Re: (ET) Re: Buying group

[dave barden <daveb speakeasy org>]

I just like to say,  Amen and thanks for the articulate "rant".

"David Roden (Akron OH USA)" wrote:

> > I believe Bill Gunn has originals of all the prints. ;-)
>
> Thanks for making that point, Christopher.
>
> I know I sound negative here, but why do we have to reinvent the wheel?
> OK, Bill's mower decks are expensive.  I priced one; it was over $1,200.
> But so are the new mower decks for the Electric Tractor Corp.'s tractors.
>
> So maybe you can start some kind of organization and make one for
> (pulling a number out of the air) $900.  I'm not sure you're gaining
> anything, when one can buy a used ET for much less than that and get a
> (usually) decent deck with rebuildable motors.
>
> What do you want to do with this buying group?  Have you really thought
> through all the implications?
>
> If you buy a Corvair, Triumph TR-3, or some other similar long-
> discontinued automobile, you pretty much can't use it as regular
> transportation because you can't count on getting the parts to fix it
> when you need them.
>
> Do you realize how fortunate we are to have someone who supports these
> obsolete machines with parts and thoughtful advice?  The last parts
> source for Citicars and Comuta-Cars, electric cars which sold about 2,200
> copies between 1975 and 1982, just started disposing of their inventory.
> As near as I can figure, the sales didn't justify the expense of
> maintaining the stock.
>
> Bill Gunn sells good parts at a fair price, along with advice that rivals
> the quality of that in an old-fashioned hardware store.  But if Bill's
> sales don't support the expense of rebuilding, fabricating,
> commissioning, and stocking repair parts, do you think he'll keep on
> doing it?  We'll be in the same position as the C-car owners are now.  Do
> we want that to happen?
>
> Please forgive me.  Here comes strong language.  It's strong because I
> really feel strongly about this.
>
> <soapbox>
>
> The American mantra is cheaper, cheaper, cheaper; the only thing that
> matters is how much you pay in the store. This has led to the current
> crop of tin-can-and-thin-plastic lawn equipment which lasts only a few
> seasons at best.
>
> Bill will only keep supplying parts as long as he can earn a decent
> return on the enterprise.  Too much tinkering with the fragile web of ET
> supply can backfire.  Unless you want to turn your ET into a collector's
> piece, just something that you have around to play with while you do the
> real work of maintaining your property with a gas tractor, please don't
> risk putting our most reliable source of repair parts out of business.
>
> </soapbox>
>
> Thanks for putting up with my rant.
>
> David Roden - Akron, Ohio, USA
> 1991 Solectria Force 144vac
> 1991 Ford Escort Green/EV 128vdc
> 1979 General Engines ElectroPed 24vdc
> 1974 Honda Civic EV 96vdc
> 1970 GE Elec-trak E15 36vdc
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