I just noticed that this is my 500th post, so I thought I'd make it a special one. Here is a link to my Photobucket with LOTS of photos of my most recent acquisition. I'll mostly let you decide from the photos on the good, the bad, and especially the ugly. But here's my initial impressions.
The good: Underneath looks pretty solid, especially those front body to frame cross members which were notorious for rusting out. Car starts, idles, and runs smoothly. Have receipt from '98 showing engine was "overhauled." From receipt dated 3-20-98: "take out engine, bore and overhaul and replace, tune-up and repair wiring." Itemized parts include among others: "engine mount and 'engine kit'--doesn't list what the kit included or where it came from, but it cost $1036.91 in 1998. Transmission shifts smoothly with good, solid clutch--has OD which operates (unlike my '50 right now!). New complete exhaust system. Good 40 psi oil pressure at cold idle. Directional signals work front and rear. Door bottoms are very solid. Curved back glass is very nice. Sheet metal looks pretty good for the most part including the rocker panel underneath the stainless (although the passenger's side has a nasty dent in one, and the left front fender has a dent on top and a rust hole behind the wheel.).
The bad: Dry rotted tires. Wiring. Gas gauge not operating. Trunk floor (haven't yet pulled the carpet in the passenger compartment, but it seems to me that the floors are rusting from the inside out, probably due to toasted rubber weatherstrip). Wiring (of course). Headlights not working. Forgot to test the windshield wiper (oops!). Original radio doesn't work. If it has a hill holder, it doesn't work. When I followed the seller he didn't have brake lights. Today, as you can see in the photos, the brake lights came on but won't shut off, so I had to disconnect the battery for the night. Either it's the stop light switch or one of the cylinders is hanging up. I think it's the switch since the car seems to roll freely. It does need a complete brake job, however. Gas tank leaks where filler meets tank--had problem this with the '49 Land Cruiser I owner. The filler pipe is one solid piece and the weld cracks at the tank due to road vibration. Studebaker fixed this in '50 by making the filler pipe 2 piece and connecting the 2 with a piece of rubber hose. Ended up doing that to the first '49 and will do it to this one. In the meantime, any suggestions on a temporary fix? Howe Clark recommended a product to me back in the late '90s that worked okay for awhile but eventually failed. It was a 2 part epoxy that you smeared around the seam. Can't remember what it was called. And there may be something better on the market now. Any suggestions? Rear springs probably need work from what I can see. Spare tire well is solid although the floor is toasty (this also leads me to believe that the floors have rusted from the inside out). Windshield needs replaced. Door window risers need repair/replaced.
Not sure: From other threads I've seen in the past, I know this is a "rancher/farmer" topic. Car was converted to 8 volts and that hideous converter box was added to the inside driver's fender so the PO could install a 12V radio. Since the electrics need redone anyway, what say you? While I generally fall into the 6 volt camp, the car does seem to start a lot better than my 6 volt '50 Land Cruiser. Just sayin'.
The ugly: Since beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I'll let you decide from the photos.
While I realize that you haven't seen the car in person, and we don't yet know what lurks beneath the passenger compartment carpet, I would be curious as to how much money you'd consider giving for the car if you were looking for one like it. I won't disclose what I paid. Just kind of curious whether I was in the ballpark. I figured this was a solid #4 car, so I based what I paid on what Old Cars Price Guide, NADA price guide, and Hagerty price guide gave for #4 (quite a spread between the 3). Also, based it on what I've tracked on ebay for the past couple of years as well as Craigslist ads.
Please let me know if you see anything I missed. I'm very inexperienced at this, so your comments, good and bad, are always welcome!
The good: Underneath looks pretty solid, especially those front body to frame cross members which were notorious for rusting out. Car starts, idles, and runs smoothly. Have receipt from '98 showing engine was "overhauled." From receipt dated 3-20-98: "take out engine, bore and overhaul and replace, tune-up and repair wiring." Itemized parts include among others: "engine mount and 'engine kit'--doesn't list what the kit included or where it came from, but it cost $1036.91 in 1998. Transmission shifts smoothly with good, solid clutch--has OD which operates (unlike my '50 right now!). New complete exhaust system. Good 40 psi oil pressure at cold idle. Directional signals work front and rear. Door bottoms are very solid. Curved back glass is very nice. Sheet metal looks pretty good for the most part including the rocker panel underneath the stainless (although the passenger's side has a nasty dent in one, and the left front fender has a dent on top and a rust hole behind the wheel.).
The bad: Dry rotted tires. Wiring. Gas gauge not operating. Trunk floor (haven't yet pulled the carpet in the passenger compartment, but it seems to me that the floors are rusting from the inside out, probably due to toasted rubber weatherstrip). Wiring (of course). Headlights not working. Forgot to test the windshield wiper (oops!). Original radio doesn't work. If it has a hill holder, it doesn't work. When I followed the seller he didn't have brake lights. Today, as you can see in the photos, the brake lights came on but won't shut off, so I had to disconnect the battery for the night. Either it's the stop light switch or one of the cylinders is hanging up. I think it's the switch since the car seems to roll freely. It does need a complete brake job, however. Gas tank leaks where filler meets tank--had problem this with the '49 Land Cruiser I owner. The filler pipe is one solid piece and the weld cracks at the tank due to road vibration. Studebaker fixed this in '50 by making the filler pipe 2 piece and connecting the 2 with a piece of rubber hose. Ended up doing that to the first '49 and will do it to this one. In the meantime, any suggestions on a temporary fix? Howe Clark recommended a product to me back in the late '90s that worked okay for awhile but eventually failed. It was a 2 part epoxy that you smeared around the seam. Can't remember what it was called. And there may be something better on the market now. Any suggestions? Rear springs probably need work from what I can see. Spare tire well is solid although the floor is toasty (this also leads me to believe that the floors have rusted from the inside out). Windshield needs replaced. Door window risers need repair/replaced.
Not sure: From other threads I've seen in the past, I know this is a "rancher/farmer" topic. Car was converted to 8 volts and that hideous converter box was added to the inside driver's fender so the PO could install a 12V radio. Since the electrics need redone anyway, what say you? While I generally fall into the 6 volt camp, the car does seem to start a lot better than my 6 volt '50 Land Cruiser. Just sayin'.
The ugly: Since beauty is in the eye of the beholder, I'll let you decide from the photos.
While I realize that you haven't seen the car in person, and we don't yet know what lurks beneath the passenger compartment carpet, I would be curious as to how much money you'd consider giving for the car if you were looking for one like it. I won't disclose what I paid. Just kind of curious whether I was in the ballpark. I figured this was a solid #4 car, so I based what I paid on what Old Cars Price Guide, NADA price guide, and Hagerty price guide gave for #4 (quite a spread between the 3). Also, based it on what I've tracked on ebay for the past couple of years as well as Craigslist ads.
Please let me know if you see anything I missed. I'm very inexperienced at this, so your comments, good and bad, are always welcome!
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