International Drive Your Studebaker Day is almost here!

Every year, the 2nd Saturday in September is designated International Drive Your Studebaker Day! That's the day for Stude owners to get their cars on the road and let them be seen. This year's date is September 8, 2012 -- so if you've got a Studebaker in the garage, get it out! Doesn't matter if it's not perfect -- just get it out and let folks see it. And bask in the glow of the thumbs-up you'll receive.

Studebaker Ad of the Week, #4: Hawks Rock

Hawk by Studebaker Advertisement - Ebony Magazine, May, 1960, a photo by vieilles_annonces on Flickr.

In 1960, the Hawk was in its 4th year as a model, but its 9th year as a body style. Where the original 1956 family of Hawks (Golden, Silver, Power, Flight and Sky) had been pitched as a complete range of sporty family cars with a range of powertrain choices and hardtop or sedan styling, by 1960 there was only one Hawk, and the Corporation was hitting the "personal car" concept pretty hard in advertising. Here's an example of that pitch, from the May, 1960 issue of Ebony magazine.

Steering Wheel Repair for the Home Studebaker Enthusiast

If you're working on an old car, you're likely at one time or another to come up against a steering wheel from hell. One that looks like the bad boy above (this particular vision in plastic was looted from from a '61 Studebaker Lark 4-door. The rest of the car looked worse).

So what do you do with a beast like this? Paint is easy enough, but what about the cracks? Several companies make kits to restore steering wheels (like this one from Eastwood), and some companies will re-cast your wheel -- they break off all the old plastic and mold new plastic onto the wire frame. Schrock Brothers are one such company well-known in the Studebaker world.

But most of us don't need a re-cast wheel and are willing to take on the process ourselves. But even though the kits you can buy are well-documented with detailed instructions, there's a bit of trepidation involved in breaking out the tools and cutting into your wheel, no matter how unlovely it is.

Tool Dude Tony, also known as Dudorino on the SDC Forum, has posted a YouTube video showing just how easy it is to do this job yourself; he illustrates on the wheel from his own '57 Hawk (seen in the vid). All you need are a few common tools, some two-part epoxy, and a little time, and you can have that wheel back in presentable shape in no time.

It's been noted in this Forum thread that the POR epoxy that Tony uses in the vid is suitable only for hard plastic wheels, as it cures rock-solid. If you have one of the flexible wheels, 3M #8081 Panel Adhesive is recommended as a filler, as it solidifies but does not harden.

Now there's no excuse for that lousy cracked wheel! Git 'er done!

Studebaker Ad of the Week, #3: Avanti!

1964 Studebaker Avanti , a photo by coconv on Flickr.

Love this ad for the '64 Avanti. As a good friend of mine says, "When this thing hit showrooms, it was like nothing anybody'd ever seen. It was a flying saucer."

Adjusting Idle Mixture on the WCFB

Idle mixture is an important setting on a carburetor, and most people don't know how to do it. What you're trying to do is set your carburetor's idle circuits for the most efficient operation with the least fuel.

There's no better tool for doing this than a vacuum gauge. It can also tell you a lot about the health of your engine; it's really an invaluable tool. For a great walk-through of how to use a vacuum gauge for diagnostics, check out this tutorial from Greg's Engine & Machine, of Copley, Ohio.

But for setting the idle mixture, there's nothing like actually seeing it done. Here's a short video tutorial I put together, showing idle mixture adjustment using a vacuum gauge on my '63 Lark with 259 and WCFB 4bbl. As you'll see, it's simple and fast - all you need are a tach, vacuum gauge, wrench and screwdriver.

Now go get 'er done!

Where can I find Studebaker parts?

Yeah, it's true - there hasn't been a Studebaker made since 1966. So it must be impossible to find parts, right? Wrong!

Check out this video taken at the recent (August, 2012) Studebaker Drivers Club International Meet in South Bend, Indiana. You'll see thousands of parts, mechanical, body and trim, plus interviews with parts vendors and reproducers who can find or make nearly anything for a postwar Stude.

If you're looking for Studebaker parts, as the video says,  your best bet is to join the Studebaker Drivers Club and avail yourself of all the resources available there. But if you're not the joining type, that's OK too - check out StudebakerVendors.com for a big listing of who and what.

Keep those Studes running!