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Old 08-21-2016, 08:16 AM   #41
5851a
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

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Originally Posted by Jeff/Illinois View Post
We are seeing the effects of a rotten economy. People have less and less money to spend on things like old cars. People in the U.S. are hurting, millions of good paying jobs have been sent away people just don't have money like they used to. Period. Ain't gonna get any better folks.
I want to blame part of it on Debit cards. Now I'm part of the problem. Have only used one a few times then the other day I go to home improvement store to get a couple things. Didn't think to grab any cash when I left home so I picked up a few things and then oh yeah I need a 2x8 and some roundup. I didn't even look at the price, I knew I had a debit card stuck away. Man I been banging my head on the wall all weekend. Now I'm part of the high cost problem. Everything is just slowly spiraling up. If I wouldn't have had that card I would have just waited till I had cash. But the fact that I didn't even look at the price is driving me nuts. Kind of off topic sorry, but you can see my thinking.
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Old 08-21-2016, 08:25 AM   #42
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

I can honestly say, when I am driving my car, I never think of any of this!
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Old 08-21-2016, 08:47 AM   #43
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

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I can honestly say, when I am driving my car, I never think of any of this!
Good thread Ron, I can relate. For me it's not the price to get an old forgotten 39 P/U back on the road, I knew I would have to work harder for that and thankful I can.

What is priceless and helping the "hobby" are the people I have met along the journey from "scrap" to "shine", when I'm driving I'm glad all those folks were there to help me get to this point. The only thing killing any "hobby" is attitude! Scott
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Old 08-21-2016, 08:56 AM   #44
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

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Good thread Ron, I can relate. For me it's not the price to get an old forgotten 39 P/U back on the road, I knew I would have to work harder for that and thankful I can.

What is priceless and helping the "hobby" are the people I have met along the journey from "scrap" to "shine", when I'm driving I'm glad all those folks were there to help me get to this point. The only thing killing any "hobby" is attitude! Scott
Right on the money Scott!!
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Old 08-21-2016, 11:20 AM   #45
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

It's all relative! Thank goodness there are sources/suppliers/vendors that keep the old Fords alive and driveable. As long as the government stays out of the way, and people can drive their own vehicles, the hobby will still be with us. I thank the internet for bringing out parts and vehicles out of the barns and back on the market. I know it used to be fun and adventure to search through endless flea markets looking for non-existant parts, but it sure got old and expensive to come home empty handed. The days of J. C. Whitney and Warshawsky's auto catalogs are long gone. We have great vendors and availability of parts that were impossible to find at any price in the 50's and 60's. I frequently buy and sell individual parts that exceed the original price I paid for my '37 Coupe. Keep those Fords running!
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Old 08-21-2016, 12:42 PM   #46
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

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It's like this fella's. Us younger builders have a tough time finding parts for two basic reasons.
1) People think that old car parts are gold plated and charge accordingly
2) Other folks with the experience tend to hoard parts. Look in your garage and see how many parts you have.
So, I wonder. If we are all worried about our "hobby" dying out, why not share the wealth a little!?! I'm not saying just give your stuff away, what I am saying is stop complaining if you're part of the problem. If you tend to hoard old parts, ease up and make them available to the rest of us at reasonable prices.
Sorry to be blunt, but I take exception to someone complaining only to find their are part of the problem. And I apologize if I've offended anyone, not my intention.
I want to say that I have the exact opposite problem. I just can't bear to see any old parts go to the dump( in fact I've hauled several home from the dump), so much that I have a lot of used parts sitting around. Now I don't like advertising on CL and such because of all the scammers, and eBay is hard to to because of shipping large items.
But I have spread the word around to all the car club guys, tool truck owners and anyone I meet who is admiring one of my cars in a parking lot that I have many extras and they are available for sale, of sometimes free.
I've been told " hey I know a guy who's looking for some of that stuff" but I never seem to get any phone calls, so my stash keeps growing.
I did have one kid come over looking for some model A parts, I gave him a new wood header that I couldn't use. I had to bite my tongue when he started talking about what he was building, but to each his own.
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Old 08-21-2016, 12:47 PM   #47
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

I think of this hobby somewhat differently. The cars and parts I have sold over the years have been relatively cheap. My profit has been, and I imagine will continue to be in the use and enjoyment of the car itself. The privileges of stewardship to me FAR outweigh the transient benefits of profit. The ability to connect with strangers through these wonderful time machines cannot be quantified solely in dollars.

Vendors are somewhat different. It is their obligation to turn a profit as with the rest of us in our personal lives. But I'm not in the business of selling cars or parts. My interest is sharing American history and some of the artifacts that have made America unique in history .....which seems to bring me and others joy.
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Old 08-21-2016, 12:53 PM   #48
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Thumbs up Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Check out my original vintage 1941 original Ford short coupe doors for a mere $125.00 for both RH & LH doors ! Much less expensive than that reproduction Mustang rag top!
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Old 08-22-2016, 05:09 AM   #49
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

What is bad is shipping and waiting for the supplier to get parts to you.Order a top wood kit for my 35 Chevy(I know a Chevy but I had same with my 40 floor when I did it) in Feb suppose to be here 2 months still no top wood.Just run around.Problem with this and that.Received my door handles last week after 3-4 months and shipping was $41 for them to send it USPS.Just added more dollars for part.
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Old 08-22-2016, 06:49 AM   #50
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Since I retired in 2010 I have sold a lot of the NOS and good used parts I accumulated, most being sold for my cost to people in the hobby. Some I gave away, some I made money on by selling them on the auction site, but there is no way that I ever made any money when you throw in all of the trips, all of the swap meets, the cost of the storage building, the cost of my shop, and on and on. I have some projects that are "done" except for putting them back together and one I would need a box that is otherwise "done" except for assembly. I even have the interior for a couple. I doubt that I will put any of them back together...Somewhere along the line I just lost my motivation. I never even put the 4-post lift together that has been sitting in the shop for several years. Maybe next year, maybe when it gets cooler, but these days it is taking naps, walking the dog, and taking my wife on trips.
I have no regrets about the hobby and I value the friends I have made over the years. I got some of my money back on the parts I bought and later sold. I still have the projects, and as the saying goes "they don't eat much and they are paid for." There are not many things you can do as a hobby where you get a bit of your money back and I was far better off travelling around other parts of the country looking for parts, going to swap meets and the like than I would have been drinking up my money in bars or any number of other things that come to mind.
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Old 08-22-2016, 07:11 AM   #51
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

We can piss and moan, but it's hard to disregard the passion. It all becomes part of the game and you can choose being in or out. I remain "in". I know the rules and it's pay to play, but sometimes you get a lucky break.
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Old 08-22-2016, 08:01 AM   #52
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

As a 55 year old, in the hobby 5 years and with a 32 (more inherited than bought), I feel I have a bit to offer. The prices are being driven up to some extent by people like me. I am still working, I make a good living, I have little spare time. I can't go to swap meets to find cheap parts. If I find one on the evil bay that I need, I will bid pretty hard to get it.

That said, it is supply and demand, if there were more out there, we wouldn't snatch them up when we see them. One difference is that everything I buy goes on my car, not on a shelf (well except for the couple of heads, a distributor, spare tranny.... oh hell!

The definition of "The Hobby" may be the issue too. There are a lot of younger people jumping on the "Race of Gentlemen" trend. Basically real hotrods, cheap, build with cheap parts, but made to go and stop. The biggest thing I see is the trend to have these cars on the road. That said, these may not meet the definition of the restoration hobby.

And what kils me isn't the parts....its the cost of a damn paint job.
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Old 08-22-2016, 09:13 AM   #53
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Hey Lanny,

Right back at you!
It was a pleasure to put a three way deal together with you.
Shows how powerfull the "interweb"can be!
And the Barn is full of great people!
I thought I was following this thread but evidently not.
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Old 08-22-2016, 09:16 AM   #54
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Hey '39topless,

Thank you wery much!
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Old 08-22-2016, 12:18 PM   #55
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

We forgot to add, the effects of the TV shows flooding the channels today, the flip it and make big profits nonsense that puts people who don't know cars, in awe.

You know, it must be a lot easier to 'restore' (ahem) an old car today than before. Heck these guys are always doing it in a week or so to meet the ever present drama deadline, hurry up the truck is coming next Tuesday to take this car to the auction we gotta get it done.

Yawn. Is it me or is it just that I can't take those shows anymore? There are house flipping shows doing the same thing. I never realized how easy it was to make big money, easily
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Old 08-22-2016, 01:37 PM   #56
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

I can't stand to watch any of those shows, too much drama and BS.
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Old 08-22-2016, 01:52 PM   #57
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

My wife is hooked on the house flipping shows. Now she wants to "remodel" our house. It looks so easy on TV.

I told her I'd just as soon move to Waco and let Chip & Joanna do the job.
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Old 08-22-2016, 06:44 PM   #58
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

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I can't stand to watch any of those shows, too much drama and BS.
I hate Misfit Garage, but I watched 2 episodes last week when they were "flipping" a 1940 Deluxe Tudor Sedan. Here is their "costs":

Original purchase price (quoted on show) 5000

Fat Man frame with independent front end,
rear end, 4 wheel disc brakes (my estimate,
not quoted during show) 10,500 to 15,000

New Ford crate engine and trans (estimate) 10,000 to 15,000

Paint (quoted during show) 10,500

New Interior (my estimate) 5,000

New tire/wheels/other stufff 5,000


Total Cost without any labor (my estimate) 46,000 to 54,500


The Boss Man said they had 30,000 invested in the build and sold it for 40,000. How is that for reality tv! I hate to think that some uninformed individual watching that show came away with the idea they could get a hot rod '40 Ford built at that price. And they still had to use a broom stick to hold up the hood.
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Old 08-22-2016, 07:08 PM   #59
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Those shows hurt more than help. It's nice to have a backer with deep pockets, but to the average guy who works for a living, they are an illusion. I will not watch them because most of what they say about a car is wrong and the rest is BS. The "home" shows are a joke also. My wife watches them and I do not. It's not the love of the hobby, it's greed, plain and simple......
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Old 08-22-2016, 07:38 PM   #60
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Default Re: Parts prices are killing our hobby

Hey Fellas, you just hit the root of another problem...We watch too much T.V.

Remember Dad used to call it the "Boob Tube", shut that thing off and lets get back in the garage and start driving that Flathead Scott
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