members that have collected other car besides ford
 

Any members that have restored makes of antique cars besides fords. How do you compare your experience with restoration of a ford.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I used to collect early 70s Cadillacs.

These are nice cars but are not as fun as a pre war V-8 Ford.

I have another Cadillac and another Buick (and another Ford) in my future.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I always wanted a 1967 Cadillac. I would imagine parts should be around for those, right?

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

Yes, I like those too. Stacked headlights and those beautiful vertical tail lights.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have a 1946 GMC 1/2 ton pickup that had a cosmetic restoration but nothing done mechanically to restore even the the basics. The transmission was 'noisy in 1st and 2nd but quieter in high'. Turns out the tranny was rusted, the brakes needed full replacement, and on and on. What I found out is the Chevy/GMC vendors can't compare to our many excellent Ford vendors. Also, as a general rule, the parts were way more expensive, sometimes by a factor of two, than what we buy for our Fords. As luck would have it, a one owner '37 V8 pickup in unrestored condition followed me home last month so the GMC will have to find another home so I can stay all Ford.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have actually had more Chevrolets then Fords. While never restoring any to be judged, I have had many that I made very nice. I have 2 today, a 55 convertible (my 16th 55 chevy) and a 57 FI corvette (my second vette, had a 63 split window I sold in 1970 for 2k!)
I find the old Fords while I love how they look and love the flatheads, I think they are harder to work on. I have 5 old Fords and 2 old Chevs and that isn't going to change anytime soon.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I recently saw a 1933 terraplane 8 that looked interesting. But I can't imagine where one would go for parts for that thing. The fords offer a wealth of parts and info that is just not available anywhere else. I know of a guy that is still looking for a fuel pump for a 33 packard after 8 years.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I've restored two pre WWII Buicks. The Buicks were (are) far better quality and way ahead in engineering - amazingly so. Of course, they were about 2 1/2 times the cost of a Ford so one should expect a better car.
The restoration process? Just a bit more complicated than a Ford. But, I suppose that's to be expected due to the advanced (comparatively) engineering / design.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have a 40 Pontiac Coupe that is a Hot Rod and my wife calls it Hers!

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

1966 Corvette 427 Coupe for me! Restoration is more complex because it has independent rear suspension, factory Air Conditioning, PS, PB, PW, telescopic wheel etc.!

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

My 1952 F1 pickup is my first Ford restoration. Previous to this I have done complete restorations on a 1930 Essex sedan, a 1926 Chevrolet Touring sedan, and a 1929 Willys Whippet sedan. The main advantage of non-Fords is that you have something unique or different whereas Fords are really common. The main disadvantage is that parts are relatively rare and hard to find but there is a support base or club for almost every make where you can get advice and help. For a Ford you can buy pretty well any part you need new or used at a relatively reasonable price. This forum is very active compared to forums for other makes.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have a '63 Corvette split window coupe that I bought in '66. I drove it 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year and stuck it in a garage in late '70. In '98, my son was graduating from college and I dragged the Corvette out of the garage, took the body off and did a complete redo of the chassis. The body went back on with original paint, interior and dirt in the fender wells. Now, I'm doing an AV8 from parts. (There was no actual A that gave up its life for my project.) In some ways the Corvette was easier because there wasn't any innovation required like I'm running into with the Ford. With the Ford, there was lots of work just figuring out a new K member for hydraulics with a good pedal to cylinder leverage ratio, hydraulic lines, tube shocks, engine fire wall issues, etc, etc.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I perform all the maintenance and repairs on this 33 Buick that a friend owns.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

Other than my 40 Sedan I also own a 1955 Chevy Bel Air hardtop, 1954 Ford F100, and a 1949 Dodge Wayferer Roadster Sportabout. I’ve restored close to 20 cars for myself over the last 40 years.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

i've had lots of stuff. started out with chevys, a 36 std was my 1st car,drove it thru high school. 27 ford was next, 29 ford after that. it was easy to figure out you could buy anything you wanted for a ford, and almost nothing for a chevy. thru the years i was a tri 5 chevy guy for a while, you can get parts for them. next up was my ww2 craze. i had 11 halftracks at one time, mostly wrecks but i did restore an autocar m3. also had nearly every dodge wc variety except for an ambulance, two t16 universal carriers, and even an m7b1 gun motor carriage, same as a sherman hull but with a fixed 105 howitzer instead of a turret. never got it done and was offered too much so it went away. had about 5 1 1/2 ton chevys, two autocar cabover's, two cckw's one 1940 german r12 motorcycle, and three jeeps. when gas was approaching 5 bucks a gallon i sold em all. perhaps too early, ww2 stuff is expensive today. one thing was its amazing how much nos ww2 parts are still available. with the money i played with packards for a while, a 29 626 sedan old resto driver, and a 30 phaeton project. the packards were fun in that no doubt about it, you were driving a big rich mans car. smooth and quiet, every where you went nobody knew what it was. but, always scared to death somthing might break, and packard parts are not at swap meets, and not cheap when you find them. had a couple bmw isetta's, one diamond T truck with a 5.9 cummins, had about 40 motorcycles, now down to 25 or so, and now i wish i had spent all that time and money gathering 32-40 fords. parts are available for the most part, they are darn good cars, 32-36 are sexy enough to keep you awake at night. always had a model a on the road most of my life, and still enjoy model t's too, but the flathead v8 is currently, and probably my last interest. current fleet is two 34's, one 38, one 41 pu, 4 a's, 5 t's, and 10 buildings full of parts. retiring soon and want to move!!!! haha, thats funny

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

47 Chrysler Windsor 4 Door. In memory of my Grandparents. Awaiting work upon my retirement next year. Beautiful solid car, all there, no rust through, runs but doesn't stop. 70K original miles. My plan is to keep the patina, clear coat it and restore, replace as needed as I tinker with the mechanics. Parts are readily available and most are reasonably priced. I don't have the budget to repaint, redo everything plus as I've seen "They're only original once." Hence, my decision to keep the patina. Opinions are welcome.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have restored a 1967 Sunbeam Alpine and a 1910 Hupmobile .
The Alpine was relatively easy as the mechanical bits largely interchanged with period Rootes Group vehicles When I restored it these parts were common but not now !

The Hupmobile is a whole different ball game .Parts are simply not available. What you need you make copying them off others original parts or making patterns and casting them. You are helped a little by the simplicity of the mechanicals -No water pump No oil pump No hydraulics Simple gearbox etc However a milling machine and a lathe certainly become your friend . The other trick is to modify parts to fit . Robert Hupp worked for Ford in the Model R and S days before forming his own company . Hence many of the Hupp components are very simaler to early Fords. My Hupp runs a disguised Model T Diff and internals and Model T spindles, Hubs and wheels which are all available . All body panels were hand rolled- again the minimalist body is your friend

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

Old british cars. Popular models though.
If i could sell my american cars i'd go back to restoring them as the parts don't need converting to RHD.
But i can't sell them either...

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have a 39 Studebaker and 51 Chevy coupe in my shed.

Re: members that have collected other car besides ford
 

I have a 38 Chevy coupe street rod that i have had for 27 years. Made lots of changes on it over the years. This coming year i hope to get my stock 49 Ford Club Coupe running and driveable.