Projects Barn find - 1964 Pontiac Catalina 421 early custom car

Thanks Ryan, any help would be great.
I'll be back over in the Twin Cities on the week of the 3rd Sept and have been in touch with House of Kolor about matching the original metallic lavender paint on the hood. They have also been in touch with Jon Kosmoski to let him know about the car...not heard back from him yet.

As I mentioned earlier in the post, we know it was taken to local shows from about 1968 to 1970 and I have all the original trophies which include:

- 2nd Place Semi Custom at Ray Farhner's 7th Annual Auto-Speed and Sports Show, Feb 28, March 1st and 2nd 1969. Municipal Auditorium, St. Paul, Minnesota.
- 4th Place at the 4th Annual International Custom Fair, Minneapolis 1969.
- 5th Annual International Custom AutoFair, Minneapolis. 1970.
- 1st Place Winner, 8th Annual National Auto-Speed and Sports Car Show. Feb 27th & 28th, March 1st 1970. Main Arena Municipal Auditorium, St. Paul's
- 9th Annual National Auto Speed & Sports Car Show, St Paul. 1971
- Outstanding in Class at the Beater Boys Car Club, 2nd Annual Custom - Speed Spectacular.



Trying to see if we can find the source of the original lace too, it's bound to be from a (long gone) local haberdashery. If not there is enough pattern on the car to try and replicate it. We were lucky that the Dixco hood tach kept the original intensity of the purple and hasn't faded like the rest of the hood.

 

Love it!!!

 

So we finally dragged my 64 Pontiac Catalina Ventura 421 4 speed manual car out of storage and dropped it off at the body shop. The spare door and hood are going to the media blaster, the refitted before the body comes off the frame so the frame can be media blasted too.

This is the first time I've seen the car in daylight since buying the car a few years ago. On the trip to Minnesota with my friend Simon Emery (from The Paint Box in the UK) we was able to meet Reed at House of Kolor in Minneapolis and talk about the car, he then took us over to meet Jon Kosmoski, who as I've mentioned earlier in the thread, painted my car in 1968). Jon showed us around his workshop and talked about some of the projects he's worked on over the years and the history of HOK. He very kindly signed my 64 Catalina glovebox lid.
I also got to meet Bob Langhans (the owner that did all the custom work over the years with Jon), he said that this was the second car Jon painted with lace, the first being a blue 66 Chevy. He remembers the Chevy as that car was on the show circuit with him all the time.
We were lucky enought to spend a few hours with Bob as I have a better idea of the cars history. Some of you that might have read the story when I first posted it, will be happy to learn that he has made an amazing recovery from the terrible accident. Unfortunatly it seems he will be in a motorized wheelchair for the rest of his life, he was able to remember some amazing details on the car from 40 years ago (I can't even remember what happened last week let lone 40 years ago.

Bob said he bought the in 1966 when he was 19 years old, it had 42,000 miles on the clock (now is say 49,261, so 7k miles in 52 years). It was ordered new by Larsen Cuinn Co, Ellsworth, Wisconsin. To be shipped via Tri-Level St Paul.

From 1964 -1966 is was owned by Larry Traines (a veterinary), he and his wife both had Pontiacs and we think this might have been his wifes car, as he had the automatic and she had the 4 speed.

In 1967 the car was involved in a small front end accident, fender was replaced with a NOS fender and had a inital mild custom at the same time. The photos of it still in the Marimba red was Nov 1967.

1968 it was painted by Jon in a flat lavender with a blue pear in the clear coat, Jon said the lavender was something he made up rather than a HOK Kandy color, but the purple behind the lace was a Kandy purple. It had just been painted for a few days before it was taken to a custom show (Bob worked late the night before the show flatting and polishing the car ). The idea for lavender came from a magazine called 'Custom Chevies' issued in late 67 or 68.

After the show the car came back to Jon's to apply the blue/purple lace (Bob said it was Jon's idea), he also said this was the second car that Jon painted with lace, the first being a blue 66 Chevy, as he remember competing against it at several shows. Cliff Anderson Jr would have pinstriped the car around the same time. Something we could never have seen in the photos but Bob told us about, he said there was a 'House of Kolor' text written on the trunk lid under the pin striping by Cliff Anderson Jr and the name 'Bob Langhans' was written just above the drivers door between the chrome trim and the pinstripe. Jon charge $800 to paint the car and Cliff changed $100 for the striping.

The antennas are more dummy for show than real having antennas, but this was only he realised was no room to have a power antenna as the holes were to close to the wheel well.

The rear parcel shelf and wooden armrests were bought from J.C. Whitney. The gear shift knob he though was brought back from Germany by his brother (Gettelman Rathskeller Brew), but as it said beer rather than bier I did a search…it turns out it was actually a Milwaukee beer, established in 1856…sold to Miller Brewing Company in 1961 and ended production in 1970. bob has since told me his brother also worked in a local bar, so that would explain the 30's beer knob.
The chrome reversed rims listed on the show card were changed to chrome 5 spoke, with 14” on the front and 15” on the rear, the look different too. He thinks the photos of the show would have been at the Minnenapolis Convention Center in 1969

In 1971 the paint was stripped off the car as the HOK paint and clear coat was cracking (Jon fixed this issue with later cars), plus some of the rust was coming through on one of the fenders...once it was stripped he didn't know what to paint the car next...and that's probably why it stayed there all those years. Bob signed the glove box for me too.

So here are a few photos of the last as of a week ago, plus how it used to look in the 60's and a couple of photos at HOK with Jon.

 

Hi, this is Bob Langhans, the builder of this Catalina. I just accessed this site a couple of days ago. I will tell you about the sign. Cliff Anderson had just completed all the pinstriping on the car, which was at House of Kolor shop and Jon Kosmoski had just completed the lace work, and told me he would make a sign we could take to the car show later in the day. We didn't have a lot of time to do this as the show was in Duluth Minn and I had to be there later in the day. He made the whole sign freehand in about 20 minutes, and yes some words were misspelled, but we didn't have time to make another one. I never bothered to have a new one made, as the mistakes weren't that noticeable. Watching Cliff make that sign was pretty impressive as watching him pinstripe the whole car. What a talent. Hope this clears up the mystery about the sign.

 

I had the car painted and we went right from Jon's shop to the Minneapolis convention center for a show. He talked me into putting lace on the car, and right after the show I drove it back to his shop for the lace panels. He also lined up Cliff Anderson Jr. for the pinstriping. This was the only time that anybody seen the car all in one color, the Lavender pearl. It was done 2 weeks later and that's when I took it up to Duluth Mn. for the next show. I then finally got to drive my car home for everybody to see.

 

That is cool as all get out. Now I miss my 68 Catalina...

I knew lace wasn’t just a “lowrider” thing... can now prove some local naysayers wrong...

Keep the updates coming.

 

Just saw this thread. How cool it found it's way to the right caretaker.
Git R done!

 

Yes and the original builder chiming in.

 

About the wheels. I believe they were Appliance wheels which were very similar to Radar mags. There were 14" on the front and 15" on the rear. The wheels on front wouldn't work on the rear, as they wouldn't clear the inside of the fenders. They were reversed to much. The company only had non-reversed wheels in 15", not 14". So that was the only option there was, and I already bought the fronts so I went that route. It was the Pontiac wide track which made it hard for inner fender clearance on the rear.

 

Ahh history, gotta love it.


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You have a good start on a Swiss Cheese Tribute !

 

After remembering that I had chrome reverse rims on it originally, that may not have been the reason for the two different size wheels. I faintly remember getting these wheels from a dealer in Minneapolis and they only had 2 wheels in the 14" size and 2 wheels in the 15" size, which was not reversed as much, or they were closing out on this style and that was the only ones left. This was 50 years ago and can't quite remember which one it was. The dealers didn't have stock on hand as much as now and I didn't want to wait as a show was coming up. They still looked great anyway.

 

Thanks Bob, it was so good to meet you recently on my last trip over, I struggle to remember things I was doing a week ago let alone over 50 years ago...please feel free to add more memories as and when you remember them.
Looking forward to showing you the finished car when it's done.

 

amazing

 

Merry Christmas...I thought I would sneak a last update in before the end of the year.
The car has stripped, body is off the frame for media blasting. We are now just waiting for a rotissoire for the body which should be sometime after Christmas.
The frame needs a little work but nothing too bad. Overall the car is in very good condition considering it was stripped of paint back in the early 70's, luckily it was covered in grease to protect the bare metal.

In the 5th image you will see a rubber patch, this was hiding a quick release button for the drivers door, Bob told me that when he first fitted it had rained a little and the contacts had got wet, when he turned on the wipers the door opened up to his surprise!...lol.

Hope you like the update, more to come in the New Year...Happy Holidays and have fun with your projects over the winter months.

 

I like the chassis pics from both sides. It really shows how much better those wheels look inside bias-plys versus radials.

 

Love the 60's Pontiacs, the stacked headlights and the tail lights ain't bad either. They had their act together more so than any other style-wise. Nice crisp lines.... all in all very nice!

 

Thanks for the pics and updates about this cool car. Nothing like trying to restore a custom car but at least you have a solid one to work with plus the original builders to boot! Looking forward to seeing the progress. Randy


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Just a quick update on the car...the body is now on the rotisserie and work has begun to strip the media blasted frame. Now it's time to make a list to order new parts for the frame.

 

How is it April already, where has the year gone already?
So next weekend I'll be heading to MN to see the car again and to see what the next plan of action is. For now I thought I'd share a few updated photos of where we are now. First of all there was some work done on body panel repair, surprisingly not that much needed doing as it was mostly rot free. The inner rockers were the worst, we did think about getting a rust free donor car or parts from a rust free car, but in the end Bob (at The Works in Fridley, MN) was able to open up the front of the rocker covers and get to the rust areas to repair them. It's still work in progress but I hope to have better photos next week.

 

I agree about your statement that it is hard to believe we are a quarter of the way through 2019 and some days I still write 2018! The body looks really good. It would be nice to work on such a rust free body as that, everything that rolls through here needs floors, rockers and trunks! Keep the pictures coming! Regards, Randy


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Hi Randy, thanks for the comments...and think as it sat in a barn or garage in bare metal, just covered in grease for all of those years...it has survived incredible well.

 

Love those 60 Ponchos. Super car but wouldn't think about going back with that lavender paint. It was FUGLY.

 

Well your going to be disappointed then as that's exactly what I'm going to do...it's going back exactly as it was in the late 60's...lavender paint and blue lace.

 

You obviously forgot but you already voiced your opinion.

 

Hope to see it JUST like Jon did it back in the day!!!

 

I worked for John in the very early 80s and I don't think it would be a loss to see different paint on it. Just because it was done back in the day doesn't mean it was good. The painter that John trained to replace him in the booth was in my opinion a better painter than John, his name was Kirby Mcglaughlin. He is the best painter I've had the pleasure to work with. John was only in the shop working on his own personal projects in the 80s.

 

After a few weeks working on other projects Bob is now back on the drivers side of the 64 Catalina.