Cars, trucks, and RVs have been a lifelong passion of mine. I own too many cars and motorcycles as well as hoard literally hundreds of diecast cars. Yet, despite my love for all things with engines, I don’t really show it, or at least, not in the way I want to. That’s where I need your help, readers. I want to wear a car part on a necklace, but I don’t know what will work!
In the years before I started writing about cars, I was an IT drone. I started off by fixing desktops and graduated to writing SQL and Java. I tell you what, that career path wasn’t as fun as I thought it was. Still, I loved computers. I still love computers! Back in 2018 or so, I tried to make a budget super gaming computer out of a giant cluster of server CPUs. It didn’t work out, so I ended up reselling almost all of the parts I bought. I kept around one of the server CPUs, an AMD Opteron, for another project. I drilled a hole straight through it to turn it into a necklace charm.
I’ve been wearing this thing regularly ever since. Honestly, it’s always a talking point no matter where I go. Everyone wants to know what the heck is hanging from my neck. Only some people make the connection and ask if it’s a computer processor. Behold! The face of just 3 hours of sleep before a flight…
But here’s the thing, I write about vehicles, not computers! I need a new kind of fun necklace accessory. This came up thanks to Lady Gaga wearing a bumper cover on the red carpet. I don’t want to go that extreme, but a comment from Jb996 got me thinking. The context is that getstonyII thought the Lady Gaga post was probably sponsored (it’s not), which led readers to joke about who the sponsor would be:
Uh, sponsored by who?? I certainly missed it.
By SELVA? I’m not sure we’re the target demographic.
By a Junk Yard? Pushing people to buy old car parts for fashion excessories! Yes!I still think it’s the Junk-Yard Lobby. They’re trying to get me to wear old brake rotors for a necklace, like some kind of Auto-FlavorFlav
I won’t do it!!
For a brief detour, I will give a second COTD nomination today. California wants to annoy speeders with in-car alerts that cannot be turned off. This has upset a lot of folks, but I think Sid Bridge clearly has the better plan, here:
I have long held that the best cure for speeding isn’t technology based. Speeders should just be sentenced to having to drive a 1986 Dodge Aries for a month in order to really feel how horrifying 80 miles per hour can be.
Okay, so with COTD out of the way, I need your help. What’s a car part I can wear? My wife bought me a piece of Fordite, which is awesome, but I have that on display rather than wearing it. Besides, that’s not exactly what I’m looking for. I want to wear a car part as jewelry, not turn car parts into jewelry, if you get what I’m saying.
But here’s the thing: It needs to be small, preferably roughly the size of that big server CPU. I don’t want to walk around with a clutch disk hanging from my neck. I also think wearing a badge would be cheating. However, now I’m stuck. What’s a car part that’s small, still identifiable as a car part, and presumably won’t tear up my skin? Maybe you can help!
Otherwise, have a great weekend, everyone!
I like the earlier comment idea of a carb butterfly, small and shouldn’t be painful to wear.
Another idea I had was maybe a part from Ski-Klasse, especially from that dreaded hydraulic system!
How about the key to your favorite car. In your case, since you own many vehicles and possibly cannot pick an absolute favorite, that necklace may be a bit of an albatross.
I don’t know how recognizable they would be, but I have the knockouts from the keys to my dad’s truck; I’ve been thinking that they would make some neat components for a necklace.
I like the suggestions for analog odometer wheels, especially if they can be fixed to a specific date.
A throwout bearing would fit on a necklace easily enough
The numbers from an odometer. Can be a significant date
10mm socket? You can get them in fancy anodized colors at harbor freight. But for an actual car part how about the smart car emblem on a chain like how 90s rappers used to wear Mercedes emblems?
All the 10mm sockets have been lost.
Corrugated piston ring or segment of one.
While a camshaft would be awesome, it is a bit unwieldy. How about the logo of your favorite? 10 mm bolt? Top of a dipstick?
Could always cut one cam lobe off, they’re often hollow too which makes things easier.
A throttle plate pendant.
My friend used to wear I’ve of those round spark plug gappers on a braided hemp cord around his neck. One of my all-time favorite neck ornaments.
Some great suggestions leave me with a lug nut that suits your style.
Piston from a disassembled AC compressor, some of them have really small pistons and more of them to compensate. I wanna say the piston from the 16 cylinder sanden ac compressor in most VWs will be about the right size.
I had one on a keychain for the longest time.
Fuelshark!
A Mercedes star!
GM side post battery terminals. I haven’t worn one as jewelry, but I have used them as interior decoration.
After rewiring a ceiling fan for wall control, I removed the pull chains, which left some 5/16″ holes needing to be filled. From a distance, the terminals look like shiny baubles attached to the fan. No one has noticed unless I point them out specifically.
” I own too many cars and motorcycles as well as hoard literally hundreds of diecast cars.”
How many hundreds? I have around 15,000 from 50 years of collecting (Matchbox, Hot Wheels, Corgi-you name it, I probably may have it!) I’m still a long way from joining the big boys and girls, but they keep asking me to build my collection. Right now I’m still thinking of starting my own museum.
Instead of a car part, why not a diecast? Hot Wheels sells a Coupe Clip model you can buy right off the pegs, considering a scalper hasn’t vandalized the shelves yet. It’s a solid casting of a sports GT coupe with a keychain loop on the rear. I have one on my keychain.
If you can’t find one, I can send you a spare.
There’s tons of stuff on Etsy that’s car related. For example:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/269339069/silver-car-charm-necklace-charm-jewelry
How has nobody suggested a taillight?
Make it a heckblende!
Torch’s contract specifies that taillight-derived body ornamentation is reserved for his exclusive use as nipple piercings. It was an odd stipulation when they started this whole shebang, but nobody else on staff had a good reason to say no, so they went with it.
That would be on Jason’s rear pockets of his pants. 🙂
Can you put a tail light between the headlights?
Peter Brock Energy Polarizer
Really, you should just wear an Autopian badge as your pendant. Or as a brooch.
If you have a quality batch made in sterling silver and enamel, they’d probably sell pretty well and earn a bit of profit for the site.
A VW badge could work. Might be a little big, but it would certainly attract attention.
PS. It looks you can already buy a VW necklace. Doy.
Crack open an old odometer. Thread the number wheels on a nice chain.
Bonus points if you use the speed indicator needle as a pendant.
Also, for earrings, unscrew a pair Schrader valves to get the inner parts. Solder those to the ends of some little drop chain earrings.
Poor Stef
Perhaps like the piston and connecting rod from a R/C nitro engine would work well for a necklace?
How about something small, motorsport-oriented (not just cars), and safe for skin?
A 10mm socket. They’re available in different colors so you can coordinate when you want, or use a plain one for everyday wear.
Or possibly the backing plate from the business end of a 3/8″ ratchet. It will look a bit like a small medallion but could include the lever used to change the ratcheting direction.
> A 10mm socket. They’re available in different colors so you can coordinate when you want, or use a plain one for everyday wear.
But then she’d never find the necklace.
How about a piston?