Keeping them stock

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by Indian113

My dad went to war in 1943 so that we could make decisions on how we wanted to live and what we wanted to do as long as our rights didn't infringe on another persons rights. I don't really give two hoots if you hot rod a classic truck or you restore it too all original. As long as YOU save it from being turned into some scrap steel!!!!! I think the horse has died and beating on it will make it start to stink. Get out and enjoy what ever you have for a truck or car - That is the most important thing to do!

And I can't make it clear enough my ranting is not about telling someone WHAT TO DO, it's about helping them make the right decision for THEM and not making a decision in hast because they think it MUST be modified or modified a certain way to enjoy it. These trucks can be enjoyed stock, mildly modified, or as many of us we enjoy the journey of building something wild and the work means nothing. We are all different and I just like to put the word out so people look a little more before jumping into their project.

Brian

[gale]

Another thing driving the price of collectible stuff out of sight is that so many more people have more money than ever before.

For many years there were definite ratios in place regarding wealth. A CEO of a major corporation earned about 35X what the janitor of the same company made. Today that 35X is probably 1,000X.

But the amounts they pay for stuff doesn't establish the going rate. One outrageous sale may help drive the price up but there also may be only ONE buyer for the item.

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by gale

Another thing driving the price of collectible stuff out of sight is that so many more people have more money than ever before.

For many years there were definite ratios in place regarding wealth. A CEO of a major corporation earned about 35X what the janitor of the same company made. Today that 35X is probably 1,000X.

But the amounts they pay for stuff doesn't establish the going rate. One outrageous sale may help drive the price up but there also may be only ONE buyer for the item.

Boy if that isn't the truth! The oddest thing, I sell stuff on ebay regularly, collector car stuff. I sold some back up lamp lenses a while ago, a pair of them for $65. Started them low as I always do, like ten or fifteen bucks. Then let the buyers create the price I end up getting. I happen to have six of these lenses so I thought cool, I have like $175-200 for these lenses, awesome, more parts I can buy for my truck!

So a week or two later I put another pair on, nothing, not even one bid starting at $15! I waited a month or so later put them on again, nothing! I put them on again a few weeks later at $15 with free shipping and I sold them. LOL Funny stuff

Brian

[gale]

People often say "look at eBay to see what they're selling for" and that is usually just one more anecdote.

I never have a reserve or a 'Buy it Now' on stuff I offer on eBay. It's the least expensive way to sell and usually works out well for me.

The key is good quality pictures and an accurate description. Those details will grab the right buyer.

[imjeff]

Originally Posted by MARTINSR

And I can't make it clear enough my ranting is not about telling someone WHAT TO DO, it's about helping them make the right decision for THEM and not making a decision in hast because they think it MUST be modified or modified a certain way to enjoy it.

Brian

Arguing with people about how they should drive and build, what they shouldn't "waste their time" doing and "helping them make the right decision" is, by definition, telling people WHAT TO DO. When people ask for opinions I enjoy giving mine and reading other's, but my opinion is MY opinion, a simple subjective view. Take it or leave it, I hope it helps someone, but it's certainly not right or wrong. To presume that you know more and have driven more and observed more than those with differing opinions is a bit presumptuous, though, don't ya think? Your described traffic patterns in the Bay Area are quite different than what I experienced there in the 80's and quite different than any other city I've lived in. Maybe traffic has eased up, maybe you commute at different times. Either way, do whatever works for you and I will do what works for me. I guess the phrase "right decisions" is what makes this devisive. What makes yours "right"? I believe the one with the title, the vision and the money is right...because we've invested a lot in the freedom to be right...or wrong. This horse is beat to death. Keep your drums...I really don't care, but if someone asks advice I will still advise discs. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Jeff

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by imjeff

Arguing with people about how they should drive and build, what they shouldn't "waste their time" doing and "helping them make the right decision" is, by definition, telling people WHAT TO DO. When people ask for opinions I enjoy giving mine and reading other's, but my opinion is MY opinion, a simple subjective view. Take it or leave it, I hope it helps someone, but it's certainly not right or wrong. To presume that you know more and have driven more and observed more than those with differing opinions is a bit presumptuous, though, don't ya think? Your described traffic patterns in the Bay Area are quite different than what I experienced there in the 80's and quite different than any other city I've lived in. Maybe traffic has eased up, maybe you commute at different times. Either way, do whatever works for you and I will do what works for me. I guess the phrase "right decisions" is what makes this devisive. What makes yours "right"? I believe the one with the title, the vision and the money is right...because we've invested a lot in the freedom to be right...or wrong. This horse is beat to death. Keep your drums...I really don't care, but if someone asks advice I will still advise discs. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Jeff

Jeff, where have I said "right decisions" without adding FOR THEM?

And on my study of traffic, you know the funny part, EVERYONE questions my findings, even right here in town, "It can't be like that" is often heard. Why, because we see what we want to see. Just as I use to see something completely different than what I did after the studying. I have asked how long are you stopped at the average light and I get 3-5 minutes, when it is 30 seconds. When I ask how many stop lights you stop at in my town in the average week I get 25-35, when it was 85 in my study. Our image of time is sooooo twisted.

I only hope with my preaching someone else takes a look at it to prove me wrong and finds out that I gave them something to think about.

Brian

[gale]

Originally Posted by MARTINSR

I only hope with my preaching someone else takes a look at it to prove me wrong and finds out that I gave them something to think about.

Brian

Not likely because most people perceive that two car length gap in the other lane as their ticket to Nirvana.

I wrote a lengthy essay on 'timing is everything' years ago. Most of us as a society seem to be in a constant race against time. We want what we want and we want it right now. This starts at birth with the newborn wanting mama's breast and if it doesn't happen in the next instant, the baby is apparently hard-wired to scream, hold its breath, etc. until it gets what it wants. Fast forward and we have over crowded prisons because the inmates didn't get what they wanted when they wanted it.

Both the baby and the convict simply have a distorted concept of time.

Now, let's get back to trucks.

[TNACUSTOM]

Originally Posted by MARTINSR

And I can't make it clear enough my ranting is not about telling someone WHAT TO DO, it's about helping them make the right decision for THEM and not making a decision in hast because they think it MUST be modified or modified a certain way to enjoy it. These trucks can be enjoyed stock, mildly modified, or as many of us we enjoy the journey of building something wild and the work means nothing. We are all different and I just like to put the word out so people look a little more before jumping into their project.

Brian

I like to watch all the comments on this. Most of the people have never owned or drove one of these trucks when they are in stock form. So do what you want with your truck. I drove mine in high school and they don't drive that good. That why mine is in the my shop now getting coil overs on all four corners

[MARTINSR]

Exactly, I sell things on ebay to get rid of them, not make a living. So I put them on LOW an just let it go where the buyers want to take it. I have been surprised more than a few times at things going WAY, WAY higher than I thought they would. And it's going the other way around too!

Brian

[dicer]

The main problem with "do it like you want" is no one ever keeps the truck or project till they're 90 years old. Just look at all the messed up modified things on craigslist. If you want to fix something up and sell it the best thing to do is instead of spending the $$$ on all the cutting it here and there and suspension parts etc. Spend that $$ on a nice paint job, inside and out. That will sell it faster than all the other stuff.

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by dicer

The main problem with "do it like you want" is no one ever keeps the truck or project till they're 90 years old. Just look at all the messed up modified things on craigslist. If you want to fix something up and sell it the best thing to do is instead of spending the $$$ on all the cutting it here and there and suspension parts etc. Spend that $$ on a nice paint job, inside and out. That will sell it faster than all the other stuff.

I'm with you on the idea that you will be selling it some day, but we don't want to build only what other people like so even if we only kept it a while WE had fun with it, you know what I mean?

Besides, often on these old cars it is common for them to be worth more with it properly updated than stock. But that is a whole-nother part of the decision we each have to make before we do what we are going to do to our truck. Thanks for bringing that up.

Brian

[MARTINSR]

Don't tell the Camaro or Corvette guy Mopar parts are more expensive! LOL I saw on ebay once a pair of hood bumpers NOS hood rubber bumpers, the little quarter sized rubber hood bumpers..............they sold for as I remember $120!

Brian

[dicer]

In the end pretty much all the modified junkers will end up in a scrap bin, well the ruined parts anyway. If there are any rare salvageable parts they will be removed. Some day it will be like old corvettes, no true collector wants some messed up vehicle. They collect all the original literature, sales info etc. etc. the real car people with $ go to places like Mark Worman's to have there vehicles done the factory correct way and that is where the real value is. I see no sense in taking a good stock truck and modifying it in anyway. If modified is what a person wants buy one that has had that done already. If the mods weren't up to your desires then redo it.

[gale]

Originally Posted by dicer

In the end pretty much all the modified junkers will end up in a scrap bin, well the ruined parts anyway. If there are any rare salvageable parts they will be removed. Some day it will be like old corvettes, no true collector wants some messed up vehicle. They collect all the original literature, sales info etc. etc. the real car people with $ go to places like Mark Worman's to have there vehicles done the factory correct way and that is where the real value is. I see no sense in taking a good stock truck and modifying it in anyway. If modified is what a person wants buy one that has had that done already. If the mods weren't up to your desires then redo it.

Wow! No wiggle room at all for these sinners.

My current '54 truck was somewhat 'restored' when I bought it and I didn't even consider that it might have been done correctly. Liberal amounts of Bondo under a fresh coat of single stage crap had it looking good at 40 paces. A new crate motor appeared to have been installed by chimpanzees.

But it was mostly 'all there' so I started in on it.

I ENJOY the work and I've been modifying cars since the '50s when I stuffed an Oldsmobile motor in a '38 Chevy coupe and painted it lavender.

Now at 73 I still enjoy the work so I'll keep doing what I do and you can keep preaching. BTW this is the first I've heard of Mark Worman.

[Russell Ashley]

"I see no sense in taking a good stock truck and modifying it in anyway."

If you read most of the threads like I do you will know that most of us don't start with a "good stock" truck. These trucks are over 50 years old now and most have been worked to death and left to die in a field, or have been patched up with non original parts just to minimally keep them running. I appreciate the fact that folks here on this forum will go to the trouble and expense to bring back to life a truck that most people would just send to the crusher. We are preserving them.

[MARTINSR]

Originally Posted by Russell Ashley

"I see no sense in taking a good stock truck and modifying it in anyway."

If you read most of the threads like I do you will know that most of us don't start with a "good stock" truck. These trucks are over 50 years old now and most have been worked to death and left to die in a field, or have been patched up with non original parts just to minimally keep them running. I appreciate the fact that folks here on this forum will go to the trouble and expense to bring back to life a truck that most people would just send to the crusher. We are preserving them.

This is true! And thank goodness for those who save them be it wildly modified or stock!

Brian

[meter swinger]

My 59 will get some suspension mods while retaining stock appearance. Eventually a reapaint to factory colors and thats about it.
The 55 d@dge will lose the tapered rear end and the 6v postive ground system and get a dual master. Oh and when i can find stock mirrors those useless peeps will go too.
Playing with old cars is therapy for me and the value is that it keeps from doing other things. Everyone has thier own idea of value and safety. I decided awhile ago that if this ever becomes unsafe and loses its fun i will sell them and find something else to dump time and money into.
Keep them stock or modify them either way just enjoy the ride.

[Indian113]

Oh man let's go back 50 years! Ain't going to happen, what a boring world it would be if kept everything just as it was 50 years ago. Using some of the logic displayed on this thread it sounds like a highly modified street rod wouldn't be worth the same as bone stock Model A. Wow I love that logic. Maybe when we buy a house we shouldn't do any remodeling because it would lower the Value! Stockers are fine for some people, I'm not going to bad mouth any body that prefers to keep them stock but I don't really care if they don't like my modified cars or trucks. When and IF they give me money to build them maybe I would care what they think.

[flashed]

My truck is a RESTOMOD ,built to suit me and I love it .The body is mostly stock with a few mods in the mix . When I got it ,it had been lowered with a torch ,old worn out diamond tuck interior top to bottom and side to side with a hotrod 350 with leaking headers and lots of rust .It took 3 years in the bodyshop but everyone that has seen it seems to like it .I like em all ,stock ,modified ,lowered ,ratrod ,I like to look at the craftmanship behind them all.