I heard a good story today about how far some guys will go to get a car with real patine. In other words an original unrestored barn fresh car. It seems a guy from here in the mid-west wanted an inmolested car to drive to the west coast next summer. He contacted a friend of mine that had this one. A nice 4 cylinder 5W coupe but it wasn't for sale. So the guy says he will trade a fully restored 15,000 mile V8 5W coupe for the unmolested one that is probably not as good as the car he did the total restoration on. Now most of us would much rather have the patina car but would we be willing to take that kind of financial bath to get one? I think this just proves how much demand there is for unmolested cars and what some guys will do to get one to show off.
what a dumn ass!! i don't dig patina THAT much. in fact, unless it was a famous car at one point in time i would prolly fix it up and make it look nice anyway. but thats just me.
[ QUOTE ] i don't dig patina THAT much. [/ QUOTE ] Me either.... but I do dig a good unmolested car that much. If I could swap a restored car for a damn nice original I'd do it in a heartbeat. JH
The more I see of 'em, the more I think car people are nuckin futs! Can you believe some of the shit they (and we) go through for the car that's "just right?" Sometimes it makes me just want to build a SBC Fiberglass rod and be done with it. Then I realize how insanely expensive FAKE bodies are. DO you think that guy will ever have any fun in a car? My guess is NO. I often wonder how much fun is had in period perfect hot rods too. I don't know... The pricing dictated by anal-rodders like that guy is driving the fun out of hot rodding. Have a little fun nest time you're at a show.... Walk around and akz-yozelf if the guy who's car you're looking at has any real fun with it. I wonder what your results will be? Here in cali, even the beater drivers are working too hard at being greazerific to have fun.... ...kinda like the nut-jobs buying houses here in So-Cal!
Harrison,,,,,,,do you remember the 32 5-window that stopped everybody in their tracks at Knoxville,Tenn.?
Is the 4 cylinder car a 33-4? Aren't they supposed to be super-rare? and worth more than a v-8 car?? IMHO, a unrestored oddball like that would be kinda neat with an OHV conversion and some mild souping up.
The funny part is: if the deal goes through, the guy that gets the unmolested coupe will prolly pay to have it completely restored after he drives it and listens to the little squeaks, rattles and groans an unrestored "Loosened up" original car makes while driving. And after adding a quart every 200 miles, he'll be begging someone to "restore" his model C engine...
HRP, which one was that? I probably missed it. I pushed my 2 year old through in less than 2 hours (don't want to burn him out too early). JH
[ QUOTE ] he'll be begging someone to "restore" his model C engine... [/ QUOTE ] ...or he'll drop a small block in it. Shit, maybe I better not flat black my car if it's THAT big a deal. Except the fenders will be flat black and the quarters, rumble seat and the lower rear panel will all be spotted in flat black. I thought it would look better all one shade of flat instead of half and half.
This is the beginning of the end of the fad we know as traditional hot rodding... once the "fad" is gone... the people who really enjoy it for what it is can sit back and enjoy it. Sam.
Rocky, That's exactly the point. He will drop another $20K+ into this one to have it restored and be right back to where he was in the beginning Chad, Ya better leave yers alone. Ya don't want to decrease the value by putting $$$ into it
He is not going to use that car is he? What if he puts a fresh scratch in the platina? I'd be hartbroken...
The last thing we gotta worry about here in the midwest is a lack of gennie patina. Here's a 38 that Tim and I found on the way to BTT50's last summer. The seller actually APPOLOGIZED for the massive patina! Can you imagine? We didn't have the heart to tell him the fact an anvil fell on the top made the car worth another $2000.
Sam, I agree. The sooner the fad ends, the sooner we can stop competing for unmolested parts and cars with the big $$$$ guys
If we are comparing the value of two similar cars, one that's been completely restored and one that's an unmolested survivor in exceptional condition, I can see the original one being more valuable. And it applies not only to cars, but to many other types of antiques, including motorcycles, bicycles, firearms, furniture, radios, and vacuum tube audio equipment. To people who think this way, it doesn't matter how nicely restored something is. The problem is that once something has been restored, or repainted, or replated, it is no longer original. We are seeing the work of people other than those who originally made it. At a vintage motorcycle show here a few years back, there were about a dozen bikes that could really be considered "Pebble Beach-quality" restorations. They were amazing pieces of art. But the bike that got the most attention and the most smiles was a barn bike: a late-1920s Harley-Davidson V-twin that had never been modified. The tires barely held air and the paint was badly faded, but you could still read the lettering on the tank, and it still fired up. So many people asked the owner if he would sell it that he finally stood back so he could watch people enjoy it for what it was: an incredible find, an unmolested original, a survivor that made you sense that the spirit of the guy who bought it new was there with you, still diggin' it. Dave Mann Roadsters.com http://www.roadsters.com/
HOLY SHIT DJANGO!!! never saw your 3 window before. that might have to follow me home new years day . guess i better get Donzie's car off the trailer ...
Hey Django! I dig the cool hat in bottom of pic. I got one like that for Christmas along with the white gloves & clip-on bow tie. Doesn't fit me well so going to give it to my grandaughter.
Rich, can I take a guess who the guy from the mid-west is? Did he just recently buy a primered custom?
Yeah, this is weird stuff. A really extreme example is when a guy finds a car that was orginally rodded in the 50's-60's. Yeah, they're cool and all & you own an "original" Hot Rod...but I don't think it makes them worth what some folks are paying.
my c-dan is a older resto that has plenty of patina it was stored out side for a yr or two after the resto most people at shows think its a barn find I am offering for trade for any brand new resto rides any takers ?????
Don't get too excited Kustombuilder, the 3 window is Dad's (as opposed to mine which was Dad's first car) and they are all at the farm until I get mine far enough along to come to Chicago. It sucks having 7 or 8 cars with room for maybe half of them here.
Donnie, No it's not Jon. It's somebody I don't know but Frank S knows him well. In fact he contacted Frank S to see if he knew of any around. I'll tell ya more about it at lunch tomorrow.
Seems ro be a pretty fair deal from either side to me. Why is everyone so up in arms? It's just two guys trading cars for christ's sake. Get over it. I think Sam has the right idea, but why not just sit back and enjoy it right now?
I have a '34 5-window that was restored about 30 years ago, to people who don't know any better it looks unrestored with great patina. But a good friend of mine in Texarkana has an all original '34 3-window that still wears it's original paint and upholstery. The cotton is spilling out of the seat cover, door panels and headliners are shot and starting to fall off. There are 40 year old welds on the fenders where they cracked, some rust-through at the rear fenders where they meet the running boards. We both drive them to rod runs in our area, everybody flocks them! But most of the time when we are asked if they are for sale they inform us that they are looking for a car to rod. In this part of the country that means billet and SBC. PS; I'm in the market for a fake plastic rat, to put in my bud's '34 seat cover.....looks pretty ratty!