Service Bulletins and Service Letters

[TWChamp]

I finally got around to buying the Service Bulletins and Service Letters for 1950 about 2 1/2 years ago. If anyone doesn't have these for the year of your Studebaker, I highly recommend buying them.

The other day I noticed in my August 1949 Bulletin that Champion was already changing plug numbers for the same spark plug. I thought this was a more recent way to keep us confused.
The J7 was now J11 even though the heat range was the same. This made me go to ebay and buy a couple Champion spark plug charts for the 50's and early 60's. This will be another handy source of information.

There was also some information on setting the timing in one of the bulletins, and I was surprised to read they were recommending setting it by ear. It said to advance the distributor until it pings, then back off a little.

[StudeRich]

So WHERE did you buy the Service Letters?

[Silverplate]

So WHERE did you buy the Service Letters?

Reading my mind.

[Skip Lackie]

Can't answer for TWChamp, but I can offer several sources. Ray-Lin Restorations used to sell service bulletin and service letter sets on CD. Not sure they are still available from him. But I know of at least three sources of originals on paper: Richard Quinn, Dwain Grindinger, and me. Richard may also have them in digital form. Not sure of what Dwain has. I know I have four big binders full of extra copies. Also extra sales letters, which often include info on available options and mid-year changes.

[TWChamp]

So WHERE did you buy the Service Letters?

I'm pretty sure they came with some other Studebaker papers I bought on ebay.

[Avantidon]

I guess I was lucky as I have almost a complete set and they were given to me from a great friend.

[FlatheadGeo]

My father was an aircraft mechanic and always set the timing on our '52 Champion by ear. The '52 Studebaker lasted us until 1963 when he purchased a new Ford Galaxie. The dealer had tuned up the car as part of dealer prep by using a timing light. My dad was unhappy with the way the V-8 ran and reset the timing by ear. He never took the car back to the dealer. (Just my 2 cents worth!)

[TWChamp]

When I worked at the MoPar dealership in the late 70's the farmers would bring their Dodge pickups in for a tune up. For pollution reasons the factory set the timing at 0* TDC, but I would reset it to 10* BTDC, and the farmers would remark about the increase in power and fuel economy.

[rkapteyn]

When I worked at the MoPar dealership in the late 70's the farmers would bring their Dodge pickups in for a tune up. For pollution reasons the factory set the timing at 0* TDC, but I would reset it to 10* BTDC, and the farmers would remark about the increase in power and fuel economy.

Now I know why the North Pole is melting.
It is all your fault!

[TWChamp]

Now I know why the North Pole is melting.
It is all your fault!

No, it's all those farmers growing all that corn to stick in our gas.

[rkapteyn]

So WHERE did you buy the Service Letters?

Some of the older ones are archived by Bob Johnstone.

http://www.studebaker-info.org/svcbl/SB1940x49.html

[TWChamp]

I just noticed there are a couple individual ones on ebay right now with buy it now for $1.90 or thereabouts.

[Studebaker Wheel]

For those who may not be aware there were Service Letters (passenger cars were pink, trucks green), generally 1-2 pages and Service Bulletins that may run several pages. Many years ago I made an extensive Index of the Service Letters and also have indexes for the Bulletins. The latter indexes were issued by Studebaker periodically and I filled in for those that they did not have.

[kmul221]

When 1st in the hobby I came into a 3 ring binder of service letters,I did't put much value in the contents & don't remember what happened to them.The only one I recall is one authorizing the use of a electric fuel pump on S/C Hawks.I had a Packard-Hawk at the time(That I wish I kept)

[HAWK64]

I have a great Studebaker International 3 ring binder with a wealth of information from those latter years during the sixties