'63 Wagonaire step-child gets a little attention

[garyash]

I always have too many projects going at once, so the '63 Wagonaire only gets a turn now and then. It really is a neglected toy. Today, we had 80 degrees, dry air, sun, and only a little wind - as well as the Massachusetts "Patriots Day" holiday - so I rolled the Wagonaire out of the garage. I washed down the firewall and the front suspension with some degreaser and the power washer, pretty easy with the fenders off and the engine out. The guy that owned the Wagonaire for a year or so before I got it had painted the firewall beige, not the Champagne Gold that the car originally came with.

I had borrowed the remains of a couple of quarts of DuPont Centari acrylic enamel in 1979 GM "Light Driftwood", Centari code 8944A Alt 1 from Mark Keilen, a local Studebaker guy who runs a restoration and body shop. I put a couple of ounces of thinned paint in my little Preval sprayer and shot a coat of it on the firewall to test the color match and to get the firewall done before the engine comes back from the shop. I think I had better do the suspension while it's still in this stage. I'm happy with the color match of the Centari paint, just wish I had more skill at spraying.

Lots of body work left to do, but the car could be running soon after the engine comes back. Yesterday, I had put a big eyebolt through the concrete foundation wall in the back of the garage to let me pull the engineless Wagonaire back into the garage with my come-along. It was pretty easy to pull it in while there is no engine. At least I got something done today on the Wagonaire!

[BobPalma]

'Looking good, Gary!

Every time I see a 1963 Standard or 1964 Challenger with the original-issue, single-piston master cylinder, I am reminded of these comforting words from the appropriate "Lark" Owners Manual:



Yipes! (Ah, life before lawyers, eh?) <GGG> BP

[Bob Andrews]

At least I got something done today on the Wagonaire!

Ohh man, you are about to get stickled right into the ground for calling that Standard, fixed-roof car a Wagonaire!! <GG>

Just messin' with ya Glad to see the ol' girl getting a little progress

[kmac530]

That spray job looks good from my house.

[FlatheadGeo]

Ditto what kmac said!!!!!!!!!!!

[garyash]

Bob is quite right: technically, it's not a Wagonaire since the roof doesn't slide. I have been called on this before, but I continue to call it a Wagonaire to distinguish it from wagons before the '63-'66 style. If I unbolt the blank panel in the roof and drive it around the block once with the roof open, will that make it qualify?

As to the spray job, I didn't show the places where I shot it too heavy and it ran in a couple of places. I plan to sand those out, but they won't show much under the hood of this driver. I will let a pro spray the metallic gold paint on the rest of the body.