I just recently got this wagon and it has a grille emblem that I was told was available through JC Whitney back in the day. Mentioned it to a buddy of mine and he even had the ‘55 catalog. Anyone know what this might be worth or how rare it is? I’ve never seen one before. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Neat piece! I have never seen one either. I would think they are fairly rare but have no idea on value. Appears to be in great shape, has it been replated at some time?
The chrome looks really nice, can’t tell if it’s original or not. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
>>>Mentioned it to a buddy of mine and he even had the ‘55 catalog.>>> Less than the '55 catalog. Jack E/NJ
Cool, what else does the wagon have? IE: more pics!!!!!! Sent from my SM-G955U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Which one of us has't poured over a J. C. Whitney catalog when we were young, and just wished for some of the stuff they sold? I know I did? There's a similar part that was sold to replace the center grille piece on 57 Chevrolet's; the stock part seemed to take a beating, and the aftermarket part covered up the damage. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
I would pour over the Whitney ad’s like Christmas was around the corner. Never got to see many catalogs, but usually the ad’s would be in some of my magazines. Sent from my iPad using H.A.M.B.
JC Whitney was the place! I would look through the catalog, write down what I wanted, and just dream. I was lucky enough to actually buy some of the stuff from them. It was good quality too. Like slopok said, you could get anything from them. Even up through the 60's into the 70's the catalog were great. I love old catalogs.
Never seen one. I think it would work better floating in a small grille opening such as an early sports car. It looks awkward on the 55 grille. I love your wagon though(!) and think it would look great with a period tube grille.
JC Whitney was a serious player in the aftermarket for years. All of the pictures were illustrations without the manufacter's logos so they could send you an Offy intake if they ran out of Edelbrock product. When Roy Warchosky (sp?) went to the SEMA show, he had half a dozen associates following along and he'd point to a booth and somebody would run over and get the info. It was a great source for VW and Model A aftermarket accessories for years. Can't help but think that the catalog was printed by the same people who printed phone books based on the paper.
56sedandelivery : I'm running one of those '57 center grille covers on my htop. They came with red and blue paint where the emblem should be, I cleaned the last of that off mine. Mainly made as a cheap fix for a commonly cracked grill bar, kinda funky; but a little different. : IMG_0141 by bowie posted May 22, 2017 at 8:58 PM
Can't help on the value of the emblem but like others have said you could buy just about anything car related from them. Back in the early 70s my buddy had a 34 Plymouth coupe missing a wind shield frame had no luck finding one at the swap meets looked in an old whitney catalog and they had one listed the catalog was probably from the 50s 0r 60s so he figured it was no longer available he calls them and they had one can't remember the price but it was super cheap he was a happy man.
That's quite a futuristic looking car for 1955. Kinda Chrysler-Mercury-ish. One item I bought in about 1966 was a remote cable control for the distributor timing . A small bracket was mounted to side of distributor, connected cable end and mounted the advance/retard adjuster to the bottom of the '57 Dodge dash. It had a thumbwheel that moved a threaded rod and the cable in or out. I don't know as it helped or hindered; it did make quite a difference in the "smoothness" at 80 mph. When it was turned back, it made it grumble at lower speeds. No holes in pistons, so I guess it worked OK. Don't think they're available anymore...LOL
I remember seeing a complete accessory kit of add ons to make your 1955 Chevy look similar to a 1955 Buick. That was the same type of grill accessory.
I knew someone here would have/had one! A friend of mine that deals in 55-57 Chevrolet cars and parts also has one. One of his "not for sale" items, just for display at the swap meets. I've got a 1966 edition, but it's missing the catalog number torn off the corner on the cover; one of the order forms has 229D1 (actually both order forms have that number) on it; is that the catalog number? Lots of cool stuff, including chrome battery caps and black insulator spark plugs. I have't had a new J.C. Whitney catalog in probably 30 years. You can buy old catalogs on that auction site we all know and love, so you'll have something kitchie to go along with your car. The prices are unbelievable. I am Butch/56sedandelivery.
Man, this thread just brought up memories from the early 70s for me. My dad always had JC Whitney catalogs around for years. I used to pick them up and pick out all the parts to build a killer 66 Cyclone, according to all the tech I could find in the magazines. When I needed a break from that, I would polish up the second hand coaster brake Stingray I had. That experience taught me to use steel wool to polish rusted chrome. The Stingray was hopped up with a 20 tooth rear sprocket replacing the too-high 16 tooth.
yup, it doesn't help the looks of the car. It's hard to improve upon the original design of the 55 front end, but it is easy to mess it up.
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