FEBRUARY 25, 2000

As the cladded second skin comes off I get a nice little surprise..apparently original tail lights! You can see what I mean about all the mouse debris being between the skins. Had this car not been kept out of the wet it would have oxidized years ago. No way (and no historical reason) I could leave it on.

The back trapdoor areas in the wheel wells were absolutely full to the top with mouse nests. Pretty disgusting. Found a dead deer mouse, and not all that old either. Maybe others are out diluting the local genetic stock? Not likely, but it happens. I am very careful to burn the contents of the shop vac, and watch the burn area carefully for the next year or so. This is how alien species of plants and animals get their start in California. You may think this is funny but I am spending thousands of dollars a year and lots of time trying to head off an invasion of Yellow Star Thistle that has reached the Carmel Valley, an my place in particular. Feral hogs are another problem, not to mention Chinese earwigs and hundreds of other pests. Be very mindful of this when importing or exporting old cars. Also be aware that Hanta virus is no joke. Breath enough powdered dry mouse shit and you will get a respiratory disease that you may not recover from. So much for the PA...I was rewarded in my labors by seeing the tail light shown above! Couldn't see from the back because it was covered by sheet metal.

Here it is..what do you think? BRC or an after added unit? Sure looks like the one Lee Bortmas kindly drew for me in a recent letter..See the black stripe in the clear part? The Drives side one has a red lens in the top area...assume the lower lens here is broken? It's like Venetian blinds or louvers.

Here's the radiator...looks pretty good eh? Seems in excellent shape. The honey combs aren't even dented or bent. Does this look like the right one?

A good day's work. I had wanted to follow Lee Bortmas' advice and restore this as a "CRC" but, except for the data plate under the hood (that describes it as a BANTAM RC anyway) I really can't see much that is not BRC. I am beginning to think the story I have is beginning to hold up. I.e. Checker took delivery of 3 BRC40's took them apart, put them back together and said no thank you.

Could the CRC story be a deliberate concoction aimed at making Checker look good and Bantam look bad? What exactly did Checker do that is so interesting, unique or heroic (except make the bad business decision not to produce the BRC's :~)? The Museum car is just heavier and more ungainly than a Bantam with a spot light. Big deal. Everything on it is simply an add on, or a removal. If there is something particularly Checker here I'm not seeing it...where's the innovation? Any GI mechanic worth his salt could take a BRC apart and put it back together. Stay tuned.

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