't miss it. My daughter even set her wedding day so it wouldn't conflict. I had a friend, a Microbioligist, who missed Hershey one year because his employer insisted he go on a out-of-town assignment during Hershey week. He returned from his assignment and quit on the spot. Said that would be the last Hershey swap meet he would ever miss !
You have to be careful at Hershey. It can be a life altering event. I was going to pick up the heavy rear spring kit at Posies spot to save shipping. I was building a 47 woodie street rod. 305 tuned port IROC w/700R4, Mustang II etc. etc. (no gold chains) The very next row contained this.... The only thing missing was the flathead V8. The key was still in the steering lock. I'd never seen anything that nice that hadn't been restored. He wanted too much for it but I couldn't get it out of my mind. I kept saying that this is exactly what an old hot rodder would have found and drug home to build a hot rod with in the 50's. I walked a couple more rows and then I went back to make an offer even though I didn't have the money. I didn't get a chance. He saw me walk up and said oh by the way the price is firm. So I walked a few more rows. I went back for the third time saying if it's a rumble seat, I'll buy it. it was...I did. It's a good thing I amassed a good credit record or I would have lost my deposit to hold it for a week. That was the day I got bitten by the nostalgia bug and I've never looked back. It sure changed my hot rodding life...for the better.
Back in the days before they had Porta-johns, they had communal outhouses. Two guys are sitting there doing what comes naturally, but when the first guys stands up he says,"Damn,I just dropped $5.00 down there." With that, he takes off his hat and throws it down the hole. Takes off his watch and throws it down the hole. Takes off his belt and throws it down, then his wallet and finally his glasses. The second guy watches all this and finally shouts,"What the hell are you doing?". The first guys says,"Well,you don't expect me to go down there for $5.00 do you?"
I brought a fog light from an old guy there.......''I only got one'' he said ''It's not very foggy where I come from'' I said....he knoded knowingly .............Then there was the year it didn't rain and they sent in a water truck to wet it down.......TRUTH HONEST
My best bargain there was a Flash Gordon Pistol from the 1930's that still worked. I paid the guy $15 for it. Sold it for $500. I havn't been there since '92. I loved sitting along the road watching all the cars drive in for the show. Actually seeing Stanley steamers and Tuckers and 1904 Olds drive by was a hoot. Do they still make them drive that half mile from the trailers to the show? Do they still sell Perogies? Glenn
The car show is Saturday, and every car must drive on to the field, except race cars, that quilify on the Stadium track Friday. The show is on the site of the old GREEN field that is connected to the CHOCOLATE field by a dedistrian foot bridge, great place to watch and take aerial photos of the cars.
This will be my 20th year (I'm 32). One year someone was advertising one of the Cunningham cars (maybe C2-R?) for sale on a photocopied flyer stapled to telephone poles. -The now-gone Motorbooks tents were always a highlight, with the boxes and boxes of marked down books...best deals of all time. -The Fred Frame Elgin Road Race car ('33 Ford) was a cool, as well as Kirk White's cars, and then there was the year Joel Finn had the Mercedes Grand Prix car there. -It's been said here before but it bears repeating: if you see something you want, buy it right then because you will not get another chance. -Always have change on you to tip the attendants at the public port-o-lets, and also know where your friends' booths are so you can use theirs. -Eat lunch either early or late...12:00 and the lines are too long to deal with. -Don't leave without walking every single inch of the place (some fields twice.) That part you're looking for? It's almost guaranteed to be in the last row of the last field you walk.
Funny you should mention that Mercedes GP car, a W45 I think. Had a memorable exhaust sound, I was sitting in my Riley 4Port waiting to start when it went by, jambing an ice pick in your ear is the best way I can discribe it. It had a horseshoe shaped fuel tank in the cowl that the driver sat in, no fire suits back then either.
Somehow most of these stories revolve around the Porta-Pots, Job-Jonnies, out-houses. They belong to my cousin. I've been trying to get him to use a new slogan for his bidness cards. "We appreciate your business" or "Your business is our pleasure".
My partner picked up a 1957 Fender Tweed Deluxe Amp for $20 bucks in 2003. The vender said he paid $25 and would take the $5 hit to get rid of it LOL I guess car parts guys are the best ones to buy Non car parts from, he had no clue as to what that amp was worth.. A few years ago it was a real mud bath. On this long strip in the white field We watched from our Woodgraining Tent Just about everyone who tried get stuck in this slick mud. Then we seen a Car come blasting by like nothing could stop it. It was a Model T with the top off, with about a 10 year old kid driving it laughing his ass off. The older guy in a passenger seat had a big grin as well. Hell they even went down the hill at the end of the strip and back up it! Those big old skinny wheels just motored right through everything. Jdee
I was thinking of stopping over wednesday afternoon. Is that a better day as opposed to friday or saturday on account of getting the first pickings on parts. OR. Do more vendors tend to show up for the weekend? I'm sure there are more cars/ people on the weekend it being the weekend an all. Also why I might prefer wednesday. Thanks, Ken. ps Will you guys vending have some kinda snacks or treats hidden back for us HAMBERS? I'll call you out for some cookies... or brownies...or
If you partake of peanuts and Dr. Pepper I'm right beside the Dodge Brothers booth on the White field. Stop by. If you only go one day and want to buy parts I'd say Fri., so you can see the race cars run in the stadium. If you aren't buying parts Sat. is the only day for the car show. A lot of vendors are shut don Sat.
I havent been to Hershey for quite a few years, but I sure do remember the flood years.kind of cool watching those motor homes being dragged through the mud. I remember wearing the "uniform" of the weekend [plastic garbage bag] . A friend and I drove my 56 chev delivery and his 36 chev coupe.we decided to look around the outside of the swap meet area for parking.we went down a side street and sure enough there was a guy in a lawn chair with a sign "parking $5.00" so we paid him and pulled in to the lot. he had quite a few customers after we parked we never saw him again I think we could probably have found him at the nearest bar,enjoying the profits from all the suckers who paid him to park in a vacant lot.at least we didnt get towed away.
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