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So, to be clear, the gray/black roadster (V12) shown in the last picture is a fake?
I’m not a fan of all the extra lights, either, but was trying not to fuss too much at Richard, still very grateful that he found the P-A wagon for me! Thanks again!
If you take a look at the side picture of the ’29 that you have, as you found it, notice how smooth and clean and nice the side view of the car is….it doesn’t need a bunch of accessories to make it look classy…
Sounds like you’re well on your way to get it accessorized to your taste!
Personal opinion only, the thing I’d leave off is the running board mounted spotlight. It serves no purpose and affects the lines/appearance of that side of the car, and would have been a very unusual addition to what would have been on the car in the time period.
Color matching can be a challenge! Good luck with it!
It seems to me that we’re discussing two different things on the trunks here.
A trunk that’s part of the body design, and bolted or mounted directly to the body or frame of the car as Jak mentions, would come from the factory.
A trunk that mounts on a factory supplied trunk rack, and is removable (which was the original point of such a trunk, it was packed and then removed as a whole for a family’s stay at a hotel or away from home), probably was an after market purchase, from a dealer or otherwise.
I don’t believe that Pierce made any removable trunks at their factory, and if a car did leave the factory with a removable trunk, it was sourced from another manufacturer.
Neat photos, thanks for sharing!
I’ve been told the trunk on my car is correct, it’s a Steel-Kraft. I do not know this for a fact, but do know that it fits the factory trunk rack perfectly, it’s the same dimensions.
There’s an interesting question.
Did any Pierce leave the factory with a trunk attached?
I’ve always thought the factory supplied the rack, the dealer or an aftermarket supplier supplied the trunk.
Thus, there’s really no such thing as a Pierce trunk.
Is that the case?
A one year restoration is an incredible feat these days.
Thanks again for the lively discussions on your car!
If you’re putting a trunk on the car, are you going with the optional extended bumper, that allow the trunk to be within the bumper confines?
I didn’t like that look, so fabricated a couple of extra brackets so I could pull the trunk in tight to the back of the body, and within the original rear bumper.
I agree with Ed. In the heyday of restoration frenzy, when a lot of great original cars were lost (80’s and slightly up), it was crazy some of the color schemes that were presented on otherwise Classic and classy cars. One can forgive the multi-tone layered Ruxton, that was incredibly factory original, but some of the multi colored combos that showed up made one shake one’s head. A lot of these were based on advertisements, as mentioned a possible artist’s misconception of color. I once had a 1928 443 Packard coupe, and think it’s one of the first cars to be both advertised in outrageous frame and body color combos, and then subsequently to be PAINTED those colors based on color period ads….
Pierce colors should be tasteful. Those colors will affect both comments and value. I was talked into painting the fenders on my originally gray 1934 sedan maroon, when I was young and foolish. I think I lost a lot of money when the car was sold at auction because of this choice.
I thought about a gray interior, but gray’s are incredibly hard to match and/or harmonize. As others mentioned, I went through a few different combinations, even to the point of having the entire main body in finish paint and not liking it, to get where it is now. There’s a blue undertone to a lot of grays that’s a tough match.
I also thought of a gray top. At the time Haartz had a weave that was mostly gray with some black strands, and I thought it would look fine….my wife, whom I’ll admit (is that good English?) may have better taste than me, said no, let’s go with black top too, it’ll look very neat and clean….and it does.
We’re waiting with bated breath, PLEASE tell us the colors you picked!!
Or, as they say, not….
I remember going to a CCCA event in Texas a long while back, and an event hall full of beautiful Classics.
As we all know, CCCA is pretty strict about originality.
Parked at the event and being shown was an Auburn, think it was a coupe of the mid-30’s, that appeared stock on the outside, but had a LOT of modifications. For example, it had power windows, but they were operated by a switch connected to the original crank handle, so outwardly you couldn’t tell. I don’t recall the precise things done to the car, but it had a lot of other upgrades.
I was somewhat shocked that the car was allowed at a CCCA event. Found out that it was owned by a fairly affluent and well-respected member of the Texas region, so the “good ole boy” network was at work, and he was allowed to show it.
I think internal mechanical modifications are OK, if it improves life of the car, but personally draw the line at visible modifications. I also prefer such things points (because, as stated, I can fix on side of road) and mechanical fuel pumps (because I’ve had two engine fires, one of which an electric pump didn’t cut off correctly and almost lost the car).
I do upholstery work on pre-WWII cars as a hobby, now that I’m retired from the real world, and I’ve been adamant about using original materials, horsehair, cotton, tacks….but I can also say it’s a losing battle, most people don’t care, and the expense to do it the old way is greater…so it’s getting more difficult to be a purist….but there’ll still never be foam in my shop….
I agree that one should choose what makes one happy, within reason.
My ’31 phaeton was originally dark green with khaki fenders, and green interior. I have a picture from 1959 that shows it those original colors. Fred Tycher once commented on my car, on a Texas tour, that the colors were “very much Pierce colors, but not necessarily attractive”…
When I had an engine fire, I decided to repaint the car and redo top and interior, and that’s when I chose the two tone gray with black interior and black top.
I’ve never owned a car that generated so many positive comments on the color choice. Just about anywhere it’s been, someone has stated how much the colors are perfect for the car.
So yes, I think it’s an important decision, and of course everyone has their favorites and opinions, thus the numerous comments about color choice. When you reveal your choice, Richard, you’ll have even more comments, and hopefully they’re positive!!
I think what they did was crank the engine (with spark turned off) to compression on one of the cylinders, you can see him pulling hard against compression and then feeling the piston “go over the top”. The driver then turned on ignition and the spark to that cylinder fired, starting the car.
Many early cars will “start themselves” occasionally, if the engine stops in the right position with one cylinder somewhere just past top dead center, and you turn on ignition and advance the spark.
Like the Brush story, although sad about the spare time…
In 1976 I bought an original 1910 Hupmobile, did an amateur restoration, and going along with the thinking of the time, figured the engine was “good enough” since it seemed to have compression and turned over smoothly.
I had a two door garage facing the street, coincidently my parents drove up the driveway just as I was starting it for the first time and running out of the garage because of all the smoke bellowing up……Dad got out of his car yelling “Do I need to call the fire department”….no, I just had to hold my breath and go hit the kill switch.
Dad offered to pay for new rings and pistons, and I took him up on it!!
Yikes that’s a beautiful car….jealous of the new-to-be owner, but gotta be happy with what I have too!
Bet one of Ed’s Pierce’s will refuse to start, if it sees him driving a Packard…..
I bought my first Pierce, an 840 sedan 1934, in 1979, the same year I believe I joined both the PAS and the CCCA.
A year or so later, had the engine rebuilt (by Tom Lester’s shop) in a crate, a restored frame and running gear, and a body in primer, sitting in my warehouse. One Saturday morning about 9 am, a good friend stopped by, he was heavy into Mustangs even then. He glanced at the frame, the body on sawhorses, the engine in the crate, and asked “why isn’t it together”….and told me to go get a forklift (this was at my cotton gin/cattle feed business my brother and I owned) to get the engine in the frame….and at 4 pm that afternoon, we had it together, running, body on frame, and drove it around the yard!
That was a great day.
The car was sold at one of the first “The Auction” in Las Vegas in the 80’s. I think it now lives somewhere in Alabama, it’s gray with maroon fenders and belt moulding (and yes, if I had it to do over again it would have been all gray, just like it was originally).
Greg, I’ve been inside both Packard and Pierce engines, 8’s, as many of us have been, and you are absolutely 100% correct. I don’t understand why Packard had all that monkey motion assembly, when there were so much simpler and better alternatives.
Packard had some great styling, but I’ll take Pierce mechanicals any day…
My ’38 Super 8 drives like a dream! Easy to steer, smooth shifting. A lot of the earlier ones suffer from being worn out in the front end, when the restorer thinks everything is “good enough”….the later 120’s are great cars although not Full Classics…..
What year/model/body are you looking at, Ed?
Agree on the pinstripes, they can really accent a car. My personal preference is fairly thin stripes (if you ever look at original striping it is rarely wide), and in my opinion it must be done freehand with a brush. No roller wheel, no tape. If there are imperfections doing it by hand, that is all the more character to the car, and with a good striper they are small if any….my Pierce was pinstriped by an artist who lives south of me, he’s literally blind in one eye, and has to use a loupe and a strong light, with his face almost touching the metal, to pinstripe…scary, but he did (and does) beautiful work….
That ’35 Pierce coupe with the rear mounted spare used to be mine, it’s more of a cream color than the picture shows…the picture makes it look almost white..man, miss that car!!
