HomeMy WebLinkAbout28th Huron Pioneer Thresher Reunion, 1989-09-06, Page 10PAGE A-10. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1989.
Restoring antique cars a valuable hobby
BY USA BOONSTOPPEL
Standing there, admiring the stylish and
distinctive good looks of the spectacle in
front of me, I am caught up in the old-day
charm when men were dapper and the
ladies glamorous What sight can so easily
arouse this scene of another time and
lifestyle? Nothing like the antique cars on
display at the Blyth Thresher’s Reunion.
These historic cars have been restored
from the run-down, decrepit machines they
were while sitting in old sheds or fields to
the magnificent automobiles they were in
their hey-dey.
But the restoration process is a time
consuming and expensive endeavor. One
man who knows this and is still dedicated
to the art of preserving antique automo
biles is Murray Hall of Wingham.
Mr. Hall fell in love with old cars when
he was 16 years old. His friend was
restoring a 1931 Pontiac Coupe and he
thought that car had such a nice body style,
he wanted one for himself. So when he
came across a 1929 Model A Ford Coupe,
he was going to buy it. Unfortunately he
only had $40 to his name and the car was
selling for $50 and since nobody would lend
him the money, he watched the car of his
dreams being sold to somebody else.
Finally when he was 18, he had saved up
a little money and jumped into the
restoring business with two feet buying
two dilapidated old cars. “Everybody said
I was crazy,” he remembers but from that
day on he has been buying, selling and
restoring old cars and now at age 46, he
has a collection of antique cars that
anybody would envy.
The prize of his collection is a 1932 De
Soto Roadster. The car was built by
Chrysler and is one of the 17 of these cars
left in the world said Mr. Hall. The car is
worth about $40,000 and it cost Mr. Hall
approximately $34,500 to fix it up. It took
seven years to restore, but the restoration
was worth it said Mr. Hall who won 12
trophies for the car in its first year of
showing.
Murray's masterpiece
Standing proudly beside the prize of his collection is Murray original charm but the rewards were worth it said, Mr. Hall,
Hall of Wingham, the owner and restorer of this 1932 De Soto who won 12 trophies for theantique showpiece in its first year of
Roadster. It took seven years to restore this beauty to its competition.
He’s also restored a 1914 Model T Ford
Touring of which there are about 12 left in
Ontario. It cost only $6,000 to restore and is
now worth about $15,000 and it took about
20 years of off-and-on work to complete. A
1956 Cadillac, Sedan De Ville and 1964
Chrysler Imperial Convertible along with a
1948 Lincoln Continental Coupe with a
V-12 engine round out his collection.
Once Mr. Hall has acquired an antique
car, he has a step-by-step restoration
process. “The first thing you do is join the
club for the appropriate car,” he said.
There are clubs for all different cars which
usually originate from the United States.
Mr. Hall belongs to a variety of clubs
because each club puts out a monthly
publication containing information on the
cars, experts who will give advice on
restoring the car, and most valuable, free
advertising to sell or buy parts.
The next thing Mr. Hall does is check the
car and remove anything that isn’t original.
“If the car isn’t restored authentically,
then it isn’t worth top dollar,” he said.
Next, he cleans the automobile of all dirt
and debris and begins to take a sharp look
at it for all the things the car is missing and
Continued on page A-ll
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