Re: [FWDLK] License Plates

["David Homstad" <dhomstad@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Guys,

I stand corrected!

Being from Minnesota, I had heard of the famous "black" California plates. I
purchased a 56 Olds in California in '79. It came with black plates and
annual stickers nearly a quarter inch thick. I was led to believe these were
the original plates because California (at that time) did not replace all
their plates as Minnesota did every 2 or 3 years in the 50s and 60s.

Dave

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Wayne Graefen [SMTP:wgraefen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
> Sent: Saturday, February 19, 2000 7:22 AM
> To:   L-FORWARDLOOK@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject:      Re: [FWDLK] License Plates
>
> Dave,
>
> I have to disagree on the color of license plates in use in
> California in 1957 in your answer to Glenn in New Zealand.
>
> California issued plates in 1956 and next in 1963.
> The 1956 plates were black letters on yellow background.
> Stickers were then issued 1957 through 1962.
> The 1963 plates were yellow letters on black background.
> Stickers issued 1964 through the next CA plate which I recall as
> 1971.
>
> Wayne Graefen
> (ex-Californian and glad)
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "David Homstad" <dhomstad@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Friday, February 18, 2000 6:33 PM
> Subject: Re: License Plates
>
>
> Glenn,
>
> California in 1957 was black with yellow lettering. They used
> ordinary black
> paint into at least the early 1960s.
>
> The movie studios in California can make plastic plates with any
> alpha
> numeric combination they want. These are just not legal on the
> street, but
> OK on the studio set. A friend of mine had some he "retained"
> after renting
> his car for a movie.
>
> I have considered taking several plates and cutting out the
> letters that I
> wanted. Then re-welding them back into a plate with the
> combination that I
> wanted. The only problem is that in Minnesota, the plates were
> "reflectorized" starting in 1956, so I would need to have a
> special source
> to recoat the plate. I suspect that Minnesota was a leader in
> "reflectorization" because 3M, a Minnesota company, is the
> original material
> provider. More work than I wanted to do.
>
> You may want to look for some license plate collectors on the
> Internet.
>
> Dave Homstad
> 56 Dodge D500
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: glenn barratt [SMTP:FURY@xxxxxxxxxx]
> > Sent: Friday, February 18, 2000 4:01 PM
> > To:   L-FORWARDLOOK@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > Subject:      [FWDLK] License Plates
> >
> > Can someone tell me what color the license plates would have
> been in
> > Hollywood, California, in 1957?
> > And does anyone have a good source for manufacturing custom
> vanity
> > plates, in the style/color of the originals for the year/city?
> > Thanks in advance.
> > Glenn.
> > 57 Fury.
> > New Zealand.