Why does everyone hate the fins?

[Chris Pile]

Fins, or no fins - I like both looks. It's the Mercedes-Benz style grille I don't care for on '56 and later Hawks.

[PalmerGA]

Personally... a Hawk without fins is like kissin' your sister. Just kind of Ho-Hum to me.

Jim's pride....
1963 Daytona Convertible

[bonehead007]

Compared to the boats that GM outfitted with fins, the Fords & Chryslers, Studebaker had the best styled cars, for the time, with fins. Even the much loved Pacakrd Hawk looks better with the fins. I get more compliments on my Hawk because of the fins.....

[robtc]

I like the fins. My second Studebaker was '57 Silverhawk. The grill seems to go with the fins. I have a GT hawk now and miss the lines of the earlier hawks.

I am also trying to convert one of my sons to Studebakers. He is a big batman fan. So, I got a cheap parts car '55 Champion and we are in the process of making it driveable and safe. In the end we will ADD fins to it and paint it black and it will be his batmobile.

Not exactly the purist thing to do, but it beats rotting away in a field like it was doing.

[Roscomacaw]

Awhile back (say 7 or 8 years ago) I got wind of a club that was forming here in California. It was for owners/admirers of finned cars. The club's name was The Finatics. I think it died on the vine tho. Haven't heard much about since then.[V]

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

[Michidan]

If you like old cars (as we do) then you have to appreciate fins as a part of the uniquness of the era.
Studebaker-wise, I think the pro/con of the styling is very much dictated by the trim around the fins. And paint choice. 60-61 hawks look great to me. Silver hawk trim like 57-58 just doesn't help out the fin look at all.

Dan
52 hardtop

[Scott]

I bet if some of today's cars had fins they might get people interested in automobile design again.

[ladysilverhawk]

I love my fins. I even like the gills (air vents) too. AND I like the slightly musty smell of an old car all most as much as I like that "new car" smell, or at least the way the New Car Smell used to smell. Lately they seem to have little or no smell.

When parking ramp reality is not going well, I fantisize that if I park my Hawk at just the right angle in the parking garage then every little rice burner that flys around the corner a little too short will get impaled on the Hawk's fin. The Hawk will just smile and flick the punctured remains into a pile in the corner with the others who got the same treatment and when I come back I can just smile about the good we did for the universe and drive happily away. [}]

LadySilverHawk
55 President, BUGSPRT
58 Silver Hawk, DRGNHWK
62 Champ Longbox - OldAndInTheWay

[studegary]

I can take or leave fins. I have owned finned cars from '57 Golden Hawk to '58 Packard hardtop to '59 Cadillac 60 Special.

I think that timing is important to keep in perspective. Those that didn't buy and drive cars through the period of the fifties to the present probably can't relate well to the changing styles and demand, or lack of demand. Fins were in style from 1948 through about 1961. People often bought cars based on the most recent styling trend. When fins went out of style in the '60s, any car with fins was considered to be an old car. During the '70s-'80s, many Studebakers lost their fins because of this desire to look modern. Since the '90s, retro look fins are back in style. I believe that finned Hawks have had the greatest rate of appreciation (monetary and visual) of any Studebaker model over the past five years.

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

[studegary]

I don't know how that poor 289 can breathe and get any sort of acceleration/rpm through that TINY air cleaner.

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

[mbstude]

I know that I LOVE the fins on Hawks. I'm very partial to the 56 Hawks as well though. But then again, when growing up around a 56 Sky and Power Hawk, a 57 Silver Hawk, and a 63 GT Hawk, as well as some of each tat have visited the shop, both styles (fins or no fins) really grow on you after a while. Personally, the 56 Sky Hawks are among the best looking Studebakers ever built. A shame ours is as rusty as it is. [V] But, it's a Sky Hawk, (from the Dr. Cade collection) so it's worth redoing. [8D]

Matthew Burnette, the 16 year old Stude nut.
South Georgia Chapter
63 Daytona HT (project)
51 Stude dump truck (yes, I won the raffle)
52 Commander Starliner (basket case)

MANY more Studes in the family and a few parts cars

http://community.webshots.com/user/mbstude101

And here: http://community.webshots.com/user/mbstudepagetwo

[Transtar56]

I think its to the Studebakers stylist of the days credit that they didn't go "overboard" with the fins.Those 59 Caddy fins look kinda rediculous in my opinion,also the 59 Chevy,too wild man!.
Chryslers "suddenly its 1960" look,or "forward look" fins are quite stylish and look right on the car,especially the two doors,where the fin started right in the door.
And looking in the mirror of my 60 Hawk gives me a little thrill everytime just looking through those fins.
Tom McCahill actually believed that properly designed fins added to the cars stability at speeds above 100mph,as he made many circuits of racetracks in every model going.But Im sure that wasn't the reason fins came to be,I wonder what was,and who really started the "finny era"?

[Walt Zander]

Tail Fin introduction--Harley Earl in 1948 for a Cadillac.

'49 Starlight Coupe
1936 Miller Replica

[DEEPNHOCK]

I was raised as a Hawk guy and fins were normal...
But, there has to be a line drawn somewhere's....[:0]





Jeff (It was my Ala'Kart moment) Rice [8D]

[Scott]

Naaah! I like it! I think it really makes the truck look futuristic. You're probably kidding, but I think it's neat. What's wrong with me? Of course, one on the other side would look more balanced.