1938 Studebaker front end repair.

[Laughing Coyote]

Looks great.  Job well done.  Now the pups get to ride in style again. 

[Fossil]

Looking good and on the road again. Congratulations!

 

[oldcarfudd]

I've been watching this saga with awe and respect, both for what you did and for the help and encouragement many others gave so you could do it.  Bravo to all!  I hope to see your car some day.

[Frank DuVal]

So glad I could put my 2¢ in this project! And it even helped!👍

 

Looks so good. 😃😃😃

 

I am envious!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SC38dls]

Frank you along with a lot of others can take credit for this outcome! Without all of you I would have been in deep trouble. So you all can claim the good parts and I’ll take the parts that could have been done better. That’s perfectly ok by me. I’m just glad it’s back on the road. Gracie the mutt is also very happy she has her ride back. 
dave s 

[Harold]

Glad you got it together.  Well done and looks great!   

[mike6024]

You added some lights atop the fenders? If you mentioned that before I missed it.

[wayne sheldon]

Mike, If I may, and if I recall correctly, I believe somewhere early in this long and wonderful thread, Dave said that a previous owner had installed some modern lights down lower on the fenders to use as turn signals. Since he had to do so much repair work anyway, he had some era Studebaker optional fender lamps that mounted higher on the fenders. He needed to weld up the added holes from the modern lamps, and place and rewire for the now more correct lamps. At least that is what I remember reading.

[58L-Y8]

Wonderful work!  Kudos for persevering, not giving up on that good old Studebaker!  Thanks for taking us along on this journey, demonstrating that it is possible for people to take up a task they've never done before and carrying it to a successful conclusion.  Now, drive and enjoy it daily!

[SC38dls]

Mike, Wayne hit the nail on the head. I never really liked the directional signal lights on the car. I believe they were added in the 50’s before it was put away. The Art Deco lights on top the fenders were one of the options (I’ve been told heater and radio were the only others offered) on the State Commander. The SC was the midrange car, Commander was base model,  the SC was the same as the President but a shorter front clip and a six instead of the eight cylinder engine. Probably more than you ever wanted to know about a Studebaker but it’s my pride and joy. I love driving it as a daily driver. 
dave s 

Edited December 16, 2021 by SC38dls (see edit history)

[TAKerry]

Dave, I think I have at least 2 responses to this thread so I hope to qualify for the lunch and cold beverage. I am a tea toatler so that will save you a dollar, LOL. Time to make a trip a couple hours north, I have a place for the best crab cakes. I will even wear my favorite cap that I bought in South Bend.

2021-12-16_09-46-19 by Kerry Grubb, on Flickr

[EmTee]

Wow - what a transformation!  It's all the more satisfying when you can say that you did all of the work yourself and managed to save the original fenders.  I also think the new turn signals are a big improvement.  Now get back to enjoying your car! 

[M1842]

Outstanding work!!  Gives a feller confidence he can tackle something smaller than that!

 

Mark

[SC38dls]

Kerry, you definitely deserve that lunch and cold beverage (soda, ice tea or any other beverage of your choice) crab is good so let’s do it!  I’ve taken the car on a few couple hundred mile trips so a few hours north is no problem. I’m always up to find a new restaurant that has good food especially fish!  The hat is totally optional!  
dave s 

[Digger914]

Looks Great.

 

Not perfect, maybe better than perfect as perfect on an 80 year old car wouldn't look right unless the rest of the car was perfect too. 

 

Have been following this thread from the beginning and now that the work is done I read it again from end to end. Can't think of a more informative or better DIY example for the novice of how to fix busted nose after a bumper to bumper fight. 

 

 

 

 

[SC38dls]

Digger914. I agree completely that this is a great DYI thread. Also that the fix isn’t perfect but it does seem amazing I could do it at all. I never did body work before but with the help of a big group of kind helpful forum members we pulled it off. I hope it inspires others to try it. I know it is better than waiting for a shop to fix it both in self satisfaction and time. The savings was pretty good too and I learned a lot. 
dave s 

[edinmass]

 

Dave, it you didn't fix it, I would be on SSI by the time it was finished! 👍

[pkhammer]

SC38dls, thanks for the mention but the comments I contributed had very little value as far as advice or direction goes. Nice job on the Studebaker repair though, I enjoyed keeping up with this thread. If you're ever in the Shenandoah Valley of Va. let me know, lunch will be on me. 👍

[SC38dls]

Pkhammer, no matter if it was expert advice, suggestions, instructions, comments or just moral support it was appreciated and I would have been lost without each and everyone of you. So lunch will be on me. I actually do get up to VA occasionally. My daughter has lived in Middleburg for years and has finally bought a house in Charlottesville. She is already planning rehab projects for me. So depending on how busy she keeps me going I’ll try to get in touch. 
dave s 

[pkhammer]

  There is a fantastic restaurant at Charlottesville (just down the road from Monticello), Michie Tavern. Great place to visit, especially if you like fried chicken served in a 18th century tavern. Charlottesville is just over the mountain from us. Hint, hint, hint......

  If you've never driven the Studebaker on the Blue Ridge Parkway I highly recommend it. Get on at Cherokee, NC and it just happens to end near Charlottesville.

[Rivguy]

Thanks for posting this detailed thread, I went back and re read it. I've learned a lot and enjoyed following your progress. You've got ten years on me, but I know that I still try to do as much as I can, even though the aches and pains are the price. 

 

On the subject of nitpickers. I don't know why some people just enjoy looking for defects and pointing them out, many have probably never done any work on a car themselves. I had many motorcycles that I painted over the years at home with spray cans. After years of experience I could lay down a finish that looked like a pro did it. Most guys would check out my bike and give me a thumbs up,  if they asked who painted it, I'd tell them that I did it. A few would then start picking out what they thought were minor flaws. So I did an experiment, next time someone asked who had painted it, I'd tell them that I had a buddy in Fresno with a bodyshop who did it as a favor. Then they would tell me how lucky I was to have a friend in the business! 

 

Your car looks great, and it's back on the road, and you have the satisfaction of knowing that YOU did it! Happy Holidays

[SC38dls]

Rivguy, thanks. I’m happy with it and that’s what matters. Nitpickers never bother me, I just take what they are saying as constructive criticism. Sometimes it points out something I may have totally missed. There were so many good helpful suggestions, ideas and instructions on how to do something it far out weights the negative, so all are really helpful. I enjoyed learning and doing this project and as Ed says it would take a lot longer in a pro shop. 

 

dave s 

 

 

[95Cardinal]

Congratulations on your success, Dave!

You can be proud of fighting your way through all the obstacles and challenges and getting your Studebaker back on the road -WELL DONE!

[wayne sheldon]

5 hours ago, Rivguy said:

On the subject of nitpickers. I don't know why some people just enjoy looking for defects and pointing them out, many have probably never done any work on a car themselves. I had many motorcycles that I painted over the years at home with spray cans. After years of experience I could lay down a finish that looked like a pro did it. Most guys would check out my bike and give me a thumbs up,  if they asked who painted it, I'd tell them that I did it. A few would then start picking out what they thought were minor flaws. So I did an experiment, next time someone asked who had painted it, I'd tell them that I had a buddy in Fresno with a bodyshop who did it as a favor. Then they would tell me how lucky I was to have a friend in the business! 

 

I love that "experiment" you did! People are so funny (Strange? Silly? Often stupid is really the best word for them!).

Just to be clear. Sometimes, and especially under certain circumstances? I can "nitpick" with the best (worst?) of them! Especially with brass era model T Fords, and usually when some fool claims his "for sale" treasure is the finest and most authentic car to be found anywhere, when in fact it is not very correct at all. I have been known a few times for lengthy diatribes on every detail that shows the car to be a fake.

 

And, in truth, I wish I could always do the kind of work I would like to do. But somehow, reality often gets in the way. I sometimes say I learned a lot from my dad! A lot of it from his bad example. He always wanted to do everything PERFECT! In reality, most of what he wanted to do in life, he never did. Because PERFECT wasn't in the cards.

I like to see other people, out and about with their cars and enjoying them! And if the car isn't perfect? So what. Preserving it in a decent form and enjoying it are far more important that having something that is perfect.

I have said many times over the years and to a lot of different people, "I would rather have the worst car on a club tour than have the best car hiding in a garage!"

 

Some people simply have to make themselves feel superior by pointing out other people's minor flaws (real or imagined!). Me? I would rather trip myself on my own shoelaces and land in a mud puddle to get a laugh!

 

What Dave S did here, to me, is incredibly WONDERFUL!

Anybody, no matter how good they are, no matter how careful they are? ANYBODY can have an accident. What Dave S did here is make the "Silk purse out of a sow's ear"!

Not just anybody can do that.

[SC38dls]

Wayne, I agree with your comments and relate to many of them. I especially thank you for the praise but I can’t take all the credit in any way shape or form. I had the best help any old car guy could possibly hope for, the over 50 AACA forum members that taught me how to do the work. It may not be a professional job but it has been a lot of fun learning how to do the work. Frustrating at times but you all were great in being patient with me and more than supportive the whole time. As I have said nitpicking is just another form of creative criticism, it helped in having me see things I may have missed. Also there really was not a lot of that in my opinion. The best part of all of this besides getting the car back on the road is getting to know so many of you thru this thread. Good people and good times, how can you beat that? 
dave s 

[TAKerry]

My brother was the biggest nitpicker and annoyance in a good way that ever came into my shop. He would look at a piece of furniture I was building, point out the one spot that needed a bit more work then leave. When I was restoring my car the same. I am his 'baby brother' and it was all about him wanting me to stay focused and not take a short cut. His strategy worked as when ever I do anything I strive to do the very best. I often say to myself the only people in the world that will ever notice is myself and Kevin. It was always done in a good way. On the other hand if anyone else were to do the same I would politely tell them where to place the object......