Robin (UK)

Yes, Paul. That would be great. Gypsy John is bringing his newly painted 36 Plymouth rumble seat coupe. There'll probably be others, too. R.

Hi Guys, Thanks for the advice regarding paint codes. When I got my car it had been repainted in the US and I had the codes for a match. A friend who owns a paint shop got a mix done for me - it was a few shades out. A bit more research threw up the fact that the UK base paints are different to those in the US, so tones will not necessarily match. That's my problem - I need to know the true color as a starting point. The outside of my car has the fresh paint. The door tops and dash are slightly different and the engine bay is also slightly different to the outside (not sure if that would match dash/doortops). So, I have at least two shades (possibly three) on my car. I'll PM Fred about his parts coupe, but I'd still appreciate any other help I can get on this one. Thanks. Robin.

Hi Guys, My car was repainted long ago so I don't know how accurate the color is. I know I can get original paint chips but it's very hard to match against those. Does anyone have some correct Sumac Red paint that they could use to just spray a piece of aluminum or plastic and send to me? A 6" square piece, or similar, would be great. Then I could get a color match done. Thanks. Robin.

Paul, It's always sad when one of your cars leaves the stable. But I know Andy is really excited about the Dodge. He was telling me all about it recently. Since buying his Plymouth he's become a massive fan of 40s Mopars - said he's had all sorts of F*rds and Ch*vs over the years but now loves the Chrysler products much more. He's planning on bringing his red Plymouth to the Rhythm Riot - he mentioned the possibility of his friend bringing the Dodge. My P15 will be there, and so will Deano's. Will you be bringing your P7? See you soon. R.

Whilst searching Google for pictures of D24 convertibles, I came upon this ad for a D25 convertible in Jakarta. It's a rare, and good looking car. It was sold several years ago - does anyone know where it is now? http://www.collectorcarads.com/Dodge-Coupe-Convertible/15494#

a quick Google search threw up these pictures...

I've not yet seen a D-24 convertible 'in the flesh' (although I know there is at least one in the UK - a red right-hand-drive). Here are some vintage pictures I've gathered from the web.

I have experienced exactly the opposite. I changed from radials to bias ply on my (ex) coupe, I now have bias plys on my 'vert and I wouldn't dream of changing back. I do most of my miles in the city - so that means slow speed (Richard also lives in London, so I guess he'll be in the same situation). Bias plys mean lighter steering at those slow speeds. Handling at higher speeds is absolutely fine. I believe that bias plys will highlight any deficiencies in the front end set-up but a tight and correct front end with bias plys is, in my experience, not a problem. Or maybe it's just that our roads are better!... NOT!

Good call, Young Ed. Mine are indeed from SoCal Speed Shop. As Tim says, they are called swan-neck mirrors. Nice items, and very useable. Because we drive on the 'wrong' side of the road in the UK, I have had to fit a stick-on convex mirror onto the passenger side as I have to use that for checking the HUGE blind spot when the top is up on my convertible. I think you probably wouldn't have so much need for that upgrade when driving in the US.

Hey Don, Thanks for your concern - it's nice to know you care. I have actually had a few painful falls, but that's the name of the game. Rest assured I definitely won't ever be sliding down handrails like Tim's nephew. Wow! He's good!!!

Hey Bryan, I hope you still skate. I now regret taking over 25 years off... I stopped in the early 1980s and only took it up again a year ago, when my son started to ride. I'll be 45 this weekend but I'm really enjoying hitting the skateparks most weekends. And i meet regularly with several dads who ride with their kids. This is me, about a year ago, just after my skating be-birth, riding my recommissioned early 80s freestyle set-up (it's a Powell Peralta deck, with Tracker 3/4 track trucks and Belair Lip Bomb wheels). I've since come to my senses and bought a modern set-up - 8" concave deck with Indys and Bones soft cores. The other picture is Henry (age 9) on our vacation in the summer.

Ouch! Sorry to rake up the bad memories, Tim. And thanks for the personal memories, Greg. I just won a Sidewalk Surfboard from the early 60s on Ebay. It's a terrifyingly dangerous piece of kit! I've got an issue of Life magazine from '65, with a female skateboarder on the front cover and a copy of Jan and Dean's Sidewalk Surfin' record from '62 - with a great picture sleeve. I've also sourced a 15-minute documentary from The Canadian Film Board (shot in Montreal in 1965). So the collection is starting to form. I have some friends also starting to gather stuff, so I hope we'll have a lot more before too long. R.

Hi Guys, I know this is way off-topic, so please accept my apologies. I am gathering information and resources for an exhibition on the birth of skateboarding and its association with surfing in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Do any of you have: Old skateboards (with metal or clay wheels) Relevant photos Magazine or newspaper articles Adverts featuring skateboards Etc I'm planning this exhibition for next year and intend to tie in the connections between surfing, skateboarding, custom car and hotrod culture, artwork, music, etc. It will all be pre-1965. In the UK, I can't just head off to a yard sale to look for this stuff, so please check your garages, old magazines, photo albums and all, and let me know if you can help. Thanks guys. Robin. Robin@RockTheJoint.com

Hah! See... you say you're leaving the Forum because the P15s gone, then you immediately come up with a question about the Monaco. There's no getting away from this place.... You're in for life!

Deano and I did the honors at a wedding, yesterday. The cars looked great. We wore vintage suits and pin-up ties. The bride and groom were a little unconventional and their guests mostly wore similar styles... They were machine punks with tattoos, studded faces and body modifications. They were all really nice people and we had a nice time. Here are a few pictures.

Hey Fred, Take your beautiful car out, show it off and enjoy it. If anyone has anything negative to say, it's their problem. All old cars are great to look at and tell their own story. The man who gets too obsessed with someone else's car's shortcomings should really find something better to do. I have a short (true) story about the P15 coupe I used to own. I was taking it to an event in a park and had my wife and friends in the car. We drove through the gate and a guy walked up to ask what model the car was. We told him, then explained that we needed to get the car in position so would talk to him later. We drove around a huge crescent-shaped driveway and watched as the guy ran across the grass to meet us. When we got there he came straight to us to tell us that the car's seat upholstery was not original. We knew that and politely told him so. I had the car 9 years and kept that interior. Bryan has now owned the car 5 years and has also kept the interior. We know it's not factory spec, but we both love the car, have had loads of fun with it and hundreds of people have enjoyed looking at it. We all still laugh at the memory of the puffing, panting, purple-faced guy giving us the benefit of his great knowledge! Just keep that picture in your head if anyone offers any negative opinions on your car. And remember you get to drive it home. What better reward!

Good luck in your retirement, Bob. Now you'll have even more time for the important things in life... You family, your Plymouths, and rock'n'roll!!!

I saw a Tucker at The Imperial Palace Car Collection in Las Vegas, in 1991. Don't know if the car's still there.

Hey Mando, There's a list on this website at: http://www40.addr.com/~merc583/mopar/framesets/optionsframeset.html Hope this helps. Robin.

Hi Tod, No problem. I'll not be home this weekend, anyway - Colette and I are off to the Hotrod Hayride. Drop me a line when you're back in the UK. I hope we can hook up for a ride in my convertible. Enjoy your weekend and have a great flight home. The Globe is fantastic. You'll enjoy that. Robin.

Answer from a genuine Englishman... A car trimmer is an auto upholsterer. Will you be back in London? If so, let me know and we'll see if we can hook up. Hope you're enjoying your stay in the UK. Robin.

Hi Richard, I'm just back from vacation, so have only now seen this thread. I recognise the blue coupe from the Rally of The Giants, where you took the pictures. I was there with my red 1947 P15 convertible and I travelled up with Deano and his green 47 sedan. If you buy the car, please feel free to email me at Robin@RockTheJoint.com if I can be of any help with parts/info/resources. The guys on here are THE BEST. You'll certainly have lots of fun with a D25. Good luck. Robin.

Thank you. The uniform is genuine WW2 vintage. You can see the black SHAEF patch on the sleeve. I put that on there when we were booked to dance at the official opening of a new gate to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of D-Day. The gate is at Bushy Park, where Eisenhower had his HQ in the lead up to the invasion. The Royal Parks put on a big day of ceremonies and entertainment - we met the American and Canadian Ambassadors and lots of SHAEF veterans. It was all quite special. We (four of us) waited outside until the Ambassadors cut the ribbon, then walked through to get into a waiting Jeep and lead the official parade through to the religious ceremonies and subsequent big-band concert and dancing. The US Ambassador paled noticeably when he (unexpectedly) saw us walk through the gate. He explained later, that he had worked for Ike at the White House and he was completely taken aback by the authenticity of our uniforms and the girls' civvies. Fantastic memories. I always wear that uniform with pride, and a huge respect for the guys who earned the right to wear it all that time ago.

Here you go... Some pictures of me with Colette and our car. A picture from about 10 years ago, when we still owned (Bryan's) coupe. And a couple with the convertible, one adjusted to black and white with border. With Photoshop, or similar, you can play around with contrast to get a vintage feel. Or you can change the hues to look more like an old color photo. In the last picture you can see that I've increased yellow tone and desaturated the colors slightly Good luck. Robin.

If none of the Plymouth or Woody clubs know about it, I guess you could try Warner Brothers. A guy I know now has a Ford AA truck that was supposedly the one from The Waltons. I posted a thread about it some time ago... http://www430.pair.com/p15d24/mopar_forum/showthread.php?t=9534&highlight=waltons