Morning coffee

[Ford Blue blood]

Ah yes, the rain.....been to many a show in the rain.  It has a way of separating the men from the boys.  Those "big rollers" have a tendency to stay dry.  Since 1980 my 36 has been in rain, snow and hail, even the flood in Louisville during the Nats, we did survive all those.  Rich at least you won't have to worry about ice and snow on the trip.....

[fordrunner390]

back again i did get a couple pictures posted-as i said i two-toned the car in 2012 it is just one step urethane but it looks pretty good for a amatuer paint job in my 14x22 garage. i sometimes wonder if i should have kept it black and the continental kit on and the big sin the factory select air(want to cry thinking about it at times. anyway i got home from the army on sep.14th 1968, and was a damn happy person to be home and in civilian clothes and driving my 57 fairlane-get this i was the only 57 ford around-nobody else had one-that made me even happier. before i got drafted i worked at Al Maroone ford in williamsville ny in the used car make ready dept. and when i got home i went down to see about getting my old job back. they told me that the used car dept. was full, but they needed someone in new car make ready----wow! an upgrade and a raise, the 69 fords were out at that time and i was making 69 mach1 428 cobra jets ready along with 69 boss 302's. we used to road test them on wherle drive and boy were those 428's fun to stand on in 2nd gear. i always described them as overflowing with power. man, 1968 was a great year-----more about my next sin with the 57 later--fred

[djfordmanjack]

Fred, stating that you had the only 57 Ford around in your area in 1968. were they all gone from rust by that time, or did people get rid of them because they didn't like the style anymore ? Asking because it sounds that you were mighty proud of it, being a 10+ year old car and already saw some kind of collector or coolness factor in your car, even though at that time it was possibly only looked at as a 'used' car. So I would be interested to hear your thoughts on that.

[RICH MUISE]

I just signed up online for the Goodguys show. I was #1624! If the weather holds, there should be well over 2k. This is the first time I've ever pre registered for a show.

[RICH MUISE]

Very interesting day yesterday.............Our first Saturday of the month cruise in was huge! Biggest I've seen it in the past 5 years. Saw most of my local car friends there, and saw Pat Fleishman's dad, Ralph in his 65 Mustang convert. I found out there are a bunch of Amarillo guys going down to Fort Worth next weekend for the Goodguys. One guy I met for the first time said he was going down next Thursday morning with 8 other cars. I didn't think to ask if they were driving or trailering their cars, but I gave him my number and asked him to call when they decided on a meeting place. That would be a kick!! 350 miles with 9 others!, well a kick if those others are not in trailers, lol
I got a flier while I was there for a 130-mile poker run being run out of Canyon, Tx (12 miles south of my house)TODAY!! I don't think I'm going to do it, got too much on my palette this week, but still have 1 1/2 hours to decide, lol.

[fordrunner390]

djfordmanjack-that's a really good question about why there were no 57 fords around in thelate sixties and early seventies. I'll tell you my thoughts and back then people traded their cars every 2 to 3 years and they didn't fix them either, as I said I was working at Al Maroone Ford then which was probably the biggest ford dealer in western new york in 1968 and I remember if a customer had a car in for repairs and it needed a $200.00 dollar brake job or maybe $300.00 to get it to pass inspection, they just traded it for a new car at that time---NOBODY kept cars more than 3 years old-remember in 1968 you could get a BRAND NEW 69 mach1 mustang with a 428 cobra jet and 4 speed for 3,200 dollars, so why fix your 2 years old car-just get a new one. that was the mindset back then. in addition we all know that 57's suffered badly from rust out and by the time they were six or seven years old a lot of them were in the junk yard, also a lot of them were hot rodded, modified, and butchered to death. damn shame because ford motor co. made a LOT of 1957 fords. having said all that my personal opinion is that 1957 is the best looking ford ever built-i like most all the early ford and their styling 55-56-57 58 and 59 were a little big and kind of gaudy but the 57 model in any trim level was the longest, lowest. prettiest ford ever built.     fred

[FiveSevenLiter]

My father was a Ford / Mercury dealer then and I never saw a 57 come in on trade. 

I did buy my first car in 1972, a very rusty 1958 Custom 300, 223 automatic that was traded in for $53.50. 

There was a beautiful 1957 Fairlane in town and my brother bought it for $300.00.

Dealers did not want this type of car, they wanted 3-5 year old models with power steering.  My Dad would give them less trade value if it had a trailer hitch.  Then we would take it off and sell it back to the new owner.

Terry

[djfordmanjack]

Fred, and Terry, I can totally see your point in the 57 Ford being just another old car back in the late 60s or early 70s.
But I do also read that Fred, and Terrys brother bought those random 57s still around on purpose because you already thought they were beautiful and somewhat rare car at the time. I love that idea. I have been a total freak for 57 Fords ever since I saw one in person in 1997.

[fordrunner390]

hi guys, fred here, i thought i would relate more about my long-owned 57 fairlane 500 and its history starting with the sins since i came back to new york from texas. now before i got drafted in 1966, i had a 62 galaxie convertible with a 352 and cruiseomatic-i thought it was a great car and loved it. but after i got drafted i could'nt make the payments and sadly that car got repossesed and sold at auction. anyway, the 57 was the only car i had and i had to drive it everyday and i did right through five buffalo winters from 68 to 73. i met my wife and got married in 1970 and in 1973 i found a low mileage 68 galaxie 4dr with a 390 2bbl and an automatic (c6) so i took the 57 off the road and my wife and i drove the 68. i did jack the 57 up and put it on jackstands to take the weight off the suspension, but it sat outside under a tarp from 1973 until 1979 when my wife and i had a brand new house built in lockport ny which is where we still live. so when the house got built i built a garage in the back yard and put the 57 in it. i should have built a two car instead of a one and a half. anyway, the 57 would sit in that garage for 20 YEARS in pieces with the front clip and trunk, inner fenders and all the stainless trim pulled off it on blocks in a disgusting state of disrepair until 1999 when my wife came home from work one day and said "fred, you are either going to fix that 57 or sell it" you know what i chose to do. more later-----fred

[Ecode70D]

So Fred
    Now I'm left wondering

   Your 57 got driven through 5 Buffalo winters, then it was put outside under a canvas  1973 to 1979
   When you uncovered it in 79 did you notice more rust spots on the body?
   Then it sat apart in the garage from 79 until 1999.
   From 1999 to 2021 is another 21/22 years.    What is the status of your 57 Ford since 1999?
   Hopefully, it is back together and running now.  Is that so?
Jay

[lalessi1]

C'mon Jay you can't skip to the end of the story! This is better than a series in a magazine... 

[mustang6984]

C'mon Jay you can't skip to the end of the story! This is better than a series in a magazine... 

Indeed! Patience is a virtue! 

[Ecode70D]

Lynn and. Hugh
          I think that l missed the boat when they were handing out patience.
Jay

[mustang6984]

LOL!!! I acquired mine after I put away the work world... Before that...not so much. and even still today...some things STILL annoy the #@%$^*& out of me fast! Just not as many things!

[djfordmanjack]

Jay. I know where that boat with all that packed patience went, when you missed it.
I had to unload it while I was building the 34 phaeton....