Some Hambers might recognise this FC from a previous thread, under my old username. Unfortunately life got the better of me, and after being shafted by one of the big Japanese auto-makers (I'm still owed $3200 in unpaid wages) the whole project stalled and I lost interest in the whole car scene. That is until I stumbled on a video of some wild looking traditional hot rod and custom show. Suddenly I found myself hatching a plan to build a traditional mild custom car to make the 4000km round trip from the tiny rural Queensland town I live in to the Chopped Rod & Custom Festival in Newstead, Victoria. On top of that, I decided to write a blog and film traditional tech how to videos (ala Mighty Car Mods) to show other people my age that building a rod or custom on a budget isn't completely out of reach to young people. The starting point for this build is my 1959 FC Holden Station Sedan. It's been in the family since the early 1980's. In around 1986 Dad crashed the car, and parked it in my grandparents shed where it languished for the next 30 years. I dragged it home, started pulling it to bits then got burnt out. It sat with a tonneau cover over it beside my house for 6 months. But no more, it's being moved onto the driveway where I can work on it. The deadline is set for the first week of October this year, which gives me a little over 9 months to get the FC back together and on the road. The plan is to build the car using nothing newer in style than 1965. I understand that Holdens aren't typical custom fare, but some did get the custom treatment in the 1960's. On top of that, spares and hop-up equipment are fairly cheap and readily available and because V8s are outlawed for drivers under 21 in my state, the FC's six cylinder makes it a good choice. The current list of mods to be stands at: - Lowering and a rake - A different wheel/tyre combo - Shave, nose and deck - Minor performance upgrade (headers, dual carb intake, mild cam) - Home-made seat covers (think Mexican blankets, but with an Aussie twist.) - Minor body work - New wiring harness - Hidden stereo setup At some point the little 138ci Grey 6 will be swapped out for an early Red motor and a Powerglide will replace the 3 speed crashbox. Hopefully you guys enjoy following along, and I might even see some Aussie Hambers in October!
Certainly seems complete. Different too (to American eyes).I think your plan is about the best possible one given the situation.I have been under the impression that Holdens 6 cylinder engines were basically Chevrolet 6s with different displacements.Is that true? what size is a "red "engine.Could you post a pic of the engine that is in the car ? In any case best wishes for your project and please keep us informed.
They're similar, but not the same. We had a '49 Chevy for a little while and the Aussie "grey motor" is like a scaled down 216. Reds came in a whole heap of displacements, between 138ci and 202ci, the 202 and 186 are the most common. They do, but they're smaller and bulkier.
Just a couple of examples of Traditional-ish FE-FC Customs. Chrysler Royal and International/Dodge truck quads seem to have been pretty common in the 60's. I'm thinking about doing something with the grille (I have 2 spares) but I'm not decided on exactly what.
This is what I'm aiming for stylewise, although I'll be running around in the original paint/primer for a little while.
Those floors don't look too bad, a lot of us have started with a LOT worse. Cool project with some family history. Good luck with it. Giving yourself a deadline can be double-edged. It can get you energized for awhile, but it can also whip your legs out from under you if you miss it. My deadline was about 4 years ago
Go the long roof, excellent project, and they are getting to be worth a lot more money than most of us older guys would ever have expected. This is one car that you will want to keep though... it will teach you heaps, without costing a fortune ,always be worth more than you spend on it and will make a great daily /parts chaser for future projects . PLUS I think every single one of us regrets selling our first car.
Thanks Big A, those extra four years have paid off. That shoebox of yours is a piece of rolling art. That's the idea, my old man has a mess of '54-'59 Aussie Fords and a few HAMB Era F-Trucks that I can mess around with once I've graduated to big boy cars but the FC should keep me busy for a while
Run into an issue with the bondo, I'm not sure if I mixed it wrong or it's the humidity, but it's started to crack already. Might have to learn how to work in lead instead!
Round 2 went a lot better. I got up at about 6 and tried the filler again while it wasn't so humid. It needs a little more sanding but it's been raining on and off for the last fortnight or so. I'm also cooking up ideas for a neat custom grille.
I think it also was the humidity as I have experienced that too in the past when it has been so wet as it has recently. Looks like a good project. Are you going to upgrade the old grey motor? Can't go wrong with some SU's and a decent exhaust. Matthew
You could try a fan heater directed onto the bog to dry the air out a bit. You probably have never seen them in Queensland, they use them down here to melt the snow.
Yep, looks like I'll be bogging in the mornings from now on. I've been thinking about updating the Grey, but it's done a lot of miles and it's got a pretty bad knock going. If I can get a good, running grey I'd use it. If not, I'll move up to a 186. I'll go down to Bunnings tomorrow and have a look, the closest thing to snow I've seen up here was a foot of hail back in 2008, haha.
Tried a couple of looks on the front end before work, this is the one I like the best so far, but if anyone has any suggestions? I was going to have a go at putting '56 Ford headlight surrounds on just to see how they'd look, I might have to take that one over to the photoshop thread.
I would try the Photoshop thread too, much easier than tin bashing, especially when you want to try another different option or someone suggests a great idea.
Could someone point me towards somewhere I could get a set of window winders? Pretty sure the Holden ones are just recast Chevrolet ones.
I'll step up to a 186 one day, but the ol' 132 will have to stay in place as long as I'm on my P's. I do have a pair of dual carb intakes and a set of extractors, and I plan on getting the cam ground.
I think that little wagon has some potential. Stock single headlights look better than the quads. Your grey engine certainly has some similarities to the Chevy, at least rough visual.
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