Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

Michaell

qbrozen said:

Seller is on crack

But it's only 1 of 10 in the whole country!

ab348

I wonder what a clutch replacement costs on one of those. Didn't mention it among the work done so with 131K miles one assumes it is needed.

Mr_Shiftright

ab348 said:

Nothing worse than a Mopar "muscle" car with a 318 under the hood. That started life as grandma's grocery-getter most likely.

I don't know exactly what Chrysler did to the 318 over the years, but the engine in my Dakota pickup moves that 4400 lbs quite smartly. Of course, that's over 20 years of development.

ab348

I know it was a dog in our '71 Fusie Dodge. Big car but probably a bit lighter than 4400 lbs. Really, a car like that Charger (which looks nice) deserves at least a 383.

Mr_Shiftright

Some pix of the '66 Triumph I'm building. I know, I know, it's not a car, but it has a motor wheels and tires!

Made good progress yesterday, now that all the parts are here:



Not easy getting an engine/trans into a *very* tight frame:

Mr_Shiftright

Wiring, fenders chain guard, headlight, loose fitment of the exhaust.

Mr_Shiftright

Should look exactly like this when done: (another 3-4 weeks), except I'll have the two-in-one pipes and some saddle bags and other little accessories. It's being built as a clean driver, not a show bike.

texases

Very nice! Do you happen to get 'Motorcycle Classics' magazine? This month's cover article is on some restored and improved Triumphs.

Mr_Shiftright

Nope. I get the Hemmings Classic Cars. I'll check that other one out. I do remember it though.

/66 through 69 are the best Triumphs they ever made.

qbrozen

this looks nice
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-277891/1962-ford-thunderbird/

jpp75

qbrozen said:

Seller is on crack

Move the decimal one place left and I'd buy it.

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

Should look exactly like this when done: (another 3-4 weeks), except I'll have the two-in-one pipes and some saddle bags and other little accessories. It's being built as a clean driver, not a show bike.

My kind of bike... If I was a bike guy.

fintail

I'm of a different generation. I like some old bikes, veteran era bikes and some 20s-40s era stuff, but the ones I recall from when I was a kid are like these:





I couldn't look away from dual headlight models back in the day - these garish old sportbikes are pretty cool. Quite collectible now, too.

berri

Crotch Rockers

toomanyfumes

That Triumph is gonna look great : they're beautiful bikes. I have a `79 CB750K that was gone over by a friend of mine, I bought it from him. I also have a 2013 Honda F6B (basically a Goldwing without the trunk and some other extras ) that I bought new in 2015.

stickguy

I am well past any idea of having a bike, but back in HS, this is the one I wanted.

qbrozen

My dad had an old Yamaha when I was a kid. Trying to reach back in my memory and match it up with pics online. It could have been a '69 DS6, but I thought it was much larger (I was much smaller, however).

fintail

My dad was into bikes long before I was born - I know back in the 50s he had an Indian I think, and in the 60s a couple Triumphs. He also had a Honda CB450, one of the first sold in this area, I think, 1965:



Long before my time - by the time I came around, no bikes, my mom was against them. My brother and I couldn't get a dirtbike or scooter as kids. When I got my endorsement, I got a dirty look Living in the zoo where I am now, I have less desire to ride on the street as time goes on - jammed traffic, slowly decaying roads, and distracted drivers aren't the friends of motorcycles.

fintail

They started the movement, which has attracted a worse element as time goes on, or maybe I am becoming a grumpy old man

That VFR750R has 3 things I wanted - a notch type seat with rear cowl, dual lights, and white wheels. I wouldn't kick it out of my garage today, but I'd probably park it in my living room, a little hesitant to ride it.

berri said:

Crotch Rockers

stickguy

only way I get one is if we move out to the country and I get some land, and there are dirt roads/trials to ride on (so just a dirt bike of some sorts). Then of course my wife would say No, so I would buy a sports car instead!

Mr_Shiftright

Each bike is built to a purpose. If you want a nice soft couch to ride, complete with stereo, cocktail bar, armrests, and wide screen TV, you get a Harley. If you want to go 150 mph and donate your organs, you get a Kawasaki ZX-14 or Kawasaki Ninja. If you want a light, torquey, easy to handle bike for moderate speeds on country roads, you get a Triumph.

Me? I like a bike I can see through.

Michaell

This was the one that appealed to me when I was younger:

https://goo.gl/images/GqNrhA

fintail

That reminds me of when I was a kid, and saw one of the futuristic later 80s Goldwings, the kind with the covered front wheel hub and many switches and gauges. It seemed pretty wild. I remember a friend of the family had an earlier 80s Goldwing, which was kind of intimidating to me, as it seemed huge (still kind of does).

ab348

fintail said:

Long before my time - by the time I came around, no bikes, my mom was against them. My brother and I couldn't get a dirtbike or scooter as kids. When I got my endorsement, I got a dirty look Living in the zoo where I am now, I have less desire to ride on the street as time goes on - jammed traffic, slowly decaying roads, and distracted drivers aren't the friends of motorcycles.

That's the way I've always been about bikes, never liked them or had any use for them. Maybe that's out of ignorance, I dunno. My friends brother was killed on one when I was a teenager and that probably started it. The noise, the image of "traditional" bikers, the risky driving of them, none of it appealed to me. I think it was an old Bob Newhart routine that brought it all home to me when he did his telephone routine as a guy who had just invented them in the '60s or '70s (with the premise nobody had thought of it before) that described how crazy the concept was.

fintail

Really, the biggest enemy of bikers, even more than distracted Camrolla and SUV drivers, is other bikers. There's an image issue that is very grounded in reality. They can be fun on an empty road, and some of the noise is cool (I am not into the H-D thing, however), but the machines don't always attract the best element, and they get 10x worse when in a group. I think I have heard that Newhart routine, too, and it has a good point.

ab348 said:

That's the way I've always been about bikes, never liked them or had any use for them. Maybe that's out of ignorance, I dunno. My friends brother was killed on one when I was a teenager and that probably started it. The noise, the image of "traditional" bikers, the risky driving of them, none of it appealed to me. I think it was an old Bob Newhart routine that brought it all home to me when he did his telephone routine as a guy who had just invented them in the '60s or '70s (with the premise nobody had thought of it before) that described how crazy the concept was.

Mr_Shiftright

Well if nothing else, a bike is a lot easier to restore than a car.

British bikes are their own cult. I don't feel much in common with other types of bikes unless they are pre-war types.

fintail

I'd take a prewar style German bike, the civilian models are stylish and the Wehrmacht ones are very cool too. They all also look good with a sidecar. Most of them seem fairly inexpensive relative to their historical value, too.

Mr_Shiftright

For the longest time, BWM's motorcycles proved far more reliable than their cars. Not sure why that was--maybe just simpler? You could drive a 50s or early 60s BMW motorcycle to the ends of the earth.

fintail

I think the most miled-up bikes I have seen have been BMW GS series. Maybe a combination of being more simple than a computer on wheels car, and tending to be owned by die-hards who will ride in any weather for any trip.

qbrozen

I'm now pondering hitting up an auction like I have fantasized about for as long as I can remember. Seems to be hit or miss whether you can get a good deal. Sadly, I have yet to find one that coincides well with the kids' upcoming spring break. Houston Mecum starts about 2 days before their break. Considering maybe, possibly flying out Thurs night and hitting that up Fri-Sat. BUT, I'm not seeing a whole lot I'd be interested in. A few.

Mr_Shiftright

You might check the Silver Auctions website. The often have good deals, or at least appear to be good deals in the auction reports. If you do go, try to stick to cars where you can talk to the owner. Also, cars that don't sell are often put in a post-sale lot where you can bargain for them without an auction.

ab348

Bike story: back in the early to mid-70s, we were spending most our our time in the summer at a place we had in the country about 45 minutes outside the city. It was a lovely spot, on a lake, with about 7 acres of property and a nicely built 1940s house with 3 bedrooms. If it had ever been insulated and had a furnace put in you could live there year-round, but the absence of that is what made it a summer place. We should never have sold it, but that's another story. During summer vacation from school, Mom and I would be there during the week while Dad worked in town and rejoined us every evening.

My father had a weakness for stray people and animals, and one day he arrived home at suppertime with a strange long-haired young fellow named Curtis in tow. He had encountered him and his Moto Guzzi bike broken down on the side of the road IIRC (or maybe it was at a garage, not sure) and the story was that the parts weren't going to be found for a while. So since we had plenty of room, Dad took him in. Mom was not impressed. But he seemed OK, probably on his best behavior given the circumstances, and sort of became part of the scenery after a while. Curtis was from Arizona and was touring North America to find himself - I think but am not certain he was a Vietnam vet - and I secretly kind of envied him. It was the kind of stuff that movies were made about. We certainly never encountered too many folks like him from Arizona visiting Nova Scotia back then.

Of course the drama that ensued over time was predictable. The parts for the Guzzi were slow to arrive, Mom got more and more put out by having him around even though he was quite polite, paid for some groceries, tried to help out, etc. She did not share Dad's welcoming attitude towards strangers. Finally after about 10 days she decreed Curtis had to go. I think by then the bike was running as I have a memory of him driving it. Or maybe that was even later after he decamped to another spot and then stopped in for a final visit after everything was fixed before leaving for good. He continued his adventure and we got an occasional note in the mail from him for a few years after. Interesting to me that 40+ years after that relatively brief period of time he was with us I can still remember his full name and some other things about that time.

omarman

Interesting to me that 40+ years after that relatively brief period of time he was with us I can still remember his full name and some other things about that time.

I remember that episode of Then Came Bronson. Except it was a Harley Sportster.

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

You might check the Silver Auctions website. The often have good deals, or at least appear to be good deals in the auction reports. If you do go, try to stick to cars where you can talk to the owner. Also, cars that don't sell are often put in a post-sale lot where you can bargain for them without an auction.

Thanks for the tip. Will check it out.

the Mecum in Kansas City at the end of the month has a few of interest. Of course, pics would be nice.
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-277899/1973-ford-mustang-mach-1/
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-277891/1962-ford-thunderbird/
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-278230/1964-pontiac-catalina/
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-278174/1970-plymouth-duster/
https://www.mecum.com/lots/KM0317-278311/1940-ford-deluxe-street-rod/

stickguy

Pick me up he duster. I'm good for the money. Probably.

Mustang looks nice, just gotta change the wheels.

texases

No pics on the 2 I wanted to see (Duster and Catalina)...boooo...

explorerx4

HaHa. Had dinner with the narrator of the videos a couple of Saturdays ago.
The videos are for the auction with all the Studebakers.

http://www.ronhackenberger.com/videos

explorerx4

Q here's one for you:

https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/6034177602.html

Mr_Shiftright

You know, you put a 6-pack on that 340, and if it's a good tight engine, that thing'll really scoot. It would certainly slap that Mustang silly and everything else in your list.

qbrozen

explorerx4 said:

Q here's one for you: https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/6034177602.html

Thanks. Not bad, but not quite doing it for me. Style is just a tad off my taste. I'm not an expert on those, but did they offer multiple body styles? I'm finding slopeback models on the interwebs pics that look much better than that notchback.

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

You know, you put a 6-pack on that 340, and if it's a good tight engine, that thing'll really scoot. It would certainly slap that Mustang silly and everything else in your list.

Is that the Duster in KC you are referring to? Anxiously awaiting pics of that.

pics of the '40 Ford are up. Its a 2-seater, so that is off the list.

stickguy

Torino was notch, fastback, and 4 door. And at times a wagon.

ab348

qbrozen said:

explorerx4 said:

Q here's one for you:

https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/6034177602.html

Thanks. Not bad, but not quite doing it for me. Style is just a tad off my taste. I'm not an expert on those, but did they offer multiple body styles? I'm finding slopeback models on the interwebs pics that look much better than that notchback.

Yes. The '72 Torino to get is the "Sportsroof" fastback, which unfortunately are as rare as hens teeth these days. Not sure why but '72 Torinos are very hard to find these days in almost any style. Too bad as they are the only Torino of that era I really like.

gsemike

ab348 said:

qbrozen said:

explorerx4 said:

Q here's one for you:

https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/6034177602.html

Thanks. Not bad, but not quite doing it for me. Style is just a tad off my taste. I'm not an expert on those, but did they offer multiple body styles? I'm finding slopeback models on the interwebs pics that look much better than that notchback.

Yes. The '72 Torino to get is the "Sportsroof" fastback, which unfortunately are as rare as hens teeth these days. Not sure why but '72 Torinos are very hard to find these days in almost any style. Too bad as they are the only Torino of that era I really like.

I can rather like the 70/1 look. A high end one can look pretty mean. At one point growing up, we were a 2 Torino family. Mom had a 68 Country Squire and my Dad a 70 sedan. My Dad was never too interested in cars. He wasn't any sort of loyalist. It just happened

berri

I thought the Sportsroof was sharp, but really didn't see a whole lot of them when they were new. 2 door Torino's I saw during those years were mostly the notchback coupe for whatever reason.

fintail

A Sportsroof would be the movie car, right?

qbrozen

http://www.ebay.com/itm/302239453909?ul_noapp=true

6 hours left. $16k current bid, but reserve not met. Wonder what he wants for a $30k resto that is completely non-original now. It sure is pretty.

stickguy

nice looking. But the 429 lump is a turn off to me. Plus of course, needs a stick!

qbrozen

The hi-po engine is a turn off? huh. strange indeed.

stickguy

I never cared for big blocks in compacts or pony cars. would rather have a nicely set up small block. Can get more than enough HP out of one of those for my needs. and should have better balance and handling.