1964 Cruiser wanton destruction

[Scott]

This car is being parted out. I feel sick.

http://yubasutter.craigslist.org/pts/3436804628.html

[8E45E]

Its a rolling beehive!! http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...ighlight=wasps

Craig

[52hawk]

Yeah,the biggest wasps nests I've ever seen!

[r1lark]

"Selling mostly body parts, no engine, rear end or suspension."

It will donate its organs to help another Studebaker live!

(Around here, we use those fiberglass Studebakers for engine donors.........no one wants them since they are so expensive to restore. )

[Roscomacaw]

I knew we'd seen that here before.

[1962larksedan]

"Selling mostly body parts, no engine, rear end or suspension."

It will donate its organs to help another Studebaker live!

(Around here, we use those fiberglass Studebakers for engine donors.........no one wants them since they are so expensive to restore. )

And in places like Illinois, Michigan, New York, etc: such a gutted out Calif cherry Stude; even a 4 door, will likely be fitted with replacement entrails as a 'rebody' of an existing same or similar year rust bucket.

[Mike Sal]

Agree that it's sickening to see such a nice car being parted out. I sure wish it wasn't so far away.....I sure could use that body shell, but shipping to Illinois wouldn't be too cheap.
Mike Sal

[mbstude]

You can't win on this forum. Chevy powered Studes get comments such as, "That car needs a Stude engine." And here Pat bought a parts car to scavenge a compete Stude drivetrain from for his '54 wagon hot rod, yet he's getting flack for parting out such a wonderful old four door sedan. Should he have instead bought a nice running rust bucket from the east coast and shipped it out to California? I could see an issue if the car was an R2 Hawk. It's a '64 four door, probably one of the most common Studes out there.

Nobody said too much when the forum was enamored with pictures of Bob Peterson's yard full of rust free Studes being torched up and tossed into dumpsters. I remember emailing Bob about a Lark trunk lid, and he replied that it wasn't worth the hassle; he'd rather scrap it.

I think Pat should be a little more respected for putting it out there in an attempt to find a home for the stuff, while at the same time reading comments like these and dealing with CASO's. Not to mention, going out of his way to put a Stude powerplant in his hot rod.

You guys that get upset about it being parted out, there are a lot of other rust free Studes on the west coast. Better go save them all now!

[Corvanti]

it's sad that Pat is getting "ragged on" in this thread to restore a '54 Conestoga. i can't wait to see build pics!

i hope it's ok to show what he wrote in a thread already mentioned by Craig:

"That is correct, my '54 Conestoga will benefit from the Cruiser's 289 4 barrel engine, Dana 44 twin traction, entire front suspension, 11 inch finned drum brakes and other items that I may find useful. The remainder of the car will enable other similar vehicles live on. Pat"

it would be interesting to record how many Studes will benefit from this parting out. it'd certainly be easier for him to take what he needs and send the rest to "China"...

it's Christmas, so i'll end my "rant" now, without getting into: where are most low rust vehicles found? and how many of us have said: "wrong coast", or "only if it was closer"... ok, now i'm done.

[8E45E]

I think someone stirred up a hornets' nest here!!

Craig

[sweetolbob]

You can't win on this forum. Chevy powered Studes get comments such as, "That car needs a Stude engine." And here Pat bought a parts car to scavenge a compete Stude drivetrain from for his '54 wagon hot rod, yet he's getting flack for parting out such a wonderful old four door sedan. Should he have instead bought a nice running rust bucket from the east coast and shipped it out to California? I could see an issue if the car was an R2 Hawk. It's a '64 four door, probably one of the most common Studes out there.

Nobody said too much when the forum was enamored with pictures of Bob Peterson's yard full of rust free Studes being torched up and tossed into dumpsters. I remember emailing Bob about a Lark trunk lid, and he replied that it wasn't worth the hassle; he'd rather scrap it.

I think Pat should be a little more respected for putting it out there in an attempt to find a home for the stuff, while at the same time reading comments like these and dealing with CASO's. Not to mention, going out of his way to put a Stude powerplant in his hot rod.

You guys that get upset about it being parted out, there are a lot of other rust free Studes on the west coast. Better go save them all now!

Well stated Matt.

As you are finding out as you journey toward the "Golden Years" that you can't make everybody happy. So do as Pat did, make your best decision, be comfortable with the results and disregard the naysayers.

Life's to short to worry about the minor inconveniences. Be yourself and forge on. Pat probably saved a couple of others along with the Conestoga. So good for him.


Bob

[Scott]

With all due respect, these old cars do not grow on trees, and to part one out that would take so little to restore and use is just simply vandalism. You can try and justify it all you want, but it won't make it any less than what it is. There are TONS of Studebaker engines that are not installed in a car that could be used for projects. The interior on that car was better than several I've had in cars that were put to good use. I won't apologize for taking a stand against vandalism.

[crusinsusin]

I'm one who has benefited from Pat parting out his car, as I now have the glovebox vanity that is missing from my Cruiser, at a very fair price. If he needs the engine & drivetrain to get a '54 Conestoga back on the road, who can blame him?

[sweetolbob]

Certainly it is a noble thought to save them all but reality rears it's ugly head.

Let's take the example of Bob Peterson, I don't know him other than the forum and a short conversation at the SB International. But just seeing what he had done to salvage innumerable Studebakers and the frustration I see in his posts on trying to find homes for them or their parts before the inevitable trip to China is illustrative of the situation. He's fought battles with landlords and zoning agencies to save what he can but they continue to leave due to lack of market, interest, type or other issues.

So unless there is a happy hunting ground in a dry arid place that will pay to transport and receive all the Stude refugees, we'll all just need to get used to seeing some that will donate quality parts to keep others in the herd alive.

It may not be what we want but reality is just that, Reality. So I for one don't plan to make other members feel bad about doing what they think is best. If we continue to do that, why would anyone post about parts availability and take the flack. They'll just take what they need and scrap the rest.

So let's lighten up on them. I'm with corvanti, my Xmas rant is over so now Judy and I can enjoy the bottle of Pinot Noir that I just open when we got back from church.

Merry and Happy, Bob

[Pat Dilling]

That's my car. First, I want to thank you for helping me advertise the parts I have for sale. The complete car, along with several others, was advertised for sale right here on this forum. The owner had it sitting in his back yard for more than 15 years, until the code enforcement people told him it was time to clean up. He had very little time to get it done. I saw an opportunity to equip my '54 Conestoga project with much of what I wanted for a small investment and jumped at the chance. I feel fortunate to be the one who acted quickest. Thanks to this car, my Conestoga will have a nice 289, V8 suspension, 11 inch drum brakes and a twin track Dana 44. And other folks with similar cars will benefit from the parts I don't need. So far at least 9 cars have been improved. Cruisin' Susan has the long distance award I think. Oh wait, Brian from Australia is getting the trunk lid. But I also shipped the driver door to New Jersey via Greyhound bus. Do you think a straight, rust free door with glass, regulator and latch included for less than $200 shipped is a good value? I have lots of good sheet metal left and will make every effort to get it to those in need of it. For those who are thinking, "wish it was closer," the shipping is really not that expensive.

Thanks to those who offered support, I appreciate it. I am very happy to actually be working on my Conestoga project now and will keep you all posted. Merry Christmas to all. :-)