Shopping for car stuff at the 2018 Stones River Swap Meet

For as long as I can remember, I have always loved going to the swap meet. I usually don’t even buy that much stuff, but I enjoy digging around looking for treasure. Last Sunday, the Stones River Swap Meet packed into the Tennessee State Fairgrounds beneath the shadow of the grandstands of the legendary Fairgrounds Speedway. Vendors brought in everything from car parts to wall art; model cars to project cars; worthless junk to priceless merchandise. The weather was a little cool and damp, but the line of people waiting at the ticket booth stretched to about a quarter mile. Turns out I’m not the only one that loves the swap meet.

Cars on display at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.

A new president takes office this week in our nation’s capital. And it so happens that we were recently in Washington, D.C., so I’m using this as a tie-in for a car-related story. The Smithsonian’s Museum of Transportation is usually included on lists of car museums, so naturally we had to go here. Truth be told, there weren’t many cars to look at, though. Cars are presented as appliances here. They have a collection of cool cars hidden in their catacombs, but they aren’t available for public viewing. Really, all of Washington, D.C. comes across as anti-car culture. The streets are jammed with hideous red and silver taxicabs, police cars, and black SUVs. Personal cars are typically rough, beat-up hoopties that reflect the harsh traffic and parking issues that clog the streets. I snapped a few pictures, though, and there are a few interesting things if you squint hard enough.

4th-Annual Tennessee Motorama keeps car show season alive

I moved to Nashville from Kansas City, and so far, the winter is considerably milder. Sure it gets pretty chilly, but I haven’t seen the snow, slop, and misery. The thing is, car show season gets over as soon, if not sooner here than it does in KC. Why not have some car cruises on through November and December? Come on, guys, let’s do this! Anyway, I was happy to see an announcement for the 4th-Annual Tennessee Motorama, which took place last weekend in Murfreesboro. This was an indoor event, although the rain probably kept some show cars away. But it was still a fair little car show and swap meet, and it was definitely something fun to do after a slow couple of months.

Shopping for vintage car toys and models in Wichita

If you’re into vintage car collectables, the Internet is a blessing and a curse.  On the plus side, someone will eventually offer anything you could possibly want up for sale no matter how rare it is.  But the likelihood that you’ll stumble upon a bargain is pretty remote.  And it really takes away from the fun of scrounging around to find that hidden treasure.  That’s why sometimes you need to get offline and check out the real world.  We did that last weekend when we stopped at the huge Mid-America Flea Market at the Kansas Coliseum and the Paramount Antique Mall in Wichita, Kan.  I found hundreds of interesting car models, toys, parts, and more. 

Convertible Dealer Promo models. Drop top fun no matter the weather

As I’m sitting here typing this, temperatures have dipped below zero here in Kansas City.  We are definitely not experiencing convertible weather.  But that doesn’t mean that we can’t check out some cool convertibles.  Back in the day, Dealer Promotional Models (often referred to as “Promos”) were 1/25th-scale replicas that depicted the colors and body styles that were available on new car showrooms.  They were often given or sold to prospective new car buyers or their kids, and they made a tangible reminder of just how stylish a new car could be.  So on this cold wintery day, I decided to focus on convertibles.  Many of these cars have belonged to my dad since they were new, while we picked up others along the way.  But we both enjoyed digging them out to present to you.

Itty-bitty Buicks. Models and toys of the Buick brand. BUICK WEEK

You don’t have to be a grown-up to develop a passion for Buicks.  Over the years, General Motors’ “Doctor’s Car” has been rendered in miniature hundreds of times.  What youngster wouldn’t want to imagine themselves in a powerful ’87 GNX or a luxurious ’53 Skylark?  With that in mind, today’s “Buick Week” entry examines all kinds of Buick scale models and toys.  Some of them may still be favorites among kids today.  Some of them may be full-fledged adult collectibles.  But they all convey the enthusiasm that people have had for the tri-shield brand over the years.

Tables of talent at the Heartland Model Car Nationals in Overland Park

Model cars are great, aren't they?  You can build or own anything you want, and it really doesn't matter how weird or crazy it is.  Nobody wants a '57 Chevy Bel Air with a six-cylinder in it, but put one in a model and it's kinda neat.  Likewise, most people don't have a stock-appearing V8 Chevette, but in a model, why the heck not?

For skilled model builders, the only thing that limits what gets produced is their imagination, and honestly, there aren't many restrictions on that.  So it can be a real treat to go where some of the best modelers in the Midwest have gathered to check out the Heartland Model Car Nationals.  As in most years, this was held at the Overland Park Convention Center, and there were lots of great models to see, critique, and even buy if you are so inclined.

1963-1968 Dealer promo model cars are like 1/25th-scale memories

I think dealer promotional models are fascinating little bits of automotive memorabilia. Most people can’t just go buy every old car they ever wanted, but many of those cars were rendered in bright, colored plastic, in the just perfect size to fit in your hand.

Dealer promotional models, or “promos,” as people like to call them, aren’t typically made for new cars these days. But 30-50 years ago, they were pretty popular. People anticipated the arrival of the newest models, and going to the dealership was considered an event. So while dads drooled over the latest creations from Detroit, his son was often treated to a highly detailed 1/25th-scale version of the actual car.

Corvette dealer promo models showcase America's Sports Car in 1/25th scale

Kids who love cars tend to gravitate toward car-related toys. Then, when they grow up, they often buy real cars. But sometimes, they still have a place in their hearts for the miniature cars they played with when they were kids, and a new form of automobile collecting strives.

Some of the most collectable, and often the most valuable, scale vehicles out there are dealer promotional models. For the purposes of this article, these will be limited to the plastic, 1/25th-scale cars that were originally sold or given away at new car dealerships.

Heartland Model Car Nationals. I won't be entering any time soon.

Every once in awhile, I like to work on a model car. And when I'm done, I usually think they look OK. But then I go to something like the Heartland Model Car Nationals, and I realize that my modeling talents have a long way to go.

Hosted by the KC Slammers modeling club, 2011 marks the 20th year for this model show and swap meet. The most talented model builders from the area, as well as some of the more prominent model car dealers from the Midwest, packed the Overland Park Convention Center for some small scale fun.

Chevrolet and the Indy 500 both turn 100, and the Chevy Camaro is once again the pace car

The Indianapolis 500 is held over Memorial Day weekend, so I figured it was time to do a little Indy 500 pace car trivia. Of course, Indy is the oldest running race in the U.S., and among the most respected in the world. More than any other, Chevrolet has been the car chosen to pace this historic event, including the past ten years consecutively. And even before that, brothers Louis and Arthur Chevrolet, competed in the very first Indianapolis 500 on May 30, 1911.

It may seem like the first Chevy Indy pace car was the 1967 Camaro, because that’s the one you seem to hear about the most. But actually, bowties took the helm twice before that. Way back in 1948, a Chevy Stylemaster convertible was used as the Indy pace car. This stately Stovebolt was appropriately decorated with colorful pace car graphics that encased the entire side of the car. Then in 1955, the first year of the popular small-block Chevy V8, a red and white Bel Air convertible led the field.

Picadillo. Pickin' car stuff at the Brass Armadillo

Even though we cover quite a few automotive events here, there are days that a car show, cruise, race, or swap meet just might not be scheduled. Great--then what are we supposed to do? Well, take a deep breath, we'll get through this together.

One way to spend a rainy day is to hit the local antique mall. Automotive memorabilia is pretty common within the rows of vendor spaces at most of these stores, and if you keep a sharp eye out, sometimes you can find some real treasures.

To illustrate that point, we went to one of the biggest antique malls in the Kansas City area, the Brass Armadillo in Grain Valley, Mo. The Iowa-based Brass Armadillo is actually an antique mall chain, with five locations throughout the country. The Kansas City store is a monster, with more than 42,000 square-feet and 500 dealers.

Pace car promos lead the way in 1/25th-scale racing collectables. Includes photos of rare and unusual models

Since the Daytona 500 is this weekend, and I'm feeling kind of racy, it seemed like a good time to take a look at some pace car promotional models. Plus, I Photoshopped all these picture montages, and they were sort of going to waste on the tiny format, popup-riddled Examiner page, so let's revisit them here.

If you're a scale model collector, pace car models may be a good place to direct your attention. Pace cars are interesting in-and-of themselves. They also fit in if you collect racecars or other racing memorabilia. And in the case of the examples shown here, they can be right at home in a promotional model collection.

'60 in scale. Dealer promo model cars from 1960. Can't buy the real car? Try a promotional model.

1960. Charlton Heston won an Academy Award for Ben Hur. The Flintstones first appeared on TV. And Elvis Presley returns from Germany after a two-year stint in the Army.

In the automotive world, designs were starting to get a little cleaner, a little more understated than the last couple of years. They're still big, chrome-encrusted, and glamorous, but you can see the impetus of the subdued '60s starting to take hold. Think about a '60 Cadillac. It's still very big. It still has big fins and a heavy chrome grill. But compared to a '59 Cadillac, it's a pretty sterile design.

If you like the transitional style of 1960, but can't afford a huge warehouse full of cars, there's a way to collect the year's greatest hits in the palm of your hand.

Dealer promo models - the early years. 1947 - 1953. The beginning of plastic promotional cars

1949 Oldsmobile Promo

If you have a promotional model car collection, the first question most people are going to ask you when they first see them is: “did you build all those?”

Dealer promos are among the most valuable, most sought-after scale model cars ever made. And yet, the average person has no idea what they are. Today, we’ll try to explain how promos fit into the scale model puzzle, and we’ll take a look at some early examples in the slideshow below.

Promo models were cast in pot metal for many years before our story starts. They were usually coin banks. These high-quality, durable miniatures were sold as far back as the 1920s or ‘30s, and nice originals tend to bring good money today.