It’s been a while since I visited here…and even longer since I’ve posted. I’m still busy playing with cars. I haven’t done a Studebaker in a long time, but have a soft spot in my heart for them. I still hang out with some long time Studebaker friends and miss the ones I haven’t seen in a while.
A couple of years ago, I introduced a project that my good friend Javier Villanueva was working on…that of reproducing the grill surrounds for 53 and 54 C/K’s. The status of the project started with post #27 on this thread…
I updated the project shortly after that when we sold off a few of the preproduction prototypes…
Javier grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area but lives now in Central Mexico. He earns his living as an engineer on a 370 foot fishing boat based in Seattle but operating primarily In the Bering Sea. Here’s his boat and here we both are just before he left for Alaska this week.
He is only home about 4-5 months out of the year. When home, he spends as much time as possible with his family, but also runs 3 other businesses. He owns five 53 Studebaker coupes and hardtops as well as a few other collector cars.
In spite of this schedule, Javier has continued research and work on the project. He has learned a lot about mold making, foundries, alloys, and chrome plating, primarily through establishing professional contacts in the various disciplines and through actual experimentation. He has become quite the expert on the process end to end. Javier realizes that this project is probably not a money maker. His interest in Studebakers and solving the puzzle of producing a low volume, but needed part at an acceptable price is driving the project. His hope is to break even and to have some fun and gain some knowledge in the process. If that happens, other items like tail light housings, grill bars, under windshield and top of door trim might be possible.
Producing the surrounds is not something that can be contracted out turn key with an expectation of the high quality product and price point that is required. Each step has to be researched with the process partners selected individually and carefully monitored in order to obtain the desired results. Here’s where the project stands now.
Javier found the mold maker that is right for this project. The person selected has over 40 years in the mold making business. The molds are made directly from Studebaker blue prints, but of course adjusted for shrinkage depending on the alloy to be used and other factors. The final mold is still an iterative process. Pre production prototypes are carefully measured against the blueprints and fitted to one of Javier’s Starliners to insure the production molds are perfect. Even when this process is complete, each production surround will be fitted to a jig to double check measurements.
Javier is personally controlling the foundry process. He was not able to locate a foundry that is up to the quality standards that he demands at the price point that is needed. Javier is cooperating with a good friend in his town that also needs foundry products in order to share the equipment costs. The surrounds will be cast in an alloy of aluminum that has been selected for strength and it’s ability to be properly plated.
After several failed experiments with chromers who SAID they could do what was needed, Javier found one that had the expertise to actually do so. The surrounds are show chrome triple plated (several coats of copper, then nickel and chrome). This plater has extensive experience with plating aluminum. He was instrumental in specifying the alloy that would plate properly. It is a third generation family business that also has expertise in pot metal restoration.
The plated surrounds will have the holes for the mounting studs drilled and tapped, the large through bolt hole drilled and countersunk, and the inside cove painted the proper argent silver.
Javier will essentially be ready for production when he returns home in early April. He realizes, however, that starting the production process is not a slam dunk. It will still require some pre production experimentation in order to insure the first items shipped are perfect and the process is repeatable. He is cautiously optimistic that he can ship the first surrounds in late May just before his next trip, but that could easily slide until he returns again in September. He is in no hurry just to put something out there if it is not to his high standards. He will not take orders until he has shippable product.
His target price point is $700 for a pair of finished surrounds, not including packaging and shipping (maybe $50 or so more per pair). He will be offering the option of an unplated set for a target price of $450. This option may be best for those who want to paint, polish, or powder coat the surrounds. They are also for those who want to fit the surrounds to their car before the plating process. We discovered in this thread…
…that there was a wide range of grill fit quality on cars being restored as well as cars right off the production line in 1953. The good, stock surrounds for the Kart Hauler ended up fitting nicely, but only after many hours of working with and modifying the various sheet metal parts that make up the front end of a C/K.
If the surrounds have to be “tweaked” to properly fit even after doing all you can with panel alignment, this is best done before the plating process. They can be returned to Javier for plating or done by a local plater if desired.
Here are a few pictures of the latest preproduction surrounds. The car is one of Javier's Starliners…
A couple of years ago, I introduced a project that my good friend Javier Villanueva was working on…that of reproducing the grill surrounds for 53 and 54 C/K’s. The status of the project started with post #27 on this thread…
I updated the project shortly after that when we sold off a few of the preproduction prototypes…
Javier grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area but lives now in Central Mexico. He earns his living as an engineer on a 370 foot fishing boat based in Seattle but operating primarily In the Bering Sea. Here’s his boat and here we both are just before he left for Alaska this week.
He is only home about 4-5 months out of the year. When home, he spends as much time as possible with his family, but also runs 3 other businesses. He owns five 53 Studebaker coupes and hardtops as well as a few other collector cars.
In spite of this schedule, Javier has continued research and work on the project. He has learned a lot about mold making, foundries, alloys, and chrome plating, primarily through establishing professional contacts in the various disciplines and through actual experimentation. He has become quite the expert on the process end to end. Javier realizes that this project is probably not a money maker. His interest in Studebakers and solving the puzzle of producing a low volume, but needed part at an acceptable price is driving the project. His hope is to break even and to have some fun and gain some knowledge in the process. If that happens, other items like tail light housings, grill bars, under windshield and top of door trim might be possible.
Producing the surrounds is not something that can be contracted out turn key with an expectation of the high quality product and price point that is required. Each step has to be researched with the process partners selected individually and carefully monitored in order to obtain the desired results. Here’s where the project stands now.
Javier found the mold maker that is right for this project. The person selected has over 40 years in the mold making business. The molds are made directly from Studebaker blue prints, but of course adjusted for shrinkage depending on the alloy to be used and other factors. The final mold is still an iterative process. Pre production prototypes are carefully measured against the blueprints and fitted to one of Javier’s Starliners to insure the production molds are perfect. Even when this process is complete, each production surround will be fitted to a jig to double check measurements.
Javier is personally controlling the foundry process. He was not able to locate a foundry that is up to the quality standards that he demands at the price point that is needed. Javier is cooperating with a good friend in his town that also needs foundry products in order to share the equipment costs. The surrounds will be cast in an alloy of aluminum that has been selected for strength and it’s ability to be properly plated.
After several failed experiments with chromers who SAID they could do what was needed, Javier found one that had the expertise to actually do so. The surrounds are show chrome triple plated (several coats of copper, then nickel and chrome). This plater has extensive experience with plating aluminum. He was instrumental in specifying the alloy that would plate properly. It is a third generation family business that also has expertise in pot metal restoration.
The plated surrounds will have the holes for the mounting studs drilled and tapped, the large through bolt hole drilled and countersunk, and the inside cove painted the proper argent silver.
Javier will essentially be ready for production when he returns home in early April. He realizes, however, that starting the production process is not a slam dunk. It will still require some pre production experimentation in order to insure the first items shipped are perfect and the process is repeatable. He is cautiously optimistic that he can ship the first surrounds in late May just before his next trip, but that could easily slide until he returns again in September. He is in no hurry just to put something out there if it is not to his high standards. He will not take orders until he has shippable product.
His target price point is $700 for a pair of finished surrounds, not including packaging and shipping (maybe $50 or so more per pair). He will be offering the option of an unplated set for a target price of $450. This option may be best for those who want to paint, polish, or powder coat the surrounds. They are also for those who want to fit the surrounds to their car before the plating process. We discovered in this thread…
…that there was a wide range of grill fit quality on cars being restored as well as cars right off the production line in 1953. The good, stock surrounds for the Kart Hauler ended up fitting nicely, but only after many hours of working with and modifying the various sheet metal parts that make up the front end of a C/K.
If the surrounds have to be “tweaked” to properly fit even after doing all you can with panel alignment, this is best done before the plating process. They can be returned to Javier for plating or done by a local plater if desired.
Here are a few pictures of the latest preproduction surrounds. The car is one of Javier's Starliners…
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