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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Accessories, Originality and Judging Standards

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Posted By Discussion Topic: Accessories, Originality and Judging Standards     47Fordor 02-16-2010 @ 4:38 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 72 Joined: Oct 2009 My '47 SD Fordor is FAR from ready for the runway and I'm really not sure that I ever want to show her. Of course, if she comes out as good as I hope she will (hopefully within my lifetime) I wouldn't rule out the possibility of taking her to the concourse once, to see how she'd do. I'd like some tips on a judge's views of the following: I've been looking at the 41-48 Ford Book and was wondering about judging standards for accessories. By the book, my radio could cost me in judging, even though I know for a fact that they are original. The car was bought new by my great grandfather. I was talking to my dad the other night about the radio and he came up with the answer to my question of why the radio didn't match what Ford used. In the 40's & 50's, the owner of the local Ford Garage was the brother-in-law of the guy that ran the music store (also sold radios). It makes sense that, at a time when new cars were in high demand, if he didn't have the "correct" radio, he would have gotten one from his brother-in-law; thus, my car came with a Motorola instead of a Zenith. Below is a link to a photo of the radio: http://i463.photobucket.com/albums/qq352/ctroush/DSC01546-1.jpg Also, my radio antennae is different from what the book calls for. It's mounted on the drivers side, instead of the passenger, and has a red, clear plastic ball on the tip. The latter makes sense, since the car was originally maroon, but still may be frowned on by judges. Coments? Chris supereal 02-16-2010 @ 10:52 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 Most, if not all, accessories such as a radio, heater, etc, were dealer installed. Some were obtained thru the Ford supply line, others in the aftermarket. The '46 thru early '47s were still under government price controls, so add-ons were commonly used to elevate profits. Almost no one complained, as the waiting line for a new car when production resumed after WWII meant if you didn't want it, someone else would, price be d*mn*d. donclink 02-16-2010 @ 2:33 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 45 Joined: Oct 2009 Chris, my '47 Tudor had the same Motorola radio installed sometime in it's past, probably from the dealer. Motorola radio kits had a driver side mount antenna, and the speaker mounted under the dash used a plate with small holes in it as the protection for the cone, rather than the nasty 'chicken wire' type that the Ford radio used. Several years ago I looked at a NOS Motorola radio kit, like yours, and the parts in the kit confirmed all of this. When I got my car, the radio was a Ford/Zenith that was in poor condition, and didn't play. There was no antenna lead to the side mount antenna. I currently have a '47 Ford/Detrola model installed, which was one of the original Ford options for '47 and '48. I get dinged a couple of points each time I have it judged for 'Incorrect antenna', a major accessory category. The only option I would have, is to replace the side mount with a cowl mount, and I'm not going to go through that for 2 points. Your radio situation should not be cause for any deductions in my opinion. The Motorola kit, as you point out, WAS a dealer option, as I don't think any Fords were shipped from the factory with the radio installed. Since your radio installation is completely Motorola, and authentic, it should pass judging. What I don't know, is if Ford dealers were able to install non-Ford accessories. MTLott 02-16-2010 @ 4:05 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 38 Joined: Oct 2009 On the other hand, there are those of us who are preservationists and believe each car has its own history and personality. If I had my great-grandfather's car, I would tune in my favorite station with the same push buttons and dials he used ... and could not care less what the judges think. ... I might not even throw the cigarette butts out of the ashtrays. 47Fordor 02-16-2010 @ 5:41 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 72 Joined: Oct 2009 Oh, don't get me wrong: the radio will go back into the car! I was just wondering what the judges would think of it. I'm sure the judges wouldn't like the ahooga horn that a couple of teenagers (my dad and uncle) put on it back in the '50's but, what the heck, I like it! For anybody that happens to have a Model A; no, the horn is not for sale. Great Grandad was one of those people that drove past when he should have, so I will be correcting a few changes that were made for him. For instance, I've come to the conclusion that the F/R fender is actually from a '46. I can keep the fender but I'll have to change the chrome strip and move that strip down a little bit. Also, I will be changing the color back to original Monsoon Maroon. Grandad's body man found that it was easier to match paint when the car was black, which didn't fade like Maroon. Chris ford38v8 02-16-2010 @ 5:58 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 2758 Joined: Oct 2009 47 Fordor, Cars entered for point judging having accessories not authorized by Ford can be passed without a point deduction only if documented on the original sales invoice. While plausible reasons exist, such as your Father's story, there has to be a line drawn, and that line is documentation. If your Grandfather took possession and drove his brand new zero miles Ford across the street to the radio dealer, that's close, but not close enough, sorry. Go to the home page, and under National Club Information, click on Forms. Read up on standard deductions for incorrect accessories. I think you'll find that the deduction isn't as drastic as you may think. That said, a car must almost surely be a fresh restoration to garner enough points to win a Dearborn Award. Another Concourse Class you may consider is the Rouge Class. This Class is not point judged, but vehicles are judged on originality. An original exterior, or an original interior, or an original drive train can win a very important award, a Rouge Award. Condition is not a factor, only originality. An added accessory in this class should not be a detriment unless it's installation has destroyed originality. Even seat covers can be OK if the edges are unfastened to show the original upholstery underneath. I find MTLott's post interesting and very much the point of it all. This is a hobby, and our cars reflect something of ourselves, and a lot of history before us. Some of us want to hear the hum and the static of the original radio to experience the history, others want the clarity of a solid state tuner in that radio. I prefer the former. Alan MTLott 02-17-2010 @ 2:11 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 38 Joined: Oct 2009 I was only offering another view of great-grandpa's radio. Sometimes there is strong conflict in deciding whether or not to restore an old car. For many, a restoration IS the best preservation. For others the history/condition make a case for keeping it as is. Thankfully the hobby has wide acceptance and appreciation for classes from "out-of-the-barn" to fine point judging. There are several pitfalls one can fall into with old cars. A very big one worthy of caution is taking the car apart and not putting it back together. I just sold one this week that I bought already disassembled, kept disassembled and never had a chance to drive and/or enjoy. Seems to be a lot of old car "projects" that are sitting unfinished ... the real question for many of us is not if we should restore the car, but are we going to finish the job. (And, yes, I would agree that some of us really enjoy the hobby best by being surrounded by piles of parts.) It sounds like you have a good car with terrific family history. Can't beat that. This message was edited by MTLott on 2-17-10 @ 6:18 AM 42wagon 02-17-2010 @ 5:17 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 584 Joined: Oct 2009 Before you go adding all sorts of obscure accessories to your car remember a couple of things if you intend to enter it in fine point judging. An accessory will add no points to your score. It can however, result in the subtraction of a couple of points if in poor shape or inappropriate for the year of your vehicle. If you have an accessory that you believe was installed on the car originally but it is not one of those authorized for that year bring along documentation to prove that it was installed on the car when purchased new. Remember the burden is on you to show that the accessory is appropriate. 37 Coupe 02-17-2010 @ 5:56 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 362 Joined: Oct 2009 Supereals post stirs memory of me asking original owner of a 46 Ford coupe I owned 1971-1986. Wondered about the SouthWind heater,he remembered the coupe was his second order,his first unethically sold to a higher bidder,some salesman got greedy and did not like the fact that my older friend had a connection getting a new Ford when they were scarce,he was an engineer at Lancaster Lens a hometown glass factory that just shut down two years ago. If you look at a NOS Genuine Fordlens usually tailight you sometimes see LLC,they made glass ens for all makes right from the start,headlights for Model T etc. Back to my story when he finally got this coupe he went down the street to Studebaker dealer and had the SouthWind installed. He didn't buy a new Ford until 1955 T-birds came out,he only owned my coupe for one year as he bought a 1947 Merc convertible,my neighbors were farmers bought the coupe used and drove it only to churc and such. Man I sold coupe to in 1986 immediately took out heater and replaced with correct hot water heater,I tried to get the Southwind from him but claimed he threw it away as unsafe,bull, really was a good heater. I took coupe to Valley Forge 1976 and Dearborn second one I think 1988? At that point in judging never remember mention of incorrect heater.

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