what wheels will work

[peter thomas]

hi everyone, this will be a very basic question. thank you for giving my your time.i am a first time Studebaker owner and a first time forum poster. I have a 1951 Studebaker Commander (at least that is what it looks like.)it is a 2 door, bullet nose, 6 cylinder, car that has 4 wheels with no tires on them. i need to know what wheels i can use (off a different kind of car) to put on my car so i can pull it up on a trailer. the motor has a piston sized hole in the block as well as a missing piston so it is very unlikely that it will fire! it will need to be off a more common car because i am in a small town and there are no other Studebaker any where near. again thank you for taking the time to read this and helping out a new guy. i think this car is one of the most intriguing looking car ever.

ptpw

[whacker]

If it is a 1951 six cylinder, it is a Champion. Ford car wheels will fit, as well as most 15 inch Mopar wheels. If you do a search, you can get a pretty long list of wheels that will fit. You want 15 inch diameter, five lugs on a 4 1/2 inch bolt circle, and close to a 3 3/4 inch back space. If you actually have the very similar looking 1950 Champion, you are out of luck, they use the four hole pattern and I don't know of any interchanges for them.

[peter thomas]

This is what i know for sure, it is a 6 cylinder, it has a built nose, the back of the car (glass) looks much like the front of an old airplane, it is a 2 door, and it looks like the pictures i see on the internet, of 1951 Studebaker champions. i don't actually know the year because there is no paperwork and the car is between the side of a bale shed and an old not running grain truck. also this is in Canada right in the snow belt so we are 3 foot deep in snow. the car is a 2 hr drive away so i can not go check it but i do believe that it is an early 50's champion. it has 5 studs on the wheel if i remember correctly, but i could be wrong. i want to pull this car out but i need to put some tires on it before i drag it on the trailer. the man who owned it died 2 years ago so i cant ask any questions. this is everything i know about the car. hope this information is helpful and thank you for the quick reply!

ptpw

[peter thomas]

i meant the glass on the back of the car looks like the outside of a cockpit on a ww2 era airplane.

ptpw

[barnlark]

Try this for identifying:
http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/St...er/TheEnd.html

Good luck. Hope the frame is still solid enough to roll when you get the wheels on.

[whacker]

If you can see the front of the car, the 1950 bullet has four spokes from the bullet to the first chrome ring. The 1951 has three spokes from the center bullet to the first ring. From the back, the 1950 has taillights that are horizontal, the 1951 has taillights that are vertical.

[allstateguy]

"From the back, the 1950 has taillights that are horizontal, the 1951 has taillights that are vertical."

Huh? The 50 and 51 taillights are almost identical other than the number of screw holes in the bezel, and the bulge at the top of the 51 lenses. The 49 and earlier taillights are horizontal, perhaps that was what you were thinking of.

Reviving an early Lark

[whacker]

allstateguy is right on the taillights.

[Captain Billy]

Welcome aboard Peter, what part of the great white north are you in?



Bill Foy
Kingston, Ontario
1964 Wagonaire Slider

[peter thomas]

hello Captain Billy, i live in portage la prairie, just 40 min outside Winnipeg. but i was born in guelf and lived for 8 years in Georgetown as well as Acton.

ptpw

[StudeRich]

The long story short here is: forget all tail lights, bullet nose etc., just look at the Body Tag on the engine side of the firewall, passenger side (right, for a left hand drive car)
If it says 9G it's a '50, 10G='51
If it is a 1950 Commander Big 6 it will be a 17A

The body type will follow, C for Starlight Coupe, F for 2 Dr. Sedan, and Q for business Coupe, followed by the Trim level number 3,5 etc. below that will be the sequence number that the BODY, not the Car, came off of the Body line.

By the way, if you have 5 Wheels or 4 at least, and if the wheels are not bent, rusted badly under the bead where the tire seals or anything obvious, they are probably 5 in. wide, and will fine to mount up new tires after painting


StudeRich at Studebakers Northwest -Ferndale,WA

[American Lead]

quote:Originally posted by whacker

If you can see the front of the car, the 1950 bullet has four spokes from the bullet to the first chrome ring. The 1951 has three spokes from the center bullet to the first ring. From the back, the 1950 has taillights that are horizontal, the 1951 has taillights that are vertical.

Hold on... my 1950 has vertical headlights?

You can't Spell Studebaker without STUD!

[American Lead]

taillights i menan

You can't Spell Studebaker without STUD!