Just my 2 cents, go for it. This was the day in the late 70's leaving California for Massachusetts. You can't see the tow bar in this picture, however I flat towed the Model A 31 Vicky with my 49 that was running a 56 Nailhead Buick back then. Not in the picture was an old Mercedes. I got 3 cars cross country in just over 3 days with 4 drivers. I have fine memories of that trip

 

That's so nice a pic Bill.

I saved it to my screen saver thing.

Thanks

 

Its funny, when we were young we just took off for anywhere with bald tires a leaky radiator, heck the car i had in High School , any gas over 1/2 tank ran rite out. And as carefree and stupid as we were everything always seed to work out fine, and now those are the memories we call the good ol days, LOL. But these days I over think everything, and consequently never, or rarly do anything worth mentioning. I think the guys may be right, this could be an adventure of a lifetime. Its easy for me sitting here to give anyone advise, so what ever you end up doing, have fun, be safe, and keep us posted.

 

The ironic thing is we were a lot more gung ho about just jumping in the car and shooting across the country before the age of cellphones, roadside service, GPS units, Onstar, Sync, etc. than we are now.

 

My then wife and I drove the freshly ebay purchased panel from NM to NC in two days. I had the truck checked out by the father of a friend, but I hadn't seen it except in pictures until we picked it up. Flew out there with a suitcase full of tools and a GPS equipped laptop. Would I do it again? Probably.

 

I read a quote someplace not too long ago, I don't if it was here or somewhere else, something like "The less life we have left the more we value it". We don't want to waste what we have, when we were younger we never thought about dying or getting into situations we would have to pay for later. I know we'd just throw some stuff in the back of my car with a tent and go off for the week end. Now my wife wants to pack half of the house to good some place where we'll be staying at a hotel.

That's why driving down to your house didn't really bother me. I had my GPS(a lot of good that did), my cell phone and towing insurance, none of which I had when I was young. One thing I might have more of than most is time. Being self-employed I do have a little leeway so if I broke down I could take an extra day or two to get back.

That's the way to do it. I know that my wife would never have gone along with that plan, she needs start and end dates, routes, names, numbers, but I would. That is a true adventure.

My all time favorite commentator was Charles Kuralt. I envied his job, he got paid to drive around to small town America and find human interest stories. HE GOT PAID TO DO IT!!! Now that would have been the job I would want. He had an adventure every week!!

 

All sounds great! I'm currently looking at different routes as well as recruiting a buddy to ride with me.

If it doesn't work out, I'm still looking at shipping. I looked at Stateway based on the comments earlier and it seems ok (although there are quite a few bad reviews). Any thoughts on DAS transport?

 

My son used DAS twice with excellent results. Deal directly with them, tho, not thru a broker.

 

Sounds good. They seem pretty on the ball w/ everything. I'll probably use them if I go that route. Next question, Open or Enclosed trailer? Obviously enclosed would be better, but is it really worth the extra $600? Can I just lash down a cover and put it on the open trailer?

 

IMO, a cover may not be a good idea.
Is the truck nice enough to warrant a cover?
If the cover were to work loose and start flapping at 70 mph, will the driver really see it or care? There will be some disclaimer about loose items. May or may not apply.
Will the transporter even allow a cover?
If your truck has to be repositioned on the transporter, will the driver want to play with a cover? Extra charge, perhaps.

If you decide to make the cross country drive, Know thy truck.
Has it been driven regularly?
If you know of any problems, rectify them prior to the trip.
Are you comfortable with the cruise speed of the truck?
Is the driveline modern enough that you can find parts in most towns?
Three hours is a good time to get out and move about.

And as I mentioned, and you found out, there are lots of horror stories and bad reviews. You have to go with your gut. Expect schedule flexibility.
Good luck with what you decide. We'll want to know if you make the trip.

 

I shipped my non running 49F1 from Ky to Florida with no trouble It was the 3rd car I shipped from Ky to Florida The other 2 were a running 71 Mustang MACH 1, and a non running 67 Mercury Cougar XR7. When I shipped I just rolled the dice and looked at shippers on the internet. I agree that I was quoted all over the place but took a quote in the middle and every thing went fine all 3 times

 

The new wife is doing great Never thought I would do this again, but have no regrets

 

Good for you Jeff.

 

And don't forget Missouri. I'm right in the center of the state and we have a newer member in the St. Louis area. There are couple just off I-44 in the Southwest of the state.
A cross country trip sounds cool. I would be willing to bet we could get you there without you having to get a hotel room.

 

I've had three cars shipped here to the west coast by Thomas Sunday. Great service and good drivers. Reasonable prices good equipment. Besides, he's my brother-in-law. No, just kidding, but Thomas Sunday himself did bring one out for me, a 1934 sedan. They started with a '55 Chevy hard top from Maine and then a '58 Corvette from New Orleans and last was the '34 Ford.
Always good service. No deposit, wrote him a check when the car arrived.Can't beat that. Always in covered vans and the cars were covered within the van.