What Are You Working On?

51hornet · Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2005 1:11 am Post subject: What Are You Working On?

Hey folks,

drop us a little note and tell us what you are working on? doing an engine rebuild? body work? Interior?

I am working on fixing a leak in my differential. Bit of a bear as the 51 does not have a cover on the pumpkin. Have to pull the axle shafts and then drop the driveshaft and remove the cover which has the gears in it. Before I go to that trouble I am looking for a 52-54 Dana 44 rear end as a replacement.

Also thanks to my good buddy Ray I am rebuilding two 308 engines. Going to 7x both of them. Thats back burner when I have time project. My daughter wants to help so I will teach her how to rebuild a 308 which is a skill that most 9 year olds need to learn Razz

So check in and tell us what you are working on and if you need any advice or have any to offer.

Toby_Peters · Pacemaker Joined: Apr 21, 2005 Posts: 15 Location: US

Well, I just bought a 1950 pacemaker and I have just pulled the engine and tranny and I am going to have them rebuilt by an old car nut buddy of mine. Should take me all summer I think. Now I have 2 Hudsons with my 54 special and both are in pieces. I will never learn Laughing

Will keep tuning in when I have updates.

Good luck on the rear diff.

superjet · Jet Joined: Jun 30, 2005 Posts: 2

Howdy,

new to the site. Just found it a couple of weeks ago. I do lurk and watch for new stuff and I have used the nice links section.

I have 53 2C Super Jet sedan. I rebuilt the engine a couple of years ago and she is running nice. Its an older restoration I drive it all summer then garage for winter. It has Twin H and is very snappy.

Just did her montly lube and service and adjusted the carbs. In spring I changed the fluid in the hydro. Thats about it. Only advice I have is remember to lube your Hudson regularly. Follow the owners manual or get the service manual from Faxon. These cars need to be lubed.

Thanks for the great site.

51hornet · Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2005 8:39 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

Hey Toby congrats on the new Hudson to add to your collection. Now you have to get one back together to drive.

Hey Super Jet welcome to the site and thanks for the kind words. I like to keep the history of Hudsons alive so its fun for me to keep this site going and its great when people join up and join in. Sounds like you have a nice Jet. They were quite the speedsters with the Twin h.

And you bring up an excellent point about lubing your Hudson its really important to keep them running right to follow the lube guide and hit all the points on the car every 1000 miles or so. Keeps all the parts running nice and stops premature wear.

51hornet · Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2005 12:48 am Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

Another tip I have when pulling down an engine or pulling any part for rebuilding get yourself a digital camera and a bunch of tupperware. Take pictures of the setup before you rip it apart and when you take it apart label the tupperware and keep your bolts separate.

Saves all the hassle when you go to rebuild which maybe six month's later and you are trying to remember what went where. Organization is the key to success. I have two areas setup the rip down area and the rebuild area. The rebuild area is super clean and I lay out what I need to rebuild and take it slow and easy. Having a clean area ensures your parts go together clean. Make sure you use a build lube that will keep the parts oiled until the oil pump kicks in. White grease build lube is good for this and it does not break down easy so it keeps the friction down until things get lubed again.

Clean, clean, keep those bench's clean.

wwhale · Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2005 7:23 am Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

I'm working on a 47 3/4 ton pickup I bought as a driver this past winter hoping to use this summer but I've had to work through the fuel system cleaning out the 6 year old gasoline goo. I pulled the fuel tank and had it dipped but ended up with swiss cheese so I had to have a new one built in Calgary. It took over a month to get the new one back and I haven't had a chance to cut new gaskets and re-do the sending unit. So it sits up on the jack stands... The June monsoons didn't help either!

Other than the fuel system the truck seems good enough to start driving. It had an amateur restoration and paint job many years ago that is starting to peel off and lots of brown vinyl on the interior, but the basic vehicle is pretty solid and is polishing up not bad. It also has a funky signal light device on the roof which I haven't looked into yet. Presumably other minor work will start to show up once it turns some miles.

I was going to trailer it down to Reno but that trip is no longer possible.

Hopefully I'll have it driveable for the Alberta Hudson meet (assuming there is one this year?? Has anyone heard of anything yet?)

I also have a 41 1/2 ton, a 51 Commodore 8 4dr, and a 54 Super Jet 4dr. All projects.

Warren

51hornet · Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2005 4:05 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

I haven't heard anything about a meet this year. be sure nice to setup a parts swap tent and see what everyone needs.

So Warren, who in Calgary built the tank for you?

tristansdaz · Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2005 4:21 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

Just to keep the forum moving along, I'm working on a 1952 Hornet Sedan. I've collected almost all of the parts and will start disassembly this fall. The car is as rust free as can be expected as it came from Southern California.

I've got a 54 308 and Hydro that I'll probably put in the car until I rebuild the 55 308 I have. The original engine was long gone when I got the car.

51hornet · Posted: Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:18 am Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

Welcome to this neck of the woods. Collecting the parts is a lot of the fun. I have two 308's I am rebuilding. Got them off Ray one of our members here. Ray's the Hudson wizard up here. If he can't find it or buy it he makes it. He did a beautiful job on his suspension. And the whole car. In the gallery you can see some pics. He even did his own interior looks amazing. He builds his own powder coating ovens so I am his new best friend Laughing

Up here in Canada I am trying to network our Hudson nuts together and as Warren mentioned we have an informal meet that happens each year. My goal is to get the guys on here so we can have a support group and access to parts and info.

Keep us informed on your progress when you can.

wwhale · Posted: Fri Jul 22, 2005 7:31 am Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

51hornet wrote:

I haven't heard anything about a meet this year. be sure nice to setup a parts swap tent and see what everyone needs.

So Warren, who in Calgary built the tank for you?

The tank was built by A & A Manufacturing. My tank took over a month to get but I think they were temporarily overloaded with oilfield work. It's not very pretty but I'll see how it fits once I get a chance to install it. Cost was $425. I still have to make new gaskets for the sending unit and fuel line fittings.

The original tank had some rubber-like strips completely covering the top that presumably were there to stop vibrations but ended up trapping water and causing the top to rust out. I'm planning on coating the top of the tank with rubberized undercoating instead unless someone has a better idea or suggestion.

51hornet · Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2005 2:49 am Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

Undercoating sounds good. You can also get it powder coated with this new stuff they use when they actually powdercoat the underside of cars that have been stripped. Its a hardened coating that protects from rust and is strong enough to protect from gravel and stones. I saw it on Overhauling. Looked pretty nice.

Of course I don't know if we have it but I would say yes as its a similar process that makes truck bedliners.

tristansdaz · Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2005 8:27 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

I just added another one to the stable. If anybody saw it on EBay, it is the black 1954 Hornet that was in Sausalito, CA. My bid topped out at $4000 but the highest bidder backed out and the seller offered me the car at $4600. Probably the best dollars spent. The drivetrain has been completely rebuilt by Al Saffrahn in Arizona and done right. The engine and transmission has only 300 miles on them when I picked up the car.

Of course, right after picking it up, we drove to Reno for Hot August Nights. The car cruised right along a 75 or so without any problems. I'll probably keep it the way it is exterior-wise for a while as the paint is all original even though it has been polished through to the red primer in a few spots. It will be needing a complete interior though.

My wife has her eyes on this one, it'll be hers after the '52 gets running...
She has a Canadian connection. Her grandmother and grandfather lived in Chilliwack in BC.

96volvot5 · Posted: Mon Aug 08, 2005 10:44 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

I saw that car when it was on the Internet it looked very nice. Looked like the kind of car that could go fast. Loved the red wheels and smaller hub caps. Nice buy. The price was certainly a bargain.

You should post some pics in the gallery here. Especially of the engine.

51hornet · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2005 3:53 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

I saw that car as well sounds like you got a bargain the engine and tranny rebuild is probably worth 3500 in street dollars. I seem to remember it had a pretty bad interior and the headliner was missing what was it like driving without that and in Reno heat?

Nice car be nice when you do the interior it will make a really nice interior. I am looking for a 54 car to house a hot 7X 308 I am building. What to do the wheels like yours I think that looks pretty nice that way.

And yes please do post the pictures in the gallery I would like to see the engine as well.

tristansdaz · Posted: Tue Aug 09, 2005 6:57 pm Post subject: Re: What Are You Working On?

As soon as I get pics, I'll post. The car drives great. It was really hot driving to Reno but well worth it. The interior is shot but in the long run, that's the easiest to deal with. The wife has done home upholstery before and I have installed headliners so...

I'm going to leave the outside the way it is, well polished through the primer. I think it gives the car some character. The red wheels were powder coated so I'll never have to paint them again. I think they look great with the little caps.

I haven't gotten to the bottom of Al's receipts yet but the seller has approx 9K in receipts for work done to the car. Half price is always the best!!!