Customs RARE AS HENS TEETH ?

I'm sure we have all fallen victim to the "rare as hens teeth" part on a particular project. My current 53 lincoln hardtop is missing the back glass, I've looked everywhere. A friend of mine had a 65 galaxy convt. that he swore was the rarest car on the planet, couldn't find any parts for it. (i always found parts for it pretty easy though. Anybody else think they have the one of one produced project cars?

 

Try having early sixties Chrysler stuff, it tests your parts hunting abilities.


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Walked into a chain auto parts store lately?

 

Have you tried any of the Lincoln Owners clubs, several turned up when I Googled it ?

 

I would really hate to look for patch panels for an Essex and I really like the Essex (no never owned one). The glass would be easy enough. Or fenders for a '39 Stude Champ (I like this too).

 

abonecollecter I'm sure you have already looked at Hemmings Motor News and called those advertising similar year Lincoln parts and asked them it they know someone who knows someone who either has the part of can put you in touch with someone who knows someone. Also I would look at Round Up Magazine and do the same thing. And, you look on Craigslist for All Parts on Craigslist by googling up one of those search engines. Same deal with 'close but no cigar' people you call about similar parts if they know someone who knows someone. Or, am I making it too repetitive? Others call this 'networking'. Worst case scenario do a complete windshield top back glass change with a similar top and maybe give it a haircut while you're at it. Just sayin', because sometimes it so happens when you can find hen's teeth, you can find false teeth for them instead.

 

Do I see a wanted add in the classifieds here?

 

Try finding a set of hubcap's ( even 1 ) ,or pretty much anything else, for a '29 Peerless 6-91 with wire wheel's. Been hunting for 40 years.

 

I looked for two years for a 1953 Ford Grille Bar. Never found one.

 

Everything is rare now because its 2020 and this stuff we fool with is long out of date. Try finding parts for a Marlin.

 

I would do a template and send to Finland to have one made if they not allready have a template for the car.
It sure must be someone in the states that make carwindows for restorers?

And talking about hard to find parts.
Try to find the one to the right in this picture for Dodge 53.
I have 3 transmissions with that part broken.
Have search 1,5 year now without succes.
The left one is for Plymouth and i have 2 good ones and that in the middle is one
that was listed on ebay for 53 Dodge i bought in hope to be right.

 

Try finding a Fordomatic column like this that is not worn to hell...

 

geez.....what happened to everything?????Used to have a really good yard for early 60's Mopar stuff and now it ain't there no more.....course' I ain't been by in about 30 years. Holy crap. can't turn yer back for a minute........

 

I guess that maybe I have real common everyday cars.

 

Greetings AndersF!!... a competent machine shop should be able to make on of those....

 

I generally only hear that phrase when I want to buy something, seems even a 15 inch wheel is "rare as hens teeth" when I need it...

 

there's nothing in that pic can't be made on a lathe in 1/2 an hour!!

 

I've got a 67 marlin in my shop that needs a gas tank... Haven't found a nice one yet.

 

Try to find window mouldings for a 1932 Hupmobile 3 window coupe. Or any other parts for that matter.

 

At first I thought that was for a 51 Ford then seen it isn't. Went through the worn detent plate when building my Vicky then just built a new screw on plate and welded up the finger and filed to fit. Totally different when you don't even have a worn part to start with.

 

I’ve been looking for a tailgate emblem for my ‘54 Country Squire since I bought it in 2014. Easy to find one for a trunk car or even a country sedan but not for a woody.


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Chain stores are just about useless anymore. Either the people they have working have no idea what you're talking about, or they are too lazy to to care.
Not too long ago I went to a chain store looking for a carb lift plate. The guy working was in his 30's and had no idea what I was talking about. Then I asked him for some header bolts for a sbc (which I then had to explain what a header was), he then went to the computer and asked me for the year, make and model. I told him it was a 1958 Chevy 283. He looked confused and told me to try online because the computer only went back to 1985. Now I understand guys don't come in everyday looking for old hot rod parts, but if you have a job selling car parts, you should be able to have a conversation with customers about cars and know what it is they are asking for. I buy a lot of parts online now, but it sucks when a quick trip to the parts store turns into a half day trek around town because no one knows what you're looking for and their computers are useless.
So I guess when it comes to relying on chain part stores, just about anything made before 1980 is scarcer than hens teeth.

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Any time you have any of the orphaned makes it adds an extra dimension of difficulty in restoring one. As someone who has owned both a Tri-five Chevy, as well as Olds, Fords, Edsels, etc., from the mid-50s and early 60s, the real difference I see is that the Chevy is going to cost more up front due to desirability. However, it will be much easier and in many cases, much cheaper to restore because not only of availability of restoration and performance parts, as well as competition between many suppliers that drives cost down.

We all know that, almost without exception, it's cheaper to replace than to restore. For cars with a robust aftermarket, a call to NPD, Danchuk, Brookville, etc., will save you both time and money. Why pay a chrome shop hundreds or thousands of dollars to strip, solder, sand, polish and plate a bunch o dash knobs or trim when you can just call a company and have some new stuff delivered to your door in a few days? For those of us with orphan makes and models, you have no other choice. Or you wind up spending weeks sometimes cutting, welding, and forming panels to fix rot when you could have simply called a supplier and had a new piece delivered.

That being said, I think this predicament is well understood among those in the game, and part of what makes it so special when you roll something out that's legit old, obsolete and hard to find.

I thought about this as it pertained to the recent thread about spending the money building vintage engines. I've sort of realized it's almost like a dude who lifts hard at the gym and is super jacked. You can see the hard work. I think maybe that's what it's like having rare parts or running an obsolete engine. You did it the hard way and it's special.

 

Speaking of hens teeth.
You think you are having a hard time finding parts, be glad you're not looking for parts for one of these, they are as rare as chicken lips.

 

That's why I love pre 53 anything ..GM , Ford , Mopar ..Flat glass ...mechanical , easy to find ...Chrysler , Desoto are odd man out though..Never bothered with other makes unles they were close to 100% complete...great topic..

 

I sent 10 years ( on and off ) looking for the beltline trim on my 39 pontiac. One come up on eBay and I paid the price. Good thing everybody has a good supply of rare corvette motors I hear they are hard to come by lol.

 

If ya think finding ‘53 Lincoln glass is difficult try locating parts for a ‘49 Lincoln EL coupe, it’s kinda like finding a needle in a haystack ( difficult that is, almost impossible)


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Ok @DDDenny , I'll play the straight guy role for you.
"What's a hennway ???"

Sure, But what do you do when you are looking for something that is as rare as rocking horse shit?

 

No.....try 55-59 mopars.....after the motors were pulled they got crushed !

 

There are some EL's down here on CL with one coupe the guy's been trying to sell at about $7500