1941 Champion Coupe

[rockinhawk]

Hey willys54, what is the current status of your 41 coupe? I recently purchased a 42 sedan.

[willys54]

Hey willys54, what is the current status of your 41 coupe? I recently purchased a 42 sedan.

Been working on the body. The '70's application of red oxide primer was hand sanded and any residual rust issues were addressed. It was then shot with epoxy & surface primers so 90% is ready for wet sand & paint.

The remaining 10% is a different story. Sadly when arriving in Oklahoma to pick it up I learned that the owner damaged the body while using a rope and tractor to pull it out of the barn. Instead of taking a knee and rigging around a rear shackle or rear axle the mechanical genius took advantage of a rust hole in the trunk pan and ran a rope through the trunk opening and around the rear valance. Since the rear bumper & gravel shield were not installed the sheet metal didn't stand a prayer and was subsequently pulled out of contour by about 2-3 inches. The stress also resulted in damage to the right rear fender wall as the metal stretched beyond limits.

The damage will require hours of tedious hammer & dolly work to restore contour of the trunk opening but luckily the deck lid and gravel shield are in perfect shape and can be used as patterns. What bothers me is the fact that this vehicle remained in perfect shape for 77 years without an accident or deer strike yet it only took one fool and one minute to screw it up.

On a brighter note tell us about the '42 you recently acquired

[(S)]

Wow, another one surfaces. Here is mine.

[Studebaker Wheel]

Ten years and $50,000 later it could look like this one (if you do most of your own work)? Or make it into a South Bend police car for a few $$ more!

[rockinhawk]

A barn find from Coastal Georgia. My friend went there to check out a Corvette for sale, saw the Studebaker and thought of me. It has original motor, runs pretty well, has yard brakes. Not road worthy by a long shot. Has lots of rust, needs all new rubber. Another back burner project, or something for my heirs to deal with. 2nd picture is 3 decades of Studebakers, 42, 52, 62. Two Champions and a Lark.

[Studebaker Wheel]

Re the "Double Dater" coupe mentioned elsewhere in this thread here is pertinent data on this option for the '41 Champion coupes. Note the intro date of Jan 1941 which was five mos into the model run and also the actual numbers in each trim level assembled in the last line of the caption. A total of over 85,000 1941 Champions were produced in the model run. The most of any model in a single year in Studebaker history.

[(S)]

That's cool. I notice from your pic, mine may be missing the rocker mouldings among other things.

[willys54]

Good to see Mike & Neil introduce two more to the sunlight.

Richard,
Why did the SB Police Department use "F" bodies when "W" bodies would have made it easier to throw crooks in the back?

[Studebaker Wheel]

Good to see Mike & Neil introduce two more to the sunlight.

Richard,
Why did the SB Police Department use "F" bodies when "W" bodies would have made it easier to throw crooks in the back?

Your guess as good as mine! May have been an officer's car, not used for patrols?

[studegary]

Good to see Mike & Neil introduce two more to the sunlight.

Richard,
Why did the SB Police Department use "F" bodies when "W" bodies would have made it easier to throw crooks in the back?

In the '50s and '60s, I remember several two door police cars of various brands and even whole fleets of them from the chief on down.

[lumpy]

Wow! looks like a Von Dutch original! Kidding aside it would look good in my garage , nice find.

[(S)]

Had some time for the 41. I got the body about ready to lift off. Had to cut a hole in the floor to access a bolt hidden in the heater duct on the Left side. I can't believe Studebaker did that!
You'd think 14 bolts or so would hold it to the frame. Naw, lets hide one more.

I'm eyeballing whats left of the floors and almost ready for the saws-all. The front fender came right off, got the windows working. ..... The dash had cancer, and not just a little so it had to come out. Now back to other work.

[studeclunker]

It's hard to believe that 3 folk's could fit in the seat but to your point, I saw the belly turret on a B-17 and could not fathom how an Airman could fit much less function.

There were height and weight limits on pilots and flight crew. Generally, they were like Jockeys: small and tough. That Airman would have likely been barely five feet or less.

So Mark, how's that car coming along?

Love your blue '41 Mr. Quinn!

[studegary]

There were height and weight limits on pilots and flight crew. Generally, they were like Jockeys: small and tough. That Airman would have likely been barely five feet or less.

I worked for a guy that was part of the cockpit crew of a B17 during WWII. He was over six feet tall when I worked for him, in the 1990s. His plane was shot down and he was a POW. Some of the time he was held in a box that was less than six feet long. He was claustrophobic the rest of his life.

EDIT: He was always very slim.

[willys54]

There were height and weight limits on pilots and flight crew. Generally, they were like Jockeys: small and tough. That Airman would have likely been barely five feet or less.

So Mark, how's that car coming along?

Love your blue '41 Mr. Quinn!

Like a fool I'm attempting 3 projects simultaneously, a '54 Ford Customline Gasser, '54 Willys 4x4 truck on '80 Ford 4x4 chassis with Cummins 4bt turbo diesel power and the '41 Champion Coupe Gasser. I also bought an M15A as a back burner if I live long enough to complete the other 3.

Body work on the '41 is now complete with the exception of some damage to the trunk opening contour caused by human error on the part of the previous owner. I'm subbing this out to a skilled hammer & dolly man since it requires more than I can handle to get the opening coordinated back to the deck lid. Fortunately the deck lid & gravel shield were not damaged so they will be used as templates to restore contour.

Still in search of some exterior trim parts that so far have eluded me but other than that the '41 is making good progress. I will post some pics soon.

Regard's
Mark