Snyder's New Catalog Came...and a Warning!

[jg61hawk]

I just got the new Snyder's Catalog. It sure is nice of them to print that and send it...

On the inside, a few pages in, they kinda send a warning saying some small parts guys have either passed on or retired....and suggest buying now if your anticipated part is an oddball. To that end I noticed both Snyder and Bratton don't list new Zenith carbs anymore.

I got into the Model A hobby in 2014, and I told everyone I knew, this group has unlimited parts and suppliers. Now I have personally experienced some of the smaller suppliers pass away. I used J.R. Bullock just before he unexpectedly passed. I was telling some other guys what a great job he did, and then suddenly he's gone. The Studebaker Club has some similar issues.

So what's my point? I'm not being a gloomy day guy, I am saying spend, buy, enjoy and move the project forward ASAP. It's not only good for you, it's good for the hobby.

[Synchro909]

IMO, the REALLY GLOOMY part of that is, the younger people have either no desire or ability to make these things. Is it any wonder China is so dominant? You'd be amazed if you knew how much of your new Ford or Chev is made in China. They have us by the "short and curlies" and it's our fault.

[Banditorama]

The problem with getting into the manufacturing game is the high cost of entry (tools, materials, space, etc..)

How does an enterprising young man afford the startup costs and compete with Chinese manufacturers who can turn out anything for pennies on the dollar?

[Ron Blissit]

I don't want cheap parts. I want Good. parts. we have become a Wallmart society. purchase everything as cheap as we can. all of our parts are cheaply made but well displayed

[oldspert]

Take heed, I suggest buying everything you need or might need from swap meet vendors. That is how many of the older guys that sold NOS or good used started out. Stacy Brown from Arlington Texas would go through swap meets and buy everything he knew would be hard to find. He had four warehouses full of good parts for all makes of cars. When he passed, he was basically the only one that knew where everything was located.

[spdway1]

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Also notice the Model T section is about 2/3 smaller!

[Oldbluoval]

“buying now if your anticipated part is an oddball.”

It’s not a marketing ploy…it great advice.
Yes..some parts are going the way of the passenger pigeon! Look at what has vanished; I know things about to vanish! And, many custom items (upholstery, etc) have lead times that make one shutter!
I make some very body-specific parts. I turn 77 soon so those won’t be forever!
…

[Bob Bidonde]

The availability of new parts is drifting back to what the market had to offer in 1960s through the 1980s. This puts pressure on us to restore more used parts like we did many years ago. The bottom line is we need to get more clever with our restorations and maintenance.

[rfitzpatrick]

[QUOTE= all of our parts are cheaply made but well displayed.


EXACTLY!

[ModelA29]

In truth the hobby is dying. The young want little FWD econo cars with computer dashboards. The number of people under 50 looking for a Model A are generally looking to cut it up for a hot rod - the world no longer travels at 40mph. Mechanics now are parts swappers and only then what the diagnostic computer tells them.

[AzBob]

Originally Posted by ModelA29

In truth the hobby is dying. The young want little FWD econo cars with computer dashboards. The number of people under 50 looking for a Model A are generally looking to cut it up for a hot rod - the world no longer travels at 40mph. Mechanics now are parts swappers and only then what the diagnostic computer tells them.

When I acquired my '29 tudor in 1970, Model A's were a dying hobby then. The young wanted new muscle cars. Only two Model A's in our HS parking lot, mine and another kid's 1930 Coupe. The world didn't travel at 40 mph in 1970 either. We did run our Model A's at 50 to 55 mph all the time.

[alexiskai]

A good way to speed up the decline of the hobby is to "buy everything you need or might need" and wind up with a warehouse full of good parts when you die. Where are all the hoped-for young people supposed to get parts to restore cars if the guys with money are stuffing their garages with six spare carburetors?

"There's no shortage of [part], why I have a huge pile of them in my barn!" (Yes, that's exactly why there's a shortage.)

[Benson]

Originally Posted by AzBob

When I acquired my '29 tudor in 1970, Model A's were a dying hobby then. The young wanted new muscle cars. Only two Model A's in our HS parking lot, mine and another kid's 1930 Coupe. The world didn't travel at 40 mph in 1970 either. We did run our Model A's at 50 to 55 mph all the time.

Same here 1964 and 65. My 29 Sport Coupe and one blue 31 Standard Coupe. We also drove As at 55 to 60 mph.

Also in lot:

a 51 Studebaker Champion
a 31 Buick 6
a number of 40s and 50s Chevys
a black 51 V8 Ford (Shoebox?)
Several 40s - 50s VW Bugs

[ronn]

everyone has a varying opinion.............

and Walmart stock is still going zoom zoom zoom!

[WHN]

Quality, affordable, vintage car parts availability, comes and goes.

250,000 plus or minus Model A’s? I believe that in the long run everything will be fine.

I have owned Model A’s since the early 60’s. Many vendors and manufactures have come and gone. The cars keep moving right along.

If there is a need? Someone will fill that space.

Keep the faith.

[rackops]

Originally Posted by alexiskai

A good way to speed up the decline of the hobby is to "buy everything you need or might need" and wind up with a warehouse full of good parts when you die. Where are all the hoped-for young people supposed to get parts to restore cars if the guys with money are stuffing their garages with six spare carburetors?

"There's no shortage of [part], why I have a huge pile of them in my barn!" (Yes, that's exactly why there's a shortage.)

I was about to say the same thing. I'll admit I'm guilty of small-scale hoarding ("I'll get around to restoring that at some point...") but I'm also willing to sell/trade parts when other people need things.

Recently, there was a person selling a rather rare part on another forum. One person noted "that's rare! How can you sell it?!" As if being rare meant that it should be kept...just because it was rare. In this case, the guy didn't need it, so off it went...and hopefully into the hands of someone who needed it for their car.

[Marshall V. Daut]

If you have national club magazines back to the early 1960's through even the late 1970's, compare the age of the owners shown in them to what you see in recent years' magazines. It looks like their grandparents and GREAT-grandparents now own Model A's with very few younger people gracing the scene. And I don't consider mid-50's young! No one denies that the hobby is aging, but WOW!!! The age difference of those Model A devotees versus today's is shocking. What does that tell us about the present state of the hobby, and more tellingly, its future? Apparently, the Model A cottage parts-making industry is aging in parallel, as we are seeing more and more parts becoming unavailable as these small businesses are folding up their tents due to age, illness or even death. Echoing Bob's Bidonde's comment, I fear we have lived through the zenith of Model A parts availability and are returning to the sparce offerings of the Dark Ages of Model A parts in the 1970's with their attendant poor quality and fit. Is Rick's Antique Auto Parts making a comeback? (Only guys in the hobby 35+ years will get that one!) It seems as though 25% of what I try to order from vendors these days is "Temporarily Out of Stock" or "No Longer Available". And 1/2 of those parts I do manage to receive need to be reworked in order to be used. Am I the only one experiencing this depressing trend in our chosen hobby or am I Chicken Little today, seeing the sky falling?
Marshall

[alexiskai]

Originally Posted by rackops

I was about to say the same thing. I'll admit I'm guilty of small-scale hoarding ("I'll get around to restoring that at some point...") but I'm also willing to sell/trade parts when other people need things.

Recently, there was a person selling a rather rare part on another forum. One person noted "that's rare! How can you sell it?!" As if being rare meant that it should be kept...just because it was rare. In this case, the guy didn't need it, so off it went...and hopefully into the hands of someone who needed it for their car.

We're liquidating Doug Black's collection, and a fellow club member came to buy spare transmission gears (a high-value item!), and I said if he was going to buy more than one of something he had to promise to resell it if another club member was in need.

[Bob Bidonde]

So far, the availability of essential aftermarket Model A parts I need to keep my restored Model A cars in good running condition has not negatively affected me. However, I do see a contraction in the availability of reproduction parts needed for complete restorations.
So the effort to do total restoration of A's is slowly drifting back to what it was like in the 1960s and 1970s. That is, the emphasis will be to restore used parts as the supply of reproduction new parts diminishes.
Is the number of restored cars available for new Model A'ers to purchase enough to meet the demand? I think so, and I expect the future of the Model A parts market will focus on maintenance parts in lieu of major restoration parts. That is, I expect the demand for items like new fenders and new body panels will diminish to the point that their suppliers will stop making them. To the contrary, I expect the demand for consumable running gear parts and reproduction accessories will continue to be lucrative.

[Jeff/Illinois]

It's all a crap shoot. It's hard to predict what exactly the future holds.

Sell out now why you still have a chance? Hang onto what you have? Who knows.

Throw the state of politics into the fray and see what these idiots want to do to us. Some are pushing for the complete annihilation of fossil fuel cars as early as 2030. ( More than likely that won't happen but that is their mind set).

If you are into guns, there are forces afoot that haven't had any luck banning them so what is the next step? You make all of the ammo , etc. so damn expensive you can't play anymore.

Like to smoke cigarettes? Politicians decided that is bad for you, so let's put an $8- $10 per pack tax, on each pack that will kill smoking.

I see them doing something similar to the car hobby. Want to drive a car that isn't an EV?? Okey dokey we are slapping on a $10 per gallon of gasoline added tax. There you go enjoy....

The world has gone insane.