Window Crank Knobs

Hudson308 wrote:

I measured again and got roughly the same results Chris, (minus my 1" addition blunder) within .005". As an added note, the dish features of style like your first CAD example measure as follows. The flattest portion at the bottom of the dish measures roughly .335" diameter, then tapers up to about .650" where the external radius meets the dish. That external radius looks like about 3/32" to my uncalibrated eyes.

OK, here are the two ivory knobs based (hopefully) on your dimensions. Am I getting close? Like I said earlier, the changes are easy - it's figuring out what to change that's hard.



John, How much shrinkage do you think? I'm guessing it would be small enough to ignore. I definitely don't think it would be enough to match the ivory knobs:



I'm guessing that the Pacemaker knobs were just smaller to go with the smaller car. Based on the pictures that I've seen, the handles aren't the same so why should the knobs be?

53jetman wrote:

I guess I'm basing my opinion on the size by the fact that the dash knobs and heater control knob on the Westhermaster under the dash and the handle for the cowl vent are all the same size as on the senior cars.

Good point on the sizes being the same for all of the other knobs, handles, etc.

One more piece of data to consider: According to the master parts catalog, the handles were specific to the 1950 Pacemaker and Pacemaker Deluxe (except the convertible to be absolutely accurate). They were not used on any other model or in any other year. The circular section at the end of the handle measures 7/16" at the bottom and 3/8" at the top where the knob is attached. In the pictures posted by Hudson308, the same area seems to be bigger in the picture with the ruler. (Hudson308 - Could we get you to do yet another measurement?)

If the handles are smaller in that area, would that imply that the knobs were smaller as well?

53jetman wrote:

I'm sure the knobs would have been of a hard material - softer knobs and buttons had not come into play in the automotive business at that time.

I tend to agree but what was different about this material that made it deteriorate so badly? Maybe it was a first attempt at a softer material that didn't work out. Pure speculation, but who knows?

53jetman wrote:

These knobs have been a problem for years. If you take a look at ten 1950 Pacemakers at any of our Hudson gatherings, I'll wager that 9 of them will have the window and door handles replaced - either by the Super Series or Commodore/Hornet Series handles.

That's why I'm asking all of these questions. If I make some, I'd like them to be as correct as possible, not just another incorrect variation.

RL Chilton wrote:

cpr-

I think you pretty much answered most of your own questions and I agree with you. There could have been vendor changes, which probably (and usually) warranted a new part # and the exact specifications of the knobs could have changed mid-model, mid-year without Hudson blinking an eye (it is a small thing, after all).

As far as shrinkage goes, look at steering wheels of the period. If left out to the elements, the shrinkage on the poured portion of the steering wheels will go from small crack to several inches. This "blank" section of the steering wheel did not crack and fall off, but actually shrunk away. You could easily lose 35-40% of the rim of the wheel due to shrinkage alone. This early-day "plastic" was actually poured resin, which was an improvement over the bake-lite material which can still be found in later step-downs on a few choice parts.

The major benefit was that the color was consistent all the way through, was manufactured quickly and eliminated the need for painting.

As far as an original "look" goes, that would be hard to say, but these knobs, when in good shape, and after years of being handled, are very shiny and smooth, due to being handled for extended periods of time. I'm sure that when new, the look was more of a matte finish.

Good point on the steering wheel. Mine has done exactly what you described.

As to the finish on the parts, I think I'll just try to match the escutcheons since that is what they are closest to.

While I'm on escutcheons, I modeled up one of those too just to see how it would look:

RL Chilton wrote:

That's some awesome work there, CPR. I'm sure there's a small market for these, but you would have no problem selling extra stock. Can't wait to see the finished product.

Thanks. Believe it or not, that took less than half an hour. It's amazing what you can do with a $20,0000 piece of CAD software and 15 years of experience using it.

bartibog1 wrote:

Those escutcheons look very nice and i could use eight of them in the 53 sper wasp color [BLUE] should you decide to reproduce them. keep me in mind
steve

If the knobs work out the way I hope they do, the escutcheons will be next. I'll let everyone know when I get to that point. I'll probably have to get a sample from you for the color but that's a while in the future.

middletom wrote:

CPR
I would expect that the crank knobs were as shiny as the other interior plastic parts.

Again, I want to express my desire to get some of theose knobs from you if you decide to go through with production. Then the interior will look great except for the creosote staining on some of the door panel areas.

Geoff Blake

I'll let everyone know before I do this to figure out how many to make. We still need to come to a consensus on the size.

I had a few made up this weekend as a test and I wasn't really happy with the dimple. I need to get with the guy who made them to see what can be done to improve the shape. After that, I need to decide on material and then paint and finish.

Here is a new picture based on the latest dimensions:



The one on the right is from the earlier dimensions, the one in the middle is from the dimensions in the last post and the one on the left is halfway between the two.

Any preferences or other suggestions?