What does a 1931 Dictator radiator cap look like?

[Guest 1931Dictator]

Being a newbie here, I am impressed with the depth and quality of information folks are sharing on here.

With that said, Does anyone have a picture, description, and/or source on a '31 dictator rad cap? This was missing when my wife's grandpa found the car and restored it. He found a non-correct cap and put it on for the time being.

I appreciate any help that folks can provide.

Bret

[keiser31]

Probably one of these...the lady being the one that was a close copy of Cadillac's cap.

[Mark Huston]

The pictures posted by Keiser31 are optional caps offered by Studebaker in 1932. In 1931 the radiator cap was a plain flat cap. I do not have a picture off hand; I will look to see if I can locate one. The cap that is seen most often on 1931 Studebaker’s is the bird ornament seen in photo on right above. Because this was an official Studebaker optional radiator cap it was available retroactively to the 1931 model year cars. The factory standard flat radiator cap is rarely seen as most every owner of the 1931-32 Studebaker uses the optional bird mascot radiator cap.

[keiser31]

Sorry if I was mistaken. I am not a Studebaker guy and "1931" is what it said on the photos of these cars. I have actually had a cap that was made without the bird. It went on ebay.

[Mark Huston]

Keiser31: No problem, even most Studebaker guys think the optional 1932 bird mascot was the standard cap issued in the 1931 model year.

Here is a factory photo of a 1931 Dictator from Bill Cannon’s book “Studebaker: The Complete Story” page 142. The picture depicts the car with a plain flat cap.

[keiser31]

Keiser31: No problem, even most Studebaker guys think the optional 1932 bird mascot was the standard cap issued in the 1931 model year.

Here is a factory photo of a 1931 Dictator from Bill Cannon’s book “Studebaker: The Complete Story” page 142. The picture depicts the car with a plain flat cap.

Boy, it looks as if they were not too concerned with the headlamp adjustment for the publicity photo. So, for my own curiosity, is the "flat" cap the same as the base cap for the bird?

[Mark Huston]

So, for my own curiosity, is the "flat" cap the same as the base cap for the bird?

I am sorry I cannot answer your question with any degree of authority. In all the years that I have been into Studebakers I can only recall seeing one 1931 with the factory original flat cap. I have never had the opportunity to compare the flat cap with the 1932 bird version to see if they are the same basic cap. Perhaps someone who is more familiar with the two caps can chime in here and let us know.

[Guest 1931Dictator]

Thanks guys for all the input. I did buy a 1932 cap with a Studebaker Big Bird (same as one posted above, but larger) mounted too it. I was told that it was a Doc Elsner reproduction. I figured this would look nice and would work fine fine for the time being.

What I found was that the cap had three tabs to engage the radiator. My makeshift radiator cap has two tabs. I was able to reuse the one off my cap on the new cap. Once that hurdle was cleared, I found that I couldn't open my hood without taking the cap off. The cap itself is too large in diameter. After looking at some pictures, it appears the president hood is clearanced to clear with a small radius on the corner and the grille shell takes up the difference. The bird picture above shows this.

I believe that the correct cap for the dictator (and perhaps the commander too) are smaller in diameter, but have yet to run across a car to study or someone that has one to share the details.

Looking at the cap I bought, I believe that it is an original cap that has been drilled to mount the bird on it.

Attached are pictures of the cap I bought and a cardboard cutout of my best guess of a cap size.

Comments? Thanks.

[ellagee]

Let me try to help. Both thumbnails provided by Keiser31 are pictures of my 1931 President State Sedan. I have all 3 radiator caps mentioned. The plain flat cap was standard on Presidents for 1931. Since the plain cap was standard for the president, it would be safe to assume a flat, plain cap would be standard for the Dictator since this is a lower end model. The size (diameter) for the Dictator may be smaller. The "bird" cap is in fact an accessory for 1932 but, as has been mentioned, many 1931 President ar fitted with this cap. As for the "lady" cap, this is an original accessory for the President for 1931. This is accesory AC86, called " La Gioconda" which means "Mona Lisa" in Italian. It was only available for 1 year since Cadillac objected to it looking so familiar to there hood ornamentof the era.

The base of the "bird" and the "La Gioconda" are exaclty the same as the plain cap.

Just about every factory photo or advertising shot of the 31 Presidents that I've seen shows the flat plain cap.

Hope this all helps.

[Guest 1931Dictator]

Thanks Studegard. I now feel pretty comfortable what shape of cap I need and that it is a different diameter. Now all I need to do is find one :-). However, at least I have an idea of what I am looking for. Thanks to all that contributed.