Aerosmith’s Tour Bus Found in The Woods
Hey, Johnny B here. One of my favorite shows is American Pickers. I watch it religiously. Two guys, picking through one man’s garbage, to find another man’s treasures. And what a treasure the two have found this time…
The two show hosts, Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, happened to get a tip on an old van that was stuck in someone’s woods behind their house. Last year, the American Pickers were shown one of the most rock n roll items they’ve ever come across – a 1964 International Harvester Metro van, not only in inoperable conditions, but rotting away in the woods on a Massachusetts property.
To put the cherry on top, the old hunk of junk van turned out to be Aerosmith’s first ever tour bus they purchased as a band. Steven Tyler said the group bought the van way back in 1970, when the band was still an up and coming act. What a find!
Although it was inoperable and not running when they found it, the van was decaled with a super vintage Aerosmith painting and name on the side.
In the end, the Pickers purchased the van at what some would consider now, a steal of a price – $25,000.
Eventually, word got around, and Aerosmith heard that Wolfe and Fritz had bought the car and had it in their possession. They reached out and said they wanted to buy it, as long as it was fully fixed and running.
Once the band could confirm the van was actually theirs, they were so eager to see it back in driving conditions, they invested $10,000 into the process and let the American Pickers do what they do best.
Over the course of finding parts from similar vans, restoring engine parts and paneling, the tour bus had been brought back to life. They didn’t want to restore it too much so that the original look could be maintained, so they only touched up the parts that were rotting away completely. hey even left one of the headlights hanging out from its socket, and paint chips and rust to keep that grungy, vintage look.
The American Pickers met up with Aerosmith in Las Vegas where the band is currently staying, and sold the bus back to its original owners for a breakeven price.
