Author Topic: Old basses being sold for silly money (Read 1360 times)

pace · « **Reply #60 on:** April 09, 2011, 01:34:13 PM »

I had a 91 miata for a while, and it was all the fun with none of the problems.

cozmik_cowboy · « **Reply #61 on:** April 09, 2011, 01:53:06 PM »

My wife had a '99 Miata; it was, indeed, great fun & bulletproof - except it was too small inside. I'm 5'11. The Spit I could drive with my legs straight out, but in the Miata my knees were against the wheel & the top of the windshield frame was right at eye-level. Also, the Triumph went through anything; the Mazda was lighter & a lot more powerful - one snowflake 50' away & you were doing 360s down the road. When she was first looking at it I, based on the Spit, told her snow wouldn't be a problem - so guess who ended up driving it in the winter? The other big difference? Fewer tickets in the Spit. It felt fast at 55mph, the Miata was smooth at 120. Allegedly.

Peter

lbpesq · « **Reply #62 on:** April 10, 2011, 08:04:07 AM »

I had a '61 Bugeye Sprite: the gutless wonder. I wish I still had it. I also had a 2001 Miata Special Edition in BRG with tan leather and Nardi wooden steering wheel, shift knob, handbrake. Basically a British sports car that worked all the time! I could fit in it and it was a blast to drive, but once in it, I had little area to move around in. My Bugeye had more legroom. I sold it last summer and picked up a '93 Porsche 968 Cabriolet. Outstanding car and about 15-20% bigger than the Mazda.

Bill, tgo

jacko · « **Reply #63 on:** April 11, 2011, 04:35:50 AM »

Still got my 'spridget' bill. Took it off the road to restore it in 1997 and I'm starting to see some progress now. Finished all the welding last october and I'm just waiting for some warm weather so I can get it painted...

Hopefully have it on the road for my 50th this July.

Graeme

terryc · « **Reply #64 on:** April 11, 2011, 05:26:05 AM »

chassis & bodywork looking nice in basecoat jacko, still a lot of work though to get ready for your 50th.
Isn't there anywhere near you where you can hire a workshop to do the final spray then you can finish the job without coating the neighbours cars or the rest of your garage with overspray

jbabies · « **Reply #65 on:** April 11, 2011, 08:32:00 AM »

In high school economics they teach a very important principle of commerce. That price is not a function of worth, it's a function of demand and supply. Old Fenders are worth a fortune because they have become a speculatable collectable. A lot of old guitars are now being snapped up by people who will never play them. They will sit in a closet or under a bed until the price of vintage guitars sky rockets again to be sold to the next generation of investors. The main reason Alembics do not appreciate like a vintage Fender is that only the intelligencia of the music industry even know they exist. I have a suspicion that this will not always be the case. The markets in china and india are opening up and there is lots of money being spent on cars, boats enormous houses and items of conspicuous wealth. It's just a matter of time before these buyers come online seeking the most elite products from the west.

skyboltone · « **Reply #66 on:** April 11, 2011, 05:47:57 PM »

Looking good Jacko: I hold all who do full restoration in high esteem. Too many wonderful bits from the past are melted down and now contain dog food.

Here's an odd bit of trivia. Fiat (with Alfa) and Ferrari both used Soviet Steel for a number of years from the late '60s through the '70s and most of those cars succumbed to rust in short order. Not in the UK or the US though. The Fiat 124 would eat my MGB for lunch though. They were no where near as much fun to drive though. At least for me, the MG would track straight and true at 100mph but the Fiat was hard to keep on the road at speed.

I assume you've mostly replaced the floor pan eh Graeme? Hard points all solid?

jacko · « **Reply #67 on:** April 12, 2011, 01:12:17 AM »

Daniel. Once I'd got through stripping the filler and old paint the car was like swiss cheese. i ended up replacing alot of panels (luckily all available from specialists). It's had (in no particular order) a new floor, new inner and outer sills, new rear wings, a new rear panel, inner front wings, outer footwell panels, footwell kick panels, new doors, replacement bonnet (hood) and bootlid (trunklid?) and new inner rear bulkhead, not to mention lots of patches I had to fabricate myself. In the long run it would probably have been cheaper buying a new car but it wouldn't have been as much fun. I have a week holiday coming up so I'm hoping to get as much of the body prep done as I can. Then I can get it back on it's side and stonechip the underside before I start on the painting.

Graeme.

bigredbass · « **Reply #68 on:** April 12, 2011, 03:16:12 PM »

Just think: You could do a really proper restoration, use all NOS Lucas electric parts . . . and you could walk home. THAT would really be period correct !

My dad bought a 'fixer-upper' Mark II Jaguar saloon (black, oxblood hides, wood dash and trim, real knock-offs with the rawhide hammer), brought it back to life beautifully, but could NEVER get a replacement electric fuel pump that would leave him stranded instead of my mother ! Did get her a new Buick for her trouble though . . .

J o e y

crobbins · « **Reply #69 on:** April 12, 2011, 06:20:05 PM »

Mike, here is a G-3 at Elderly..

http://www.elderly.com/vintage/items/55U-4623.htm

lbpesq · « **Reply #70 on:** April 12, 2011, 09:07:04 PM »

Q: Why do they drink warm beer in England?

A: Lucas refrigerators!

hehehehe

Bill, tgo

jacko · « **Reply #71 on:** April 13, 2011, 01:20:05 AM »

One of life's great misconceptions Bill. I've been drinking beer in England for around 34 years (started my underage drinking at 16) and never yet had a warm pint.
As for Lucas? well there are other options these days ;-)

Graeme

terryc · « **Reply #72 on:** April 13, 2011, 02:45:37 AM »

Okay, the description of 'beer' in the UK is different in the states.
Your beer is lager in the UK(light yellow coloured liquid), this should be served cold.
Beer in the UK is referred to as ale and this should be at room temperature..now that I have cleared that up I will be drinking ale tonight.

jacko · « **Reply #73 on:** April 13, 2011, 02:49:23 AM »

Beer in the UK is referred to as ale and this should be at room temperature

...or marginally under.
Unlike Guiness extra cold that has been chilled so much it's lost any semblance of flavour.

I'll be rehearsing tonight so will be drinking water ;-(

graeme

cozmik_cowboy · « **Reply #74 on:** April 13, 2011, 05:43:52 AM »

Yes, Terry, the major national-brand beers that all but destroyed the brewmaster's art in the US call themselves lagers, and must be ice-cold to get them past your lips. In the last 25 years or so, however, there has been a massive (and quite welcome) resurgance of not only quality lagers, but also of real ales; I actually prefer (and only brew) the latter. And, though I drink them colder than you do, they do not become undrinkable as they warm, like MBC (that's a beer-snob term for Miller/Budweiser/Coors - which are indistinguishable in their vileness.)
I was about to ask if the sportcars could count as substitute for bikes, when I remembered Daniel mentioned his Road King - the thread is complete.

Peter

(Message edited by cozmik_cowboy on April 13, 2011)