Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

[Geoff C.]

It was Sunny and Warm Wednesday, Thursday and part of Friday. Then it became typical cool and damp Spring Carlisle.




29th Spring Carlisle

[Jerry S.]

Re: Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

1-800 visa

[Mike B.]

Re: Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

I have been going to Carlisle events for years in good and bad weather. To me, this year was a bust. The Friday/Saturday wet weather did not help the mood, with many sellers' wares under tarps. But I think that factors such as ebay and perhaps a lost generation of younger rice-burner enthusiasts has taken the good used stuff out of swap meets and on to the Internet. I can't blame them. I felt genuinely sorry for some of the sellers who huddled under a leaky tarp and blanket, not to mention eating BBQ food and having to eliminate in a port-a-john for five days straight...and then to have to set it up and break it down again.

I did get some nice items from Al Knoch at "show" prices and found the one missing convertible bracket that I have been looking for, so there was some salvation for the trip. Rounding out the weekend was a stop at Cabelas on the way home which even for non outdoor enthusiasts, is like no other retail shopping experience in the world.

The asking prices of most cars were insane. I wonder the percentage of the stratospheric cars that actually sell. It seemed that anything with four wheels regardless of condition or pedigree was $10K and up.

I plan on Corvette Carlisle this year and Hershey instead of the fall Carlisle event.

Curious to hear others' opinions on the state of swap meets.

Mike

[John H.]

Re: Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

Mike -

Our Michigan NCRS Chapter has held an indoor swap meet in our sponsor's service department (Cauley Chevrolet) due to the chancy weather in early April for the last eight years, with space for about thirty vendors. For the last two years, it has been a MAJOR effort to attract enough of the traditional Michigan-area swap meet parts vendors to fill the place up, in spite of the indoor venue. It appears that many of those traditional "load 'em - haul 'em - display 'em - haul 'em home" swap meet vendors have found it much easier to sell stuff on eBay than to go to all the trouble of hauling stuff around to local swap meets. We still fill the place up, but it takes a LOT of work from our guys (and door prize drawings just for the vendors this year) to attract sellers.

The same Sunday we had our swap meet this year, a Ford dealer and a Pontiac dealer in the area who also have an annual swap meet had complete busts - three vendors at one, four at the other, in spite of beautiful weather. eBay is changing a lot of things in the car hobby.

[Roy B.]

Re: Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

I took many parts to Berkeley to sell ,but they had no area set aside or even mention having one. Be side that when I said I had parts most people showed no interest. So back to E-Bay.

[William C.]

Re: Spring Carlisle 2005 Report

I was a regular vendor at Spring Carlisle for years, but now I only do Corvettes at Carlisle, reasons, running out of parts, and eBay. Corvettes at Carlisle is as much to see old friends as what is made in selling, especially when you figure the expenses, the big swap meets just don't have the appeal of 20 years ago...

[Loren L.]

You and your troop just go to Corvettes

at Carlisle to hand out cold beer to people from the West who are about to succumb to the humidity and skeeters. A true act of Mercy!

[William C.]

Re: You and your troop just go to Corvettes

We don't discriminate, Easterners get the same treatment. We are equal opportunity annoyers.