Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Gas Pump Author Jack Sim Passed Away

Jack Sim passed away October 23, 2020 at the age of 85. His 3 books about old gas pumps and one about air meters vastly increased the knowledge available in our hobby. Jack built an extensive collection of gas pump and air meter literature. His research and collaboration with other experts are the basis of most of what we know of the history of the pumps and meters we love to collect. His contributions to our hobby will live on.

Jack was always good to me and I tried to always cooperate with him in any way I could. He will be missed.

Jack Sim Obituary:
https://www.valhallafunerals.net/obituaries/John-Sim-3/#!/Obituary

Jack helped me several times, I will miss his knowledge and willingness to help people.

Bummer to hear Jim but thanks for letting us know.
Condolences to Cindy and his family.

Sad, I proudly own his books and will greatly miss his posts. Condolences to his family. We will greatly miss him.

My condolences to his family and friends.

Extremely sorry to hear about Jack's passing and offer my deepest condolences to his family. I was fortunate enough to meet Jack at several shows and he always had time to answerer any questions I had. His contributions to the hobby so many of us love is unmeasurable and his posts to this site will be missed.

Truly a legend in the hobby. Always fun to talk to at the shows. His expertise will truly be missed, as it was an asset to all of us. Prayers go out to his friends, family and his wife, Cindy.

Wow, sorry to hear this. I always talked to Jack at Iowa Gas. The hobby lost another great one.

Wow , So Sorry to get this news !
May Jack RIP ,
The world has loss another Great person that help this hobby & Lot of us on here.

Regards
Sid

Godspeed Jack. He was a true gas pump aficionado.

So sorry to here of Jack's passing he was a great guy that will be missed. I first met Jack at the Hershey show when he would bring many varieties of Air meters. They looked so cool back in the day how they were displayed. My condolences to his wife and family.

My condolences go out to Cindy and the family. Richard

Jack goes to Gas Pump Heaven with his Bible in hand and joins a lot of other collectors we have lost of late. At least they'll have lots to talk about. We will miss his knowledge and straightforward replies back here. Thanks for the education Jack and rest easy.

So sorry to hear of Jack's passing. He was ALWAYS so willing to help. A GREAT man. Prayers to his family.

my condolences - a true icon too the hobby,

Jack's knowledge will definitely be missed - RIP .. ...

Wow, this is sad news. Jack was a huge asset to this hobby and his contributions to the hobby will live on for years. My condolences to his wife Cindy and their family. We'll miss you Jack.

Another oldgas OG gone. RIP Jack, you were always good to me.

Jack and I teamed up to share a hotel room at Iowa Gas a couple of years ago. What a fun time....he was a hoot, especially after sampling a beer or three! Jack was a thoughtful, hardworking, and generous person to the end, even though life threw him some curve balls along the way. Thinking of you and Cindy today, Jack. Rest in peace good friend. John

I was so sad when I heard this news . I was with Jack the Saturday he got home from Des Moines . We had a nice visit and I bought some air meter manuals from him . Cindy , my condolences to you and your family . His knowledge was so vast and he was always happy to share it . I will miss seeing and talking to him at local auctions or the shows . RIP Jack .

One additional quick thought, Gang. As many of you know, when Jack wasn't spending time with his hobby publication and literature business, he could be found at his Amvet post shooting darts (he was a champion at that). Of course, while there he'd also enjoy a brew or two. He was known to generously provide a beverage for his friends and acquaintances there time and time again. He was a proud veteran, and a guy who knew how to have a good time!

I see from Jack's obituary that memorials can be sent to his longtime Amvet post in his name. Sounds like a good idea to me! The address is: Amvets Post #55, 8842 Natural Bridge Road, St. Louis, MO 63114. Anyone wishing to direct a card and/or memorial to Jack's wife, Cindy could use this address: 3933 Madeline Dr., St Louis, MO 63114. John

My condolences to his family

My condolences to his family and friends.

Condolences to the family ! Jack was one of the foundations of the hobby . He answered many questions for me when I was a newbie on the site .Between he and Dick Bennett i bet they got sick of answering my questions but never let on when I restored my first pump. Always held a lot of respect for Jack and Dick . Peace be with him .

I'm saddened to log in to Old Gas today and have this be the first post I see, another hobby veteran gone. My condolences to Jack's family, he was full of knowledge as we all know and good to deal with too.
Darin

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Such sad news to hear of his passing. Condolences to his family. His contributions to the gas pump hobby is unrivaled, he truly is the father of the hobby. He will be missed but I will remember him everyday as I pick up one of his books.

Tom

RIP Jack, thank you for knowledge and your service to the hobby and the country 🙏

Very sad news , one of the greatest minds and father to our hobby. Will continue to use his great books he signed before mailing.

Man another old gas guy gone. He died quite a few days back now and we were all wondering how he was doing. No one answered. Man a really great guy who had a ton of knowledge for us all and always seemed to have time for everyone. Jack really sorry to log on to see this, and thank you for your service.
Craig

Very sad to hear!! I pray for peace and comfort for the family.
Will be missed, Brian

It is with great sadness I just learned of Jack's passing he was a great guy,sure learned a lot over the years from him.RIP condolences to the family. Doug

My condolences to Jack's family and friends! He certainly did contribute SO MUCH to this hobby, and helping people out with his knowledge. He will be missed! Godspeed!

RIP Jack,
Here's a post I enjoyed between Jack and Dick Bennett-
"Dick, you are absolutely correct about the Korean War. The fighting started in June, 1950, and ended on July 27, 1953 (thirty days after I gradutated from High school.

But according to the military records and the American Legion records, all military that joined or were drafted into the military before February 1,1958 were considered Korean War Veterans. This is the group I fall in. Even though I graduated from HS before the war ended, I did not enter the U.S.Army until Jan. 10, 1958 making me eligible for the GI Bill, and declared me a Korean Veteran. I served 3 1/2 years in the U.S. Army, three years at Ft. Leonard Wood.

While this has nothing to do with the embargo on the use of tin for cans, it does set a period of time that there was an embargo.
Embargos were not dropped the day the war ended.

I would also like to report that the U.S. Army did not seem fit to send me to Korea at that time. I was sent to Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri where I spend almost 3 1/2 years defending Ft. Wood against a Korean invasion. I also wish to report that while I was stationed there no one Korean soldier was above to cross the Kansas border into Missouri during my guard.

One little addition to my story. While stationed at Ft. Wood, MO, I married a girl who lived 30 miles south of Ft. Wood. She was a former U.S. Army Nurse who actually served in Korea during the war.
I used to make trips to her family home in Eminancee, MO. The roads had yet to be paved, there was phone service, but electric had not yet reached the area. Just up the road was a general store with a visible pump. I am proud to say that I pulled in one day and had my 1953 Ford filled with gasoline from the visible pump.
The general store closed and my wife's brother purchased the property, but I was never able to find out what happened to that visible pump. I walked all of the fields around the property looking for it, but it was gone. From that day, I wanted a visible pump. I knew I would be restoring an old car soon, but I still wanted a visible pump to put next to it.

Jack"
Ron & Cathy

As I read these messages, I am reminded of meeting Jack a very long time ago at the Chicago Juke Box show. That has been at least 25 years ago? He was always great for stories. He had so much knowledge and freely shared. There is not a day that goes by where I do not refer to one of his fine manuals. Our hobby has lost some really fine members in the recent years. Unfortunately, we are all getting older and even our time will come. God bless Jack, his family and the Country he loved. He will be missed. Paul www.severngaspumps.com

So sorry to see this news. My sympathy to his family and many friends.

Really don't know what to say besides,
Thank You Jack!
Thank You Cindy for sharing him with us and supporting him through ALL his unending searches and work that took him away from you and your family for countless hours!
...An absolute GIANT of a Human Being of the likes we will NEVER see again!
I never had a chance to meet him but, like many on here, he was kind enough to answer a couple of my questions with a teachers tone and demeanor.
I wish one of the national news networks would do a celebratory feature of him and his life!

So sad to hear this. Prayers of peace and comfort go out to the Sim family. You will be missed Jack!

Heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.

Rest in paradise sir!

So sorry to hear this sad news. Jack's family and loved ones are in our prayers and thoughts.

I just heard this sad news. I did not know Jack personally and I only talked to him a couple of times but his books are a welcome part of my library. It would have been an honor to have met him. Rest in peace Jack.

I thank Jack for all the knowledge he collected and shared with everyone. I reference my copy of the gas pump bible regularly. Rest easy Jack!

My condolences to all his family and friends,very sad to hear of his loss.he will be missed by all of us in the hobby ,he contributed so much .Jack RIP.

We lost an absolute icon in the Hobby.
Rest In peace Jack,we were all better for meeting & knowing you.

Sorry to learn of Jack's passing. My condolences to his family.

"...An absolute GIANT of a Human Being of the likes we will NEVER see again"!

I 2nd this statement.

I remember when the newest edition of the Gas Pump Bible came out and Jack unveiled them at Iowa Gas. I kept checking at his room on the 2nd floor to see when he would finally open. I finally caught him early evening and I was one of the first to get a signed copy. I will never forget that moment as we talked for several minutes. It was an honor to meet, talk, and know Jack. R.I.P. sir.

I'm truly sorry to hear about Jack. He really put forth a ton of effort to keep us educated and up to date about what we hunt for. I can't imagine how many hours and how much money he spent gathering information for the books that were published just so we had something to use for reference. I always enjoyed having a beer with Jack at Iowa Gas and listening to his crazy stories. Thanks Jack and we are praying for you Cindy.

Goober

SO sad to hear ,knew he was having health issues. Prayers for Cindy, family, and friends. Never forget Jack was the one that sent me looking for history of Pierce in St. Louis MO. where I found a lot of info. RIP Jack!

So sad to hear about Jack's passing. He was a one of a kind guy, and probably forgot more than most of us will ever know about gas pumps and their history. My sympathies to his family. I am so glad he was able to complete the 3rd edition of his Gas Pump Bible - he worked so hard on it for so long! I'm honored that I received my signed copy in person at Iowa Gas a few years back. I'll always think of Jack whenever I use it. His presence at the shows and his comments here on Old Gas will be missed. I'll throw some darts and raise a glass in Jack's honor. May he Rest in Peace.

Very sorry to hear of Jack’s passing. My condolences to his family. There is no doubt that he will be missed.

Being too busy with the holidays and travel and hadn't checked Oldgas in a while. So shocked and saddened to hear of Jack's passing. He was a great guy and such an asset to the hobby. I hadn't talked to him in a while since he was working on the last book and used a few pump pictures I had. He was always going to stop by and see me when he and Cindy were going to Branson but never made it by. Rest in peace Jack, you will be missed.

Had heard this a while back but never saw this thread confirming this. Sad to hear as he was a big part of our hobby and will be greatly missed.

Thanks to MetroPetro for posting my photo of Jack that my wife Joanne took at Iowa Gas in 2018 as we had a blast talking with him there!