On 10/22/2011 16:09, Paul Stenquist wrote:
Thanks Ann. It was here both times you came by. I'm not sure if it was "in
season" though. I put it away from October through May. Next time we'll go for a
ride.
Paul
that explains the last visit (a year ago, in October) and in
2005...hmmmm guess we were too busy shooting pool
ann
On Oct 22, 2011, at 12:29 PM, Ann Sanfedele wrote:
Paul - that's terrific... I have lovely memories of a Chevvy Bel Aire of that
year , but it was turquoise and belonged to a boy friend. Is it possible that
having stayed at your home twice you never showed me the Chevvy? Hard to
imagine I didn't remember it or take a photo of it
too.
I'll have to have someone save me the article this Sunday (I have a standard
supplier for this, but her husband throw things out so fast
it requires extra vigilance.
ann
On 10/22/2011 12:01, Paul Stenquist wrote:
On Oct 22, 2011, at 11:21 AM, Ken Waller wrote:
Paul, your '55 looks pretty as I rember them looking - other than consumerables
- brakes, tires batteries etc, how much of it is original?
Hi Ken,
It's product correct but probably wouldn't qualify as fully numbers matching.
Although there's no way to be certain on Chevies of that era as many parts
didn't have date codes.
the powertrain appears to be original. When I bought it, it was titled in Texas
by engine number rather than VIN -- that was standard in that state in the mid
fifties. So since the engine number matched the title number, I would think
it's original. The engine does have a date code and it precedes the date code
for the build, as does the date code on the third member. The trans is product
correct, but I don't think it has a date code. I know the floor, trunk floor
and the piece of metal below the trunk were replace when the car was restored
in the mid nineties. Most 55s, even those in good climates, rusted in those
areas. When I bought it, it had the wrong carburetor. It was a Rochester 2GC,
but it was from a later model car. I was able to buy a restored carb of the
right part number for a 55 265 from a guy in St. Louis. It was re-bronzed and
flawlessly rebuilt. Expensive, but nice. It was equipped with a later model
power brake booster and master as well. I trashed that
a
nd reinstalled the original 55 manual brake master, along with new brake lines,
wheel cylinder, linings and drums. I had the top replace and reupholstered the
front seat. I also had the body lifted off the frame and remounted with the
correct shims. All the bodies of that era were shimmed during assembly to
correct gaps and optimize fit. Whoever restored it in the nineties could have
done a better job, and of course it may have settled a bit. Gaps are quite good
now. I had trouble with shorts in the original 55 distributor and replaced it
with the Delco replacement part, which is actually a '57 style distributor.
I've fixed the shorts -- I think -- and I'm going to reinstall the original
distributor. Other than that distributor, the only non-correct parts I can
think of are the radio/cd player mounted under the dash and two JBL speakers
mounted in the rear seat side panels.
Paul
Kenneth Waller
http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/kennethwaller
----- Original Message ----- From: "Jack Davis"<jdavi...@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: GESO: My Chevy for the Times
Well done articles and photos, Paul. Especially the "tongue in cheek" recount
of your acquiring the '55 convertible.
I owned a blue and white two tone '56 Bell Air "hard top" back in the early
'60's and imagine it's still running somewhere today.
Jack
----- Original Message -----
From: Paul Stenquist<pnstenqu...@comcast.net>
To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List<pdml@pdml.net>
Cc:
Sent: Friday, October 21, 2011 4:56 PM
Subject: GESO: My Chevy for the Times
A couple of weeks back I mentioned that I had shot a car at the GM Design Center.
The car was my ''55 Chevy BelAir Convertible, and i shot it for this Sunday's NY
Times. The article that the pics accompany is a test drive of my car and a tribute
to '55 Chevies by Car& Driver editor, Tony Swan. It's all part of a Chey
100th anniversary package. Here's a gallery of some of the pics I shot and jpegs of
the Times pagea:
http://photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=1018508
I had to do a lot of backlight work to get the GM Design Center in the pics,
because the only place to shoot was on the north side of the building. But it
worked out well with some reflectors and flash fill.
The article is on the web as well if anyone is interested. Swan did a nice job:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/automobiles/autoreviews/a-fabulously-fifties-way-to-see-the-usa.html?_r=1
I also wrote a short and somewhat tongue-in-cheek piece about buying the car
eleven years ago:
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/road-trip-returning-a-55-chevy-bel-air-to-its-detroit-roots/
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