The MV Hobby, De-Mob

[rob love]

Originally Posted by Lynn Eades

When I was at high school with no $ (still the same) It was Twin cam Escorts or Mini Cooper S's (English) Valiant Chargers or GT Falcons (Australia) or Mustangs, Corvettes and Camaros (top spec ones) (State side) You might have hankered something different from that era,(Ferarri Dinos, Lancia Stratos, Alpine Renaults, or what ever, but what ever it was as we grew older and locked the kids out, we now have a spare $ to spend on the dreams of our youth. How much would you pay for any of those cars now? There is more demand for, than there are of those vehicles, so they are almost un procurable unless you made lots of money.

Now that you mention it, there is a 1975 sting-ray out in the garage. It is truly an American icon of decadence and style. 8 feet of hood, 4 feet of cockpit, and 3 feet of tail. It is like driving the batmobile with it's never-ending hood. It actually belongs to the wife.....I just get to do the repairs like the frame replacement I did a couple years back.

Come fall, it looks very out of place in the shed between the MVs and howitzers.

They are actually very reasonably priced, although one should really read up before heading out with the cheque book to buy one.

[Bob Carriere]

...after a spin in the cab 11 I feel like 19 again....... getting out of it I feel like 70......

Temporary custodian concept is very accurate...........
Personally I hope to be buried in it.

Cheers

[David Dunlop]

Interesting thread. Not sure there is any simple answer, but there are a number of constants worth looking at when it comes to collecting (of any kind).

Interests change over time. What was in demand yesterday, may not be at all today and may or may not be tomorrow.

For the vast majority of collectors of anything, there is always a base, personal connection motivating them to collect whatever it is. This does not have to be a direct connection, but can be through contact with a close family member who had a direct personal contact. If this connection does not exist, these collectors will not exist.

Unless you are extremely well financed, and have a keen eye for the best (or someone in your employe with such an eye) most collectors are not doing so as a means of investment.

Ford's museum action does not surprise me. If they cannot keep the crowds coming, they close their doors. 20 years ago, a local radio station promoted itself as the home of Classic Rock from the 50's, 60's and 70's. They are still around today, but guess what, they are now the home of Classic Rock from the 70's, 80's and 90's.

If any one thing concerns me about the future of military vehicle collections, it would be indifference. The largest pool of MV's still belong to World War Two and there are still a lot of people alive today that directly connect to that point in time. When those generations are gone…

What could happen to those of us with large collections? Take a look at the Littlefield Collection. Did it stay together? Did all the pieces get top dollar? Will they all be looked after as well as the original owner looked after them?

David

[Ryan]

Wow, just voted and I can see I'm the youngest so far. And I'm 40!

[jdmcm]

My two cents is that I see some hope out there...in a few weeks Fury will hit theaters and like Brad Pitt or not he is going to do a lot to raise the profile of our hobby...a major Hollywood film with real tanks, including an actual Tiger running amok? Fantastic I say! This will spark the imagination of a lot of kids who only have a passing interest in WW2 or military vehicles. As well the online computer game World of a Tanks has over 70 million registered players....that is a lot of interest in tanks...from a crowd I'm guessing is a touch younger than all of us! (45 here)

I think we as a group need to capitalize on these kind of events and do our part to help get the younger people interested...I'm going to tell you having crotchety old guys tell me my jeep was wrong because of a non-period shovel or that an in progress restoration should not be shown in public with primer spots, didn't really do much for my enthusiasm for the hobby when I was younger..sometimes we are our own worst enemies...I know out where I live there is no shortage of infighting amongst collectors clubs and groups that only serves to turn off newcomers, really of all ages.

And I'm really not sure we should look at the eventual drop in value of the vehicles as a negative either, I mean the prices as they are today are almost ridiculous, a drop in prices will allow those non-billionaire types to get into the market and help perpetuate the hobby...I see that as a positive outcome of the eventual price decline predicted.

One final aspect is that governments, certainly in North America, are no longer selling off the vehicles to the public like in years past...there will be no M1 Abrams to replace the Sherman's and Stuarts in collectors hearts as there is in other hobbies...our own government won't even allow worn out tank tracks to be sold to the public, they are all controlled goods that must be destroyed...if the current service vehicles are reset or shredded...what will spark the interest of a new generation?

[jack neville]

What is available today is an endless stream of cheap re-enacting supplies of any era, type, nation coming out of China. Every good war movie promotes and enables young people to get involved in the MV/ re-enacting hobby very cheaply. They can all then get a ride on something. Doubt there are too many of us older collectors with vehicles who would knock back a passenger or two dressed the part if space is available. (It is the uniformed participants who made the XXX Corp event look great.)

As for parts of the future? 3D printers!

And look at the difference to war movies that computers have made.

I think the hobby has a few more good years left in it.

[The Bedford Boys]

Here in NZ, I think the hobby is in pretty good hands (if I do say so myself). We have a strong group of "Young Guns" which are working their way into positions within the works of the New Zealand Miltary Vehicle Collectors Club (NZMVCC). The club editor (me) and membership officer are both in their early 20's.

The trouble with MV's as a hobby is getting one of your own at a reasonable price. Everyone thinks what they have is gold. It's the problem with a lot of hobbies, when I was putting my Mini together, everyone thought that what they had was worth a million dollars.

Also, there is a bit of a problem, at least in my experience, with older members not wanting to use their vehicles. All they want to do is parades or displays. Which bores the living s**t out of us younger blokes. We like to get out in the mud and dirt and USE the MV's for what they do best, driving off-road.

I guess we all need to be concious of the prices we ask when selling our vehicles. Sure, everyone wants as much as possible, but I think you've got to be reasonable. A year or two ago, I sold an ex-army Land Rover to a bloke for a lot less than what I could have got for it if I had put it on TradeMe or the likes. Why? Because he was looking to get into the hobby and really wanted a Land Rover. He is still enjoying it and is now one of the area reps for the NZMVCC.

Every one of us needs to do our bit to ensure the longevity of our clubs and our hobbies.

I organise the "Warhorses" section of the bi-annual Wings Over Wairarapa Airshow. This event brings together several MV/militaria groups from around the country. It's a great way of getting to meet people and offers a superb chance to advertise the positives of our hobby. I guess the point I'm trying to make here, is that if you don't get out and fly the flag for the hobby, then how else will people get interested?

(oh, and the Warhorses event isn't just a parade and display, we run rides and this year we're aiming to break the Carrier world record. So it's not boring like other parades )

Alex

[rob love]

There is the aspect about "entry level" prices to get into the hobby. Most guys in their 20s are worried about housing, their car, and their beer. We see carriers running from $30K to ?? these days, and even junkster hulls have asking prices of around $7K. Then you want a manual? $200-400. Need to get the flathead rebuilt? There goes another $3K. And the list is endless.

Jeep prices for the most part seem to be getting out of hand, unless it's a basket case. CMPs are usually a little better, although I have seen some ludicrous prices on direlect cab and chassis. The sellers see the pristine stuff on a site like this, look at the asking prices of the few they can find record of selling, and they price their butchered relic as though it is one of the finished ones.

Small wonder the young guys aren't lined up to get in to the hobby.

Oh yeah, there is one more thing that guys in their 20s think about....young ladies. And the average young lady does not normally get attracted to guys driving CMPs, in fact quite the opposite.

[Frank v R]

Guys, I read all this with great interest, having been in the hobby for about 35 years now I have seen our members getting older , but on the happy side I do see new young blood coming into the hobby , even through my parts business I have late 20's early 30's members restoring CCKW's and heavier vehicles, the big US regional shows are a good place to see the new blood coming into the hobby , I think that a MVPA convention is a poor place to see how the hobby is doing due the expense of attending these, another part of this is that the hobbies we grew up with are vanishing due to the fact kids only seem to be able to use their thumbs, when was the last time you saw a bunch of kids playing street hockey , most of these kids will grow up with no real skills, and no knowledge of history, still one more big factor in Canada is that we will no longer see tactical soft skin vehicles coming out surplus so that will leave only vehicles that require for the most part a ground up restoration that brings us to one last very important point , disposable cash, these days that is less than it was in the past for most people, no more buy your surplus military vehicle and go for a drive,