Hot Rods Looking for an old skull shift knob

Hey guys, When I was a kid, my dad's uncle sold him an old pick up that had this cool shifter knob in it. It was an aluminum skull that had been in several trucks that uncle Charlie had owned over the years. I learned to drive shifting that old Dodge with that cool knob.
One morning I went out to the truck and some jerk had broken into our truck and stole the knob! Needless to say, I was pissed!
Ever since then, I've been looking for that knob, never actually believing I'd find it. Then recently I was at a local cruise night at Tuxie's in Riverside, CA and I see this brass skull perched on top of a 4 speed stick! It was my shifter's twin for sure! Only in brass! Well the owner says he has two, one brass, and one aluminum. And of course he cannot be talked out of the aluminum skull. But he says that they were made here in southern California and maybe I can find someone who has one for sale.
Long story short... Does any one know where I can find this knob? Here is a shot of it in brass.

 

Thats cool!! Hope you find it

 

We used to cast those in high school metal shop in the '50s their should be some around. Have you tried ebay? Lots of skulls on ebay.

 

must have been a high school thing. we were doing all kinds of them in my class in early 60s ive seen some on ebay also.

 

Hey i got one of them. The guy that recasts the ansen products makes them. I think it was originally made by ansen. I paid 50 buck for mine i think.. I also will not sell mine.

 

The knob you're lookin for was cast off an old catalin shift knob made in the 30's. As stated before it mighta been copied in a shop class setting. Kids would make aluminum shift knobs cast off of anything that was skull shaped like plastic nickel and dime store toys or carny giveaways.

The plastic ones pop up regularly on eBay for $100-300 but since they're hollow they don't last long for normal driving. This is part of my collection, you can see the plastic versions in white and orange. JohnnyA

 

There was a guy on the HAMB that was making solid aluminum skulls. Very high quality. I bought 5 or 6 of them.
I think he stopped making them due to the time involved and other things going on in life. No, I won't sell mine.

 

I am thinking I saw the same knob in a bike parts catalog . Maybe J&P "One man's trash is another man's treasure," were words by which Jacobs' father, Garrett, made a living. On more than one occasion, a metal commercial building in the area was slated to be demolished to make way for new construction. It was free for the taking. The task was left up to Jacobs and his brother, Gene, to take the dilapidated structure apart, bolt by corroded bolt (which they recycled), after school; later, the pieces were moved to a new location. The brothers reassembled the building, which their father rented out.

Read more: http://www.rodandcustommagazine.com...jim_jacobs_story/?__federated=1#ixzz3CbMo0k8z


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Try looking through these. You might find what you're looking for. https://www.google.com/search?q=Alu...niv&sa=X&ei=gEobVOvtL8SdygSE84Aw&ved=0CEcQsAQ

 

Pour some plaster and whittle away at a skull.It's an oval-shape and you can pencil your "x" and "y" center lines and features on there.When you're done,slather it with a thick layer of Permatex and use
your choice of compounds to "pour" your skull shifter,then paint it with aluminum paint.
Or,research the great thread on pouring aluminum here on the HAMB and attempt an aluminum knob?
Best of luck in your search and your project!

 

I cast my own. Here's one in my roadster.

column by k1w1rodder posted Jul 29, 2012 at 6:35 PM

(sorry not the best pic, I'll see if I can find a better one)

 

There was one on eBay this week. Not sure if it was new or old. I think it was $50.

 

Yup. He said they are them in shop class. Just need somebody who wants to sell one.....

 

Sure could use a good lead on who might be making these still. Or maybe a cast mold off of one.

 

here is a bit better pic. Anyone who wants one I can cast some more.

 

This is the skull shifter knob I have in my 32, it's made out of Pewter, I found it at this guys place just down the road from where I live he makes furniture and imports stuff from Indonesia, he had 3 different size skulls for sale, this was the smallest one and the perfect size for a shift knob. I just machined up a threaded insert for it and resin it in. If you like I can see if he has any more and send you one.

 

Thanks guys! But I am speaking of the specific design in the picture that I posted. It is the exact design of the missing one, which is the point.

 

Yeah that's what I thought. Exact copy. Keep looking their is a lot of them out there.

 

A lot of those designs were also seen on the top of walking sticks. Just another avenue to broaden your search.