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JLBKY

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Posts posted by JLBKY

  1. Avanti with all drum brakes?

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Does it have a serial number plate on the upper frame below the blower fan on the right side of the engine bay? Even if it does that doesn't mean it wasn't relocated there by someone. Original serial number plates are riveted to the frame...a plate that was relocated could be screwed down or still riveted.

    Non-Avanti frames have what's referred to as "secret" serial number stampings in a couple of locations on the frame, though the stampings are not deep and often gone from rust. I'm not sure where to look but others might know...if you found one of those numbers it would confirm it not being originally an Avanti frame.

    I hope you solve your mystery and get this car back on the road where it belongs.

    Gunslinger..........I own 63 R 1348 and the secret serial number is visable on the crossmember where the top of the shocks mount. It is not a deep/hard stamping, but it is there. I've owned this car 43 years and it has always been stored inside, which has no doubt helped preserve the number, plus it is a Georgia car, thus it was never exposed to salt. The numbers on the left and right frame rails are clearly visable, as if they were stamped yesterday.

    John

  2. 63 Avanti A/C sight glass?

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    If I remember correctly from the '63 I owned many years ago, it's attached to the receiver/dryer and condenser assembly in front of the radiator...not exactly the easiest place to see it from.

    On my '63 it is located INSIDE the car. Passenger side. To he right of the removeable A/C panel. Once you get down in the footwell, and look in that area, you should see it.

  5. wiper arms

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    The '63-'64 Studebaker Avanti's, had/have polished wiper arms. At some point in time the FEDS required the arms to be dull finish. What you have are for Avant ll's.

    If, I'm incorrect , I'm sure someone will correct me.

    John

  6. Starting the "Big Fix"

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    This topic was discussed here or perhaps on the Studebaker Forum in the past, maybe a year ago or so. But, regardless of when, or where the discussion came up with a solution for a replacement for the rag joint.

    I bought it and have NOT installed It is hanging on the wall in my garage. So I can not tell you if it is a perfect fit.

    It is Dorman "Help" 31000. It appears to be what is needed.

    On the back of the package it states the contents to be as follows: 1 Disc 3 3/16 O.D. 1 1/3 I.D.

    4 Pin Bolts 5/16-24

    2 Cap Screws 5/16-24 X 1 1/4

    1 Sleeve Nut

    1 Spring Washer

    4 Hex Nuts 5/16-24

    4 Lock Washers 5/16

    Hope this helps. Let the Forum know if you in fact install it and the pros and cons of the kit and installation

    John

  7. Torque Converter Questions

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I recently removed the torque converter on my 63 Avanti to find that the ring gear has three teeth sheared off and as many as 10 or so in various state of disrepair. My first intent would be to replace it but here is my mystery!

    The Avanti repair manual indicates that the serial number suffix should be "HR". Joh Myer'd discussion on the Studebaker Resource Website states that the 2-letter prefix (he may have meant suffix) should be a combination of "B", "H" or "R". He continues on to state that an "FT" code indicates a standard converter. My converter has an "FX" code?

    Is this converter wrong for and "R" engine. Might it be a standard (low stall) converter?

    If I was to install a standard converter, how much of a performance loss would there be? Any other ill affect with a low-stall converter.

    I ask because Avantipart.biz and Advance Auto has a converter available but I'm kinda sure they are low-stall.

    Appreciate your thoughts

    Why not call Jon Myer and discuss it with him.

  9. High Engine Compression

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Some great ideas and suggestions. Thanks. I do agree that cleaning the water jacket is a must-do. What a mess in there. Since I'll be pulling the frost plugs anyway, now is the time. I was thinking of rodding out the passages and flushing as best I can. Would a product like CLR be helpful?

    It sounds like I might be wise to pull the heads and see if carbon is a issue as well as check the thickness of the head gasket and replace the valve seals. Also it would give me the opportunity to see if hardened valve seats were ever installed,

    I don't think CLR is going to make a big difference. Home made tools to get in the passages and scrape the crud out will get you the best results. When I did mine I bent up a lot of cheap screw drivers, plus I bent up some metal rods to reach in the passages. If you have access to a pressure washer.........I'd use it. Don't ignor the cooling passages in the heads. They get gunked up as well. I found casting wires in my heads

  10. High Engine Compression

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I ran a compression check on a newly acquired 63 R1 and got consistent readings in the 215 to 225 psi, manual indicates that normal is 185. Can you have to much of a good thing? The woman I purchased it from owned it since 1985 and says that the engine has not been apart. Before her is anyone guess. Possibly at some point the heads and block were shaved? The only negative I can come up with is a high buildup of carbon. Any thoughts? The car has about 65,000 miles and ran well for the short test drive.

    Second question: Since I'm pulling the engine but not tearing it down (hopefully), what items should I address/replace. I do plan to remove the oil pan and valve covers to take a look around. The frost plugs are bad so they will be replaced. Any other "must does" that are wise investments with this engine? Timing gear, oil pump? I appreciate your input.

    Cleaning the water passages in the block can not be over emphasized. Dirty job with a big reward if done correctly. Replace the freeze plugs with brass plugs.While the engine is out of the car, pull the timing gear cover and replace the felt seal with a lipped seal. A search on this forum will more than likely get you to the correct information on which seal, and the installation of the seal.Once the oil pan is off, I'd consider replacing the rear main seal. Search the fourm for the correct information on how to do it and properly install the oil pan. Pull the water pump and confirm that the water pump impeller has the correct clearance to the water pump manifold. Again search this forum for the specs. Although I have not done this modification ( it's on my To Do List ), according to Jon Myer, drilling the thermostat by-pass hole to 3/4" is very beneficial.

    Hope this helps

    John

  11. Air Intake On A R1 63

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Drexlog..........I lived in Texas for many years in both Dallas and Houston and know first hand what you are experiencing. When you drive your car, just about the only gauge you look at it the water temperature!

    I've owned my Avanti for 43 years and have solved the over heating problem in my car. What all I did is way too long to post here. If you want to call me, you are welcome to, and I'll tell you what all I've done to fix this problem.

    John

    502 Seven, Seven Three, Zero,592. Eastern Time Zone

    P.S. All of the suggestions given above are excellent and are are part of the solution.

  12. Replacing the side emblems on a '63

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    You will have to remove the 1/4 window assembly, Which includes the stainless frame where the rubber is. I think there are phillips head screws.

    Then you unfold the interior vinyl and reach in behind the backer board cardboard to the mounting nuts of the emblems. There are 3, 5/16" sheet metal pal nuts holding on each one

    I've done this a couple of times just as Brad outlines.

    Now, I guess one could pull the sailpanel upholstery loose from the rear window rubber gasket, and fold the material forward.........but do you really want to do that? That gasket could be very brittle, and now you have to force that material back under it and glue it in place. Pull the window........yes the screws are phillips head and they are seated rather deep in that 1/4 window rubber. And be extremely careful with that 1/4 window rubber gasket, as I believe they are N.L.A..

    Now, once you get the window out, and the trim moved out of the way,to get to the sail panel emblem, you are faced with a "Might as well moment".......and that is the replacement of the gas tank vent hose to goes up into and out of this sail panel. There has been discussion on this forum, I believe,on how to do it. I did it and do not recall that it was all that difficult, but certainly not easy either.

    I did this years ago, but my recollection is that I attached the new hose to the old hose and carefully worked it up into the sail panel and back out .

    Good luck

    John

  13. Ignition switch

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I figure I should throw this in so you don't find out about it the way I did, through experiencing it...

    Make sure you don't allow the ignition switch to start slowly rotating so that the key actually needs to be turned sideways to go in the slot. This would indicated that your switch has worked its way out of the notches on the bezel and is slowly backing out of the mounting hole. If allowed to continue you could end up experiencing what happens when the hot connector on the ignition switch contacts the dash bracket. Sparks will fly! If you are lucky you will not fry your wiring and with a bit of a reach behind the switch you should be able to push the switch towards you and turn it while holding the bezel in front to get it locked back in place.

    For me this happened while I was actually driving the car home after I had just purchased it... I was 20 miles into a 1200 mile drive. Not a whole lot of fun!

    The other issue with these ignition switches is that the "Notches" you referred to, often break off, with the resulting direct short when the switch comes apart and comes in contact with the bar that runs behind the switch, in the lower area, on the back side of the dash.

    There is a replacement bezel available, (I believe it is S. I. ) , but I was not impressed with the look or the quality. I made one from Stainless Steel Round Stock. The Bezel Face Ring,( The portion that you see ) is a few thousandths larger in diameter so as to cover the "ring", in the painted dash overlay, that was created by the old bezel ,on the dash overlay from the original switch. Polished and installed it looks like the original.

    Prior to making my own bezel, I had a piece of foam rubber wedged in behind the switch and the steel bar, so that if the switch came apart, it could not come in contact with the bar.

    If you replace the bezel, or have the switch apart for some reason, it is the opportune time to polish the face of the ignition switch using a Dremel tool and hard cotton buffing wheel and Stainless buffing rouge. It will look brand new.

  14. Ignition switch

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I was taught that the key teeth should face up, as they go into the ignition, lock etc.. The reason being, with the tumblers "on top" of ,say the ignition switch, they were less likeky to collect dust and dirt, brought into the switch by the key.

    John

  15. rear view mirrors attachment.

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Agreed, unless one can hold a Rivnut from the swaged side with a visegrip while drilling, they are a problem to get out and can spin & leave the hole oversized. Since the Rivnuts need a snug fit to be set correctly that can be a killer BUT there are often different OD rivnuts for the same size thread. I make fiberglass motorcycle fairings that use six ¼-20 and four 10-24 aluminum Rivnuts so I've set a lot of them. The smooth shank with knurled head ¼-20 ones I normally use take a size Q drill. If anything goes wrong there is another part number for a grooved shank that takes a 25/64" drill. After I set them in fairings halves I use low-foaming Elmer's Glue-All Max (similar to Gorilla Glue) overnight to help add rigidity & combat spinning. In a blind use like the Avanti mirrors I would only use a grooved shank aluminum one and make darn sure it was the proper grip range for the fiberglass thickness. (it's 28° in the garage right now, so I'd also do it months from now)

    Thanks...............I learned somehing from this.

    Merry Christmas!

    John

  16. rear view mirrors attachment.

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I'm curious why nobody uses Rivnuts as the body anchors. Perhaps it's because they want the mirrors to be able to move around a bit if jostled and bumped by pedestrians in parking lots & garages? I've never cared for how much movement the mirror assy has, always made them feel cheap. The washer shimming makes sense, but the wellnuts are still rubber, right?

    I've used Rivnuts and like them a lot. I used them on the panel between the rear seat back cushion and the gas tank. If, you have ever removed that panel, you know there are a lot of screws securing it in place. My experience in that installation was that the majority of the Rivnuts would "bite" the fiberglass correctly, but every now and then they would not and the Rivnit would spin. Could it be operator error? Without a doubt. Drilling out the spinning Rivnut creates a "SloppyHole" in the glass , making the installation of a same size replacement questionable. Going up in Rivnut size means larger screw as well. On the panel at the gas tank, ( larger size ) no problem. On a mirror ( larger size ) ............problem.

    I've used Rivnuts on metal applications as well with no problems. Like I said, I've used them a lot on my other cars.

  17. rear view mirrors attachment.

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I'll offer this. If you mount them on the door ,make sure you install them so as to not make the vent window inoperable.

    If you mount them on the fender, understand that adjusting them while driving is not ging to happen. Would not be my choice.

    Yes you need well nuts to mount them and as was previously mentioned, put some flat washers in between the bottom of the mirror and the gasket. You'll see what a difference it makes. I'd suggest you use Stainless Steel washers.

    Well nuts are readily available at a good auto parts store. I've even seen them at Home Dumpo and Lowes. Remember that , if you use well nuts, you'll be using a machine screw to secure the mirror . I'd suggest you find the correct chrome or stainless machine screw that looks right and fits in the mirror base and then find a well nut that accepts that size and thread machine screw.Make sure the well nut is a tight fit in the hole you drill.

    John

  20. Water Pump ID

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    Got the water pump shaft wiggle blues so I pulled it and I'll be ordering a 1560395 complete unit. The old one doesn't have the 3 reinforcing flanges and the casting number is four digit- #32??. Anyone know what this is, perhaps a generic NAPA, Champion or Airtex one? After I get everything back together and buttoned down I don't want to toss the old one if it's a core somebody might want to rebuild for a non-Avanti application.

    Glenn.........before you install the pump, check the specs on the location of the machined edge of the impeller to the mounting face of the pump. It should measure .934 to .938. I recently replaced my water pump and found that both the old pump and the new pump both failed to meet this spec.Using a gear puller, I pulled the impeller to get it within the spec. When I put it in the water pump manifold, with out the gasket, and spun the pump, I could detect a very slight interferance/contact of the impeller and the housing. Installing the gasket ( approx .004 ) and spiniing it again..........no interferance.It now cools much better.

    I made this change and a couple of others cooling changes this past winter that resulted in my '63 R1 A/C car struggling to get to 180 in city traffic with the A/C on in 90+ weather. A 42 year battle that I finally won.

    John

  21. AC 3284 Stainless Steel License Plate Frames for sale

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I always use Photobucket to post here. If you click on the "post Image" icon, it wants a web address (URL). So, to me, that says without a web address you can't add photos. If someone knows how to do it off their computer, I'd love to see it.

    So I would think you need to set up a account on a free site and go from there. That lets this site use a lot less storage and keeps the costs down, If I were to guess why it's that way.

    I tried ............. but to no avail. Admitadly computer skills are not my strong points.

    I'll gladly send pictures in an E mail for anyone that would like to see them. A photo ad will appear in the November issue of "Turning Wheels" and the next issue of "Avanti Magazine" . A photo ad of the frame has been in the "Avanti Magazine" for about a year now, so if you still have your copy you could look there .

    Thanks to all that relied with helpful suggestions.

    John

  22. AC 3284 Stainless Steel License Plate Frames for sale

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    After you click on "reply" and get the dialog box, look down to the lower right and you should see, "More reply options" to the right of "Post". Click on more reply options and in addition to the dialog box you should get the "attach files" option at the lower left. It appears you can upload a total of 500KB in your various posts so you'll want to choose carefully and always use the minimum size & quality image to reduce filesize. This image is only 11KB attachicon.gifAvantiSm.jpg for example.

    Thanks............I followed your instructions and as you said my file was too big and it would not post.

    Thanks

    John

  24. AC 3284 Stainless Steel License Plate Frames for sale

    in 1963-64 Avanti

    Posted

    I bought one of John's plate frames and can state that they are very well made, look exactly like the Studebaker accessories as shown in the brochures of the time and are a definite asset to my Avanti. Bob Hawley - Avanti 63R-3062

    Thank you Bob.

    FYI.........the coat hooks I have for sale have a better chrome finish than the originals.If you look at e-bay periodicly, you 'll see coat hooks for $65.00 plus $10.00 shipping. Mine are $21.00, including the shipping and the quality is better..........in my opinion.

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