1954 "superbaker" under construction

Take a look at my "2 year project" 6 years later - it starts and runs well, you may see it around in Phoenix...stop by and say hi!
kevin

 

starts well and runs well is pretty good, 54 is cool too, but I can't see the pics! Otherwise, Welcome from DFW.

 

damn, that's bad**** and one of my bucket list cars.....

 

Nice Stude. Welcome from Dexter, Michigan.

 

Man ur motor is a work of art!! Beautiful!!

 

Welcome from Ohio

 

Kev you have a very cool car.. I have owned several 53 54 and 57 Studebakers but none as nice as yours......................................The intro you wrote was a little lacking though............................................. So......... WELCOME from Alabama..

 

Thumbs up!

 

Hey there Kev, welcome to the HAMB

 

welcome to the site ....

 

Thanks to all for the kind words and acknowledgement - i'm new to this and will continue adding pictures.
Kevin

 

Sorry for the huge delay in responce, but being new to this, i didn't even know these responces were there. Some day i'm gonna move down to queensland and hopefully they will let me bring the "superbaker"
reguards kevin

 

Effin A cotton, effin a, that thing is wicked. Welcome from IN. Given your algorithm, my 5 year plan for the sedan, accompanied by my current skill level, should put me in to retirement before it becomes road worthy

 

Thanks, it's ugly as hell, but runs hard...have to keep helping the wife out of the trunk after street racing someone.

 

I like your car. I'm working on putting a blower and enderle bug catcher on my Pontiac.

 

Hey Kev How ya bean?

 

That's an awesome car with a wicked looking motor! I love it!

 

This has to be one of the nastiest Studebakers I have seen. Love the big tires under the tubbed rear, and the chop is perfect. Killer car.

 

Last photo looks familiar Westgate car show in glendale? Ive probably seen you there.

 

I put a new set of slicks on the car a while ago and they don't work as well as the Goodyear slicks. I'll be out on April 11 th for "CRUISE ON CENTRAL" see ya there!!!

 

Sharp looking Studebaker.
Mike T - Prescott AZ

 

They sure do look great. Looks better every time I see it.

 

just >>> WoOw !!! Amazing Stude !

 

I saw your car on another thread (for sale) and it disappeared before i could download some of the pictures. I am scouting for a '53 or '54 and will be building it around a blown 454. Yours is the best example of function and "Billetproof" construction I've seen. Great job! Is it possible to get reasonably good resolution pictures of what was in your "for sale" posting?

 

I think you should be able to click on my avatar and it should take you to my HAMB sight where I have lots of pictures of the whole construction of the car from a bone stock 54 Champion with a flat head 6 cyl and 3 on the tree....took a perfectly good running car and ruined it....or some say.
If that doesn't work, search SUPERBAKER OR 54 STUD go to FLICKR and search Kevin Nichols SUPERBAKER.

 

Thank you so much. Perfect! I lived in FL somewhat near Garlits' home and once a year he opens his property up to a gathering of like-minded car lovers. Although i have owned many cars from an A/Fuel funny car to a '64 Galaxy 500, i've never taken a second look at a Studebaker. Then at Don's place in 2013 i saw and took some pictures of this car. It didn't grab me right away, but as days and months went by, i couldn't get it out of my mind. The primer finish and simple blown chev engine was****y as hell. The car did not return in 2014 but i have 2 car projects on my plate now and one is a '53 or '54 blown 454 Stude starting frame-off, but leaving the body "virgin" like yours and this other car. Thank you so much for sharing the photos of your car. I joined HAMB because of your car so i am still learning. Is there a way that i can contact you directly via email? Thanks!

 

Here's the 2nd photo.

 

I check my HAMB regularly, so this will be a good link between us. Are you going to build your Studebaker for street or strip? Are you running a Funny Car? Anyhow good luck on your project.
The attached picture is one of my old Alcohol Dragsters, and one of those motors was de-tuned and converted to gas before it ended up in the SUPERBAKER.

 

Very nice dragster. Thanks!
Car will be for street (a bit over-the-top street). I will make some runs with it to see what it can do though.

I and my race partner had the funny car in the very early '70s. If i have enough space on here let me share some history about the car. In 1965/'66, Sam Pellegrini (who started Fiberglass Ltd) had just made the 1st tube chassis / fiberglass body / altered wheelbase "funny car" ever ... it was named The Super Mustang. Arnie Beswick wanted to get in on this new A/FX direction so he chartered Pellegrini to make him a fiberglass body. Beswick hated what Sam made because a) it was a Tempest and not a GTO and b) the plastic windows were blue rather than clear. Beswick rejected the body and Pellegrini made another in a GTO body which became famous with Beswick at the wheel. That rejected body became our car. The chassis was made by Logghe Stamping, the THM400 was made by Don Long, the engine was a 427 L-88 bored to 440 built at Customs Engineering with Crower and later Enderle injection. Note that the wheel openings were moved ... front wheels moved forward 9" and the rear moved forward 16" to give a 108" WB. The car weighed 1648 pounds. The Comanche was the 3rd tube chassis / fiberglass body funny car in existence (Arnie's was #2 ... he finished before the Comanche was finished). The car toured the midwest circuit and best performance was 7.98 @ 196 running 80% nitro. I also had a '57 Chevy D/Gas and then got out of racing for family life & aerospace manufacturing career for quite awhile. Now i am happily retired and just finished a 2500 sq ft shop and am getting back into my passion. I've been involved in IHRA and do some media photography at IHRA events (like the current Nitro Jam tour). Attached are some pictures of the Comanche. BTW ... she was very unfortunately destroyed in an accident by the people we sold the car to in 1975.

Am having trouble uploading the pics. Will send in next post.

 

I don't remember your car by name, I grew up in SOCAL and was raised at the Drag Strips (most long gone now) I am friends with Dale Pulde who ran the "War Eagle" Funny car in NHRA and IHRA and he's in the IHRA Hall Of Fame. He drove for a lot of other people before getting his own car...Quite successful and a mentor of mine - he would probable remember "The Super Mustang"
Hope my build pictures will be of help to you, but my car is a kind of "HYBRID" ...too much race car stuff in a street car, (can't drive to California unless its on a trailer, good for around town stuff)