Object of Desire: NOS Heuer Chronograph Store Display

Found this awesome photo on my favorite vintage watch collector site.  The gentleman who posted it was particularly proud of his New Old Stock Heuer store display set, featuring a photo of Niki Lauda in the Ferrari.  Very cool indeed.  Not to mention his breathtaking collection of watches and NOS boxes, which are also extremely rare.  In this shot there are 3 Silverstone Chronographs (!), the famous Monaco and Siffert Autavia models, as well as the Montreal and Jarama.  All in all very impressive! If only he had a Monza to complete the family portrait!

via On the Dash forum

Cigar Box City, USA!

I was at a model car swap meet recently and saw this wonderful time capsule! I love the idea of a toy that is sold on the assumption that the purchaser will have 12 or 13 old cigar boxes laying around the house! Imagine what the parenting messageboards would say today!  Having said this, I totally stored some of my matchbox cars in old cigar boxes as a kid...

Object of Desire: Halda SpeedPilot

   You have already heard me wax poetic about Heuer Monte Carlo dashboard timers a while back, but here is a very interesting device from the same time period, used as an onboard time-speed-distance computer for rally and trial events.  The Halda SpeedPilot is a fascinating Swedish-made timing enhancement device that I would love to fit in my Lancia Fulvia HF some day...when I eventually get a Fulvia HF, that is...

The upper photo I took of a Halda inside a vintage Alfa GTA, but they were also commonly found in Minis, Escorts, and other 1960s rally cars.

Priced in-period as a $95.00 add-on, the SpeedPilot is considerably more valuable today.  There is a nice example available on ebay right now if anyone's interested! Only 800 bucks!

Objects of Desire: Vintage Helmet Bags

Lately I have been trolling around ebay a lot, looking at these awesome vintage helmet bags that come up for auction from time to time.  Somewhere in the far reaches of the internets are folks willing to shell out top dollar for these things. I am consistently astonished at how high the ending bids are on these items. Above is a compilation of some of the best ones I have seen on ebay so far. The upper left one is actually NOS from the 60s and had a buy it now price of over $600! Funny thing is, they aren't real leather and they are really poorly made.  BUT THEY ARE SO COOL! I want one!

Stirling Moss and his Slot Car track

I never knew Stirling was a fan of slot cars and models in general. This video shows him at home enjoying some friendly racing with the misses.  Also some fun shots of him working on a model kit toward the end! Plus there is a great cameo with Stirling's father as well.

Sorry about the watermark in the middle of the screen.