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Hudson engine colors?


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I've just cracked open my present from Santa and started on the Hornet. The instructions show pictures but not a color call-out for the engine block. There it appears to be a cream color or possibly light yellow. A quick web search shows them to be nearly light gold. What is everyone using for a factory-correct appearance?

1953Hudson-Hornet.jpg

used-1953-hudson-hollywood-hornet-145-4200112-14-640.jpg

used-1953-hudson-hollywood-hornet-145-4200112-15-640.jpg

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I agree with Dave - the first two photos, while great for the details, appear to off in white balance or something - see how the red on them looks, well, not really red? It looks kind of purplish - which I would assume is from the pictures being exposed adjusting for light other than daylight.

In Dave's photo the red is red and you can see the color of the block - which appears to be pretty much gold. I haven't built mine yet, but I would go with MM gold?

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Here's the restored 308cid Twin H-Power 7X Hudson engine from the Hostetler Hudson Museum in Shipshewanna IN, pics taken over Labor Day Weekend 2011:

7Xhudsonengine1.jpg

Those engines are metallic gold (I used Humbrol M16 Gold on mine, but Testors #1144 works just as well). I used Tamiya Italian red for the aircleaners, muted silver for carburetors, semi gloss black for pulleys (I know, they probablly were gold), Testors "Rubber" for the fanbelt (will use that for radiator hoses as well)..

One problem with trying to judge engine colors from an old unrestored car is that most paints discolor badly over time from heat, oil leaks and just general grime. It was neat to be able to see this engine, helped me a lot, and it is one of the major references for the Moebius kits.

Art

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Excellant pictures. But I have looked at pictures from many others and I question the fuel lines. Its hard to tell this many years later just what is correct. Like your photos and the photos I was able to find in Hemmings, this is how I ran my fuel lines. In the photos of Marshall Teagues car at Dayton show a differant routing. Than the photo from the Hostetler Musem shows a third fuel line layout. Makes you wonder which is which, or are all three correct. This is a real nitpick, but still you wonder. Do any of you know why the fuel line would go from the pump to something on the bottom of the intake manafold? I can't recall ever seeing anything like that before. Could it been some kind of chock for the engine with two carbs?

Edited by espo
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Excellant pictures. But I have looked at pictures from many others and I question the fuel lines. Its hard to tell this many years later just what is correct. Like your photos and the photos I was able to find in Hemmings, this is how I ran my fuel lines. In the photos of Marshall Teagues car at Dayton show a differant routing. Than the photo from the Hostetler Musem shows a third fuel line layout. Makes you wonder which is which, or are all three correct. This is a real nitpick, but still you wonder. Do any of you know why the fuel line would go from the pump to something on the bottom of the intake manafold? I can't recall ever seeing anything like that before. Could it been some kind of chock for the engine with two carbs?

That's a vacuum line, not a fuel line. I believe the chamber it goes to not only served to aid in fuel delivery from gas tank to fuel pump, but also Hudson (just as with almost every car built up to the mid-1950's) used a vacuum motor to operate the windshield wipers. This was in the day when nearly all American cars used a 6-volt electrical system with a DC generator, meaning not all that much power in the electrical system to operate much more than starter, ignition, along with headlights, taillights, heater/defroster fan, dash lights and radio.

It wasn't uncommon to actually run down the battery with extended driving at night in cold, rainy weather back in those days. While a few makes started using 12V systems in the early 1930's (mostly large multi-cylinder cars (V12's and V16's) it wasn't until 1955 that the industry changed, almost wholesale in one model year to 12V electrical systems.

Art

Art

Edited by Art Anderson
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