Ararat Shrine Swap Meet was the place to see a bulldog riding a rocket

If you woke up and realized you needed to buy some 8-track tapes, a Mack bulldog riding a ’56 Chevy rocket bolted to an International truck radiator shell, or the tail-end of a ’59 Buick that had been converted into a couch, where would you go?  Well, if it was last weekend, you could have acquired all of those treasures at the Ararat Shrine Swap Meet, of course.  Held at the Antique Show Fairgrounds in Lathrop, Mo., the swap meet had a little something for everyone.

Most of the merchandise was car parts, but there were some pretty nice complete cars as well.  One of the most intriguing was this ’69 El Camino.  The car was all there and very original.  Even the bed didn’t appear to have ever been repainted, and all the chrome garnish moldings were in good shape.  It did have a six cylinder under the hood, which was definitely a drawback.  But the owner claims that is was one of only 785 so-equipped, so if you want something unusual, there you go.  Based on the condition, it didn’t seem overpriced at $8,500.

Another really fun one to look at was this ’51 Cadillac Coupe DeVille.  The original paint was shot, and the interior had deteriorated beyond repair, but the old car was amazingly rust-free and straight.  It had some new radial tires on it, so someone was obviously using it, but it sure had a lot of potential.  That “patina” look is kinda cool, but just think about how pretty this thing would be if it were restored.  Whatever you decided to do with it, it was an excellent starting point.

Here’s a ’71 Fiat 500L.  People were all over this goofy little thing.  The owner was telling someone about the 45-mph top speed and how he sometimes pulled off the road to let people pass him.  Sounds like a real pleasure.  Of course, he was in the right place to sell it.  The Shriner swap meet means Shriners, and Shriners mean clowns.  I can’t think of a better market that might be willing to shell out $10,500 for an adorable little gum drop like this one.

This one is a ’58 Chevy Delray two-door sedan.  The body was all there, and not horribly rusty.  The interior was gutted.  This is a great body style, so the right guy could do some fun stuff with this.  I could see it finished stock, vintage NASCAR style, or even as a gasser.  Personally, I’d go with the mild eary-‘60s custom look.  It’s not like you’d really be destroying a nice car, so the sky’s the limit.  This car is like a blank canvas.

This swap meet has been held in various locations around Kansas City over the years, most recently the old Adesa Auction site in Lee’s Summit.  This Lathrop Antique Show Fairgrounds is something new, and it is really a cool place.  There are all kinds of old trains and farm equipment scattered around, and the perimeter is lined with old-fashioned buildings.  The Lathrop Antique Club is responsible for all the fun stuff there.  I would imagine that some people didn’t come to the swap meet because this location was so far north, but the locale made it worth the trip.

I took 179 pictures of things that I thought were interesting.  You can see them in the slideshow below.  Or click this link for a better version of the slideshow.