Although the founders had maintained their independence, by the 1960s they were approaching retirement age. In 1966 they accepted a buy-out offer from a group led by Joseph Stehlin, backed by investment bankers and the owners retired, remaining as consultants. Over the years they had remained profitable by carefully matching their production to sales. They had produced a unique car of their own design and constantly introduced improvements and refined their design. The new owners had a different vision; they vastly increased production but the anticipated increased sales did not follow. By 1969 the company was forced into bankruptcy. Production manager Vernon Eads bought the remains of Midget Motors under the name Barthman Corporation. He moved the base of operations to Glouster, Ohio, just north of Athens where he could rent space cheaply. He opened a plant in Florida, but after a fire there the company closed in 1970. In 1991, Skip Weaver of Sunapee, NH started making parts and buying and selling King Midgets. In 2015, he registered the trademark, and owns all rights to the name "King Midget" and their likeness. Moving from Sunapee to Clermont, Florida in 2002, since 2022,he is operating in Hinsdale, NH, hoping to manufacture whole cars in the near future. USPTO 249019
