RARE Buckler cars, THE CRAWLEY MkX by OldSchool Restorations of North Alabama.....multi-tube frame......rare...alloy body Vintage MkX, Mk 10 Vintage race car, Buckler Works Taylor Aluminum Body, Volvo p1800 drivetrain by OldSchool Restorations of North Alabaam

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The ad said:   $16000

I have a very rare collector item. A 1950 Buckler (1952). One of maybe 25 in the entire world. Only 2 ( only one Mk10 ) in the USA, most of the others are in England and New Zealand.These cars were supplied with many different motors, whatever the owners could fit properly. The best research site for buyers is the website for the Buckler register. They track all the remaining Bucklers in existence. This is the Crawley Buckler MKX. Charles Crawley was my Uncle who passed away recently. It was last roadworthy in the early 80's. It has a 4 cylinder Volvo engine with a manual transmission. looks to all be there except the alternator. It needs a complete restoration. The body is made from hand pounded aluminum, very rare artform, not many people can do it. No seats, no grill. I think a good mechanic could get it running pretty easily. This is a great oportunity to get a very rare auto, thanks for looking . The body is in primer, never been painted. No title, bill of sale is all I can do. Buy it Now is $16000 .Will accept Pay Pal or cash. Buyer responsible for shipping and pick up.

 We had never seen or heard of these alloy bodied cars the Buckler  had actually built in their factory in England.  Years ago, it would have meant searching through old car magazines, hoping to find something relevant, but today, with the internet, it was the results of a quick search that prompted us to quickly acquire this car while it was available.  Further research on the net, together with the years of Bucklering Newsletters , and Ohio Registration forms, proved our acquisition to be a true 'barn find'

Purchased the 6th of August, it arrived at the OldSchool Restorations shop in North Alabama two weeks later.

   Most often,  buyer enthusiasm causes immediately beginning work on a project, rather than first developing a plan. Now that the car has arrived, the best plan can be developed  by doing a complete assessment ..of the vehicle as it is.... as it 'was' .... then envisioning the targetted use, and resulting vehicle desired.

  For vehicles of this rarity, especially since it had apparently been modified from original, this is not a speedy process.  Bucker Cars are well known for their racing performance, and unlike today's racecars, most race cars of the period were road legal, many actually driven to the track, raced, and driven home ( hopefully) .  Therefore, it was an easy decision to plan the car to be finished as a road going, but true Vintage race car, which would be in keeping with period correctness.

  We had , and considered, three alternatives regarding the drivetrain  1) use the Ford 100e Flathead 4 that was in common use in the 50's  ...  2) intall an American Ford V8-60, which was popular here in the 50's , and would make an exciting and acceptable vintage racer ...or 3) continue to use the Volvo drivetrain Crawley had installed early in the cars life.

For later reference, we took many pictures of the car as it arrived ..............

 For the next 4 months, we researched heavily,  the car ,  the Company,  and Mr Buckler himself,  while at the same time, looking the car over from time to time, without disturbing it with any dis-assembly, considering all the options, and developing a plan.