Sunday, February 25, 2007

The Bricklin - New Brunswick's 1st (& last) car

Founder of Subaru Canada (he brought the cheapest, lightest car into the country because it didn't require a safety inspection), Malcolm Bricklin also formed a gull-wing sports car manufacturer based in New Brunswick.

Not to be mistaken for the Delorean, apparently the Bricklin was much less reliable and only 2,854 cars were built.

What to do about all the taxpayer dollars lost by the NB government?  Put out a coin to commemorate it!  I wonder if Ireland did the same for John Delorean?

At least it fits in with February's stop smoking month and win an auto campaign here in Toronto.

The cars had no cigarette lighter or ashtray. Malcolm Bricklin believed it was unsafe to smoke and drive.

The Bricklin SV-1 - #6242203

A radical, safety-conscious sports car.

During the 1970s, Saint John, New Brunswick, was the automotive capital of the world as it began producing the gull-winged wonder known as the Bricklin. Looking very much like Italy's Maserati (but at a fraction of the cost), the Bricklin promised to deliver performance and safety innovations that were years ahead of its time. Plans were ambitious but short-lived - Bricklin Canada closed its doors after producing just 2,854 cars.

Limited to 15,000 coins worldwide.

Apparently a film company called Cojak (insert shoveling under construction sign here) got some more taxpayer dollars to produce a movie on the subject. (though not a web site)

Bricklin will play himself in the opening scene of the movie, which depicts his plane diverted to Moncton just following the Sept. 11 attacks, Cool said.

"So there he is, back in New Brunswick. He swore he'd never come back. And he sets foot in New Brunswick and his hell car – this wrecked-up, burnt Bricklin in some junkyard – wakes up and these pistons start screaming his name: Malcolm, Malcolm!"

The Briclkin Movie - http://www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2004/10/19/bricklinfilm041019.html#skip300x250

I wonder how Michael J. Fox would have looked in a Bricklin?

TOREX Coin Show Toronto

This blog will track collecting coins, stamps & currency and follow wherever this may take me.

I attended the Torex Toronto coin show on February 25, 2007, and added to my collection with an AUD $1 bill, some Canadian mint dollars (fairly worthless with .38 silver) and a Maritius note. The dealers at Torex seem to prefer British coinage, and there was only a few that sold foreign currency there. Most had Canadian coinage, and one had a collection of coupons and gift certificates.

Unfortunately I missed the Canadian Tire Collectors Meetup(?). My friend who worked at Canadian Tire was pissed off when somebody brought in $900 in Canadian Tire money to buy a BBQ. Apparently the stuff holds its value though.

Be sure to keep those Chuck-e-Cheeze tokens and Subway coupons!

Future goals for acquisition
Paper currency samples from every country.
Tuvalu stamps
Tesla coins and stamps (Croatia is to adopt EUR in 2008, so the 2006 Tesla coin may be worth something more than $50!).

After browsing eBay and other auction sites, apparently the most common lowest-priced currency right now is Afghani and Iraqi.

Auction Sites
http://www.teletrade.com/ - granddaddy of them all.
http://auctionfire.com/links/coins.html - not sure about this one.
http://www.sothebys.com/ - not for me just yet.

Events in Ontario, Canada
http://www.nunetcan.net/cpms.htm

Reference Sites
http://www.canadiancoin.com/


Like any other hobby, it has to have it's own slang. I picked up a few terms today that I haven't heard of before:

Coin slang
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numismatics - a catch-all term for collecting & studying currency & it's history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exonumia - not to be confused with Numismatics, this is the study of coin-like stuff. See novelties. http://www.misterbanknote.com/novelty.htm
Specimen - Samples of currency, some specifically made for collectors. Adds to the value of a note.
More slang here..

Fanatical collectors
http://www.toronto.ca/archives/becker_collections/index.htm - Larry Becker had one of the largest collections of Toronto memorabilia, which was donated to the city's archives in 1999.
http://acoins.com/binion.html - Ted Binion's silver dollars are no longer buried in the desert.
http://www.raregoldcoins.com/newsletter_archive.asp?Vol=3&Issue=6 - The $150,000 coin found in a golf shoe