Finishing up the Morgan

It's always a happy time when a long term project finally comes to a close. Now that we've completed a successful shakedown run of the '72 Morgan 4/4, we'll focus on making some minor tweaks, some tuning and then the final buff and detailing before delivering the car to the customer.
We're very pleased with the way the car turned out. It has a nice, tight feel to it. The steering response is quick and precise and the ride is firm but not overly harsh (it is a sports car after all!). The metallic brown and gold paint job along with the beautiful tan leather interior give the car a very elegant look.
We've nominated the car for the 2010 Amelia Island Concours d' Elegance and expect to soon hear if it has been accepted. We're currently discussing several additional show opportunities with the car's owner. As we firm up our 2010 show schedule, well post it on our blog and web site.
For additional pictures of the car, please check out our web site at: www.hahnandwoodward.com
You can see a short video of the Morgan's first shakedown run on our SpeedTV page at:
http://my.speedtv.com/hahnandwoodward/blog/media/video/index.one?a=view_video&vid_id=1044769
Check back soon for additional shop updates.
….at your Service
Hahn and Woodward Auto Restoration

Shop Update 11/5/09

Hi Everyone - It's been a busy month in the shop with significant progress being made on several of the projects. The 1972 Morgan 4/4 is undergoing final assembly which means we are tending to many small details that make a proper restoration complete. At times, it is painstaking work since we want the fit and finish to be perfect. The work is nearly done and we are looking forward to delivering this beautiful car to its owner during the next couple of weeks.
The HRG Coupe is also progressing nicely. The trafficators have been installed and we've fabricated some unique seat mounts that keep the seats low in the car (to maximize headroom) yet still allow for a lot of adjustments. We've started on the wiring and are working to connect the linkage that controls the distributor advance/retard as well as the headlight and running light functions. This linkage is controlled by a rod that runs through the center of the steering column. Next, we expect to complete the plumbing of the fuel lines. This will again require some fabrication to complete the T fittings and tubing that will connect to the carburetors.
We've completed the fabrication of new door skins for the '62 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso. In addition, we've done quite a bit of sandblasting and metalizing to the nose, door frames and decklid area. All of the areas have been primed to prevent rust while we do additional bodywork.
We've also begun working in earnest on the Mercedes-Benz 300Sl Roadster. The body is currently having a thin layer of plastic filler applied to help smooth out any minor low spots. The amount of filler required has been significantly reduced by the metalizing process that we performed on the car earlier.
Finally, we're working to wrap up the restoration of the red '71 Mecedes-Benz 280 SE. We hope to have the interior installed and the car ready to test drive before the end of November.
The wood work on the '46 Chevy Hot Rod Panel Truck is nearly complete. Next stop for the '46 is a trip to Portage Trim to have the interior completed.
Check back for more updates as we near completion of several of these cars.
While we're thinking about it, we are currently accepting major restoration projects to begin in 2011. If you are considering such a project, please shoot us an email at info@hahnandwoodward.com or give us a call at 724-865-9684 between 9 – 5 Eastern time Monday through Friday. We'd be happy to discuss your project with you.

Interior Views - '72 Morgan 4/4

On the return trip from taking the '46 Chevy Panel Truck to the woodworking shop, we stopped by our friends at Portage Trim in Ravenna, OH. to pick up the '72 Morgan 4/4. Even in darkness (it was *:30 PM when we arrived), the rich beauty of the tan leather interior was evident.......the seats, doors and dash all really popped. Portage also created a beautiful Tonneau cover and convertible top to provide the finishing touch.
Now that the car is back at our shop, we'll focus on the installation of the audio components and final assembly. The first step has been to thoroughly mask off the interior components to avoid dirt/damage as we work. This includes removing the seats and carpeting and taping off the doors, windscreen and other interior areas. Our goal is to have the car completed by the end of October so we can take it on some test drives and final tweaks.
We've nominated the Morgan for inclusion in the 2010 Amelia Island Concours 'd Elegance and a waiting to hear if it has been accepted. As the Morgan project nears completion we'll begin to focus our attention on the HRG Coupe and Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster.
Check out more interior pics as well as photos from the entire project on our web site: www.hahnandwoodward.com

Goodguys Muscle Car of the Year Finalist

Congratulations to our good friend and long time customer, Gerry Kerna and her beautiful, black 1971 GTO hardtop on its selection as a finalist for the Goodguys/Hemmings Muscle Machines Muscle Car of the Year at the Goodguys Rod and Custom Assn. 8th Annual Blue Suede Cruise sponsored by Dupont and held August 28 – 30 2009 at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH. A previous award winner at the Amelia Island Concours d' Elegance, POCI Nationals, GTOAA Nationals and various AACA shows, this was the first time Gerry has entered the GTO at a Goodguys event.
Goodguys holds 22 events throughout the year and selects one Muscle Car at 19 of these shows to be a finalist. Designed to honor a superior factory stock or fully restored Muscle Car, the award winner will be announced on Friday, October 16th 2009. Given the current popularity of muscle cars, to be selected as a finalist is a terrific honor. We've got our fingers crossed for you Gerry!
The restoration of Gerry's GTO was completed by Bill Hahn in 1999. The car was brought back to showroom original condition right down to its greasepaint option markings. Outfitted with a 400 Cu. In. Pontiac engine and 4 speed manual transmission, it is the definition of a muscle car. The GTO's selection out of a strong (and large) field of “Mighty Muscle” entries, speaks to the quality of the restorations we can do as well as the TLC Gerry gives her favorite “Goat”. Bill Hahn and Wes Woodward have maintained that if properly done, a car should only need to be restored ONCE...this certainly gives credibility to that statement.
The judges were impressed with the car's originality, straightness, and fit and finish (which is doubly highlighted by the gorgeous black paint....sprayed by Adam Abbot). Gerry led the procession of award winners from the Goodguys winners circle to the dragstrip, capping an exciting weekend of Show Cruising, Nostalgia Drag Racing and vendor displays that made up the Blue Suede Cruise.
Check out more pictures of Gerry's award winning car along with our other ongoing restorations at our website: www.hahnandwoodward.com
For more information on the Goodguys Rod and Custom Association, please visit their website at:
www.good-guys.com

Shop Update 8/19/09

Hi everyone! It's been a little while since we've gotten around to writing a new blog....that's because we've been quite busy on several fronts. This is a good thing! Time to post a little shop update -
We recently completed the repair work on the little '64 MG that we were working on. It was finished in time to attend "British Car Day" at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix last month. We also completed the initial build-up of the '72 Morgan 4/4. The engine starts and the car moves 9and stops) under its own power. We trailered it over to our friends at Portage Trim in Revenna, OH to have the interior work done. We expect it back in early September at which time we will complete final assembly and testing. This is a beautiful little car. The paint job turned out extremely well....more to come on this little beauty in the near future.
We have also focused some major effort on completing the wiring and interior structures for the '46 Chevy Panel Truck. It is due to be sent to the woodworking shop for some finish work on some interior components and will then be sent to the Trim shop for the interior upholstery.
We've also made a major push on the 1938 HRG Coupe. It is our goal to have the coupe running and mechanically functional by the end of the year. Because this in a one of a kind vehicle, we've had to do a significant amount of fabrication, fitting and refitting to achieve a "period correct" look and functionality for the car. We've hand fabricated the exhaust system, thermostat housing, Fuel delivery system, kick panels, foot boards and transmission tunnel. We still have some interior work to do as well as the sunroof, side curtains and electrical system. There is a long way to go but we're making very good progress.
Finally, there is the 1962 Ferarri 250GT Lusso. We received the car back from it's alkaline dip. It has been fully prepped and primed and is currently undergoing some minor bodywork. We should be ready to start on the assembly of this drop dead sexy car in the near future.
Stay tuned for more updates!

Of Rods and Rain

The annual Goodguys Columbus PPG Nationals is a short three hour trip from our Western PA. Home base and attracts thousands of the nations fines hot rods, customs and street machines. This year's edition was no exception as the Columbus Expo Center Fairgrounds (and surrounding hotel parking lots!) were packed with an outstanding collection of cars.
My girlfriend Linda and I arrived at our hotel about 10 miles north of the fairgrounds on Friday afternoon and unloaded my '23 T Roadster for the trip down I-71 to meet up with my good friend Gerry and her '51 Chevy Pickup and get our registration credentials. Later, as we all returned to the hotel complex we found hundreds of people lining the street, sipping on a cold beverage and watching the “cruise” as the cars ran up and down the street.
Saturday dawned warm but cloudy with a definite threat of rain. After some breakfast we headed to the show and found a nice place to park. Fortunately, we packed a cooler, pop-up canopy, chairs and my car cover in Gerry's truck (since T-Buckets have virtually no storage space)......because by 11:30 the “scattered showers” had turned into a steady rain. This didn't deter the spirit of the crowd or our determination to have a good time. We parked ourselves under the canopy and enjoyed a couple of beverages ourselves. Eventually Gerry's boyfriend, Dave arrived having ridden his motorcycle from Pittsburgh that morning (the last 70 miles in the rain). By this time we were getting a little damp and everyone was hungry......so we piled into the cab of the truck and set out in search of umbrellas and a decent place to eat. Meanwhile....the steady rain turned into a major monsoon complete with flood warnings. After waiting out the worst of it we returned to the fairgrounds to find the T still high and dry under it's tarp in the parking lot. So far, so good.
By now the rain had pretty much stopped, so we decided to attend the awards ceremony to see the “Street Machine of the Year” and “Street Rod of the Year” crowned. Western Pennsylvania was well represented in the Street machine finals by the guys at RPM out of Warrendale, PA with the '69 Trans am they built for Bryan Frank. In addition, Bill Steele's recently crowned “Hot Rod of the Year” 1930 Model A coupe was on hand for the crowd to admire.
The ride back to the hotel was a little damp as the rain started again (and can be a real adventure with the big rear tires on the T) but it subsided shortly after we got on the interstate and held off long enough for me to get the car back in the trailer.
Sunday was bright and sunny, so we headed to the fairgrounds for one final day of hot rod fun. Although the parking lot wasn't nearly as full as Friday or Saturday, there was still a nice crowd. We hung out for a while before getting ready for our ride home. All and all, it was a great time with great friends and lots of cool cars. Definitely a worthwhile trip!
Here's a shot of our cars on Sunday morning.

Diagnose Overheating Problems in the Mercedes-Benz 300SL

The issue of overheating is not an uncommon problem when first starting and test driving a newly restored/rebuilt 300SL Gullwing or Roadster. Since there are a number of possible causes and solutions to the condition, we thought we'd list a comprehensive approach that can be taken to diagnose and correct overheating.

First, check the obvious items common to all cars.

• Is the radiator full of anti-freeze/water?
• Is the thermostat stuck? If it is not new and has been sitting around for a number of years, this is a common problem.
• Has the radiator been cleaned and pressure tested? Any leaks?
• What's the condition of the radiator cap? Does it hold pressure?
• Is the fan belt slipping? It should have 1/4” to 1/2” of play....any more and it is probably slipping.
• Has the fan been installed correctly? We have seen occasions where electric fans are installed backwards....which doesn't help the cooling at all. Is there a shroud around the fan?
• Is the water pump new? Has it been rebuilt?
• Have you checked the timing? Retarded timing will cause the car to run poorly and run hot. Certainly worth a double check.
• Is the engine running too lean....a lean running engine will also run hot.
  

The next possibility is a little more serious

• Is there any oil or exhaust gas bubbles present in the coolant? This would indicate a blown head gasket (best case) or possibly a crack cylinder head or engine block (worst case). Often the case with a rebuilt engine; no one checked the mating surface of the cylinder head. Aluminum heads quite often warp when engines over heat. Steel cylinder heads will also warp to a much lesser degree, but enough to cause problems.

The following items are more specific to the 300SL

• Has the water pump been topped off with 90 weight gear oil?
• Has the fuel injection pump been recalibrated? You cannot rebuild the engine on these cars without recalibrating the fuel injection pump.....it's like putting old wine in a new wine sack. The pump has wear on it and has, in a way, recalibrated itself to the old motor. It especially may be running lean/hot.
• Check to make sure there is oil in the injection pump.
• Check the spark plugs. We recommend NGK BP6ES or possibly one range cooler.
• Try one of the many “Water Wetter” products that are on the market.
• Did you use “break in “ oil to break in the engine? What grade of oil are you using now? Is there enough oil in the crankcase? (these take 15 Quarts of oil).

As you can seen, there are quite a number of conditions that can lead to your engine running hot. Start with the simplest, easiest to implement (changing one thing at a time)....and see if you get any improvement. As always...at your service!

Keeping up appearances

Been a while since we've posted a blog....but it's been busy!

During the past month we've made some appearances at local car events, includung GTO night at the Wexford Starlite Car Cruise as well as Carfest at the BeaveRun Motorsports Complex. We spoke with a number of people at each of these events. Thanks to everyone who stopped by.

Our next big appearance will be on Saturday/Sunday, July 18/19 at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix in Pittsburgh's Schenley Park. If you've a car lover and have never been to this event, you are truly missing out. Watching the vintage racers make their way around the Schenley Park racecource is in itself a treat, but combined with the car shows and other events and it's almost a religious experience. BMW is the marque of the year this year, but that won't stop hundreds of cars of every sort of marque from being on display. British cars - Lotus's, Rolls-Royce's, Triumph, Jaguar, Austin, MG and more. Italian cars - can you say Maserati, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alfa-Romeo to name a few...German cars - Mercedes=Benz, Porche, Audo, BMW, Volkswagen and more.....and then there are the American cars and hot rod.

Best of all, it's FREE (small donation for parking). If you can make it to the Pittsburgh area in mid-July, we encourage you to "come on down".

We'll have our dislay in the vendor area. We look forward to seeing you.

Keeping up appearances

Now that summer has finally arrived here in Western PA. car show/cruise season is in full swing and we're gearing up to make some "personal" appearances at a few events. We've already turned up at the weekly Starlite Car Cruise and this coming Friday will be no exception as we'll be on hand for GTO/Pontiac night. We plan to hang out with Gerry Kerna's award winning '71 GTO. So if you're in the Western, PA area Friday evening feel free to stop by the cruise and say hi. On Saturday and Sunday we're planning to be on hand for the Carfest at the BeaveRun Motorsports Complex. This two day event will feature cruise cars, a special edition of the Flashlight Drags as well as Karting, track tours and much more. So far, the weatherman is predicting sun and upper 70's for the weekend.....perfect. Coming up at the end of the month is "Import Nite" at the Starlite Cruise where we'll be on hand with Bill's Maserati Quattroport....a really cool car.
Check back soon and we'll post an update of our July appearances as well as a progress report on the Morgan, '46 Chevy Truck, the HRG and Bill's Dodge Magnum.

Restoration Challenges – The HRG Frame

One of the more unique and rare cars in our shop is the “one of a kind” 1938 HRG Coupe. Built as a never produced prototype by HRG in England, it's body style is based on the MG Airline Coupe however it's hood and fenders are handsomely lengthened to produce a striking silhouette.
Because the car is a prototype, it has created several challenges for the restoration....first, documentation is hard to come by and second, not everything is “standard” when compared to other HRG models.
One of the more interesting challenges has been the amount of flex that is designed into the chassis. The frame was originally intended to be an integral part of the suspension and was designed with a great amount of flex. With the frame on stands, you can lift one corner several inches off the stand before a second corner begins to raise.
When combined with the quarter-elliptic springs used on the front end, the ultraflexy chassis was prone to stress cracks both in the front and at the cowl. We set out to address this issue during the restoration.
After significant research, we considered several options including adding legs and gussets to the frame, or the addition of a flitch plate to span the crack prone areas. Eventually we decided to employ a boxed frame solution by adding a reversed section of frame (same gauge/profile) to the forward engine compartment and ending under the cowl. This is accompanied by a set of legs/gussets at the front of the chassis and a special “C” notch section near the cowl to more evenly dissipate the stress over the upper and lower frame rails (rather than a straight cut-off which would create another stress/crack point).
The result is a frame that is stronger and stiffer than initially designed while retaining the overall look of the original and dimensions of the original. Ultimately, we'll have a safer, more enjoyable ride.
For more pictures of the HRG and other project, please visit our web site at www.hahnandwoodward.com

Cruzin' Season

Finally....after a long cold winter, the Spring/Summer car cruise season is here! Our shop is looking forward to participating in a number of events this year both as a vendor and as cruisers. Our first event will be the Wexford Starlite Cruise ( www.starlitecarcruise.com ). Starlite is a weekly car cruise held every Friday (weather permitting) on the campus of the Northway Christian Church in Wexford, PA. This cruise regularly attracts 1200 cars each week. The vehicles run the gamut form Street Rods and Muscle cars to Antiques, Customs, Tuners and Foreign cars with participants from all over Western PA, Eastern Ohio and West Virginia. Our shop is among many sponsors of the cruise and several of us volunteer to help with traffic control, etc.....along with bringing our own cars to the show. The first cruise is scheduled for Friday, May 22nd.....stop by and look us up.
We're also planning to attend the BeaveRun Carfest over the weekend of June 13/14. We plan to have a vendor display at this event which will be held at the BeaveRun Motorsports Complex( www.beaverun.com ). It will feature both a car show/cruise along with a special running of the Flashlight Drags (www.flashlightdrags.com) as well as tours of the road course and other festivities. For those attending the Happy Days Car Cruise in nearby Beaver Falls, why not make a day of it and cruise on over to BeaveRun Saturday afternoon and run the flashlight drags....you'll have a blast!
Finally, we'll have a vendor display at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix in July. More on this in a later blog....suffice to say, if you haven't attended this awesome event you are missing out on a ton of fun highlighted by the chance to watch vintage racers navigate the course through Pittsburgh's Schenley Park.
So if you're in our neck of the woods, stop by one of the events (either as a participant or a spectator) and ask around for one of the guys from Hahn and Woodward. We'd be happy to meet you.

Updates

Wow, it's been a busy time around the shop. We're continuing to add items to our eBay store. Right now were putting out a lot of components that were left over from the '46 Chevy Panel truck. We've also got some NOS Mercedes fenders along with our Koolmat insulation products. Hopefully, we'll be able to sell off some of these and make some space around the place.
We're taking a brief pause in working on the Mercedes Gullwing so that we can wrap up work on a couple of the other projects. The repairs to the '37 Ford Phaeton are coming along nicely and it should be ready for paint soon. The '71 Mercedes 280SE is getting ready for paint as well and will be on its way to the upholstery shop in a couple of weeks. We're offering this car for sale (info is on our web site www.hahnandwoodward.com ).
The wiring of the '46 Chevy Panel Truck is nearly comeplete and we're finishing up some fabrication on the dash. This will be going to the upholstery shop soon as well.
The '72 Morgan is nearly ready for paint as well. This car is going to look awesome when it's done. We hope to have it ready in time for display at the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix in July...timing will be tight but we'll give it a shot.
We've also had some recent inquiries from folks about restorations on a '70 Chevelle, a '66 Riviera and a '67 Grand Prix Convertible. Some cool projects for sure.
Check back soon for more project updates....and check out our eBay store.

Minding the store

....so we had this idea....let's set up an eBay store to sell off some of our products and any unused parts we might have in our inventory. It's a nice idea, but it is taking some time to get it off the ground. None the less, we've listed our first items: some KoolMat Insulation kits for the Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwings, some wheels as well as some hard to find Mercedes fenders.

The is more to come....in the following weeks we will be listing additional KoolMat kits, some Torco oil products as well as some spare parts from the '46 Chevy Panel Truck. There is a link on our website that will take you right to our store. In addition, you can pay for the parts with a credit card through paypal......makes the whole transaction rather simple. Please take a look and check back often. There might be a part you can use.

On our web site, we'll be announcing our intention to sell the '71 Mercedes 280SE with the notion that if a buyer is interested, s/he could have input to the choice of interior upholstery, wheels, etc.

We're also in the process of updating out Project pages with some new photos and additional cars.

More updates to come.

Shop Updates

Time to provide an update on progress at the shop...
The Morgan 4/4 is coming together. We're in the process of connecting up the engine linkage, cooling hoses etc. We've also installed some KoolMat heat barriers on the floor panels and rebuilt and installed the heater core and fan assembly. Soon it will be time to paint the body.
The '46 Chevy Hot Rod truck is in the process of being wired and since it has electric "everything" it is a slow and tedious task. We also installed and began initial alignment of the hood. This truck will be ready to fire up soon and take on some shakedown runs before it heads to the upholstery shop.
We're taking a brief pause in the work on the 300SL Roadster and have turned our attention to one of the 300SL Gullwings. The car has been metalized and we're now in the process of grinding it down.
Work has been underway on a '64 MG Midget. This is mostly work on the front section of the car...although we did need to straighten the frame to get everythng to align correctly. We're now preparing to paint the hood and remaining front components and should have this car back in its owners hands shortly.
We've also begun work on two other cars...a '72 Mercedes 280SE and a Ferrari 250 Lusso. I expect to have picture of these cars up on the web site shortly.
As you can see, our little shop is humming with activity......and the warmer weather is almost here. Time to check out the car cruise schedule and plan our events.
The other big news is the launch of our Ebay Store. We just got the site up and have some Koolmat isulation kits for sale along with a couple of sets of wheels....more to come as we expand the product list.
See you on the road....

Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

The final leg of our road trip took us to Jacksonville, FL for a stop at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. Despite getting a late start due to our "adventures in air travel" (See previous blog), we arrive at Amelia Island early in the afternoon and had a terrific time. The variety of outstanding automobiles was stunning, far too many to report on individually however, there were several that we took special note of. They included a beautiful, black Mercedes Gullwing, a terrific Duesenberg with curved side louvers, a sleek Lamborghini Miura and of course the show's main attraction, the "Phantom Corsair".

The weather for the day was perfect, it was warm and sunny with a slight breeze....a nice break from the remnants of the Pittsburgh winter.

The event seemed to be very well attended and well run with parking shuttles moving people about all day. Stay tuned, we'll be back with some more details and pictures from the trip. In the meantime, check out the photos of the cars mentioned above.

Indy Museum and the First Rail-Dragster

No car-guy (or gal) trip to Indianapolis would be complete without a trip to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and a tour of the Speedway Museum, so on Saturday (3/14) we made our way over to the track and spent a couple of hours pouring over the collection of vintage race cars, motorcycles, and memorabilia.

We were particularly interested in the evolution of the various suspension configurations used over the years....truly some engineering marvels. We studied the various axle, spring, shock, torsion bar, brake and steering layouts. From all indications, the "modern" wishbone front suspension came into play around 1963 with the Lotus entries. Even though the '63 race was won by a straight axle roadster, the rear engine Lotus set the tone for years to come.

One of the more interesting race cars (although not a "500" racer), was this 1903 Premier Special. Designed and built for the first Vanderbilt Cup Race, this car weighed in at a whopping 2500 pounds...300 pounds over the weight limit. Despite drilling 470 holes in the frame, the car was still 120 pounds over the limit....no doubt due in large amount to it's 923 cu. in. air cooled engine (7 in. bore...6 in. stroke!!). None the less, driver Carl Fisher drove the car to a top speed of 59.21 Mph on the one mile dirt track at the Indiana State Fairgrounds!

Although drag racer Dick Kraft's "The Bug" car is generally heralded as the precursor to the modern rail dragster, I think the 1903 Premier Special may be able to make that claim as well.

Check back soon for our report on the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

Adventures in Air Travel

So what happens when two Auto Restoration guys head out across the country on business?....the answer is...Almost Anything.

Our trip from Pittsburgh to Indy (with a stopover in Cincy) was pretty uneventful. The car rental went fine and our hotel was decent.....so far so good. It's when we went from Indy to Jacksonville (initially via Cincy and Atlanta) that things went downhill. We checked our bags at the Indy ticket counter and proceeded through security with no problem but as we were putting our shoes back on at security, we heard our names announced over the PA. We though "this can't be good"...turns out we were wrong. The airline had found a way for us to avoid making the trip through Cincy and could put us on a direct flight to Atlanta. Cool.....so we waited. Then the flight was delayed....no problem, our flight from Atlanta to Jacksonville wasn't scheduled to take off until 10:45PM. We had plenty of time.
We arrived in Atlanta with a couple of hours to kill so we grabbed something to eat...then it was nearing time to board our flight to Jacksonville....except that there was another flight still sitting at the gate. Our flight was delayed...and it was packed. After much confusion at the gate, we finally got off the ground a little after midnight and landed in Jacksonville a bit after 1:00AM. We were told to go to baggage conveyor #1, which we did. Needless to say, our bags did not arrive. We were not alone, at least a dozen other travelers met the same fate. The airline gave us an "overnight kit" with a t-shirt and some toothpaste/shaving items and told us the bags would arrive sometime in the morning.
By now it's after 2:00AM....the rental car counters are closed so we have no rental car. Fortunately, our hotel was near the airport, so it was a short taxi ride to the hotel. Also fortunately, the hotel still had a room for us. By now, we were exhausted.
The next morning, we took a hotel shuttle back to the airport, picked up the rental car, met the plane with our luggage and managed to make it over to the Amelia Island Concours in plenty of time to see the show.
All in all, it could have been worse.
As it turned out, we ended up sharing our flight out of Jacksonville the next day with designer Chip Foose and NHRA driver "Fast Jack" Beckman. A few flight delays later and we were back in Pittsburgh. We got to the baggage area and waited while the bags came down the chute...ours weren't there. We then looked in a pile of bags that had arrived on earlier flights...lo and behold...our bags had beat us home. Another triumph for clean living!

HotRod and Restoration Show

Just a few thoughts from our recent trip to the Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show....
First, the concensus of the folks in attendance seemed to be that the Hot Rod and Restoration Industry is holding up well despite the recent economic downturn. Although there is an awareness that the parts we sell or the cars we build/restore are bought with disgressionary dollars and are therefore not necessities for people.....they do help people define themselves...and that is something folks are willing to continue to invest in. Overall, that was good news to hear.
We spent all day Thursday attending various hour long seminars that started at 8:00Am and didn't complete until after 6:00Pm. The best seminar of the day was conducted by Brent VanDervort, owner of FatMan Fabrications out of Charlotte, NC. He gave an excellent talk on Hot Rod suspensions and steering, explaining how the different configrations worked and why.
On Friday we arrived early to attend the breakfast honoring "Speedy Bill" Smith, founder of Speedway Motors. It was a nice affair and paid homage to a true hot rodding pioneer. After breakfast roamed the convention center floor, stopping at as many vendor booths as we could. EVOD Wheels had a nice display of their new products....some really sharp looking wheels. Nordskog gauges had a really slick analog GPS drive speedometer that will fit nicely in any car and never needs calibrated. Fuel Air Spark Technology (FAST) had a nice self tuning EFI fuel injection unit and Brew City Engineering showed off their RediRad unit that allows an FM radio, CD or iPod to be played through the original AM radios found in older cars.
There was plenty of go-fast speed equipment. Roush Racing had several of their Ford engines on display. These are really nice but very costly.
Thursday evening there was a reception with sandwiches, Budweiser beer and the very cute "Bud Girls" who mingled with the crowd. All in all, it was a good show but we would have liked to see more seminars and vendors with products and information that is more geared to the Restoration side of the business. Still, we were glad we went. With any luck we'll be back again next year.

Next blog will be a recap of our trip to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum.

The best layed plans...

So, we had this really great idea that we would blog from the road during out "World Tour" to Indianapolis and Jacksonville. What we didn't count on was a technical gremlin with our laptop that would not allow us to connect to the internet (still working to fix it)....from what I can tell this "local only" connection thing on a Vista equipped laptop is not uncommon. Unfortunately, the various fixes I've found on the net haven't worked...yet.
Anyway, I was able to get one blog out using a computer in the hotel lobby but I was really hoping for more.
None the less, we will bring you various stories from our trip. By and large it was very good and we made the most of our time with the various performance parts manufactures, paint company reps, and other fabricators. We also managed to make a pilgrimage over the the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a tour of the Speedway's Museum prior to heading off to Jacksonville.
The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance was amazing collection of rare and exotic vehicles of all types. Truly a learning experience along with being a lot of fun. We were able to get some close up photographs of several Mercedes 300SL Gullwings that will help us as we complete the restoration of the two we are working on.
So....subsequent blogs will detail our experiences at the Trade Show as well as the Indy Museum and the Concours....along with our travel "adventures". We'll also include some pictures. So stay tuned.
We also plan to upload some additional pictures of our trip to our web site: www.hahnandwoodward.com over the next day or so....check them out.

Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show

Hello from the road! We're in the Mecca of Motorsports, Indianapolis, Indiana to participate in the Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show. The show has been pretty good and informative. We've attended several industry seminars and met a number of great people. The show is more geared (pardon the pun) toward the Hot Rod side of things, which is fine with us, because we build/own hot rods too, but we'd really like to see more stuff that addresses the Restoration side of things.
We've had a chance to meet and speak with several influential people in the industry including "Speedy Bill" Smith, who received the Peterson Publishing Lifetime Achievement Award, Barry Meguiar of TV's "Car Crazy", Art Morrison of Art Morrison Engineering, Nick Arias of Arias Pistons, Sam Memolo of TV's "Two Guys Garage" and Brent VanDervort of FatMan Fabrications along with dozens of not-so-famous people (like us).
All in all, we've learned a lot. Tomorrow, we have another morning seminar we're going to attend and then we hope to make a quick stop at the Indianapolis Speedway Museum....after that, it's off to Jacksonville for the Amelia Island Concours.
Check back soon, we hope to have some pictures to post and another report from the road.
Happy Motoring!

Ready for take-off

We're about to embark on our trip to Indianapolis for the Hot Rod and Restoration Trade Show followed by a short visit to Jacksonville, FL to stop by the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance...a.k.a. "Bill and Paul's Excellent Adventure". While it sounds like all fun and I know we are both looking forward to it, we expect to get a fair amount of serious work in during our trip. There are several business and industry specific seminars along with an opportunity for quality time with various manufacturers reps to discuss their latest products.
No doubt, there will be a lot of discussion about the economy and its impact on the Collector Car Hobby, Hot Rodding and the Automotive Restoration business in general. We're anxious to hear how others in the industry are doing.
The trip to the Amelia Island Concours will be an opportunity for us to get a sense of the current trends in terms of Collector's interests and preferences. We'll also have the opportunity to view some first class restorations. All in all, it should be an interesting and educational trip.
We plan to blog our thoughts an impressions while we're on the road....both the serious "business" stuff as well as the lighter side of our travel experience. It should be fun.
Check back soon......right now, we've got to start packing.

Going the Extra Mile

Originality is king in the restoration business. We often go to great lengths to source or reproduce parts to match the original build of the car.....but sometimes, we need to take a step back and make a wise decision. Many of the cars we work on were built at a time before modern engineering and safety considerations were introduced. Such was the case with our build-up of the '72 Morgan 4/4.

The Morgan utilizes a series of rods and levers to activate the parking brake mechanism. One of these levers is positioned immediately in front of the fuel tank. It was immediately apparent that should the car be involved in a rear-end collision, there was a considerable likelihood that the fuel tank could be ruptured....with potentially devestating results.

Since we know this car will be a "driver" and not a trailer queen, we felt we had to do something to minimize the risk. In this case, we fashioned a small nylon shield that will go between the fuel tank and the lever. This minor deviation from "original" does not harm the car in any way, is easily removed and helps to improve the safety of the vehicle......it also helps us sleep better at night. Above is a picture of our little addition.

For more information on our Morgan restoration, please visit our web site at www.hahnandwoodward.com or drop us a line at info@hahnandwoodward.com

Hitting the Road

Spring is around the corner and it's time for those of us in the northeast to start to venture out. In this case, we're going on a road trip....most of which will take place by air!


Our first stop will to Indianapolis, IN. to attend the Hot Rod and Restoration Show. This is a three day event that is not open to the general public....sort of a mini-SEMA show. There will be a host of seminars on everything from best business practices to air ride suspensions and everything in between. There will also be a number of demonstrations of new products and an opportunity to talk with major industry vendors. Even in these difficult economic time, this is the kind of event you need attend to stay current and grow your business....so we're going!


After our three days in Indy, we'll be winging our way to sunny (we hope) Jacksonville, FL. to spend a day at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. One of the featured cars this year is the one off "Phantom Corsair" making a rare trip away from its home at the Harrah's Collection in Reno, NV. The car was originally commissioned by Rust Heinz, heir to the H. J. Heinz food empire.....and since we're Pittsburgh guys, that makes it even more special.


After Amelia Island, we'll be making our way back to Pittsburgh to review what we've seen and get ourselves ready for the onset of spring.....and car cruise season.



We're planning to blog from the road so check back and we'll keep you posted on how the trip is going. For more information about Hahn and Woodward Auto Restoration, check out our web site at http://www.hahnandwoodward.com/

Fleetwood Mac

After being under the weather for a few days, I got better just in time for the FLEETWOOD MAC concert last night. WOW ! What a GREAT concert. Their talents are better than ever.
Although the group has taken some breaks over the years, some very long breaks; it was obvious they never stopped honing their craft. I came away with a new found respect for Lindsey Buckingham's playing ability.Mick Fleetwood pounded like a mad man. He was like a desperate stage coach driver whipping his team to run faster, faster as if their very lives were in peril. Fortunately John McVeigh kept everyone in time. No easy task with Buckingham and Fleetwood playing with a vengeance. Actually it would seem to be an impossibility. Stevie Nick's singing is as entrancing as ever. I only wish I could have heard more of her voice over the liquored up Steubenville girls' singing and screaming from behind us.
Yes, girls. They were not even babes when Fleetwood Mac was born. Thus attesting to the bands appeal to multiple generations. Every time they come back from a break they are embraced by a new generation. As it should be with this much talent.
Fleetwood Mac's concert was one of the three best I've seen, the other two in this group were the Eagles and the Rolling Stones.

Sometimes it's the little things....

Sometimes it's the little things....

We've been making steady progress on the Metalizing of the '58 Mecedes 300 SL roadster but we did encounter a few snags along the way. First, we found some sections of the car had been lead filled and we needed to melt that out of there. Next, we found a couple of additional areas that needed to be welded along with the need to do some additional sand blasting. Then, yours truly managed to blow a little 7 amp fuse in the ArcSprayer when he forgot to remove the tips prior to loading fresh wire. As fate would have it, these little fuses are not readily available at the local electronics store or auto parts depot. Fortunately, the manufacture has them in stock and is sending us some, but it pretty much shut the machine down for a day and a half.

Fortunately, we're not lacking for other work and we've been able to keep the projects moving forward, but it's a great example of how a seemingly small item can slow you down.

We also spent some time researching the set up of the clutch linkage on the '72 Morgan 4/4......seems the parts we've got don't match the diagrams and none of the photographs we have show the configuration. We'll get it, but here again a “small” item slowed things down. Again, there are plenty of other pieces to be installed on the car and it is moving along nicely.

Then there are the hood latches for the 1938 HRG Coupe. The latches themselves are really cool, period correct pieces that look great on the car, but the way they are designed to work will require that the hood (or more correctly the “Bonnet”) be pulled outward before it can be flipped up. We're concerned that repeated openings will eventually scratch the paint on the fenders....and we don't want that. One of the interesting side notes about this particular problem is that we approached it as a team, looking for input and ideas from everyone in search of the best solution. Just another one of those “little things”.

Check back for updates on the cars and look for an upcoming blog about “Bill and Paul's Excellent Adventure” scheduled for Mid-March.

Happy Motoring.

Time to do the dirty work

Welcome to the third post of the Hahn and Woodward "Restoration Times" blog!.....

So, you think the restoration of these Classic, Vintage and Collector Cars is a glamour job? Time to talk about doing some of the dirty work....in this case, sand blasting and metalizing.

Metalizing (a.k.a. ArcSpraying) is the process of spraying molten particles of metal onto a surface...in this case car bodies and components. Metalizing allows us to quickly build up a corrosive resistant metal surface over body seams and panels that can then be sanded and shaped as needed. Because it forms a solid bond with the underlying metal, it is not prone to cracking like regular body filler would be. It can also be applied to parts (such as aluminum, etc.). Check out our web site at www.hahnandwoodward.com for a more detailed explanation of the process (and pictures!).

To give the metal and better surface to adhere to, the body panels/part need to be sandblasted. Since its still winter here in Western Pennsylvania, we’ve got to do the blasting inside the shop. We have a special booth set up to contain the dirt and the dust but for the poor guy doing the blasting it’s still hot and dirty work that requires protective clothing and air filtration. Similarly, the metalizing process itself requires full garb including welding gloves and shields as well as a separate air supply due to the fumes created. Once the weather breaks, we’ll be able to move some of this work outside, but for now we’re working indoors. Currently, the 300 SL roadster is in the booth. It will soon be followed by the 300 SL Gullwing along with various other parts.

If you have any questions about the process or have parts you’d like to have metalized (we offer this as a service) feel free to drop us an e-mail at info@hahnandwoodward.com

Check back soon. We'll be soon posting a fresh blog updating everyone on our progress.
Happy motoring!

Project Cars

Welcome to the Hahn and Woodward "Restoration Times" blog!.....
In our blog we will offer restoration tips/tricks and ideas, keep you up to date on happenings at the shop and offer our thoughts on issues of interest to the Classic, Vintage and Collector Car Restoration marketplace.


For blog #2 we thought we’d give you a rundown of the active projects underway at our shop:

Currently, we’ve got a 1972 Morgan +4, a 1958 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing Coupe, a 1946 Chevy Hot Rod Panel Truck and a 1938 HRG Coupe, all in various stages of restoration.



As you can see, we have quite a diverse group of vehicles to work on. In the wings is a ’72 Mercedes 280 SE, an MG and a Ferrari.....with even more on the waiting list behind them.


At a high level, the ’46 Panel truck is nearing completion. It’s currently being wired and will next be sent to the upholstery shop to have the interior installed. The ’72 Morgan is in the process of assembly. The drive train is being installed at the moment. Soon we’ll get the body into the booth for paint. The Mercedes-Benz roadster and gullwing are being prepped for metalizing (more on this process in a later blog) and the HRG is being "test" fitted to make sure all of the pieces will go back together properly. To be sure, there is still a lot of work to do on these vehicles before they can be considered "finished" but we’re making very steady progress.


On a side note, we are saddened to hear of the loss of a friend of the Western Pa. car cruise community. DJ R.D. Summers passed away last weekend. R.D. was a regular DJ for many of the area car cruises. He was well known by many and will be greatly missed.


Check back soon. We'll be soon posting a fresh blog updating everyone on the progress of one of these projects in more detail and be sure to check out our website at www.hahnandwoodward.com with pictures of our projects and other services.


Happy motoring!

Choosing an automotive restoration shop

Welcome to the launch of the Hahn and Woodward "Restoration Times" blog!.....


In our blog we will work to offer restoration tips/tricks and ideas, keep you up to date on happenings at the shop and offer our thoughts on issues of interest to the Classic, Vintage and Collector Car Restoration marketplace.


So, for our first blog, we'd like to relay a few thoughts on what makes a car a good restoration candidate. Obviously, the restoration of a rare or historic vehicle is virtually a no-brainer, but what about a less exotic or more common vehicle? A story from our recent appearance at the 2009 Pittsburgh World of Wheels Rod and Custom Show provides a good example of another type of resto candidate. We spent the weekend talking with folks and answering questions about a ground up restoration that Bill did on a muscle car for one of our clients. One of the shows' promoters, a friend of ours, introduced us to a gentleman who was interested in restoring an old vehicle that has been in his family for years. In his own words he described the vehicle as being like a family "heirloom". While the car is not a high dollar collector car like a Mercedes Gullwing or other highly sought marque, it is important to this man. The car has been kept in a garage and hasn't moved for many years. It should be in decent shape, but we won't know until we actually get the opportunity to inspect the car. The gentleman spoke to one of our philosophies.....namely that a properly done restoration can last generations and can truly become a family heirloom. We have done our share of "re-restorations" where a vehicle has been brought to us after it was "restored" elsewhere only to find the original work was not holding up. We fully realize that not everyone can afford to do a 100 point, Concours level resto on their vehicle, but we strongly encourage anyone considering such a project to do their homework and seek a shop that has a good reputation for quality work at a fair price rather than the least expensive alternative. Car shows and cruises are often good sources for this information as are magazines and web sites....talk to people...almost everyone in the car community want's to talk about their ride! You won't be disappointed!


Check back soon. We'll be soon posting a fresh blog updating everyone on the progress of one of our projects and be sure to check out our website at www.hahnandwoodward.com with pictures of our projects and other services


Happy motoring!