I’d use it Did that recently and know the feeling. In last few months I’ve unboxed NOS cal custom spider rings, valve cover breathers, trunk release kit an Eelco tri power linkage, Fenton lowering blocks and Husrt dual pattern shifter. gonna use em just like they were intended. But I’m gonna save the boxes. They just don’t do advertising like they used to.
I've purposely avoided buying parts still in their original packaging when I intend to use said part. Like you I feel slightly guilty breaking something out of its cocoon of 60+years. That being said I'm not completely above breaking something out when the temptation is too great. Not everything can be a wall hanger.
Just got a set of chrome steelies boxed almost 50years ago. The boxes had got wet recently, took out the wheels and cleaned em dried the boxes, put the wheels back in plan to run em when the time comes A NOS 235 performance cam. Oil up the cam, put it back in the box. Run it when ready
Three bucks! That's kinda spendy for an old K mart switch at a rummage sale. Kinda shocked he wouldn't take two. Pretty cool though. I've gotten better at just using shit when I need it and not "saving" it anymore. My line of work involves a lot of estate auctions and cleanout sales, and the amount of stuff being "saved" that gets thrown out or sold off for literal pennies makes me think the perfect opportunity to use stuff I have is the first opportunity. I do consider display as a legitimate use of something though, so if you've at least got it hung up somewhere you can see it, that seems OK.
Some folks keep their toys sealed up in the package for show. Some folks strap them with firecrackers and see how they hold up to bb-gun strafing. Thankfully hotrods (and hotrodders) come in both styles.
Yeah, like when you and your older brother take model ships, stick firecrackers in them, and float them around in the pond on your parents property. It was a bang up moment
If you have got it, why not use it. A well known hot rodder here once said to me “why hold on to parts to look at on your shelf, if it stops someone else from getting their car on the road”. - Food for thought. I certainly don’t see why you wouldn’t want that ‘special’ part to be part of your special car ! But it is your part to do with what you want. Leave it on the shelf for long enough and your descendants will toss it in the garbage after you are gone …………..or put it in the yard sale for someone else to pay $3 for………... Or, look at it this way, - feel that you are dishonouring the manufacturer, effort, cost of materials and transportation associated with making the part, by not using it.
I use every old NOS thing I can and then staple the packaging in a corner of the workshop. That way when I croak, my family has less to throw into the dumpster.
I wish more people thought like this. When I see these "collections" with rows upon rows of desirable vintage parts hanging on a wall, I think a lot of that inventory should be attached to a functional car and running down the road. Instead, it's all tied up waiting for an estate sale. I think it would be better for the young guy trying to put something together and just needs 1 intake manifold, or 2 valve covers. But that's just me.
that is s a good read, I like the fact that little seemingly insignificant items hold value that goes way beyond a monetary thing.
Joey, I know this feeling. I get it when I'm not really convinced of the use I imagine for an item. And when I find the perfect use, it's a tremendous joy to take it out of its box and use it. Sometimes, I don't find that perfect use, and the item stays in its box, waiting for its moment of glory. I forget about it, and it's a new pleasure when I rediscover it. Often, I then see it differently and quickly figure out what I can do with it.
The Jalopy Journal
