MIKE: You need to go see
either an orthopedic guy or a chiropractor.
ROB: I got nothing wrong with me. No.
MIKE: Remember when Captain Augustus McCrae
from Lonesome Dove? ROB: Yeah. He ends up dying.
MIKE: Yeah. And then Tommy Lee Jones
who plays Woodrow Call... ROB: Yeah.
MIKE: Had to haul Robert Duvall's body
all the way back to Georgia. ROB: Yeah.
MIKE: Remember the way that Robert Duvall was walking?
ROB: Yeah, he had septics in his leg.
MIKE: Well, that's how you walk anymore.
ROB: No. I don't drag my foot. I can go run right now.
MIKE: You can run a circle.
ROB: What are you talking about, man?
(laughing)
(phone rings)
MIKE: Dani D, what's up?
ROB: Dani, do I walk weird?
DANIELLE: Do you walk weird?
ROB: Well, because my brother said
that I walk like I dragged my foot.
DANIELLE: I don't know, man.
Why are you asking me questions like this? A little bit.
ROB: You guys are, you guys are...
ROB: I don't even know what you're talking about.
DANIELLE: It's not that you walk weird,
you walk like you have a hitch in your giddy up.
ROB: A hitch in my giddy up?
MIKE: That's right! Because I compared him to a cowboy.
ROB: Hey, you know what? DANIELLE: Here's the thing.
I was watching you go up the stairs the other day
to the office. Looked a little Frankenstein-ish.
ROB: Frankenstein? What are you talking about?
You guys, I don't know what's wrong with you guys.
DANIELLE: I'm gonna teach you a real valuable lesson here,
Robbie. When you're dealing with a Colby girl,
if you don't want to know, don't ask.
(laughing) ROB: Hey, I--
MIKE: True story. ROB: Okay.
MIKE: What do you have? Do you got anything?
DANIELLE: I have a really fun place for you to go.
Actually, it's not only a pick but it's a roadside attraction.
MIKE: Ooh. You got my attention.
Remember when we drove Route 66 and we saw
all those roadside attractions? DANIELLE: I love Route 66!
I love doing Route 66 with you, Mike. It's so fun.
We need to do that again soon.
MIKE: Woo!
DANIELLE: Woo! MIKE: Yeah, there you go.
Hey, there's the Blue Whale! There's the Blue Whale!
DANIELLE: There's the Blue Whale!
MIKE: Oh my gosh, this is cool.
DANIELLE: Look at his little teeth!
MIKE: Route 66 history, baby.
DANIELLE: Holy cow, that looks amazing.
MIKE: Yeah, look at this. DANIELLE: One, two, three.
MIKE: I love a roadside attraction!
DANIELLE: Are you boys ready? Because I am sending you
to the Crystal Onyx Cave. You know what that is?
ROB: I guess it's a cave? DANIELLE: Yes, you're on it!
You're on it. The owners are Scott and Sara.
Lovely people. You're going to really enjoy them.
ROB: We're literally picking a cave today?
DANIELLE: Obviously there's not gonna be much to pick
in a cave, right? But they are super collectors.
But they don't really have a rhyme or reason
to their collecting, so you're gonna go in there
and you're just going to see a bunch of very different items.
MIKE: Alright, send us the address.
DANIELLE: Alright. I love you guys. Have fun out there.
(upbeat music)
ROB: "Left a quarter of a mile for an adventure."
MIKE: The roadside attraction experience
starts at the billboard that draws you in,
that takes you off of the highway
that sparks the interest.
MIKE: Just think, we could be driving over the cave right now.
ROB: Oh yeah. Look at the spider.
Look at the spaceship and freaking giant ants.
MIKE: Look at those ants. ROB: Yeah. Man.
Look at the Martian.
MIKE: Let the randomness begin.
ROB: Look at the giraffe.
MIKE: All of these things have absolutely nothing
to do with the cave, but that's what's so cool about
the roadside attraction.
MIKE: This is awesome, man. ROB: Yeah, look at this place.
MIKE: Look at this. (laughing)
MIKE: Look at this, man.
ROB: Definitely a roadside attraction. Look at the shark.
MIKE: That's a hot shark. ROB: Yeah.
ROB: Hello?
MIKE: Hey. SARA: Hi!
ROB: How are you doing? MIKE: Hey, I'm Mike.
SARA: Pretty good. How are you guys? You guys here for a cave tour?
MIKE: No, no. You talked to Dani on the phone?
SARA: I talked to Dani on the phone, yes.
MIKE: This is some of the stuff she might've went over.
SARA: Oh, okay. MIKE: Are you one of the owners? You work here?
SARA: Yes, my name is Sarah. MIKE: Okay.
MIKE: How long have you guys had this?
SARA: Uh, since 2010.
MIKE: How far is it from Mammoth Cave?
SARA: We're about 15 miles from Mammoth Cave.
MIKE: No kidding?
MIKE: Cave City has always been a tourist town
full of roadside attractions.
And it's home to Mammoth Cave National Park,
the longest known cave system in the world.
Almost 500 miles of cave
discovered right here in the hills of Kentucky.
But not just Mammoth Cave,
the smaller family-owned ones too.
All of this has an economic ripple effect
to this little town, Cave City, Kentucky.
MIKE: So, where are you guys from originally?
You from this area? SARA: Michigan.
MIKE: Oh. So, you moved all of that stuff here
from Michigan? The whole collection?
SARA: Yes. That's part of the problem,
is all that stuff we have down here.
MIKE: Okay. SARA: That's why we called you guys in.
SARA: My husband's down there waiting for you guys.
We'll take you down there. MIKE: Alright, cool.
ROB: Lead the way.
MIKE: So, who discovered the cave in the 1960s?
SARA: Cleon Turner.
And then they opened it up to the public in 1965.
MIKE: Okay. So, where did you get all this stuff,
like the rocket and the aliens and the ant?
SARA: A lot of that, Scott made those.
MIKE: Really? ROB: He built that rocket?
SARA: Yep. MIKE: Did he make this ant?
SARA: Nope. That there is from Mexico.
MIKE: Oh, it's aluminum. SARA: Yep.
MIKE: I saw some of these when we came in.
Look at that thing, Robbie.
(laughing)
MIKE: This is exactly the kind of thing you would see
in the roadside attraction playbook if there was one.
Something that's bigger than life,
grabs your attention, and makes you smile.
MIKE: Have you ever sold an ant? What do you get for an ant?
SARA: About 450. MIKE: Okay. 400.
SARA: 400... Sounds like something we can do.
MIKE: You want to do it? SARA: Yeah.
MIKE: Alright, I'm doing it. SARA: Alright. Thank you.
ROB: It's not the oddest thing I've ever seen him buy.
(laughing)
MIKE: Something like this that's so unique
and interesting I think is going to be easy to sell.
SARA: Let's go see Scott. ROB: Alright.
MIKE: Dang. That's cool. Oh, wow.
SARA: This is our storage.
ROB: Man, they got some gas pumps.
MIKE: Yeah. SARA: Alright, Scott, are you here?
SCOTT: Back here. MIKE: Look at that.
ROB: Wow. Holy cow! MIKE: Hey, hey, hey.
SCOTT: Hey. ROB: That thing's cool.
MIKE: How are you doing, buddy?
SCOTT: Pretty good. How about yourself?
MIKE: I just bought an ant off your wife.
SCOTT: Oh, did you get the 600 for it?
MIKE: No. (laughing)
ROB: 600? I don't know. MIKE: She said she started
at 450. We did 4.
SCOTT: That's coming out of your pay.
(laughing)
MIKE: So, where are you guys from in Michigan?
SCOTT: Thumb. MIKE: Okay.
SCOTT: Right below the thumb. MIKE: Okay.
SCOTT: Before we bought this cave, for about 40 years,
the wife and I travelled around the country to the swap meets
dealing in automotive vintage speed equipment.
SCOTT: I deal mostly in intake manifolds and valve covers.
Vintage speed equipment.
MIKE: Okay. So you specialize in that?
SCOTT: Yeah. But I like the oddball stuff.
MIKE: Yeah, I saw that. SCOTT: Like an alien
or something like that. Flying saucer.
MIKE: Yeah. And I saw you got some gas pumps and stuff.
SCOTT: Oh yeah. SARA: I'm gonna let you guys talk.
I got to get back to work. MIKE: Okay, hey.
Thank you so much. It was nice to meet you.
SARA: Nice to meet you too. ROB: Thank you.
MIKE: What's going on with the, um...
Where'd you get that cutaway at, man? That's pretty cool.
SCOTT: Oh, I picked it up at a little show called Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
Swap meet out there. ROB: Oh yeah.
MIKE: That's a little one. What's the tag say?
Carolina County School.
ROB: So this was in-- MIKE: So this was in a school
in the US and it's a Fiat.
SCOTT: I think the diminutive size.
You couldn't do this with a Cadillac.
ROB: You couldn't do it with a Chevy or any of that stuff.
SCOTT: You can do it with a little Fiat.
And this is its actual drivetrain right here.
MIKE: The last time I found a Fiat cutout
was in its homeland in Italy.
MIKE: Looks like a cutout.
(speaking Italian)
WOMAN: It's for the driving school.
ROB: Can I turn this? SCOTT: Yes.
ROB: Let's turn this thing. I want to turn it out this way.
SCOTT: Okay. ROB: And look at what you're talking about.
ROB: You're saying this motor right here ran the whole thing?
MIKE: This is where it was. SCOTT: But the gearbox is all there.
You could put a motor back on it.
ROB: So, it's missing the power plant that drove everything.
SCOTT: Right. They did quite a good job
cutting away the muffler. MIKE: Oh, it's done really well.
SCOTT: The shocks. ROB: Yeah.
SCOTT: Even the wheel cylinders are cut down.
They cut down very detailed on this.
ROB: I like how they angled the motor in there, you know?
I mean, is it something you want to sell?
SCOTT: Uh... I probably could be persuaded.
MIKE: What are you thinking on it?
SCOTT: About 3,800. MIKE: Okay.
Let me see the front of it a little bit more.
MIKE: Obviously, likeminded people,
we've been to a lot of the same shows.
It sounds like he's a pretty big dealer.
But that doesn't discourage me because, you know,
we all get to a point where we've got too much
inventory or we're just changing gears in life.
ROB: If you turn this wheel,
it's moving the rear end,
but is it moving the interior and transmission?
SCOTT: The gear shift is not there.
ROB: That's what I'm saying.
It's gotta be in gear to make it happen.
MIKE: It would be really cool if you could get some sort
of power plant over here and just be able
to flip a switch with the lights on
and see all of this operating. It'd be insane.
Does this whole thing pivot on here?
Because look, you turn this knob.
SCOTT: Turn that. MIKE: You got it?
ROB: Hold on. (grunts)
SCOTT: You getting it? ROB: I'm getting it.
MIKE: Alright, let's see if we can lift it now.
ROB: There it goes. MIKE: Yeah, there we go.
Look at that. Keep going, keep going.
ROB: Keep going. Right there. MIKE: Oh wow, look at it now.
That's really cool, man. ROB: What'd you say, 3,800?
SCOTT: 3800.
ROB: Three grand.
I mean, it looks to me like the sprocket here
is there, but there's a gearbox, it's missing the top sprocket
in the motor.
It's gonna need some work. I want to get it going.
SCOTT: Uh... you know what, I'd probably do 32 on it.
ROB: I'm not gonna argue with you. 3,200. Yeah.
MIKE: Very cool. SCOTT: Good deal.
MIKE: I love it, man. SCOTT: Well, let's pull her outside
so you can see the good stuff back there.
ROB: Alright.
ROB: It's very unusual to find a full-sized car in a cutaway.
Fiat did it right here.
If you were working on one of these and you this model
next to you, you'd be able to fix anything on it.
Leave it to the Europeans to design something
so cool and so simple.
ROB: Wow! MIKE: It's so cool, man.
ROB: This thing looks better outside.
MIKE: It's so cool that it's on this articulating stand
so you can move it around
and see all the different angles.
It's really well thought out, it's very well made.
It's basically industrial art
that's a hands-on teaching aid.
MIKE: That's awesome.
SCOTT: Oh, I thought you'd want your money back now.
(laughing)
MIKE: So, is a lot of this stuff like pieces and parts
where you're making things out of? Because, you know,
we pull up, you've got little spaceships...
SCOTT: Mm-hmm. When I see a shape or an object, I think,
"How could I make an alien or a dinosaur out of it?"
It's just good photo ops
and people love that kind of stuff.
SCOTT: Route 66. That's what I'm trying to go for.
A roadside attraction. We get a lot of families here,
a lot of children. And I'm just hoping
when they get older, they say,
"I remember that!"
Maybe they'll bring their kids down here.
SCOTT: I remember parents taking me out on trips,
seeing the biggest ball of twine or whatever,
the biggest Coke bottle and all that.
And you know, those all went by the wayside.
MIKE: He is the perfect curator for this property
because he hasn't forgotten what's interesting to a child.
He's still a big kid at heart.
SCOTT: We've this big cave about a half a dozen
different times before we bought it some
20 or 30 years ago. It's our favorite cave.
MIKE: As a tourist? SCOTT: Yeah, as a tourist.
So, it's, you know, amazing that we're able to get it.
SCOTT: We have just about every type of formation
you could want to see here at Crystal Onyx Cave.
And it's up close. You're not standing 50 foot away
looking through plexiglass.
You're literally walking through some formations.
We spent about eight years refurbishing the cave.
I did the work that it deserved.
SCOTT: This cave belongs to everybody.
We want to protect the cave for future generations.
MIKE: What a blessing. SCOTT: Yes, it is.
ROB: That's awesome.
MIKE: There's not a lot Scott can do
to upgrade the experience in the caves.
God made that perfect.
But up here, this is Scott's playground.
This is his blank canvas of whatever he dreams up.
(upbeat music)
MIKE: Ooh, there's Rat-- How much is Rat Fink?
SCOTT: Uh, those go for around 400 bucks.
They're cast aluminum.
MIKE: Rat Fink is kind of like the Mickey Mouse
of the hotrod world, which is ironic,
because Big Daddy Roth created Rat Fink
because of his dislike for Mickey Mouse.
He came up with this character in the 1950s,
and ever since then, Rat Fink has been one of the most
recognized mascots of custom car culture.
MIKE: All the old guys know what it is.
SCOTT: The old guys and, you know,
we're trying to teach the young guys about it.
MIKE: 350.
SCOTT: Uh, man... I'm pretty cheap at 400 on those.
MIKE: You're cheap on it? Alright, I'm doing it.
I'm doing 400. SCOTT: Alright!
MIKE: We have a cars and coffee event at Columbia Motor Alley
the third Saturday of every month.
So I want to put this outside
where kids can get their picture taken next to it.
ROB: I saw some gas pumps.
This is an American and this is a Gilbert.
These are visibles. SCOTT: Yes.
ROB: What are you going to do with these?
SCOTT: I'd probably be, uh, willing to sell them.
ROB: I'd be more interested in this one right here.
SCOTT: Ah, yes.
They actually had a barn fire,
so you can see it kind of got a little smoke color to it.
ROB: What do you think you gotta have on all three of them?
SCOTT: I probably would have to get around 7,000
for all three. 25, 25, 2. ROB: Yeah.
I'd have to be around four grand.
I mean, because this one is missing the cylinder,
it's missing the top. The condition.
SCOTT: I'm afraid I can't quite do four grand on those.
ROB: Okay. SCOTT: But I do have a couple more,
if you want to take a look at them.
Maybe we can do a package deal on all of them.
ROB: Where are they at? SCOTT: Walk this way.
ROB: Alright.
ROB: Wow. MIKE: Dang, man.
Did you move these up here?
SCOTT: Yeah. Dragged them up with a tractor.
SCOTT: When I moved out of Michigan, it was like
condensing five gallons into a gallon container,
and those shipping containers were just really handy.
MIKE: Ooh. SCOTT: This one you might not even be able to walk through.
MIKE: Oh, yeah. Look at that Amoco sign.
SCOTT: I know it's rough, but I was thinking probably
around 1,200 on it. You got the surround for it, the top.
MIKE: Don't scratch it.
SCOTT: Flaming the ring. I'll throw those in.
Let me grab the ring for it.
MIKE: Alright. He's trying to talk us into it, Robbie.
He's getting the ring. ROB: The ring looks like
it went through a tornado! Look at that. It's all...
I mean, it could be heated up and put back in.
SCOTT: How do you go about straightening stuff like that?
ROB: You run the forklift on it and then you let it sit
for two days, then it'll be fine.
MIKE: You know as well as I do, as soon as you flatten it,
more porcelain comes off. ROB: It could.
You have to do... It's a slow process.
MIKE: 800 bucks. SCOTT: If it was missing pieces, I could say that.
But I got the flame for the top...
MIKE: But what about the condition?
SCOTT: Ah, patina. That's all it is.
MIKE: Get out of here. SCOTT: 1,000 bucks.
MIKE: 850.
SCOTT: 950.
MIKE: What do you think, RJ?
ROB: I'm doing the work.
MIKE: I guess we're doing it. ROB: It's there.
SCOTT: I was thinking about, you know, straighten that out
a little bit. But I kind of realized,
you know what, I got so many projects,
I'll probably never get around to it. So, time to let her go.
MIKE: Robbie. Right here is a Mae West.
Oh, it's rough on the backside of it.
ROB: Yeah, that thing is rougher than a corncob.
MIKE: Yeah. ROB: Is that one of the ones you were talking about?
SCOTT: Yeah, unfortunately. MIKE: Yeah, that thing...
ROB: That thing's rough. MIKE: I can see what you're saying.
I've never seen one rotted that bad.
MIKE: Ah. Okay, this is the other one you were talking about?
SCOTT: Yes. ROB: Oh, it's a Tokheim,
but it's got the dial on it.
This one's probably the best condition one you got.
SCOTT: It is. MIKE: This is the best one you got.
ROB: Yeah. Where you at with all five?
SCOTT: Ah...
MIKE: You don't really want to sell them, do you?
SCOTT: Not really. (laughing)
ROB: I just gotta walk away.
There's three other containers here
and I need to dig into these.
SCOTT: That's my favorite light. ROB: Look at that.
MIKE: Favorite light? SCOTT: It's so unusual.
I'm not even sure what it's for.
MIKE: Huh. Where'd you find this at?
SCOTT: Hershey. ROB: And that could've had--
MIKE: Of course. ROB: That could've had a glass piece for the--
MIKE: It did. Because look, there's a reflector right there.
MIKE: I don't think it was for automobiles.
I mean, I'm gonna throw my hat in the ring
and say possibly trolly car.
MIKE: What are you thinking on that?
ROB: It looks like it's missing a post on the bottom.
SCOTT: You know, that thing's probably around 1,200.
MIKE: Really interesting with this orbital light on top,
but yellow lenses on traffic lights
didn't come out until the 1920s.
There were also traffic lights called silent cop lights
where basically, there was an officer
at the intersection, and he was working
with the light itself,
so there's a lot of different possibilities.
It's just so intriguing and so different,
I'm not going to pass it up.
MIKE: 800 bucks.
SCOTT: Ah... can't do that.
MIKE: Work with me some.
SCOTT: Bottom line, thousand bucks.
MIKE: Hold that.
Thousand bucks.
ROB: Condition. SCOTT: That's patina.
ROB: I don't know about that. That's beyond patina.
MIKE: That's beyond. ROB: Yeah.
SCOTT: Okay, a thousand bucks. MIKE: Okay.
MIKE: Thanks, man. Whoa, hey! Don't scratch that!
SCOTT: I always say when I buy something,
that's like a fate worse than death.
It's just going to get locked away in one of my
storage containers. So, I'm glad that somebody
bought it that will enjoy it.
SCOTT: There's even a more rare one way back there,
it's called a Mushroom.
ROB: There's another one that's next to it
that looks a little bit more ornate than it.
SCOTT: Those are Old Town, Chicago lights.
ROB: Are those two something you'd want to sell?
SCOTT: Uh, yeah, I'll sell them, but you probably
ain't gonna like the price. ROB: Three grand for the pair.
SCOTT: I'm gonna have to come back there and take a look.
ROB: Alright.
ROB: Back in the early days when traffic lights
were getting more and more prevalent in cities,
they were made out of solid cast iron,
really ornate. But as time went on,
they just casted them aside and then put ugly ones in.
SCOTT: I believe this is the Mushroom.
ROB: Yeah. It says Mushroom right on it.
So, what are you thinking on the pair?
SCOTT: 4,500 for the pair.
ROB: I think that's closer to the retail number.
SCOTT: For how unusual those are,
that's a pretty decent price.
ROB: I'm at three grand.
This would've had like, a white globe on it.
You're gonna have to find the poles for the bottom of them.
The base itself would've been ornate too. I'll come up some.
SCOTT: How much?
ROB: Can I dig them out and actually look at...?
I want to make sure all the glass is actually intact on them.
SCOTT: It ain't gonna be an easy job, but I think we can get them out.
(grunting)
ROB: Up, up. There we go.
Watch your hand. Coming down.
Alright. SCOTT: Ready?
ROB: There you go.
MIKE: You've got them? ROB: Yeah, I got it out.
So, that's just a base that it's sitting on.
MIKE: Yeah. Somebody made that. How many more are there?
ROB: There's one. I can get it out of here.
MIKE: Let me see. I'll help you.
Want me to get the bottom? ROB: Yep.
We got to go up, up, up.
(grunts) Okay. And then that down.
ROB: These streetlights got thrown into the dump
when they were done with them. Or they got crushed.
The fact that these two exist and they're still here?
That's what's mind-blowing.
MIKE: I mean, that's a work of art.
ROB: These things don't have a mark on 'em.
They're not cracked, they're not broken,
the lenses are intact. When you talk about
100-year-old traffic light, that is absolutely amazing.
ROB: 3,700.
SCOTT: Sounds like a deal.
ROB: Alright. Man. MIKE: That's cool, brother.
Do you remember where this one came out of?
SCOTT: Old Town, Chicago. ROB: Old Town, Chicago.
Both of these would. MIKE: Oh my gosh.
MIKE: My brother and I both floated
in and out of Chicago for years.
The fact that these are from Chicago
and that Robbie's into transportation history
really drives it home on how cool they are to us.
MIKE: There you go. ROB: You got it?
MIKE: Drag her in.
SCOTT: I have respect for them.
I mean, uh, they treated me fair.
It's unfortunate we couldn't come to grips on some items,
but, no, I'm very happy with how it went.
It was a fun day.
MIKE: I love what you're doing for not just your family,
but for your community. ROB: Yeah.
SCOTT: Thank you, appreciate it. MIKE: So cool to have a place like this.
MIKE: When most people are at the point
where they're settling down,
Scott and Sara uprooted their whole lives
and moved to Cave City, Kentucky
to be the caretakers of something
that they were extremely passionate about.
I think what continues to drive them
is not only their love for each other,
but also their love for adventure.
(honking) ROB: Come see us in Nashville!
ROB: Dude, Dani just sent me pictures of the truck.
MIKE: Which one? The guy is Mr. Truck we're going to.
ROB: Look at that. It's a Coe truck.
MIKE: Why's she sending you pictures of that truck?
ROB: Because I'm the truck guy.
Hey, it doesn't even get any better than that.
Look at the advertising on the side of that thing.
MIKE: Look at it. ROB: Look at that.
MIKE: Here, we're getting close.
ROB: Right here?
MIKE: Gate's closed. ROB: There's a dude.
MIKE: Look at all those trucks too.
(Rob laughing)
(honking) MIKE: Are you freaking?
ROB: What is up? MIKE: Look at you.
Yeah. Alright, here we go.
ROB: Got it? I'm under control. I'm jonesing out here.
MIKE: Settle down, Truck Boy. ROB: Come on. Come on.
These aren't just regular trucks here.
MIKE: I know.
ROB: What's going on?
You Dick?
How you doing, man? DICK: Morning.
ROB: Rob Wolfe. MIKE: What's going on? I'm Mike.
ROB: Nice to meet you. MIKE: Nice to meet you.
DICK: Pleased to meet you. MIKE: Hit him with a flyer.
MIKE: Right there. Trucks.
You have no idea how excited my brother is about trucks.
MIKE: You guys are cut from the same cloth.
DICK: I like trucks. ROB: Yeah, I like trucks.
(laughing)
MIKE: How many trucks you got? DICK: I don't know, 50?
MIKE: 50?! ROB: 50?!
DICK: That's part of the reason I called you guys.
I got a precious little girl by the name of Bria.
MIKE: Okay. DICK: She's eight.
And I'm hanging out with her all the time now.
MIKE: Okay, you got a granddaughter.
DICK: You know, she's got a couple vehicles
in here she wants Papa to make sure she gets.
ROB: Yeah? MIKE: Okay.
DICK: And the rest of this stuff probably is gonna go away.
MIKE: So, priorities are changing?
DICK: Bria is my granddaughter.
That's a lot more important than a '65 Chrysler.
So, I came up with a five-year plan
to sell 20 cars a year,
because I gotta downsize somehow.
DICK: I'm ready to go to Hangar 5.
MIKE: Alright. How many hangars you got?
DICK: Uh, that's the only one next to the airport.
MIKE: Did these used to be hangars, though?
DICK: No. MIKE: Were they connected to the airport?
DICK: It was a funeral home. MIKE: Okay.
MIKE: There's a lot of people that are in the same exact
position as Dick.
ROB: Dude, were you in the towing service?
DICK: It was my own rig for my own stuff.
MIKE: They're starting to reevaluate things,
priorities change.
But he's way ahead of the game
because he's making these decisions himself.
He's not waiting until the last minute
when sometimes these decisions are made for us.
ROB: Who's Dean? DICK: Uh, he ran a copy service
here before the funeral home.
So, we're working on projects in here.
MIKE: What's going on with this thing, man?
This is crazy. Look at this, Robbie.
DICK: That's an Airporter made by Checker.
MIKE: This thing running? DICK: It would run,
but it's probably been sleeping here for 10 years.
MIKE: Robbie, take a picture of me with this thing.
ROB: Hold on there.
MIKE: Believe it or not, we have come across
these Checker Aerobuses over the years.
They started making them in the early '60s,
and really, they were produced to transport people
on the tarmac. They're so unique looking and different,
a lot of times they end up as a promotional vehicle.
MIKE: This Cadillac limousine, man.
DICK: This is a '57 Cadillac Fleetwood Limo.
Back in the day, Governor Brown from California
rode in this car. ROB: Wow!
MIKE: You got a Singer. Look at that, Robbie.
ROB: So, you have all these cars.
What'd you do for a living? DICK: I drilled wells.
ROB: Oil and gas? DICK: Yeah, I started it
in 1970, '71.
My brother Brad and I did that.
I did the production and Brad did the rigs.
MIKE: So, when you first started that,
what was your background? How did you know to get into that?
DICK: We're engineers.
DICK: My dad went to Yale University.
He was an engineer. Of course, he had four boys,
and every one of us wanted to be an engineer.
And that's what happened to us. We all went off and did that.
DICK: I was in the South working for General Electric
on power plants. And I got exposed to the oilfield
and I said, "No, no. I know what I want to do."
DICK: You know, after a while,
you figure out what you want to do.
MIKE: That's exactly right. DICK: It was like magic.
Every day, I'd get up and I'd be ready to jump in.
MIKE: You loved it that much? DICK: Yes.
DICK: The biggest compliment my dad ever gave me
is later in life, he said, "You are a risk taker
more than I ever was. You'll try anything."
And I was. I mean, I tried a lot of stuff.
It didn't always work, but I was gonna give it a shot.
MIKE: So, what are you asking for the Singer?
DICK: Your first lowest offer.
(laughing)
MIKE: The only reason I'm asking about the Singer
is because I'm a sponge
and I want to know the value of things.
DICK: I wanted six.
Five sounded too good, I'll take four.
ROB: And if my lowest offer was two?
DICK: You own it. MIKE: Yeah?
(laughing)
MIKE: I'm always wanting to learn,
and that's the cool thing about our job, man.
ROB: This is a '56, isn't it?
DICK: It is. The engine's a new 312.
Once the ignition is finished, it'll drive again.
MIKE: What's this worth running down the road?
DICK: $39,000.
MIKE: And it's not like you're sitting in school
falling asleep at your desk.
You know, this is all hands-on history.
MIKE: This is from our area right here.
ROB: You weren't just buying trucks,
now you're buying tractors. DICK: It happens.
MIKE: Look at this, RJ. Got some stuff.
ROB: Hey, Dick, you want to sell this propeller?
DICK: Yeah. ROB: I mean, it's non-useable.
It looks like the plane actually crashed.
DICK: It's a prop. If you were ever a pilot,
which I was, I flew planes for 20 years.
You just have to buy something like that.
DICK: What do you want to give me for it?
ROB: 125.
DICK: You want to try a little harder?
ROB: I threw the number out there,
you gotta come back at me. DICK: Okay, 200.
ROB: 160. DICK: Yeah.
(laughing)
ROB: That was simple!
ROB: Everybody typically wants the wooden propellers.
The aluminum ones I find quite often.
This is just a prop. It's gonna go up in someone's home,
or it's gonna go in a business.
MIKE: So, Dick, what mounts on here?
What is this stand for?
K.R. Wilson, Buffalo, New York.
DICK: It's an engine stand, but I don't know what it fits.
MIKE: It looks early. DICK: It looks like--
MIKE: Model A, Model T era.
DICK: It would take an old 4-cylinder flathead something.
MIKE: Yeah. What are you thinking on
it? Would you sell it? DICK: Oh, sure. 100 bucks.
MIKE: Alright, I'm gonna do that.
That'll be cool to display something on there.
MIKE: This is missing a few pieces,
but I think we can find them. And once we do,
we can start displaying some of the engines
that we have in a better way.
MIKE: I love it.
DICK: Let me show you this building next door.
MIKE: Okay, cool. DICK: Flight Line Roadhouse.
I'll show you where the airplane's at.
MIKE: Oh, I'd love to see that. What year is it?
DICK: It's a '34 Pietenpol.
MIKE: Okay. ROB: Pietenpol. Wow.
MIKE: Nice! I haven't seen this side of you, Dick.
You got glass cases.
DICK: There's some good stuff in here.
MIKE: He's got a bar right in his office here.
MIKE: I like your style, man.
DICK: So, this bar was a soda fountain
at Lloyd's Landing at Cross Lake.
That sign was on it.
ROB: "Closed for violation of National Prohibition Act."
MIKE: Wow!
DICK: I was a member of an antique car club
here in town. And I bought a wrecker.
Then the word got out, you know,
and then people would call me and say,
"Well, my aunt, she's got this old car.
She can't drive it anymore. Why don't you come look at it?"
Of course, I'd buy it. The next thing I know,
it got crazy and I just kept buying stuff.
It was a hobby that went astray.
MIKE: Pietenpol. DICK: '34 Model.
It was all in pieces. It wasn't hard to assemble it.
ROB: Wow. MIKE: Look at this!
DICK: I drove it last month. I drive it often.
MIKE: Did you really? DICK: Yes. Six volts.
Same thing. Positive ground. 3-speed. It stills burns rubber.
MIKE: This thing's all sweaty. Who painted it?
DICK: We did the fenders. The body has never been painted.
MIKE: The dash and everything is original paint?
DICK: Yes. MIKE: No doubt.
MIKE: Every once in a while,
you come across something that is in original paint
and it's so nice that it just blows your mind.
MIKE: How long ago did you paint the fenders on this thing?
DICK: '85.
MIKE: No kidding. So you wouldn't do that now would you?
DICK: I can sandblast the fenders and beat them up for you.
(laughing)
DICK: So, anybody knows, if you're a car guy
and you want to buy a car and you've got a wife,
you might have a problem.
I got it home, it was Valentine's Day.
MIKE: Oh... DICK: And I said, um,
"Happy Valentine's Day."
And she looked at it and she said, "It's beautiful!
Give me the title."
(laughing)
ROB: She wanted to make sure it was hers!
DICK: That's right. And I did. I had to.
MIKE: No doubt, man.
ROB: I've been in those predicaments before.
MIKE: So, this is a keeper?
(sighs) DICK: Well, I lost Sherrie.
MIKE: Okay. I'm sorry. DICK: So, well...
MIKE: How long ago? DICK: Last year.
MIKE: I'm sorry. DICK: And I'm thinking about,
yeah. It's time.
MIKE: How long were you with Sherrie?
DICK: 46 years. MIKE: Oh my gosh.
DICK: Sherrie loved nice looking cars,
and she loved to ride and go somewhere with me.
We'd stop and eat ice cream in the afternoon
and go to dinner at night and meet people all over.
She loved that. That was fun.
DICK: I'm seven years into my five-year plan
to sell 20 or 25 cars a year.
ROB: Of 20 to 25 cars? MIKE: Okay.
DICK: I'm behind.
MIKE: It's an emotional journey
to have this much history around you.
It's a big deal that he's thinking about
selling the cars that are connected
to some of the biggest moments.
MIKE: Don't you love being around this stuff too?
Like, when I go into where my motorcycles are,
I love being around it. DICK: Absolutely.
MIKE: I love being around it. DICK: Well, I never felt like
I should pay a psychiatrist. I could sit in this
and try to start it, and I'm okay.
ROB: Yeah, there you go. (laughing)
MIKE: It's humbling to be with Dick
at this point in his life
because I'm kind of approaching that stage too,
like, you know, we're all gonna be there.
MIKE: This is a man's car right here.
ROB: This is a Starliner.
Look at that.
DICK: Four speed, disc brakes,
locker rear end, three tube barrels on a 390.
ROB: Wow. MIKE: I know, man.
So, what do you value this thing at?
DICK: 50. MIKE: What do you value
the '35 at? DICK: Same.
ROB: Dick wasn't screwing around when he said
he was a car collector. I mean, there's some bad
(bleep) cars in here, man.
But where are the trucks?
MIKE: What age do you think that used car sign has on it?
DICK: Oh, it's probably '50s or '60s.
MIKE: Is it wood or metal?
DICK: It's metal, I'm pretty sure.
We'll know when we get there.
MIKE: No, it's metal.
And it's got a, uh, metal frame, too.
Not a wood frame. It's metal on metal.
What are you thinking on that?
DICK: 300 bucks. MIKE: I'll give you five.
DICK: That's more than generous. MIKE: Alright.
DICK: Thank you. MIKE: Hey, thank you.
DICK: It's yours.
DICK: That used cars sign, in my mind,
it wasn't worth $500,
so when he went up to 500, I needed to say, yes, sir.
ROB: So, Dick, I saw this over here.
Chevy service. Where'd that sign come from?
DICK: I have no idea.
ROB: Is that something you want to sell, Dick?
DICK: Yep. ROB: Let's see the other side of it here.
DICK: Yeah, it's two sides.
ROB: Um, it's in pretty good shape.
I mean, it's got some whammies on it, but it's cool.
What are you thinking on this thing?
DICK: 750.
ROB: I'm gonna do one better for you than that.
I'll give you 1,000 bucks. DICK: It's yours.
DICK: He could've just bought it for 750
and I probably would've been happy,
but now I'm impressed.
It tells me something about him.
His brother's the same way. ROB: That work?
DICK: Yes, sir.
ROB: Is this the boardroom? DICK: It is.
MIKE: Here we go. Look at this.
Super Chevy Service flat rate schedule. '50 to '54.
I have a dealership from '47. DICK: Did you?
MIKE: Yeah. No, I still do. DICK: Wow.
MIKE: What do you want for this? DICK: 25 bucks.
MIKE: Alright, I gotta get it. I'll put it on the shelf, man.
MIKE: This book is the service rates from the 1950s,
so this would've been on the desk in someone's office
in like the building I own.
So, we're kind of bringing it on home.
ROB: Packard. MIKE: Okay, that's cool.
What are you thinking on that? Packard chassis?
DICK: 25 bucks.
MIKE: No, I'll give you 50 bucks.
You're low on it.
DICK: You know, that's what I like about you.
MIKE: Yeah?
DICK: It was just sitting there not doing any good.
I figured he needed it more than I did.
MIKE: This is a cottage chair, all hand-painted.
1870s, 1880s.
This is all handmade, man.
ROB: Dude, Jersey is wearing off on you.
MIKE: I know, he is. ROB: You're buying chairs now.
MIKE: Hey. You know what? Jersey's my furniture mentor, dude.
MIKE: I know enough to be dangerous
just because I'm putting in literally hundreds of miles
with Jersey talking about furniture,
so some of this stuff that I used to walk by,
I'm starting to pick it up now
because of my mentor furniture guy, Jersey Jon.
MIKE: 150 bucks.
DICK: 300.
MIKE: 170. DICK: 170.
That's more than I wanted. MIKE: Okay.
(laughing)
MIKE: Alright. Very cool.
DICK: I figured it was worth 20 bucks.
But he liked it and he offered me
a handsome price. Of course, I had to say yes.
MIKE: I noticed this car when I was standing over there.
ROB: A bright orange Studebaker. MIKE: What year is it?
DICK: '14. ROB: Wow.
DICK: It's like a tractor. You got hand controls.
Back in the day, you had primer cups.
You'd dribble a little down each one of these little...
MIKE: We all benefit from guys like Dick in the hobby.
The ones that really dive into and research
the mechanical aspect of everything.
DICK: So then we do this, close them.
MIKE: Not just to fix things,
but also to help us understand the evolution of what we have.
DICK: Alright, you ready?
ROB: Yeah. MIKE: Yep.
(engine sputters)
(engine starts)
ROB: Bam, starts right up!
ROB: There was never a cover on that.
Look at how that flywheel spins down there.
ROB: It's a magnificent piece of machinery.
MIKE: Yeah.
ROB: So, are we ever going to go see that truck?
MIKE: Robbie, did you see this sign?
MIKE: Patience has never been
one of my brother's strong suits.
MIKE: It looks like it's been through a fire.
Are you familiar with where it was?
DICK: No. MIKE: Because you can see some char on this side.
And you can see how this sign is bent.
ROB: Well, what happened was the porcelain
kind of heated up. You'll never get it
to straighten out because the heat...
MIKE: Look at this patch that melted.
Look at this side of it, Robbie. Or right there.
ROB: Oh yeah.
MIKE: Porcelain is pretty much
indestructible, but this one has been in a fire.
The damage that it sustained is irreversible.
MIKE: The retail on it is like 700 bucks.
I'll tell you what, I'll do five.
DICK: Let's go. MIKE: You want to do it?
DICK: Yeah. MIKE: Okay. I mean--
DICK: That's fine. MIKE: Here's the deal.
It's like there's always an entry-level collector.
MIKE: This is a really rare sign
and it does have the original bracket,
but condition is everything.
ROB: Hey, Dick, can I see those trucks?
DICK: Oh, right. Next building over.
ROB: You weren't even kidding here.
You got a B Mack there, this is an Autocar.
You got a Ford in the middle.
DICK: That's why we named it Big Truck.
MIKE: What's this project you're working on here?
What are you doing to this Chrysler?
DICK: That is a '35 Chrysler. ROB: Wow!
Dick, you weren't kidding! DICK: '35 Chrysler.
Eight cylinder. One of the high-end cars for '35.
MIKE: He's freaking right now, Dick.
DICK: He likes trucks.
ROB: I owned my own business my entire life.
Trucks are for people that want to get stuff done in the world.
And you wonder why my brother always calls me.
ROB: That's the one. Forty...
DICK: Seven. ROB: Seven.
MIKE: This is hand-painted right here.
Valentine's 86 proof.
ROB: Does this thing run? DICK: Yes. It's a cabover.
ROB: Yeah. DICK: So, the engine sits
between the driver and the swamper, okay?
ROB: What'd you say? The driver and the who?
DICK: Swamper. (Rob laughing)
DICK: You know, the guy that does all the work.
The driver sits here and steers.
MIKE: Oh yeah, baby.
Look at this, RJ Wolfe.
ROB: Yeah, look at that. Crank the window out.
That's the AC right there. MIKE: I know.
DICK: Dwight Renard, who loved Fords bought it,
and he and my friend Jack Thomas
would drive this to the Pate Swap Meet
from Shreveport with all their junk in the back.
ROB: So, what is Pate, like two and a half,
three hours from here?
DICK: He's stuck. ROB: Door's locked.
You got to bump it now. Bump it.
(laughing) DICK: I could get you out.
(Rob laughing) ROB: Alright,
Dick says you can get out. MIKE: How about this side?
(laughing)
ROB: Dude, it's right here.
I got him.
You're trying to tell me that these guys drove this
every year to the Pate Swap Meet?
DICK: They did. ROB: Did you sleep in the back?
MIKE: How far is it? DICK: 300 miles.
MIKE: Can you imagine, Robbie? ROB: No.
MIKE: Seeing this thing go down the road. That'd be nuts!
DICK: You know, it drives 40 or something.
ROB: It has no rust in it whatsoever.
MIKE: Robbie, look at this! There's a different liquor
on the other side. Look at that. That's all hand-painted.
Oh, wow. ROB: Look at that.
MIKE: Man.
This thing is so solid, it's crazy.
ROB: So, do you got a title to this thing?
DICK: Yeah, I got a title.
MIKE: The condition of the signage on this truck
is incredible. It's all hand-painted.
The graphics, the color.
MIKE: I think this might be the coolest cabover I've seen.
MIKE: It's a real time capsule.
I could see why my brother is geeking out over it.
ROB: 48,000 miles on it.
DICK: The first engine was the '47.
Lloyd put that '53 flathead in there
with a distributor and a much better engine.
ROB: Dick is one of those guys, you wanna call him a savior
because this truck, had it been sitting outside,
all the advertising on the side of it would've been gone.
It's not even faded out.
ROB: Let me look at the other side of this thing.
ROB: Then you got the condition of the Coe itself?
I mean, it's magic.
ROB: This is for sale? DICK: Yes. I'm thinking 30.
ROB: 30,000? DICK: Mm-hmm.
ROB: You're thinking 30 because of the advertising?
DICK: Yes.
DICK: The paintings on the back
are something nobody can do over.
It's a time capsule.
ROB: I was thinking like 17.
Just because of the work that's going to go back into it.
I'm not gonna put it back on the street the way it is.
I can't drive 40.
ROB: The fact that the truck engine has been changed to a '53
with a distributor, big plus. Easy to work on.
DICK: I'll come down a little, but not 17.
You gotta...
You got to pick your game up a little bit there.
ROB: I'm gonna come back and think about this, okay?
ROB: Dick kind of blew me out of the water at 30 grand.
DICK: Get a toothpick and chew on it.
ROB: Does that help? DICK: Yes, sir.
ROB: Okay.
ROB: And I understand where he's coming from.
It's got the original advertising.
But no one is gonna drive this thing
40 mile an hour. Especially me.
MIKE: I saw something over here when we first walked in.
So, is this Oldsmobile?
Is that what I'm looking at here? 88?
DICK: That's the Rocket 88. ROB: Rocket 88.
DICK: Those hung on the wall at Roundtree Oldsmobile
in Shreveport.
DICK: The 88 was on the side of their building.
It was put up when the Rocket 88 was the thing to buy.
MIKE: If you kind of gauge the age of them,
I mean, the Rocket 88 came out '49.
DICK: Probably '52. MIKE: That was the first year. Yeah.
DICK: '53, '54. MIKE: And then a lot of people
consider it the first muscle car.
ROB: They consider it the beginning of crazy hotrod times.
DICK: The Rocket 88 motor
was used in drag cars all the time.
MIKE: And first NASCAR too. DICK: That's correct.
They were bumping a hemi.
MIKE: The Rocket 88 was so influential
that it wasn't just dominating on the track.
It was also dominating on the airwaves.
MIKE: So, imagine if these things were lit up, man.
It's like, there'd be smoke
coming off of these suckers, man.
ROB: Turn that, Mike. DICK: Well, the glass is somewhat broken.
MIKE: No, I know. You'd have to do the work,
you'd have to pay the money to do the work.
MIKE: But still. ROB: Porcelain is still in good shape.
MIKE: A thousand apiece.
DICK: How about three?
MIKE: How about 25?
DICK: They're worth 25.
MIKE: Would you do that? DICK: Yeah.
MIKE: Okay. Alright. I'll do 25. DICK: I'm good.
MIKE: Alright. I love them. I think they're really cool.
MIKE: To have the porcelain 88
off an original dealership is epic.
It really elevates the value and interest of the sign.
MIKE: How about this one? DICK: It's a '48.
It's got a small block Chevy and a standard four-speed.
MIKE: So, what could you cruise this at, then?
DICK: 55.
ROB: Let's stay focused on this thing.
DICK: I'm with you. ROB: Okay. I'm here,
I gave you a number.
Your number's here,
I'm right here. Where does it need to be?
DICK: 26,000.
ROB: No....
I want to be at 20 grand.
DICK: How about 26 and I'll haul it to your house?
ROB: For free?
DICK: Well, how far do I have to go?
MIKE: Iowa.
DICK: It's about $1000 to haul it up there, probably.
ROB: I think I'm pretty good at--
MIKE: Dick. What do you think of this, Dick?
If he's at 20.
I know he has to come up a little bit.
I'm looking right through him staring at this cool motor sign.
Okay? How about if I did uh, you know,
because condition is everything on that. I...
There's a little bit of whammy, I'd do four grand on the sign.
MIKE: I'm just gonna throw my hat in the ring
and see if I can bring this deal together for these guys.
This is a 1930s Koolmotor clover-shaped sign.
Very rare sign. They also had an earlier version
that they called the kite sign.
A lot of the cool motor stuff,
especially in this condition is extremely hard to find.
MIKE: 4,000 for the sign,
and would you come up a grand?
ROB: 21,000.
DICK: Bingo. MIKE: We're doing it?
DICK: You're alright. (laughing)
ROB: That work? DICK: It worked!
ROB: Alright. DICK: I wasn't sure
how it would twist, but it twisted.
ROB: It twisted right? Is that how it works?
DICK: That's okay, I can do that.
ROB: Okay. MIKE: You owe me 500.
(laughing)
DICK: As far as I'm concerned, Mike saved the day.
(laughing)
I don't know if I want to tell him that.
(laughing)
ROB: Alright, so I gotta ask.
Were you serious about hauling it for 1,000 bucks?
DICK: Yes. I'll make a trip to Iowa.
ROB: So, if it's a little bit more than that,
I would be glad to pay it. DICK: Okay,
so if it's $2,500, that's okay?
(Mike laughing)
ROB: There's a cap on it there. MIKE: Wouldn't you crap
your pants if he showed up and drove this up there?
(laughing)
MIKE: I got to look at this sign now that I bought it.
ROB: It's cloverleaf. MIKE: Yeah, man.
ROB: How's the other side? MIKE: It's got some whammies on it.
On the edges of it. But still.
It's amazing, it's got the original sign frame
and bracket here.
DICK: You need a bigger truck. ROB: We need a bigger truck?
We could fill that truck up and you could haul it up there for us.
(laughing)
MIKE: I think he has you leaving tonight.
DICK: I'm ain't going to live long enough to...
move all this stuff out.
I'm not really interested in calling auction company ABC
to come in and swipe it all out of here in a week.
That's no fun.
ROB: Hey. I appreciate you taking the time, buddy.
It's been a good day. DICK: It's been a good day.
ROB: That truck went to a good home.
DICK: I had a lot of fun. It's been a good day.
DICK: Thank you. Thank you for coming down.
MIKE: I appreciate it. ROB: Dick's one of those guys
you want to inspire to be like. Maybe in a couple months
I'll go back there, knock on the door, and see
how many other trucks he wants to sell.
(honking) MIKE: See you, buddy!
DICK: Yo! (honking)
SCOTT: How do you go about straightening stuff like that?
ROB: You run the forklift on it, and then it'll be fine.
MIKE: You know as well as I do, as soon as you flatten it,
more porcelain comes off. ROB: It could.
(forklift beeping)
(beeping)