all the "suitable cars" for some restoration

[kenny38]

Good cars must be getting thin on the ground (and I mean GOOD) as the cars for sale to some Advert poor bugger needing court intervention are starting to appear on the Forum. Needing only some attention to the front end (wherever that is) suspension needs work "some" body work to bring upto quality. Strangely nearly all these "bargains" for the home handy man, mechanic have languished unloved in "storage" though probably at the side of some semi detatched on a sink pit estate originally designed for working class brides to achieve middle class status. Eventually after many years of being unloved or even thought about these Jensen's are emerging slowly, blinking in the light and bits falling off. Advertised as "needing only some work" etc they await the first mug to toss around 20K (would have taken 5K, 5 years ago) at the bluff, honest type who always needs the space and work gets in the way......no time.
They are all coming out and with the work ,probally of an expensive proffesional nature you can expect to eventually return the vehicle under your tarp to await your turn for the welcome sound of your mobile ringing and a hopeless voice practically begging to join the Jensen hard luck forum (is there one?) Beware. When did you last see AM's or similar advertised as "ideal"etc. That's why our car values have struggled. Our cars are seen, generally, to be hobbyist's cars and unreliable.Ban forum advertising for ideal for resto etc. It's a bad look. Send them to magazines for barn finds and buyers who probably bite their toe nails. Most of the cars advertised on the forum would probably get 5k from Duncan on a reasonable day. Now for another nice pill and a spell under the duvee. Kenny38

[felixkk]

I‘m not sure why you say that our cars are struggling? My brother in law collects and restores handcars. Or maybe I need to raise my expectations?

C0E25CBD-BF29-4728-8E15-7E86652CE9F4.jpeg (15.2 KiB) Viewed 1726 times

[kenny38]

Felix, you old goat, you nearly had me there. Kenny38

[felixkk]

You think I'm kidding? He has at least half a dozen and does complete restorations of them. Sometimes he is allowed to take them on the tracks. We usually end up sitting next to each other at family events, so I know quite a bit about handcars. He too has a very tolerant wife.

[VFK44]

Is this a European thing? I know they were quite popular in remote parts of the USA as personal transport. Our local Village Hall cinema is showing the silent Buster Keaton movie "The General" soon - I always wanted a handcar once I'd seen him using one in this film, so I'll be in the audience!

[Grant]

I had on of these and the Wheels fell off

[felixkk]

Is this a European thing? I know they were quite popular in remote parts of the USA as personal transport.

They were used by the railway company to check the tracks. In the mountains they were used to check the lines, possibly daily, in the early morning for boulders, avalanches or other debris before the first train would set off. Not sure how they were used in the States. He also has two from Sweden.

There‘s also a sled like version for steep tracks, pretty scary as I'm told.

My brother in law has often referred to a Website from the UK, run by a lady (!):

http://www.velocipedes.co.uk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[felixkk]

... but back to the original topic. What I meant to say with the handcar hobby that I'm not sure the comparison to AM is all that appealing, at least to me. Many (most?) things become a bit lame and boring once they‘ve achieved a commercial success.

[RAP72]

some AM make you smile.