nvonada
-
Posts
271 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Forums
Gallery
Events
Posts posted by nvonada
-
-
Thanks! According to my wife I am a legend in my own mind.
My crossmember is bolted in so you can either remove it entirely or just leave it on the tranny. I don't have a hoist so I put the car on stands, pull the driveshaft, put a jack under the transmission, remove the crossmember bolts, the lower the engine a couple inches so onto a milk crate with some old carpet on top. You don't have to go down far to get to the bolts and the transmission slides right out. Extra hands are helpful. You should probably disconnect the exhaust pipe, oil gauge line, etc before you drop the engine. Don't lower then engine any farther than you have to because the oil will start running out the back of the tranny and if you go too far the block will hit the firewall. There is an access panel in the floorboards but I think this is more useful if you have to get to the bell housing bolts. I can get to all 4 transmission bolts from beneath no problem.
Nathan
-
The glove boxes are different. For whatever reason Studebaker used hinges on the end of the door for cars and "gooseneck" hinges that come out of the bottom front edge of the glovebox for trucks. That said I would bet the only difference between the two is the slots for the gooseneck hinges. The good news is Loga makes a reproduction box.
If the old box is not torn or too badly crushed the CASO fix would be to scrub it out very well, dry it, then spray paint the inside flat black. It would look like a new one.
Nathan
-
+1 on the Eastwood manifold paint. I sandblasted mine, painted with the Eastwood paint, and it still looks great.
Here are a lot of pictures of my manifold work.
Manifold Repair | 1941 Studebaker Champion
Some more hints that are not on the web site:
I was able to use parts from my engine and my parts engine to make a good heat riser but I probably put too much effort into it. As of last year Studebaker International still had all the heat riser parts for this car for not a lot of $$$.
The hardware store studs I installed for the exhaust pipe connection are longer than the factory studs. This is a bad thing because it is impossible to get the exhaust pipe on without unbolting half the exhaust system hangers to get just the right angle on it. Mock it up on the bench and trim the studs so just 3 or 4 threads are showing above the nut. Factory used brass nuts here but I replaced with stainless. I kept the brass nuts holding the manifold to the block. Stainless would probably be better but I just think the brass ones are cool.
Best sells a fiber manifold gasket that worked a lot better for me than the crushable metal kind. The crush gasket never sealed right for me but that may have been operator error
.Manifold Gasket Replacement | 1941 Studebaker Champion
Nathan
-
If the 30 Commander has a Bendix starter this sounds like a sticking Bendix. That is the gear-spring thingy on the end of the starter motor shaft. It uses inertia to "unscrew" when the starter motor starts which engages the gear with the flywheel ring gear. If rust, dirt, or old grease gets into the bendix it sticks. When this happens to mine (every 5 years or so) I can usually shake it loose just as you describe. Pull the starter, take the bendix off, and clean it well. When you install it use a dry lube like lock lubricant and you should be good to go.
Nathan
-
Welcome! Lucky for you Studebaker trucks are not worth a ton of money. We would need more information to make even an wild guess as to the value of your truck. Year, model, serial number, and lots of pictures would help the most. You might check out Hemmings Motor News and E-Bay to look for what similiar vehicles are going for.
Another lucky break for you is the avid and friendly Studebaker community. You have found this pre-war forum. There is also a place where truck nuts hang out:
And the Studebaker Drivers Club which you should join if you buy the truck:
By the way rust is what kills these cars. Even if your engine and transmission are totally trashed you can replace them for not a lot of money. But if the truck needs a lot of metal work that is a much more expensive problem. If this is your first old car then this will be a very exciting and educational experience for you. Just be realistic. That truck is from a time when technology and shop labor rates were vastly different than they are today. If you have to pay someone to fix it it will be expensive not only to get it running but also to keep it running. Worth it to us but you should realize what you are getting into. Post more information and we will be glad to share what we know. Heck, many of us are willing to share what we don't know!
Nathan
-
Stick that coat hanger in there until it bottoms out then mark the top of the stick. Measure the depth of the oil pan then mark the coat hanger that far up. That should get you close. Somebody out there can measure their dipstick for you I am sure.
-
Thanks for the info. The sticker shock had me putting off buying a set. I need to remind myself that I will probably not buy new tires again for 20 years so it is is actually not that much.
-
Lark,
Are you looking for the 15" wheels just because you have tires that size already? I am looking at new tires for my 41 so I am interested in what others are doing for these cars. I hate the Lester bias-ply tires I have now but they are finally about worn out. Lester might make a good tire but these were purchased in 1986 and are getting pretty hard.
Nathan
-
That LaSalle is at the Henry Ford museum right? Why is it I can't remember my grocery list but I remember seeing that car?
-
Both of those reasons were a considerdation. There was a third reason too. Cooling jackets and manifolds were not as well designed (many cars did not even have cooling for the entire cylinder). This created hot spots that would trigger pre-ignition at higher compression ratios. It is your car and your money but you are off into an area that has not been all that well explored (at least in the last 1/2 century). I would go stock if it were me. The engine might not last long or it might still be running another 85 years from now. I am glad you are not dropping a SBC into it though. Good luck and post lots of pictures!
Nathan
-
Speaking of rust proofing my grandparents (who used to own my car) used to talk about how the county in rural Pennsylvania would spray oil on the unpaved roads to keep the dust down. That is hard to imagine on so many levels today. But when I cleaned up the bottom of my car I found a thick tarry coating of dirt and oil. In some places the frame rails were full of it. The metal underneath did not rust at all.
Nathan
-
Justin,
What body style is your Champion? My DD coupe did not have a trunk mat. However the inside of the trunk had been sprayed with some fuzzy felt-like stuff that looked like felt fibres and glue mixed together. It is mostly gone just from age and time but you can still find some in protected areas like under the spare. My floors and firewall are covered with something that looks and feels like asphalt with some kind of cardboard/cloth embedded in it. The it also contains horsehair or something like it. I sometimes worry about asbestos in this covering. I have no idea if these coatings were factory installed or not.
Here is a shot of the firewall:
Nathan
-
Justin,
Guilty as charged. I started off taking pictures of my work and taking notes. Then I decided why not put it on a web site? Thanks for looking and I am pleased to hear it is helpful.
Nathan
-
It is just a strip of foam rubber around 1/2" square. I am not sure it has any functional purpose so don't feel bad if you don't have it. I replaced mine and had a heck of a time getting it to stick. For what it is worth I could not find any holes so I don't think the factory used screwnails. Several pictures here: More Engine Pull Screwups | 1941 Studebaker Champion
Nathan
-
Thought that might be you. Something about the name seemed familiar...
-
Yes, if the system is working you should be able to back up without pulling the OD. A 46 system should be the same as the later units though. I think the planetary gears got beefed up later but the operation of the system shoudl be the same.
-
Q3 Double Dater. Silly name, the back seat is too small to SIT in, much less get past second base.
-
This is not terribly interesting but I Google-mapped the address for Stromberg and found that it is now the I-94/I55 interchange just south of downtown.
-
Justin,
There is a slot in the firewall where it curves into the transmission tunnel. The throttle spring attaches there. I don't have a really good picture of that spot but this should show you where to look:
http://stude.vonadatech.com/images/Carb/Cleaned%20intake%20manifold.jpg
I don't have 47 in my parts books but I bet the kickdown switch is at least similar enough to interchange. Does your 46 have a Carter WE or were they still using the WA? My 41 does not have OD but I too have been collecting parts for it. Someone retrofitted a WE carb and my OD kickdown switch is on a WA but just looking at them I think the linkages are identical.
Nathan
-
I am told by a woodworking friend the Weldbond dries clear and is pretty fast. Thick superglue might also be a good option.
-
I did find one for my 41. Not cheap but it was NOS. Keep looking and one will turn up. How is yours different from the 41-46?
-
I have no clue what the oil pump looks like on a 1919 light 4 but I have used a few techniques to prime a pump. The first is to remove the distributor and use a drill motor to spin the oil pump until you get pressure. This will not work on most Stude engines because the drive gear off the camshaft is on the oil pump shaft instead of the distributor shaft. The second method is to take the cover off the oil pump and pack the gears with vasoline. This will give good suction on even a worn pump for a few seconds until the oil is pulled up into the pump. The vasoline dissolves in the oil and causes no problems. A third possibility that I have never done is to pump oil into the pump via the oil pressure port. That should work but again I have never tried it.
Nathan
-
Small world. Malcolm is who I purchased the wiper transmission parts from. I e-mailed him and he has the bracket so I should be good. Thanks!
-
I am installing the factory dual wipers but I am missing the bracket that holds the wiper motor. Finding the bracket is a long shot but I was hoping someone could snap a picture of it so I can figure out the angles. It should not be hard to make but the picture in the parts book does not give me much to go on. It is 2149-7 in the parts book picture. I wrote down the part number but left it at home
.
Thanks,
Nathan
.
.
1930 Studebaker President vacum wiper motor information needed.
in Studebaker, Erskine & Rockne
Posted
The wiper motor is pretty simple. There is not much to lose by opening it up. Try not to tear the gasket on top too much and you will probably be OK. Usually they are just gunked up and need a good cleaning and lubrication. I did take apart a motor with shaft bushing damage and also bad pitting in the vaccum chamber due to water getting in there and sitting for a long, long time. Even that one sort-of worked (enough for a car that will rarely see rain). If you don't want to mess with it I have heard good things about WiperMan.