1961 Eldorado Concept Motorama Show Car

[R Schroeder]

Man that car cleans up nice.
Very nice work.
Roy

[Doug Houston]

I once had a '61 DeV convertible for a daily driver. It was Tunis beige, looking like this color, but surely a similar special color.

On the rear skegs, David Holls once told me that the tail lights were originally intended to be part of the skeg. As can be easily seen, a piece of bumper stock terminated that feature in production cars.

There was another interesting story about Walter Hagen and a 1030 Vi6 roadster that my father related. He knew Hagen. Won't tell about it now.

[N Kahn]

I once had a '61 DeV convertible for a daily driver. It was Tunis beige, looking like this color, but surely a similar special color.

On the rear skegs, David Holls once told me that the tail lights were originally intended to be part of the skeg. As can be easily seen, a piece of bumper stock terminated that feature in production cars.

There was another interesting story about Walter Hagen and a 1030 Vi6 roadster that my father related. He knew Hagen. Won't tell about it now.

If you have any information about this car maybe having been Walter Hagen's I would love to know, I'm still coming up zip.

[N Kahn]

Here's the start of the hubcaps, I got all the pieces waterjetted. I have to drill tap and polish each of these 56 ribs as well as polish and drill 12 rings. I gotta run a decorative rib down the center of each blade and then assemble everything to the stock hubcaps.
I've got my work cut out for me but I really wanna have a decent replica of the original caps fitted to this unique car.

[Quentin Hall]

Nadeem, Are you gonna put jagged extendable axle shafts ala James Bond (and Wacky Racers) to eliminate any rival competitions tires on the judging field ? I still can't quite believe how well preserved this car is despite the apparent lack of knowledge of it's important history by the previous owner .
         I know this was one of the first discussions you had with the car, restore or preserve. Well you are doing both. I am so glad you are doing it this way because there are elements that would be lost forever with a show car 100 point resto.
         Hope to see the car in the metal one day. Regards. Q     

[veesixteen]

Great work, Nadeem.  What are you using as a model for the missing wheel covers?  Do you have good photos of the originals? Are they anything like the selection of "Custom wheels from Show Cars" illustrated at the end of  the "Cadillac Database" - http://www.cadillacdatabase.org/Dbas_txt/mascotsg.htm ?

[N Kahn]

Here are pic of the original caps.
Save the images and blow them up you can make out the details fairly well.

[INTMD8]

This car will be even more epic if you can get those hubcaps put together! Looking forward to the results.

[Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621]

The pics of the car in the famous GM courtyard are fascinating. I had only seen the one full broadside pic before. 

Nevertheless, it will be no small achievement if you can replicate the original design of those show hubcaps. Your ingenuity and steadfast dedication are truly inspirational. 

*Just out of curiosity, what do you think about the show caps, appearance wise? 

[N Kahn]

Here's one built not screwed to the original cap or polished yet. they lack the delicacy and finesse of the originals and they are heavy. What am I gonna do?

[Quentin Hall]

 N        They will look sensational once done but I think instead of watercut alum for the uprights, you should be folding out of .75 or even .55 mirror stainless to keep the look and also to keep the weight down. The  shape will be quite rigid and especially so once riveted together. If you are going to polish and chrome the alum then they will be heavier still , plus the cost and labour intensive. If you made a temp off the alum and fold it out you would carefully cut them by hand with tinsnips. Your sheemetal shop would easily fold them.
           There are nice steps in the design to fold inward tabs to get screw fixings into the inner ring and also to hide raw cut edges. Never easy but a good start. I probably wouldn't do 80mph down the turnpike with them on though regardless. No windtunnel tests were done on those babies I am sure.  I made a bunch of the  little SS fins for my old 59 Eldo caps which are held in with PK screws. If I wasn't so far away I'd say send me over a inner and outer ring and let me have a go. Does someone in the club own a Lear jet like Wayne Corrini's friends all seem to have ?? Q

[N Kahn]

For sure that's the way to do it,  should have taken weight into account but I didn't, they'll will have to be static displays until I can make another set. I can reuse the rings and cones.

[N Kahn]

I know they're only kinda close but they'll work, I'm going to screw them through the center of the original caps so that they can be removed and installed instantly for show display, they really are too heavy to run. Now I've got to polish and assemble them all, I'm in for some serious work.

[IMG]http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e327/Rumblernads/hubcapsjt_zps770024b8.jpg[/IMG

[N Kahn]

I slapped them on the car to see how they look, and they look alright, but even now with only 7 blades instead of 14 they still weigh about 4 lbs. I have A friend who does stainless kitchens and he's looking into making the blades out of 20GA stainless, this will knock the weight right down plus I can weld the pieces together and cut out all the hardware.

The hubcaps do need a 4th ring at the very back and upon closer inspection of the GM factory pictures I can see that they had one originally

[N Kahn]

They didn't stick out this far, I admit failure, back to the drawing board.

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

They didn't stick out this far, I admit failure, back to the drawing board. 

Not a failure, but a "design compilation", and "Hub Cap Mark 1".

You will get it right by Mark 9.

Bruce.

[N Kahn]

Not a failure, but a "design compilation", and "Hub Cap Mark 1".

You will get it right by Mark 9.

Bruce.

Bruce, I hope it goes no further than Mk2 otherwise I'm headed for the loony bin.

[Louis Smith]

That's not very nice.   Nadeem has been very upfront with us with the documentation and restoration photos.  A fascinating read for us.   How often does a lost showcar surface?    And some of you have been less than polite here.

Gentlemen please be gentlemen.   

I am half way through reading this most interesting thread, and have a couple of comments and one question.

-It is with amusement that I have noticed some very minor bickering among some posters.  Suffice it to say, this is very common on most, if not all message boards and forums.  This is due mostly because of the lack of "emotion" being shown with the post.  I am sure that if people were sitting around a table with their favorite beverage, the bickering would be non existent.

-With all the unbelievable and superb posts, concerning this car, I think the nation would be in great appreciation if everyone form a task force to study the Kennedy assassination.  There has been more accurate and documented on this car, in the last 4 months, then in the last 50 years of the Kennedy assassination!  Might I suggest a meeting at the grassy knoll?

-When this piece of history is finally ready for showing and judging, what class will it be in?  The modified class?

[Louis Smith]

Yes, I was kidding about the license plates. Lets not get so serious.
Nice car and a very interesting story.
Roy

Even I run an illegal plate on the front of my car. 1978 plate.

Illegal license plate?  I think it might depend on what state you are in, and I don't mean the state of confusion.  Many states that have only a rear license plate, don't really care what is on the front license plate.  Many times you will see, what appears to be a real license plate, but really isn't.

[Louis Smith]

I guess they like to make pickups all over the world.

Cuba?