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  • I Wasn't Looking For This Much Of A Project

    About five months ago I bought a 63 GT almost spontaneously, off a few pix and a brief ad. It seemed like pretty much a wash & wax, check the oil and air in the tires sorta deal. Now, about 500 labor hours and several thousand dollars later, it is almost at a point where I thought it was when purchased. However, I am getting burned out, sick and tired tired of trying to get all the bugs ironed out. It became a rolling project about a month ago, and after 1200 miles, it recently blew an exhaust manifold gasket. Every gasket on the car that is usually metal is composite from late 1990s' vintage; I consider the blown gasket as just a heads up that all composites need to be replaced with metal. So, in what I hope to be the last major mechanical tasking, I plan to tear the engine down and replace the head, intake and exhaust gaskets with metal this week. Items already repaired/replaced in the engine bay include: water pump, fuel pump, distributor, carb, alternator, rear main seal, front crank seal, fan, temp guage sender, radiator, exhaust system, power steering pump seals, power steering cylinder seals, valve cover gaskets & adjust valves, horn, etc., etc.. This does not include the rest of the car's ailments.

    As mentioned, I really did not this much of a project, but its my own fault for buying the thing almost spontaneously. One lesson I re-learned was one I had already learned vicariously from a friend's mistake several years ago was to ALWAYS ask for the date of any pictures. Add to that, the fact that scanned pix should be a serious red flag. But live and learn, or re-learn as the case may be...

    Hey, I am about to get er done. I just hope the wife will follow thru and get some use out of the car.

  • #2
    I bought my '63 GT eight years ago from an ebay seller. It was drivable and the body was very solid but the overall condition was not exactly as advertised, which is often the case. I don't think the seller was being deceptive, he just didn't have a good grasp of mechanical things, having depended upon local mechanics to repair and "restore" various things on the car. I drove over 400 mile with a rented trailer to pick the car up. When I looked it over, I almost called the deal off, but I'm glad I didn't. Since owning the car, I have rebuilt the front suspension (which was supposed to have just been done by PO), repainted most of the car, fixed some oil leaks, restored a cobbled up PCV system, replaced all the cheesy "new" shocks, redone most of the interior, replaced all the rubber door seals, installed NOS vent windows, repaired some damaged wiring, replaced most of the dash switches and a host of other "little" things. It is a labor of love and the good thing is, I drive the car much more than I work on it and I can take my time doing things because I don't have to fix it right away since it's not my daily driver. Hang in there, take your time and consider working on your Hawk as therapy, I always get a great sense of satisfaction when I make something better on my hawk.

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    • #3
      I like that point of vieew. I need to remember that I bought my Studebaker because I wanted to, not because I had to. Therapy...yeah that's the ticket...therapy.

      Comment


      • #4
        Amen to Studebaker therapy! I have to remind myself of that also every now and then...
        sigpic
        1961 Flamingo Studebaker Hawk

        Comment


        • #5
          I hope Studebakers are therapy, otherwise I must have already gone crazy.
          Wayne
          "Trying to shed my CASO ways"

          sigpic​

          Comment


          • #6
            Yep, that Studebaker therapy works and I have several more years of therapy waiting in my garage!

            Regards,
            John Brayton

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            • #7
              Keeping America Beautiful you are. cheers jimmijim
              sigpicAnything worth doing deserves your best shot. Do it right the first time. When you're done you will know it. { I'm just the guy who thinks he knows everything, my buddy is the guy who knows everything.} cheers jimmijim*****SDC***** member

              Comment


              • #8
                Therapy you say? or is just plane stupidity, I never figured I needed therapy but I sure got a lot of Studebakers and now they are catching up with me, always trying to help save one either for someones else's project or for parts for others in the future, right now I have 2 sitting in my lot at the shop that don't belong there, this so called friend in Australia ( not Ian) call and asked me if I could help him out he had 2 cars in SoCal and they needed to be moved, I offered to help and after paying a hauler to bring them both to the Bay area now they are sitting in my lot and the so called friend will not answer my e-mails or take care of the bill he has created, what he is doing to me he did to the guy in SoCal also for about 2-3 years that is why he needed them moved. I have even had Ian who lives in Australia call and talk to him about the problem he has created and all he gets is I will take care of it, to this day he has not even tried to move ahead . last word I got is that it would be taken care of today, I don't think that will happen even after telling him they are going to be put on E-bay and sold and since I have title to both it will happen if he does not follow through this week, by the way the cars are one a project 1958 Packard hawk, and the other is a 64 2door commander, look for them on e-bay or if interested PM me, he is also a member of this forum now and then.
                Candbstudebakers
                Castro Valley,
                California


                Comment


                • #9
                  A friend in need is sometimes an aquaintenace you don't need. Friends are not supposed to act that -away. cheers jimmijim
                  sigpicAnything worth doing deserves your best shot. Do it right the first time. When you're done you will know it. { I'm just the guy who thinks he knows everything, my buddy is the guy who knows everything.} cheers jimmijim*****SDC***** member

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by JoeHall View Post
                    About five months ago I bought a 63 GT almost spontaneously, off a few pix and a brief ad. It seemed like pretty much a wash & wax, check the oil and air in the tires sorta deal. Now, about 500 labor hours and several thousand dollars later, it is almost at a point where I thought it was when purchased. However, I am getting burned out, sick and tired tired of trying to get all the bugs ironed out. It became a rolling project about a month ago, and after 1200 miles, it recently blew an exhaust manifold gasket. Every gasket on the car that is usually metal is composite from late 1990s' vintage; I consider the blown gasket as just a heads up that all composites need to be replaced with metal. So, in what I hope to be the last major mechanical tasking, I plan to tear the engine down and replace the head, intake and exhaust gaskets with metal this week. Items already repaired/replaced in the engine bay include: water pump, fuel pump, distributor, carb, alternator, rear main seal, front crank seal, fan, temp guage sender, radiator, exhaust system, power steering pump seals, power steering cylinder seals, valve cover gaskets & adjust valves, horn, etc., etc.. This does not include the rest of the car's ailments.

                    As mentioned, I really did not this much of a project, but its my own fault for buying the thing almost spontaneously. One lesson I re-learned was one I had already learned vicariously from a friend's mistake several years ago was to ALWAYS ask for the date of any pictures. Add to that, the fact that scanned pix should be a serious red flag. But live and learn, or re-learn as the case may be...

                    Hey, I am about to get er done. I just hope the wife will follow thru and get some use out of the car.
                    Welcome to the club.
                    It took me almost three years to make my so called running 63 GT (there must be a curse on that model and year!) actually running.
                    At least, you have the satisfaction to know that what you have done is done for good.
                    It is the last time (and the first) that I buy a car from a so called professionnal.
                    Though, it was a lot of work, I'm really glad to have done it. The car got so many problems, it may have ended in a junkyard or sold for parts with somebody less stubborn than me.
                    Nice day to all.
                    sigpic

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I too enjoy and benefit from working my Hawk. This is possible because I do not have to work on it, I want to. and I love to drive it.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by K-Hawk View Post
                        I too enjoy and benefit from working my Hawk. This is possible because I do not have to work on it, I want to. and I love to drive it.
                        Me too. Other than having the alternator fail for the second time in 7 years, she has been extremely reliable. Fortunately, I was able to return home without incident each time. She has never let me down otherwise and is my first choice of drivers any time I need to run local errands or a sunny day trip to the coast, etc. Yes, there are always little things that need to be adjusted, tweaked, upgraded, restored, polished, cleaned, lubricated, tightened etc etc but she always starts and drives and really likes to go fast on the back roads around here. Not to mention all the heads turning, the thumbs pointing up and the inevitable questions when we go somewhere.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by candbstudebakers View Post
                          Therapy you say? or is just plane stupidity, <snip>

                          There's always some truth in humor....
                          Fact is, you can't save them all.
                          Your crazy to try.....
                          Even buying them to part out and sell...
                          What's the old racers acronym... You want to make a small fortune with "X"??? (Start with a large fortune)
                          I think most of us are guilty of this at one time or another.
                          What bothers me more, is to see poor workmanship, and shortcuts taken because of underestimating what it takes to do the job right.
                          We all have the desire.
                          Do we all have the ability? Do we all have the wherewithal?
                          I appreciate great work done with no money a lot more than a ton of money tossed at it without rhyme or reason.
                          Joe Hall's honesty is to be commended.
                          Jeff
                          HTIH (Hope The Info Helps)

                          Jeff


                          Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please. Mark Twain



                          Note: SDC# 070190 (and earlier...)

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Bob, I am sorry to hear that. Not only are inconvenienced and out of pocket; it tarnishes the reputation of the rest of the Aussies on the forum.

                            Ken

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by candbstudebakers View Post
                              Therapy you say? or is just plane stupidity, I never figured I needed therapy but I sure got a lot of Studebakers and now they are catching up with me, always trying to help save one either for someones else's project or for parts for others in the future, right now I have 2 sitting in my lot at the shop that don't belong there, this so called friend in Australia ( not Ian) call and asked me if I could help him out he had 2 cars in SoCal and they needed to be moved, I offered to help and after paying a hauler to bring them both to the Bay area now they are sitting in my lot and the so called friend will not answer my e-mails or take care of the bill he has created, what he is doing to me he did to the guy in SoCal also for about 2-3 years that is why he needed them moved. I have even had Ian who lives in Australia call and talk to him about the problem he has created and all he gets is I will take care of it, to this day he has not even tried to move ahead . last word I got is that it would be taken care of today, I don't think that will happen even after telling him they are going to be put on E-bay and sold and since I have title to both it will happen if he does not follow through this week, by the way the cars are one a project 1958 Packard hawk, and the other is a 64 2door commander, look for them on e-bay or if interested PM me, he is also a member of this forum now and then.
                              I think I can guess who it is, along with most of the other Australian forum members!

                              Chris.

















                              Chris.

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