Ok so im ready to here what my car will be. My question is, Can my car be a traditional build if I will be using a 59 poncho rearend and a 68 M21 4speed and a 64 401 Nailhead? I know some and read some but i want to see if i can hear it from you. Chime in please. And what era would this car end up being built like? Thanks. And cheers.
First of all, I love what you're doing. When I was in high school, my girlfriends parents had a '54 Century 2 door hardtop that was Chinese red with a black top. Great looking car. As to what era the build will represent? Well, my opinion would be early 21st century, like current. Back in the '60's, if we could have found and afforded those parts, they would have gone in a much smaller lighter car. At least where I came from, nobody would have considered building something like this. The big "Cruiser" trend started in the eighties and the "Traditional Cruiser" (using older non-current drivetrain components) is a relatively new phenomenon. Don't let my 2 cents stop you, however; your car will be killer.
I'm glad you've come here and put your project before the H.A.M.B. members in such an open-ended way. Asking for opinions and especially for guidance from an informed and experienced group is a great way of doing research. Yeah, you'll get a few shallow "build it your own way" opinions from those who expect you to already know as much as they do. But what they don't seem to understand is that you don't have a wealth of knowledge and experience to fall back on. You've come HERE to learn and to do the research you need to make a well-informed and well-thought-out decision as to just what it is that you DO want. A few, but not too many, custom Buicks were built in the '50s. Toby Halicki's '56 sticks in my mind, but there were others including a handful of wildly painted '57 hardtops. The '60s brought a few more, mostly mild customs with Skylark wires and narrow whitewalls. If your car was mine, the early '60s is where I'd look for inspiration. You've selected some nice running gear pieces and, as long as you don't go all baggy, your car will look great - and be totally traditional - as a mild '60s custom. One of many great sources of authentic period information is Kustomrama (www.kustomrama.com). Another excellent go-to place is Rikster's website (http://members.fotki.com/Rikster/). Both are well illustrated and the information there is date-specific to help you organize trends that were popular during any particular period. Good luck!
I like it. Do it. Glad you're keeping the bloodline pure with a nailhead. Kinda wish I still had my factory stick '54 2-door. Sold it in 1960. Oh well...
Build what you like, you probably know what you want in a new build, do your research and make your decision, don't let others decide for you. By the way, welcome from Minnesota.
The word "traditional" has been thrown around so much and applied to so many cars with air bags and disc brakes, it's practically lost its meaning. You are using old parts to build a neat old car. Do it. Have fun.
I put a 401 into a 1955 Buick Special and if you are interested you can follow the build on my flickr photo site. Each picture has a detailed explanation with it. Spend the extra money and get a rear sump pan from Nailhead Russ along with the rear oil pump pick up. The Scarebird kit for disc brakes worked out great and the Corvette dual master cylinder was perfect but if I did it again I would fabricate a steel plate to fill the opening above the steering column and place the master cylinder and booster in that location. I put it back under the floor but hit a speed bump and knocked it off which left me without brakes. https://www.flickr.com/photos/buickfan/sets/72157594218766363/
@german franco What a cool start you have - a 2-dr hardtop! I don't see any reason why you can't use those components. A purist may disagree, but I feel you can still be a traditional custom provided you consider and stick to your build period. As for what era the car could be built ... well, honestly that is up to you. If you're unsure, my best advice would be to check out some of the "little books" from years ago or scan Ebay and pick up some books ranging from '54/'55 through the early 60's. The Custom Car Annuals are also a good choice to see the ways that these cars were being built years ago. You can't get more traditional than the original stuff I do strongly encourage you to do the research and pick a time period for your build. The learning part of that can be a lot of fun! If you're going for the look of '57 you'll make different choices than the look of '61 and so on. I'm not one to poke fun at other people's cars, but I do feel that's one area where some people get into trouble when they start mixing up the timeframes. I look forward to seeing your build progress. Keep us posted whenever you have questions or have updates to show off! -John
I am bringing my 55 Super home this weekend so I will be following your build to see what you come up with. Crazyolman I can't wait to look through your pics and comments to see how you did it. Does anyone know if drop uprights are still available for these cars? I used to see them around but no one seems to list them anymore.
@tommyduncan You could try Hot Rod Hardware. They list 37-56 Buick uprights with a 2.5" drop. http://www.hotrodhardware.com/index...d=4629/category_id=1096/mode=prod/prd4629.htm
Thanks for the replies. This gives me a ton to research and then prep my brain for huntimg down those old parts im gonna want. Missysdad1 you "Nailed" it. Thanks. tommyduncan I think Gambino's makes drop spindles. Hey what are the best looking hubcaps (full)? I like these 57 olds on craigslist right now. Only reason i dont like bags is the extra stuff you need to run them things! Seems like alot of stuff that could leak or brake or just quit working. Otherwise bags in the rear would function cool. Anybody know if bags in the rear would help hook up if you wanted too? Or not? Nice fat cut srings in my cars future though.
'57 Olds hubcaps are 14" I think. Don't get them unless you want to run 14" wheels. (Your car came with 15" originally.) Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Whichever way you chose to go just be sure to tu-tone it and in my opinion they look perfect with real wire wheels, like the Skylarks had.
Skylark wheels? Dang im gonna have to break my 3 year olds piggy bank for those! Set on craigs is rusty and $700.
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