Found this scrolling through eBay...
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1948-1952-F...-1:rk:158:pf:0
How can he possibly afford to feed himself selling such rare parts for so cheap??

 

That IS cheap, compared to valves. I'm glad all of mine were good.

 

 

Sold a set to a guy in Canada for what i think its fair looked like he needed them and i had to sets..
cost me more time, sweat, blood, gas to dismount,crate and ship tho..
Now i need that set for my vannete..
i am trying to modify a set of window maker centers to newer hoops.
i have a pair of 16"s 8 lug
a set of 17.5 one piece
a set of 17"chevy 3 piece 8 lug
and keeping them all..

 

 

Very true Stu, very true

 

I have a set in about the same shape sitting on a pallet in my shed right now. I also have a parts for my '37 Buick that show up all of the time on the 'Bay. If I felt like selling everything I had I'm sitting on a small fortune. The problem is it seems every time I try to sell parts, especially the parts everyone says are hard to find no one wants to pay for them, especially after tacking on shipping costs. Like you said Stu, it seems like no one realizes what we go through to get the parts. If I could get half of what the eBayer is asking they would be gone. The other funny part is parts everyone whines about not being able to find and they they looked for years for they don't want to pay a decent price for.

 

Ive got a set of those as well from a f2. I didnt think they were all that hard to find? Maybe i should start collecting again. Ive probably passed up a few here and there.
when i first picked up my f1 i was looking for the original. 5 lug 16" wheels and couldnt find any. Then finally found a nice set with roller tires that where nearly as old as the wheels were.
.then after i got the first set they multiplied like rabbits somehow. A couple years ago I took 4 or 5 sets to a swap meet and sold all of them.
still have a couple extras for spares.

I have a set of the 3/4 ton 19.5"s that i was saving for a project. Makes me wonder what those would be worth if the 16"s are that much!!

 

eBay is a funny place. I've bought parts there that I will see the same, many time in worse condition, sell for 3-4-5 what I paid for the same item two months before. My favorite happened maybe ten years ago. Some guy bought new stainless grill bars for the '48-50, at the time they sold new for around $200. He didn't like the way they looked on his truck and want to get rid of them. He started the bidding at $50 so for the heck of it I toss $65 as my top bid. I got them for $50 because no one bid on them. Honestly, about a month later another guy, same story had a set on. This time he listed the new price, where you could buy them and even stated the price for the new set. He started the bidding at $50-60, they sold slightly over $200, more than he pay Carpenter or wherever he bought them from. I've run into a lot of deals like that on the 'Bay. I don't know if it's because I put the first bid in and everyone else figured the first bidder wanted them and would pay whatever for the parts and decided it wasn't worth the fight, I don't know. I've also listed items on there that I knew were worth a decent buck, starting the bidding on the low side just to encourage the bidding to start and only got the one low bid.

 

 

I usually start my auction close to what I want to sell the item at for fear that it might be a slow week and enough Ford truck guys haven't looked at eBay..... Then if my stuff didn't get a bid for say 2 weeks of auction I'll put it as a Buy it Now sale and after a while offer Best Offer.

I have bought some truck and car stuff on eBay at really low prices that I really didn't need.... they were just a great buy. And I've sold them at Carlisle or eBay for profit.

 

I'm pretty sure those 16's are being offered from the same guy that was offering a set of 19.5's a while back for big money. I think I have started to look at things different these days, if I don't know you from a hill of beans I'm gonna shoot you a price so high that you will walk. And if you don't walk you will pay. But if I know you in some fashion and I have multiplies of some good hard to find stuff I am more than willing to help out. My son and I just had this conversation last night, guy in NJ is looking for a good cab, doors, hood and grill. I have extra of all but I'm not going to blow a truck apart to supply the cab and spend all the time and effort to "help" someone I know nothing about. My son Ryan sees money, I see alot of work for little payback. Most of my stuff now I value at higher than stupid price, it's valued at NOT FOR SALE. So if someone has wheels, at least his are for sale. Stu also brings up a good point about expenses while gathering parts. We have spent an entire day on the road, or a day at an auction, multiple tanks of gas, pull a trailer, etc, etc, etc. I never figure in those cost because I'm spending time with family and friends but it all has value. You either pay on the front end, or pay on the back end.

 

There is a person on eBay who has a business selling vintage Buick parts at outrageous prices. If you check their selling history they sell at least 90% of their parts. The Buick guys all know about this person and like members here know the real value of these parts and know other sources to find better deals and avoid this seller. This seller is known to go around to these lower priced sources, buy up whatever parts they have at a low price and then sell everything for 3-4 times on eBay. The Buick guys avoid this seller but my theory is this person is known to have the a restorer needs. We all seem to have a network to find parts, we know Ford trucks inside and out just like the Buick guys, but restoration shops don't usually concentrate on one marque, they don't have the time or inclination to seek out networks for each individual cars in their shop. Space is money in a shop and they want their customers' project out of their shop ASAP so they're willing to pay the bucks to get the parts. Their customers want their vehicles and are also willing to pay more to get them done. If an owner wants to pinch pennies they wouldn't sent their vehicle off to the shop to begin with. The guy with the wheels has a fairly decent chance to sell to someone who really just wants the wheels and don't really care what it'll cost.

 

You have some 19.5's??
Here's an idea Josh!




I bought some 'outie' 8-lug 16" wheels for the '49 and am struggling trying to fit the stock hubcaps in a way that will stay on. I should have looked longer for stock 'innie' wheels to take up all the space in the F3 wheel wells.
Tom