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Photos by the author

1. This yellow 1970 Torino GT was as bright as the shining sun during the Mid-Ohio Ford Club's 21st annual Spring Swap in Columbus, Ohio. The GT sported the 351-cid V-8 with four-barrel carburetion, along with the C6 automatic transmission, 3.91 rear end, "shaker" air scoop, power brakes, air conditioning, power steering, and AM/FM radio. The asking price seemed to be a reasonable $9,000 for the solid muscle car.

2. What looked like a bargain was this set of four GT wheels offered for $150. This writer saw two more sets at the show for $250 and $500.

3. Mustangs and Mustang parts- including Shelby - were plentiful throughout the entire show. This 1969-70 hood came with the templates to make a cutout for the non-functional hood scoop and directional lamps

by West Peterson

During this time of the year in the Midewest, the weather can greatly affect the success of a swap meet. The Mid-Ohio Ford Club, based in Whitehall, Ohio, is quite aware of that and therefore holds its annual Columbus Spring Swap inside four buildings (comprising nine acres) at the state fair grounds, better known as the Ohio Expo Center located in Columbus. The meet, which you may have discerned from the club running the show, is made up entirely of Ford product vendors, and vehicles in the car corral were required to be at least "Ford powered." Vendors were set up with everything from used parts to NOS (or NORS) to reproduction, along with anything and everything in between as it related to Ford, Lincoln, or Mercury.

Always held on the first weekend of April and running both Saturday and Sunday, the show is considered to be the largest all-Ford indoor event. In fact, the 1,150 indoor vendor spaces were sold out this year, so Bob Cochran & Co.expanded the meet to the outdoors, accommodating 50 extra spaces. Between two of the fairground buildings, in the "mall," extra vendors that were willing to bet on good weather were allowed to set up camp.

The car corral, located in one of the four buildings (actually a well-built permanent shelter), was busting at the seams as well. Just under 300 cars were up for sale under the roof, with several more located in what turned out to be a very desirable "mall" location.

For Mustang lovers, this show was probably the place to locate any part that is missing or needed to complete a restoration. High-performance parts were in great supply, including Shelby paraphernalia.

Although most of what we observed was 1960s vintage, there was cetainly enough earlier and later material to keep anyone busy searching for those elusive parts.

When we arrived on the grounds mid-morning Saturday for the opening of the 21st annual event, the parking lot was near full and the line to get into the first building was already a half-block long. The weather couldn't have been better, as attested by Saturday's attendance of more than 15,000. Sunday, however, the cold front arrived along with the wet sunshine. Bob Cochran and the Mid-Ohio Ford Club should surely be commended for the hard work in putting on such a well-organized event, as a generous portion of the proceeds go toward the Earth Angel Foundation, Inc.

4. The Mustang's stable mate, the Mercury Cougar, was also in plentiful supply at this year's show. One of two Eliminators present was this Competition Yellow coupe with a stock 351-cid 300-hp Cleveland V-8, four-speed gearbox with Hurst shifter, power steering and brakes, Magnum 500 wheels, and an AM/FM receiver. With only 52,000 miles on his rare Cougar, the seller was asking $13,000 with $17,000 invested.

5. An interesting 1928 Model A roaster pickup seemed a bit lonely for attention. Although in solid order, the Class 4-condition truck was priced at a hefty $9,500. How many of us wouldn't like to have something like that to use up at the lake cottage, though?

6. This Class 2 condition 1969 Eliminator was advertised as being "one family owned." It featured the S-code 390-cid four-barrel V-8 powerplant mated to an automatic transmission, tinted windows, power disc brakes, etc. The asking price for the red coupe was $17,900, which is way off the charts for such a vehicle, even if it were in Class 1 condition.

7. Fitted with the desirable 429-cid 360-hp V-8, this orange 1970 Torino GT convertible also featured the C6 automatic transmission with floor console, power steering and brakes, bucket seats, AM/FM radio, Magnum 500 wheels, and laser stripes. Only 3,797 were built, with an original sticker price of $3212. Asking price was $14,000.

8. A cherry-condition 1963 Galaxie 500XL "factory supper stock" drew some curious attention. The black supercar featured the G-code solid lifter 406-cid triple carbureted V-8 that pumped out 405 horsepower with 11:1 compression. Inside was the four-speed manual gearbox, bucket seats and Rotunda tachometer. Asking price was $29,500. Try restoring one to this condition for that!

About the Club

The Mid-Ohio Ford Club is a group of dedicated Ford lovers with membership exceeding 140. They are devoted to Fords, Ford-powered vehicles and related products, with an emphasis on traveling, partying, and sharing experiences. Many of the events are for the whole family, and in most cases, annual events are for charity. The Columbus Spring Swap features 1,150 vendor spaces taken up by more than 480 vendors, and is the largest all-Ford indoor swap in the united States.

For drag racing, the club rents either Pacemakers (1/8-mile) in Mt. Vernon, or National Trails (1/4-mile) in Kirkersville, for half-day activities prior to a regularly scheduled event.

Next year's event will again be held on the first weekend in April, starting Saturday March 31 and going through Sunday April 1. The club has already secured an additional building on the grounds, increasing indoor vendor spaces to 1,472 and covering 11 acres.

FROM CARS & PARTS/June 2000