Gunslinger

My conclusion was that two of the four 500s on my Avanti had slightly different offsets and came from different construction lots. Avanti Motors would simply order 15"x6" Magnum 500s which were duly shipped to them and could have come from various production lots. Since they fit the stock Bendix brakes there was no issues to be concerned about or even know about. If I remember correctly...the tech who installed the Turner kit on my car said it was about a 3/8" difference in offset...enough to cause the scraping between the caliper and the rim. I had two solutions...they could grind the high spot on the calipers or...what I did do...keep the offending rims on the rear of the car and two that didn't scrape on the front. At the time it was about forty years past any warranty concern. More modern sport rims are likely far more able to fit without issue as they would have been designed with clearances for more modern calipers. But one never knows until a test fit is done.

Quick ratio steering.

I would think that with the stock dual belt setup...unless you have belts with perfectly matched lengths...that the shorter one would end up taking most of the load even if the difference was minor...and lead to earlier failure of that belt. That doesn't even address the the longer belt would be more prone to slippage.

I think the go-to guy for that would be Dan Booth at Nostalgic Motors.

Summit Racing sells a new manufacture Quadrajet that should drop on with little adapting. Q-jet Edelbrock carbs are excellent as well but I would suggest pairing one with one of their Performer RPM intake manifolds. These are specifically designed for their square-bore carbs and will enhance torque and hp over using an adapter and save overall height.

The number I’ve seen most often is 117…though other numbers has been bandied about.

Merry Christmas…Happy Hannukah…Happy Festivus or whatever you follow! While some are cold I’m enjoying Hawaii where it’s beautiful out!

It’s a ‘63 that appears to have been converted to square headlights…unless it’s a transition car before the official change at R4892. It’s also got R2 emblems on the front side panels…maybe the blower was removed and a/c added? It would be interesting to see the production sheet for it.

The best I can remember it was from a Chevrolet but it’s twenty years so I’m fuzzy on that.

Jon Myer at Myer’s Studebaker may have some good used trim. Dan Booth at Nostalgic Motors is another potential source.

I think the Custom Auto Sound is much more compact than the original radio. If so you should have room for a bigger front speaker. You could also eliminate the front speaker and mount round speakers in the doors…that’s what I did on the ‘70 I owned.

Get one from Myer’s Studebaker, Nostalgic Motors or Studebaker International…at least you’ll know they’re correct. Also…you may well need to bleed the brakes after opening the system up. The best thing to do is convert it to a mechanical brake switch.

It's been many years since I owned a '63 but I know that while the dash is out makes it the right time to do anything with the radio. I don't remember what size the front speaker is...whether it's a 5"x7" or a 4"x10" but either should be easily sourced. The bigger issue is making sure the speaker is of the proper impedance or the sound will be bad. With an original radio which is quite large compared to modern units the selection of speakers isn't good as a speaker with a larger magnet will not work as it won't fit against the top of the radio. There may be some decent speakers available today but you need to check the impedance and vertical dimensions for clearance.

Something else...does your car still have the RFI shielding over the distributor and spark plug wires? If not that could be the source of the noise. Fiberglass has no natural RFI properties and shielding is needed. Spark plug wires could be the cause as spark plugs could be as well if not shielded or resistance rated.

Is the static you hear a constant tone or does it go up and down with engine rpm's? If it stays constant it's ignition noise. If it increases and decreases with rpm's it alternator whine. A condenser in the proper place may take care of it...just need to know where. You can also mount a noise filter in the power lead to the radio. Other possibilities...the antenna itself may have lost ground...make sure it's properly grounded. There's usually a wire from the antenna to a bolt under trunk carpet that's grounded. Also the radio may need the antenna "trimmed"...a lost art few today are aware of. To trim the antenna...remove the right knob on the radio and you'll see a screw above the shaft. Tune the radio to a station...fairly strong...around 1400. Then using a small screwdriver turn the screw until the radio gives best reception. Once you get best reception and sound the antenna is trimmed. You can also spray some electronics cleaner inside the radio...I've seen that clear up noise problems before. If this fixes things you're good to go without buying a new radio. If you feel it necessary to replace the radio...look at Custom Auto Sound. They should have something that's drop-in for the car.