HonestDave

Anybody find anything really interesting at an auto swap meet? I've only bought one thing in the last twenty years. A fellow had house radios for sale and I gave him the $15 he wanted for this old tube Westinghouse a couple years back. I'm guessing it might predate the sixties. Works perfectly.

pogo69

I guess thats pretty nice but i think you paid too much

HonestDave

Sometimes I toss money around like confetti in the wind. Have to when you play with old cars !!

z11375ss

Like the radio. Very retro.

VI Cutty

Got any old radios kicking around you wanna sell?

It's surprising what some of them can fetch in the right place.

rocketraider

$15 is not bad for that radio in that condition. Looks late-50s by the design, colors and script. You can tell it's post-1951 by the ConelRad indicators. I'm not as familiar with Westinghouse as I am with Philco, RCA and Zenith, but you should be able to narrow down the year by either model or serial number.

Any working tube radio in nice cosmetic condition that you can get for under $25 is a good buy.

I've also found neat old electronic test equipment at swap meets. Got an RCA Ohmyst multi-meter a couple years back at a Carlisle show.

banny

I got a classic intellivision home video game from the early 80s. It came with a bunch of games. Took a chance on it for $10 and it worked perfectly. Not as old that radio but I remember as a kid wanting one of those badly. Also got some old movie posters from the late 60s and 70s when I bought a box full old car mags. Guess the guy didn't know they were in there.

rcorrigan5

My best swap meet buy? A formula steering wheel for a 1970 GTO, first year that option was offered, at a Pleasanton swap meet, with the ultra-rare horn button and everything, for $10! This was back in the mid-80s. At that time, a decent Formula wheel cost $200-$300 in decent shape. I found the steering wheel in a box with a bunch of other steering wheels. When I got the vendor's attention, I asked him, "How much for your steering wheels?" He asked, "Which one?" I guessed he knew what he had but I held up the Formula wheel and said, "This one". He said, "I haven't sold a steering wheel all day. How 'bout $12?" I couldn't get my wallet out of my pants fast enough but, in the process, I asked, "How 'bout $10?" He took $10!

Now, God knows I've overspent on tons and tons of parts for my Oldsmobiles, Pontiac and Corvette; way more than what they were worth, but I NEEDED them. However, all of that extra money I spent on other parts for those cars is all made up in that one steering wheel purchase! That was truly the best purchase I've made at any swap meet in all the years I've been going to those events!

Randy C.

HonestDave

Wow, I love that story Randy !
Especially touching since I had a 70 GTO convert from the early eighties until the late nineties. It didn't have a nice steering wheel like THAT though .
Right on !!

costpenn

Back in the early 90's I went to a swap meet where a guy who owned a muffler shop in Arlington loaded up his trailer with all the "junk" laying around his place, and parked it in his spot with a "$1.00 a piece for anything in this trailer" sign on it. I looked down into it, and sitting on the bottom under some pipes were a 402294 and 402295 pair in really good shape, virtually pit free. I go to pay, the guy says "do those go together?" I said yes and thought here it comes - and the guy says, since they are pair, you can have both for $1.00.

HonestDave

What are those, 442 exhaust manifolds?

mpolds

Gotta say -- if you've only bought 1 thing at a swap meet in going to swap meets for 20 - 25 years -- you must have spent well over $5000 for that radio -- when you consider all the gas, maybe tolls, possibly parking, and gate admittance at the various shows that you've gone to for the last 20 - 25 years...............

Just commenting --- because we notice that the new wave of "people" at the car shows -- and that even includes Carlisle and HERSHEY -- is "ZOMBIES" walking down the middle of the aisle -- not even looking left or right -- and there are certainly NO deals in the middle of the aisle.....

Just commenting ---- don't forget to look left or right --- you might find something that won't cost you $ 5000.........

HonestDave

To be honest with you, I've only been to a few swap meets in my life. I went to one in San Diego in the late eighties and bought a $3 impact set, which I finally used to get the door screws off a 61 Impala about two years ago. Other than that, I did buy drinks and treats at the others, usually. Don't have time for swap meets. Too busy with kids. That's one reason for this thread. I'm curious what people are finding out there.
Back to you....

Tedd Thompson

Car shows, gun shows there is always a bargain there somewhere in that mess. It really helps if you know what you are looking at, other wise it just someone elses rusty junk.

Awhile back I picked up two glass washer jugs one complete with pump and the other with a nice galvanized lid... Paid three bucks each. I was a happy camper...Tedd

costpenn

Yes, they are the 70-72 455 A body manifolds. My story took place back before they were reproduced.

HonestDave

I didn't know they were reproduced. I wonder if they reproduce ones for my 65 avatar.
If I end up keeping the car, I'd really love to deep six the headers one day.

tru-blue 442

Dave check with Thorton Reproductions.
They have even started making true dual exhaust
manifolds for the small blocks based on the W-Z design.