Hello Tim
Thanks for the address. I plan to follow up and see what happens.
The project is, in my opinion, on target. Here are some comments:
I have sent my dash out to American Classic Restorations (Uxbridge, MA)
for a complete refurbishing and Bill Vezina has told me that the work is
expected to be completed in late December or early January.
The steering wheel is now at D & D Automobilia and a new one will be
manufactured. I have talked to Don about his plans for the rebuild and we
did not discuss a completion date.
I have supplied the upholstery shop with a list of fabric suppliers
(from the OIC) and expressed my concern about the May 1, 2004 completion
date. He has had dealings with SMS and, while he has no complaints about the
final product, he has concerns about the waiting time. I have instructed him
to do what he can to meet the completion date but there must be no
compromises on the product delivered. As a matter of interest the car is
being restored to its original interior which is a burgundy wool broadcloth.
Note that the car will be completely reupholstered (headliner, carpet,
package tray, seats, door panels, trunk carpet,..) It looks like the door
panels will have to be manufactured by the upholstery shop as I cannot
locate original replacements (any leads?).
The rear bumper is at the plating shop. As you know Tim I purchased a
replated front bumper and a large lot of replated chrome for the car. In
spite of this I had to send out 45 other pieces for replating and there will
be
more to do yet.
Regarding the body work, if you were to draw an imaginary line on each
side of the car ( ~ 15" from the bottom) the portion below the line would
represent the corrosion area. The lower front fenders, all four doors, both
rocker panels and the rear quarter panels are all being "remanufactured" and
replaced. I purchased a replacement hood as this was more cost effective
than repairing the old one. Four holes in the floor boards have already been
repaired.
The engine is being rebuilt and had to be bored 0.030" over. Even the
connecting rods were pitted!
The transmission appears OK.
All new weather stripping was purchased from Andy Bernbaum (excellent
delivery time!).
Suspension and brake parts were ordered from Kanter. I will still have
to chase after a few parts that Kanter did not have.
The silvercrest roof has a few small dents (looks similar to hail
damage) and a company that specializes in repairing this type of damage has
been approached. They say they can repair it but not until late November as
they are currently flooded with work. I have seen some of their work and it
looks good enough to allow them to try and do it. They normally repair
damaged metal on cars and have not done SS but they say they are able to do
it. We'll see.
I have purchased parts from Phil Juliano and Lowell Howe plus a number
of other individuals. The catch with some of the other individuals is that
they wanted to sell everything from their restoration project, not just the
pieces I wanted. Beggars can't be choosers so I have bought them. I now have
what looks like a gazillion extra parts including 4 shark tooth grilles!
This will be taken care of in due course.
I still need tail lights, front and rear parking/backup lenses plus the
small reflectors that fit below the tail lights. I am told that the
reflectors have something in common with hens' teeth (rare, rare, rare) but
who knows? Maybe I will stumble onto them.
The car is equipped with front and rear A/C. and the people to
repair/overhaul it have been found. Once again we'll see.
I could go on and on (e.g. refurbishing emblems, I have a replated metal
plate for the flitesweep deck but the eagle has been plated over as well as
the "sunburst" lines so what to do?, where to locate the tire change
equipment which I do not have,.......) but this will give you an idea of
where I am.
I never believed a project like this would be so involved and so
expensive!
I have taken a large number of pictures as the work progressed.
I stated at the beginning that it was my intention to restore the car to
a 2+ condition and I have not lowered my standards.
If anyone wants more information related to my experiences or if I can
help anyone working on a '59 I would be pleased to do so.
Mel
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tim Hulse" <thulse@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, October 31, 2003 8:02 PM
Subject: RE: IML: Please WELCOME Back Mel Wyshynski (1959)
> Mel,
> Welcome back to the list. I hope your project is going well. I would like
> some pics when you get a chance. You could send them to my personal e-mail
> if you wanted. Also the IML guys are really good with posting pictures.
They
> posted a bunch of mine in the year by year (1956). Last time heard you
> needed the address for a build sheet. Here it is incase you didn't get it.
> DaimlerChrysler Historical Collection
> CIMS 488-00-00
> One Chrysler Drive
> Auburn Hills, MI 48326-2778
>
> They will need
> Year___________
> Model___________
> Serial/Vin Number_____________________________
>
> Name_______________________
> Address______________________
> City_____________State or Province__________________
> Zip______________Country_____________________
> Phone______________________
>
> Good Luck
> Tim Hulse
> Bakersfield Ca
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Mike &
> Christine Trettin
> Sent: Friday, October 31, 2003 2:56 PM
> To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: IML: Please WELCOME Back Mel Wyshynski (1959)
>
>
> New Subscriber(s): Mel Wyshynski
> Email Address is: mvwyshy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Member Location: Manitoba (Western Canada)
>
> Car(s) owned: 1959 Imperial LeBaron (deep ruby) which is currently going
> through a complete frame off restoration. Targeted completion date is May
1,
> 2004.
>
> Self-Introduction: I am signing up once again. It appears like I was
dropped
> from the list during the previous revisions/upgrades. I look forward to
> rejoining the information exchange.
>
>
>
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