akafrankcastle
Full Member
But once you look closer...
You'll get the picture.
Last edited:
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Sure don't look like much...1973 Baja saved from the grave TWICE
- Thread starter akafrankcastle
- Start date
But once you look closer...
You'll get the picture.
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
Looking a lot more complete than this...!
Good job!
Well, the real story is this...
After spending almost 8 months in a highway patrol contracted impound yard, it's legal. And NOT destined for scrap.
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
CHP made it easy. They impounded it when I took it in for a VIN inspection. Reported stolen in 2012.
Had to wait 30 days for reporting party to claim. Another 30 for CHP to release to towing company (4 months actually). A month for tow company to file for title. And another few weeks for title to come back.
Nothing but luck really.
Full story tonight or tomorrow. Have a long drive back to KC from CO.
Prizefighter
Bronco Guru
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2010
- Messages
- 1,192
Eureka! Very nice find. And great story too House. It's always good to know these were grabbed up by Bronco enthusiasts.
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
For the full story, complete with details, you can check out my thread over on Colorado Classic Broncos. http://coloradoclassicbroncos.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=7096
Here's the first part of the story of 1973 Stroppe Baja U15GLQ80791.
Back in December of 2014, I was NOT shopping for Bronco parts when I came across an ad for a free Bronco frame with crappy body. I plugged the phone number into my phone and was surprised to see I already knew the person, an associate from work. I text him and asked him to hold the frame for me, as I was thinking of possibly building a rotisserie.
Once I got back to Colorado, I went and met the guy and had a look at what he had. Based on what I saw, I immediately told him I would take it and could pick it up the next day. THEN, I had a look at what I agreed to take.
The first thing that really struck me about the truck was how complete it appeared to be, despite being incomplete. Aside from the missing driveline, it looked as if you could swap everything in, wire it up, and drive the thing off.
I was told the truck had been sold without title after the death of its previous owner. Having failed to obtain a title, the next owner sold it as a parts vehicle to the guy I know. And he used all of the desirable stuff to improve his own Bronco, before finally selling that and moving to Denver to go to college.
During the course of my initial walk through, I also took note of the VIN number and a couple of unusual aspects of the truck. Orange paint under how many other colors of paint. Dual shock mounts. And a roll cage built on top of a roll bar that still had Stroppe stickers on it.
A quick search on my way home, showed that the VIN fell smack in the middle of a lot of 1973 Bajas. Without a second thought, I hopped on Marti Auto Works and ordered a report for the truck and then called Andrew Norton.
The picture that House posted above is how the truck looked the day I picked it up. This put me in a bad spot, as I needed the trailer to move some things soon. So, I headed down to the salvage yard and scored a set of axles from under a 1971 F100 4x4. I dropped the Baja on the axles so that it could be moved around, sans trailer, then hauled it off to my buddy's 15 acres where it sat for the next year without being touched.
During that year, I did a fair amount of research on the truck and the VIN to try and learn as much as possible and maybe get a title easier. More on all of that later.
So, fast forward to January 2016. My wife and I decided to sell our home in Colorado and move to Missouri, where we are from. Hoping to be able to finish a bonded title process before the move, I picked up the Bronco and a trailer load of parts and moved everything in to another friend's storage unit.
After the home sale was complete, I remained in CO for another 2 months for work. Work kept me from doing much more than cleaning the truck out, chopping out a bunch of junk wiring, slapping some crappy sheet metal on the front, and swapping out the full width axle for early Bronco width.
One week before I was set to leave CO and complete my move to MO, I hauled the Bronco to Pueblo for a VIN inspection by Colorado State Patrol.
Everything with the VIN inspection seemed to be going well. The trooper was pretty knowledgeable and friendly. Another trooper showed up who happened to also be a Bronco owner and member of Colorado Classic Broncos. I was certain I was walking out of there with the paperwork I needed.
Well, that didn't happen. The first trooper emerged from the back office to tell me he needed a statement from me, on paper, concerning how I came into possession of the truck. A towing company showed up and pulled the Bronco from my trailer onto a rollback. And before I knew it, my 1973 Stroppe Baja was driving off while I stood on an empty trailer where it had once been.
Here's the first part of the story of 1973 Stroppe Baja U15GLQ80791.
Back in December of 2014, I was NOT shopping for Bronco parts when I came across an ad for a free Bronco frame with crappy body. I plugged the phone number into my phone and was surprised to see I already knew the person, an associate from work. I text him and asked him to hold the frame for me, as I was thinking of possibly building a rotisserie.
Once I got back to Colorado, I went and met the guy and had a look at what he had. Based on what I saw, I immediately told him I would take it and could pick it up the next day. THEN, I had a look at what I agreed to take.
The first thing that really struck me about the truck was how complete it appeared to be, despite being incomplete. Aside from the missing driveline, it looked as if you could swap everything in, wire it up, and drive the thing off.
I was told the truck had been sold without title after the death of its previous owner. Having failed to obtain a title, the next owner sold it as a parts vehicle to the guy I know. And he used all of the desirable stuff to improve his own Bronco, before finally selling that and moving to Denver to go to college.
During the course of my initial walk through, I also took note of the VIN number and a couple of unusual aspects of the truck. Orange paint under how many other colors of paint. Dual shock mounts. And a roll cage built on top of a roll bar that still had Stroppe stickers on it.
A quick search on my way home, showed that the VIN fell smack in the middle of a lot of 1973 Bajas. Without a second thought, I hopped on Marti Auto Works and ordered a report for the truck and then called Andrew Norton.
The picture that House posted above is how the truck looked the day I picked it up. This put me in a bad spot, as I needed the trailer to move some things soon. So, I headed down to the salvage yard and scored a set of axles from under a 1971 F100 4x4. I dropped the Baja on the axles so that it could be moved around, sans trailer, then hauled it off to my buddy's 15 acres where it sat for the next year without being touched.
During that year, I did a fair amount of research on the truck and the VIN to try and learn as much as possible and maybe get a title easier. More on all of that later.
So, fast forward to January 2016. My wife and I decided to sell our home in Colorado and move to Missouri, where we are from. Hoping to be able to finish a bonded title process before the move, I picked up the Bronco and a trailer load of parts and moved everything in to another friend's storage unit.
After the home sale was complete, I remained in CO for another 2 months for work. Work kept me from doing much more than cleaning the truck out, chopping out a bunch of junk wiring, slapping some crappy sheet metal on the front, and swapping out the full width axle for early Bronco width.
One week before I was set to leave CO and complete my move to MO, I hauled the Bronco to Pueblo for a VIN inspection by Colorado State Patrol.
Everything with the VIN inspection seemed to be going well. The trooper was pretty knowledgeable and friendly. Another trooper showed up who happened to also be a Bronco owner and member of Colorado Classic Broncos. I was certain I was walking out of there with the paperwork I needed.
Well, that didn't happen. The first trooper emerged from the back office to tell me he needed a statement from me, on paper, concerning how I came into possession of the truck. A towing company showed up and pulled the Bronco from my trailer onto a rollback. And before I knew it, my 1973 Stroppe Baja was driving off while I stood on an empty trailer where it had once been.
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
And, on to the next part...
April 22, 2016 was the last time I saw the Bronco. As it left, the trooper told me how the process was going to work.
Owner is notified. Has 30 days to claim. After that it is considered abandoned and released to the towing company to do with as they see fit.
I got a card for both the trooper and the owner/operator of the towing company. And with heavy heart, I drove back to Colorado Springs, loaded my trailer, and completed my move to Missouri.
For the next six months I called. Every 10 days, every chance I got. Every phone call I explained, I'm not trying to be a nuisance, just being diligent.
Finally, in October, I got a voicemail from the trooper; the Bronco had been released, with paperwork, to the towing company. I immediately phoned the towing company and the owner answered. After a brief discussion, he agreed to file for a title and contact me when it came back.
I spent the next 8 weeks making a phone call to the towing company every 10 days, on the day, to inquire as to whether or not the title was back. Nothing. "Government works slow" I was told.
So, this week I was preparing to head back to Colorado Springs for a memorial service on Fort Carson. I tried to contact the towing company to find out if the title was in, so I could take my trailer and hopefully bring back the Bronco. The first day the owner was not there. The second, no answer on the phone. So I said the hell with it and took the trailer anyway.
Thursday evening I drove to Pueblo to try and locate the tow yard. Google couldn't give me an address, just a general area. So I drove around until I found the place. It was pitch black out and I saw a light on in the office. Took a chance and went in, found the owner inside going over paperwork. I explained who I was and what I was doing there. He showed me his file and explained that he hadn't received anything back yet. A two hour conversation followed, concerning everything imaginable. Family. Baseball. Economy. Guns. You name it. Finally, just as I was about to leave, he says "let me check my title book."
The second title in the book: U15GLQ80791!
We struck a deal on price. Shot the crap for another 30 minutes or so, and I left.
Friday morning I showed up to pick up the Bronco. Rather than going straight to business, we had a 20 minute conversation about an antique pocket watch he had on display in his office. Then, I gave him cash. He gave me a signed title (which I promptly took to the truck and secured inside my bag). Then we loaded it up with a forklift!
And there you have it! Seven months and some change later, not only do I have the Bronco back but a clean and clear title to go with it too!
April 22, 2016 was the last time I saw the Bronco. As it left, the trooper told me how the process was going to work.
Owner is notified. Has 30 days to claim. After that it is considered abandoned and released to the towing company to do with as they see fit.
I got a card for both the trooper and the owner/operator of the towing company. And with heavy heart, I drove back to Colorado Springs, loaded my trailer, and completed my move to Missouri.
For the next six months I called. Every 10 days, every chance I got. Every phone call I explained, I'm not trying to be a nuisance, just being diligent.
Finally, in October, I got a voicemail from the trooper; the Bronco had been released, with paperwork, to the towing company. I immediately phoned the towing company and the owner answered. After a brief discussion, he agreed to file for a title and contact me when it came back.
I spent the next 8 weeks making a phone call to the towing company every 10 days, on the day, to inquire as to whether or not the title was back. Nothing. "Government works slow" I was told.
So, this week I was preparing to head back to Colorado Springs for a memorial service on Fort Carson. I tried to contact the towing company to find out if the title was in, so I could take my trailer and hopefully bring back the Bronco. The first day the owner was not there. The second, no answer on the phone. So I said the hell with it and took the trailer anyway.
Thursday evening I drove to Pueblo to try and locate the tow yard. Google couldn't give me an address, just a general area. So I drove around until I found the place. It was pitch black out and I saw a light on in the office. Took a chance and went in, found the owner inside going over paperwork. I explained who I was and what I was doing there. He showed me his file and explained that he hadn't received anything back yet. A two hour conversation followed, concerning everything imaginable. Family. Baseball. Economy. Guns. You name it. Finally, just as I was about to leave, he says "let me check my title book."
The second title in the book: U15GLQ80791!
We struck a deal on price. Shot the crap for another 30 minutes or so, and I left.
Friday morning I showed up to pick up the Bronco. Rather than going straight to business, we had a 20 minute conversation about an antique pocket watch he had on display in his office. Then, I gave him cash. He gave me a signed title (which I promptly took to the truck and secured inside my bag). Then we loaded it up with a forklift!
And there you have it! Seven months and some change later, not only do I have the Bronco back but a clean and clear title to go with it too!
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
The Marti report I ordered for the truck back in 2015 gave me the confirmation I needed regarding the Stroppe history. Of course, these reports never reveal how the trucks are actually outfitted when they come out of Long Beach. But, the DSO is right and for now that will do.
In the interest of title research, I did some deep googling and came across this ad from the Colorado Springs news paper.
As you can see, this ad ran on July 1, 1973. My Marti report shows this truck sold on July 10, 1973. Effective marketing?
I'm pretty sure one of the sequential brothers of this truck (one VIN before or after) was a part of the same DSO shipment and is in the registry.
In the interest of title research, I did some deep googling and came across this ad from the Colorado Springs news paper.
As you can see, this ad ran on July 1, 1973. My Marti report shows this truck sold on July 10, 1973. Effective marketing?
I'm pretty sure one of the sequential brothers of this truck (one VIN before or after) was a part of the same DSO shipment and is in the registry.
This is an awesome story -- not just about the Stroppe, but about life! Get knocked down? Get back up! Want something really bad? Do the Work!!
Man, what a great read this morning!! Congrats on the "new" ride!
Man, what a great read this morning!! Congrats on the "new" ride!
BajaFresh75
Bronco Guru
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2005
- Messages
- 5,486
Wait!!! There is a Baja Pinto by Ray somewhere out there, according to the Phil Long ad. Amazing!
OP
OP
akafrankcastle
Full Member
I've just assumed Andrew was quietly hunting that one down and was waiting for the day to reveal it to us.
BroncoBoom
Jr. Member
Nice Find !
Another Baja in the mix ...
Another Baja in the mix ...
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