FrankenRat ...

Hello to the members of this fine forum ... my name is Pauly and I reside in Mountain Home, Arkansas. I do not own a Vintage Van yet but, I am hoping to remedy that soon. I have been searching vigorously but, everything I have found so far has been a considerable distance from North Central Arkansas. I'm keeping tabs on the "A", "G" and "E" For Sale section here on this forum. I'll find something soon I hope.

Just in case anyone is curious ... "FrankenRat" is an amalgamation of two of my favorite things ... Monsters and Rat Rods. I am also heavy into the Rockabilly thing and Tiki Culture as well. 

Anyway, that pretty much sums it up ... if anyone knows of a van near me, give me a heads-up please.

Thanks. 

Pauly Von G

Hey Paul, good to have you here. I'm sure a van will pop up near you soon enough. Like you said, keep an eye on the for sale section.
I gotta put a big ole' DITTO on that list of favs. of yours. Love the rat rods, but I don't hold it only to American tin. I have seen some really cool Volkswagen rods done up Rat Rod style.
And talk about Monsters. The original Movie Monsters are awesome. I've been thinking about doing my Econoline up as a tribute to The Creature from The Black Lagoon, he being my favorite(or Rat Rod style).
And with the help of Pandora, I've been getting to hear some really cool Rockabilly groups.
Like I said a BIG ditto to your list for me.

welcome!!!

I know someone out by Little Rock that is looking to sell one of his econolines.  Is that close enough?  It looks a lot like the one in my avatar.

Thanks for rolling out the welcome wagon guys. Have seen some Econoline pups pop up on Craigslist near me but I would prefer a van. Found a pretty rough "E" about six hours away (lots of rust) and another "E" window van about three hours away (again ... lots of rust). Hoping to find something a bit more solid.

ndjarrett ... if you can pass me some info on the "E" that would be great. Thanks.

Welcome and good luck with your hunt.....don't rush it a good one will come along. Avoid anything with a lot of rust. Way too time consuming to repair, don't ask me how I know

Magic Bus, thanks ... yeah, rust is my nemesis as well ... I have had to deal with lots of it in the past. I'll find a solid van soon I'm sure.

Just keep a eye out in the for sale section, we'll find you a nice one

Welcome!
Monsters you say?

AWESOME!!!

Hello Frankenrat,

Welcome,

I'm just across the Mississippi in Tennessee. We have an Econoline get together every Laborday Weekend on Petit Jean Mountian AR. Sometimes one shows up there with a for sale sign in the window. Rip van arkie is in Searcy AR and runs across vans from time to time. You may want to drop him a pm and see if he can help. Be patience and the right van will find you. Don't buy the first thing that comes along. They are out there and it will surface when it's right. Learn what to look for and buy one within your abilities to restore it. Rust in the door jambs is very hard to fix and unless you're a good welder I'd stay away from that. Rear suspension mounts are also bad to rust out from sand and dirt buildup inside the channels that hold moisture.

Duane in Tennessee.

BTW...u don't have to show up with a Ford.  I went there last year in my Kia...LMAO!.  I hope to have my Econo doen for it this year...but who knows...probably show up in my GMC :-).

Yea, We call it an Econoline meet but any early is welcome. We've had a few Chevy vans show up but no Dodge yet. Some second and third gen Econolines as well. Everybody is welcome.

Duane in Tennessee.

Awesome guys, thanks for all the info. I am going in a couple days to look at a '65 Econoline window van in Bald Knob ... thanks to Neal Jarrett on here. I have already passed up two ... one in Pryor, OK and one in McAlester, OK. They both had major rust issues. I've seen pics of the van and other than a small place between the dog house and the passenger seat, it looks pretty solid. If that is all the rust it has, it's just a simple flat panel weld-in job ... no big deal. But, you never know until you see it in person.

Always best to see it in person cause there's a lot a camera can miss! I hope this latest one works out for you but don't rush it. Like everyone here says, the right one will come and you'll know it when you see it. Love your Avatar Pauly! I felt that way after the Bruins vs. Blackhawks triple overtime game last week! LOL   When you do find the "ONE" , we expect photos!

Is that Jerry's van you're going to look at? Green with a blue drivers door.



Duane in Tennessee

No, he is going to look at Chris Wiggs' vans. :-)

Hope Chris isn't selling the orange van. I love that one. Jerry's has been for sale for a couple of years now. Thought it might be that one.

Duane

NOOOO...not the orange van.  But the blue one for sure.

I thought you bought the blue one. LOL.

Duane in Tennessee

My blue Econo came from MS...but it did look a lot like his. :-).   What i did buy from him was my A100 van.

I have a van!!! I got a lead on a van from ndjarrett on here ... thanks Neal! I made the three hour trip down to Bald Knob, Arkansas today to check it out. Turned out to be just what I was looking for. Bought it, got it loaded up and made the three hour trip home. I'm pretty stoked about it and I feel like I got a great deal. It's still on my car dolly because I am too beat to unload it tonight. Tomorrow I'll get it unloaded and into my shop so that I can get a better idea of what I have gotten myself into. HaHa. Anyway, here are a couple of pics...


009 by Sunbird[80], on Flickr


011 by Sunbird[80], on Flickr

Congrats on finding your van frankenRat. looks like it's in decent shape. It's a great feeling when you can drive out...see it...buy it, and come home with it.

Looks like a really straight solid start! Kudos to Neal for helping you find her. Now the real fun begins! Congrats FrakenRat! Another success story, I love it!