How serious are you?

[Fibber Mcgee]

Not exactly on topic but....... How many of you drive old Fords just because you like old Fords or are like me and drive old Fords because you wish you were living in the era your old Ford was built? Am I the only one who likes to drive down a road and turn on some Harry James and forget about the world we live in today?

[BILL WZOREK]

I think growing up we all wanted to get away from where we were and what we had / or didn't have.
Now we want to go back only to the good things we remember not the bad.
We talk about the younger generation now they also want to get away but the are able to get away much faster via computors /I pads / Game boys etc. etc.
There Cars may not be the Flatheads that we love, But fuel efferent , hybred cars and in there futures they may have a forum much like this talking about how to rebuild a car like the ones there Grand parents would take them out for ice cream in,so they can relive there past that they wanted to get away from now.

[fortyfords]

For me these are the best of times, good kids, good grand kids, same wife for 43 years, driving old fords and chevys just like when I grew up except now I get to drive my child hood dream cars to which are 32 fords

[Fibber Mcgee]

Don't get me wrong I'm completely happy with my life and family. I just don't seem to fit in todays world. I'm only in my late thirties so I can't be thinking back to my childhood I just feel like my morals and worldview fit more with the older generation....... maybe I'm just odd?

[A bones]

Good question. For me it's some of both. I like the fact that basic science allowed for personal travel. Hence an attraction to simpler design concepts. I am not, however in love with non-pressurized cooling, or six volt systems. The reality is, though, we can communicate any thought with out seeing, hearing, smelling, or knowing each other. WOW!

[mananaba]

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I'm with fibber...

I like the simpleness of the pre war era but the depression was tough on everyone. I also like the sight and sounds of the pre war fords.

I have great running v8 60's in my 37 and 38 fords....would never turn the radios on!

[FHFD]

I didn't grow up at the turn of the century..yet, I love the old houses, with their beautiful woodwork, craftsmanship, styling, and attention to detail.

You didn't have to grow up in the fifties as a teenager driving a '40 Ford coupe to appreciate, and have a desire to own one.

I live in the present, with an appreciation for the past.

[Henry/Kokomo]

I guess I'm finally getting to do what I wanted to do as a teenager but a) couldn't afford and b) had to have my car for daily needs so long term projects were not feasable. I appreciate a beautifully restored car but confess to doing a bit of "modernizing" in the name of reliability and convenience. A bunch of years experience working with machinery, machine tools and industrial processes hasn't hurt anything either. Still intrigued by mechanical things.

[Old Henry]

"Old Henry" is a time machine, just like the hotel room that Christopher Reeve recreated so accurately, including his period clothes, that he actually went back to the time he recreated in the movie Somewhere in Time. That's how it is for me. When I'm driving "Old Henry" I'm back in 1947 - before my time but a time I imagine being better in some ways than the present. So, I try as hard as I can to recreate the experience by not only having my car absolutely authentic for 1947 but also my clothes. Every little thing helps with the illusion. (Or, is it delusion? I'm not sure which.)

[teejay99]

I've always been big on the car style ....wanted to be a car stylist but would have had to work in Detroit and with Viet Nam going , a Canadian would have been drafted if I was working in the U.S. ..........and I really think todays cars have lost their individual style . New cars just aren't exciting IMO . Take the badge off and you'd be hardpressed to identify most newer cars .
I don't have the money for a classic but if I did , I'd be on an old Ford or Merc in a heartbeat .......wish I'd kept some of my previous cars but we can all say that now .

T

[1963turnerjohn]

Fibber - I dig the way you think - I am 40 and love emersing myself in the 40s era as far as my cars go - my 41 is the one my Grandpa bought new in 41 and after the war, souped up with some neat hop up parts that are on the old girl today. And when I drive with her - it is relaxing, time warp -that is just plain cool

I think it is a great escape from todays craziness and find myself more and more enjoying the 41 , its era music, and my handful of car buddies who feel the same - it just feels right!

Best and keep on bombing around in your car.
John

[4dFord/SC]

Who's Harry James?

[Merc Cruzer]

4dFord/Sc:

Ask his wife Betty Grable...if you want to see her picture look up B-29

[Merc Cruzer]

Fibber:

A little history is in order....first: I sold my 87 Porsche Carrera and then bought my 53" Merc Convertible. It was in a 1000 boxes, so I learned about the car...first the wiring, then the interior, then the motor.....the radio is the original 6 volt tube type, and it is great to hear the static when you drive under the power lines and the station fades at night....but since I am 6 years older than the car, I remember riding in my parents 50 Merc Convertible and then the new 54' Merc with the "new y block engine". We have a great AM channel here in the Denver area, so it is easy to hop in and slip back in time, especially if it is early morning and the roads are empty. The only difference is that now I am driving the car rather than being a passenger. I rebuilt the engine in the 87' Porsche and have also rebuilt the flathead in the 53' Merc...both times it was a great learning experience, but now I have the advantage knowing just how it works and of being able to remember what it was like to hear the flathead in the 50’ Merc when it was new...with the right song on the radio it is not much of a stretch to imagine my parents in the front seat and riding in the back seat, with not a care in the world, because life was great sitting there thinking about going for a ride on my Schwinn when I got home with the playing cards in the spokes….

[1963turnerjohn]

Merc Cruzer - playing cards in bike spokes - I recall that , used to double or triple them up to get a "louder" clicking! Wonder if kids still do that??

Suppose its the same idea as changing a factory style muffler for a glass pack on the old cars - you just gotta get the right sound be it car or bike!

[teejay99]

Love the 53-54 Merc ...very classy look to it .

T

[ole39]

my dad and i are from rural mo. next year i plan on taking my 39 down there and driving the back roads he did in his 39. were talking planks over 'cricks', dirt roads. and if you do it at night, with a portable cd player with 40s live opry shows, it would be heaven! i might even get the chance to pick up a slim hitch hiker named 'hank'.

[jfulwider]

I've always thought that I should have grown up in the 50's.

[Merc Cruzer]

Forgot to add the pictures...

[mike42]

Fibber....Sinatra was my guy, but I still like Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis !