Buffalowed Bill

I think you have your answer-yes! The hobby is so diverse that appealing to everyone is impossible. I'm drawn to the cars that are seldom seen. Cars from independent manufacturers, surviving originals and stripper models, regardless of make, model or engine all speak to me. That's a rule of thumb, but honestly I never know which car will suck me in until I see it. As someone indicated previously it's all about the car. Those of us who recognize that every car has a story may not be mainstream, but we are not going away. You won't have to look for us at a car show or cruise, we will find you!

I second the response for "Automotive Touch Up." I stop short of indorsing the company at this time. It seems like the pandemic impacted the company's production and order filling capabilities. The last time I ordered from them the it took months for them to fill the order. What we need is a more recent customer to respond. These paints are for the most part base/clear. The clear that one uses is very important. The best clear IMO is the aerosol, two part product that the company sells as a companion to their color. I can't recall the maker, but it is available on Amazon and other outlets as well. Proper self protection is a must with this stuff. Make sure you don't skimp on the protection or get lazy! My own experience has been limited to three 25-30yro. cars and the color match for the original colors was perfect. The company does have quite an extensive archival color bank. But the original color choices do thin out for older cars. If you choose to use the aerosol can you need to know that it works best on vertical surfaces. In other words the propellant is more uniform if the can is held upright. It works better if you take the hood and trunk lid off and shoot either in a vertical position. For the top your on your own, just don't let the aerosol can get too low on product before going to a new can-don't ask me how I know!

I wonder how many younger drivers realize that there is a law that says you have to dim your lights for oncoming traffic? Common sense tells me there can't be that many discourteous drivers. Or am I being too trusting of the character of the everyman?

Not worth arguing over because I really don't know. Even though we have a 1935 Dictator coupe and a 1935 body here I have no 34 to which I can compare it. My source is Warren Coleman, who was very emphatic when trying to explain the difference. All I was able to grasp was that the difference in the coupes was low on the body behind the door or maybe under it, I'm not really sure.

I'm waiting for the first time that I see a customer say "you screwed up my car, I hate it!" Irrespective of what it looks like the customer seems obligated to give it a thumbs up. I'd like to be that fly on the wall when the customer says what he really thinks!

IMHO the car hobby, as we know it today, is of, by and for the Baby Boomers. There has never been a group of car crazies' like them before nor will there be another group like it that follows. These were the cars with which they grew up. They saved them restored them and continue to own them today. I think that it is important to remember that there was little car preservation or restoration taking place before the Boomers made it a priority. There are no other generational advocates for old cars and the history that made them seem important. Our slow demise (Boomers) has already made a huge negative impact on the hobby. Later generations have the ability to reap the benefits of the work that the Boomers provided. I just hope that there is enough interest from the youngsters to sustain part of legacy of the last four decades.

I honestly can't say for sure, but the 34and 35 coupe bodies are different. So you take it from there. Where is your friend located and which door is he looking for? You should be able to find a serviceable door near you. We have two rear doors on a 35 sedan body that has sat out for years. They are both straight, but there is a bit of rust on the lower lip of both, but the R. side has the least amount of rust. I'm just mentioning these in case your friend gets desperate. We live in the Seattle area. I won't pull or transport. Good luck!

At the risk of overdoing this thing, some might still find some of this interesting. Everything about these early Camaros can be broken down by percentage as per their particular features. One day I had some time to kill and just to satisfy my own curiosity I began to parse out the features to determine about how many cars exactly like mine had been produced. Some items can be a big trend setter especially if it was a rare feature. These numbers are just from memory and would have been approximate anyway. 220,000 1967 Camaros produced 10% Rally Sport=22,000 3% of 67's were painted the rare one year only Royal Plumb=660 The rest of the items like 210 horse 327, Powerglide, column shift, standard interior, ww tires etc. are all kind of a blur ten years after I did the calculation. What I came up with approximately 26 identical cars produced! Remember this was just to satisfy my own curiosity and certainly not because any combination of these features on a standard Camaro would make it any more valuable! With the proclivity of young owners to customize and tear them up when they were new, I figured that my chances of seeing another one like it was one step up from zero. About a year later I went to a big car show in Snohomish Washington. It was the last big car show of the year. Regardless of the odds there it was the spitting image of my car magnificently restored to original. Only in the Twilight Zone!

In my collection I have a car with precisely this configuration. I've owned it since 1969 when I bought it from a cash starved friend for $400. The car had been in an accident early on and rebuilt. My friend bought it in the summer of 1967 for the price of the damage repair, $1200. He was the antithesis of a car guy and wanted me to look at it with him. He was willing to ignore the rough edges, so I told him to go ahead and buy it. Neglect and abuse was to be the it's plight for the next two years, until he blew the engine. At that time the car was tagged with it's name "The Purple Piggy" by a mutual friend. My friend needed wheels and I had some cash. I had planned to do a quick engine R&R and resell the car. I put a $75 used 283 in the car over the weekend and was driving it on Monday. My girl friend at that time told me she wanted to buy it. Long story she never paid me for it and he new boy friend, a used car dealer told her that the car was not worth the $900 I was asking for it. So I continued to drive it for the next ten years and putting another 125K miles on it before it got parked-so much for that guy's opinion. If a car has been good to me I try to give the same back. Today "Piggy" lives on, a much loved, Royal Plumb, Rely Sport-after my long duration, major refurbishment. It's not always how a car begins life that counts!

Chris, When time allows please share any photos you might have for our enjoyment.

I just left the SDC forum, no problem for me.

Thanks Ed for being that authority figure that said what had to be said! It does mirror my own experience in three cars. There is no doubt the most frustrating episode was while I was doing a final detailing on my 1931 Studebaker Four Season Roadster for it's trip to PB (ironically 31 Studebaker like the poster). I wasn't satisfied with the level the K/S was reading the level in the tank, and thought it should be able to do better. Inside the garage in which it was parked the temperature was <65degrees. I added enough red fluid to bring the gauge reading up to the known amount of fuel in the tank. But when I moved it out in the sun the change in temp. began to bring the fluid level up really fast. When it got to a level very close to the top of the gauge it became obvious that I had a real problem! I quickly moved in back into the garage and removed about 1/2 of the fluid. The gauge seems to have a mind of it's own. The gauge and I now have an understanding-it can feature whatever it wants to on a given day. As for me as long as it reads something and doesn't go crazy, I'm just as happy as can be!

Wouldn't it be a wonderful if this were really true! The fact is that during the the glory days of the 90's and 2000's good original and restored cars were being scooped up by street rodders and customizers in large numbers. They were solid and required less work. With the high cost of restoration and related services today few cars are being restored. That hasn't slowed down the guys who have big egos and little or no concern for the history that a survivor represents. I'm old, tend to be a purist, but I also consider myself a realist. Regardless of my own inclinations, I have to ask myself if any of our goals are really so out of step with the customizers and newer car fans. Survival of the hobby may depend on how we learn to coexist with those that we may not agree with. It seems to me that inclusiveness of all things car related has to become part of hobby. I don't believe that this means changing the goals of the AACA or other purist groups. However, it does seem we need to work on a more tolerant attitude.

Studebaker still provided a optional oil bath air cleaner for it's 6cly cars up to until the end of production in 1966.

I guess I need to respond. I've been around Studebakers all my life, 80yo this month, and I live in the foothills east of Seattle. When you say that you are interested in a 1950-51 Studebaker, the question leads to a huge number of questions. The two years may look similar but, there are a great many differences year to year and model to model. For brevity sake I'm going to assume that it makes little difference mechanically whether it's a Champion or a Commander as long as it is a serviceable driver. That leaves body style-4dr, 2dr sedan, 2dr Starlight Coupe, Business Coupe, Landcruiser and convertible. Before anyone can help you we have to know what body style(s) you will accept. We also need to know your price range and how far you might be willing to travel to get the right car. As for the Coupe Express, depending on condition and price you may have hit the jackpot. The rest of the car world is awakening to the same wiles to which you fell pray. They are simply great looking automotive masterpieces, that appeal to both stocker and customizers. While the 1937 gets most of the love the 1938 and 1939 are not that far behind. The supply is quite limited so proceed accordingly. I may even know the truck you just found, but haven't seen it in years. Values are all over the place, but IMO, depending on condition, and the quality of work that was done to it, <$20-25K would seem to be a bargain. You should scroll to Studebaker section of this form and pose the same questions. You should also think about joining the "Studebaker Drivers' Club" and the "Antique Studebaker Club." You should be able to get your questions answered through the forum, and you should be able to find the car you are looking for. Good luck! Bill