I have always felt that the majority of old cars do not look good with paint colors that were not used originally on the vehicles.
In the mid fifty's, metallic colors were the rage on the new cars... Naturally the customizer's started painting their creations with the metallic's.. For the most part they looked pretty dumb...
Of course there are some variations... Reds and yellows look good on just about any vehicle. Of course when everything is said and done, color choices are like a persons choice in women, everyone has a different opinion of what looks good to them..
My personal preference for how a car looks changed about fifty years ago. I like sleepers, lots of modifications under the car for safety and performance. Tasteful modifications on the exterior, leaning very heavy towards the stock look....Bill

 

Progress is being made with the restoration of the body.. The engine was installed into the engine bay last week and the front sheet metal was hung back onto the chassis/body.
The engine location was checked for clearance to the firewall, splash shields and core support..
It is a good thing we left the recess in the firewall.. The HEI distributor needs the room. We will be fabricating the eng/trans mounts this week.
The 200R4 trans is going to fit perfectly, the unit is short enough that the tail shaft does not conflict with the X member in the frame.. I think a TH400 and/or 700R4 would have been a problem.
The radiator is going to be a challenge. I know a stock type radiator will not handle the power and accessories the car will have..
I checked all of my catalogs for an alternate radiator.. Summit Racing listed some very nice aluminum radiators... I ordered one of Summit Racing's radiators, a cross flow 2 row aluminum, 2-1/4" wide 22" x 19".. The Summit catalog said the radiator would handle up to 500 HP.
The radiator is supposed to be here today... We will fit it to the core support, hopefully in the original location. If everything fits we will continue with the fabrication of the eng/trans mounts.
I am going to use an after-market ABS fan shroud with an electric fan.
The floor pan is all done and the welds ground down... Turned out very nice... Probably better than new.
Repairs to the rear quarters/fenders is just about done... Still have to address the minor rust out in the section below the rear tail section.
The car will not sit as low as shown in the pix below.. The rear springs are not installed yet.... Bill

 

I have been absent from this forum since August due to a drastic change in my health.
During a routine physical exam in early August some spots where noted on my right lung and lymph nodes..
Followup tests concluded that the "growths" were most likely malignant.. Following extensive consultation with my doctors, it was decided that surgery was the best solution in lieu of messing around with chemo/radiation..
On September 26 I was operated on to remove the growths from my lymph nodes.. They were benign.. High fives all around..
On Oct 3. I underwent lung surgery.. The growths were benign.. The result of a much earlier infection, most likely caused by an occupational and/or environmental occurance.
The original intent of my project to rebuild the '49 Olds was as I mentioned in my opening comments to this topic... To recreate a car similar to the car that I had when my wife and I to be, first starting going together in 1955. The project was to be a surprise to my wife.. In light of my health situation, I felt it would be best to bring my wife up to date with my personal matters, including the Olds.
Needless to say my wife did not see the romantic aspects of the Olds in the same light that I did...
It is a pity that women are not on the same wave length as men... I have very fond memories of the good times we had cruising around, and the passion we shared in the Olds.
Before I entered the hospital I informed the shop that was working on the car of my situation, I instructed them to slow down since there was no urgency to complete the car since I had informed my wife about it's existence.
At this point in time the chassis work has been completed.. The chassis was then stripped down and was sent out to be powder coated. The chassis has been re-assembled, eng/trans/dif/exhaust. The chassis has to be plumbed for brakes/fuel.
All of the body repairs are done. The GM tilt steering column and peddle assembly is mounted. The body has been remounted onto the frame.
The next phase will be to make the engine run and the car made drivable... There are no current plans to paint the body.
Currently my plans for the car are uncertain, I might be putting it up for sale....Bill

 

Glad to hear you're on the right road with your health.

Perspective wise, the car is now a minor issue. Health and family are first.

Best wishes in all avenues.

 

Sorry for the health problems Bill. My wife just went through that back in June. She had the center lobe of the right lung removed but is doing great. Will keep you and your family in our prayers. Best of luck to 'ya. Mike

 

Best of luck. I hope things turn around for you and you are able to complete your dream. Stay in touch.

 

Hi:
I have been following your project for some time,I really like it !!!
Just to let you know,I hav a large quantity of 1949/1959 olds "88' parts,mostly show quality trim,for both.Also I have a lot of used body panels,mech parts & several 1949/1950 "88" cars for sale (builders)
If I can be of any help,you can contact me !!!
Tom

 

Hi Tom, Thank you for the comment on my project.
I am in need of a few parts for my car:
Very good to excellent '49 Futuramic emblem for the left front fender..
I have two, one pretty good one, however it is cracked, the other is very badly pitted.
Good to excellent right front grille extension bar that wraps around the fender.
PM with any info, prices, condition, etc.. Bill

 

Hi Bill:
Sorry,just sold my pair of N.O.S. front fender "Futuramic" pieces.
As for the grille extensions I have (3) pair,however they go with the complete grille assembly,I have (3) complete grilles,all show quality,I have one on E-bay right now,have a look!

 

I am very happy to report that with very few limitations, I have completely recovered from the lung and lymph node operation... No apparent side effects except for a little shooting pain once in awhile... Maybe "Mario" is still in there, pulling the staples out...
In light of my new found lease on life, I have decided to move forward and complete the rebuild of the Olds.. The chassis is completed, everything powder coated in satin black.. The engine, trans etc. have all been reinstalled, need to do the exhaust system and plumb the brakes.
All of the repairs to the body have been completed.. Two coats of an etching primer applied, sanding between the coats, and a buff colored primer applied.
We are going to shoot the finished color, Dune Beige, on the cowl, jambs and around the windows prior to putting the body back on the chassis...
The car should be completely back together and running by the first of the year.. I am going to hold off on the finish painting of the body and the upholstery until I put a few miles on the car... I want to get any of the "bugs" out of the car before we put finish paint on it.... Bill

 

Great that your feeling better. Nothing like getting back on the projects. I just picked up a 41 Pontiac Torpedo 2 door fleetline. Looks a liittle like yours. Gonna be my next year project. It already has a blueprinted 350/ th350, Dual exhaust, new fuel system, A Nova subfame and rear. Stripped and a coat of etching primer. Picked it up from a lady that had lost her husband a few years ago. It was his baby. She gave me a great deal. and I made her a promise to take her for a ride when it's done.

 

I picked up a '48 Chevy 2dr flt-line (fast back) a couple of years ago, I was going to rebuild it into a street rod because I was not having any luck finding a '49-50 Olds fst bk..
The Pontiac is kind of a cross between the Chevy & Olds.. still the same basic body, longer wheel base than the Chevy, not quite as good of quality in the chassis/suspension department..
I like a lot of features of the "41-48 Pontiac's.... Bill

 

The one I got has the 75 Nova Front suspension, and rear springs already installed. The guy that was building it was a welder by trade, so everything is done right. I'll post a couple of pics when I get home.
The 41 Pontiac has the same basic bodylines, just a front fenders aren't smooth with the doors. sort of still have running boards.

 

Actually the '40 GM cars were the last bodies to have running boards, that is except for the '40 Buick Super's and Pontiac Tarpedo's..
The basic GM body, '41 to '48 is the same except for the front clip and the fender extension that was bolted over the '41 front doors..
Many years ago when I thought I wanted to be a body repairman (1949-50)I had to repair a '42 Chevy that had been rolled... The car turned out to be unrepairable because it was an eastern car, the whole lower portion of the body was rusted away..
At the time, used cars were very expensive because of the EPA, government controls on pricing due to WWII rationing..
We got a '41 from the wrecking yard, it was a very nice car that had hit a tree, totaling the front end... We cut the body at the factory windshield post seams, across the floor at the factory seam adjacent to the toe board.
We married the two units together using the '42 cowl and front clip.. Done deal.. The car was like new..
A guy in town had a '42 Black Out Model.... No bright trim.. He found out about the '42 we were working on, it was an early '42 so it had all of the bright trim.. CHROME!!!! We sold the '42 bright trim to the guy with the blackout model, went to the Chevy garage and purchased new '46 grille and side moldings... Magic the '42 now looked like a '46.... Bill

 

Welcome back Bill, and glad to hear is well. Can't wait to see pictures of your recent progress.

 

We have made great progress during the past few weeks.. The chassis is all done except for fuel/brake lines and the exhaust system..
All of the metal work on the body is completed, a couple of coats of an etching primer was applied, sanding between coats.. A buff colored primer was then applied...
The cowl, jambs, trunk and around the windows was sprayed with the finish paint, Dune Beige, yesterday... Neat color, it looks good on the body.
Yesterday afternoon the chassis was rolled under the body, the body was lowered onto the chassis , the combination of Dune Beige, black chassis and the engine with it's stock '49 green paint and abundant chrome looks really nice..
Our next project is to plumb the brake system, re-install the peddle assembly, (79 Cad Seville) the brake booster, (new) re-install the tilt column, ('78 GM) and build the exhaust system..
We are going to get the car running before we put the front sheet metal, inner/outer fenders on..
I am a little miffed, in the last couple of months there have been two Dune Beige and one silver '49-50 Olds 88 fst bks appear in national publications, all of which were Resto-Mods.. I think mine will still be unusual, because mine will be the most stock looking from the outside, and it will be the only one with a "Mondello" built 403 CID engine..

 

It's looking great. With that stock looking color it's gonna be quite the sleeper. Keep up the good work.

 

Outstanding workmanship.

 

Finally at my home computer. Here are a couple of shots of the 41 Pontiac I scored. Hope to start on it this spring.



All the chrome parts rechromed.

all the new glass.

And the shot next to the olds.

 

Glad to hear you are feeling better. The car is looking great.

 

Hey Bill your 49 looks awesome!!! Very nice work. I will follow your progress.


Per Ornberg

 

Progress is being made on the Olds. The body is attached to the frame, all of the brake/fuel lines ran, and the exhaust is completed to just before the rear axle.. Have to put the back bumper on before we can complete the exhaust.
We are now working on getting the engine completely hooked up so we can get "smoke out of it".. We had to modify the front fender splash pans extensively to allow for the cowl mounted brake booster/master cylinder.
I was going to relocate the battery to the trunk, then changed my mind because the starter is on the left on the 403 engine, same as the 303's were.. Modified the fender recess to fit a smaller battery, using a late model Nova/GM battery box.. Worked great..
Screwed up on the radiator that I ordered from Summit Racing.. I had ordered a Summit Racing cross flow aluminum radiator to stand up in lieu of laying it crosswise.. This is a neat trick I learned a couple of years ago.. For a GM car you order a Ford radiator, likewise you use a Ford type car, you use a GM style.. This puts the in and out tubes in the right place..
The advantage to the Summit Racing radiators is that they are huge cores/tanks made for stock car, etc., racing.. They also only cost $190. in lieu of $400. plus for a Griffin, etc..
When I ordered the radiator I did not allow for the height of the front fender filler piece.. The radiator I ordered, 19-1/2" by 21-1/2" was short on the 21-1/2" side.. Needed at least 26" to get the radiator above the fender filler panel..
I ordered a "Flex-A-Lite Fan", # 180, ABS plastic fan and shroud to fit the core size.. It is going to work perfect...
Hopefully we will have the car running sometime this week... Bill

 

Had a little brain hiccup yesterday when I made my recent posting to the forum, I forgot to post any pix, sorry about that.. In the following you'll note that I corrected my mistake...
The sharp eyed guys will note the location of the fill neck on the radiator.. When all of the fitting of the radiator/fan is completed, the radiator will be removed and the fill neck will be relocated to the top of the tank..
The earlier versions of this Summit Racing radiator had the fill neck located on an angle in the corner of the tank, this location did not need modification if a overflow tank was used.. The tanks Summit is currently using are "formed" in lieu of being fabricated/welded up... Better design, fewer places for leaks..

 

During the past 30 plus days progress has been made towards getting the Olds running.. Lots of picky little things like getting the brakes hooked up, all new steel lines, etc. The steering and exhaust system..
I did not like how the radiator fit/finish was turning out.. The fender filler panel at the front of the radiator really looked out of place.. Turns out there are two styles for this panel..They are basically the same, but different.
When you compare the pix in the Feb thread and this thread, you will note the final version of the panel. I think this last revision looks like it belongs on an Olds. It will fit in with the over all theme of the car once it is painted... Bill

 

Looks good, can't wait to see a video if it started up. Filler panel looks a lot better after you modified it. I finally bought a filler for my 50. I found one off a 1950 88. It is a bit more narrow, so I will also have to do some mod work.

 

HELP!!... I need a pair of hood springs for a '49 88.. One of the hood springs on my car snapped yesterday.. Any help will be greatly appreciated.. Bill

 

A fellow Olds lover in Eastern Idaho came through for me with a pair of hood springs... He also had a right side grille extension that was in good shape, minor pitting, should clean up very nicely once it is re-chromed...
A big thank you to everyone that gave me leads on possible sources for parts...
The initial rebuilding phase of my 88 is coming to a conclusion. The car is going to my shop next week, I'll be able to do a lot of the work required, i.e. installing the sound deadening, having the glass installed and sorting out the wiring.. I plan on driving the car for a bit, making sure that all of the bugs are out of it, then I'll remove the lights, etc., in preparation for the finish paint, upholstery.. Bill

 

any updates ...??

also with the 49/ 50 windscreen .... the 49 is split down the middle and could you just install a 50s windscreen w/o any modifications on a 49 ....??

 

No Modifications required except for cutting out the division bar!!!
You will need the (4) joint covers, (2) exterior Stainless& (2) interior, painted steel.
Good luck
Tom

 

where can 1 obtain these item(s) .... just wondering ...

 

I am liking everything you are doing to this car, very nice.

 

I can come up with them,when you need them
Tom

 

alrite cool, thxs

and

glad to see this car in becoming closer on being on the road

 

Just after 9/11 happened I brought my Olds home from Arizona where it had been baking since 1962, I took it apart and started then, now all these years later I am finally making progress and hope to be done in a year or two. It has been said that guys like pictures so I will post a few here. Hope you like them.

 

Blucar Bill, I may have some parts you want, send me a note if you like, I live in Calif too. I just posted some pictures of my car in progress too.
My user name is 49 fastback,
Terry

 

Start up a build thread on your car that way we can keep up with your progress.

 

There is one aspect of installing a '50 one piece windshield into a '49 that many people overlook.. The windshield must be correct for the body it is being put into.. i.e. a 4 dr and/or 2 dr sdn, must have a windshield from a like car.. If you have a 2 dr club sdn,, ( fastback) you have to use a windshield that is 1.5" smaller that the notch back sedans..
I was told that the 2dr club sdn uses the same windshield as a conv or a hard top Holiday.. When I ordered the windshield rubber from Steele, they verified the difference in the the windshield rubber..
When I measured the windshield openings... 2dr sdn vs. 2dr club sdn I found the 1.5" difference, measuring the door opening also revealed that the club sdn doors are shorter, in height, than a 2dr notch back..
This difference in the height of the top could explain why the club sdn is such a good looking car..
As a side bar to the one piece windshield saga... The '50 Olds windshield can be installed in any "49 GM car, so long as the correct body match is followed...
I'll ditto Tom's comment about the stainless trim pieces that are required.. Bill

 

Lots of good info there, thanks.

 

reading about your 49 makes me think of mine, another car I should never have sold! also a fastback 88, I had a 350 Olds, 400 trans and 2:56 posi Cutlass rear and a nova (maybe Omega lol) subframe. We made a number of runs to northern N.Y. and New England with the a/c on and getting 18 mpg. It was just a nice running and driving car. I also had the '50 fender trim which really does make the front end look finished. I do have a nice rear seat left from it which would be hard to ship, maybe a couple of armrests- I had changed the interior. Now I'm driving a 37 Caddy with a Jag front suspension, 429 Cad motor, 700 trans and explorer rear 2450rpm@ 80mph with the 3:73 gear, while trying to get the 34 Olds L series(8cyl) duel sidemount 4 door sedan on the road-455/700/373 gear. Wishing you the best with your '49, be wise enough to keep it-not like me!! Dave

 

I think we have all made the mistake of letting some very neat cars, and a few neat girls slip away from us through out the years.. The girls were probably not a big loss, the cars were..
Progress on my my '49 has slowed to a crawl.. The shop that did the body work kind of screwed up the re-installation of the doors/hood and front sheet metal.. I had to stop them because, from my point of view the work was being done all wrong..
The hoods for the '49-50 Olds 88 are a very difficult item to get in alignment, actually this is typical of all of the '49-53 GM cars.. Think about it, how many '49-53 GM cars have you seen with a hood that does not fit the cowl?.
The '49-53 GM hoods do not generally unbolt from the pivot hinges, the hinges have to be removed from the cowl, then the hood can be removed from the hinge assembly.. In the case of the '49-50 Olds, the hood is bolted to the pivots which are attached to the hood cross brace via many special 1/4" carriage bolts through the rear edge of the hood.
The hood hinges/pivots can be removed with the fenders in place, however, it is very difficult to do so. Reinstalling the hood with the front fenders in place makes the job more difficult... It could be that the recommended shop procedure to remove the engine was to remove the springs, lifting the hood to it's uppermost position, then remove the engine utilizing a "cherry picker" type of hoist in lieu of an overhead hoist.
The front sheet metal and doors were completely installed on my car before an attempt was made to install the hood... A typical procedure on most cars...
I now have a new body man, Matt, involved with the project.. He recently took on a project to do body work on a '53 Buick Super that someone else had started.. The hood on the Buick had the same problem as mine.. Matt accessed the problem, removed all of the front sheet metal, re-hung the hood to fit the cowl, then re-installed the front sheet metal... Problem solved..
I had Matt access the problems on my '49, simple solution, remove the front sheet metal, rehang the doors to fit the body, shimming same as needed, fit the hood to the cowl, then re-install the front sheet metal..
The original body man wanted my permission to start cutting the various panels and core support to correct what he perceived to be original factory screw ups.... Of course my answer was a big "NADA".. The body was arrow straight before dis-assembly, therefore, the sheet metal should fit without alteration...
I noted that the original body man had used fender washers as body shims, in lieu of the correct body shims... He claimed that there was no source for the old style of "horse shoe" shaped body shims.. Ha! I had no trouble locating a source for them, bought two boxes... Bill