New to the Forum

Fisherman_Eric

Just signed up the other day and I am wanting to get started with a 1950 Hudson Commodore 6 Convertible.  I don't have much experience so I am hoping there is a book or books on restoration basics that I can utilize or any other resource anyone would suggest.  I've ordered the Mechanical procedure manual for 1950 and also for 1948-49 for reference material.  The car is in fairly good shape, but hasn't been used since the late 1980's and needs some TLC.  I'm told it is fairly rare so I would like to start off with getting it drive-able then go from there.

Eric

 

McMinnville, Oregon 

Ol racer

Welcome,
Convertibles are rare these days and worth the investment to restore from any condition. I recommend joining the National Hudson Essex Terraplane Club ASAP if you havent already for Resources, Tech Tips, Parts, and much more. I suggest begin restoring the mechanical components for safety then progress into the body and interior. Hudson, begining in '48 has a Unibody stepdown frame meaning the front frame is normal heavy gauge metal while the rear section is much lighter gauge boxed metal. If the car has sat awhile the rear frame may have rusted out over the rear end, but if so, it can be repaired  Many parts for your car are available from Hudson Club Resources while more popular replacement parts are available from local Auto Stores There are a lot of Members on this Forum that will provide answers to all your questions.

Ol racer

Forgot to Mention, Please Post pictures...

snowshoe90aolcom

Welcome Eric    

  You and I are in the same boat...I picked up a 1950 C6 convertible about 2 months ago! If at all possible, get it running and driving before making it look "pretty". You'll  be amazed at the handling abilities and road worthiness of these classic cars. Mine was repainted about 15 years ago and never put back together...project stall....and the next owner removed the seat covers and door panels but once again...project stall!  I'm still working to identify many parts that were "tossed" in the trunk during the disassembly and it's entirely possible that I'll have a few extra parts for this model, so if you need anything, let me know.  Terry      Here's a picture of mine.

RL Chilton

Fisherman-

Welcome to the forum.  I'm sure this site and it's great members will be of a huge help in getting your 'vert roadworthy.  Another good manual to have (especially for the convertibles) is the body manual.  Please post pictures.  We all love pics.

Terry-

Great Car!!

Jon B

Eric,

I know of no "restoration manual" as such (but--hey!-- there might be one out there...who knows?).

As noted above, you'd be well-advised to join the H-E-T because of all the assistance, networking, parts and technical stuff it can offer you.

Since you are "new" to this stuff, you have a 2-part challenge:

1.  Find parts and info on restoring your "Hudson"

2.  Find parts and info on restoring your "convertible".

Most of your car is like any other ';50 Hudson coupe, and you should have very little problem getting parts and info for restoring the body and drive train.  Well...it won't be quite as easy as restoring a '57 Chevy, of course, where you go onto a website, choose any part you want, input your credit card and the stuff arrives in three days!  But the stuff is out there and "gettable" so long as you're plugged into the Hudson network.

The rest of your car is "convertible", and the parts and expertise will be a bit more difficult depending on how much you need to replace.  With luck, all the top irons, hardware and mechanism are there.  If not, there are still used parts, and a few reproduction parts, still out there.  Ready-made canvas or vinyl tops can be ordered if you're on a budget; most top shops can do the whole thing, if you have the money.  The main thing (in my opinion) is to immediately get in touch with any StepDown ('47-54) Hudson convertible owners in your area and see if they'll let you come over and make a thorough inspection of their car to see how all that convertible stuff "works".  Or (if they're too far away) you can at least be in contact with them via phone or e-mail, to ask questions, as they arise.) Fellow convertible owners will probably be able to give you all sorts of ideas on where to buy stuff, which hardware is interchangeable with other car makes, and so forth.

Don't hesitate to come here with your questions, of course!

Uncle Josh

the late Jim Cook used to say, 'Get right into it, and it'll teach ya!'   Works for me

If you get stuck, Paul 'LARGETYPE' Schuster has done a nice one.  hetHUDSON1957@AOL.COM and remove the het

.

46HudsonPU

There are quite a few folks here who either are in your situation, or have been there (Russell & Paul to name a couple). 

Here's a magazine/publication/website that I recently heard about.  It will probably not specifically deal with Hudson automobiles, however it may well be of benefit -

http://skinnedknuckles.net/pages/index.htm

SuperDave

Eric

Where are you? I am located Eastern Central Florida.  From my avatar, you can see I have a similar car.  Along with all the other convertible owners across the country (and world!) There is a gold mine of information and help available for the asking. I have received a lot of help from the club and forums in getting mine roadworthy. Heading the list is "RL CHILTON" In Texas !!!

Fisherman_Eric

Awesome guys, thanks for making me feel welcome.  The car was rated a 4.5 out of 6 and is solid and looks fairly complete, just sat a while.  I am doing my research and will appreciate being able to ask questions and begin moving forward.

It looks like the wiring coatings need help as well.  Is there a wiring diagram available or do you just start picking your battles one at a time?

Thanks again....Oh, I'm in McMinnville Oregon.

Jon B

The H-E-T website contains a fairly substantial downloadable library of shop and parts manuals, and sales literature for all eras of Hudsons.  If you're a Club member you will be able to access all aspects of the website.  If you're not, you can sign up for a free "limited" website membership but I'm not sure whether this includes the ability to download literature.

Easiest way to find out is to click LIBRARY from the drop-downs at the top of the screen, and see what you can find!

Uncle Josh

Go to Amazon books and search on 'How to restore your collector car'  There are several books you can get for a reasonable price.