And the wait begins...

I will be seeing everyone in Carlisle this year when I take delivery of my new Thunder Ranch Speedster GT. Black with Black top, Red interior, Wide 5 Wheels, Bee Hives. I dont know whats going to be worse, having to wait until Carlisle, or watching the car come off the trailer and not being able to get it on the road immediately.
Very much looking forward to meeting everyone. It should not be hard to find me, Ill be the one sleeping in his Speedster Friday and Saturday evening.
I had to fly to San Diego to take a look at a TR car. There weren't any on the east coast... looking forward to hearing all y'all right coasters thoughts.

Paul

Congrats, Paul. I can't wait to see it as it'll be the first TR I've seen in the flesh.

Exciting!!!

Paul,

Congratulations on the new Speedster. I live a few miles north of you and there are a few other Speedsters within the local area. If we don't get a local meet together before Carlisle then we'll see you there!

Congrats Paul! I saw some TR cars displayed at the Coronado Speed fest last year. Very nice! I hope to make Carlisle and see you and your new ride!

Paul,

I suppose it is a bit late for the "Welcome to the madness" greeting, but here it is anyway: Welcome. I see you are local and so look forward to hooking up somewhere along the way. I'll be at Carlisle (God willing) and look fwd to meeting you, and your new ride. One of my many plans is to work w/ East Coast Bruce and other locals this summer and arrange for day trips, caravans or other more or less impromptu gatherings or shows for the DC/Baltimore folks willing to do so.

Cheers!

Big step! Congrats!
I'll make you the same offer I made Kelly while he was waiting on his car; if you need to scratch the itch, my car's at your disposal for a few hours at a time.
It isn't much, but it's what I've got to offer.
Welcome to the madness!

"It isn't much".. Yeah, and Mt. Everest is a hill.

I will definitely be up for some cruises. I am fairly new to the area and dont get out of Baltimore proper very often so day trips would be perfect. Today I made it to Columbia MD to visit with my accountant. She is unaware of the purchase, I did not feel like getting smacked!
Cory, for now I have been living vicariously through you tube videos and my brothers '59 coupe. Great video of you braking your car down. I was looking for a transformer badge on the hood!
There is one video I find to be disturbing. Starts off innocent enough with the nice sound of an air cooled 4 cylinder purring through an A-1 exhaust. At the end this big pineapple head comes into frame from the side. It should have a disclaimer for children!

Anyway, very excited... glad to be a part of the club. Is there anyone else that has a black 356 GT? Pictures would be cool.

paul

Paul, give a yell sometime. I've got an odd work schedule, but when I'm off, it's for 72 hours at a stretch. I'm sure we can arrange something. I sent you an e-mail with my number.

...heeeyyyyyy! There WAS a warning about a pineapple-head appearance on that clip! I guess I shoulda been more careful about that!

I can imagine that the casual observer of that video would think that SOC was comprised of members of a Pacific Islander gang or Yakuza assassins!

Paul - I'm anxious see your TR GT at the show (as I'm sure a lot of other SOCers are as well). WoooooHooooooo!

Paul, all i can say is nice choice of color my new friend! LOL..

Speedster "D"

David,
Great looking speedster. I have to say the color choice was not easy. I grew up in a family where Porsche's are silver cars. Both of the trucks I own right now are Silver. Great color. I always thought Silver and Red interior for my speedster. It wasnt until I visited Tom McBurnies shop that I decided black was a serious option. He had a wide body speedster rolled out of the shop sitting in the southern california sunshine. I wanted to dive in.
I had also done allot of research on this site about color. There was a post by Angela that stayed with me about black cars. Guess if I dont like it, its her fault.
I was concerned about the maintenance of a black car. This is the main reason I opted for the GT. Should be much easier to wax/buff any swirls out without trim to get in the way. I also figured it would be easier to change up the look and add trim later, as opposed to filling holes in the body and repainting.
paul

Update: The wait began nearly a month ago and to date I have not received a single image from my build after asking multiple times. Frustrated, 12.30 am, need to vent. Girlfriend "doesn't want to hear it anymore". Thats supposed to be my line!

paul

it's gunna be a long road if you're impacient after 1 month. These things take time my friend.

Paul:

Please send me an email and let me know if you're dining with us Thurs - Sat. Number of people, too (Spouse-equivalent coming along?)

I need to add you to the headcount so you'll have a place.

Also, is Tom McBurnie planning on being at Carlisle? I haven't heard from him yet.

Thanks, Gordon
Organizer of "Speedsters Meet Spyders at Carlisle, 2008"

Paul,
I understand this will take time. I was expecting some images of the build as it progresses. Others on this site have the documentation, I thought it would be a cool thing to show those that really dont understand the process. Not to mention, pictures would get the envious married guys w/ children off my back. I hear atleast once a day around the office "where is your build at, any pictures yet". Just to clarify, by no means do I expect to have the car finished by now. Id be concerned if Tom said it was.
Gordon,
I plan on being there Friday evening and staying through Sunday. The speedster is being delivered to me at Carlisle. I need to sort out my ride up so I can drive it home. Will e-mail you as soon as I have an agenda. I will get in touch with Tom and ask him to get in touch with you concerning his plans.

Paul

Paul ,depending on that drive you might consider a trailer ride home for that new sweet thing..

Speedster "D"

Trailering it home is a good idea. I don't know what the situation for registration or insurance will be, but putting that aside, it's not the best idea to "break it in" with four hours of steady interstate speeds.

See if you can get/beg/borrow a trailer to run it home with.

gn

Thank you for the advice. Because of my distance from Tom and his shop, he will be giving it a thorough shakedown over several hundred miles prior to delivery at the show. I am expecting it to arrive dialed in and ready to go. I will try and find a trailer just in case. Deadlines can change plans and we aren't in paint until next week making for a tight schedule.

As for registration and insurance.... I have not even opened that can of worms. My trucks are still registered North Carolina not sure how Maryland DMV works.

Paul,

Make sure you check the thread about changes in NC registration for these cars if you are planning this route. NC is getting UGLY!

UGLY in what respect, Jeff. Inquiring minds want to know.

Good call Paul. You can't beat classic Porsche silver with red interior. Can't wait to see the final product.

My two hides have arrived, upholstery will be complete next week. Against my better judgment I decided to go with leather. Should look as good as it feels. Ive changed the color of my paint to GT Silver from black, did it about a week prior to the car going into paint. Tom and his crew at Thunder Ranch have handled a difficult customer (me) with the utmost patience and grace. I can not say enough positive about that shop.
paul

It's been a while... and obviously we missed the deadline for delivery at Carlisle this year. Water under the bridge. Finally, pictures of the car in paint, well sort of. MaLinda at Thunder Ranch had promised photos of the car when she returned from her late lunch today. Apparently when she got back the car was wrapped up to protect the paint for the rest of the evening. True to her word she still sent pictures to me, I had to laugh. A+ for the effort!
The final paint color... Porsche Metallic Silver, same paint code as '57. From the little bits I can see I love it. In the end, GT silver was too modern a color to paint a 50's vintage Porsche replica.

Paul

Good color choices:) Keep us up to date.

Marty,
Thank you... Your car has been in the gym more than mine! Couple more pics for whatever its worth. This is so killer... if I think about it, I find it hard to believe this is car is going to be mine.
paul

You've gotta love the emotions that evolve out of the love and admiration for these faux classic beauties.

Marty

Say Paul, you touched a nerve w/ that last one, MGM. I really identify w/ that emotion from about a year ago, as things started to come together for my car, and the pictures of the shell painted, etc. started to roll in. Had to pinch myself more than once: is this really REAL?? I've had the car ~ a year, and it is still that way now and then. It wil lbe ten times worse (better??!) on the day you first see it and get in. The wait: agonizing.