Well after 145 posts of not much note, a tow, 10,000 shipping miles, a train ride, another tow, 6 months of waiting (impatiently), a spider infestation and a bucket load of money I am finally able to start my build thread. Yep, finally my '49 Cadillac Club Coupe has arrived in my workshop after its long journey from PA to Newcastle Australia. What started out 7 months ago as a general chat with my father in law who lives in Philly about cars, ended up with me finding this Caddy 40 minutes from his place. After an inspection by him, a few good chats with the owner the deal was done and the wheels were set in motion. My obsession was closer to be being satisfied. All original, bought and broken down for restoration by the previous owners - a Polish father and son team who made notes on everything they did and labelled parts accordingly,....unfortunately for me in Polish rather than English. The project changed hands to the person I bought it from. Progress by him was minimal, however the chassis has been restored to a standard that makes we think of driving it around without the body! The old "too many projects" virus bit and I was googling at the right time to come across it, the rest as they say in the classics is history. Now I know that 7 out of 10 of you are wondering what my plans are for the old girl, 2 of you are thinking my god he waffles on while the last one is probably wondering how you came to be where you are in life. I cant answer that but I am happy to say what my plans are. I will preface it by saying my plans have been tempered by how original the car is. Sure it needs some panel work and a bit of repair before the respray but its the original motor, trans etc so I wouldn't feel right butchering it - I can't bring myself to do anything significant to it that couldnt be reversed if need be. Mild Custom springs to mind: sorry no chops, no bags no SBC crate motors, no 20 in mags, no spiderwebs, skulls or dancing dashboard Elvis' either. Nice black spray job, 2-3 inches lower, rebuilt 331 with 365 heads and triple Strombergs, more chrome, dark green interior and more cool. As I said Mild Custom. Hmmmm this was supposed to be a quick intro to the build,..so now for the pictures! Oh and I am setting up a website with more photos, more rambling and aiming to document the whole process as a warning to otherswhat happens when you bite off more than you can chew! Give me a few weeks to get it up and running but remember to check out www.49cadillac.com if you want to read more or are in need of a sedative.
For some reason Photobucket is being a bitch,...will attempt to repost the pictures in a few hours when my blood pressure has returned to normal
Nope seems Photobucket is working ok, just slow. Hopefully I am more successful at building this car than I am at posting pictures. These are a mix of it arriving at my place, the photos from when I saw it on line and me with my apprentice! He doesnt do much, but his wages are cheap!
It looks like you found a decent car. It sounds like everything is there. Hopefully so, because replacement parts unique to this body are pretty rare and/or expensive. I have one of these cars. Before finding mine I checked out quite a few, and made trips all over to look at ones that turned out to be rougher than I wanted. After all that I eventually found an unrestored but nice '48 only a few miles from my house. I drove it home! Unfortunately it is now pretty far down on the list of projects that over the years have been slowed at one time or another by, insufficient time, lack of money, inadequate work space, health problems, or working on other projects. At one time I got my car projects done quickly, but things were different then. These cars are not common, but not so rare I wouldn't cut one up. I originally intended to chop and section mine, then Cadzilla was built. Not only was the overall styling of that car good, issues and challenges were properly addressed by things like a step-down floor/frame for more headroom and removable 1/4 panel sections for rear wheel access. What I originally had in mind for my car would essentially be just a less radical version of what Cadzilla already is. The car looks good stock, so like you, I'm now planning on more of a traditional resto-rod type treatment. Your www.49cadillac.com webpage isn't working right now. Hopefully it gets fixed.
Love those Cads,I have a 53,original as can be,I can't cut mine up either,just too nice as is.so I guess you will be picking up a little Polish as the build progresses, Learn something new everyday
I love the Caddy's as well!! Good luck with the build. I have a 49 sedan that I am parting out, PM me if you need something and I will let you know what I have.
Nice! Contgrats on the arrival. '47 & '49 Caddy's are my favorite! They've got that elegant art deco feel about them.... Keep us updated! HC.
Nice find...it looks in great shape...I as well have a sedanet...altho mine is a '48...I've stirpped it down to bare metal and completely taken it apart as my next project (care to see my previous build-a '55 Coop DeVille...??? Go here: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=329070&highlight=the+best+55+caddy+build But be prepared to spend several hours reading and looking at pix). I've got a few spare parts if you need anything...and there is a yard south of me here in ColoRODo that has two '49's loaded yet if you need something I don't have...good luck on the project... R-
Except for hearses and limos, '48 ans '49 look the same except for a different dash and slightly different grill.
what a great picture of you and yoru kid!!!adorable! good luck with the build! looks like a good start!
I have a couple friends with 49 caddy sedanettes like that...one is totally stock with a meduim gray metallic paint and the other is a black sedanette, lowered with a brand new super-gloss paint job [originally a dark blue] and a small block chevy. He tried a 500 caddy engine at first but it blew the rear seal on start-up. Toughest parts to find were the 1/4 panel body moldings.
Wow, great looking Caddy......and talk about solid floors.... Love that body style too. Good luck, and keep us posted in pictures and updates !! Cheers........
I agree, Roger....and he GAVE the 500 away! I was a few hours too late to get it. The original 331 was sold to another HAMBer...zero miles since rebuild but it stuck after many years sitting in the caddy.
Thanks everyone for your comments, thoughts and support. I am probably in a little over my head but its places like the HAMB that give me the confidence to do it! CutawayAl, I am hoping its all there I have been informed it is and from what I have been through so for it looks to be the case. Fingers crossed. There are only a few of these in Australia, so if I need anything it has to come from your neck of the woods which will obviously be a hassle! I am still setting the website up - there wont be anything there for a few weeks. I think it will be quicker to finish the car than to learn Polish! Thanks for the parts offers Captain Kirk & 40StudeDude, will let you know if something comes up. Oh and I know your past build 40StudeDude,....already spent hours looking and reading that! Thanks Farmergal, he is a gem - cant wait to take him for a drive or have him spending time with me while we work on the car,..will slow things down! Thanks again Cam
Only an Idiot would chop such a beautiful Car. Hey wait a minute, I've got a chopped and sectioned in the works. HaHa! Nice ride man. Best of luck and I'll be keeping my eye on this one. James
Hi James Thanks, I have been keeping an eye on yours too - Its wicked!!! I wish I had the balls (put the skill aside for a minute) to do what you are doing! Maybe the next one,....
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