Uncertain about which Uncertain T?

I have not posted here in sometime, but I always make a point of checking in to see what’s going on with the modeling crowd. I was real surprised & pleased to see the lengthy thread about one of my favorite show rods last week. Alan Gilkey has apparently been a super sleuth to get as far as he has in finding some information about the Uncertain T. Fabulous news and I hope every bit of it is true and we all get to see the Uncertain T sooner rather than later. I read every posting with rabid enthusiasm.

I chimed in about the Uncertain T several years ago on this very board and as I recall there were vows to locate the car and Mr. Scott and discover the fate of the famous showrod and provide some answers as to why it fell off the face of the earth. I’m real glad the interest in this car is still strong.

When I was eleven years old (During the Spring of 1970) I stood before the Uncertain T (or so I thought) at a Boy Scout Jamboree in Southern California. I’ve said it before a long time ago on this board but I’ll say it again. The sight of this car probably made me a life-long car nut. I was already interested in the whole hot rod & drag race scene through magazines and models, but this was probably my first ever encounter with a “real” hot rod even if it was a show car! I loved it, and the memory has stuck with me through the decades.

But herein lies a bit of confusion (for me) about what is currently being said about the Uncertain T. When I saw the car, It was painted in a shade of Lime-Gold flake. It still had the pie-cut drag slicks on it, and it was displayed with a handsome hand painted sign that identified it as the Uncertain T. I already knew of the car in it’s candy tangerine paint from seeing the model kit on the hobby store shelves and knew right away what it was sign or not. This was the state of the car in 1970 as my eyes saw it.

Now, from reading what was said during the phone conversation with Alan, I’m to understand that this memory may be something other than what I thought it was. It could be I suppose, as it has been a while ago, and this was a time before I made photos of just about everything I encounter that’s of interest to me.

“The car is alive and well too, garaged in Receda, and is EXACTLY as it was in 1967. It has never been repainted or altered. ANYTHING you have seen contrary is false, or possibly a clone.”

Hmmm. Well, I saw this thing (I promise), and it was either the Uncertain T or the world's most perfect clone of that famous car. Furthermore, I'm not the only one who saw it as this scouting event was covered up with kids and their cartakers. Beyond that experience, photographs of the "Lime-Gold" UT apparently exist from this time frame. Just take notice of the scanned photo from Street Rodder magazine that was posted in the previous thread.

It's pretty well know that the car was repainted from a candy red to the more familiar candy tangerine soon after it's completion. However, this was well ahead of 1967 when most folks say the car vanished. It's the Lime-Gold flake version that is of concern to me though. Was it a clone? This is something that wasn't really done very often in those days. If it were, I can't imagine anyone doing a clone with a dedication to complete accuracy like might be done today because these cars weren't looked upon as "historical" at the time.

Yet look at the thing... It's identical down to the window tinting, and
upholstery pattern! Even the distributor wiring on the Buick nailhead is
exactly like the 65 version. Take note of the shape of the front axle, the real short wheelbase, and most importantly the (supposedly) one off fiberglass body. It looks like the real McCoy after it's been painted, given a mesh grill, and the sort of gonzo Indy car tires that were becoming fashionable at the time. The wheels could be changed without any real drama most anytime.

But he said it was never painted so it has to be a clone right? This begs another question… if it's a clone, then what happened to it? No reasonable
person would ever think it was anything other than the actual UT, so it
would be very cool to know of the "clone's" whereabouts as well. It could be a proper surrogate until the actual Uncertain T emerges, and it's so dead nuts perfectly accurate as a clone that it just has to have a place in the saga of the car's destiny.

I know the efforts to find this car and Mr. Scott are genuine. I don’t doubt anyone’s commitment to the endeavor. I am a bit perplexed as to what the “Lime-Gold” edition means though. The newly rediscovered Mr. Scott is certainly entitled to his privacy and will likely reveal all in time. However, if the questions about the “Lime-Gold” UT can’t be resolved, then we have a whole new related mystery to solve regarding the car’s history.

I want to emphasize that I’m not trying to shoot this discovery down as if it weren’t valid. I've yet to post any remarks on the CC because I've been sort of tied up with other duties, and I'm not sure I want to be the guy that peee'd in the punch bowl and is perceived as having ruined the party. I hope it's all true and the infamous car and it's owner publicly resurface after a 36 year (or longer) hiatus, but I have to hold onto a big question about the 1970 edition if it’s the real deal or not because It’s part of the complete story.

PS: I'd repost the photos if I could figure out how to do it!

Louis Kimery