Greetings to all: I wanted to start off on the right foot in here, so thought I'd give an intro as suggested. My interest in cars is rooted in the womb I think. My dad helped me get my first project, a '50 Fleetline 4 door when I was in high school back in the late '80s. We tinkered on it a little together, mostly cosmetic stuff as the old man wasn't much of a mechanic. But, he seemed satisfied that he'd sparked the interest and as he put it "kept my spare time occupied and you out of jail" for those formative years. The project was shelved in the old man's garage when I went away to school and sat for many years. My dad passed away a few years back just before I began my initial enlistment in the Army. In the process of going through his things, I of course had to figure out what to do with the old Chevy. It was not much to look at, pretty much looked like crap, and needed everything. But, being forced to deal with the car rekindled my interest, and the sentimental/emotional attachment the car had to me. But, it was a four door. Always wanted a two door. Long story not too long, I found a 2 door project car to replace the 4 door and sold it. It was a little hard to part with it, but I was reassigned overseas to GTMO, Cuba for a few years and just couldn't manage the storage on both cars. So, I'm returning from Cuba in January and can't wait to get the Fleetline out of storage and get it going. After wasting a whole lot of time on Ebay, I thought it was about time I learned something useful I can put towards the project so finally signed up for this forum. My plans for the car are probably nothing new to the group. I would like to do a "resto-rod", maintaining the stock appearance for the most part with upgraded mechanicals for a little more fun and function. So, V8 and driveline swap, PS, PB, Must II front, etc. In between the apparent full circle I've made with a '50 Chevrolet (started with one, now ended up starting another), I've done some mild restorations on nothing near what I would call hotrods. Did play with a '71 Ford Galaxie (what a fun hooptie) and a '79 Z28 I've had since high school. I picked up a '68 Pontiac Bonneville 4 door hardtop along the way that's super original and just fun to drive as-is, original pea green interior and all. I still have the Bonne but sold the others. I really like the '49-'52 GM bodies, particularly the fastback styles. Anyway, hoping I have the chance to contribute a little here as well as learn. Thanks for running a forum such as this. Jeff
Thanks for the welcome, guys. I've already found some good info in the forums. Not sure who all is out there from OH. I probably wasn't clear, but I am moving to Columbus after I leave here in Jan to rejoin my family. If there are any '49-'50 Chevy guys near Columbus, I'd love to get in touch. I've parted several of these cars and would love to parts swap or just plain find homes for some of the extra stuff.
The Jalopy Journal
