Some of my cars over the years.............

[knife7knut]

Going through my albums trying to find a picture of a car I had sold to my nephew many years ago I came across a bunch of pictures of cars that have graced my driveway over time.Sadly I don't have any of my early efforts as I didn't get a camera until about 1966.Most of my cars have been station wagons as they work well in my trade as a sign artist/pinstriper.So here goes with a brief description of each.
The first one is ny first station wagon(actually a sedan delivery which is a wagon without side windows);an old american Tobacco Co sigarette truck.Used by distributors to deliver cigarettes to retail outlets,it came with deadbolts installed in the doors and liftgate to discourage thieves.Still had traces of the advertising(Chesterfield cigarettes) on the side.Had about a gazillion miles on it.Drove it home with no front shocks.Put a bunch of miles on it after restoring it only to have it destroyed in a head on crash.The broken ribs I received in that accident still act up.
My next one was another 60 Chevy sedan delivery to replace the crashed one.Didn't last long as it was pretty rusted out.Only paid $25 for it.
While looking for another wagon a friend of mine offered me his 68 Chevelle SS.It had a seriously reworked 327 in it but had cracked one of the heads.Covered with custom paintsince it's purchase by him in 1968 with custom upholstery it was a real looker.For $300 I bought it and got another set of heads from another friend off one of his race cars and converted them to street use.Drove this one for awhile(usually very fast)until I cleaned off one side of it going sideways in a parking lot;sideswiping a concrete light pole base.Gave it back to the guy I got it from;thinki he used it for a doghouse for awhile.
Next up was a 78 Mercury Bobcat wagon that I converted into a panel van and installed a 302 V-8.Drove that for a couple years and then gave it to my nephew(this is the car I was looking for pictures of that started this thread).He drove it through high school.
Next up is my first new car:a 1982 Ford Mustang GT.Drove this one for 10 years before selling it to a friend of mine who built it into a race car.My son Justin recently bought the car back from Jimmy and is currently in the process of restoring it.I've included pics of it before and after.
Part 2 will show some more;stay tuned

[knife7knut]

Continuing on:
First pics are of my chopped 54 Chevy sedan.Swapped an AM/FM radio for a Studebaker Avanti for this car;a LONG story! Car was done in 1959 by a friend of mine;chopped 3 inches;made into a hardtop;56 Olds engine and trans;Chrysler swivel bucket seats;overhead console;custom dash;etc.Got this one from under a garage and it was full of hornets' nests.Got it running and drove it for awhile until some punk broke all the window glass in it when it was parked in Boston.Sold it for $300 in 1975 and it eventually wound up back in the hands of the guy I bought it from!He still hasn't restored the Avanti that he needed the radio for that he got from me!
Second pic is my first real Pinto Cruisin Van.This was a limited edition wagon by Ford made from 1978 to 1980 and featured steel panels with round bubble windows in place of the standard side glass and custom paint work.They were only available in a couple of colors.The first pic is of the car as I received it and the second is after it was painted and tricked out.I had 3 of these but for some reason only have pics of this one.
Next is the car I had just before I moved to Michigan:a 1964 Mini Cooper Estate wagon.Far from stock,it was built by a friend who raced Minis and this one was designed as a hill climb car.Never raced it was driven by his wife until she tired of it.I bought it in 1987 and drove it during the good weather(it was only 3inches off the ground)very hard.Capable of attaining nearly 110 mph and cornering like a slot car it was a blast to drive.It got rear-ended by some idiot while I was stopped leeting a POLICE CAR out of a driveway!Pretty much totalled;I sold it to afriend who completely re-built it.
The next block will be cars I have owned since moving to Michigan in 1993.

[QTCut5]

Going through some boxes of old photos and came across some of these cars that I rebuilt when I was in high school. Great old cars...loved every one of them...taught me everything I know about the internal combustion engine. Although now that knowledge is practically obsolete since you pretty much have to have some kind of computer degree and a bunch of expensive equipment to work on these modern engines. I actually replaced the throwout bearing on my Triumph GT-6 after digging it out of a snowplow-created snowbank/igloo on the curbside of a public street in the middle of winter in Provo, Utah. I was in college at the time and had no access to a covered garage...and I was able to perform the entire operation with a basic set of Craftsman tools and the help of a (very kind) friend...to get the transmission housing bolted back in place in sub-zero temperatures.

Although all these cars are long gone, I still have the same set of Craftsman tools.

Top photo = 1969 2-door Plymoth Signet which I rebuilt from the ground up and eventually sold for $500 (Oouch!)

Bottom Left photo = 1967 Triumph Spitfire Mk III which I rebuilt from the pile of nuts and bolts and assorted engine/transmission parts found laying in the front seats and trunk (boot). One of the only cars I've ever worked on that had an aluminum intake manifold and a dual Stromberg carburator.

Bottom Right photo - 1973 Triumph GT-6. (The poor man's Jaguar XKE). I drove this baby cross country from NY to CA and back (three times) and loved every single mile. Interesting story: eventualy it was stolen by Mexican drug dealers, trashed and abandoned in San Diego. When the cops ran the VIN, I got a letter (I was living in NY at the time) saying I owed something like $1,500 for impound storage fees. Naturally, I told them to go to you-know-where, and that I relinquished all rights and ownership. Stupid move perhaps, at the time I was poor, thousands of miles away and really had no other options. What I wouldn't give to have that car back now (to say nothing of the girl!). Ah, the folly of my wasted and misspent youth.

~Q~

[junebug]

VERY COOL FELLERS.....
HERE ARE PICS OF PICS....THAT I HAVE FOUND SO FAR .......

THE 3 I HAVE NOW.......
AND PICS OF OLD RIDES..........

CIVY
AHHH-RORA
CAR-OLLA
85 M000-STONG-O CONVERTABLE
66 MOOO-STONG-O
68 FATSBACK MOOOO-STONG-O
61 RANCH-A-MERRY-O

[junebug]

SAME RANCH-A-MERRY-O AS ABOVE

HERE ARE 3 I BOUGHT OFF FAMILY MEMEBERS ,THEN SOLD ERR FLIPPED LATER
66- RANCH-A-MERRY-O
66- ELKY - STILL HAVE THIS ONE - WRECKED,HEAD ON ......... HARD!
65 CUTTY
50 FERD
78?77? OL YELLER...... ERR "BEAST"
71 SUZUKI LJ10 --- ERRRR "TINY-TONKA"

[junebug]

CONTINUED.............

77 CHEVY ..... WORKED MY BUT OFF ...ALL THE TIME ON THIS THANG...... TILL THE DAY I SOLD IT ,IT POPPED OUTTA SECOND GEAR.....LOL

84 NISSAN 4X4 - Z MOTOR
97 ASTRO VAN - 1ST NEW OFF THE LOT VEHICLE
80'S PONTIAC PHOENIX....WHAT A TURD!
78??? DODGE RAM P/U - "RED DOG"
88??? BUICK PARK AVE--- " THE AV"
79 DODGE ASPEN ----- "BABY BLUES"

84? CHEVY S-10 4X4 ------- "RICKY TICKY" MOTOR TICKED FROM DAY ONE....LOL

71 VW BUS - SUN ROOF ----- "GARCIA" - 1ST CAR , I DROVE THIS TO HIGH SCHOOL AND OWNED IT 3 SEPARATE TIMES...LOLOLOLOLOL

94 TOYOTA P/U --- AIR BAGGED -- " YOTA" ---- PAINTED IT WHITE AFTER IT CAME POWER BLUE PRIMERED WHEN I BOUGHT IT.....

[junebug]

99 CHEVY S-10.... XTREME PACKAGE ----- " S- DIZZLE" - SHOWED THIS TRUCK FOR YEARS....AND ROLLED WITH "ACROPHOBIA" MINI TRUCK CLUB WITH THIS THANG.......MEMORIES

[royal0014]

Great bunch of cars Ray !!
Thanks for sharing