Mario's REAL Woodys at Car Shows

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Woody's have long been admired and collected and getting increasingly rare at car shows. Here are a few samples of Wood's that I have had the pleasure of viewing over the years. Enjoy! Mario

azmusclecar on Dec 20, 2020 said:

I see that woody from White Christmas made the list....thumbs up ...for all the pics.

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Yes I had to add the woody from White Christmas though I never saw it in person. All the others I collected from various car shows I went to over the years. Not that many when you consider all the cars at shows. We had over a foot of snow a couple of days ago and it's snowing now! I guess you don't get any snow in AZ. Mario

azmusclecar on Dec 20, 2020 said:

No snow yet....last year on one day it dumped 30 inches on my cabin in Payson AZ. I'm at 5000 feet elevation and so it can snow anytime. The sun normally comes out and melts it in one day. The 30 inches took a bit to melt. The best snowfall I ever enjoyed was the first one I didn't have to go deliver packages for FedEx. Retirement is great.

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Well 30 inches is an impressive amount. That's quite a bit. As you said retirement is great, it was an ordeal driving 25 miles to work each way when it snowed. Took me 3 hours to get home!

azmusclecar on Dec 20, 2020 said:

I know I've complimented your work before but each time I pick up on something. Your ability to truly frame a shot is appreciated. I see so many pics by owners that have distractions surrounding the car.

I learned a long time ago in my photography hobby how to make a photo look so much more interesting by eliminating a lot of the clutter around the car. Also the angles are important as well.

Some folks just zero in on whats in the center of the frame and click away. If you look at the entire photo around the edges, and either blur it with a different focus point or just crop it out.

I know some owners don't care but when I see quality work, I like to compliment the time and effort it takes to truly make a shot interesting.

The challenge at car shows is always trying to get a shot without all the distractions of cars beside or behind or even spectators stepping in when you snap the shutter.

Not every photo can be perfect but the trained eye can pick out good techniques when they see it.

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Thank you again for your compliments on my framing a shot. You are so correct trying to get a nice picture at a car show can be difficult. I'm glad you noticed. I learned to always get the car from fender to fender and always take at least 2 or 3 of the same picture, then pick the best one and delete the rest. People also get in the way not realizing it because they're so excited looking at the cars. I will also then edit the picture before posting. As they say a picture is worth a thousand words! Mario

57timemachine on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Like most folks that love vintage cars, I have always loved vintage woody wagons. My dream woody wagon would have to be the 1941 Chev version but they are all sweet. Cheers.

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

OK here's a question for you guys, what is the official last Woody wagon produced before they went to "fake" wood panels. Hint: It's none of the ones posted in this set. Good Luck! Mario

Mario on Dec 20, 2020 said:

The 41 Chevy Woody is beautiful with it's grill design but I would have to pick the 40 Ford Woody with it's teardrop headlights, very special. My cousin had a 40 Ford black conv that was awesome. Great car.

azmusclecar on Dec 20, 2020 said:

Buick's 1953 Super Estate Wagon and 1953 Roadmaster Estate Wagon were the last production American station wagons to retain real wood construction.

Im not smart enough to know the answer just smart enough to use Google.

Hard to believe 1953! Wow..

Great trivia question.

Mario on Dec 21, 2020 said:

You are correct! Nice going and I agree who would have guessed that! But if you look at the 53 Buick it does not have a lot of wood. It looks like it was trimmed in wood so they already started with the steel. Now my next question is which car was the last ALL woody, sides, doors, rear hatch, etc. Ready GO!

azmusclecar on Dec 21, 2020 said:

How about the 1952 Packard as the last all wood Woody Wagon?

I've reviewed a plethora of pics and as soon as I think I find the answer I see another Woody that "may" fit the answer.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/eb/55/cf/eb55cf47c2597f4a4f44da128834e0a9.jpg

Mario on Dec 21, 2020 said:

It's not an easy answer because after the late forties the "woodies" had the wood panels fit over the altered metal body panels. The Fords/Mercs had all wood up to 1948 then wood/vinyl panels 49 to 51 attached to doors. Chevy/Pontiac/Olds also all wood to 48 then steel 49 up. Chrysler all wood up to 47. There was one car that had all wood doors up to 1950 and it was the Plymouth! Same Woody from the movie White Christmas!

azmusclecar on Dec 21, 2020 said:

Ahhhhh this is like school, A trick question. Very good to know. It was worth waking up today. I learned something new and probably forgot more than i learned.

Mario on Dec 21, 2020 said:

You did great and the research was fun. The "real" woodies were very unique with real wood doors not just inserts or decals. Here are some great websites full of "Woody" info: http://www.classic-car-history.com/woodie-wagons.htm https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/the-american-woody

57timemachine on Dec 20, 2020 said:

We have a winner in the front seat. Mario, what is the prize for answering your trivia question correctly. 1953 For the Buick, that was also the first year for the Buick V-8 motor ("nail head"). A very good buddy of mine had a 53 Buick Riviera hardtop with that first V-8. I learned how to work on those "nail heads" with his 53. Cheers.

Mario on Dec 21, 2020 said:

The prize is the Honor and Respect of us gear heads in getting the question correct! That should be enough for now. Now take a look at my second follow up question above.

Mario on Dec 21, 2020 said:

Take a look at the pictures I posted on the 1953 Buick "Last Woody". Not much wood on the car.

Mario on Dec 22, 2020 said:

And 1953 was also Buick's 50th Anniversary. The company was formed in 1903. The Buick's of that year had special 50th Anniv markings. Collector's item today.

57timemachine on Oct 2, 2021 said:

I am proud to say that I have one of those fake woodies. A 1974 Chevrolet Caprice Estate wagon. Not real wood but I still love it. Cheers.

Mario on Oct 3, 2021 said:

That's right George, you have a beautiful 1974 Chevy Wagon which I showcased in one of my pages below:

http://www.americantorque.com/page/0/3830/

It's a beauty! Cheers.

azmusclecar on Aug 6, 2022 said:

Well, well, well.......it didn't take Mario long to UPSTAGE my FAKE WOODYS thread......

I understand, and I'm not hurt.

George understands. :-)

Mario on Aug 6, 2022 said:

Sorry Rob, I just wanted to show our viewers there are Fake Woodies and Real Woodies that's all. Let the public decide which ones they like the best.

I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, really. You put together a nice post and as they say in show business: Any kind of publicity good or bad is good! Cheers.

57timemachine on Aug 25, 2022 said:

Rob, can you ever see it deep down in your heart to forgive Mario. By the way there is counselling for this kind of behaviour. We must go deep down in our hearts to forgive this kind man. After all he does not see the error in his ways. There is hope. Cheers.

Mario on Aug 25, 2022 said:

Thank you George for your kind words and support. I strayed but I'm back on course again! Double Cheers!!