O Scale Motor Vehicle Chronicle Feb 6

1958 Lincoln

Thank you for posting "O Scale Motor Vehicle Chronicles". I always look forward to them.

I learn something new all the time, its a great history lesson.

I've owned a couple of real Lincolns.  There are two1:43 models  on my layout most of the time.  One is a 54 Continental, parked in front of the brewery. The other is a Lincoln Zephyr V12 convertible - it was Veranda Turbine's first car.  She bought it two-years old in 1949-1950 timeframe.   Here is a picture from my book (to be published next Wednesday!!!) of her in her car.  

I got three new 1:43 cars in the last week  my first in some time.  One was the "droppy" NEO resin '59 Olds I posted about earlier in the week, which despite the distortion still looks good on the layout - really good. 

Then this nice '52 Caddy convertible by Spark.  

It looked like a nice car for Veranda to upgrade to from the Zephyr so here she is in it, on the layout now.

This Vitesse '56 Fairlane is really nice.  I'd prefer it in a different color, say turquoise or peach instead of the bright red, but its nice nonetheless.

Ironically only have three Lincolns.  A 38 Zephyr, a 56 Continental, and best of all a top-up 46 reminiscent China Town.

This Lincoln is at far right in front of the PRR trailer.

Ron

I was given a ride home from high school, when I missed the bus, by a teacher who

drove a late '40's Zephyr coupe, which was rarely seen.  Recently, while I was visiting an antique mall, there was another visitor there with an SUV towing an open car

trailer with a beautiful late '20's Lincoln coupe, again rarely seen, on it, as you mostly see stodgy sedans.  I would not be ashamed to own that Lincoln.  Those cars still had

the Leland designed 60 degree V-8.  Leland worked for Henry Ford, they feuded and

parted, Leland built his own car, the Lincoln, but, like Locomobile, styled them for the past, was going bankrupt and, very distasteful to Leland, had to sell the brand to Ford.  The  60 degree cars were very popular during Prohibition, with both the rumrunners, and the law.  The Zephyr V-12 engine, reported to be just an extended Ford V-8, also used in the Continental, was NOT an engineering marvel.  I have

driven past the still standing plant, now the county highway dept., for the Washington

automobile, which used the head of the first President on it radiator emblem.  It was

a short lived car made in the early to mid 1920's.  Other presidents have appeared on

radiators:  Monroe, Jackson, Jefferson, etc.

Here is the other Lincoln on my layout - out at the brewery.  I always loved this model of Lincoln: very classy.

Years ago, I was parked at a car show with my '56 Cadillac next to a guy with a beautiful '56 Continental. We got to chatting, and I found out he had driven over 2 hours to get there (I was 15 minutes away). I said I was impressed, as my car was "all over the road". He said, "Oh, my car is also".

This week's contribution. 

I had a '56 Imperial a while back (wish I still had it) and that had to be one of the nicest driving cars of the era. My Studebaker with a V8 engine has no trouble keeping up with modern traffic but it handled like an old truck. If you round a corner too fast, your likely to scrape the paint of the rocker panels, and the Lockheed brakes are no where near as efficient as modern Discs.

We had a '53 Cadillac restored.  In deference to air pollution and comfort, etc., I had a GM 350 crate engine (a basic 290 HP version, with throttle opening limited to about 3.4 it was probably around 250) and 3-spd auto trans installed.  It had enough power.  But it handled like a pig and braking was an adventure.  It looked nostalgic and cool, but what I a terrible driver.  We got rid of it pretty quickly.  

Gee...I drove a '34 Chevy, '36 Chevy pickup, and a 1928 straight eight on the public

roads, the pickup all the way from central Missouri to Kentucky, in the 1960's and never had those problems, except for plan-ahead mechanical braking on the first and last.  One phenomenon I noticed was, on a 1980 car that I think came with bias belted tires, when I switched to radials, it make a terrific difference in handling.  After years now of driving radial tired better handling cars, I wonder how those early cars would feel?

My pappy said Son, you're gonna drive me to drinkin'

If you don't stop driven' that Hot Rod Lincoln!

-- Commander Cody

The flavor of the week is Lincolns; here's my contribution. I'd love to get my hands on a 1/43 '56 two-door, but they just go for too much money on the Bay. 

 '38 Zephyr by Durham of Canada. A really nice model, which will be even better when I get around to putting some silver paint on the wipers and door handles. 

'41 Continental by Universal Hobbies. I think the figures were added by a previous owner. I need to do some repainting on the passenger - the way her dress and scarf are done look more like contemporary Tehran than 1941 America.

'56 Continental Mark II by Franklin Mint. One of their better efforts, I think. Nice hood ornament.

A pair of 1928 dual-cowl phaetons by Rio of Italy. The bodies are identical; the top up/top down are plastic parts that snap on. Rio makes or made mostly European prototypes, but they have a nice Cadillac convertible and a Duesenberg dual-cowl phaeton, among other prewar American cars. Rio kind of gets overlooked in the market; I got these two as a pair on the Bay for a ridiculously cheap price. The front bumper on the green car must have gotten knocked off in packing or unpacking. The parts are in the box, so I can fix it. I'll probably repaint the top-down car; pale mustard is not my favorite color. 

I had forgotten that song.  Really a great one. 

I like the Durham model.  And the Trio with the opening hood is nice. 

I had forgotten that song.  Really a great one.

There's nobody like Cody! Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen were known for many years as "the world's greatest bar band." The Commander has a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Michigan. His brother, an artist, did the cover art for his albums, including the classic psychedelic cover for "Ozone," the band's first album. And, he is one of the best boogie-woogie piano players I've ever heard. I used to hang out in a bar in Ann Arbor where the Lost Planet Airmen were the house band, back before they got famous. What a ride. 

Actually "Hot Rod Lincoln" was written & recorded 1st in 1955 by Charlie Ryan. Then rerecorded in 1960 by Johnny Bond. It wasn't until 1972 that Commander Cody's version hit the airwaves.