[CharlieB]

I don't mean to rub your nose in it but here's my T experience in a nutshell: The first one, a '27 Touring was from an estate sale. The car was totally done. I got it cheap and it ran great but actually I knew very little about T's. But the third one, a '23 Touring, I was told by the former owner it was only paraded. First thing I did when looking it over? Pull the trans cover and check the works as best as possible. By this time I knew T's well enough to really make a sensible judgement about this 85 year old car. Apparently neither of us had this know-how the first time out. Very few people do and they jump at the car because "it's available and I want it". 3 cars and 12 years later I can, with assurance, check out T and decide if it's for me or not and believe me I've passed up more than I've owned. You didn't just buy a better car the second time by dumb luck. Your experience/expertise was working even if you didn't realise it.