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Former club member Norm Dodd's 1955 is now in Ken Austin's collection

30 + intrepid souls ventured out on a very wet/rainy morning to tour the private collection of Ken Austin in Newberg. Only one couple was brave enough to travel in their Early Bird though. Congratulations to Bob & Marcena Monroe for their perseverance and showing the rest of us what wet weather Thunderbirding is all about. We also owe them a big Thank-You for planning this event. They had a beautiful back-roads drive planned for us that would have been great in a Thunderbird with the top off. Oh-well, it was nice even in a family "truckster".
While Ken's collection is mainly Ford there were a few other examples on display. A lot of attention was given to his Golden Rod Yellow 1955 Thunderbird. And an extremely rare Ford Model K. It is only one of five known to exist.
The interesting thing about the Golden Rod Yellow car is its history. Dave and I were intrigued by it because there were a few clues that it was a very early '55, and we know that Yellow wasn't used until the spring of 1955. Plus it had a CTCI Senior decal on the window. With permission from Ken Austin we opened the hood for a closer look. The data plate proved that it is indeed a very early Thunderbird and that it was originally Thunderbird Blue with a Turquoise and White interior. It had also been converted to 12V. Our question was how did a car with so many changes become elevated to Senior?
About then Ken stepped in and let us know that the person he bought it from had stated that he got it "from a guy that used to work for the telephone company". Dave and I looked at each other with a little surprise and said "oh" to each other. Checking the data plate number with records after I got home verified our surprise: it had been owned by former RCT members Norm & Kathy Dodd. In fact Dave did the body and paint work and I did the wiring and a lot of the detail assembly. It is amazing how you forget after 30 years. Norm restored that car in 1985/86 and showed it at our CTCI International Convention in Bend in 1986. He showed it in Primary Non-Original and was awarded the Senior status at that time. See photos of it and the Model K below. One of the photos shows the head on a flat-head Ford V8 that says "Austin" on it. While a student at OSU Ken designed and built heads and intake manifolds for Ford Flatheads. He is also famous on campus as the original Benny Beaver.
After viewing the collection we drove to the Newberg Izzy's for lunch and a business meeting. Details of the meeting will be in the minutes of the next Bird Watcher.



  • Home
  • Our Story
    • News & Announcements
    • Cliff Noxon Service Award
  • Past Events
    • 2011 >
      • Allure of the Automobile
      • Great Oregon Steam Up
      • Carousel Trip
      • Veterans Dinner
      • Christmas Luncheon
    • 2012 >
      • 2012 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Superior Glass
      • June 2012 Picnic
      • CTCI - Memphis
      • Gorge Tour
    • 2013 >
      • 2013 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • President's Day 2013
      • Guide Dog Graduation
      • SMS Auto Fabrics
      • July BBQ
      • August Rally
      • September Business Meeting
      • Oct Covered Bridge Tour
    • 2014 >
      • 2014 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Feb Dessert Auction
      • 2014 40th Birthday party
      • May Tech Session
      • July Rally
      • August Progressive Dinner
    • 2015 >
      • 2015 Kick-Off Luncheo
      • March Tour of Ken Austin collection
      • April Air National Guard Tour
      • May PT Boat Tour
      • July Rally
      • August Gorge Tour
      • August CTCI Convention in Albuquerque
      • Sept Carlton Crush
      • Oct Tour & Lunch
    • 2016 >
      • Feb 2016 Valentine Party
      • March - World of Speed
      • May 2016 - John Lemmon's car collection
      • June 2016 - Timberline
      • July 2016 - Rally
      • September 2016
      • Oct 2016 - Model Railroad
      • NOV 2016
    • 2017 >
      • Jan 2017
      • Feb 2017
      • March 2017
      • April 2017
      • May 2017
      • June 2017
      • July 2017
      • Sept 2017
      • Oct 2017
    • 2018 >
      • Jan Kick-Off Dinner
      • Feb 2018
      • March 2018 Freedman Collection
      • April 2018 Tech Session
      • May 2018 WAAM & LeMay
      • June 2018
      • August 2018
      • October 2018
      • November 2018
      • December 2018
    • 2019 >
      • January 2019
      • Feb 2019 Albany Carousel
      • March 2019 Ken Austin Tour
      • April 2019
      • May 2019
      • June 2019
      • July 2019
      • August 2019
      • Oct 2019
      • Nov 2019
      • December 2019
    • 2020 >
      • Jan 2020
      • Feb 2020
      • June 2020
    • 2021 >
      • June 2021
      • July 2021
      • August 2021
      • Sept 2021
      • Oct 2021
      • December 2021 Christmas Luncheon
    • 2022 >
      • Jan 2022
      • Feb 2022
      • March 2022
      • April 2022
      • May 2022
      • Aug 2022
      • Sept 2022
      • Oct 2022
      • Dec 2022
    • 2023 >
      • Jan 2023
  • Up Coming Events
  • Photos
    • As seen at a local Cruise-In
    • Prisoners of Time
    • 1962 Budd XT Bird
    • 1961 Buick Flamingo
    • 1916 Gas Prices
    • Ford History Video
    • Consumer Reports
    • Fords of the 1950's
    • 57-58 Thunderbird
    • Driving to Wichita 2006
    • Circus Party at 2008 International Convention
    • Working on members' cars
    • 1957 Rebuild
  • Contact Us
  • Join Us
  • Tech Tips
    • Preparing for winter storage
    • Cooling System >
      • Anti Freeze information
      • Plugged Overflow Tube
      • Radiator Caps
      • Temp Sender Bushing Removal
      • Cooling Trick
    • Electrical >
      • Battery Safety
      • Ground Strap
      • Safety Circuit Breaker
      • Turn Signal Switch
      • Fuel & Temp Gauge Safety
      • Electrical Leaks
    • Slide Shows >
      • Engine Install slide show
      • Body Removal Slide Show
      • Another Engine Install
    • Cleaning Tips
    • Valve Adjust tip
    • 1955 Shop Manual error
    • Turning Rotors
    • Welding around Brake Cleaner
    • Paint on Chrome
    • Wind Wing Glass Removal
    • Automatic Transmission Removal
    • Arm Protection
    • Changing the Fuel Pump
    • Rusty Lug Nuts
    • Local Parts availability
  • Club Store
  • Bird Watcher
    • 2014 >
      • Sept 2014
  • Cruise-Ins
  • Auto Service Recommendations