Projects Stuck on my project. 1940 Studebaker coupe

A tail dragging ,chopped top Kustom if it were mine .Its your car do what pleases you. Thanks for sharing photos and keep us updated. Good luck on your build.

 

aw man, I have respect for other people's tastes. I did not say that people with gassers have shit for taste, because beauty is in the eye of the beholder..I simply said that they are ugly and foolish looking, as I assume you feel about ass dragging lead turds

 

Ok its cool. We agree to disagree based on our own taste. Hey Oldsrocket, maybe you can figure out a way to make your Stude modular so you can flip back and forth between styles without too much work. The cool thing is any "gasser" induction should fit under the stock hood when you've got your car in "stealthy tail dragger" mode.

 

I love to look at pictures of the old gassers, but as a matter of practicality I don't think a gasser would be all that good of a driver. On the other had I would thing the tail dragger would be all that practicle as a daily driver either. I have seen many '39 - '42 Studes set up in various ways. I really like those that sit a little lower than stock, but still aren't extreme. A set of red steelies with trim rings and dog dish caps or Salt Flat wheels. Black always looks good. As far an engine I have seen some really nice set ups with these cars that use a Studebaker V-8. They are available fairly easily and would be different. I know of a '41 2 door sedan with an R2 engine (Studebaker engine with factory blower.)

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...l_j_Aw&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=5&ct=image

or this

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...=/images?q=1940+Studebaker+hot+rod&hl=en&sa=G

or this

http://www.bcautos.com/stude.html


I really like the lines of this car to chop it or do anything drastic to the body. Of course as has been said previously. It is your car and you are free to do whatever you want to it.

 

Hmmmmmmmmmm, 130,000 miles on my Studey, half of those as a "tail dragger"...it's been in all the western states and half of the eastern states, all across this country...it doesn't have cruise control or A/C but it does have a 400" SBC, a T400 and a '57 Chevy rear end.

If it was all that hard to drive or handle, I wouldn't own it...

IF the car is built radically, or slammed on the ground so it won't roll over a Coke can @ 70 mph on the highway, then it'll prolly beat you up...if it's built with highway miles (comfort, ride and ease of steering -oh, and maintenance) in mind instead of simply around town strutting/cruising, then it's a practical car...

R-

 

I say go middle ground by just getting it driving, then decide where to go from there. It's easy to say, but probably not easy to do considering you need front suspension.

 

I've got front suspension. It is currently sitting with a 7" drop axle. Brakes are non-existant though, also need a rear gear and to make up my mind on a motor and trans. Thinking pontiac w/ 6x2 cross-ram or nailhead.

 

Different strokes for different folks but........
Mild kustom taildraggers have been timeless since the forties.
would gassers be classed as a fad? But what would i know -any running hotrod is better than my unfinished one.
Not trying to start a shit fight I love all traditional cars.

 

Please NO.....Leave the skirts for the girls. That first pic looks great. IMHO the stude looks better then the Willys in Gasser trim...

 

If you do a taildragger (my preference), you could roll the rocker panels, ala this Westergard Chevy. You should also be able to find repro '41 Stude tail lights, which are classics for this type of car.

 

I say gasser,and I say if you don't like it change it, also to much reflecting gets to little work done, unless you get paid for reflecting. A friend of mine sits and drinks all day, and when you ask him what he did or got done that day he will tell you how hard of a day he had sitting at the bar "reflecting". Goodluck either way.

 

i would keep the front end the same but this a picture of my brothers stude...jones

 

If you want it to be cute, I'd say lower it and put the running boards on it. It kindof looks sad with it's face in the ground. Hike the front end up a little and make it a mean ass!

 

I've looked at this car a lot. Really awesome car. But not really the same body style. Mine is a commander and this one is a champion. They have some pretty significant body differences.....Champions was a notch back, didn't have running boards from the factory, had smaller fenders, and a different grille.

Looks like your bro used a willys front clip. Pretty cool. I lust over that car, but try as I might the two look too different to make any real good correlation.


Somebody mentioned '41 taillights..... I'm going a different route. I bought a pair of the skinny catseye taillights for harleys, built my own frenching buckets also. Going to go that route. Still need a little work to get them right. Here's a picture of while I was fitting them:

 

You are absolutely correct that the drivability depends entirely on how low the rear end is. Thanks for pointing that out. I'd like to see some pictures of your car, it sounds like a good one.

 

I really like that tail light set up. Fits right in with the body lines.
You are right to point out the differences between the Champion and Commander models of that era. They were, as you say, almost entirely different automobiles.

 

there's an awesome book out there called Gasser Wars...you can pick it up anywhere. there's a bunch of stude's in there and I think they look great.....

 

here is a pic of my 41 champion gasser it was built in 68 and then in storage for 30 years tell i got her out and running..

506927.jpg by baditude66 posted Feb 23, 2014 at 1:10 AM

30 years in the barn and a little wash and a coat of wax the car is 95% the way i found it less the drive line... by baditude66 posted Feb 23, 2014 at 1:10 AM

30 years of dust and mice……. true barn find by baditude66 posted Feb 23, 2014 at 1:16 AM

355 with a 144 supercharger check out the fire wall that was cutout and moved 6''back the motor was pushed back 4'' by baditude66 posted Feb 23, 2014 at 1:10 AM

 

How'd this one ever turn out?
Marcus..

 

I ended up going gasser with it. Got it to the point where it could be driven down the road for some testing. The amount of money and time I had invested in it at the time was stupid, and I just wasn't willing to throw any more money at it to finish it out. I was already begging, borrowing and stealing (not really) to try to get it further. I also came to the realization that even if I finished it there would be no way that I could race it. I just don't have that kind of free-time with my work travel schedule. So, I ended up trading it for a '38 chevy coupe to a guy in Chicago (which I no longer have either). That guy ended up selling or trading it to a guy in Virgina or West Virgina who changed a few things and finished out the body and is basically running it around as a street freak. You can see some pics along the way along with the fella's post who ultimately ended up with it here:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/39-42-studebaker-gasser-photos.364378/#post-3946286

For what it's worth, I wish I would have gone the tail-dragger route looking back. I'd have lost less $ and time and might still have it.

 

OR;
Thanks for the reply. Too bad it didn't work out. I had done a reply suggesting you do it as a streetrod, but deleted it after I saw the posting dates. Can understand about the time/$$ issue(s), it's all relative. I've found I can't keep all of my Studes. ;( . But, there's always the future... . & after I looked at the link, I realized that I had forgotten that I followed that one too.
Marcus...