The internet is nice for convience, but I still love the ole timey swapmeets for cars,projects and parts. I guess its the comeradary and fellowship you get,or perhaps the air,noise, and excitement you get when attending a meet I love so much. Also, I tend to learn a lot by accident,or when sumpin' jus happens unrehearsed,if you will. I mean both have proved thier worth in rodding, but it's nice to get out and go down row by row and look for that diamond in the rough. One of the biggest I've been to is Pomona,Ca or perhaps the Big Three in San Diego. Geez, It'll wear you out by the time you get back to your car.... lol,Mikey
Yeah,at least at the swapmeet you see what you are buying instead of looking at pictures and drive to pick the stuff up and the pictures are 2-years old.Never know what might show up at a swapmeet and like you say,hell a bunch of my gearhead buddies don"t live close and its good to all get together and bullshit.Another good thing about the swapmeet is no Damn scumbag scammers,just a few traders that will lie real good about the car they just picked up yesterday.I enjoy setting up at the swapmeet whether I sell alot or buy alot.
anyone know of any in the Lubbock Amarillo area? I used to love going to the Pomona one when I lived in SO CAL
I far prefer a swap meet to try and get old parts rather than off the internet, for all the reasons given. There are not a lot of swap meets around here, but there is a big one at the end of June that I always go to with my 11 yr old son. We always have lunch there, hot dogs with lots of fried onions and mustard. He told me that he will always come with me to it every year... Guess that's one of the main reasons I enjoy attending the swap meet...
I'm serious about locating parts, therefore I use all available resources to me..Swap meets, internet, word of mouth any classified I can find, etc. I will say, I for the most part also enjoy the Swap meets, and look forward to going to them every year..but please keep the household shit, dolls, antiques, and other non-related crap at home.
I know what you mean. The internet is good for finding something quick, and can save you alot of time, but there's just something about a swap meet that the internet can never replace. Whether I strike it rich and find most of what I'm looking for, or just come back with a parts cleaning brush I still have alot of fun either way.
It's all fun,.. But I really like swap meets the best,... Getting up really early, meeting up with pals,... having a crappy breakfast,.. paying way to much to get in, walking until your feet hurt and buying something totally unrelated to anything you own (and it's usually really heavy or difficult to carry),... cause it was cool,... or just way to good of a deal to pass up,..... All kidding aside, I always look forward to certain swap meets.
I look for 41 Chrysler parts so you have got to look under a lot of swap meet tables to find parts. So the internet is good for convenience, but there is nothing like the thrill of the hunt at a good old fashion swap meet .
Lol,Thanks guys for your input, Hey Roadfarmer,where did u come from in So. Cal? I came out of Oceanside, but have been all over.I enjoyed the hell out of San Diego and L.A. but now I'm out in the stix in Crockett, but there are still a handful of Rodders here and I'm only about an hour and a half from either Houston or Dallas-Fort Worth sooooo.. not too bad..There are a few Swapmeets up in Amarillo area-one is called Denton, another is Texas Motor Speedway, another down by me is called Canton another still is called Ulzinky's or something close to that,cant rember the title on the last one,im gettin old.....Mikey
I prefer swapmeet over internet any day. Like some of the guys say its better to see in hand what your buying instead of looking at a picture. Beside its more fun getting out of the house and walking around then staying glued to the monitor trying to bid of something.
I really dont know of any in the Lubbock/Amarillo area...but if your in for a drive...this weekend is the Goodguy's show in Ft.Worth...usually has a good swapmeet....the DFW area in general usually has a couple good ones...we just had one 2 weekends ago in Arlington..picked up some new mirrors for my car...
The internet really is great for finding that one particular part. But, ya can't beat a swap meet for just poking around, meeting people, finding some cool part/car that you weren't even looking for, etc. Also, at a swap meet, you can meet a guy, that knows a guy, that knows where something is that you want. PLUS, it's great walking exercise for some of us
Swap meets. You never know what you really were looking for until you found it at the swap, you only thought you knew! The swaps around here all suck for the most part...unless you are building a SBC...then they can be a virtual gold mine! I like hitting swaps at larger shows...more interesting things to look at and buy.
If you live in an area like me that has only a hand full of small swaps a year,you have to use what ever is out there to get the job done.I would perfer to trade or swapmeet it but thats not practical all the time.Working two jobs ,I have the funds but no time to travel far to other events.Thats why The Hamb is so important,its the best of both worlds.Send me my check Ryan If you have never been to Hershey by all means do it!!9000 spaces!! They have kept it pure for the most part and I have never been dissapointed for 30 plus years,but I do miss the MUD Good post Mikey
after having my bank account hacked through Paypal, Ill be doing a lot more swap meets now. I had a great time at Jefferson last weekend.
The swap meet I attended 2 weeks ago in Arlington at the Rangers Ballpark sucked. They had a hundred vendors spotted over 20 acres of parking lot. The venue requires the vendors to be off the lot Saturday afternoon due to local sports events so many sellers did not show. The die hard regulars were asking retail catalog prices or more. I walked away with a NOS Stant gas cap for $5.00 woo hoo......Let's see, $5 parking, $7 in gas round trip and sore feet. What a bargain! Damn, I coulda had a $2.50 16 ounce drink too.... The promoters need to move this swap meet to another location far away from the Cowboys and Rangers Stadiums! Lately for me I have found better deals over the internet with shipping charges. I have never had a problem with PayPal security and have been a member since '99.
I prefer swapmeets. It's Pamona for me, been going since I was a teenager its alot more than just the parts hunt..... I get there before dawn, have a breakfast sandwich and coffee while watching all the rods cruise in the main gate. I love the sound of healthy engines and the smell of high octane gas. Once day breaks its all about the swapmeet. I enjoy weeding through boxs and finding things that the seller doesn't know what he has. (I have picked up some great deals) I buy plenty from the internet but for me the swapmeet's are king.
Good old fashioned swap meets for me! Nothing beats sleep deprovation and walking all day long and falling a sleep on the couch when you get home. Swap meets are for us guys who dont know what they are looking for untill they find it! I find that the hard to find part is often better found when just asking around your car buddies and there friends for leads.
Well, funny this came up.... I want a "fat man" steering wheel and don't get to many swap meets. I bought one off sleez-bay and it never showed up. Seller said he got a delivery conformation and I shouldn't worry because ebay will pay me under their buyer protection plan. Post office said package delivered in PA. He's in Ohio and I'm in Kansas! I'm thinking he wasn't happy with the low price ($225) I gave him and is working the system. I'm pretty pissed because it makes ME look bad...
swap meets are cool - been doing them in the DFW area for over 30 yrs - mostly because that is the only time I meet up with folks I 've met over the years...have built a customer base over the years....otherwise...I'm beating the bush....looking for the next part I need or not....
swap meets allow ya to buy early while in yer under wear and never having to ask over and over who owns this thingie and why yer stuff ain't priced after walking past the great bargains headed out the gate ya missed cuz some one can't make change at the entry without asking someone... or was it...
I found some killer deals on the net,craigslist mostly,swap meets seem to be overpriced for the good stuff,or nothing but camaro,mustang corvette parts,but,,,most your sellers set the prices from the internet,,,,,so i guess i like them both,,,
Swap meets for all the reasons given. Plus it's a great reason to spend the day with my dad, he's 70 now so Hershey is a bit much for him. What the hell, we go anyway. We walk as far as he can and eat all the wrong foods, look at car parts & socialize. Perfect. No internet auction site can build a memory.
The Jalopy Journal
