A couple more Pictures - 63 Avanti

[sbca96]

I drove the Avanti to work on Friday, then over to Wayne's house in S.B.
to hang out for a while, talk Avantis, and then off to In N Out Burger to say
hi to the motorheads that hang out there every Friday night.

Here are a couple shots playing around with the new cam at Wayne's :







Here is a shot at In N Out :



As I mentioned before, these are reduced to 25% of the original shot, and
then saved at 80% resolution. That gives me a file size that most on the
forums would be upset about trying to load. Anyone wants a "desktop" of
any of these let me know. :wink:

These files are about 90k, desktop is about 450k, orginal shot - 3.3mb!

Tom

[studegary]

When you stated that you were "playing around with the new cam", I expected coverage of a camshaft and engine. Maybe its a generation gap or what I expect on this forum, but it took me a bit to realize that by "cam" you meant camera <GG>.

Gary L.
1954 Commander Starliner (restomod)
1959 DeLuxe pickup (restomod)

[Scott]

Tom, are your mags supposed to have chrome centers or something? I was thinking it looks like you can see the actual hubcap in the the center - almost looks rusty. I don't know if I am interpreting what I see correctly.

[sbca96]

quote:Originally posted by studegary

When you stated that you were "playing around with the new cam", I expected coverage of a camshaft and engine.

Yah, sorry ... I bought a new digital camera a few weeks ago to better
document what I am doing, and also from input from the editor of the
Avanti Magazine. Part three of the article will include better pix
of everything, so it will be pretty nice. I am also hoping for the
cover of the magazine ... hehe .. hey! I can DREAM right?

quote:Originally posted by Scott

Tom, are your mags supposed to have chrome centers or something? I was thinking it looks like you can see the actual hubcap in the the center - almost looks rusty. I don't know if I am interpreting what I see correctly.

Good eye! Yes, the hub grease cap is visible on the front wheels due
to them sticking out further then the Mustang hubs. The rear caps fit
just fine, but the front the cap is just a weee bit to far out. I am
going to have my machinist buddy mill the backside of the cap, it is
just a plastic cap, and quite thick anyway.

The cap is actually black, and a chrome Cobra symbol is molded into a
clear outside. I am going to try some 1/8 spacers on the front to put
the wheel out a tad more, my original plan was to use 1/8 spacers to
get the rim to clear on full lock. Its odd, the rim will hit the upper
a-arm pivot on right turns, but NOT on left turns. So the car must be
turning tighter to the right! I have toyed with solving the issue by
limiting the turning to the right, or the spacer. The spacer seems it
will solve the wheel cap "problem" and the clearance issue. The studs
I used on the car are plenty long enough.

Its also possible, that the drum brake hub sets the wheel "out" a bit
further then the disc brake hub. I have one of each on the car now.
The disc hub is on the drivers side (which is the side that rubs the
upper a-arm) and the drum hub is on the pass side (which clears). The
caliper is a sliding caliper, so it will self adjust to the "center"
of the disc regardless.

Cant wait to get those Cobra brakes on, wait til you guys see THAT!

Tom

[Scott]

Hey Tom, it would cost more, but why not have your machinist friend make up some replacement center caps with the lazy S? You could leave them shiny or paint the S black or red or whatever. That would look really cool (can I use that phrase anymore?)[8D]

[JDP]

OK, I still can't deal with the rubber band tires even on a Avanti. Just my opinion again, and not a knock to the owner, but I feel there is way too much air in that front wheel well opening. I'd rather see beefy tires than a inner fender and firewall.
It should be noted that I grew up with red wheels and wide whites, so I'm not noted for pefect taste. As N8 noted, I like the look of the high profile 6:70 15's just because they "fit" the wheel well.
Taste is by nature a personal choice, you'd likly not care for the skinny factory tires on my old Avanti.


Studebaker On The Net http://stude.com
Studebaker News Group

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.autos.studebaker

64 Daytona HT
64 Daytona Convert.
64 R2 4 speed Challenger
63 R2 4 speed GT Hawk
63 R1 GT Hawk
63 Avanti R1/AC
63 Avanti R2/4 speed
62 Daytona HT
62 Lark 2 door
60 Hawk

[N8N]

JP, I like ya, but do I really have to post how I feel about fake wire wheel hubcaps?

nate

(yes, I know they were an ultra rare factory option, but I still think they look... well...)

--
55 Commander Starlight
62 Daytona hardtop

http://home.comcast.net/~njnagel

[sbca96]

quote:Originally posted by Scott

Hey Tom, it would cost more, but why not have your machinist friend make up some replacement center caps with the lazy S?

I have considered it, I remember seeing glue-on lazy S caps to put on
aftermarket wheels, but I dont know if they are available still.

quote:Originally posted by JDP

OK, I still can't deal with the rubber band tires even on a Avanti. Just my opinion again, and not a knock to the owner, but I feel there is way too much air in that front wheel well opening. I'd rather see beefy tires than a inner fender and firewall.

Whats interesting is whats considered "beefy", in our differing view
points. Those skinny tires you have on your Avanti, dont look "beefy"
to me at all. I have considerably more rubber contacting the road, &
I think thats "beefy". I have considered dropping the car all around
about 1 inch, but I kinda like the way it sits now, lowering it will
make speed bumps my enemy.

On the area of "too much air" in the front wheel opening, the stock
wheel/tire combo is 26.5 inchs, my 245/45 tire combo is 25 inchs. It
comes to about 3/4 on the radius & not really such a huge difference.
If one was to go with 18 inch rims, then it would be dead on to the
factory diameter, but how would you feel about THOSE "big wheels"?

My wheel wells are not a nice dark black like yours, but the way the
Avanti wheel openings are, you can never "fill" it, unless you get a
specially made oval wheel/tire package, and they wont ride very nice!

Tom

[Laemmle]

Try changing a flat with those caps....have to be crazy to put up with the sixteen (?) hold down clips....I gave my set away 30 years ago...a waste...now, let talk about the aero-flow, ans aero-strut...

[JBOYLE]

To each their own...but

In my opinion...The two best factory hubcaps ever made are the
1936-7 Cord (later copied for the first Olds Toronado)
and the
63-64 Avanti.

They are so iconic that having a original Studebaker without them (unless it was a factory option) seems heresy.

I love a nice set of mags...but you'll never find them on my Avanti. If I want mags badly enough, I'll buy an Avvanti II.

63 Avanti R1 2788
1914 Stutz Bearcat
(George Barris replica)

Washington State

[studegary]

quote:Originally posted by JBOYLE

[blue]To each their own...but

In my opinion...The two best factory hubcaps ever made are the
1936-7 Cord (later copied for the first Olds Toronado)
and the
63-64 Avanti.

Yes, those Avanti wheelcovers were a nice modification to the '53-'55 wheelcovers.

Gary L.
1954 Commander Starliner (restomod)
1959 DeLuxe pickup (restomod)

[JBOYLE]

quote:Originally posted by studegary

Yes, those Avanti wheelcovers were a nice modification to the '53-
'55 wheelcovers.

Gary L.
1954 Commander Starliner (restomod)
1959 DeLuxe pickup (restomod)

Yes, I know, but that bit of cost savings
(I wonder how much they really did save since they had to re-make the stamping and wouldn't that negate any cost svaings?...anyone know the story?)
worked out well.

63 Avanti R1 2788
1914 Stutz Bearcat
(George Barris replica)

Washington State

[studegary]

quote:Originally posted by JBOYLE

quote:Originally posted by studegary

Yes, those Avanti wheelcovers were a nice modification to the '53-
'55 wheelcovers.

Gary L.
1954 Commander Starliner (restomod)
1959 DeLuxe pickup (restomod)

Yes, I know, but that bit of cost savings
(I wonder how much they really did save since they had to re-make the stamping and wouldn't that negate any cost svaings?...anyone know the story?)
worked out well.

63 Avanti R1 2788
1914 Stutz Bearcat
(George Barris replica)

Washington State

IIRC, the dies were modified, rather than making new dies from scratch. Remember, Studebaker only needed about 20,000 of these wheelcovers for Avantis.

Gary L.
1954 Commander Starliner (restomod)
1959 DeLuxe pickup (restomod)

[sbca96]

Not sure how this turned into a hubcap thread, or a "I would never put
mags on my Studebaker" thread .....

I have a set of Avanti hubcaps that kept coming off all the time, &
surprisingly they must have took the fact they come off all the time
in mind, since they seemed to always end up shiny side up.

Maybe it was a planned design, to have a part that needs to be replaced
eventually when it ends up being flattened by the car behind you.[B)]

Tom "never chasin hubcaps again"[xx(]

[Roscomacaw]

I've been driving Studes for 33 years now. I can hazily remember losin' one wheelcover in all that time.
I"ve got a set of those NOS, gold-centered "bottlecap" caps for the 53 coupe. Those, with stainless steel trim rings. YOWZUH!!![]

Miscreant at large.

1957 Transtar 1/2ton
1960 Larkvertible V8
1958 Provincial wagon
1953 Commander coupe
1957 President 2-dr
1955 President State
1951 Champion Biz cpe
1963 Daytona project FS