Vintage Car Thread - Discussion and Parts Requests

[kts68]

A Packard Dual Cowl Phaeton? Very nice! You must be a bootlegger or something.

Teamster and racketeer actually!

 

[jamespowers]

Teamster and racketeer actually!

Wow! That is amazing! It is in great condition for its age. I wish my wife's grandmother had kept her Duesenberg.

 

[Big Man]

After more than 20 years (and a couple thousand dollars more than I had planned to spend to get it back running), my dear aunt Hazel's '61 Chevy Bel Air is finally home. I parked the car in the same spot where my aunt always kept it parked.

On the way back from the shop this afternoon, I took the same route my aunt always took when she picked me up from school on Friday afternoons and drove me back to my grandmother's house. Driving along at the blistering speed of about 45 mph (I don't think my aunt ever drove over 45 mph), I found myself reminiscing of those old days in the 1960's when we made this same trip just about every weekend. I always rode in the front with my dog in the floorboard at my feet. My aunt Hazel would drive with both hands on the wheel and her left foot hovering over the brake. When we arrived at the house, she would pull in the driveway, go to the top of the hill, then back down the last part of the drive so she would always be "headed out in case we needed to go somewhere after dark."

As I backed the car down the driveway today, I could almost see my grandmother sitting in her chair by the kitchen window waiting on Hazel and me to come home. That old '61 Chevy has a lot of good memories for me. I spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening cleaning it up as best I could. I need to drive it around a lot to make sure we've got "all the bugs out", then it will be time to take it to the body shop for some rust repair and a paint job. Now that the car is in good running condition and once the body is "stabilized" from rusting away, I've got a long list of things I want to do, most of which I can do myself over time, to get the car close to back to where it was when my aunt was driving us around.

 

[jamespowers]

After more than 20 years (and a couple thousand dollars more than I had planned to spend to get it back running), my dear aunt Hazel's '61 Chevy Bel Air is finally home. I parked the car in the same spot where my aunt always kept it parked.

On the way back from the shop this afternoon, I took the same route my aunt always took when she picked me up from school on Friday afternoons and drove me back to my grandmother's house. Driving along at the blistering speed of about 45 mph (I don't think my aunt ever drove over 45 mph), I found myself reminiscing of those old days in the 1960's when we made this same trip just about every weekend. I always rode in the front with my dog in the floorboard at my feet. My aunt Hazel would drive with both hands on the wheel and her left foot hovering over the brake. When we arrived at the house, she would pull in the driveway, go to the top of the hill, then back down the last part of the drive so she would always be "headed out in case we needed to go somewhere after dark."

As I backed the car down the driveway today, I could almost see my grandmother sitting in her chair by the kitchen window waiting on Hazel and me to come home. That old '61 Chevy has a lot of good memories for me. I spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening cleaning it up as best I could. I need to drive it around a lot to make sure we've got "all the bugs out", then it will be time to take it to the body shop for some rust repair and a paint job. Now that the car is in good running condition and once the body is "stabilized" from rusting away, I've got a long list of things I want to do, most of which I can do myself over time, to get the car close to back to where it was when my aunt was driving us around.

You did a great job there! It already looks better than at the start. Old cars are like time machines int he sense that you can reminisce about the past in a piece of it.

 

[David Conwill]

What a happy ending. Thanks, Big Man!

 

[Laclewis]

Beautiful car - I've really been enjoying reading about your progress getting it back to how your Aunt kept it. Nice to hear about a car with so many memories attached to it getting a second chance at life again.

 

[Talbot]

Well done big man.....

:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[Big Man]

Did you ever feel like a big dummy? Well, I sure did ...

This past Thursday I took the '48 Plymouth out for a short hop to the Post Office. My little granddaughter was with me and she wanted to go for a longer ride, so we decided to "take the long way home."

Now, to set the story, the old gas gage on the car has never really worked. When it's slam full, the gage will only register half. So, it goes to figure when it shows "E", the I should have around half a tank, right? Not wanting to entirely rely on that method, I also keep up with the mileage. However, the odometer doesn't work, so I keep an estimated running total on a notepad in the glove box. I always try to fill the car up at 100 miles, and it usually only takes about 7 gallons of gas. So far this method has worked fine.

Well, we're driving down the road. I've put about 90 or so miles on the car since the last fill up, so no worries about needing gas just yet. We start up a big hill about a half-mile from the house and the car sputters once and quits. I try to start it back, but it only turns over. I let it roll back and drop the clutch. Nothing. We roll it back down the hill to a flat spot on the side of the road and try again. Still nothing. I'm thinking the fuel pump has gone out, as that appears to be the most logical explanation at this point.

Fortunately, a neighbor comes by and gives us a ride home. I get a gas can - just in case - and drive back and pour five gallons in the tank. Try cranking again, but nothing. The motor turns over, but it won't fire. I'm convinced at this point that it must be a bad fuel pump. I call a tow truck (thanks for AAA), and have the Plymouth brought home.

All evening I'm thinking about how I will replace the fuel pump and what that will cost. Around 3 am I sit straight up in bed and say "I didn't try priming the carb!" As soon as it was daylight I went out, poured a little gas in the top of the carb, hit the starter, and varooom - it started right up.

I then proceeded to put 11 more gallons of gas in the tank till it was finally full (that's a total of 16 gallons in a 17 gallon tank). I went back and rechecked my estimated figures and, even with adding a couple extra miles here and there for good measure, still couldn't get more than 100 miles since my last fill up. The only explanation I could come up with was someone had helped themselves to the gas in my tank when I wasn't looking.

I've been driving a car for over 40 years and this was the first time I'd ever ran out of gas. Why I didn't think to prime the carb when I put that first five gallons in I'll never know. But you better believe now that I will remember to do that if it ever happens again.

Yes, sometimes you just feel like a big dummy. I'm just glad I didn't have the car towed to the shop, just to be told "you were only out of gas."

 

[Carl Miller]

It happens to the best of us. One of my cars didn't have a fuel gage originally and I ran it out of fuel a few times. The dual Weber carbs were thirsty suckers. Glad you arent in for any repairs. $$$$

 

[Carl Miller]

:eeek:

[video=youtube;mR7IQxfl3OE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR7IQxfl3OE&feature=player_embedded#![/video]

 

[rocketeer]

It happens to the best of us. One of my cars didn't have a fuel gage originally and I ran it out of fuel a few times. The dual Weber carbs were thirsty suckers. Glad you arent in for any repairs. $$$$

I had a 1960 Chevrolet Corvair with a gas heater. Fantastic in the winter, it heated the car and defrosted the front screen in 30 seconds. The downside was you had to keep an eye on the fuel as it drastically reduced the driving range compared to summer.

 

[jamespowers]

:eeek:

[video=youtube;mR7IQxfl3OE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR7IQxfl3OE&feature=player_embedded#![/video]

Ok, where is this and how many can I buy?

 

[normanpitkin]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/grantgb/7236894376/lightbox/

 

[Carl Miller]

Town & Country ambulance?

 

[splintercellsz]

I have quite a few projects going on, and if you like, I can continue to post progress pics for your viewing pleasure!

I am helping my dad with his '48 Plymouth, '49 GMC Truck, and my '78 Chevy Truck.

Plymouth:

His GMC (I took the Original Guages & Steering Wheel from it, and may sell them in the future, so if anyone is interested, let me know!):

My Chevy:

My Grandfather also has a '48 Plymouth (His is in way better shape, even has the original engine),and a 1951 Chevy.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Anybody recognize this. I'm friends with the owner of the local antique shop and she has no idea about it. She thinks it might be an old windshield. I'm not sure; it has me stumped.

 

[Big Man]

It's a side glass. The strap is used to raise/lower the window. Not sure of the age, but early for sure (1920's ?). The window is upside down in the picture (your hand is on the bottom of the window). It was raised by pulling up on the strap.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Wonderful! I will be sure to let her know. Thanks for your help! The oldest car we ever had was a 1931 and that had crank windows. I wasn't aware of straps such as this.

It's a side glass. The strap is used to raise/lower the window. Not sure of the age, but early for sure (1920's ?). The window is upside down in the picture (your hand is on the bottom of the window). It was raised by pulling up on the strap.

 

[David Conwill]

I think some woodie wagons had strapped windows into the mid-1930s.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Do any of you gents own or have any experience with late-thirties Nash products? There's a 1938 Ambassador Six that's caught my eye, and before I approach the seller I want to know what I should be looking for. This being New England, I know enough to look underneath for rust, etc., but are there any particular issues for this make that I should know about? Any reason why I should run as far as possible in the other direction? Any advice would be appreciated before I take any further steps.