From 1950 Chevy convertible to full custom in only 60 years.....

[BobT-47P15]

There is a story over on the HAMB about a fellow who bought a new 50 Chevy ragtop

and then took it to Gene Winfield to do a full custom job.  The work commenced and

was mostly completed back then, but the owner could not decide on a front end

treatment.  He finally parked the car, but kept it inside all these years.  The owner

and his wife are both now in a senior care facility. so some guys from their area

took on the task of finishing the car.....with lots of input from HAMBers.  

 

It's just now done and will be presented for the couple to inspect in person, and, of

course, go for a ride.  I think it will go very shortly to the L.A. roadster show for public

display.  

 

I know this sort of vehicle is not everyone's "cup of tea".........so passing it on because I

enjoyed the story about the efforts of the fellows re-doing the car and I think it came out

nice looking for what it is.  

 

They posted some pictures on page 23 of the story, but when I tried to transfer them

here, they came out too large.  Here is a link to the pictures, along with photos I took

of their pictures.        

  http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/gene-winfield-custom-found.853874/page-23

 

I looks like to me, in the second photo, that the full wheel cover is from a 1950 Plymouth. 

 

 

   

Edited June 11, 2014 by BobT-47P15

[Young Ed]

The headlight eyebrows and the grill pieces below them both look like 55 plymouth units.

[Young Ed]

Just found the post with the list of mods

 

But, for starters, I would like to try and describe the many mods done to his "new" car. Based on the fact that Leland helped Gene move into his new shop from the "coop" in 1955, I figure the mods started in '54 or early '55. Moving from front to rear....The grille was opened by removing the original grille including the upper eyebrow, and enlarging the opening out to the headlights. A pan was fab'd to form the lower limit of the opening. The front fender "fronts" are '55 Plymouth, and extend back about a foot. The hood opening was left stock. The bottom of the Chev fenders were left in place, and can be seen in the photos. The front wheel wells appear to be '55 Chev (?), grafted to the Plymouth fender front sides (which were later cut off). The '55 Chev rocker panel flair continues back to the rear quarters. The stock hood had the center section cut out, and a '53 (?) Desoto hood center section with scoop welded in. The scoop was opened and extended slightly. The cowl and windshield are '56 Ford (OMG) which is chopped about 5". Who wuda thought that a wraparound windshield would look okay on a '50 Chev (we're talking sock on a rooster here). What made this work is the method of chop, with the bottom leading edge being moved back to accommodate the windshield with the bottom cut off. This, of course, minimizes the profile. Remember, this also shortens the dogleg at the front of the doors, which have been modified to accept the windshield shape. Are you following this?? The full '56 Ford dash has been incorporated to keep the correct cowl shape. Remember, there are no wierd angles used to mate this all to the Chev cowl area. Ot one point, Gene called Leland and mentioned that he had idea for the rear. At this time, the conv lived at Gene's and Leland would go down in his '40 Plymouth sedan delivery, which he would sleep in, and help out. Seems Gene had acquired a set of '51 Olds 98 rear quarters, brand new. They held'm up, and the rest is history. The fun was incorporating them into the Chev body. They included the loooong skirts that Olds and Cad are known for. Leland took a look at the gas door and said, no way, it's ugly. Sooo, the door was refitted to the inside of the fender, but the Olds door wouldn't fit, so the Chev door was used, and the filler tube turned 180 degrees to work. Then the taillights were formed and '55 Pontiac lenses fitted. I didn't realize at first what the use of Olds quaters did to the profile of the car. Chevs of this era had low rear fenders and high trunks. Not real appealing. Now that look is gone, and the rear of this ride is really nice. The last thing out back is the '51 Merc bumper. Bolt on, not hardly. This bumper has been narrowed and the ends reshaped to fit the Olds quarters. Now, Leland had always wanted a carson style top, but like the shape of the conv top. So, a top was made out of a old Dodge hood,and an old Chev hood, using a conv type rear window and the Ford header trim

[RobertKB]

To be honest, I would much rather have an orignal or restored '50 Chev convertible. I appreciate the work involved but it leaves me cold. It's a bastardized nothing. I know many will disagree with me but we are all welcome to our opinions. As a wise man once said, "Opinions are like a**holes, everyone has one and they usually smell."

[GlennCraven]

It's interesting to see what can be done by people with the will and the means. But yeah, I generally agree with Robert. Just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you should.

 

Rather than marveling at the car, I'm left not knowing what to make of it. BUT, in this case the vehicle has moved from practical to pure art form, and art appreciation is definitely subjective.