Body / Glass: 62-63 convert

[swvalcon]

Does anyone know what floor pan and body shell studebaker used to build a 62-63 convertable? Chev used a 4 dr sedan and swaped out the 1/4s and trunk uppers for a coupe, with two dr hard top doors.

[stude1964]

Craig Piper should know all those details as he's built convertibles out of sedans. I have rear inner panels for a 2dr sedan(where the windows & regs go). They appear to be the same as my '64 Conv. w/the tops removed by drilling out the spot welds. The rear inner 1/4s from a 2dr should also work w/minor mods.Remember the windshields/cowl are different from '62/'63. A '63 2dr sedan body can be modified to make a '63/'64 conv. as the headers & windshield are the same. As far as '62 bodies are concerned I'll bet other 2 dr bodies could be utilized-windshieds(ie) headers are the same. The main ingredient is/are the torque boxes that need to be integrated.

[Warren Webb]

The inner panels that the 1/4 glass regulators bolt to are different & unique to convertibles. Convertibles also have a different panel that the rear seat back attaches to including a modified rear upper body panel (between the deck lid & back window). The biggest problem with any year convertible is the rust in the lower reinforcement panels (hog troughs called here). They were changed in design as the years went by (improved design) that would really be a help for all of us with a ragtop overhead. They would be expensive to buy but well worth it if offered in a kit. Classic Enterprises can you hear us?? I would buy a kit for sure for my 62 Daytona. Then when it would be all welded up I would coat with a rust preventive coating (such as POR15) then fill the inside of the rockers with a closed cell foam which would add strength, sound deadning & prevent rust from forming again.

[stude1964]

I should say that Craig has started w/a good 2 dr body shell but utilizes the necessary body panels from the original conv. Knowing Craig's talents & seeing his work makes me think he can make torque boxes as well. His shop is Westmoreland Studebaker near Pittsburgh,PA.
Rob in PA.

[41 Frank]

In the mid nineties when I was restoring our 63 convertible I did contact Lamont at Classic Enterprises and he said there simply was not enough demand for him to tool up to make the torque boxes for them. In my case luckily there was enough left of them to get measurements from them so a sheet metal buddy and I made new ones. They turned out so well they cannot be detected as replacements of the factory ones. Unfortunately I did not save our drawings we made at the time.

[swvalcon]

I would think building new torque boxes would not be that hard if a factory copy was not the main object. If a guy went more for support and just made them look like they belonged there 9 out of 10 people that looked under the car wouldn't know what they where looking at anyway.

[packardHawk58]

The torque boxes can be made, they are not that complicated you just need a break press machine to do it.



Here are some pics of the inside back of a convertible to give you some idea of the structure minus my reinforement tubes


Front floor section