1950s Need pictures of the correct bumper jack for a 56 Cadillac

[Cadman-iac]

The patent number on the base is 2400235, in case you have a hard time seeing it. I just went out to the shop and looked,  and took a few more pictures of the jack.

[Cadman-iac]

Ok, here's the last one of the jack.

[Cadman-iac]

The other stuff I have is in boxes,  and I'll dig it out tomorrow afternoon if it's not too late and get some pics. Gotta go to the doc to get the stitches out of my hand in the morning.

[Lexi]

If your number reads "2.400.235", I believe that is the number also on the base of my jack's foot plate. I also found a photo of another foot plate from an old CLC Grand National with the same number. Your number looks close, if not identical, but hard to say. Kinda rusty. That said, I believe that style of base was used for several years before and after. Not sure if the "2.400.235" patent number on the bottom individualizes a particular run of bases to a certain model year for Cadillac, though.

One thing I learned when I was researching 1956 Cadillac jacks to find one for my car, was how many '56s were missing their jack OR had the wrong one. Many of the owners also simply did not know what they had. So if I can save you some leg work and frustration I am in. The picture of the jack foot plate you sent looks to be correct in style and the number stamped on the back is at least consistent, if not identical to what should be on the bottom of a foot plate for a 1956 Cadillac bumper jack. Again, hard to tell for sure with the rust and reading the number. Attached are some photos of a '56 Cadillac jack foot plate from a car I shot at the Grand Nationals a few years back. Can't find the ones yet for my car, but still looking.

It is highly probable that the foot plate you have is the proper one for a '56 Cadillac. You should check to see if you have all the notches on the bottom and the metal folds around the edges on yours that match this one posted. Looking good from what I see so far though. Clay/Lexi

[Cadman-iac]

Clay,

Yes,  that's the foot, or base, as I called it.  I took another look at it tonight and verified the patent number.  Thanks for doing all this for me.  I do appreciate it.
I'm not going for a numbers matching car,  but I do want it to be as correct as possible,  except of course for the modifications I'm making for a more dependable car. I want a good cruiser with power.  Years ago I had a '69 convertible and loved it.  I never forgot the power and the ride it had. I've haven't driven my 56 yet, but I can imagine what it's like, and I can't wait until I'm done. Hopefully that won't be 10 years from now.
I love the look of the 56. It's so much more refined than the 54 or 55. And I've seen lots of improvements between the 55 and the 56. I have a 55 parts car so I can compare the two. Too many to list. Just the steering column from the wheel to the gear box,  not much will swap.
But I  digress.....

Have a good night.  Rick

[Lexi]

Love the enthusiasm Richard. And yes, I believe that steering box is also a one off. Steering wheel and horn ring assembly as well... The list goes on. 1956 Cadillac was the "bastard child" of the Cadillac Division for 1956, sad to say. New motor, new trany, lots of under the skin changes and many firsts. That said, they are arguably the most refined looking of the "Tri-Five" Caddies of 1954 - 1956, (Ikes as they are sometimes called). I love them all, so is hard to choose, but going with '56 myself. If I had the money I would have one of each. I had two 1969 SDVs. Loved them as well. Great modern riding car. Tons of power. The '56 will seem more like a lumbering giant than the '69, but is still a great ride for its own reasons. I don't think you will find many arguing changes made for safety to your car.  Yes you are making changes, but you are still mindful in preserving what you can and going to admirable lengths in doing so. Will get back to photo searching for you. Chat later. Clay/Lexi

[dino]

Regarding the bumper jack. I have an unrestored 1956 convertible. The jack is stored in a black bag in the trunk. Has anyone ever seen this before ?  I have never seen this on any other car. The bag looks as though it is original to the car. I can't see why someone would have had it made way back when.  Any info would be appreciated.     Thanks.

[Cadman-iac]

Regarding the bumper jack. I have an unrestored 1956 convertible. The jack is stored in a black bag in the trunk. Has anyone ever seen this before ?  I have never seen this on any other car. The bag looks as though it is original to the car. I can't see why someone would have had it made way back when.  Any info would be appreciated.     Thanks.

I don't know why yours is in a bag. The only reason I can think of is for ease of  carrying and storage. You grab it when you need it and everything is right there for you. When you're done,  throw it all back in the bag and away you go.
I've had at least a dozen Cadillacs, ( all different years)and none of them ever had a bag for the jack in it.

[dino]

 I don't know why yours is in a bag.

Exactly.. Neither do I, yet the bag exists..   Hoping someone might know something about this item. I have owned the car for 11 years . I've never seen another one....

[Dave H. (CO)]

I'll try to remember to take a look at the jack that's in my '56.  I also have no idea if it's original but it'd be nice to find out.  Thanks for all the info in this thread.

[Lexi]

Dino, I have never seen that means of jack storage for this year of Cadillac. A quick check of the Master Parts List (1961 edition), covers the mid '50s jack equipment and did not reveal that item, (see earlier post with image). Thus far I have not seen that it was a factory item nor a dealer option either, (checked lists). Did not check outside of '56. I also checked two J.C. Whitney catalogs from 1956, plus another automotive supply catalog from Canada also from 1956, but without luck. As there were no index in either of these 3 catalogs, I might have missed such an item, but a quick perusal yielded negative results. I also checked 2 early 1970s Whitney catalogs (they both have an index), also without any luck.

It is possible that it was a re-purposed item OR may have been after market, though thus far i have not seen evidence of that. A fascinating subject and the "jury" is still out as to what it's original purpose was.

Also, attached are 2 photos of the jaws of a '56 jack. These were shot at a CLC GN, with the last having been supplied by a peer. I still can't find the photos of my jack which are superior, but these further seem to indicate you have the right jack. Have a look and compare to yours "Cadman-iac". Clay/Lexi

[Jeff Maltby 4194]

My 49 jack came in a cardboard box with tools and long time member Jim Murdock's all oem 50 sedan came in a zippered bag, just like his fathers when purchased new.

[Cadman-iac]

Clay,
Here's a picture of the rest of the stuff I have  for mine.

Jeff,
That's interesting. Does the jack have a storage place in the trunk shown on your jacking instructions? Or just goes in the bag?

[Lexi]

Cadman-iac, the hold down spring is not '56. The straps of which you require one, look correct. Three screws to fasten is right. One strap only required. Wooden wheel chock looks correct. The "L" brackets and long lug nut look correct as well, (you need only one). Your jack handle looks correct, right down to the rubber grip.

The jack bag reported for 1950 could be correct but I would have to look into that. Years ago I did hear of one also, but not for a '56. As in Jeff's case it was for an older Caddy reportedly, (and I never personally saw it). Perhaps it was a dealer only item?

Most telling is perhaps that none of the trunk lid jacking instructions for 1954 - 1958 Cadillac mention this storage bag. That would seem to be a logical place to do so. Instead, trunk jack instructions are provided to compel the user to snap the hold down spring over the jack in a precise way. No mention of a bag (which may also interfere with such a procedure), and the bag is not pictured in the diagrams noted. Details were provided as to where to put the assembly and how to secure it from moving. I can't find any reference to a storage bag in the literature for '56, as previously noted. Hmmm...would love to turn something up or hear from someone with new information.

Prior to model year 1954, my knowledge and reference material on earlier Cadillacs is scant. Perhaps other members can chime in on what their late '40s and early '50s Cads have, (or had), as Jeff has. These are the kind of important and fascinating things that should be covered in detail in the '54-'56 Authenticity Manual, but are lacking,    Lots of good stuff in there, but little to nothing on jacks. Great set of posts on this topic guys! Clay/Lexi

Edit: Were a couple of errors in the previous attachments, fixed now. Sorry.

[Cadman-iac]

One thing I learned when I was researching 1956 Cadillac jacks to find one for my car, was how many '56s were missing their jack OR had the wrong one. Many of the owners also simply did not know what they had.
Clay/Lexi

I can understand why some of them have been replaced with another one possibly. If the car was not on level ground,  or if it slipped off the jack, the car rolled,  and for whatever reason the jack was damaged.
Someone looking for something else to work in it's place just grabbing one close enough to get the job done and didn't care about originality.

On another subject,  where in the world did you find JC Whitney catalogs from back then? I remember getting them when I was a kid and dreaming of all the stuff I wanted to put on my car but couldn't afford,  and the catalog always wound up in the trash.
I don't even know if they are still around,  are they?  (The company,  not my old  catalogs, LOL!!  )
We always called them JC Jip-me.

As for the multiple parts,  I just grabbed all I had  for the picture.

  Thanks again for your expertise/experience on this.  Much appreciated.
Rick

[Lexi]

Rick you are welcome. My straw poll indicates that greater than than 50% of the jacks in these cars are either incorrect, missing parts or are not there. At a swap meet a guy was giving an assortment of auto magazines and catalogs away. So I picked up a couple of Whitneys from him. Think I got another off Ebay or a book collector website. May have a couple hanging around from my youth as well. Most had plain covers with lots of text and usually a '50s styled artist drawing of an old car as well. Attached picture is what I believe to be an odd J.C. issue as it actually features a photograph of a lot of cars on the cover. Not like others I have seen from that era.

There may still be another jack kit related component that I am missing. I was wondering if anyone knew whether there was a large washer or disc of some sort that went under the large lug nut holding the spare in place, (especially for 1956 Cadillac)? For you '54 Caddy guys, there was also a grey dog dish style hub-cap 'thingy' (with a finger hole), used to cover the spare hub area, (see attached image). I have seen these on '56 Caddies as well, but they are incorrect. One such car made the #1 concourse show in Canada, and guess what...all the judges missed it.

Now, lets play a Cadillac game, shall we? Can you spot the '50s Caddies on the cover of this 1956 J.C. Whitney catalog?. Have a look. Clay/Lexi

[Cadman-iac]

Clay,
Thanks for the info and pictures once again.  I've never seen the dog dish thing on any Cadillac so far. That's interesting.
As far as a washer under the nut,  haven't seen any of them either.  I did go to Ebay and looked at the spare tire covers to try to verify if mine was correct.  It seems like Cadillac used those for many years.
Mine was a little  beat up  around the center hole, so after I straightened it out I welded a washer to it to keep it from getting deformed again. If you want a picture,  I'll take one when I find it again. Like I said before, most of my car is in boxes now, and I sometimes forget to write down which box I put things in.
Rick

[Lexi]

Yes, I would love to see some photos of it when you have the opportunity. The '54 dog dish spare tire cap is a seldom seen item. I believe a Cadillac Serviceman bulletin noted it's discontinuation early in the model year, (as reported by CLC member Lou Commisso). So you won't see too many of them.

Back to your '56 jack related inquiry. The January, 1956 Cadillac Serviceman issue noted that the new shape for the jack hold down spring was designed "To eliminate the possibility of damage to the trunk compartment trim, (sic)...the spring has been reshaped to increase the tension". So now we know why they changed it. Sort of. As far as I know it was a one year only design so I guess it did not work as well as they had planned. No mention of jack storage bags either, at least as far as I can see in any of the 1956 Cadillac Serviceman issues. Keep plugging away on your project and let us know it's progression.

Clay/Lexi

[Cadman-iac]

Ok, here's the spare tire cover I have. You can see the washer I welded into the center to repair it.
(I also added a few emblems to dress it up. It looked so plain, and I had extra so why not).

Clay, you mentioned that the original hold down spring/clip didn't/doesn't work that well. So if I modify the '55 one it should work fine, and I'm not going enter it into a concours show to be judged, shouldn't matter, right?

[Lexi]

Rick it shouldn't matter. The strap is the same and it gets hooked in the same spot between the 2 screws. While the '55 jack is different, you should be able to find a spot to secure it. I got an extra '55 jack spring here and when I get to where my car is stored I will try it out in place of the '56 spring.

Now these jack and spare tire items just got more confusing to me. I don't think I have seen that tire cover before. Not sure if it is period Cadillac or not. While I have never researched that particular item, I don't remember coming across it in the literature. I will have to have a look. Any numbers or other identifiers on it? Anyone else out there seen one of these on a '56, or for that matter any vintage Cadillac? I can see why you thought at first it might be an air cleaner top. Does not look anything like the '56 air cleaner cover. I am intrigued and I don't know anything about this piece. Does it seem to fit on a vintage Cadillac rim? Odd that it is not pictured on any of those information labels. Can anyone shed light on it? One of the reasons this Forum is so fascinating. Quite the ride and learning experience. Thanks for posting! Clay/Lexi