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Location: The Mile High City | Mike, Bernie, or others:
Does anyone know what happened with the maintenance plan for this Dodge? I have a couple or back-up lenses and a tail lense that I would be happy to donate. Otherwise, they go on eBay. Let me know right away.
Thanks,
Mike |
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Location: The Mile High City | I sent an e-card to the National Civil Rights Museum at http://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/about/contact.asp I will see if they reply. If they are interested, I may just send the lenses directly. I would rather sent them to a list member to make sure they get installed, we'll see what happens. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 802
Location: Norcross (Atlanta area), GA | Well, it's Labor Day 2007, and I've just returned from a road trip to Memphis to visit a personal friend. While I was there, I drove by the Civil Rights Museum to take these pictures for an update of this thread. To this day, I still get questions about that car from the other visitors at that museum.
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Location: Slidell La. | That is one huge picture dude . So what are the questions they ask ? You got me on the edge of my seat . |
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Posts: 2932
Location: Lemoore CA | It looks like they are not going to accept any help and just let that poor car rot. Too bad, it dosen't have to be that way. |
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Location: The Mile High City | Au Contrair!
Here is the most recent e-mail I received from Mike (My57Saratoga):
"As promised last evening I did present to the membership of our local MOPAR (Chrysler Corporation) Club the possibility of refurbishing the 1959 Dodge. As I expected I was greeted with an enthusiastic response. Initially we forsee taking care of the taillights and other cosmetic details, but in the not too distant timeframe, we hope to work with local body shops to have the automobile painted and otherwise repaired. We may be able to take it on as a long-term project wherein we would "adopt" the car, make regular visits and take care of general housekeeping items such as washing, waxing, etc.
To start us on this adventure we would like to visit the car, possibly on the morning or afternoon of Saturday, 15 September. This date will allow me to publish the details in our local newsletter and firm up the date at our September meeting. If this date is agreeable with you, let me know with a suggested time. A couple of us would like to visit the car before this September date to let other Club members know of the exact status of the car. We are available this Friday afternoon, but if this isn't acceptable, I'm sure we can find a mutually-agreeable date and time.
We ventured for our first closeup look at the car. (It's behind a wall so I've never been close to it before, more about that later....). Definitely restorable, but it does have a lot of rust. I'll share pix when I have time. Quite a bit of rust on the driver's dog leg, trunk near where the window molding meets the lid and a few spots in the usual spaces. Also, it's missing wheel covers, emblems on the front fender and as you have seen, some of the DODGE badging on the trunk. Barbara alluded that she thought the car has never been washed or waxed, which is probably true, (they've been there since '91). The big problem is that the cars are behind a 3 to 4 foot wall and cannot be towed out of where they are parked. They have to be lifted over the wall. Barbara however did mention she may have a lead on someone who can remove the cars. Nathan did place a sticky in the Volunteer State region on the forum..."
I sent a set of new lenses to Barbara Andrews at the MLK museum, but it looks like Mike hasn't had a chance to install them yet. Barbara is planning to become a member of the Forwardlook.net forums and is very enthusiastic about having our assistance as well as that of the Memphis MoPar Club.
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Location: Lemoore CA | Good, I hope there is some progress. |
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | Our Memphis MOPAR club as a club activity is venturing downtown in mid-September to look and assess the car. I'll post our progress and pix on the Volunteer Region thread. (As you can see from the photos, the wall hinders movement of the car!)
Mike |
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Location: central oklahoma! | for what it's worth, it seems to me that the easiest way to deal with the wall is to remove it, do the work on the cars, then put it back. it ain't much of a wall, frankly.
this would, of course, mean having all ducks (and parts) in a row, with both cars, simultaneously. once the body work is done, it's not going to re-rust just sitting there. when the paint wears off, you can re-paint 'em where they sit with proper masking.
if you think about it, buildings have to be re-painted, re-roofed, brickwork tuck-pointed, etc. i would think that with volunteer wash-and-waxers, the cars should be fairly easy to maintain once restored. i'd be glad the dodge wasn't a ragtop, since they both sit outside! |
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Location: Oconomowoc Wi | I say we let Boyd fix it. He can fix ANYTHING. BWAAAA HaaaaHaaa |
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Location: The Mile High City | Mike and I received an update from Barbara Anderson on the status of the '59 Dodge:
Hello Mike and Mike,
Happy holidays to you both. Its been a little while since we last communicated and a few weeks since the Dodge and Cadillac have been returned to their nearly new condition. Yes, a local company here, Miles of Service, contracted with a crane company to provide the initial restorative work after a generous board member made the offer to pay for the work needed.
Both autos were crane-lifted from the Courtyard and placed on tow trucks for delivery to the body shop. They sanded down, filled in, repainted, polished and cleaned the cars. The vinyl top on the Cadillac was replaced and the faded green fins on the Dodge were repainted to the appropriate 1950s era green. All of this was accomplished within a 4 week period. (I'm certain that if we wanted the cars to be competition ready - which we did not - it would have taken considerably more time and resources) but we are quite satisfied and the comments of guests indicate that they've noticed the difference. We utilized the tail lights and the hub caps needed for the Dodge. Aside from some of the chrome lettering missing from the autos, they look pretty good.
I'm going to try to attach some pictures of the restored autos. THANK YOU BOTH SO MUCH for your interest, patience, commitment and concern for this long standing situation the museum found itself in. You two really are due the credit for opening up the dialogue again on these cars and their need for repair.
Now, we just need to try to keep them in tip top shape. Mike McKenna, I hope the car club is still interested in helping the museum to maintain these autos. I'm now told that a monthly schedule of maintenance will prolong the life of the cars. I'd really like to begin conversing with you and providing you with any information needed to put such a plan into place.
When you get a moment, don't hesitate to call. Thanks again. BA
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | There Must be a member HERE who can Donate the "O D G " Letters for the Trunk Lid,, If i had them i would Gladly send them,,
Thanks Mike for the Update, It,s GREAT to see the 59 Dodge having a Makeover and being Preserved.. |
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Location: The Mile High City | Hi, Clive:
I am already on it. I happened upon a set of block letters from a local junkyard (complete with all pins) and I had this car in mind. If anyone has a spare set of hubcaps, though - I'll bet they could use them. Also, Mike says they could use the "knight" emblems.
Mike
Edited by Lancer Mike 2007-12-18 4:47 PM
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Location: Bama | Good for the car. |
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Location: The Mile High City | Does anyone out there have a paint chip chart for '59 Dodges? From the original pictures Mr. Tester took, I expected this car to have gold fins. Does the green look right? |
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | I have a 59 Paint chip Chart,, I will see if i can dig it out shortly,, I think i remember where it is , But will take me a little while, Unless anyone else can Advise before..
The Green does seem Strange to me.!!!!!!!!!
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | Will have to Look tomorrow, The family is all asleep , So can,t turn the lights on and look where i think it is,,
It is all most Midnight this side of the Pond.. |
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Location: Scotland | sounds like it just got a quick tart-up. |
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | LMAO..
Hey Mark. I am not sure if our Family of FL,s across the Pond may understand the term " Tarted Up "........ But you are Probably Correct,, There was No need to get the Car running or drivable , As it is just for public Show.. I hope they used some Steel rather than just Bondo where it was needed though,, Or in a couple years that will look as bad as before... |
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Location: Scotland | Clive,i think the old girl has definitely been just "tarted-up" and by the sounds of it loads o' catty installed(cataloy cruiser) and painted personally by Earl Scheib. |
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Location: DFW, TX | Mike, your brother gave me a ton of trim for a '59 Dodge 4dr. What are the lions you are needing? I'll dig through this stuff and see if I can find anything, I'd be glad to help. Also, if there are any other misc trim parts they might need, let me know. It might be here with no car to go on. |
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| It is too bad these cars are being left outside. Perhaps a carport would be in order?
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Location: southern Oklahoma | lawrence - 2007-03-18 10:13 PM With a sky hook. Maybe the 59 will be for sale in 2017 when MLKJR's FBI files are made public. I'll stop there :cool: Malcolm X had King pegged  . |
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | As I remember there were a lot of "issues" in the rockers areas. I will bring my trusty magnet next time I see the car...Happy holidays!
Mike |
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | Lancer Mike - 2007-12-20 8:24 PM
Does anyone out there have a paint chip chart for '59 Dodges? From the original pictures Mr. Tester took, I expected this car to have gold fins. Does the green look right?
I downloaded this , Rather than Photo Copy Mine...
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | I will post the Rear End PIC here , So you can compare the Colours with the Chart Above..
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Board Moderator & Exner Expert 10K+
Location: .Norfolk..Mafia.. ,England UK | $HIT......... The Thread went to another Page,, So here is the Chart Again..
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Location: The Mile High City | Yep, the white is much to bright compared to pearl and I am surprised to see there is no gold poly in '59! I expected to see one, given the photos Mr. Tester snapped. Maybe Mike McKenna can get a digital picture of the data plate next time he visits the car. It would be interesting to match that with the paint sample chart (thanks for scanning that).
In regards to previous posts, of course you would not expect a frame-off hyper-correct restoration on this car - it sits outside and the generous board member who paid for all of this doesn't even own or drive it. I think it turned out great! At least the passerby can look at it now and say "neat". I think that's really all you want out of this one. |
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | I'll take a pix of the data plate as well as some overall pix of the car
Mike |
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Location: Dallas,Ga. | I have never seen this thread before. Really cool! I'm so glad that the cars were "restored" or at least preserved. I grew up in West Memphis, Arkansas. My parents, my sister, and me used to go to Memphis pretty often. I have fond memories of a drive-in Krystal restaurant in Memphis, I don't recall what street it was on though. My dad and I used to attend an Archery league in Bartlett in 1978-1979. So, Memphis is special to me. I also lived in Collierville for about a year in '80-'81, as Mike (my57saratoga) knows, as I met him once a few years back. Bravo to the Tennessee guys! (and Gals) --Zach |
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Location: The Mile High City | Zach, thanks for reviving this thread. I have wondered about the status of the car. The restoration is by-and-large done. I sent a few little items here and there to do my part. I think I sent a full set of trunk letters - I wonder if they ever went on? Mike or Nathan, do either of you ever get a chance to see this car anymore? I am still looking for a set of wheel covers to send to them. I can't think of anything else it needs.
If anyone has a spare set of decent wheel covers that they would be willing to donate, let me know and I will send their address to you. They can remove that set of '57 - '58 knock off spinners!
Edited by Lancer Mike 2009-11-30 4:27 PM
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Location: Some Island called Prince Edward | I too am glad to see this thread revived as I haven't seen it before either. Boy, I sure could use those antennas! Nice to see the car preserved!
Todd |
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Location: The Mile High City | Seems like and appropriate time to check in on one of my favorite Dodges...has anyone seen this car lately or have any more information about it?
I haven't talked to Barbara in a long time. I did write a letter to CoverCraft to see if they would be willing to donate a cover for this beauty - never heard anything more about that! |
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Location: Kansas City, KS | Lancer Mike - 2011-01-13 9:33 PM
Seems like and appropriate time to check in on one of my favorite Dodges...has anyone seen this car lately or have any more information about it?
I haven't talked to Barbara in a long time. I did write a letter to CoverCraft to see if they would be willing to donate a cover for this beauty - never heard anything more about that!
I was there the day before Labor Day 2010. I've got a couple more exterior pictures if no one has newer updates. The few locals on the street didn't know much about it other than they are just 2 old cars for MLK.
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Expert 5K+
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Location: cornpatch county, Southwest IOA | Hay Don! Cool shirt- that would go good at Greaserama 8-) .....MO |
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Location: The Mile High City | Very nice, Don! I am certain that I sent Barbara a whole set of the trunk block letters. Did you happen to notice if those were in place? From the photos we have seen recently, the interior looks like it is in fair condition - did you happen to notice how the interior looks?
I am going to look for a set of the appropriate wheel covers for the car at the Tri-State Swap Meet in February. |
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Location: Kansas City, KS | Thanks Steve! I was in Memphis most of Aug and left specifically to get back to KC for Greaserama. Hope to see you out there again next year. |
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Location: Kansas City, KS | Lancer Mike - 2011-01-14 9:28 AM
Very nice, Don! I am certain that I sent Barbara a whole set of the trunk block letters. Did you happen to notice if those were in place? From the photos we have seen recently, the interior looks like it is in fair condition - did you happen to notice how the interior looks?
I am going to look for a set of the appropriate wheel covers for the car at the Tri-State Swap Meet in February.
Mike, sorry I guess I was blocking out the important details. Here's the other pictures I have. PM me your email if you want the high res versions
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Location: Kansas City, KS | The last picture is the best I could get of the interior without climbing over the wall. It was sad to see rust showing up on the trunk after recently being painted. |
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Location: The Mile High City | Those are terrific Don! I think I sent them the block letters on the trunk, a few tail lights and bezels, and the chrome "vents" on the driver side. I agree with Neil that the actual car was probably had red fins (or at least a darker color). This is a nice display though.
Perhaps I should revive my letter-writing campaign to CoverCraft! |
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Location: The Mile High City | It looks like they need
1. a stainless steel elbow on the passenger side
2. a lance and shield for each side of the front fender
3. correct wheel covers
4. a chrome "vent" emblem for the rear passenger side
Is that all? If anyone has any of this stuff that they are not going to use, let me know and I can give you Barbara Andersons telephone number and address! |
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Location: Ny | I noticed the rust as well. You can see it clearly in the picture of the interior shot as well... just below the fin trim. Unfortunate. |
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | In 2007 and 2008 we in the local MOPAR club in Memphis made attempts to "sponsor" the cars outside the museum, to include general upkeep such periodic washing et al. (See my posts from 2007 in this thread.) We prearranged a couple of club weekend activities at the museum but unfortunately in each instance we could complete the tasks, because either on-site security had not been made aware of our planned visit and would not allow access or we did not have access to water to wash the vehicles (a key is need to unlock the spigot). After these failed visits, (most club members live in excess of 25 miles from the museum), a majority of members voted to pursue other charitable activities. We are glad that Bank of America has decided to sponsor the upkeep of the cars! (They definitely have more resources at their disposal than our 25-member club!)
Edited by My57Saratoga 2011-01-15 11:49 PM
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Expert 5K+
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Location: Big pimpin' | This is why no matter how "Well" a restoration is done, if the car just sits outside, or is driven in rain/snow/salt, etc. IT WILL RUST BACK THROUGH..I actually hadda guy ask me one time after I welded a few patch panels and haden't even filled the panels yet, "Do you guarantee your work NOT to rust out?" I replied: "Did the factory?"
Did we actually think the folks at this museum were gonna perform a ground up resto on these cars? I think not, even with Bank of AMerica on board..once the bill hits $20K each car, they aren't gonna get anything but what they got here..A quick repaint and a new vinyl roof on the Caddy...No removal of trim etc...I can only imagine what "Periodicaly wash" the cars means....A Water hose...All that water from rain isn't the only thing rusting the cars to the ground....How many here on this site wash their cars with a water hose? And are afraid to let rain hit it at a show? How bout driving them in salted, snowy roads after spending big bucks on a restoration?
Edited by dukeboy 2011-01-16 12:49 AM
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Location: Parts Unknown | dukeboy - 2011-01-16 9:40 PM
I actually hadda guy ask me one time after I welded a few patch panels and haden't even filled
the panels yet, "Do you guarantee your work NOT to rust out?" I replied: "Did the factory?"
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THAT is funny !
Pretty sure my car was guaranteed against rust. I keep asking around for direction, but
just can't seem to find the DeSoto dealership to bring it back to, to ask about the warranty. 
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Posts: 2679
| Doctor DeSoto - 2011-01-16 6:44 AM
dukeboy - 2011-01-16 9:40 PM
I actually hadda guy ask me one time after I welded a few patch panels and haden't even filled
the panels yet, "Do you guarantee your work NOT to rust out?" I replied: "Did the factory?"
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THAT is funny !
Pretty sure my car was guaranteed against rust. I keep asking around for direction, but
just can't seem to find the DeSoto dealership to bring it back to, to ask about the warranty.
Thats the best reply ever!! LOL!!!!!! |
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Location: The Mile High City | Well, it seems like a good day to revive this old thread. Has anyone out there seen this Dodge lately? I tried to get Covercraft to donate a car cover to the Civil Rights Museum, but I don't think they did. Bummer. |
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Elite Veteran
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Location: Kingston Springs , TN | Bank of America has taken on sponsorship of the two cars on site. They appear to be in good shape.
Mike |
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Location: new york | The only way to really protect these cars would be a plexi-glass case to keep the rain and snow off with some ventilation fans,! And still be able to view the display. Thats my 2 cents! HAPPY MOTORING! Victor. |
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Location: The Mile High City | Anyone seen the Dodge recently? |
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The MLK Civil Rights Dodge
