chopt50wgn

Don...........the visors are held in with machine screws. I found stainless flatheads that replaced the stock ones at Ace Hardware. Take the stock ones with you when you go and find the correct length......that's what I did.

Not sure where you can get this type of welting. I can tell you that when I did my P20 wagon over ,I got welting from Julianos. You can check out there site at Julianos.com

The biggest thing in rebuilding any water pump is having a good casting to start with. The company I worked for would rebuild pumps for customers and tell them .........they would try but if the casting cracks, we can't be responsible. So much depends on making sure you have the correct plugs to push out the core and bearings. Then making sure you press everything back to stock dimensions. I guess what I'm saying is you must be so careful when taking an old pump apart, especially one that is 30.40, or 50 yrs. old...........good luck

This is a pic from the rear of my 50 Ply wagon. We put an Heidts independent rear in. My buddy Tim who is a fabricator by trade and has 30 years experience building hot rods and race cars did the install. Car rides like a new Caddy.

You can also add an expansion tank(overflow) tank to the radiator. That will allow you to run more coolant in the radiator and when it expands into the tank, as the motor cools a vacuum will pull the coolant back into the radiator which will keep it topped off.

I also got let go from my part time job. I retired 17 yrs. ago after putting in 31 yrs. with Dana Corp. Then went to work part time and was there for 17 yrs. Thought I would be there till I died. Was told it was nothing I had done or anything personal just that it was done due to cost cutting. I understand cost cutting and having a slow time, but being a union guy for 31 yrs. with the UAW, I thought seniority meant something,...........it doesn't. I think the higher ups have plans to move the company out of our area and if that's the plan, then everyone is gone. They also know if they would need me back and stay local, I would go back. For now I am collecting unemployment because I paid in and haven't had a claim for 37 yrs, so I deserve it. If something comes up after that I may go back to work, if not I'll just stay retired.

Many of my car buddies here in the Philadelphia area have the same talk. A lot of the shows have upped their entry fee from 7$ pre=register to 10 or even 15 and day of show can be 15 to 20. We have also seen that many of the shows are judged which means they hand out trophies or plaques. I have talked with some of these show promoters and have told them if they get rid of the trophies and charge say 5-7$ , they would get many more cars to show up. We also know that the money does go to charitable causes whether it be a 5$ donation or 20$ but if they would not have to buy trophies or plaques and just make it a cheaper cruise in ,there would be lots more participation. We also tell these car shows that if you look around, the majority of these car owners are retired and live on fixed incomes. I look to see what show I want to go to on a weekend and pick one. I can't afford to pay up to 40$ for two shows just to park my car. I know some guys in my area that won't go to a show if they can't win a trophy............they built the car for the wrong reason................I go to have fun, take the car out for a cruise and see my car buddies, which I think is the whole reason I built this.

my bad........now that 49D said Canby ,Or.........now I remember!!......knew it was in the NW part of the country but just was off a state or two. As far as dealing with them, I had no problems at all. I guess you will find that with most any company that deals with the public.

Years ago, someone on this site gave me 3 different companies that carry material for our older Mopars. The one I used is SMS Fabrics in Ogden ,UT...............they have a website or you can google their name. They had a headliner for my 50 Ply wagon and even made it custom in the same vinyl I used in the interior.

Beautiful job on the interior!!! Glad you got the gremlins worked out and the car is officially a driver now. We all know that feeling of having a problem fixed when you're behind that wheel.

Really like the new grille. I have always been a fan of being different and it does go with the body nicely. You going to paint it or chrome?

I got a piece of aluminum pipe 1 inch dia. Then got some rubber bumpers ,the ones you use on the bottom of a metal table so it doesn't scratch the floor. I put them on either end of the pipe and use it to prop open the hood on my 50 Ply wagon. Here's another helpful tip.......the latch that hangs down in the front is most always a place that you whack your head on the way out of the motor area. I took an old tennis ball and put a slit in it and it slides over the latch. So if I am doing any kind of prolonged work under the hood, when I back out if I hit the latch, my old head is protected.

Some of the radiator companies..............Griffin, Fluidyne, Northern, Afco, Ron Davis, . plus Thomba lives in Germany..............He may be able to figure out what size core he needs and then have tanks built to fit the car. I did that with my wagon but I also have the wherewithal to do that.

I won't knock radiators that some people have in their cars. I work in the cooling industry and have seen radiators that are inexpensive and work fine. But the thing needed to know is the reason they are inexpensive............they are made off shore.........(China). I have talked with customers over the years that have had big problems with off shore rads. One problem is...........if you have a problem, it usually can't be fixed due to crap materials it is made from. When it comes to a cooling system, think about the rest of the car or truck...............do you buy the cheapest parts? Do you use off shore parts for the motor or trans? The answer should be .no, you don't. So why cheap out on a very important part of the vehicle? If a radiator is cheap, then that's what you will usually get.......a cheap radiator. There are lots of radiator companies out there here in the states that could help. Will you pay more money? ....yes, you will but you will also get a product that should keep you running down the road. This is just my 2 cents and passing it on with my experiences from 17 years in the cooling industry.................and no, we don't make radiators so this is not an ad for us.

This is the dash in my 50 Ply wagon. I added Autometer gauges and kept the stock radio insert with radio delete plates. Then did everything in aluminum and powder coated everything in a silver to give it that fresh aluminum look. Also built the custom console with the tach mount.

Don..............was in Louisville last year. Maybe going to Syracuse this year but not sure as of yet. Hope you get the electrical gremlins figured out.

I did mine with epoxy primer when we were doing the body work. Then just applied some good VHT black paint.............so all of us are either anal or normal...............we all have OCD to some extent...............Old Car Disorder......

Been following this build and it is RIGHT on. Too bad we live so far apart, would be cool to park our wagon next to each other at a show.

I had a hard time getting rubber seals to fit on my 50 Ply wagon. I ran across a guy at Carlisle who had a universal fit rubber and it fit everywhere and sealed nicely. The best part is it is self adhesive. It's made by Vintique Inc. The part muber I used is HR-701980-L. It comes in a 20 ft. roll. If you type in that number in a search you can find it.

wow..................looks so cool all back together...........

I get where you are coming from when it comes to putting the car back together. I did the same thing and you stand back and say to yourself "it was together and fit nicely, why the hell doesn't it fit back together"? Anyway, I really like the way you have combined old and new to make this thing so nice. BTW..........I had my glass guy glue in my glass on the sides and rear hatch also the windshield. The pass and drivers doors had to be cut special because I removed the wing windows. They all had to be cut due to the chop. Can't wait to see this outside in the sun.........it will be a head turner.

I have been to 3 Dog garage near my home many times. This is a working museum with lots of old hot rods and road racing cars. It's only open by appointment and then for only about 4 hours. just thought I'd share some pics I took. The one pic is of the 36 Ford that won the Ridler award back in 2006 I think. All these car are owned by Ross Meyer

casper.....................the site will say Harley Davidson but on the left side of the site it has a a list and at the top is wall hangings. You must also type in the "dash" between each name.

I had to look for the info and found it. The company name is............Cal-custom-cruisers.com...................the guys name is Don Atwood..........

Saw this ad on FB of a company that does plasma cutting from a photo. I contacted him and asked about doing one of my wagon. Sent him a pic and he cut it out and emailed the pic. Price was $50 including shipping. I painted it to kinda match my car and hang it on my shop wall. It's cold rolled steel about .060 thick.