Flamed Fords, patina-ed Plymouths and stock Studebakers were just some of the righteous machines that rolled into the Minnesota State Fairgrounds for the 35th annual Back to the 50’s event, held June 20-22 at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in St. Paul, Minn.
The show packed in a gate-busting 11,711 1964-and-older cars and trucks, surely a record for this event and helping make this one of the biggest car shows out there. And if it’s not the biggest, it’s certainly one of the best.
In addition to the show, manufacturers set up around the tree-lined fairgrounds, there is a Mecum auction and a Sunday-only swap meet. One auction consigner with two cars in the auction reported that his cars met their reserve, as did many others, and there were many great deals for buyers. Watch for a more in-depth report by B. Mitchell Carlson in an upcoming issue of Old Cars Weekly.
For now, enjoy this selection of cars from the event!

Back to the 50's always starts with a double-feature at the Cottage View Drive-In in Cottage Grove, Minn. I grew up in Cottage Grove and have fond memories of the drive-in, so I snapped this pic of my car about to enter the field before the movie. There have been threats that this landmark, the only cool thing in an otherwise soul-less St. Paul suburb, may soon be gone.



Anyone who knows me knows I love Willys vehicles. How often do you get to see a 1939 Willys like this one with a '39 nose, rather than a 1940-'42 nose? Not often.



Here's another Willys, this time stock. The car is a sport coupe and proves that you can find more than hot rods at Back to the 50's.




I'm sure a ride in this 1932 Ford three-window coupe feels like a "skyride."



While cruising around the fairgrounds in the back of my uncle's 1961 Ford unibody pickup, I snapped this sweet 1932 Ford truck stocker. I always enjoy seeing this truck, which regularly appears at Minnesota State Fairgrounds events.



You don't see 1934 Packard Twelve victorias every day. I'm not sure if this one is a stocker, and I haven't got a glimpse under the hood to verify there's still a Twelve under the hood. Either way, it's a great ride.




This sweet little 1939 Chevy coupe doubtessly has a lot of man hours into its build. The effort was certainly worth the reward.




A 1940 Ford Standard or a '39 Deluxe with '40 Ford headlamps? I'm not sure, but I do know this: it's one "deluxe" fat-fendered Ford that anyone with taste would love to own.




This 1939 Plymouth coupe was recently restored by owner Howard Cassidy and one of his friends. (Howard is also a friend of former OCW staffer Keith Mathiowetz.) The machine sure turned out sweet!




This 1947 Chevrolet sedan delivery is still powered by the big-block Chevy 454 V-8 I helped install as my first engine transplant. That was about 17 years ago...




This 1956 Chevrolet Sport Coupe has been cruising around my hometown for as long as I have admired it. I've never been able to catch up with the owner to learn its story, but I believe the slick custom began as a Two-Ten model, rather than a more common Bel Air.




Call it a "puppy in a pound" syndrome, but I'm a sucker for a distressed Cadillac. This solid 1959 Cadillac Coupe deVille has patina in spades, and I know it would look good next to my 1955s and '62...




Sorry, the photo ain't great, but how often do you get to see a 1960 Edsel station wagon? Note the second '60 Edsel behind it.




I really dug this Model A coupe with a Deuce grille shell. Just the right look and amount of patina (it doesn't look like you'll get tetanus from just opening the door). Note the car is tastefully chopped and channeled and it sports a flathead - perfect!




My uncle's longtime friend, Mike Melgard, bought this well-known Track T-style rod several years ago from a popular St. Paul-area hot rodder, then added his own tweaks, such as a Merc flathead in place of the car's 'Yota four-cylinder and a Deuce grille shell. I think it looks better than ever.

Nothing says “’70s” and “’80s” more than cladding along the bottom edge of a car. While this decorative trim may add some sparkle and shine to a car’s appearance, it’s also forms a great harbor for dirt to gather. And, since we all know dirt deteriorates a paint finish and can even start to eat away at metal, this area needs to be cleaned from time to time. It’s also important to consider that, over time, this trim can scrape the paint down to the metal beneath it as the car bounces along many thousands of miles, if it wasn’t already scraped when the factory initially installed the trim.

Among the cars featuring its fair share of this stainless or aluminum trim is the 1980s Chevrolet Caprice. I’ve had enough of these cars to know what hides beneath the cladding on them, and so I was motivated to clean the area behind this trim on my own car, especially since I wouldn’t be painting the car for several years. Over a couple nice, spring afternoons, I took off the car’s old cladding, washed the finished behind it, touched up the paint, prepped the trim before re-installation and put the whole thing back together -- without scraping the paint off.

The first step is to start with a clean car. As you wash the car’s surface before this task, you’ll probably notice that the water and soap runs down the car and underneath the trim. If you do notice this, you won’t be shocked to find what’s lingering behind the cladding.

You may also choose to wait to wash the car only after the trim is off, as you’ll be washing the car again at this point. However, I prefer to work on a clean car, as dirt can scratch paint as you work around the areas around the trim and rub the dirt in and around the paint surface.

As the car completely dries, now is a good time to set up an area to place the trim. The area should be flat and clear of anything that could fall and dent the trim. A clean workbench with big, old and clean towels to place the trim on is ideal. Workbench space isn’t a luxury where I work on my cars, so I used the long grass of my lawn to store the trim, but I also don’t have to worry about pets or children walking through my work area - and on my parts.

Once the car is clean, you’re ready to start removing the trim. On Chevrolets, a simple phillips screw driver is all that’s necessary. The car I started out with is a Scottsdale, Ariz., car, so the screws holding the trim on the car were not rusty. Just the same,  I always tighten the screw heads before beginning to loosen them. This always seems to ease removal and prevents the chance that I’ll strip the screw head, rendering it unusable when it’s time to reinstall the trim.

Once all the trim screws are out, at least on GM cars of this era, the trim can be pulled off the plastic clips behind the trim. The trim can be removed from these clips by pushing up on the bottom of the trim pieces, then pulling the top of the trim piece away from the body. If the trim does not want to come off, you probably haven’t removed all of the hidden screws. Be careful not to scrape the paint.

With the trim off, you'll see some of the grime and dirt that accumulated over several years of driving (above). I couldn't help myself from cleaning most of the dirt off right away. Before I finished cleaning the section, I snapped this picture. You can see the dirt around the clip yet...that dirt covered this bottom entire section of the quarter panel. Below is a better view of the dirt with the clip removed.







Once the trim is off, you can clean off all the dirt and grime that has gathered on the back and even the front. Don’t forget to clean the clips, too. I found lots of tar hiding on the front of the trim and used this as an opportunity to thoroughly clean both sides. Of course, do NOT use SOS pads or steel wool to clean the surface as it will scratch the trim. Once the trim is clean, set it aside on the area you have cleared. On Caprices of this era, there is a black stripe running the length of the trim. If this section is scratched or chipped, now is also a good time to tape it off and re-paint this black stripe using a semi-gloss or gloss black, whichever matches the rest of your trim best.

Now that the trim is off, clean the body where the trim once was. I prefer to go through the process of re-washing the lower half of the car at this point, but you may also wish to use a glass cleaner to clean these areas. My experience has proven that the grime and dirt beneath the trim is awful thick, which requires a lot of windex and towels to clean the area.


With this area clean, you can more easily identify any scrapes in the paint. It’s unlikely you’ll find chips in this area as the trim works well as preventing the trim from rocks, but if you, now is the time to touch up the paint wherever it’s thin or absent. However, if there’s any rust or corrosion starting in these scrapes or any chips, get after them now.



Even though this is an Arizona car, there was still some slight corrosion beginning where the paint was wore through. Now's the time to take care of it before it cannot easily be removed.

I use the little bottles of auto paint touch-up found at any auto store to fill in small areas of missing paint. On Caprices, the trim behind the rear wheel runs all of the way to the bottom of the fender, so I chose to mask around this area and spray paint it since I didn’t have to worry about my handiwork being visible once the trim was back on.



After I used chrome cleaner to clean the light surface rust, I used a small touch-up paint brush to cover any bare spots of paint.

After the paint is dry, thoroughly wax the area where the trim once was. This will help keep the area clean as dirt will rinse off easier as it passes over the paint surface, as well as protect it from future scrapes and chips. Once waxed, you’re ready to re-install the trim.






Don't forget to clean the trim parts while they're off the car. A mild dish soap will effectively clean the plastic parts, and chrome polish works well on the cadmium-plated metal clips. If your metal clips are corroded, see if they're available from your local dealer.

Here’s where I discovered a handy trick. Since putting the trim back on can scrape the paint just touched-up, use electrical tape on the high edges of the back of the trim (those edges that will rest against the car and its paint). The trim will have to be clean to thoroughly adhere to the trim. Since the tape should not be visible once on the car, use a razor or hobby knife to trim it to the width of the trim edge it is being applied to. Also, find a color of tape that matches the car so it does not stand out once the trim is on the car. In the case of the white 1985 Caprice Landau coupe that is the subject of this blog, I was fortunate that I did not have too hard of time to find a matching tape color.





The white stripe the scissors points to is the electrical tape applied to the high point of the trim. This tape will prevent scratching the paint when re-installing the trim piece.

You’re now ready to put all the trim back on the car, and do so without scraping the paint off your Chrysler New Yorker or LeBaron, Ford Crown Victoria, Buick Regal or other modern collectible.

This morning, a reader asked, via e-mail, "What are the top 50 car shows?"

It's a great question, and similar questions are occasionally asked of the Old Cars Weekly staff. It's also a complicated question, since there are thousands of car events each year. Although the  Old Cars Weekly staff attends many shows, both for the Old Cars Weekly and www.oldcarsweekly.com, as well as for our own pleasure, we don't make it to all of them. So, I've started a list of my personal favorite shows and those I know other OCW staffers enjoy, and I'll let you add a few of your own! Also, feel free to include the Web site so people can follow the link to your favorite show.

Minnesota Street Rod Association's Back to the 50's in St. Paul, Minn.
Iola Old Car Show in Iola, Wis.
Antique Automobile Club of America's National Fall Meet at Hershey, Pa.
Spring Carlisle in Carlisle, Pa.
Fall Carlisle in Carlisle, Pa.
Chickasha Pre-War Swap Meet
Auburn Cord Duesenberg Club Reunion and Fall Auburn in Auburn, Ind.
Back to the Bricks in Flint, Mich.
Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance
Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance
Pantowner's Car Show in St. Cloud, Minn. (I've bought a lot of cool cars from this show/swap)
Spring Jefferson in Jefferson, Wis.
Pate Swap Meet
Charlotte Auto Fair in Concord, N.C.