Hey guys and gals, I'm new to the HAMB... finally started an account and so far I love it! I'm not new to the '52-'56 Fords though. I got my second car when I was 13- my '53 Ford Customline Tudor Sedan (pictured in my avatar). I just finished it this summer and I'm 20 now, so you do the math It's a traditional 50's mild custom, flathead powered, 3 speed. Everything done in the garage, including body work and paint... I also picked up a '54 Tudor when I was 17, that's more of a beater (black primer, steelies, 302 with the original 3 speed and 3.90 rear). I love these cars, and if anyone needs any '54 parts, feel free to ask- I may have what you need!
Welcome from So Cal. Good to see young guys into old cars. I got my first 56 Ford when I was 18. And you've got all two doors, Yeah!
Welcome to the greatest group of folks on the HAMB! I love your '53- can you post any other pics of it?
I think '52-'54s are like the forgotten 50's Ford. The shoeboxes and then the '55-'59 Crown Vics, Retractables, etc all overshadow them...
Correction! kustomcar53,there was a time we were once the "forgotten" 50's Fords that is no longer the case.After I read your post I thought I would do some investigation,so I clicked on Social groups clicked on brands and guess what we are now the 2nd largest group listed This Group was founded 5/16/2009 by 6/17/2010 we hit 600 members last week we hit 700 as of today 708,we are kickin' *** and takin' names! the other cars mentioned in your post,not even close not even the '49-51 Shoebox crowd or the '55-57 Chevys.I have said it before and I'll say it again,you all are the greatest! keep doing what you are doing and spreading the word to other Ford guys on other sites and at car shows maybe by next year we will be #1.
Nice! I'm glad to hear that! I think these are awesome cars, in many ways... They are easily customized, good looking, many changes through the 3 years-making one of them suitable to your needs, and they're overall good driving, well built cars... I love a nice 55-57 Chevy, but (yawn), it's about as exciting as seeing a Chevelle at a show. While Chevelles and 55-57s are nice, no offense to those who own em, there's just too many of em around...
Welcome to the group! Love to see more pics. I drive my 54 Fordor to work most everyday.... well, until the salt comes out..
Tell me about it! Saw that you're up in the Hudson Valley.. nice cars ya got there. Mine has a 239 V8... it's got some blowby though.
Welcome to this best Ford group you will find anyplace ! We are all a big family here and we will be willing to help anyone out with their projects with some of the best information you will fund anyplace ! I just got done checking out your albums and that 53 is one Beautiful Kustom ! The detail you have taken is really great and that color is beautiful too ! I really like the black and white interior that offsets the colors of the car . I have to ask , how much of that did you do ? That looks like a very professional restoration ! That is why I was asking . BTW , you are in just the right generation with your cars you have ! I am really happy to see the young of today enjoying what we use to drive ! There is a really great drag race show on Saturday OCT. 1 . It's with in driving distance from you and you will really enjoy the drag races as well . There are all pre 65 drag cars , truck , dragster and so on there all day ! It's like sitting in the bleachers of a drag race from the 1960's ! If you get a change to make it , let me know . I would like to meet you and if you drive your 53 I would love to see that in person as well ! They have the HAMB drags every year at the same time so if you can't make it this year , maybe next year ! Jim
@ rld14, thanks. And, don't worry about the blowby on the Y-Block- that thing will keep runnin forever. I have some stories about my own experiences with the 239 that was in my '54... @Retro Jim- Thanks for all the compliments! And as far as how much of it I did, I basically did all of it. My dad helped my here and there, but he mostly just would just point me in the right direction and I'd take care of it. The interior was done by my girlfriend and I- the seat covers were bought from E-Z Boy. I'd love to come to the races, but unfortunately I work this Saturday :/ Though in the afternoon, I plan to go parts picking; my friend told me about some 52-56 FoMoCo products laying in the woods somewhere, abandoned... So, my day won't be a total loss! haha I really appreciate all the compliments and the welcomes.
Welcome to the group... You mentioned in your intro that you had some 54 parts. By any chance do you happen to have the plastic escutcheon that attached to the cigar lighter? I have been trying to find one, but no luck so far. Also looking for one for the headlight switch. Welcome again from Spring, TX Bill
Hey! Welcome from the Circle City. These cars are coming on strong, but they didn't get a lot of attention for a while. We can all thank Jimmie vaughan for that one. Neat lookin' car, hope you enjoy your stay! 239s are dogs, but mine ran with a busted head through my sophomore year of high school! ahah
@Custom Crestline- It's unbelieveable what those 239s will do! Mine had absolutely no oil pressure! Buried right at zero, even when at speed (50-60 mph). When I first got my '54, my dad and I decided to try to get it runnin. It probably hadn't been ran in 30 years, and mud bees had gotten in the carb. So, I took the carb off to clean it out. In the meantime, we decided to see if it would at least fire over, so we drizzled a little gas down the intake- sure enough it fired up! After only runnin for a few seconds, we both looked at each other and asked if either of us had checked the oil. After saying no, I pulled the dipstick and the bottom of it was gone... Wondering why the hell someone had cut the bottom of the dipstick off, I pulled the drain plug out of the pain and about half a gallon of water dumped out, and a tiny bit of oil trickled out after it. The car had been in a flood at one time- we knew this. How the motor didn't seize, I'll never know. I added oil, rebuilt the carb and converted it to 12 volts. I drove it like that for maybe 6 months. You could hear the crank t******* when it was warmed up. It was great... The 239 came out eventually and a 302 replaced it...
@Baker 53, I have a spare '53 lighter! I just tried it in my '54 Ford and it fits just fine. The only difference in the actual escutcheon is that there's no lip on the very edge of it, like you'll notice on most of the escutcheons on your dash. But, it looks pretty close... let me know if you're interested.
The Jalopy Journal
