Projects "Saving" a Studebaker

Always! I'm looking at replacing the batteries in my solar system. $$$$

 

How's that refrain from HeeHaw go??? "If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all... Gloom, Despair, & Agony on Me..." .
Marcus...

 

The driver side of the engine bay needed some love...


And the O.E. point for the battery hold down bracket was looking a bit sorry. So I welded in a re-enforcing spacer and a cover, smoothed it up & shot it satin black.

 

Nice work, it is always nice to see it before it starts getting old again.

 

The engine bay looks better, for sure... except the steering box sticks out now... grrr.
Alright, clean that up...

I was going to "just get the car running"... What's next?

 

Supposedly the 61? and newer Lark saginaw box is a big improvement , just saying

 

Whatever else you can spot that you KNOW would be a thousand times easier now, rather than when the compartment is full. That's experience nagging you!

Did you check/replace the lube and adjust the box?

 

Looks nice!

 

Yup, sure did... actually, the adjustment was barely anything.

But now that dad-burn firewall is staring at me! I don't know, I s'pose I'll just clean it up a little and move on.

Speaking of going off on a tangent; I took a trip to Desert Valley Auto in Casa Grande late last week to get a replacement axle for my truck. (That yard is amazing!) On the way back I stopped @ Russ's place in Gilbert and scored a new (badly needed) windshield gasket...
Is it me, or does it seem like I'll do anything to avoid patching that Fred Flintstone hole in the floor? Rest assured, gentle readers, I'll get to it... eventually. Progress is progress, no matter what direction it leads.

 

When there is steak, potatoes and green beans on the plate, you don't HAVE to eat all the green beans first!

 

You don't have to eat them at all if your mom isn't there.

 

Ha-ha... I like green beans, but rust makes me feel a little sick!

 

Update; Due to a structural upgrade in the shop, the Lark is now precariously, though temporarily, perched on the proverbial back burner...
The supervisor does not approve and left proof of that on the rear tire...

 

Hopefully back inside before haboob season arrives.

 

We don't get haboobs up here, but that's not to say there aren't strong winds!
It's been fairly mild, with temps above freezing every day so far and wetter than the average dry winters.
Jack, hope your repairs are quick and easy. Tarps rot quick out in the weather here.

 

With any luck I'll be done in a few weeks...

 

Shop? I have just storage. I cleared a path to the mill last week and did a job for someone else. There will be another saddle maker's sewing machine up and running before my roadster. Oh well, I took part is fixing something.

 

Get outta here! Was it 3.7 acres with a brick/river-rock house, detached shop, and a little barn? Right across a gravel road from the river?

 

Yes sir, that's the one!

 

WOOO!

 

***Tangent Warning***

If this is the place, you'll be glad to know it's littered with my projects now!



What an unreal coincidence. We tried to make an offer before the fires, but someone (you, it seems?) beat us to the punch. Then we tried to buy a farm in Scio and it fell through, and this one popped back up on the market so we jumped on it. We couldn't even go look at it, but put an offer in anyway (it was a real seller's market). We didn't even know if the house was still standing, but figured it would fail inspection if it wasn't. We'd heard the other buyer had been from CA, but who knows (well I guess you would).

We eventually were allowed to see and inspect the place. The fire burned the understory in the SE leg of that crazy shaped lot. Some wood fence posts were lost as well. I have endless firewood as the trees in the lower field keep on dying--a few each year. The first couple years were crazy around here with the endless construction. The overwhelming majority of the houses in the neighborhood burned down. Some properties were under-insured and still haven't cleaned up or rebuilt. The ones that rebuilt are very nice though, and property values have climbed quite a bit.

You dodged a real bullet with the humidity though. It's 95-99% from October to April pretty much. Mold and rust grow on EVERYTHING. I've purchased a lot of dehumidifiers and carports and am constantly fighting the good fight with all my project cars. Sadly, I may have to thin the herd as it's a bit much sometimes. But it's a great place to raise our small kids and big dogs.

I'll try not to get too OT and derail your thread too far, but you kinda blew my mind here.

 

Looks like a nice place, every place has it's issues. That's why God invented Heaven.

 

Did Rube Goldberg design the steering system for Studebaker

 

It worked really well but it takes a lot of room.

 

Possibly….if Rube was working for GM in the late ‘40s…..steering setup is essentially identical to Chevrolet passenger cars 1949 through 1954 models and Corvettes through 1962 models. Studebaker cars got this design with 1951 models.

Ray

 

I thought that but could't find pictures. Here's a '53.

 

Beat me to it @Hnstray

 

those boxes would be a hot item down under. then again they probably have more than they can use.

 

The steering is... not simple. There are a lot of wear points, but when in good condition it works quite well. To me power steering is not needed on these cars as a result.

Update: The building mods are moving in the right direction. If all goes as planned I should be back @ it by the end of the month.

 

O.K., here's the scoop:
I got the truss modification completed, approved by the engineer and approved by the city inspector. I'll have the lift in 2 weeks... then it's time to get back to work... (as if I haven't been working) Then back to our normal program!