Almost from the time I graduated college I have been looking for a classic car. That is close to 7 years worth of searching. During that time I came across lots of candidates, but my financial situation didn’t prove conducive to adding another vehicle. I made a pact with myself a couple years ago that by the time I was 30 I would own a classic car. I didn’t know exactly what it would be, but I knew I would have one. The last couple of years my search hit a feverish pitch. I would check a dozen classified websites and Ebay on almost a daily basis.

Then came the compromise with my wife. She knew I wanted an old car and she was fine with that, but she wanted it to be a Ford. If I didn’t love her so much that would have been a deal breaker in our marriage! You see, my entire family is Chevy guys. I got enough flack when I bought an ’85 Dodge. I couldn’t imagine the ration of crap I would get if I brought a Ford into this family.

Eventually I relented and agreed to the Ford as long I got to pick what Ford it was and I got to build it the way I wanted it. We agreed. So I started looking at Fords. Eventually I settled on the 1949-1955 passenger cars. I like how clean and smooth they are. I like the simple, but classy customs they can become. Yes, I had grown out of the muscle car phase. Sure getting there fast is fun, but I want to do it in style.

About 2 months ago I came really close to picking up a 1953 Victoria. It was in decent shape and priced well. It wasn’t the rusted out pile of shit in some guy’s field or a $30,000 trailer queen I had been seeing a lot of. I decided at that time I would look more closely for these Vickys. I Like the no post, the clean lines of the roof, and the minimal amount of stainless trim down the side.

Several weeks went by before I saw another one. This one was a 1954 Victoria on Ebay. I decided to make a move on it.