barn finds

[Dr Klaun]

Originally Posted by dlearl476

When I was a kid I used to go with my brother to SLC to a place called Western Auto Wrecking to scour for parts as they bought all the foreign wrecks. They had a Morretti Zagato that was virtually identical except for it's 750 CC Fiat or Lancia motor was in the front. Someone bought the engine and to facilitate that, they had torched off the aluminum bonnet and tossed it on the ground and run over it with fork lifts for years. Other than the engine it was 100% complete. What a waste.

BTW, it that a FIAT Dino in the back there? I've always wanted one. The independent Fiat guy in my little town, an Italian named Max, owned a dark blue/tan leather one that was friggin gorgeous. Moretti also made a version of that body called the Sportiva. I don't know what powered it. Pretty sure it wasn't the Ferrari V6.

The blue car in the background looks like a Maserati Ghibli to me.

[Otis the Sasquatch]

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Sneak Preview. I'll post the full story up later (when I know how it ends ). Might be a month or two, but I WILL be back.







,

[ddavidv]

Originally Posted by dlearl476

BTW, it that a FIAT Dino in the back there? I've always wanted one. The independent Fiat guy in my little town, an Italian named Max, owned a dark blue/tan leather one that was friggin gorgeous. Moretti also made a version of that body called the Sportiva. I don't know what powered it. Pretty sure it wasn't the Ferrari V6.

Bad edit: re the Moretti Sportiva--They were Fiat 850 based.

I had a Fiat Dino coupe for awhile. Bought it to restore (someday). Drove, but wasn't pretty. What a nightmare to get parts for, and the people selling them were more often than not complete jerk-offs. The 'perfect' set of bumpers I bought out of CA had maybe 2 usable pieces. A car so 'unique' I had to trade it for something else because no one would buy it. When you realize the performance is matched by a new Hyundai it no longer makes putting up with the 'uniqueness' worth tolerating. Any of these oddball coachbuilt cars should be treated the same way; buy one already done, and expect it to be a difficult sell when the time comes because only a handful of the people who actually know what it is will have the money to buy it.

[FPGT72]

Originally Posted by ddavidv

Bad edit: re the Moretti Sportiva--They were Fiat 850 based.

I had a Fiat Dino coupe for awhile. Bought it to restore (someday). Drove, but wasn't pretty. What a nightmare to get parts for, and the people selling them were more often than not complete jerk-offs. The 'perfect' set of bumpers I bought out of CA had maybe 2 usable pieces. A car so 'unique' I had to trade it for something else because no one would buy it. When you realize the performance is matched by a new Hyundai it no longer makes putting up with the 'uniqueness' worth tolerating. Any of these oddball coachbuilt cars should be treated the same way; buy one already done, and expect it to be a difficult sell when the time comes because only a handful of the people who actually know what it is will have the money to buy it.

If you have a love of Fiat.....vintage Fiat, there are only a few in the states that cater to them....then if you want 850 parts you get one choice. I know I own two of the things.

[Boatman]

Picked this up today,,,, 1966 Kawasaki Super 150. First Kawi's imported to the US.

Original owner,original tires,original paperwork and manuals. Turns and has good compression, he kept oiling it ever couple years.





http://s5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...20Super%20150/

[Otis the Sasquatch]

I'm helping an old friend deal with her father's estate. He was a Buyer, not a Seller. Myself, inmate Crazydrummerdude, and crazydrummer-bro spent 4-5 hours Saturday taking the quick tour of the property. 113 acres, multiple barns, garages, stuff piled next to barns, etc. A Full Report on the place and the stuff there would need it's own thread, but here's a few pictures. Just a small sampling, there's LOTS more..........

Cars








It's pretty much All There. It was disassembled for painting in the '80s and....

the "before" shot.

[Otis the Sasquatch]

No motorcycles, just the plates. But he kept ALL of his old license plates. Hung them on the garage wall as he replaced them. The collection started in 1926.

[Otis the Sasquatch]

Tractors & farm-type stuff of course.

This is the one that's still in use, he bought it new. They just bought a new zero-turn Husqvarna for the light work, so this old boy's gonna get some rest.

[Otis the Sasquatch]

And onandonandon......

The woodworking shop.


the shop radio




The had upgraded to electric tools at some point.


A nice moisture meter

[Otis the Sasquatch]

and lots of the "stuff they hadn't used in years".
.



























Sorry, I'd have taken more pictures of some of the cooler discoveries, but we were too busy having fun!
I'll get more on the next few trips,




Keep diggin! It's out there, somewhere!
Otis





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[ddavidv]

That place is perfect for American Pickers. You may want to give them a call.

[FPGT72]

Originally Posted by ddavidv

That place is perfect for American Pickers. You may want to give them a call.

Just know what the stuff is worth before you give them a call.

And I am sure they would wave the new thread tax if you wanted to start a picture thread of all that stuff.

[Otis the Sasquatch]

Right now this is more of a Cleanup & Conservation effort. The place is a mess.

What started out as organized storage has suffered from years of "deferred maintenance" coupled w/ multiple illnesses & deaths coming one right after the other. The dominoes have been falling with no one having the time to pick them up. Person A dies and that stuff went into the barn, to be sorted "later". The old farmhouse gets emptied to be rented out, and everything gets put into the shop garage 2nd floor. Persons B & C pass away in quick succession and all their possessions get shoved in w/ everything else. All while the survivors are dealing with the estate of another out-of-state relative. Meanwhile, the mice are having a Grand Old Time!

Only the "flea market" stuff, the cars (except for the 1930 Packard), the tractors, and a few select pieces will be sold at this time. All to provide repair money for the family. Hell, they just had to come up w/ $10,000 to put a new roof on the Main House. The farmhouse might be too far gone to cost-effectively save, and one garage is definitely Too Far Gone and will have to be emptied.

I have bought some little odds-and-ends, but mostly I am just a Family Friend helping out. I really have to stay clear of the Rambler convertible though. It's calling to me, but I do NOT need a project like that right now. The funny part is that I have been going down there since about 1976, and I had never seen half that stuff before! "O Wow! Old wooden canoes!". "Look! He had TWO wooden [early-early-early] jukeboxes!!".

I was talking to the executor of the estate who is also directs the Family Trust the other day, and said; "Get a 40-yd dumpster, put it right there, and I'll let you know when it's full and needs to be replaced w/ another one."
Actually, what I said first was "I think we're gonna need a Bigger Dumpster!" But she's not much of a movie-watcher, and that pitch went right by her.

As for a separate thread, I dunno. I'll probably just throw up pics from time-to-time here. This project will probably take the better part of a year (or more), and at least that will keep this thread rolling and To The Top. because I LOVE this kind of stuff, and I want everyone to know about our finds so I can have a better chance to see THEIR finds.

So, see you again soon w/ more from Barn Find Heaven.
AFTER I'm out of Barn Trash Hell!
(Hmmmm... How much is a nice used skid steer w/ bucket nowadays? And tell me again what a Brown Recluse spider looks like. )



Otis

[crazydrummerdude]

Originally Posted by Otis the Sasquatch

..and here we find a crazydrummerdude in his natural habitat.

[FPGT72]

I know I for one would love to see more pics...of just about anything....I find places like this so cool.