Messages

R.I.P.

To the OP, have you first gone by and told the painter the issue?  That they MUST find that original plate and return it?  Then tell them you will return the next day for it.  That gives them 24 hours to tear the shop apart and find it.  Then if you return the next day and they don't have it, proceed to file a police report and hire an attorney, notify the registrar and all these other steps.  Give that shop one chance to do the right thing.  Make no statements to the paint shop other than you expect it back and a time frame.  No "I'll hire" or "I'll call the police".  Just "return the plate by this time tomorrow".  Don't show you hand.  Call and speak to an attorney now, get that person lined up. If they don't return it, say nothing.  Proceed to the parking lot and call the police.  As soon as you file the police report, in that shops parking lot, then call the attorney and let them know the steps.  The Police Report number often takes 24 hours to be assigned, but that is a question for the office and detective assigned. 
The paint shop owners head will probably look like a kids spinning top by that point.  They will know they just screwed with the wrong person. 

......OR, do you perhaps mean Rick Nagel out of the DFW area?  He was a real estate wheeler-dealer who bought up a lot of the racing pedigree stuff in the late 1980's, was going to open a museum. 

Nagel had a truck brake business. He scammed a lot of people to donate stuff to his museum. Being another Texas snake oil salesman he and CS got along well. He had connections in Mexico and was able to find a lot of race cars that had gone south. He found the Titus/Ward Camaro/Firebird TA car. Rick decided to buy it. Getting it from Mexico to the US was a long ordeal. It seemed each week he'd call for another 5 grand to pay off someone - added about 20 grand to the car. Jon Ward came and looked at it when it arrived. His comment was "OH S**T you found it". He had built and sold a replica as the original.
There were about 75 posters printed up for the museum with CS and a bunch of cars. A rare piece today.

Thanks.  I do now remember his business was brakes.  But he also had (low) rent houses.  Ton's of talk of the museum and donations and such.  He had cars stashed at those houses and taking that photo was when my friend helped move some of the cars.  He bought a lot of cars but then it fell apart.   I seem to recall perhaps in the mid to late 1980's and he showed up with a freshly received 1965 GT350 just out of Mexico.  Was on a flat open trailer.   Was that perhaps an R model he'd found?  I guess by the late 1980's the museum went poof and the cars were gone.  I think some had to be returned to owners. 

https://obits.nj.com/us/obituaries/southjerseytimes/name/larry-zane-obituary?id=11134183

I believe the R model and the GT40 came from another eccentric - Doc Recknagel. I understand that was a whole other crazy story when Zane and our Randy G. picked those up.

Was this perhaps "Doc" out of Oklahoma?  Late 1980's, had some nice cars.  Was a dentist or a podiatrist.  Showed up at the Mid-America one year with an 18-wheel car hauler with his toys on it.  Then had a few college coeds to "polish" the cars.

OR, do you perhaps mean Rick Nagel out of the DFW area?  He was a real estate wheeler-dealer who bought up a lot of the racing pedigree stuff in the late 1980's, was going to open a museum.  He would operate the cars. He brought a Daytona and a GT40 to Texas Motor Speedway (the original one) one year for the Texas Shelby show.  I've got a photo of the two cars on the track and then one of Shelby climbing out of the Daytona after a few laps.  A great friend of mine assisted in moving some of Nagel's cars for a photo shoot.  My friend said the cars were stashed in garages of the rental homes Nagel had and my friend mentioned some were in "uncomfortable" neighborhoods. 

I remember hearing the Zane name.

Doc Recknagel is/was a dentist in OK. His son still is.

Thanks.  I couldn't remember the last name.  He seemed to be a nice guy.  We were standing around the parking lot of the hotel in Tulsa, probably 1981/2/3 time frame, bench racing.  Heard a large diesel and someone crack a joke about a lost truck driver.  Then we heard "PSSSTttttt...PSSSSStttttt".  We looked at each other and someone said "air-brakes?".  We wandered around the corner to find a 18 wheeler car hauler with a few shelby's and a drag car on it.  "Guess Doc made it....". That was when many of us were driving them, or maybe an open flatbed trailer, to the meets.   

https://obits.nj.com/us/obituaries/southjerseytimes/name/larry-zane-obituary?id=11134183

I believe the R model and the GT40 came from another eccentric - Doc Recknagel. I understand that was a whole other crazy story when Zane and our Randy G. picked those up.

Was this perhaps "Doc" out of Oklahoma?  Late 1980's, had some nice cars.  Was a dentist or a podiatrist.  Showed up at the Mid-America one year with an 18-wheel car hauler with his toys on it.  Then had a few college coeds to "polish" the cars.

OR, do you perhaps mean Rick Nagel out of the DFW area?  He was a real estate wheeler-dealer who bought up a lot of the racing pedigree stuff in the late 1980's, was going to open a museum.  He would operate the cars. He brought a Daytona and a GT40 to Texas Motor Speedway (the original one) one year for the Texas Shelby show.  I've got a photo of the two cars on the track and then one of Shelby climbing out of the Daytona after a few laps.  A great friend of mine assisted in moving some of Nagel's cars for a photo shoot.  My friend said the cars were stashed in garages of the rental homes Nagel had and my friend mentioned some were in "uncomfortable" neighborhoods. 

I remember hearing the Zane name.

Thanks for the Kroil reminder.   And I was assuming the rubber line was being replaced. 
+1000 on good line wrenches. 

I don't know if this will work but I've seen some videos of people applying heat to old rusted fittings.  Then melting in Crayon's.  Then apply some heat again and apply the wrenches to see if it breaks loose. 
But see if others have better ideas. 

Thank you Rick and Colleen for all the service over the years. 

I'll just point out that the OP correctly stated that it "Passed out of California Transportation Committee".   That means it is advancing in the CA legislative process.  NOT a "Law" (Yet).   I'm in Texas and there are tons of bills and such that sit going no where, or pass out of committee or one of the houses and yet never are even discussed again, let alone pass.
 
Some of TX has smog checks.  the major cities all do.  My 1969 and 1970 cars are licensed as Antiques so are exempt from all inspections. Then we also had a yearly state wide safety inspection.  They did away with the safety part, which checked tires, wipers, brake fluid level, all the lights working, stuff like that.  It was something like $7.50.  They did away with that, except they still collect it on the license (plates) part.  It's been gone a few months now and I think the number of cars I see with one of three brake lights working, one headlight out, is increasing already.  there are a lot of people who think of auto's like their dishwashers.  You get in and it starts.  You occasional add fuel.  What are these Tires and Air you speak of?  How come my car fish-tails and what are these tire wear stuff you mentioned?  Why is it so dark?

Did any particular photo in that collection stand out to you? 

The ceiling treatment in some of the photos is something i don't remember. Maybe I never looked up there. I just remember the ceiling being very high. Maybe the fabric covering was wasted on kids like me. We just accepted adults smoking everywhere. It was a very different world.

I was the same.  I sort of remember some ceiling treatments in the two main buildings.  I don't remember any in the building that usually has the foreign stuff in it.    Back when Clinton was president, our North Texas Mustang Club put on a display at the Fair.  We were over in the back of the foreign car building but had a lot of traffic.  We had Clinton's old Mustang.  I think it was a 1967 or 8.  It was ragged out.  We took turns doing duty at the exhibit, watching the cars and talking with people.  It's a mad rush to get out of the building and my car battery, even disconnected, was dead!  My buddy jumped it and I towed it home.  I think I towed it.  But that battery then was fine for a few more years.  Odd that it discharged while parked on carpet, inside, and disconnected.  Connected, in a hot/cold shop on concrete....worked fine.  Now days, I walk through the F250/350 (Outside), walk by the new Mustang and look to see which door my wife has already exited out of. 

My wife still wants to go every year. We browse through the two car buildings.

Try checking in your area for a radiator shop that has been doing business for a few decades.  Call them up and ask about a Recore of your radiator using your top and bottom tanks.   I did that for my 1970 428 Mach in 1992.  I found a radiator shop that had been at the same location since about 1974.  They said they'd have to see it before they committed to the recore and quote a price.  I took it in, they looked at it shined a light in it and said "yep, no problem, done lots of these, take a day".   And quoted a price.  It looked perfect when done.  he even asked if I wanted to stay with the original number of down tubes and such. 

CS was renting about 1000 sqft from Moon. Moon built as business increased. He started in the orig peaked roof area then added the showroom at the front closely followed by the shop area at the rear and finally the south building by the mid 60s.
Has anyone figured out who got fired for using the license plate light to push the car? This shot gives you an idea as to how tight the "shop" space was to build the car.

That space looks not much bigger than a two Car Garage. How many people built it, all the Photo's I have seen only show 2 People with CS over seeing.

Very first post and photo shows 4 people.  Somewhere years ago, somewhere, I saw a response that identified all the people.  Then Carroll and another person watching. 
I'd always noticed the area around the trunk latch and wondered if that was damaged in transit, or damaged some other way. 

I always want to show the first photo to the people telling me "This car had the XXX Cubic Inch special engine installed by Carroll Shelby HIMSELF", yeah...look at this photo of the first Cobra being assembled.  Shelby was an idea man, an assembler of TEAMS to accomplish his visions.  He's wearing dress slacks watching the first Cobra get a 260 installed. 

Check your SENT folder also.  I believe these forum software counts the total emails.  Inbox might have 5 in it but your SENT folder has 195 on a 200 limit.   Check SENT and delete most.