Take a kid to a car show . . . .
Over the years, we see less and less children at car shows and flea markets. There are other things in life than computers, movies, cell phones, texting and video games. At TP Tools, we sincerely want to encourage all in our hobby to become pro-active when it comes to bringing our children to the shows, so that they can later become involved in the hobby. So the next time you are going to a car show or flea market, take your children. There are usually other activities at these shows that will interest them and most shows have lots of good food and beverages. You are guaranteed a pleasant day. Also don't forget to bring your spouse, as the antique car hobby can be a family outing as well.
Above picture shows a picture taken at the 2007 show at the Salem, OH Drag Strip. The 1934 Dodge Pickup won a 1st place in its class, best interior, and was the hit of the show!
Latest Addition - Just in from Norfolk, VA
1929 Model A Ford "Firestone Service Truck"
Here is a nice addition to our collection. We had one of these closed-cab pickups for over 25 years, but reluctantly sold it due to lack of space at the time. We were trying to locate the same truck to buy it back but were never able to locate it. Luckily an AACA member was willing to part with this truck and is happy that it is in good hands as part of our car collection at TP Tools. This truck has a very rare accessory spot light that is mounted under the side view mirror and another one just like it is in the rear, for extra lighting when doing service on the road. The plated radiator guard really sets off the front of the truck and since it has a little "patina" this is just about how a truck like this would have been back around 1933 or 1934. Truck has "factory air conditioning" - you crank out the windshield and plenty of air is directed into the cab! Henry Ford designed this so that the incoming air enters below the windshield and hits a baffle on the inside top of the dashboard, where it is directed down toward the floor. (The fuel tank is just in front of the windshield and from the inside serves as the dashboard, with gauges clustered in the center).
Here is a close-up view, showing the Firestone lettering on the door. Back in the 1930s, there were many Firestone stores scattered around the country and some had service trucks to help stranded motorists who had flat tires or ran out of fuel. Included with this truck was a generous and very rare collection of Firestone memorabilia consisting of books, signs, pencils, necktie clasp, cigarette lighter, sewing kit, inner tube patch repair kits, old receipt books, old service books, catalogs, price lists, spark plugs, photographs, and other literature. Also included was the original Owner's Manual. The truck starts right up and runs great too, and it doesn't leak! Today was a nice day, so we parked it in front of our storeroom and got a lot of "lookers". Everyone really likes this truck, as it brings back many past memories. The tires are "Firestone Gum Dipped" of course. Mounted in the bed of this 1/4 ton pickup is a wooden box full of tools and another box is being refinished to hold more good stuff. This truck will be on display in our car museum very soon, after a light cleaning and polishing.
In process - 1955 Pontiac Safari 2-door Station Wagon What a nice front end! Picture of this Safari in our shop, prior to adding the ivory pearl finish to the front and lower half of the car. Note the copper lighted hood ornament, which works perfectly. Bob Darney is buffing out the new copper finish. All tools used in our restoration shop are from TP Tools and available at www.tptools.com We do continual testing of various body-shop tools and supplies so that we can make recommendations based on our own experience. After buffing and after adding the ivory pearl base coat-clear coat finish to the lower half of car. Further final buffing will bring out an even finer appearance. Note the matching bronze carpet to right. This will be one of the finest Safaris anywere around soon! From the exterior down to every detail of the interior, this car will be outstanding. We removed the hood, both doors, tailgate and lift gate (rear window), along with all of the chrome when painting this car. Doors have now been installed, carpet is completed and things are finally nearing completion. We are hoping to have this car on display in our car museum very soon. We added additional sections on each side of the dashboard to provide an attractive place to mount the air conditioning ducts. These dashboard sections and center section were painted copper to match the original dashboard and we have a working original Delco radio hooked up to 4 speakers for a nice sound, as well as the convenience of having push-buttons to find our local stations. Center section of console also has a nice chrome trim oval around the shifter and an illuminated section to left of shifter shows us which gear we are in. Two stainless steel cup holders complete this section of the car. Steeering wheel is yet to be installed and has an original NOS Pontiac center section which will make for a really nice appearance. Rear seat bottom cushion folds up against the rear of the front seats and back rest of rear seat folds down to make a flat floor for hauling whatever we want - that's what station wagons are designed for! Seats are all leather in an off-white color to enhance the bronze copper carpet, dashboard and window trim. Copper seat belts are on order and will be installed soon. Stainless steel strips were straightened and buffed by Bob Darney and really enhance the look of the cargo area, as viewed from the rear. Custom made metal trim pieces were fabricated in our shop and cover each side where carpet meets the leather side panels. These metal trim pieces are usually missing on most restorations and were designed from looking at pictures of several older Safari wagons. They are painted to match the dashboard and window trim. Rear section is removable to access the spare tire and the original jacking instructions are pasted on the inside surface of this panel. Side view of completed project. Hood ornament lights up when headlights are on. 17" American Racing Wheels set off the look of the car, which has all new chrome, new glass, new paint, etc. This car can be driven anywhere at highway speeds. In our restoration shop at TP Tools, Bob Darney fabricated this custom engine cover, utilizing two hood ornaments from a 1949 Pontiac. These were built into the cover and painted to match the exterior, as we didn't want them to look like hood ornaments. A concealed switch turns the amber Indian heads on and off. A local graphic artist (Matt Willoughby) did the graphics and the view when hood is first opened is "breathtaking". Here is another view of the engine cover, showing the word "PONTIAC" in the center in block print. This cover isn't hiding anything, as the new 350 cubic inch GMC crate engine is full of chrome, but the cover really sets off this car as something very special. Fabrication of this cover took about 4 weeks from start to finish, not including painting and graphics. It is attached with concealed fasteners and does not rattle, nor does it cause the engine to overheat, as radiator has a pusher fan and a puller fan, which do the job quite nicely. Interior view, showing custom carpets made of Bronze Daytona Weave. Pontiac logo was embroidered into the matching accessory mats that were made in our shop. Carpet came from Auto Carpet Originals. Dashboard has been slightly, but tastefully modified to house air conditioning ducts on each side and two more air conditioning ducts are in the center console. Note the single Pontiac Star on side of the center console to give it a little class. Vintage Air conditioning control panel is in center console in front of shifter. Inside the center compartment between the seats are switches for the antenna, interior lighting and puller fan. Also an outlet is inside this console for a cell phone hookup. The original Delco AM radio was restored and works nicely with convenient push button controls and the original control wheel sets the speakers to either front, rear or both. Shoulder seat belts were also installed for safety, as this car is a driver. Before starting on this restoration, the car and dash were painted a pearl white, so all instruments had to be removed from the dashboard for changing to the copper color to match the exterior. BUICKS
For the past six months, we have been working on our 1955 Pontiac Safari Wagon. We have two of the exact same year and model, but this one is a modified version - keeping the original body panels, chrome and close to the original color, but with modern drive train, interior and wheels for driving on the highways without any concerns. Shown below are some pictures of the car in process. Soon it will be completed and on display in our car museum in Canfield, Ohio.
See below for pictures taken after completion of this restoration. We started on this car shortly after Hershey in 2009, so (allowing for holidays and vacations), the entire project took about 6 months total. Bob Darney did all of the fabrication and painting and Fred Zwicker did all of the installation of the TPM (Total protection mat) that is installed on the floor boards. Fred also installed the carpet and much of the interior trim. Bob Zwicker handled most of the wiring and added his professional ideas throughout the job. Several employees made contributions on making some of the components. A detailed writeup of the entire process will be featured in our 2010 Fall Catalog - Call for your free copy in October after the Carlisle and Hershey fall shows. 800-321-9260 or order on line at www.tptools.com
As part of our collection, we own two nice Buick Rivieras - both 2-door Riviera Hard Tops - a 1954 Buick Special and a 1957 Buick Super. These cars were recently purchased from two Buick collectors in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, who owned the cars for almost 10 years. We promised the previous owners that we would take good care of their cars, so what better place to do so than to display the cars in our new display building for many to see!
1954 Buick Special Riviera: This attractive 1954 Buick Special Riviera was restored by the previous owner, coming up with a nice color combination and some nice touches in that the portholes on each side of the car light up when the turn signals are activated. The center trunk medallion also lights up as a third brake light. The Pioneer radio is really neat - the car has the original "radio delete" panel in the center of the dash, which is spring-loaded and when pulled down, reveals a new style electronic AM/FM and CD radio that can be operated with a remote control. The sound system for this radio is concealed in the trunk behind a matching black carpet. Other then those enhancements, the car is 100% original, including the famous Buick "Nailhead V8 Engine". Future plans call for adding power disk brakes, power steering and vintage air conditioning, but retaining the original look. We are undecided about the side pipes, which are a nice size and seem to add to the sporty look. With or without these pipes, this is one of the nicest 1954 Buick Rivieras around and we are glad that we can display this car at our auto collection museum. This car is currently in our shop for a complete "body-off" restoration. Wait until you see it when completed!
1957 Buick Super Riviera: Another really nice Buick is this mint condition 1957 Riviera Super in a very unusual original color combination. Originally a California car, it was carefully maintained by the previous owner and has won close to 20 trophies over the past 8-9 years. The car was restored in 2000 and near perfect when purchased in 2009, sporting a new interior with exact original fabrics, new trunk lining (also original material), a perfect body and paint job. What it really needed was some careful detailing under the hood, so the car was recently put into our shop at TP Tools. While choosing not to remove the engine, the hood and radiator were removed so that every engine compartment component could be removed for detailing, including the air cleaner, carburetor, valve covers, etc. New heater and radiator hoses were installed, along with new fan belts and new gaskets. Pictures of the engine will be posted later, but here is a picture of the exterior of this excellent example of Buick's finest in 1957. This car runs as it should and can keep up with highway traffic all day. In view of its past history, the car received an invitation to show at the prestigious Glenmoor Gathering in Canton, Ohio on September 20, 2009. Stop in to see all the trophies this eye-catcher has won.
1957 Buick Super Riviera Engine: Above picture shows the engine after detailing. To do the best job, we removed the hood and radiator. All hoses, fan belts and gaskets were changed and the valve covers and intake cover were removed for painting. We used Bill Hirsch enamel that is made especially for this car and in the correct color. TP Tools stocks a full line of Bill Hirsch engine enamels. Fan and other accessories were painted black. Some of the fuel lines were replaced. The carburetor was cleaned and prepped to look as new. There is nothing quite like lifting the hood on a restored or mint oritinal car and seeing a clean and neat engine compartment.
These trophies were all won by the 1957 Buick Super by the previous owner. As good as this car was when purchased, it went into our shop for final detailing prior to being shown at the Glenmoor Gathering in Canton, Ohio in September of 2009. This is an "invitation only" show and is the "Pebble Beach" concourse show of Ohio.
CADILLAC & LaSalle
We proudly display a red Cadillac 1966 Cadillac DeVille Convertible and a 1939 Cadillac-La Salle 2 door Convertible Coupe. Both can be seen at the TP Car Collection any Saturday from 10 AM to 3 PM. The public is invited and we hope that you can stop by when you are in our area. TP Tools is located in NE Ohio between Pittsburgh, PA and Cleveland, OH just about 15-20 minutes from the turnpike exits as you enter Ohio from Pennsylvania. Call us for directions 1-800-321-9260, or local phone is 330-533-3384. Our web site is www.tptools.com.
1966 Cadillac DeVille Convertible: Here is one of the nicest Cadillacs in the area. It is a really nice 1966 DeVille Convertible, which was purchased in California in the 1970s and later restored by the previous owner at 25,000 miles. The car now has only 31,000 original miles. It is in perfect mechanical and cosmetic condition and can be driven anywhere. While used many weekends as a "Summer Driver", it is good enough to enter in any show, winning a 1st place (1960s division) at the Cadillac-LaSalle Club 2009 show at Legacy Village in Cleveland. This car features a black top and interior and has a Hydramatic transmission, 429 cubic inch Cadillac engine, AM-FM Cadillac radio, original working factory air condtioning and a flawless paint job in original Cadillac red. Has new top, new chrome, new Michelin radial tires and is clean under the hood, as well as the undercarriage. At the time of purchase, it was taken to the local Cadillac dealership in Columbiana, Ohio and gone over mechanically, installing all new hoses, changing all fluids, giving it a tuneup and getting it ready for the road. It starts immediately and can be driven anywhere. One of the nicest '66 Cadillacs anywhere and is normally on display for others to enjoy.
Engine view of this beautiful 1966 Cadillac with 429 cubic inch V-8 and Hydramatic. Valve covers were painted with original Cadillac blue for this year Cadillac. Everything was detailed under the hood. While a low-mileage vehicle, this car is often driven to many local car shows by Fred Zwicker in the summer months.
1939 Cadillac LaSalle Convertible: The pictures says it all - Check out this fully-restored 1939 LaSalle Convertible Coupe that is a consistent trophy-winner, including a 1st place at the 2008 Cadillac-LaSalle Grand Nationals in Cherry Hill, NJ. At that show, the car was awarded "Senior" status, indicating that it is one of the best ones in existence. The car also won a first place trophy at the 2008 Glenmoor Gathering in Canton, Ohio, which is an "invitation only" show of significant automobiles. The LaSalle also won a first prize trophy at the Boardman, Ohio local show in 2008; and in 2009, won a first place trophy at the Cadillac-LaSalle Legacy Show in the Cleveland area. It also won "Best of Show" at Legacy. Only 1044 of this model were produced in 1939, selling at a list price of $1395. Today only 25 are registered with the Cadillac-LaSalle club and this one is probably the number one 1939 LaSalle Convertible Coupe in existence today. Power is supplied by the original 322 cubic inch flathead V-8 engine that purrs like a kitten. Engine was rebuilt to "as new" standards by Shepard's Automotive of Akron, Ohio. Chrome plating was done by Lakeside Plating and Paul's Chrome and the outstanding convertible top was made by Jim Roll of New Phildadelphia, OH. The trunk lining was done by Fred Zwicker with original material from Jenkins Restorations. This is a diamond pattern and each diamond lines up from front to rear and side to side. Many members of the Cadillac-LaSalle club were very helpful, furnishing technical advice during the time that the car was restored.
The car was purchased several years ago in good condtion from the St. Louis Car Museum. It spent most of its earlier years in the dry climate of Oklahoma has been on display at several other auto museums for many, many years. The car was finished in the TP Tools restoration shop in 2007, undergoing a complete restoration at the time. All of the original paint was stripped to bare metal and the car was painted by Bob Darney in the original Oxblood Maroon Poly paint.
Shown above is the original "numbers-matching"Cadillac 322 cubic inch flathead engine that is one of the main features of this 1939 LaSalle. During World War II, Cadillac flathead engines were made for our tanks, as they were the most powerful and most durable engines available at the time. Thousands of Cadillac flathead engines were produced by General Motors for our war effort and were used by General Patton in the north African battles. They have stood the test of time and today, this same Cadillac engine is now the heart of this finely restored 1939 LaSalle.
Shepard's Automotive in Akron, Ohio was called on to completely rebuild this engine. Larry and Pappy Shepard really know their stuff and every single component of the engine was replaced and carefully fitted to the block. After rebuilding, the engine was painted the correct color and put on a stand that has a radiator setup. Engine was started and run for several hours to be sure that everything is in "as-new" condition. After warmup, bolts were torqued, carburetor and timing were readjusted and everything was fine-tuned to new specs. As part of their rebuilding service, Shepards rebuilds the starter, fuel pump, water pump, carburetor, ignition, clutch and transmission. The result and extremely quiet and smooth running powerful V-8 that is truly like-new in every respect.
TRUNK - Shown above is the newly upholstered trunk, using original fabrics from Jenkins Interiors. Note that the diamonds patterns all line up from top to bottom and side to side. At the rear of the trunk is a compartment to hold the jack and other tools. There is a hinged cover for this compartment, which makes for a nice touch. Towards the rear bumper is a "well" that is covered in the same material for other storage. There is a cover for this section which is not shown in this picture. Everything in this restoration is exactly as when the car was delivered from Cadillac when new.
Details of this restoration and several hundred pictures can be seen at www.fzoldcars.com.
Fred Zwicker is the owner of this fine example and is in hopes that others can pay us a visit to see this and other cars in our modest collection.
CHEVROLET
In northeastern Ohio, we are in "General Motors Territory", which accounts for our emphasis on General Motors vehicles. However we like all makes and models of antique vehicles and are trying to even out our collection as much as possible. Here is a nice 1966 Corvette Convertible and a beautiful 1956 Chevrolet 2-door. Both are on display at the TP Car Collection in Canfield, Ohio.
1966 Corvette Convertible: This classic was purchased for $3200 by Fred Zwicker in 1975 from the original "lady owner" and gifted to his wife for a surprise birthday present. At the time of purchase, the car was in excellent condition, as had been carefully maintained by the previous owner, who bought the car new. In 2000 the car was gifted to Robert Zwicker for his 35th birthday. Although Robert kept the car in excellent condtion, it still showed some signs of wear, so was ready and deserving of a complete "body-off" restoration. In 2006, Bob Darney was contacted and the Vette was rolled into the TP Tools restoration shop. Darney put his Skat Blast Cabinet to work on this project - blasting under the hood parts and other components down to bare metal and stripping the original lacquer paint and primer. For more on Skat Blast Cabinets, see www.skatblast.com. The car was then repainted the original Milano Maroon using our famous HVLP Paint Spray System - it looks amazing! This beauty sports a 327 - 300 HP V8 with 2-speed Powerglide automatic transmission and with only 66,000 original miles is now "brand new".
Shown above is a picture of the original 1966 Corvette 327 cubic inch - 300 HP engine. This is the original engine for this car and all numbers match. Everything under the hood has been carefully restored to the same condition as when car was new.
1966 Chevrolet 2-Door: Shown above is a beautiful copper and ivory 1956 Cherolet 2 door post sedan. This car was restored by Bob Darney several years ago and has every possible option including air bag suspension, new plating by Paul's Chrome, new tires, etc. The car was painted using a TP Tools HVLP-90 Paint Spray System. See www.tptools.com and enter 'HVLP' in the search block at upper left-hand side of home page for complete details on this system, or call TP Tools at 1-800-321-9260 for more information.
"Copperhead" is an appropriate name for the engine in this beautiful 1956 Chevrolet 2-door. If you look closely at the engine cover, you will see a copperhead snake working his way forward. This cover was custom made by Bob Darney and really sets off the appearance under the hood of this excellent and well-restored beauty.
DODGE
1934 Dodge Pickup: Rear View of 1934 Dodge "Ram-Jet" pickup as displayed at our new TP Auto Collection Building in Canfield, Ohio. The toneau cover lifts automatically by a hand-held remote control. Doors also operate by remote control and hood is unlocked remotely.
FORD
A car collection would not be complete without at least one Ford. While we have owned many Fords in the past, right now we have a fine 1951 Ford F4 Stake Truck and have in process a 1937 Ford "Slamback". The 1937 Ford is now in Kentucky for a new interior, but should be on display in the near future.
1937 Ford Tudor: Coming Soon is this 1937 Ford "Slamback", which is a custom fiberglass street rod. This car is shown above in primer, but has since been painted with our HVLP Paint Spray System in our restoration shop at TP Tools in Canfield, Ohio. This car will feature a custom 410-HP fuel-injected motor, 700R4 transmission, and Ford 9-inch rear end. This Bob Darney build will have several handmade exterior and interior creations to make this rod stand out! When completed, it will feature air-ride system, 17" and 20" rims, 13" rotors, handmade stainless grille, chopped top, Cooper headlights, custom paint with graphics, and other features. The interior will be part elephant hide and part leather. When finished, this will be one of the top cars in the nation and will be a feature attraction at the TP Tools Auto Collection.
Car was finished late in 2010 and shown at the Detroit Autormaa and later at the big IX-Center Autorama in Cleveland, where it won numerous awards, incluing best paint. Car was painted with TP Tools' HVP-90 Turbine Paint Spray System. Interior is shown below.
PONTIACS
Here is a nice pair of a very rare station wagon - introduced in 1955 by Pontiac was the very attractive Pontiac "Safari" 2-door station wagon. The first one has been modified, but retains its original 1955 look, other than a custom paint job. The second Safari is 100% original and is an outstanding vehicle. Both can be seen at the new TP Tools Auto Collection Building in Canfield, Ohio.
1955 Pontiac Safari - MODIFIED: This 1955 Pontiac Safari 2-door wagon was featured in a cover photo and 3-page article in the September 2001 edition of Southern Rodder. The car was built by John Hardy (of Hardy Pontiac in Hiram, GA). There were 10 coats of PPG Cadillac Diamond White and Lincoln Pearl White Clear Coat applied in an attractive 2-tone combination, which can barely be detected in the above picture. Car has a "Fatman" front suspension with a Mustang power rack, '72 Nova 10 bolt 3.55 posi-traction rear end and a TCI automatic transmission and Lokar shifter. For fast stops, power front brakes and drum rear brakes were installed. A new 350 Goodwrench crate engine and 600 CFM Holley Carburetor power this very quick wagon. There are Hooker headers, stainless steel dual exhausts and plenty of chrome under the hood. Interior was done in ivory leather over 1993 Lincoln Mark VIII power bucket seats. Even the headliner was done in leather and Mercedes mushroom carpet covers the floors and rear cargo area. In the driver's compartment, Dakota Digital gauges, a leather wrapped Lecarra steering wheel, Ididit tilt steering column, front shoulder seat belts, Vintage air, and a Pioneer AM/FM CD stereo (with 5 speakers) complete an outstanding interior of one of the nicest Safaris anywhere. The car has American Racing Torq Thrust II 17" polished wheels and steel belted radial tires. Also note that the orignal hood ornament is NOS and illuminates when the lights are on. This car is all steel and retains its very original exterior look, other than the custom 2-tone pearl white paint job.
* Note - This car is currently undergoing a cosmetic restoration - all new copper and ivory pearl paint and new carpet in Daytona Weave Bronze. See below for some "in process" pictures. When completed, more pictures of the car will be included at this site.
Door is on a stand, ready to install after carpeting is completed. In our restoration shop, Bob Darney removed the doors, hood, deck lid and lift gate, as well as all chrome and bumpers. The results will be worth the work and this very rare modified 1955 Pontiac Safari will be ready to hit the road soon
Engine view of our 1955 Pontiac Modified Safari. This is a new GM Crate engine with under 3,000 miles and is equipped with electronc ignition, Holley Carburetro, Vintage Air, Alternator and all the goodies. (Lots of chrome under this hood).
1955 Pontiac Safari - ORIGINAL: Another fine example of a 1955 Pontiac Safari 2-door Station Wagon is this fully restored version, sporting the original two-tone paint combination of Firegold and White Mist. This car has the original Pontiac Strato Streak V-8 engine and 12-volt battery system. The car has the original chrome air conditioning ducts on the dash, supplying ice cold air from a new Vintage Air system. A beautiful 2-tone leather interior matches the exterior for an outstanding appearance, inside and out. Has optional Hydramatic transmission and all steel Body by Fisher. Has 7.60 x 15 whitewall radial tires. The original radio even works perfectly. The overall length of this car is 203" with tail gate closed and the car weighs about 3700 pounds. This car features an accessory set of front bumper guards with cross piece to protect the grille. Full wheel covers (original) compliment one of Pontiac's nicest station wagons ever produced. Like the other Safari shown, the hood ornament illuminates when the lights are turned on.
TP Tools & Equipment
7075 State Rt. 446
Canfield, OH 44406
Toll Free 1-800-321-9260
Local Phone 330-533-3384
Fax 330-533-2876
www.tptools.com
