40th MVPA CONVENTION Topeka, Kansas - June 25-27, 2015, Coming??

[M813rc]

It's been great so far. I haven't been to a convention yet that I didn't enjoy.

The only "bad" thing is that now I have gotten to know so many folks at these shows, I spend half my time visiting rather than digging through the vendors tables.
Actually, maybe that's a good thing.

Gunnut, I know which car was yours in the parking lot!

I will add my endorsement to the MV community having a very high percentage of the nicest, and often most generous, folks you could want to meet.

Cheers

 

[GUNNUT in Iowa]

snip . . .

Gunnut, I know which car was yours in the parking lot!

. . . snip

Yeah, sometimes it is easy to figure things out.

 

[USMC 00-08]

I really wish I could have made it, but work schedule did not allow.

Please post up pictures when you guys have time.

 

[CARNAC]

OK.

Now - off to see "Guy A". He is right there by the front door, anyway. I wanted to tell him I did not want to put him on the spot and wanted to see if he was OK with the situation. He also thanks me for my integrity - and the free windshield. Yes, he mentions that now he has the money to paint his vehicle. We shake hands and all is good. I turn to head out the door. He stops me, turns around to his tables, and hands me a jack for my MB! Remember, we don't talk about jacks, when I am buying the tire pump. I have no idea how he knew I wanted a jack! My wife, who was with me the entire time, did not know I wanted a jack - until I told her - on the way out to the van.

Military vehicle folks are just the nicest folks you will ever meet!!!!

Sorry for the long post. I just had to tell the story.

I've had similar experiences but have also had 4 individuals that I won't do business with anymore because of integrity issues.

One is a big boy vendor who asked at Aberdeen "How much for the air assist power steering kit?" I said $1400 (this was awhile back yet that price was still a heck of a deal). He hands me a wad of cash. I was busy and almost didn't count it. When I did I found $1400--ok, but he was walking away with both of my kits. I stop him and he says that he'd meant both--BS. Then he says it was my fault for not clearly stating each and then proceeds to say that since it was MY FAULT, how about taking $2000 for both---BS.

Second was a guy who handed me an envelope and I didn't count it right away. It was short $300. This guy I couldn't even remember his name but he was a friend of a friend type.

Third one was very recently where a guy bundled a bunch of stuff and ask how much and then tried to walk away with an additional item. Kept claiming, I only pay this or that for different things and how could I conceive of charging more. Felt I was asking too much (with the additional item) and felt he deserved a 'wholesale, buddy, buddy' deal. Yet when I had asked to buy some headsets from him several years ago, I paid full up price. To add to the slap in the face, he'd just the day before all of this, asked me to do him a favor to work a 'contact' with some folks I knew. Obviously some calls were not made after this happened.

Last was a big time radio person that failed to follow through on a promise (as part of a deal) to find and get me a good deal on a WWII BC620 radio with install kit.

So yes, we have some great people in this hobby but we have some real fecal heads also.

 

[mkcoen]

Had lots of fun and great to put some names (or user IDs) with faces. Hope I was able to help some folks with some decent prices. I am disappointed nobody wanted Goat tires though .

 

[GUNNUT in Iowa]

Had lots of fun and great to put some names (or user IDs) with faces. Hope I was able to help some folks with some decent prices. I am disappointed nobody wanted Goat tires though .

Bummer!

Brady did not get any tires? I spoke with him Friday morning on the phone. He wasn't there, yet - and we left before he was going to get there.

 

[AZDeuce]

What? No pictures? Someone help out us poor folks.

 

[clinto]

We had a really good time. The National MVPA and the associate chapters always put on good events and this was no exception.

We had a nice table next to GovPlanet. The Kansas members helped us unload and load and let us borrow some carts.

We saw all of our friends, many of whom we only get to see at the yearly convention.

Clintogf got us an awesome room right across from the capitol. Here it is:



The show had a lot of great displays. A LOT of WWII Jeeps, some Dodge Weapons Carriers, A HETT, MWMULES awesome displays of as masks and protective gear (amazing), a GPA, a Sherman, multiple halftracks, a pre-WWII armored truck, etc. I missed there being a lot of late model M-series stuff but to be honest, the Ga. Rally is very heavy on the more modern stuff, so I guess I get one WWII event and one modern event.

David Welch is making some gorgeous repro sheetmetal for WWII stuff and I got to see a complete, all new Ford GP tub. The Ford GP is Ford's proposed Jeep and is very different than the Willys-copy GPW.

Got to meet lots of people from SS.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures.

 

[Flyingvan911]

I wish I could have gone. Dad wanted to have a garage sale but it was mostly useless stuff. No one stopped to look around. Who doesn't need 8 foot fluorescent light fixtures in their house?

 

[clinto]

I try to take pictures of every vehicle when I go to a convention, but I missed a few this time. Regardless, I have 200+ pics of the event all posted here:

http://s9.photobucket.com/user/clinto1/library/2015 MVPA National Convention?sort=3&page=1

Enjoy!

 

[KansasBobcat]

We had a great time. Did not think I would know anyone but ran into people I haven,t seen for 20 years. A real quality show unlike the gun shows that are now 50% junk and not related to the hobby. I complimented some of the host members and MVPA staff. The hotel and Expo center were an ideal venue. To me it shows that one quality show a year is better than a show every weekend. Our thanks to all. Bob

 

[jasonjc]

Here are few pic's from me. I also went a few blocks on down the road to the Combat air Museum and KSNG Museum. This is to show how big the M1070 is.

 

[AZDeuce]

Clinto THANKS for the excellent photos, I really liked the video of the mini Halftrack....made me miss my M3A1 HT.

 

[MWMULES]

Had an OK show sales wise and enjoyed seeing and visiting with other SS members as usual . Ziggy and company ended up being my next door vendor and lunch supplier, thank you for that chicken!

Went back this AM to pack and drive home the rolling chemical corps museum before the temp went up and to my surprise the Texas Trio was waiting to help me load it up and get me on the road. What would have taken me several hours was done in 20 mins thanks to them helping. I just had to stack and hang the suits and masks they handed me inside the trailer through the side door, instead of going up and down the boarding ladder countless times. Again big thanks to M813rc , Pawnshop and reloader64 !! Also big thanks to a young steel soldier and his family from MO that helped me yesterday evening pack up the BeefCo retail outlet.
I only got a few pictures of one side of my display and nothing else as my sd card had come loose inside of my camera!

 

[microjeep]

Had an awesome time and meet some very nice people and some old friends as well. Someday I'll have to learn how to post pictures from my phone?

 

[Piper Cub]

Thanks for all the pictures! Hopefully I get to go to the convention when it is in Pleasanton next year and is only a 6 hour drive instead of an airline flight. Looks like it is a great event.

 

[clinto]

We left Topeka yesterday at about 8:30 am and got home this morning at 3am. Loooong trip to do in all one shot.

Clinto THANKS for the excellent photos, I really liked the video of the mini Halftrack....made me miss my M3A1 HT.

You're welcome. The MVPA National conventions are great events and if I can show people some good pictures and this convinces someone to go to a convention and maybe join the national chapter, then it's worth the effort to shoot them and upload them (and with my slow hotel internet it took over an hour to upload them all.

Had an awesome time and meet some very nice people and some old friends as well. Someday I'll have to learn how to post pictures from my phone?

Much thanks for your help loading and unloading. Really, really appreciate it.

Thanks for all the pictures! Hopefully I get to go to the convention when it is in Pleasanton next year and is only a 6 hour drive instead of an airline flight. Looks like it is a great event.

I have been to 3 conventions and 2 as a vendor (well, actually clintogf is the vendor and I'm an unpaid assistant) and I can't say enough nice things about these events. They are very well put on, very organized, usually pretty diverse (this year was really heavy on WWII and Korea-era stuff but usually it's a good mix) and the vendor selection is pretty good.

If you guys enjoyed these pictures, I also have albums of the 2014 and 2012 events:

http://s9.photobucket.com/user/clinto1/library/2014 MVPA National Convention

http://s9.photobucket.com/user/clinto1/library/Huntsville

 

[M813rc]

Clinto, glad y'all got home safely. It was nice talking with y'all.

We stayed and watched the armour move out Sunday morning, to me that's a favourite part.
We rolled in to the Austin area around 12:30 this morning.

I've been to 9 conventions so far, enjoyed every single one of them. A lot of the "regulars" were missing this year, maybe we'll see them next time.

MWMULES, more than happy to have helped, you're a great guy and I always enjoy visiting with you. PM me a mailing address, I'll send you a disk of the photos we all took.

Cheers