Have you ever watched Pawn Stars on reality TV channels before? Oh, you can even stream their episodes on YouTube. In the show, we see different people from different walks of life come in with their “treasures.” We see a man who happened to inherit a rare, old, and limited-edition dollar coin. We also see some people bring in instruments that were once used by legendary music icons and musicians. There are those who would bring in relics from the warring period – and many, many more. You can check the show out here: https://www.history.com/shows/pawn-stars. Also, you can check what you will need to know about automobile restoration.
It`s fun to see how the family who owns the shop appraises such items and negotiates with owners. It`s also really funny how they catch some troublemakers in the act as they reveal fakes and counterfeits. Who knew that history can cost so much, right?
Most of these objects are everyday items or old antiques that look “valueless” but they get so much attention and money because they hold a lot of history. In fact, they are history.
This is how important the concept of time and money is. Something you bought for $50 five decades ago may be worth $5,000 now. The time that has passed and the rarity of the object adds up to its value and there will come a point where what used to be “normal” will become “priceless.” This goes for all things: toys, figurines, signed apparel, signature brands, posters, and yes – even cars.
However, in order for an object of the past to actually hold some value, it needs to be kept in good shape. It should still reflect the same radiance it had decades ago while giving people a feeling of nostalgia.
If you do have a piece of history but fail to preserve its appearance, it`s still not going to sell very high. Again, you should watch the reality show if you want to really understand what I`m talking about.
In one of the episodes, I`ve seen the family buy a 1951 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe (which doesn`t really feel too old yet or at least it hasn`t hit the century milestone) for $37,000 (read more). You may think “But couldn`t you buy that car for way less than that?”
Well, yes. I bet we even still have a few of these models junked in some repair shops` garage. However, this 1951 car model was a little more special than the rest. It was once owned and used by Steve McQueen in his last film “The Hunter.” Having a celebrity-affiliation (a big one, at that), you can pretty much understand why the value has skyrocketed greatly.
To top it off, the car is in supreme condition. It`s a pastel yellow Styleline Deluxe that has been obviously preserved for a little less than 70 years. For that long a time, a car that has no upkeep whatsoever will look like a decaying, rusty-old tin can already. You can just imagine how much effort the owner put into preserving this historical car.
Why am I telling you all this? Am I some sort of marketing person from the reality TV show?
No. Although the idea of that isn`t half bad, I guess. Anyway, I`m telling you all these things because you, too, might have a vintage car in your garage just rotting away.
I don`t know how or why, maybe your grandpa gave it to you or maybe you got that piece of contraption as collateral or something. But no matter the reason, if you`ve got a car like that sitting and collecting dust in your garage, you`re letting precious money slip away.
Vintage cars are classic goodies. Many people (well, rich people who can afford them anyway) go cuckoo over old model cars and they are willing to pay a massive price for it. Remember the $37,000 1951 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe we were talking about earlier?
Rick Harrison, Pawn Stars` owner, sold the vehicle at an auction for $88,000. Yes, that`s just a dozen less a hundred grand. People are willing to pay that kind of money just to get their hands on a piece of history. Amazing, isn`t it?
Now, I know that this is getting you all excited but you should know that Automobile Restoration is a very delicate thing and you need skilled hands to work on your car. One wrong move and everything can go up in smoke. Luckily, there are many brilliant shops when you know where to look.
Anyway, the idea behind automobile restoration is to simply “restore.” It`s right there in its name. This means that as much as possible, you don`t want to lose the original features and characteristics of the car. You would want everything to look original. If you can restore all its original parts like its auto gauges and just preserve the whole thing, then it would be for the best.
Changing some parts may potentially harm its perceived value and you may have a hard time auctioning it later on. Vintage cars are named as such because they are meant to look “classic.” You don`t need to try hard and modernize them.
Many people appreciate the simplicity and nostalgic feel of vintage cars. All that`s left for you to do is make sure that you get a professional who knows his stuff and get your car in perfect running condition. Of course, restoring the paint and physical look of the car is part of the job as well.
Whether you`re planning to drive the vintage automobile around town or sell it off at an auction is your choice to make. Just take good care of it. Even if you don`t appreciate it much, other people do. Let`s all preserve history together!