[Closed] 60th ACD Festival - Thunder Run Experience - September 2015

I couldn't help wondering ....

... how long that second car was left sitting there for a tree that big to grow through it?

Duesenberg J

It's obviously a Duesie time at present and there have been some great pix on the forum in celebration in the last day or two and thanks to those who have posted. As soon as I saw the photos of the violet version I immediately went and ordered it.

Can I ask a question for a Duesenberg expert please. I'm aware some owners of Duesenberg J's added the outside exhausts from the SJ when they became available, but does anyone know if the Murphy J as modelled is a J or in fact an SJ, signified by those exhausts?

Also, in a recent online conversation with Buz discussing the new Olds woodie, I suggested it would be good if the surf boards supplied with some versions could be available separately. His reply was they should be, in the fall (autumn).

Roger

Roger, if I had the chassis and/or engine number I probably could find an answer.

It looks like this car is J-198, chassis 2221.

It is a Murphy short-wheelbase "Disappearing Top Torpedo Convertible Coupe", produced in 1929 and the second of six of this type (actually 5 in short wheelbase).
The on-line "Duesenberg J Registry" says:
Originally owned by director Roy Del Ruth, restyled into more conventional car by George Thurmond's Los Angeles shop in 1936. Honeycomb radiator. According to Rocky Voss: Sold in 1984 to Rick Carroll, in bad shape but restoration ongoing (Carroll finished the car in violet, controversially, and returned the original body design to it).
The best pictures of this car are in Dennis Adler's book, "Duesenberg", pages 222-223. Adler's captions say, "The most beautifully restored of the six Murphy Torpedo Convertible Coupes, car 2221, J-198, displays the striking lines that make this one of the most coveted of all Model J Duesenbergs. This early model. built in 1929, has the Winchester honeycombed radiator."
"Restored in the 1990s by the late Rick Carroll, J-198 has a color scheme that has always been a topic of discussion. As flamboyant as Carroll himself, the violet motif was carried through to the instrument panel. If they didn't build one like this back in 1929, they should have!"
The violet car shown in Adler's book is a J, not an SJ, and this is the only way it would have been available in 1929. Some were retrofitted with superchargers later, and as you say, some may have had only the outside pipes added, for looks. But in this case, it may be that this was a special addition by Automodello.

Thank you for all that brilliant info Richard.

I had an idea there was something not "straightforward" with this model but I'll still enjoy the model. After all, how many violet models does one have in ones collection!

Have to look out for the Adler book.

Roger