Building a period correct(ish) 1957 Chevy 150. From the outside I want it to look like something a 17yo with a full time job would build in the mid 60s. Under the bodywork it’s got a 327, Th350, CPP brakes, a arms, all the newer style gear. So definitely not PC. Also NOS gold Holley valve covers, gonna ceramic coat headers white lol. On the outside it’s yellow with cragar ss but I’m gonna paint it blue. Interior has original style rear bench, I’m toying with the idea of getting a bench for the front, but currently has some oem shorty seat from a van or something. So, my question is this, I’d like a mid 60s hurst shifter and tach, but I don’t know what would look somewhat period correct. I know hurst made stuff in the 60s but I don’t know what models. Also, what kind of tach? I’m thinking a sun super but again, I don’t know what was around in the 60s. Help a young guy figure out how y’all old dudes built stuff lol.
How’s this. Bought from Summit. Made by Bosch probably overseas. Works fine for me. No moving shift pointers. 4 wires. Ground, light, positive, coil. Traditional look. Moon sell one that looks the same. Bosch also makes the full sweep that looks like the Sun , listed in Summit too.
Sun Super Tach was available in '67 and I believe earlier. For your Hurst shifter you will need a special handle made just for Tri-5 Chevys with a bench seat. It is sort of "U" shaped. It goes forward near the floor to clear the seat and then bends back to put the handle in the right spot.
When I was 17, the last thing I would have put in a '57 Chevy with a 327 is a Turbo 350. Just sayin'.
Or a vintage look Mooneyes tach. https://www.ebay.com/itm/164051840262?epid=1734026430&hash=item2632406d06:g:liQAAOSwr05eL2C~
I was able to afford my '57 in '63. Most guys couldn't afford new cars, so the actual purchase didn't come for a few years...in my case, six. So, by that time, the new version tachs were just coming out, like this '62 S/W 5K Large Logo. I think that's what I had...perfect for a 265 or 283. Mine was a 265/3 speed. But, I think that anything from the 1950's would be appropriate, like the S/W Wings units, or the late 1950's S/W Large Logos. Or, maybe an early Moon? Dean Moon has these made by Jones-Motorola probably in the mid to late 1960's.
Yeah, my '57 was actually converted to stick from automatic by the previous owner. I bought the car from a state cop who was moonlighting selling cars & he got the car from a guy they had caught trying to evade him after a robbery. The guy needed bail money, etc., so he sold the cop that car.
Timely thread, as I was just visiting my little bro yesterday to see his progress on his '65 convert. He is installing a Muncie into the space of the 350TH, and making a couple other changes as well. He was holding up a couple different electric tachs on the top of the column as I walked through the door. One was a '70 era Sun, and the other was a SW. I voted for the SW, as it will match the pair of smaller mechanical gauges hanging below the dash. Perfect upgrade for a '65 hot rodded in '69.
My dad worked at the counter for the repair shop at Kirsch Chevrolet back in the 50's and would take the jobs that the mechanics hated, like switching a car over to manual from automatic. The kids would come in with Granny's "Whatever-with-a- (cast iron) Powerglide" that they had burned up- Dad would have them order the parts, and he would limp the car home, switch everything out over the weekend, and return the car to the lot on Monday
In the mid 60's a kid wouldn't be caught dead with an automatic, a gift from relatives, yes, with his own money? No way. It's a shame kids nowadays lack the coordination to drive a stick shift, let alone my 3sp+od on the column.
it's not a lack of coordination. It's a lack of motivation. If all they have available to drive is stick, and they want to go somewhere bad enough, they'll figure it out pretty quickly.
Yep the handle for a tri five is certainly U shaped and needed to clear the bench seat. You could also use a early impala handle that's for a bench seat as well to clear.
Stewart Warner Green Line tach..... Back in 1969 I was 14 years old. My neighbor (who introduced me to hot rodding) was 21 and had the baddest '57 Chevy in town. 327/4-spd with a gasser stance. Magnesium American Racing 5-spokes all around with huge Firestone tires out back. He ran all original Stewart Warner Green Line gauges and I clearly remember this tach in a chrome cup mounted centered and on top of the dash. This was it in 1969!
Retro Sun Tachs available on Summit, Amazon, etc. No separate sending unit required, which is a plus...around $140..
RAC tachometers are a good 60s-70s option. With good variety as they evolved through the 60s and options of dash mount, column mount with chrome and black bodies. They come up on the auction site regularly.
I am not so sure. Kids now don't care about driving anymore. They can do everything they need on their phone. I know several parents that had to force their kids to get their license at 21 years old. That is so foreign to me...My folks starting letting me drive at 11, but we lived in the country.
It's not that they can't do it, it's that they don't have the motivation. Why go to all that trouble to go visit your friends, when you can communicate so effectively with that phone? The world has changed....those of us here on the HAMB are the old world.
I kinda like both old and part of the new. Have to keep perspective I guess. Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Yeah...If we (I) were in this kid's '57 it would get the 350 TH and converter/flywheel torn outa there in a hurry! Wow...Even a 3 speed...but it's GOTTA be a STICK! (er, manual transmission, to the unwashed) But this young man has the main package, and sounds like he wants to dive down the rabbit hole, (automatic tranny for now...) Just don't scoff. Because his friends likely drive Japan's finest...and he's a 'hot rodder'. Brave enough to fix up that '57 "behemoth", when everybody else drives 'sane'. Likely that '57 gets a clutch pedal and gears when he runs across the 'right' older dude(s) that can steer him in the right direction...
Funny...all the talk of how unmotivated kids are to drive etc. my 16 year old daughter drives a standard. Loves it. Got her license as soon as possible. Maybe it’s not fair to make assumptions based on age eh? Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
There are exceptions...and having a dad around who loves old cars, probably makes a difference. My kids all have at least one clutch pedal to play with.
Hello, As teenagers and 20 somethings, we all liked the big chrome sun tachometers. They were the first and widely accepted tachometer for all car installations. For us and many others, that was the first accessory to be put inside of any hot rod or sedan. But, only if you did not mind the chrome band holding down the big tach to the column or mounted by screws on the dash. They were big, gave the driver everything he wanted from a tach, and could be seen quite well sitting in front of the driver. It was illegal to mount the tachometer to the dash, blocking the front window view for driving, but most did not get stopped for a vehicle violation. Unless, of course, one was stopped by the local police, the CHP, or even at the CHP vehicle road stop/check points randomly placed in various communities. So, what was one to do if holes in the dash were not the thing to do to a pristine red shiny Impala dashboard? The huge chrome tach would also not fit or look good on the column, either. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...rs-show-and-tell.224785/page-15#post-13858338 Our solution without destroying the dash or making a big blob in our front of the car view was to use a very small tachometer that we found in a surplus store. It had clear numbers, included a power light inside making any nighttime viewing perfect and it fit at the far right side of the 58 Impala dash without ruining any stock appearance. green arrow mounting points Jnaki For what it is worth, the small black tachometer worked as well, if not better than those huge chrome tachs. When the car was stolen in 1963 Summer, the thieves only took 4 Buick Skylark Wire Wheels and this small black tachometer, neatly removed from the dash without any scratches or marks. That was interesting to me and the observing police officer. The dumb thieves forgot to check the trunk as I had one of the best Buick Skylark wire wheels to be used for a spare tire. Duh!!!
From tachs to stick transmissions, I’ll play. My oldest daughter has a hotrod bug in her. Not old school mind you, but still hotrod. I’m doing a little build up on her OT V8 car with a T56. Oh, when the car (V8 car) lost a head gasket she bought a 5 speed commuter car. But I do agree with a lot of what was said on the changed subject. I also disagree with a lot of it But maybe back on topic, I would like to find a nice looking mechanical tachometer for my ‘57 since it has the tach drive on the distributor Any suggestions?
Most of them don't want to go anywhere, sadly. I'm 42, and my grandmother, mom, and dad tried to teach me to drive a 67 chevy c10 with a "three on the tree" when I was 15, and I just couldn't get it. My grandfather (who would have actually had the patience to teach me) was unfortunately too ill to do so. Now that's on my bucket list. Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
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