Hawk fin removal

[alaipairod]

This be a very good reason to follow through on your restoration.
We debated on the extra expense to remove the fins on our '57 GH........Wow.... Really happy that we did..........

[candbstudebakers]

Ya, not bad I have seen worse, ones with the upper fender bolt holes rotted away, by the way I have a few o these fenders in case any one is interested in them.

[sals54]

Yeah, Bob... those fenders need to be replaced. That's fer sher. I wouldn't even try to repair those. All I see is Swiss Cheese. But then again, I'm a spoiled Californian. And I'm only spoiled for the rust free cars and the weather, not the Governor, the code enforcement, the psycho neighbors, the environmental zealots, the politics in general, the people, the traffic, the smog... all right, I'm done. But change those fenders. You'll be miles ahead of trying to repair them.

[woodysrods]

They definitely need to be removed as did the fins.
It is not that big of job!
Do a full inspection for rust thru before you make the decision to replace them.
If you feel they are salvageable, have the fins and the fenders sandblasted, and epoxyed before you proceed.
Good Luck with your project....and remember to paint everything inside and out as Studebaker should have, which would have eliminated this problem in the first place.
Good Roads
Brian

[candbstudebakers]

Yes in your case remove and make a plan on what fits your budget, some people will try to repair and some will just change out fin or fender what ever needs may be, in the long run of Studebaker sheet metal when do we say time to scrap? once gone, gone for ever that it why I still have some of the bad ones removed still in the shop.

[JoeHall]

Unless you are planning to leave the fins off, those look very salvageable. I'd be more concerned with the condition of the body topside, between the fender and trunk.

[JBOYLE]

Interesting photos. I may the only one here, but I've never seen fins off a Hawk...Good luck with the project.

BTW: I wonder how many shiny Hawks look like that underneath fresh paint?

[jbwhttail]

It all goes back to your budget, once you remove the quarter panels you can see what you have underneath on the fenders and inner panels. You have a choice, you can spend the money to have those fenders stripped and acid dipped, that will tell you just how bad the rust is. You are probably going to be about $200.00 each into those fenders, "maybe" they are good, probably have other areas weak also. Or, you just buy replacements that are available on Ebay for $400.00 each nad never have to worry about rust in the fenders again. you don't have a choice with the fins as they are "unobtanium"(not to be found), hopefullyyours are in good shape. Finally, you see what happened because the factory did not paint that area, before fenders go back on the car paint inside and out then assemble.

[sweetolbob]

This be a very good reason to follow through on your restoration.
We debated on the extra expense to remove the fins on our '57 GH........Wow.... Really happy that we did..........

While I see the rust, I don't see the "swiss cheese". In fact, the holes where the bottom of the fins mount seem to have a fair bit of metal.

I would suggest that before you pull the fenders and you do want to eventially, Take a stiff wire wheel on a grinder and get after the rust. If it's bad it might be better to get different fenders unless you do the repairs yourself. But you may also be surprised that they could be pretty solid and will need more refinishing than repair.

Good luck, Bob

[jg61hawk]

Goodmark is advertising in TW they have brand new reproduction ones which have been on this forum as fitting perfectly.

[sals54]

I went back and studied the picture again. When I first looked at the picture, all I saw was craters of rust through. Now, I'm not sure. Perhaps the fender could be sanded or blasted and be saved. Let's see what it looks like with some sanding or perhaps scour it down with a green scrubby and some cleanser. Then revisit it.

[alaipairod]

STANLEY'S PASSENGER SIDE.jpg

The passenger side is the same as the other side. I'm treating the affected areas with POR 15.
The good thing is that there is no blow outs, just surface rust.
The quarter panels check out firm with minor rust issues....Treated with the POR 15.
It is interesting that Studebaker painted the inside of the fins with a red primer, but no sign of the primer on the quarter panels.....
Sand blasting and primer prep to follow.
............My grand kids better appreciate this effort..............

[Jerry Forrester]

Here in Georgia, we don't call that rust. It's patina. Rust is when you have a hole with jagged edges that you can stick your fist through.
Looks like a solid '57 GH to me. Keep up the good work.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]28373[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]28374[/ATTACH] This be a very good reason to follow through on your restoration.
We debated on the extra expense to remove the fins on our '57 GH........Wow.... Really happy that we did..........

[JRoberts]

STANLEY'S PASSENGER SIDE.jpg

The passenger side is the same as the other side. I'm treating the affected areas with POR 15.
The good thing is that there is no blow outs, just surface rust.
The quarter panels check out firm with minor rust issues....Treated with the POR 15.
It is interesting that Studebaker painted the inside of the fins with a red primer, but no sign of the primer on the quarter panels.....
Sand blasting and primer prep to follow.
............My grand kids better appreciate this effort..............

If it were me I would POR 15 both sides of the fender. Good luck with this project. I am about to face correcting some rust issues in the Cruiser so my heart is with you.