Monday, December 21, 2020

Packard "Ask the man who owns one”


 Packard
"Ask the man who owns one” 




1933 Packard Eight Coupe Roadster 



Not many years after it’s founding in 1899, Packard Motor Car Company   established itself as America's premier fine car maker, as it claimed over 50% of the luxury market by the time the “Tenth Series” was introduced in 1933 as “the greatest Packards ever built.” 
However, the Depression brought with it slumping sales of luxury cars but Packard hoped to increase sales by stretching the product line into three distinct groups– the Eight, the Super Eight, and the Twelve.

Even as Packard's entry-level model, the Eight was still well and truly a full luxury car. With a 320-cubic inch 120-horsepower aluminum-‘L’ head straight-8 cylinder engine with down-draft carburetor and full synchronized transmission, the 1933 Packard Eight provided exceptional performance and was considered a performance car of the era for those who could afford them. 
The sales price for the 1933 Packard Eight series automobile started at $2,150, at a time when the average family earned $2,956 annually in taxable income, and for comparison, a new 1936 Plymouth Six sold for $445. 
   

Fewer than 5,000 examples of the “Tenth Series” Packard were produced and of that total, only 1800 Packard Eights were built,  spread over fourteen different body styles. 
As displayed at the Blackhawk Museum, this two-tone red 4-passenger Coupe Roadster, a body style which was offered only in 1933, rides on a 127-1/2 inch wheelbase features a rumble seat, side-mounted spare tire, white wall tires and Trippe driving lights.

Trippe lights, sold and installed by Packard dealers, were mounted on the bumper bar and were fixed as opposed to the more expensive “self-steering” Pilot Ray lights which moved in concert with the with the front wheels through a series of linkages   
This car, which was listed for sale for $325,000, previously received the Classic Car Club of America (CCCA) National First Place Award and a 100-point Senior Award.




1934 Packard Super Eight Dual Cowl Sport Phaeton

In 1934, Packard introduced the “Eleventh Series” which maintained the three distinct products lines – the Eight, the Super Eight and the Twelve. This car also displayed at the Blackhawk Museum is a Super Eight, ,shared the same chassis as the twelve-cylinder cars, and in the case of this car, rides on a 142-inch wheelbase.

This car is powered by the Packard 385-cubic inch straight eight cylinder L-head engine with aluminum alloy pistons that produced 145 horsepower connected to a three-speed synchro-mesh transmission. Packard factory literature indicated that customers could expect to travel ten miles per gallon of gasoline under average conditions. 
Before leaving the factory 'Super Eight 'engines were run-in with an electric motor for nine hours then run on a dynamometer for one hour and 15 minutes. After the engine was installed in the chassis, the car was given a road test at the Packard Proving Grounds 

The striking four-passenger deluxe dual-cowl sport phaeton body was built in the 22-acre body plant inside the mile-long Packard factory.  As is typical of the era, this is not an all-steel body rather kiln-dried hardwoods are used for the supporting structure of the 19-gauge (7/16th inch) steel body panels. Packard literature stated that a composite body was lighter than an equivalent all-steel body and less prone to rattles and squeaking.




This car, retailed from the factory for a base price of $3,440 is equipped with chrome plated wire wheels which sold for $32 each and a pair of side-mounted tire mirrors at $16  for the pair.  
The dual trumpet horns were a standard feature introduced for the eleventh series, and the new-for-1934 fender lights are mounted on the redesigned eleventh series fenders with improved gutter construction on the underside of the fender to prevent water being thrown up at high speeds.

Packard Motor Car survived the Depression and emerged from World War Two production in solid financial condition, but management made some key mistakes by using the same styling on the lower and upper priced models. 
Packard continued to lead in fine car sales until 1950, but as the decade of the nineteen fifties continued, Packard sales declined perhaps because Packard still offered straight eight engines while the market had moved onto V-8 engines. 
In 1954 Packard merged with Studebaker but that marriage proved disastrous, with the last “true” Packard was built in Detroit in June 1956, and the Packard brand name disappeared altogether in 1959.    
All photos by the author


Friday, December 18, 2020

Donations to Northern California Auto Racing now can be made online

 


The author is a proud supporter of Northern California Auto Racing Inc. (NCAR) a non-profit charitable 501(c)3 Corporation that has the goal of creating a museum and Hall of Fame to honor Northern California auto racers.

Click to expand 

Recently, the Giving Edge website accepted NCAR, so donors can make their pledge of support online at https://www.bigdayofgiving.org/ncar825







Thursday, December 17, 2020

Carbon Fiber Shock Guards

 

Carbon Fiber Shock Guards


Photo courtesy of EPARTTRADE

Ebbco Offroad run by 2001 USAC Western States midget champion Danny Ebberts introduced its line of Carbon Fiber Shock Guards, from are designed to protect your shock shafts and prevent dirt and mud from getting into coil springs which will change the spring rate. 

These guards are made from high quality carbon fiber, vacuum bagged for strength and weight. Cleanly bolts to supplied mounting ring with hardware. EBBCO also offers carbon fiber wheel covers.

Check out EBBCO’s website at https://ebbcooffroad.com/

Monday, December 14, 2020

Hood Ornaments


Hood Ornaments



The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show is not just about wild custom cars and hot rods, it is also a market place for replacement and accessory parts. Let's look at an example. 


   

Early cars had exposed radiators, and in the first decade of the last century (the 1910's), the Boyce MotoMeter Company marketed and sold a patented radiator cap with a thermometer that was visible to the driver. Through the years, exposed radiator caps became more stylized.  




Eventually automotive design advanced such that the car’s hood covered the radiator, but hood ornaments remained as automobile manufacturers’ symbols.  A market was created for the supply of accessory mascots available to anyone who wanted to add a hood ornament or car mascot to their automobile.



Although modern cars no longer have  hood ornaments,  This form of automotive art is still available for the classic car market as displayed at the KNS Accessories booth at the 2019 SEMA show.






KNS offers a complete antique car parts website –check them out at https://knsacc.com/


All photos by the author 


Friday, December 11, 2020

Copper trimmed 1924 T-Bucket

 CFR limited edition copper series 1924 T-bucket 




CFR Performance in Ontario, California built this 1924 T-bucket several years ago and it has appeared in the CFR booth at the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) show multiple times, the last time in 2016 to introduce CFR’s new LS motor accessory parts line.




This year, the car was updated once again for the SEMA360 'Battle of the Builders' to introduce the company’s new CFR limited edition copper series of LS engine accessories which includes the valve covers, valley plate and intake scoop. 




Check out the full line of CFR copper dress-up accessories at https://www.cfrperformance.com/category_s/49859.htm


Friday, December 4, 2020

Thriller custom from SEMA360

 

Thriller Custom


 

The 1970 Plymouth Sport Satellite nicknamed “Thriller” was built by Randy Weaver of Weaver Customs in West Jordan, Utah and appeared in the SEMA360 virtual Battle of the Builders showcase.   




The top of the 900-horsepower supercharged SRT Hellcat Gen III Hemi V-8 peeks through the hood.  All that horsepower passes through a T-56 manual six-speed transmission and to the rear wheels through a narrowed Ford 9-inch rear end.




The car rides on a Scotts Hotrods independent front suspension and a triangulated four-link rear suspension with a Watt’s link.  Wilwood disc brakes provide the stopping power tucked inside a set of EVOD Industries three-piece wheels wrapped in Mickey Thompson rubber.




JS Custom Interiors in Salt Lake City handled the interior work with Hyde’s leather offset with billet accessories.   The dash is filled with Dakota Digital VHX-1023 instruments and a digital touch screen to run the Kicker audio system. The custom center console houses a Dakota Digital DCC-series controller for the Vintage Air climate package, and custom made billet shifter reminiscent of the Pistol Grip shifter made famous in the nineteen seventies Chrysler Corporation muscle cars.


All photos courtesy of SEMA 

Sunday, November 29, 2020

Forgeline RS5 wheel

 

Forgeline RS5 Heritage Series wheels


 Forgeline Wheels introduced the Heritage Series RS5 ‘old school cool with a modern twist’ wheel at SEMA360, the 2020 virtual trade show for Specialty Equipment Market Association.

Designed in collaboration with Roadster Shop, the Forgeline RS5 offers a retro 5-spoke design reminiscent of the iconic 1960s “mag wheel” and even includes the period-matching machined bolt-on “flat cap” center cap to complete the authentic vintage vibe.




The RS5 is a custom, made-to-order, three-piece wheel produced from forged 6061-T6 aluminum centers with heat-treated rim-shells and American-made stainless-steel ARP fasteners. Just like any Forgeline wheel, the RS5 is fully customizable in fitment and finish. The RS5 is available with a flat lip reverse outer in 18 inch, 19 inch, and 20 inch sizes and features a standard powder coated center finish with a polished outer rim.

Check out the entire line of Forgeline Wheels at https://forgeline.com

Monday, November 23, 2020

Need more power?


Need more power?




There was a lot of buzz around this engine displayed at the ARP booth at the 2019 PRI  (Performance Racing Industry) show. Developed and sold by Sixteen Power LLC, this 16-cylinder beast is available in several configurations – normally aspirated in 900, 1200 or 1400 horsepower, twin-supercharged, as shown, to produce 1600 horsepower, or fitted with four turbochargers designed to develop 2000 horsepower.



The 854-cubic inch 16-cylinder low-pressure sand-cast aluminum block is topped with four aftermarket Generation 5 LT1 cylinder heads and a pair of superchargers on a custom intake manifold.   The engine assembled at Katech Inc. using all ARP fasteners, reportedly costs more than $100,000.

Check out the websites:



https://arp-bolts.com








Monday, November 16, 2020

1971 Plymouth Barracuda custom

 1971 Plymouth Barracuda custom 


This beautiful 1971 Plymouth Barracuda custom was built by Andy Leach and his crew at Cal Automotive Creations in Bennington, Nebraska for owner Kent Matranga was entered in the SEMA360 virtual "Battle of the Builders Contest" presented by the Specialty Equipment Market Association and reached the Top 12 finalists.




Underneath the tastefully modified bodywork painted by Charley Hutton with PPG Paints "Bronze Fire metallic" is the 700-horsepower supercharged Hellcat 6.2 liter Hemi engine hooked to a Bowler T56 six-speed transmission.




The ‘Cuda rides on 18-inch diameter x 8-inch wide EVOD wheels up front  and massive 20-inch diameter by 10-inch wide EVOD wheels in the rear with Baer brakes at all four corners.


Photos courtesy of SEMA

Friday, November 13, 2020

Battle of Builders finalist - 1971 Ford Ranchero

 

1971 Ford Ranchero custom 




Automotive enthusiasts have long debated whether Ford’s Ranchero is a car, a truck or something in between, but this beautifully detailed fifth-generation 1971 Ford Ranchero built by Randy Borcherding, owner of the Painthouse in Cypress, Texas is classified as a “street truck.”  




Designed by Keith Kaucher of Kaucher Kustoms the Ranchero was named one of the top 12 finalists in the SEMA360 “Battle of the Builders” contest.




Powered by a 351-cubic inch Ford Cleveland V-8 engine, the 1971 Ford rides on Schott  'kidney bean' style custom wheels. The Painthouse finished it with  a custom shade from PPG Paints before they shipped it to Stich by Stich Custom Designs in Cookeville Tennessee to complete the interior.



All photos courtesy of SEMA 

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

1968 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S custom at SEMA360

 

1968 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S custom at SEMA360



Garret Kitchen of Garret's Rod Shop in Columbus Ohio entered this 1968 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S owned by Byron Spade called the "Hemi-S Barracuda” in the SEMA360 Battle of the Builders contest, the 2020 virtual trade show for the Specialty Equipment Market Association. (SEMA).



The Barracuda rides on an Art Morrison Sport Frame with a RideTech Ride Pro suspension system and Wilwood brakes. The car painted with two shades of Axalta Tungsten Gray in two shades.



Power comes from a Gen-III Mopar
 6.1L Hemi topped by a Magnuson TVS2300 supercharger backed by Tremec manual six-speed gearbox. The “Hemi-S” rolls on Billet Specialties wheels fitted with Falken Azenis tires.  




Recovery Room Interiors in Plattsmouth, Nebraska finished the eye-searing red interior and the dashboard with Custom Classic Instruments gauges.  This beauty was built using the Ron Francis Wiring ‘Express Wiring Kit.’  Check out the vendor website at  https://www.ronfrancis.com/


Photos provided by SEMA

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

eCrate - the future of hot rodding

 The electric future of hot rodding?

eCrate 




At SEMA360, the 2020 virtual trade show for the Specialty Equipment Market Association, Chevrolet introduced a 1977 K5 Blazer converted to all-electric drive. The K5 Blazer-E is a functional proof of concept of the upcoming Electric Connect and Cruise package Chevrolet Performance plans to sell in the second half of 2021.

“As GM introduces a new fleet of electric vehicles, it creates an exciting opportunity to bring EV technology to the aftermarket,” said Jim Campbell, GM U.S. vice president of Performance and Motorsports. “Our vision is to offer a comprehensive line of Connect and Cruise systems from Chevrolet Performance, delivering a solution for every customer ranging from LSX V-8s to eCrate conversions.”

The new K5 Blazer-E retains as much of the stock Blazer as possible and approximately 90% of the new parts installed for the eCrate package are factory components from the Chevrolet Bolt EV. To convert the 19977 K5 Blazer, the team first removed the original 175-hp 400-cid V-8, three-speed automatic, fuel system and exhaust.




The team installed a Bolt EV electric motor, delivering 200 hp and 266 lb.-ft. of torque, paired with a Chevrolet Performance electronically controlled four-speed automatic. The rest of the Blazer drivetrain remains untouched, including the transfer case, driveshaft and axles.

Power is supplied by a 400-volt Bolt EV battery pack with 60 kilowatt-hours of usable energy installed in the cargo area. Using production controllers and wiring harnesses preserves many Bolt EV features, including shock protection, battery heating and cooling, battery-overcharge protection and even regenerative braking.

To prepare for the eCrate launch, Chevrolet Performance is certifying Electric Connect and Cruise installers. Participating Chevrolet dealers and aftermarket companies will receive the training, tools and equipment needed to work with high-voltage systems and charging stations to service customers’ vehicles.

The 60-kWh Electric Connect and Cruise package available in the second half of 2021, will include the 60-kWh battery pack, the DC-to-AC power inverter to drive the electric motor, the DC-to-DC power converter to power low-voltage systems and wiring harnesses, controllers and water pumps for battery heating and cooling.


Photos and build details provided by Chevrolet 



Tuesday, October 20, 2020

Chip Ganassi to be Featured Speaker during Online Race Industry Week

 

Chip Ganassi to be 

Featured Speaker 

during Online Race Industry Week


photo courtesy of CGR


Chip Ganassi, one of the most successful as well as innovative race team owners anywhere in the world, has joined the impressive, growing list of featured webinar speakers during EPARTRADE.com Online Race Industry Week, scheduled for November 30 to December 4.

Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) teams have won nineteen championships since 1990 including six of the seven most iconic races in the world of auto racing  - with wins in the Indianapolis 500 (4), Daytona 500 (1), the Brickyard 400 (1), 24 Hours of Le Mans (1), Rolex 24 At Daytona (8) and the 12 Hours of Sebring (1). 

"We are putting together several webinars with subjects about the state of the racing industry today, and we're honored and excited to get the insights of someone like Chip Ganassi for Online Race Industry Week," said Judy Kean, co-founder of EPARTRADE. "This is going to be a jam-packed week for racing professionals!"

There is no charge to attend. Follow this link to register for the week of Zoom meetings: 

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_TdoGM04ZRxq6Ze3MPeInbQ

Friday, October 16, 2020

BIGFOOT 20 ELECTRIC MONSTER TRUCK


BIGFOOT 20 ELECTRIC MONSTER TRUCK




Bigfoot 20, the first electric monster truck, was on display at the 2019 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show.



Three banks of 10 ODYSSEY® batteries power the custom electric motor for a total of 360 Volts. There are six additional batteries that power the brakes and steering systems. The 36 batteries weigh over 1,300 pounds minuscule  compared to the vehicle's total weight of 13,000 pounds. 

The car-crushing Bigfoot 20 rides on four 1050/50R25 - 66-inch by 43-inch x 25-inch Firestone radial flotation tires. 




Each of the ODYSSEY® PC1200 batteries weighs 38 pounds and provide 1,200 five-second pulse hot cranking amps (PHCA), as well as 540 cold-cranking amps (CCA), 78 minutes of reserve capacity and 400 cycles of deep cycle capability at 80 percent depth of discharge (DOD).



Bigfoot 20, which uses Ford bodywork and weighs 11,000 pounds originally debuted at the 2012 SEMA show.

All photos by the author 





Friday, October 9, 2020

F & F - the forgotten auto manufacturer

 


F & F  - a forgotten auto manufacturer



One of the United States’ largest automobile manufacturers in the decades of the nineteen fifties and sixties - from 1950 through 1967 - was based in Dayton, Ohio.  Readers are forgiven if they are not familiar with the name of F & F Mold & Die Works Incorporated because the vehicles they manufactured were made of plastic and only 3-1/4 inches long, but in 1991, an article in the Dayton Daily News pointed out that “at one time F & F made more plastic Fords than the automaker.“    

German emigres John and Joseph Fiedler came to the United States in 1927 and founded Fiedler & Feidler (later shortened to F & F) Mold & Die Works in Dayton Ohio in 1938 in a shop behind the family home at 34 Pierce Street in Dayton. By 1942, the busy with war work, the company moved into a two-story building at the corner of Sachs and Pruden Streets also in East Dayton.  

Joseph’s son, Otto Fiedler, who was born December 1919 in Nuremberg Germany, graduated from Fairmont High School in Dayton then attended Harvard College on a scholarship and  graduated in 1940 in the same class as a young man named John F. Kennedy. Otto came home to Dayton, registered for the draft and studied sculpture at the Dayton Art Institute.    

After he graduated from the Art Institute in 1942, he entered the military and during World War II Otto served in the U.S. Army counter-intelligence division. In 1946 he returned home to Dayton and oversaw the installation and start-up of F & F’s three new plastic injection machines in the new facility at 103 Sachs Street in East Dayton. At first, the company manufactured imitation tortoise shell plastic purses, but the following year they made plastic refrigerator dishes and ice cube trays.  

In that era, many food consumers purchased a boxed product then sent an order form on the package together with a small amount of money to redeem for a special premium item. In 1947 on the hunt for new business, F&F attended food industry trade shows and displayed a line of plastic premiums for buyers’ consideration.

At one trade show, a representative of the Quaker Oats Company asked Otto if F & F could design and manufacture an Aunt Jemima themed item that could sell for about 50 cents. F & F eventually made 16 million of Otto’s Aunt Jemima syrup pitchers, the first of many Aunt Jemima themed items that F & F made through the years.   

The company also manufactured large and small plastic novelty salt and pepper sets, sugar and creamer sets, spice holders and cookie jars.  Later the company found a niche making novelty plastic mugs that pictured Roy Rogers, Mr. Quaker, Tony the Tiger, Yogi Bear, Dennis the Menace, the Flintstones, and many more for General Mills, Post Cereals, Kool-Aid, and Quaker Oats.

F & F Mold and Die Works entered the scale automobile cereal premium business with plastic cars wrapped in cellophane that were larger than model railroad HO (1/87) scale and smaller than model railroad O scale (1/43). Their debut premium car, for the Kellogg Company, was a 1950 Ford four door sedan with a magnet cemented inside on the underside of the roof. The car rode on white wheels and tires with metal axles.


For 25 cents and the mail-in proof of purchase card, customers received a metal ring and a Ford Sedan in one of three colors – orange, yellow or blue. The idea was that the ring attracted the magnet, and allowed the user to move the car without touching it, although over time, the magnet often became separated from the car.  The same car without the “Ford” logo on the hood, and sans the ring and magnet was offered in blue and red in 1951.


With its business growth, F & F rented second-floor warehouse space in a building on Pine Street in Dayton.  All the Pine Street inventory was destroyed by fire in September 1951. Four young neighborhood boys admitted to playing with matches which started the fire which destroyed $54,000 of F & F inventory and cost the life of one Dayton firefighter, Clarence Dunkman, who died on the scene of a heart attack. 

During this period, F & F Mold and Die Works rented an old tobacco warehouse in Verona Ohio, northwest of Dayton, and expanded its manufacturing operations. The Verona facility grew to employ nearly 100 workers working three shifts at its peak in 1955.






F & F offered a huge product line in 1954 for Post cereal with both Ford and Mercury toy automobiles, with ten cars total in each of seven different colors which simulated the real car colors. The Ford models included the Thunderbird convertible, Crestline Sunliner, Victoria and 4-Door Sedan, the Customline Club Coupe, and the Ranch Wagon.

The F & F four-car 1954 Mercury line included the XM-800 Dream Car (prized by collectors), and the Monterey 4-Door Sedan, Sports Coupe and Convertible. Joseph Fiedler, Otto’s father and one of the founders of F & F passed away in March 1954 at only 56 years of age. Otto and his uncle John carried on with management of the F & F Mold and Die Works. 

For 1955, F & F manufactured five different 1955 Ford premium cars – the Thunderbird convertible, Fairlane Crown Victoria and Sunliner convertible, Customline 2-Door Sedan, and the Country Sedan Wagon, each in one of five colors.



In 1956, the Post cereal premiums moved away from cars with Ford tractor cabs and five varieties of Fruehauf trailers - freighter, moving van, tanker, gooseneck, and flatbed. The trucks and trailers came in four different colors appeared on the scene with either black or white wheels. The rigs came in four colors - orange, red, yellow and aluminum. F & F also manufactured two styles of Greyhound busses, both cast in blue and two styles of boats in five color-and-white combinations. 


In 1957 F & F created and built five new Ford models. The Ford Custom 300 2-Door Sedan Fire Chief are and the Ford Country Sedan Wagon Ambulance came in red only.   The rest of the 1957 Ford F & F lineup - the Custom 4-Door Sedan,  Fairlane 500 Town Victoria, Fairlane 500, and the Fairlane Sunliner  came in one of seven colors which mimicked  real Ford colors - Coral Sand, Dresden Blue, Inca Gold, Cumberland Green, Colonial White, Silver Mocha, and Flame Red.  

For 1959, there were only two cereal premium models - the Ford Thunderbird hardtop or the convertible which F & F manufactured in six colors - Raven Black, Brandywine Red, Cordovan, Flamingo, Starlight Blue (nearly black), and Glacier Green. Instead of a mail-away premium, the Thunderbird cars came packaged inside the cereal boxes.




During 1959, the Food and Drug Administration enacted new consumer safety rules which prohibited packages of food items from containing premiums with metal parts.   F & F changed the design to white plastic one-piece wheel and axles in order to comply with the new rule. The other big change in 1961 was that the cars were not Fords but Plymouths.  The three models offered were the Fury Convertible and Sports Coupe, and the Suburban Station Wagon, each one of six different colors.

F & F returned to building Fords in 1961 with three Thunderbird models – the Sports Roadster, the convertible and hardtop, each in one of five colors. In December 1962 F & F suffered another disastrous fire, this one at the Sachs Street facility which Fire Department investigators determined was caused by a carelessly discarded cigarette by one of the company’s twenty-five employees.  The company lost a majority of its inventory and suffered production delays as it took four months to rebuild the facility.




1966 F & F produced three Mustang models for Post cereals. The convertible, hardtop, and GT 2+2 fastback were offered in just three colors - Springtime Yellow, Arcadian Blue, and Signal Flare Red. F & F completed its automobile manufacturing in 1967 with the Mercury Cougar in one of six colors with black instead of white wheels.  



For 1969, Post Cereals switched suppliers - from F & F to the John V. Zimmerman Company of St. Louis, Missouri.  “JVZ” built four models of Mercury cars - the Cougar Hardtop, Cyclone CJ Fastback, Maurader X-100 Sportsroof and Marquis 4-Door Sedan - in six different colors with black one-piece wheels and axles.  

In 1973 Otto Fiedler suffered a massive heart attack while on vacation in Germany and became the eleventh person in the world to receive a battery powered heart pacemaker which lasted for five years before Otto underwent a replacement procedure.  

John Fiedler passed away in 1983 at age 82 which left Otto solely in control of F & F.  In June 1985 as the company approached being sold, F& F suffered another fire at Sachs Street, which destroyed the warehouse and finishing side of the facility. 

The Dayton Fire Department determined defective wring as the cause of the fire.  After the facility was again rebuilt, Otto sold the business and retired in 1987 to his home in suburban Kettering then passed away in 1989 at age 69.  

In 2020, more than fifty years after the last car shipped, the F & F Mold and Die Works building still stands at 103 Sachs Street in Dayton Ohio and F & F cars and trucks have an active collector community.