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                    How to Make a Swap Meet Better After 49 Years + What Happened at Tech Tactics East

How to Make a Swap Meet Better After 49 Years + What Happened at Tech Tactics East

Porsche Club Insider Mar 16, 2026 66 min
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About this episode

Dive into the history and evolution of the iconic Porsche-only swap meet, celebrating nearly 50 years of bringing enthusiasts together. Steve Bond, long-time PCA member and swap meet chair, shares insider stories from its humble beginnings at a local dealership lot to its growth at Ski Round Top and eventual move to Hershey. The episode explores the unique culture of hunting for rare parts, the challenges of organizing such a large event, and how the swap meet remains a vital hub despite the rise of online marketplaces. Plus, insights into TechTactics East and the future of PCA events.

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Brand

Porsche

"Welcome to the Porsche Club Insider, your one stop for all things Porsche and PCA. Here's your host, Vu Gwin, and the Insider crew. Welcome everyone to episode 210. We've got some fun topics, we're going to talk about the world famous Porsche-only"

Porsche is a famous car company from Germany that makes fast and sporty cars. Many people love their cars for how they look and drive.

Concept

PCA

"Welcome to the Porsche Club Insider, your one stop for all things Porsche and PCA. If you aren't currently a PCA member and own a Porsche, what are you waiting for? Grab that Vin, head over to PCA.org and make yourself a member."

PCA is a club for people who own Porsche cars. They get together to share their love for these cars and help each other.

Company

Pirelli

"presenting sponsor, Pirelli. Pirelli tires have to achieve the highest levels of performance, safety, noiselessness, and grip on the road surface. Innovative tires that can satisfy even the most specific mobility needs of the end consumer."

Pirelli is a company that makes tires for cars. Their tires help cars stick to the road and drive safely and quietly.

Concept

swap meet

"most unique titles and that is the Central PA region swap meet chair and that is Steve Bond. Steve, welcome to the show."

A swap meet is like a big market where people bring car parts and sell or trade them with others. It's a good place to find special parts for your car.

Brand

Audi

"So they had talked a local dealer who was an Audi Porsche dealership in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, to use their lot on a Saturday..."

Audi is a company that makes fancy cars with lots of technology and comfort.

Car

Porsche 911

"One of the cars I sold a car to was the vice president of Hershey Entertainment Resort Company. I'll use his first name. His name was Scott. He was an enthusiastic new owner of a 911."

The Porsche 911 is a famous sports car that many people love for how it looks and drives.

Car

Porsche 944

"That's all we had back then in 944. And he had volunteered at the ski roundtub. And I told him I was in this dilemma."

The Porsche 944 is a sporty car made by Porsche that was easier to buy than the famous 911 but still fun to drive.

Brand

Hershey

"And he said, why don't you come to Hershey? I'll handle it for you. And whatever you're paying here, I'll charge you that there. And Hershey at that time was not the monster it is today."

Hershey is a town in Pennsylvania where a big car parts swap meet happens every year. It's easy to get to and has places to stay and eat nearby.

Term

eBay

"There was eBay and probably back then would have been like Craigslist or some forums or forums and stuff like that."

eBay is a website where people can sell things by auction or fixed price, including car parts. Buyers can bid on items or buy them right away.

Term

Craigslist

"There was eBay and probably back then would have been like Craigslist or some forums or forums and stuff like that."

Craigslist is a website where people can list things to sell or buy in their area, like car parts, but it might not be the best place for special or big parts.

Part

carbon fiber fender

"Like I remember someone, someone brought this carbon fiber fender, which was like a left sided carbon fiber fender of some random 911, which I don't know who would buy except for me because I wanted it as wall art."

A carbon fiber fender is a car part that covers the wheel area, made from a special light and strong material called carbon fiber to make the car lighter and look cool.

Concept

concours

"They were like, you know, let's do a concours, people's choice concours, keep it simple. We added an autocross today after the event to keep people there and race their cars in the parking lot"

A concours is a fancy car show where people show off their cars and sometimes vote on which ones look the best.

Concept

autocross

"We added an autocross today after the event to keep people there and race their cars in the parking lot that they bought parks on the day before."

Autocross is a fun car race where drivers drive through a course made with cones in a parking lot to see who can go the fastest without hitting anything.

Concept

motorsports parts

"I did a lot of racing and DE work for 30 years. So I was always looking for motorsports parts and cool looking shift knobs and just unusual things that I could personalize my car."

Motorsports parts are special car parts made for racing or driving really fast, which can make the car work better or last longer under tough conditions.

Term

shift knobs

"So I was always looking for motorsports parts and cool looking shift knobs and just unusual things that I could personalize my car."

A shift knob is the part you hold to change gears in a manual car, and people sometimes change it to make their car look cooler or feel better to use.

Concept

COVID

"Unfortunately, we all remember COVID. So COVID came rolling along and Hershey at that time as a company had really broadened their footprint..."

COVID is a sickness that spread around the world and made many events stop or change how they happen, including car events.

Concept

SCCA East Coast Nationals

""SCCA used to hold their East Coast Nationals there. That ended. So it affected a lot of things car related in Central Pennsylvania.""

The SCCA East Coast Nationals is a big car racing event where people come to compete and watch different types of car races.

Concept

Carlisle car shows

""Meanwhile, I have Carlisle events in Carlisle, Pennsylvania doing a humongous car shows.""

Carlisle car shows are big events where people come to see, buy, and sell cars and car parts.

Car

Chevrolet Corvette

""He was a Corvette guide. So that was his dad. So I knew Lance for years coming up through racing and tracks. And we were a couple of years apart. So we were very similar in a passion for vehicles. Of course, he was Corvette. I was Porsche.""

The Chevrolet Corvette is a famous American sports car that many people love for its speed and style.

Term

RSR high butterfly mechanical injection

"...there's this really dirty injection unit sitting on a table all by itself. That's it. And the guy behind sitting in a chair, and he says to me, go, this is a RSR high butterfly mechanical injection. He asked the guy, how much you want for it? The guy doesn't blink..."

This is a special part that helps get fuel into a Porsche race car's engine in a very precise way, making the car run better and faster.

Car

Porsche 959

"...lly comes. But it's stuff like that. You can find 959 wheels or Carrera RS magnesium wheels just sitti..."

The Porsche 959 is a very fast and special car made by Porsche a long time ago. It was one of the most advanced cars of its time.

Car

Porsche 356 Carrera

"...I've held a Carrera, a 356 Carrera, a 4 cam Carrera roller bearing. In my hand, I've held one. And I mean, it doesn't sound crazy, but that is so rare and cool to actually see with your eyes."

This is an old and special Porsche car with a powerful engine that was made to race. It's very rare and valuable today.

Part

four-cam engine

"...a 356 Carrera, a 4 cam Carrera roller bearing. In my hand, I've held one. And I mean, it doesn't sound crazy, but that is so rare and cool to actually see with your eyes."

This is a type of engine that has extra parts to open and close the engine's valves more precisely, helping the car go faster and perform better.

Term

cease and desist

"And it was a lot of explaining of why this marketing material was being sold. Cease and desist is probably the term they used."

Cease and desist means a legal warning telling someone to stop doing something they shouldn't be doing.

Concept

Tech Tactics

"And you can get a good flavor of what Tech Tactics is. It is a day-long, full of technical presentations. And you get about 120 some people in the facility."

Tech Tactics is a special event where people learn how to fix and take care of Porsche cars. It has talks and demonstrations about Porsche cars and how they work.

Term

pace car

"you have the cars. We even had the pace car from the safety car from 24 hours of Daytona that Porsche cars in North America sent up just for this event,"

A pace car is a special car that drives in front of race cars to keep them safe and control their speed during certain parts of a race.

Car

Porsche 911 GT3 RS

"the rubber marks from a 24 hour race. And they sent that up because Stuart McLaughlin from PCNA came up again and did a presentation on what this GT3 RS kit entails. Plus they sent the whole alignment machine that's special just to this car."

The Porsche 911 GT3 RS is a special version of the 911 made for fast driving on race tracks. It has better parts and design to help it go faster and handle better.

Concept

center lock wheels

"Rolf Kittlitz, care and feeding of Porsche center lock wheels, which is such a specific topic, but he had a full audience of understanding how you have to take care of these center lock wheels, even if you don't have them."

Center lock wheels are special wheels that attach to the car with just one big nut in the middle instead of many smaller nuts. This helps change wheels faster, especially in races.

Term

data acquisition

"Van Swensen, he did a presentation on using data acquisition for club racing in HBDE, which is, fortunately, just when I got out of doing HBDE was when data acquisition was becoming very easy for the common man."

Data acquisition is when a car collects information about how it is driving, like speed and braking, so drivers can learn how to drive better.

Concept

HBDE

"using data acquisition for club racing in HBDE, which is, fortunately, just when I got out of doing HBDE was when data acquisition was becoming very easy for the common man."

HBDE is a special driving school where people can learn how to drive fast and safely on a race track.

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