The Daily Reporter from Dover, Ohio • Page 3

Dover Firm Develops New Car Top Vinyl By J.J. DORSEY The D.S. Lahmers Co. Inc. of Dover hasn't come up with the better mousetrap, but the world beating a path tc the door.

Don Lahmers, head of the Harger plant, came out with a new product in January that is already represented in the U.S. by some 400 jobbers. Several in Mexico also have taken on thfe new line. Lahmers sees a need for plant expansion and will only nod sagely when asked about his firm moving into the Canadian sales market. What is the hot new item? A vinyl top for your car at a teasonable price.

to that, there is vinyl decking tot a boat, a textured cover for a car's dash panel or, if you wish, a vinyl bed for a pickup truck. It's called 3-D Vinyl texture paint and the product has the possibility of becoming the hottest item in the automotive world. Dealers are ecstatic and car owners are ready to dance in the street. New 3-D is as easy to apply to a car as lacquer and dries just as quickly. The textured finish is almost impossible to tell from the $150 tops or some sports models now; Vinyl tops have been used throughout the years in' luxury cars and have since become a status symbol of sorts, adding the touch of Eldorado to any car.

The trend started with custom builders and their efforts in the game of one-upmanship for that "deluxer than thou" touch. Early Dusenbergs and Fran- cioso-Isatti touring cars boasted the vinyl top. Ford, in 1949 and 1950, the idea, but dropped the ball when their Crestline models experienced difficulty. Even the Lincoln Continental suffered from problematic vinyl. The lift coefficient at high speeds would sometimes cause "bubbles." Any vinyl top, ravaged by the vandal, was subject to 1 hours in the body shbp.

With this background behind him, Don spent 6 months in what he calls "a concerted know, night and day up with the new product." The new material called for special machines and systems of production. Lahmers says that volume for this year, largely because of the new product, is up 40 per cent over last year. There has been no advertising campaign to date. Don says that his salesmen, who sell the firm's thinner and body putty, "gave several demonstrations. The enthusiasm over the product is really great," he adds.

The Lahmers firm Is not the only entrant in the automotive race for vinyl tops, but his simplified method and less troublesome finish makes 3-D "tops" in its field. While some finishes require 2 different "paints," the Dover-made product comes in one can and goes on simply. A competitive product results in small air bubbles that blister, giving a poor finish. Lahmers, to locally- designed machinery, has alleviated the problems that others face. The real test of a new product is the automotive jobber.

He has been fleeced, taken and gypped by the quick-buck artists in the business. They have a right to be skeptical. It could have been the good name Lahmers' firm had in the trade since the late 1940's, but he asserts that his product made the difference. Everyone wants the 3-D finish. Wort to (haft an auto manufacturer indirectly made inuen- does for the product.

That is a sign of things to come. The vinyl is applied professionally with a special spray gun marketed by Don and obtained from A West Coast manufacturer. It costs $26.50 as compared to some regular guns that cost nearly $100. The expensive one doesn't work as well. About 2 quarts of the finish will cover a normal roof.

It can be applied with no special painting preparations or ultra- sophisticated equipment The key to 3-D's growth potential lies in the retail. price. Dom Cua, owner of Cua Refinishing in Dover is doing "vinyl jobs" for $39.95. Lahmers says that prices will prohably go as high in some areas as $55. Coming in black, white and beige, 3-D Vinyl Texture Paint will bring a touch of elegance to any it the 1967 ordered without the textured finery or the neighbor boy's chopped and channeled Deuce Coupe.

Souths Hurt In Home Blaze HAMILTON, Ohio (AP) James Still, 18, and James Kidd, 16, remained in Mercy Hospital today with severe burns suffered Tuesday when a $4,500 fire destroyed the interior of the Still home just outside city -limits. Mrs. Thomas Still, 56, told authorities the fire started when her son threw some old film into a coal stove without knowing there was a fire going. Young Still then lowered his mother from a window and helped Kidd to safety before leaving the building. Den Lahmert to a ear which has a roof treated by hit vinyl.

hot" 3-D Political Sabotage Continues SAIGON (AP) Terrorism to sabotage South Vietnam's transition to civilian government is increasing. Political candidates, members of the Constituent Assembly which wrote South Vietnam's new constitution, and other civilians are the targets. Police informants say the terrorism is being fomented by feuding political factions as well as by the Communists. Grenades concealed in cake boxes with threatening letters were found Tuesday in the homes of two members of the Constituent Assembly. The new constitution went into effect Saturday.

The assemblymen are scheduled to start writing election laws Thursday. An elected civilian administration is supposed 'to replace the military regime after voting Sept. 1 and Oct. 1. At least four candidates in local council elections which started Sunday have been killed and 10 have been kidnaped.

Many others have been threatened. The Communists have made mortar and grenade attacks on polling places. One political party, the Vietnam Quoc Dan Dang, urged its members not to be candidates because they might attract Communist reprisals. More than 85 per cent of the registered voters, however, cast ballots in the 219 villages that voted Sunday. Voting continues for four more Sundays.

The political community was shaken by the shooting March 27 of a well-known politician, Nguyen Ngoc An, 51. Police sources said he was attacked by four men near Tay Ninh City, northwest of Saigon. He was wounded seriously. Some sources said privately he was shot to intimidate civilian opponents of the military regime, which is dominated by refugees from North Vietnam. An was active in promoting the presidential candidacy of former Premier Tran Van Huong, a leading southern politician.

Tran Van Van, a member of the Constituent Assembly and an outspoken critic of the ruling military junta, was murdered in Saigon Dec. 7. A youth described by police as a Viet Cong assassin was convicted of the slaying, but Van's widow charged that her husband's ene- Beautiful Need Not Be Expensive! EXTRA SPECIAL DUPONT S01-N Heavyweight sculptured, lew loop Oupont 501-N 19 Colors. OPEN MONDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY UNTIL, 9 P.M. If you've been wanting to carpet your home but have been putting it off because you think you can't afford it, then you just haven't been to Castle's! Good carpeting need not be in fact if you take into consideration the satisfaction it will give you and the long years of service today's new carpet fabrics give you, it's really INEXPENSIVE! Why don't you drop in during the next few days it won't cost you anything to look around and ask a few questions.

We'd love to have you! CASTLE'S NEWCOMERSTOWN, OHIO FREE DELIVERY NO ADDITIONAL CHARGES ON INSTALLATION WITHIN 50 MILES OP OUR STORE ON QUALIFIED ORDERS mies in the government were responsible. Terrorism not directly related to politics also) appears on the increase. Viet Cong raiders destroyed a police post on (he western edge of Saigon Tuesday night, killing 9 persons and wounding 12. Official figures report 40 persons were killed, 102 were wounded and 1H3 were abducted throughout the country by terrorists last week. 3, The Patty Reporter, Doter, 0,, April 5, 19V Phila Driver Cited in Crash Rodney K.

Beat, 29, of New Philadelphia was cited by the state patrol for failure to maintain assured clear distance yesterday in a 2-car mishap. The accident occurred on Rt. 39, just west of New Philadelphia at 4:29 p.m. Beal, driving a General Telephone Co. vehicle, struck the rear of an auto driven by Isabelle M.

Lechner, 47, also of New Philadelphia. She had stopped to make a left hand turn into a private drive. Patrolmen reported a deer ran in front of a car driven by James E. Bier, 48, of RD 2, Uhrichsville, at 10:45 p.m. on Rt.

8, two and one-half miles south of Dennison. The deer could not be found. An accident occurring at 10:45 p.m. on County rd. 09, a mile north of Strasburg, is under investigation.

Details are incomplete, the patrol said. Plan Review Of Milk Prices WASHINGTON (AP) The Agriculture Department has announced a public hearing in Cleveland, one of four scheduled across the country next week to review the levels of prices paid dairy farmers for fluid milk sold under 70 federal milk marketing orders. Under these orders, the department sets minimum prices which handlers are required to pay milk suppliers. The Cleveland hearing will be April 13. Others will be in Denver, St.

Louis and Washington. Weather Outlook COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)-Official Weather Bureau summary of Ohio conditions: A developing low pressure system in the Midwest, sent rain into Ohio before midnight Tuesday. Dayton reported .75 inch of precipitation by 1 o'clock this morning. Columbus measured almost half an inch by 7 a.m. Temperatures dropped into the 40s by midnight, then began to climb as southerly winds increased.

By dawn today readings ranged from 48 in Youngstown to 50 in Columbus and 54 in Cincinnati. Mild weather will continue through Thursday except for occasional cooling due to showers and possibly thundershowers. High readings Thursday, like today, will be in the 60s and low 70s. OHIO FIVE-DAY FORECAST Temperatures Thursday through Monday will be above normal, daily highs ranging in the upper 50s north, upper 60s south; lows averaging in the upper 30s north, middle 40s south. Mild most of period except a little cooler around Saturday.

Precipitation will total about .2 inch over most of slate, slightly heavier extreme north, occurring as showers beginning and end of period. In 1967, the Northern HemU sphere spun into spring at 2:37 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on March 21. Winter officially ends when the sun crosses the equator and day and night are equal the world over. To You Can Saw Ten Percent Thru Saturday, April 8th On Any lew Spring Sport Coat And Harmonizing Trouser We Are So Enthused With This Grand Clothing That We Want All The Men In The Area To Choose Now And Course Save Cash Clothing Has Never Been Finer Than The Famous Ratner Hyde Park, Phoenix And The Fabulous 'Ratner Royalty" Select Now And Save You Bet! FURNITURE AND FLOOR COVERING Qwitjhatfa To Our 1967 High School Choose Your Grad Suit From The Finest Save Also Get Free Gifts With Your Suit Purchase Just Tell Our Salesmen You Are A Grad And Your He Will Give You Valuable Assistance And Your With Your Suit Purchase Store ifo Hours; Open 9:00 A.M.

Wed. Till Noon Till 9:00 P.M. Other 5:30 Never On inc. IN NEW PHILADELPHIA, OHIO The Home of Fine Clothing And For Distinctive Men and Young Men.