Author: End User

Publication of the Rickenbacker Automobile Club of America Summer/Fall Edition July, 2024 Issue 54

INDEX,
Page-1
From the Editor.
Page 2
Club Officers
Message From Our President Club Treasury Report
Page 3
Articles & Tech Information
Page 4
Thoughts, Ideas, & Feedback
Page 5
Featured Member or Rickenbacker
Page 9
Lost Cars,
Free Rick Parts,
Question
Page 10
Classifies
Club Information

From the Editor

Hello Cub members,
A little about your editor. I have been a long time Rickenbacker member. My first experience was through my older brother Rick and his 26 Brougham. He brought his car back in the early 60s. Back then, we in the family each had an old car. Dad had his 29 Pierce Arrow Limo; Rick had his 26 Rickenbacker Brougham; my brother Tony had his 24 Chrysler roadster; and I my 29 Franklin Victoria Brougham. All these cars are still in the family. And I have always considered them not antiques … but family cars. My 25 Rickenbacker is in memory of my older brother Rick. His car has passed on to his son Craig.
I have always driven our cars for fun . But I have never shared my love for them as I am now doing. As your New Editor, my hope is to bring a newsletter where members can connect … be informed. With member’s help, input, and patience, this second newsletter and those to come hopefully will accomplish this goal.
Your Editor, Frank
Frank Castillo, Editor

MISSION STATEMENT

The Hat in the Ring newsletter is dedicated to those interested in Rickenbacker automobiles, manufactured from 1922 to 1927 by the Rickenbacker Motor Company, (RMC) in Detroit, Michigan.
The purpose of this Club is to generate interest in our marque, and distribute information and helpful tips for the restoration and operation, so that our future generations may enjoy these amazing vehicles.

Tidbits
Eddi’s Real Name. With the war being waged against Germany, Eddie realized that his last name would not be very well accepted since his Mother and Father immigrated from Switzerland with their German name. Eddie’s name was actually …
Edward Reichenbacher.
[if you have an interesting tidbit, please email , text or mail me on it. I will post it here]

Club Officers
President: Roland M Klix 605_rklix@comcast.net (206 910-1496-c), (425-228-6376-h) addr: 10605, 169th Ave SE, Renton, WA 98059
Also Tech Support
Web-Master: Phil Castillo rickenbackerclub@gmail.com
Editor, Treasurer, Membership Chairman: Frank Castillo rickenbackerclub@gmail.com 6110 Crystal Lane, Lucerne Valley, CA. 92356-7102
909-296-0980
Club Web Site: rickenbackermotors.org
Club email address: rickenbackerclub@gmail.com

Message From Our Club President

Dear Club members. As your Club President for many years as well as editor for most of that time, I reflect on all of the wonderful memories and stories from club members. From helping to get problems solved to get cars back on the road again to discovering new cars for club members. Thank you all for your participation in the club, and your valued friendship.
Dorothy and I will be relocating closer to our family in Battle-Ground, Washington … about 160 miles South, where we hope to establish a family museum for our Rickenbacker collection.
My wish is to be able to hand off the Club Presidency to someone with a passion to keep our unique club going in the future. The club presidency is a rewarding opportunity. And I hope someone will treasure it as I have. I would like to continue helping with tech questions” as long as possible, as I enjoy keeping our Rickenbacker cars in running order, and driving when possible. Our family is very supportive of this and we will keep you posted as things develop.
I can not thank Frank Castillo (editor, treasurer, and membership chairman) enough for his work. And thank you Phil Castillo, our new Web-Site manager.
Many thanks again,
Roland Klix, Club President
C

Club Treasury
Duties include collecting club dues, maintaining Club Roster, and paying club expenses. Please email or text me for any questions or suggestions on the Club’s Finances.
U S Membership: $15.00 per year.
Outside U S Membership: $20.00 per year
Please make Checks & Money Orders payable to: Frank Castillo
Venmo payable: @Frank-Castillo-67
Membership dues pay for postage, ink, paper, envelopes, etc. to keep the Club running, and informing Club Members on known Rickenbackers. Also informs members of parts & projects and the search for lost ones.

Articles & Tech Information

The Rickenbacker was designed by engineers Harry L. Cunningham and E.R. Evans. It had a 3,482cc side-valve six-cylinder engine developing 58-hp, which ran very smoothly due to two flywheels, one at each end of the crankshaft. The first Rickenbackers were displayed at the January 1922 New York Automobile Show. One of the display cars featured experimental four-wheel brakes.
1925 Rickenbacker D6 Sedan
The company made sporting coupés, touring cars, sedans, and roadsters. Four-wheel inside brakes were introduced in 1923. Prices in 1923 ranged from $1,485 for a phaeton to $1,985 (equivalent to $35,497 in 2023) for a sedan.
Several automobile companies began using four-wheel brakes but some companies not offering them began a promotion campaign suggesting they were unsafe, which probably hurt the new Rickenbacker company's sales. The death of Walter Flanders in an automobile accident in 1923 slowed company momentum as well.
In 1924 a coach-brougham enclosed body style was introduced that would grow to represent 60% of Rickenbacker sales. The six-cylinder engines was up-rated to 60-hp and was joined in 1925 by an 4,401cc eight-cylinder engine developing 80-hp. The model was named Vertical Eight Super Fine which referred to the advanced proprietary engine and the high quality of the cars.
Eddie Rickenbacker resigned from the company in 1926 due to internal discord in the company's leadership. Although 1927 saw new models, designated the 6-70, 8-80, and 8-90, Rickenbacker cars had increased in price and sales were poor. Before the company closed down due to bankruptcy in 1927, more than 27,000 cars had been built.
The company was left in heavy debt when it closed. Eddie Rickenbacker however paid off all debt from his personal finances. He wanted no one to be financial hurt by the closing.

Thoughts, Ideas, & Feedback
*****
I am throwing out the following in this page for discussions. Call, text, write, or email yours thoughts, suggestions, feedback or any “Rick” information. I will print here your responses, unless you ask me not to print.
Club Roster. I would like to print the Club Roster in our next newsletter. Is it a good or bad idea to put out club member information?
2. I plan to contact members to feature their cars and stories. Good or bad idea?
3. Mail the newsletter as well as email them … or both. Some members don’t do emails.

Featured Member or Rickenbacker
As mention in our last newsletter, a lost car has been found . Number 17 on the Lost Cars Section: 1924 Model C Roadster last known at Wings & Wheel Museum has been found at “Unique Rentals” Havelock Nork, New Zealand. Here is it’s story as told by the daughter of her Dad’s Rick … Emma.
The day the Rickenbacker came home to our place was an exciting one for my Dad. Great care was taken to clearing space in the garage (not an easy task in a 6-car garage owned by an engineer!) to allow pride of place for this rare acquisition. Ricky as it was affectionately nicknamed, made its journey home with Dad driving and me feeling pretty special in the only passenger seat. I remember being in awe of such a beautiful old car, as Dad had spoken at great lengths of how rare it was, especially being factory made as a right hand drive for its first New Zealand owner. Obviously we took the long way home via the back roads to minimize the chance of any other cars causing an accident!
We lived on a small farm, so there was always something to be done, and little down time to be had. However, Dad, being an engineer, had a natural affinity for actively relaxing. His happy place was tinkering in the garage, making or fixing something. He would often show us small, fiddly pieces he had made for a model boat he was working on, or a piece of equipment he’d had created to allow him to make something else.
Needless to say, all this tinkering extended to Ricky as well. There was always a small oil leak or some such thing to

investigate., which usually lead to half the engine being taken apart and put back together with the greatest of care and precision, over a weekend. Dad was nothing if not thorough!
He was also cautious by nature, and was such a private person, that he seldom took Ricky out for a run. He didn’t want to risk anything happening to it, or really, anyone to know he had it! The occasional time he did take it out on a Vintage Car Club rally was quite the big deal, and took a lot of careful planning.
Dad was a cautious man who didn’t take many risks in life, so I guess it was surprising that he made such a purchase in the first place. He justified it by saying it was an investment for his retirement years, and would plan to sell it when the time came. Secretly though, I suspect he never really wanted to sell Ricky; he was far too invested in the Eddie Rickenbacker story and the history of the car (and rightly so). When retirement came he was busier than ever, wondering how he ever had time to work. There were a couple of half-hearted attempts made to sell Ricky, but it never really worked out. Seems to me that some things are just meant to be, and for him to own Ricky until the day he died was just how it was meant to be …. Emma

PS: Believed car was specifically made for a Gentleman in Oxford, New Zealand after WW1. It was commissioned to be a Right Hand Drive for New Zealand roads.

‘LOST’ CARS
The following is a partial list of cars that changed ownership and have been lost to the club . It would be wonderful if these cars could be located so that we can invite the owners to join our Rickenbacker Automobile Club again.
1: 1922 Sedan, Black. Restored. # 1161?
Sold 12/2017 Oregon
2: 1923 Sedan, engine# 13596, body#10520
Last owner Mike Morrison, CA
3: 1923 Touring, Last owner= Joe Buzzac, Spring Lake, MI.
4: 1924 Coupe, # 15317, Last owner Paul Barber, Dearborn, MI, (photo AQ#13-4)
5: 1924 Sedan –C6 Old resto. motor#17295, body#17185
Last owner W.M.Berger, Bloomberg, PA
6: 1924 Coupe, engine#18829, Last owner=Robert Lew, Marshfield, Wis.
7: 1924 C6 Coupe, Last owner=Ron Bellerive, Van couver, BC, Canada.
8: 1924 Sedan, restored, Last =Carl B Shoen hard, Ill.
9: 1924 Coupe, Last = R.J.Harvell, Weatherford, TX
10: 1925 D6 Sedan, Restored, #42692, Last owner=Tracy Perry, Longmont, CO
11: 1925 Brougham, motor#46575, Last Owner=Jim Birchfield, Barstow, CA.
12: 1925 Brougham, motor#47210, Last , Roseman, IA.
13: 1925 D6 Touring, Last owner= Dick Williams, Salt Lake, UT.
14 1926 E-6 Brougham, engine#50409, body#50995, last owner= Belm’s Museum, Sarasota, FL
15: 1926 E6 Brougham, last owner=Brad Worth, NH.
16: 1925 Rickenbacker ‘pickup’, for sale in Fenton, MO.

FREE Rickenbacker parts
I have a few extra Rickenbacker parts and hope to find new homes for them. Here is a partial list. These parts are FREE to club members, except for shipping costs. Most are rusty and need some work, but are restorable.
‘25 hood-center strip.
3 doors from 1926 Brougham.
Top wood pieces from ‘26 Brougham for patterns.
‘23 steering box for parts
Also. I may be able to help you with some small parts that are needed. Best to email me. Thank you. Roland Klix

Question: Are the 1925 & 1926 Rickenbackers more desirable than the earlier 1923 & 1924 Series Rickenbackers? What are the improvements over the production years. Or all of those years were just the same with little changes? Email, text or US Mail me your thoughts. I will post thoughts, comments, or letters as they come … Editor

Classifies & Club Information

The Rickenbacker Club has an ad in Hemmings. Should you desire or need to sell your Rickenbacker, we can help by modifying our ad to list your car. This service is free to Club Members in good standing. Contact Editor.
Also, each month a different member in good standing will receive the copy of Hemmings sent to the club. Hemmings is full of useful information. This too is free to whoever receives the copy as part of your membership.

CLUB ITEMS FOR SALE
1923 Rickenbacker Instruction Manual. Excellent reproduction. $60. incl shipping
1922/3 pins (Rectangular Rickenbacker emblem) $7
1924/5 pins (Hat in the Ring emblem) $7
Back issues of ‘Hat in the Ring’ newsletter $3
Wiring Diagram printout by year, for your car $3
Hat, with Rickenbacker logo, white $8
Club Patches $10
T shirt w/logo. Xl or large. White $6
Spare tire cover (Rickenbacker,+Hat in Ring logo)$60
(need tire size)
Mouse Pad, Logo $4
Rickenbacker logo Coffee Mug . Nice. $8
Very colorful poster. 19” X 24” Rickenbacker, a Car Worthy of its Name. Pictures cars from 1922 to 1926, all the different logos used, etc., and features Eddie Rickenbacker. Poster dated 2010 meet. only $10
.
New: Gas gauge Indicator decal. This is on the visible gas gauge in the tank. See description on page-2, of newsletter # 36.
I had this part made because mine was corroded $12.
(aluminum .020 as original)
All items, add shipping postage

Olson’s Gaskets . Be aware that for 1925 there were ‘D’ and ‘E’ series six-cyl engines, and they are different design, and take different gaskets that are NOT interchangeable. WWW.OLSONSGASKETS.COM
Olson’s Gaskets, 3059 Odpal Rd E, Port Orchard, WA 98366. 360 871-1207

Contact editor to place Ad here. Free to club members in good standing.
Contact Editor tto place an ad here
for

For Sale: 1925-6cyl parts. Rear-End, Rebuilt $500. Front Axle w/backing plates, brakes $250. Engine $900. Clutch housing w/pedals, $150. Radiator—rough $50.
Call Dick Mitchell, 17310 Table Mt Rd, Jamestown, CA 95327 209 984-4026

Wanted: Old Saturday Evening Post adds about Rickenbacker cars. I am missing ‘22-Dec, ‘23-Dec, ‘25-Apr, ‘26 May through Dec, ‘27 All. Also– any original Rick car tools, pouch for tools, or pictures there-of.
Thanks. Roland Klix

*****************************************
For Sale: 1923 Rickenbacker Sedan . Excellence condition. For more information call: 1(715)986-2294
Willis & Deloris Selle

Note: for “CLUB ITEMS FOR SALE” contact Roland Klix 206-910-1496

Rickenbacker Automobile Club of America
Frank Castillo, Editor
6110 CrystalLane
Lucerne Valley, Ca. 92356-7102

Forwarding service
requested

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