South Ga.
 
Drivers Club

TECH TIP #1- Chrome 

According to the personal experience of both Edward Burris and Jon Myer, the best place to get a bumper rechromed is at Verne’s Chrome Plating, 1559 El Segundo Blvd., Gardena, CA 323-754-4126 or fax 323-754-3873.  Jon says they do not grind the old coating off but use reversed electrical current to remove the layers back to the old copper.  If you call you will talk to either Ron Verne or Bob Barnes.  It is a partnership.  Their advertising states, “Powder coating, bumpers, polishing and plating.”   They asked how much it cost to ship and said they would add that amount to the bill.  Edward states the price on his bumper was $250 plus shipping (he included a copy of the UPS shipping document with his check).  Edward says his Avanti bumper (just completed) looks better than the factory job.   I can attest to Edward and Jon’s claims as this same shop rechromed some Mustang bumpers for me 22 years ago that came out beautifully – and they are still in the same location!

There is also good chrome plating done here in the Peach State, Jerry Forrester’s Chrome, 3990 Bankhead Hwy., Douglasville, Ga 30134, 770-949-8942 M-F, forr62@bellsouth.net .
 

TECH TIP #2- Serial numbers 

Have you ever been troubled by trying to read serial numbers on part on hard-to-get-at places?  Try picking up a small container of Playskools brand Play Doh.  This is a non-toxic modeling compound for children.  Simply remove this material from its container, knead it with your fingers a bit, and press it against the number you would like to read.  As a result, the numbers will be molded into the patty in reverse, of course.  If reading this is a problem, just hold the putty up to an inspection mirror.  Thanks to Chuck Collins, Grand Canyon Chapter, Arizona

HEY, STUD-

From Gordon Sheldon
From Palmetto Chapter, SC 

We bought our 1958 Commander Hardtop in Arizona and drove it back to South Carolina, unaware that the left front wheel was only supported by four wheel studs instead of five. I found out about it when I went to work on the brakes. 

You know that the wheel studs on the left side of Studebakers are left hand thread. It seems that someone tried to remove the wheel nuts by turning them left and stripped the threads on one of them when installing new tires prior to our trip.  

So that it does not happen again, I changed the wheel studs on the left side drums by installing right hand thread studs having a Chrysler part #641-1155 that I purchased from NAPA. They cost $1.49 each. It was fairly easy to remove and replace the studs using a 12-ton hydraulic press.  You can always sell the old left hand studs to a purist.

The Squeaky.... Bearing? 

From Doug Crall 
via the Avanti Owners magazine 

If it sounds like a throw-out bearing is bad behind a clutch, it may not be the case.  Not always is the bearing bad, many times in the early stages it is just dry and in need of grease.  I have had and known others to have great luck by removing the bearings and boiling it in fresh grease. 

This is done by taking a small pot, putting in a fistful or two of grease and placing it on the stove top.  Once the grease has become semi-liquid, gently drop the bearing into the hot grease and let it soak for a in the liquid grease for a few minutes. Turn off the range and remove the pot.  

Once cool, remove the bearing, wipe clean any excess grease and reinstall.  Sounds crude, but the guy who showed me this trick, as an old time Studebaker mechanic, claims he does this to all, old and new, throw-out bearings. I can't remember ever buying a bearing since.  One more thing, don't tell your wife who told you to do this!

Sealed with a... 

From Keven Isgar
Turning Wheels, March 1984 

  I assumed that he had somehow not installed the seal correctly and so shortly after buying the car I also put a new seal in.  When I started it still leaked as much as before.  I had followed the shop manual instructions very carefully and was sure I had made no mistakes, so I was very puzzled.  I knew of a man who had been a mechanic in a Studebaker dealership until Studebaker quit making cars so I called him and described the problem.  He also had the same problem on a couple of V8's and told me how to fix it. 

  I bought a small can of  "white lead" at a plumbing supply shop.  I pulled the crankshaft pulley off and put a little of the white lead in the keyway on the crankshaft and the crankshaft pulley and bolted it back together.  This totally stopped the leak.  Another common leak area is from the manual transmission where the shift shafts go through the case.  Replacing the seals there will stop leaks those leaks.