1953 Studebaker Starliner Pro Touring

[mrmike]

This my newest project, the '53 Studebaker.  For what I have in mind, this may take me a while.  This kit was given to me be Classic Plastic Model Club member Barry Fadden and it is minus the decals and the kit tires, which are of no concern to me as I am using two 19" Pegasus Hellas and two 23" Pegasus Hollis for wheels and tires.  The chassis needs to be tubbed and the kit engine will be replaced with a Ford Cobra 289 and 4-speed trans from the AMT '67 Shelby.  The front suspension will be modified as well.  I am undecided at this point for interior and body colors.  The body might be a metallic blue or metallic green.  The body will be shaved of all scripts and the interior might have bucket seats from the Revell '69 Nova COPO.  

Edited September 5, 2017 by mrmike

[randyc]

NICE!  Did you ever see the one Doug Whyte (?) did in the "other" magazine a long time ago?  It was pretty incredible and inspiring.  I love your wheel choice.  This is one of those kits I would love to build and have started a long time ago, but never finished.  And bought another to do "right".  But can't ever decide where/what "right" is.  Good luck completing yours.  Good start.

[Bernard Kron]

Glad to see you staying close to the original body layout. IMHO this is such a well integrated and pure design that most radical customizing of it is doomed to failure. The best Loewy Studes are those that "sell" its strong suits which are it's incredibly original and modern lines and it's superbly graceful flow and proportions. Your mockup does this very well. When I did mine a few years back I surprised myself by using many of the AMT customizing parts. Unlike most AMT 3-in-1 kits the customizing parts on this one don't fight the design but complement and simplify it. I landed up using the rear clip and lower half of the custom front end - the rolled pan and lower grills. That and a completed shave and deck job did the trick. I even landed up using the stock wheel covers. Your choice of rolling stock complements the body nicely and sets the tone for a sweet resto-mod look. Can't wait to see where you take it...

[John Goschke]

Looks promising. Keep it going!

[mrmike]

Thank you Randy, Bernard, and John!  Sometimes, I want to just insert the wheels and tires and call the whole thing done just because of the wheels and tires!   I really like the look with the wheels!  This is my first pro-touring build, so I will be taking my time with it.  It is for the 2018 CPMC Exhibition.

[Bernard Kron]

...  Sometimes, I want to just insert the wheels and tires and call the whole thing done just because of the wheels and tires!   ...

I know exactly what you mean. Wheels & tires are such a critical component. They control the era, style and stance of the project, and  more than once, when they have looked just right to me I felt as if doing all the rest was "just details". A terrible temptation!

[Slotto]

Killer! I'll be watching this one

[mrmike]

I know exactly what you mean. Wheels & tires are such a critical component. They control the era, style and stance of the project, and  more than once, when they have looked just right to me I felt as if doing all the rest was "just details". A terrible temptation!

 

I agree!  The Hellas and Holli's look sooo nice!  But, those alone won't get me anywhere.  I've gotta finish the kit!

Thanks Steve!

[mrmike]

A small update.  I cut out the inside of the wheel wells and the more I thought about it, the more work necessary to get the new wheel wells in and flush fitting.  I went and cut off the rest of the wheel wells and sanded the edges smooth.  I'll make new wheel wells to cover the open gap.

[Johnt671]

This looks like an interesting build.

[mrmike]

I shortened the ends of the rear axle and the wheels and tires fit nicely, but I'm wondering if I should keep this rear axle or look for something a little more modern and perhaps lower the rear a little more.

[espo]

The differential change if any would depend on what you have in your parts stash. A thought if you wish to lower the ride height. The rear tire in your picture looks as though it might be ever so much to the rear of the opening. If you lower the suspension the easiest way would be blocks or spacers between the leaf springs and the differential. The differential could be moved forward just little when you remount it to the springs. Also depending just how low you want to go you may want to think about a C notch in the frame above the differential.  I like how you Tabbed the rear wheel wells.

[Ace-Garageguy]

... but I'm wondering if I should keep this rear axle or look for something a little more modern and perhaps lower the rear a little more.

The stock V8 '53 Stude had a Dana 44 rear end, if I remember correctly, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it under a street-driven car that sees occasional drag-strip use. It's generally considered to be adequate for up to about 500HP in a fairly light car like the ol' Stude...so long as you don't make a habit of dumping the clutch with wide, sticky tires, at redline. 

Adding traction bars would avoid spring wind-up at launch (which can lead to component failure), and a long Panhard bar would thigten up cornering a little. Otherwise, it's just fine.

[mrmike]

The differential change if any would depend on what you have in your parts stash. A thought if you wish to lower the ride height. The rear tire in your picture looks as though it might be ever so much to the rear of the opening. If you lower the suspension the easiest way would be blocks or spacers between the leaf springs and the differential. The differential could be moved forward just little when you remount it to the springs. Also depending just how low you want to go you may want to think about a C notch in the frame above the differential.  I like how you Tabbed the rear wheel wells.

I had noticed that the rear tires were not centered in the wheel openings.  But, I can fix that depending if I want to change the rear axle.

The stock V8 '53 Stude had a Dana 44 rear end, if I remember correctly, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it under a street-driven car that sees occasional drag-strip use. It's generally considered to be adequate for up to about 500HP in a fairly light car like the ol' Stude...so long as you don't make a habit of dumping the clutch with wide, sticky tires, at redline. 

Adding traction bars would avoid spring wind-up at launch (which can lead to component failure), and a long Panhard bar would thigten up cornering a little. Otherwise, it's just fine.

I might change the leaf springs to a four link set up or a two link with a Panhard bar.  I'll have to rummage through the parts box!

[Modlbldr]

I'm liking the idea and the looks of this one. I have one that I started ages ago that I have been thinking about lately.

Does this kit come with the 5 spoke wheels? If so, are you interested in trading them off?

Later-

[Ace-Garageguy]

I might change the leaf springs to a four link set up or a two link with a Panhard bar.  I'll have to rummage through the parts box!

Something else to consider...on real-world surfaces, 4-link with coil springs doesn't really have much advantage over well set-up and tuned leaf springs with old-school traction bars and a Panhard bar (or better yet, a Watts link). Less-than-perfect multi-link rear suspension designs can induce odd and undesirable rear-steer characteristics. And though coil-overs are generally lighter than leaf springs, the additional unsprung weight of the leaves creates only a slight disadvantage in ride quality.

Below is the general modern idea of traction bars for a leaf-sprung rear end (though there would be one on each side). The front pivot is ideally close to a line running through the centerline of the front spring eyes, to minimize binding. This type of bar removes the need for the springs to locate the axle fore-and aft, and eliminates the tendency of leaf springs to "wrap" or "wind up" under hard acceleration and braking. The adjustable upper link can be used to help fine-tune pinion angle for different ride-heights, and to preload the springs sometimes.

Add a Panhard bar or Watts link to control side motion of the car relative to the axle, and you're there.

NOTE: The shackle shown at the front of the lower link isn't necessarily wanted, as it tends to defeat the whole purpose of the bar assembly as far as preventing axle "wind-up" goes.

Below is the real old-school version of traction bars (NOT "slapper bars", a completely different animal). The 4-bolt flange attaches to the U-bolts at the spring perch on the axle, and the bracket at the other end attaches the front of the bar close to the front spring eye centerline. These can also be made to handle surprisingly well, for cheap. Again, A Panhard bar or Watts link is mandatory to make it work best, but you get to keep the stock springs without a lot of fab work to mount coil-overs or multiple (and critical) brackets for links.

Below, same basic idea.

Not trying to talk you out of a 4-link, but you can make leaf springs handle razor-sharp for a lot less money on a real car, and a lot easier on a model.   

IMAGES TAKEN FROM OPEN INTERNET SOURCES UNDER "FAIR USE" DEFINITION IN COPYRIGHT LAW

Edited September 6, 2017 by Ace-Garageguy

[mrmike]

I'm liking the idea and the looks of this one. I have one that I started ages ago that I have been thinking about lately.

Does this kit come with the 5 spoke wheels? If so, are you interested in trading them off?

Later-

My kit didn't come with the five spoke wheels you had mentioned, but my friend who gave me the kit said that they are in that particular kit.  

Bill, thank you for the explanation and the pictures on the leaf sprung rear end and traction bars.  This gives me a little more food for thought as I plan out this build.

[mrmike]

There have been some changes in the past month.  A Classic Plastic Model Club member gave me a sprue of parts from the Revell '41 Willy's after we had been discussing the Studebaker.  I got a sprue with the chassis, front and rear suspensions, and steering components.  Then as I was sizing the chassis, I noticed the two floor humps that would interfere with the chassis.  My Dremel was more than happy to remove them.I'm going to have to extend the chassis to fit the the wheelbase and the body.  I decided where to cut the chassis so it can be extended and I will have to build a floor and trunk.

More to come...

[mrmike]

I sat down this afternoon and started with the '53 Studebaker again.  I assembled the kit motor which I'll try to hot rod with a different carb, air cleaner and headers.  I created a new frame using parts of the frame from a '41 Willys hot rod and some Evergreen styrene.  A mockup with the engine and the interior on the new frame.  I cut out part of the bottom of the interior and will fill those holes with sheet styrene to create a flat bottom.

More Studebaker to come...

[OldNYJim]

Awesome!!  This looks great already - can’t wait to see more!

[mrmike]

Thanks Jim!  There will be more from this slow moving WIP.  Stay tuned!

[mrm]

I like it.

Boyd Coddington built something similar way back. It was silver and black if IRC. I think if you get a Foose Cadillac, it will provide you with the perfect frame/suspension option. 

[espo]

Glad to see you're back in the Studebaker. You mentioned Hot Rodding the Studebaker engine. Consider the Paxton blower set up from the Avanti kit. that kit has two complete setups for either single or duel Paxton blowers.   

[mrmike]

Thanks Michael and David for the suggestions!  I never thought about using a Paxton supercharger.  Good idea!  The Foose Cadillac idea is out since I don't have the inclination of getting another kit just to rob from it.  I do have a '41 Willys custom chassis that was given to me for this build, so I'll be sticking with that.

[OldNYJim]

On 11/9/2019 at 10:10 PM, mrm said:

I like it.

Boyd Coddington built something similar way back. It was silver and black if IRC. I think if you get a Foose Cadillac, it will provide you with the perfect frame/suspension option. 

This one, maybe?  

https://boydcoddingtonsgarage.com/boyd-coddington-53-studebaker/

I’d drive it!  I like (most of) Boyd’s stuff - the stance is always nice and I like the smoothing-of-lines that he liked to do