VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 Restoration project on-line

For over a year the Wichita newspaper has been running my 38 coupe restoration project on their website. They don't go into a lot of detail & the captions don't always "exactly" match the pics but all in all it's been a good time. I've been doing a "rolling restoration" because I don't have the money for a frame-off restoration. Because of some upcoming household expenses it'll probably be a year or more before I'm able to do the final phase which is basically replacing all of the window rubbers and final paint. The newspaper can't wait that long for another update so they've posted the final update on my project. I don't know how long they'll leave it before moving on to their next project, a 49 Ford shoebox restoration so if you'd like to check out my project CLICK HERE.

Tiny, I enjoyed the pictures and narrative. How did you first locate the car?

Great post Tiny!!!! Thanks a bunch. You have definately named her right, that's for sure. You have yourself one top notch body guy. He has done it right. Now that '38 was really barn fresh. Keep us updated when ya get back to it.

Thanks again.

It's a pretty long story. Basically a teenage friend of mine got it from a family friend (who bought it new, one of the first cars sold by the "new" Chevy dealer in 38) when he was 14. My friend couldn't drive it until he turned 18. When he first drove up in it in '66 (he just turned 18) the bunch of us guys just about died of envy. He didn't drive it much and in the early 80s a brake line popped & he hit the back of a flatbed truck thus creating the crease in the right fender (missed the grill). He nursed her back to the farm using the parking brake, rolled her in the garage, and there she sat until my story started. It took me almost 40 years to talk him out of it. The only reason he let me buy it is because I promised I wouldn't cut her heart out & turn her into a hotrod. I've taken a TON of pictures and done a lot of research on the history of the dealer & have the whole story in a PowerPoint show. I also printed it out & display it in a binder during shows. It's quite lengthy & is a real kick when an old timer reads it & spends time telling me his stories of "back in the day" when he had a car just like it. If it was any more fun it'd be illegal.

Excellent coverage Tiny!
I'll be saving lots of your photos as your car is identical to mine (except for the few Pontiac trim items on mine). I may have to bug you for some additional photos as I find time to reassemble over the winter.

What is the original color? Mine is a VERY dark blue that almost looks black and of course being a Canadian Pontiac, the codes don't make sense to either the US Pontiac or Chevrolet codes.

Would you be able to start a thread sometime on your oil filtration?

I have a spare new black Chev 38 floor mat I think.

DAMN SWEET!!! Way to go Tiny....

I got to thinking for just a few minutes. But somehow my jello for brains (that doesn't include ANY mechanical skill or aptitude) came back to reality. I'll just keep looking for a nice car or two here and there along the way and hope the guy did as great of a job as you're doing.

Bill.

Looking good Tiny! I think that throttle knob is the best part of the car!

The oil filter was pretty simple. I bought a remote mount which I hung on the firewall, as level as I could get it, then plumbed it as you would a behive filter.

A spare floormat you say????? And how proud of it are ye??? :)

BTW feel free to use any/all of the pics that you need for reference if they'll help you out.

Yep, now let's see.....where did I get that knob/cable........hmmm, now where oh where......oh yes, it was YOU! Thanks for selling that to me Tim, you were a lifesaver!

Saw a ratty original mat in one of your photos so wasn't sure if you had found yourself a newer one yet...

Do you have any other photos of the adapter you made for the oil regulator? I'd like to run a full flow during breakin. Photos would save me making a template for the machinist. You could PM me whenever it's convenient. Thanks.

I changed that set-up. With the oilgoing through the filter before before going to the squirters I was afraid the pressure was being cut enough that the rods weren't getting enough oil so a did away with that & just plumbed it as a bypass filter. The pic & text on the site are old info.

As for the mat, my original is indeed ratty. It was used as a toilet by many woodland creatures over the years & the crappy rubber they had then didn't age well. I couldn't find a replacement so I made one using the old one as a pattern. It doesn't have the original look but it works well. A fellow on eBay has been selling repops but he want's far too much money for them IMHO. He sold some for a lot of money for a while but I've noticed lately the buyers willing to pay through the nose are thinning out. Since Sweetie will never be a high point car, not having a "correct" mat doesn't bother me. Yes, I'd like to have one but not bad enough to pay an outlandish price for one.

Tiny, I enjoyed your show! Thanks a lot for saving this fine specimen from the hot rodders. Beamer

Tiny, Great car & coverage of your efforts.

I want to wish you they best of luck in bringing her back to life and pat you on the back for doing so. Great looking car, I might add.

I enjoyed the way the news-paper is covering your efforts. How long will they be covering the restoration, or is it over since it is washed, cleaned and running ?

And if you don't mind I would like to submit you & your cars journey to the VCCA PR guys, of which I am one.

Best of luck on your project and thanks for sharing your, and her story.

Michael41
VCCA Marketing Team Member

Tiny, all I can say is WOW. :)

By all means, share it with them. Send me your address & I'll burn a copy of my project to CD & send it to you. My PowerPoint has much more history & detail than they put on line. My project has been on line for almost two years now. They've updated periodically. I'm not sure how long this last update will be there before they start the next project. It might be a month or as little as a week.

Tim
nice job I've studied every picture. Did you replace the running board mats as a rubber mat on the original backing plate or use a new mat and backing plate. I'm hjoping to find a supplier of rubber mats that fit over the corrigations on the original backing plate.

Larry

There was a long time when nobody was making them at all. Chev's of the 40s got a few in but all they had were with the backing plate. Rather than wait to see if any would be produced without the plate I went ahead and bought a pair of those. I still have my backing plates just in case.

does anybody know where i can get the plastic for a town and country horn switch label? i also need the brown clock knob for a 39. thanks BUTCH

BUTCH :
THERE IS A PLASTIC T/C HORN PLATE ON E-BAY THAT YOU MIGHT WANT TO TAKE A LOOK AT. IT'S UNDER 1939 CHEVY ITEM NO # 330188007410. IT HAS TWO DAYS LEFT TO BID ON AND THE PRICE IS NOW AT $ 30.00. GOOD LUCK.