The Top
Where to find a top?
On a trip to Boston, I stopped by Hampton Coach in Amesbury, MA and checked out what they had. They did have a Chevy top, which should fit all GM cars of that year, but they couldn't guarantee it. They did have suggestions for two people in Maine who could install a top however, and that's when I hit paydirt.
The first place was Leo's Custom Upholstery in Auburn, the town I work in. I'd driven by the place many times, completely unaware that it is a world-class upholstery emporium. Stopped by and damned if he didn't have a 1937 Buick 4-door convertible in the shop. It had the same vent windows, visors and rear view mirror as my car should have, so I got good pictures and measurements of it, a big aid in my search for those parts. They also located and ordered me a top kit at Bill Hirsch's in NJ.
The 2nd place was Ken's Classics in Pittsfield ME, (http://www.l-29cord.com/Contact/contact.html) a small town 40 miles south of Bangor. I called him and he said he could do the top, then we met at a spring car show and I got to see his exquisite 1929 Cord cabriolet. Then I actually visited his shop and had my mind blown. Ken is the leading restorer of 1929 Cords, and does full 100 pt. restorations of many other high end cars. He's a genius, able to do paint, body, upholstery, wood and lots of other things in his shop, and what he can't do knows people who can.
He not only could install the top, he could do all the wood work too. I drove the car (a little) the summer of 2003, then he came it took it up to his shop that fall. The car was in his shop all winter and into the spring. Here are some pics from that period:
He rebuilt all the wood top pieces, the wood in the doors and behind the seat and refabricated the vent window pieces. The top frame was rechromed, rear window installed and the top fitted to the frame. The vent and door windows could not be installed however, so the car was still a roadster, not a cabriolet. Nevertheless, I was able to drive the car with a top the summer of 2004 and get enjoyment from it, although it was still not right mechanically. By then I knew I had to go all the way and do a frame-off restoration. It was too rare a car to leave in such mediocre condition.
Here are some pictures of what it looked like last summer:
Here are grandsons Brandon and Chandler. It will be years before they will be able to even ride in it legally.
You are probably thinking, that car looks great? Why restore it? The reality is that it looks much better in pictures than it does in person. The paint is actually very poor, faded, chalky and blistering in many places. I give credit to whomever did the previous work – they did save this rare car afterall – but sure wish they had taken the time to do it right.
So now the car is back at Ken's. I get to work in his shop every Saturday (for an hourly shop fee) doing the grunt work, while he does the finish work.
On a trip to Boston, I stopped by Hampton Coach in Amesbury, MA and checked out what they had. They did have a Chevy top, which should fit all GM cars of that year, but they couldn't guarantee it. They did have suggestions for two people in Maine who could install a top however, and that's when I hit paydirt.
The first place was Leo's Custom Upholstery in Auburn, the town I work in. I'd driven by the place many times, completely unaware that it is a world-class upholstery emporium. Stopped by and damned if he didn't have a 1937 Buick 4-door convertible in the shop. It had the same vent windows, visors and rear view mirror as my car should have, so I got good pictures and measurements of it, a big aid in my search for those parts. They also located and ordered me a top kit at Bill Hirsch's in NJ.
The 2nd place was Ken's Classics in Pittsfield ME, (http://www.l-29cord.com/Contact/contact.html) a small town 40 miles south of Bangor. I called him and he said he could do the top, then we met at a spring car show and I got to see his exquisite 1929 Cord cabriolet. Then I actually visited his shop and had my mind blown. Ken is the leading restorer of 1929 Cords, and does full 100 pt. restorations of many other high end cars. He's a genius, able to do paint, body, upholstery, wood and lots of other things in his shop, and what he can't do knows people who can.
He not only could install the top, he could do all the wood work too. I drove the car (a little) the summer of 2003, then he came it took it up to his shop that fall. The car was in his shop all winter and into the spring. Here are some pics from that period:
He rebuilt all the wood top pieces, the wood in the doors and behind the seat and refabricated the vent window pieces. The top frame was rechromed, rear window installed and the top fitted to the frame. The vent and door windows could not be installed however, so the car was still a roadster, not a cabriolet. Nevertheless, I was able to drive the car with a top the summer of 2004 and get enjoyment from it, although it was still not right mechanically. By then I knew I had to go all the way and do a frame-off restoration. It was too rare a car to leave in such mediocre condition.
Here are some pictures of what it looked like last summer:
Here are grandsons Brandon and Chandler. It will be years before they will be able to even ride in it legally.
You are probably thinking, that car looks great? Why restore it? The reality is that it looks much better in pictures than it does in person. The paint is actually very poor, faded, chalky and blistering in many places. I give credit to whomever did the previous work – they did save this rare car afterall – but sure wish they had taken the time to do it right.
So now the car is back at Ken's. I get to work in his shop every Saturday (for an hourly shop fee) doing the grunt work, while he does the finish work.
posted by Bob Shafto at 9:35 PM
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