ross blackford Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) :D, I've just bought a 1:1 scale restoration project. It's a 1939 Pontiac Fully Enclosed Coupe (Sloper). These were only produced in Australia by GM-H from 1935-41 in 2 unique to Australia body styles, the first from 1935-37 with suicide doors and the second from '37-'41 with normal front hinged doors. They were our equivalent to the US Businessman's Coupe but I think somewhat more stylish with their fastback styling. The Slopers were also produced in Vauxhall, Chevrolet, Oldsmobile and Buick here all with bodies by GM-H. Out of 85 1939 6 cylinder Slopers as they're called colloqially here there are 3 known to still exist. A couple of years ago I drove to Melbourne to look at another of these cars. It was a basket case and well beyond my skills and abilities to restore. It was a rust bucket, seized engine, no gearbox or driveline and the interior, what there was of it was totally trashed. He sold it about 4 weeks later on ebay for less than a quarter of what he wanted for it. This one is in great original condition with the original interior in good condition but needing a little restoration work. The extrior needs a respray but mechanically she's great and she has no cancer She's been in storage for the last 20 years and was last registered in 1991-92. When the owner started her up I was surprised how quietly she ran. She actually sounded a lot like my late Dad's old FJ Holden I learned to drive on back in 1969. I was expecting to hear rattles and knocks from the engine and see heaps of oil on the floor and smoke from the exhaust but there was none of that at all. The mileage on the clock is also apparently original. I will only be the 4th owner since new. She was apparently bought new by 2 sisters in Brisbane and then by a man who had heaps of projects going on and didn't have the time to restore her. The fellow I've bought her from is a fly in fly out miner in the far west of Queenland who also doesn't have the to time to restore her. I'll put some pics of her up here when I get her back to Newcastle, probably in a couple of weeks time. I love the art deco styling of those older cars, call it a nostalgia thing but I really do like it. Now who'll be game to do a kit of these beautiful old Aussie cars. , Ross. Edited October 17, 2012 by ross blackford Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Holeshot Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Cool! My neighbor has a '39 Pontiac that he's resto-modded over the years. Can you post some pics of yours? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted October 11, 2012 Author Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) :D, G'day holeshot, Yes I certainly will post some pics of her when I get her back to Newcastle but I'll warn you, you may not recoginise her as a 39 Pontiac. Only the front clip was the same in Australia, from the firewall back they were a locally designed body and even the sedans had slight differences from the US sedans. The engines, chassis and drive line were imported here from Canada as RHD CKD kits because of tax and other political considerations at the time. For instance, our 39s had the same rectangular tail light as the 37 & 38 US ones did but only one of them on the right hand side with a number plate bracket attached to it. Your 39s had 2 round tail lights mounted half way up the sides of the trunk; ours were rectangular like the earlier US models and mounted down low on the body. I do intend to do some safety and comfort mods, like a 12V electrical system and an extra stop/tail light on the left hand side from a US 37 or 38 model sedan or coupe and an eye level stop light as well. I have a fear that some young driver will run up the back of me and then use the excuse he/she didn't see the single stop/tail light. Later I'll probably fit an A/C system from Vintage Air and some more modern brighter headlights in behind the Pontiac lenses. There are also some NOS spares included in the deal including owners and workshop manuals. , Ross. Edited October 17, 2012 by ross blackford Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted October 26, 2012 Author Share Posted October 26, 2012 :D, G'day again holeshot, The car is to be loaded in Townsville next Monday so with a little luck I might have her here by Friday next week, or at the latest by early the following week. When she arrives I'll take and post those pics. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted January 31, 2013 Author Share Posted January 31, 2013 :D, Does anyone know if there has been a kitof the 1939 Pontiac 6; either sedan or US style coupe? I'm thinking I'd like to do a kitbash/scratchbuild conversion to a RHD Aussie Pontiac Sloper. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Blind Dog Posted February 2, 2013 Share Posted February 2, 2013 Ross; I replied to the similar query/post you made in the General Discussion section. I know of no specific late-30s Pontiacs in kit form. But you might consider the Revell (ex Monogram) '39 Chevy coupe (hot rod or lowrider) kit as a possible starting point. cheers Old Blind Dog Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Drifterdon Posted February 14, 2013 Share Posted February 14, 2013 So Ross, where are those pics. I'm real interested in seeing what a '39 Pontiac Sloper looks like. Don Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 Ross, How are you doing with this beauty of a project.. May I have a look at your photos please Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 16, 2013 Author Share Posted February 16, 2013 :D, G'day HOLMES and Don. The Pontiac is still in storage for another 10 days then I'll bring her home now that there's space for her in the garage. I won't be starting the project just yet. Have to save a bit more money yet but I've had quotes last week on getting her soda blasted and a new paint job. I'm going to have a go at doing the faux woodgraing on the dash and window garnishes myself. I'm going down to take her for a drive around the storage facility today so I'll get some pics of her and try and post them this afternoon. The last tiime I tried to post from photobucket I was unsuccessful no matter how hard I tried and got advice from others here and it still wouldn't work for me. But I'll try again and see how it goes today. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Aaronw Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 Sounds like a fun project. When I was little, my parents had a friend who owned a 1928, and 1938 Pontiac sedans. He never drove he '28 because he didn't want to make the changes required for it to be street legal (side mirrors, blinkers and such), but I used to love riding in the '38. It would be fun to have an old car like that for running around town. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 :D, G'day Aaron. We don't have to make any changes to a car over 35 years old, even if it's a LHD import. There are a number of LHD Mustangs, Camaros and Firebirds etc running around Newcastle, Port Stevens and the Hunter Valley. Mine will be getting side peep mirrors though, not to comply with any legal issue but because the view to the rear quarters is so poor. I don't know how those ladies that owned it for so many years managed to keep it intact as they drove it from 1939 up to the late 80s or early 90s and never put a dent in it; pity someone unknown couldn't have been so careful during a 2 week trip from Townsville to Newcastle on the back of a truck. You'll see the dent above the left hand door in the photos. Speaking of which, I'll have to postpone my drive around the facility and photoshoot till tomorrow morning as I've been called in to work this afternoon. Don't you just love a quick shift after 4 night shifts. Well I guess it's not so bad, I get to sleep at night tonight (something I don't do overly well these days after years of mainly night shift) and then I have 2 days off. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 18, 2013 Author Share Posted February 18, 2013 :D, I'm still having trouble with my photobucket account. I don't know what the issue is but it's so slow and clunky to load even the images that are there onto my computer let alone uploading more images to the site. It's just so frustrating and that's why I haven't uploaded images for some time now. I'm currently doing a course called Creating Your Own Website so I'll try uploading some images of the car to that and then if I'm successful I'll put the website address up here and people can go there and have a look at it. Our instructor says this is what's called "feature creep". A site starts out simple and quick to use and then a user suggests the admins might like to add such and such a feature and so it goes on until the site is now longer useful or practical for ordinary users. I'll see how I go in the next few days. My apologies for this delay and it's very frustrating also for me because I really do want to share images of the car with everyone. , Ross. ps. Is there now simpler site to host images at? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 19, 2013 Author Share Posted February 19, 2013 :D, Let's see if this works. Here a few pics of the Pontiac. http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0457.jpg http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0455.jpg http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0454.jpg I hope this has worked. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bigasshammm Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 (edited) :D/>/>, Let's see if this works. Here a few pics of the Pontiac. http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0457.jpg http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0457.jpg http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m185/rossjools/th_IMG_0454.jpg I hope this has worked. :cheers:/>/>, Ross. Just a helpful hand. Not sure why they showed up so small but that's a cool looking car. Will you be keeping the same color or something else? Edited February 19, 2013 by Bigasshammm Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 19, 2013 Author Share Posted February 19, 2013 :D, Hi Bigasshammm, Thank you for bringing up the photos and no I don't know why they came out so small either. Perhaps some of our more experienced memebrs might be able to help me here. She is a cool looking car and I'll be keeping her the same colour,why change it when maroon is one of my favourite colours, possibly my favourite I think. How did you get the pics to show up? I may have an idea why they're so small. I'll try something this afternoon after work and see what happens. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bigasshammm Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 All I did was add your links to the insert image icon button at the top of the box when writing a post. 2 to the right of the smiley icon. What you can do that's much easier is when you're on P-bucket and you scroll over or are looking at an individual picture then you just copy the Image line at the right and paste that and it does the exact same thing. Much easier and eliminates a step. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Blind Dog Posted February 20, 2013 Share Posted February 20, 2013 Nice! Looks like an interesting project. cheers Old Blind Dog Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 21, 2013 Author Share Posted February 21, 2013 :D, Thank you Old Blind Dog.I'll try to get some more and bigger and better pics up over the coming days. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Litvyak Posted February 21, 2013 Share Posted February 21, 2013 Here: That is a pretty nifty looking car! I'm usually more a fan of the post-war styles but I do quite like the front end of this one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted February 21, 2013 Author Share Posted February 21, 2013 :D, Many thanks Litvyak. You like the front end? From the firewall foward all Aussie GM cars were whatever they were in the US and Canada for that MY. Actually the chassis and front panel pressings were imported from Canada and the body from the firewall back was pressed here. The engine and drivelines of Aussie Pontiacs were imported from the US as Canadian Pontiacs 6s had Chevrolet 216 c.i. six cylinder engines whereas this one has the US 224 c.i. Pontiac 6 donk. After 1938 the straight 8 engine wasn't available here. Also the interiors were different materials; North American Pontiacs I believe had mohair covered seats whereas ours had local leather seats. You can see why I want to fit door mounted peep mirrors to it as the rear vision really is quite poor. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted May 8, 2013 Author Share Posted May 8, 2013 :D, I've got the old girl home again to start the resto. at the moment I'collecting a few parts like windscreen wipers(can be sourced locally ans then slightly modified to fit) and the stop light switch isn't working. Our earliest Holdens had the same type of hydraulic stop light switch as the Pontiac so I've ordered one of those to see if it will fit. Hopefully it will and I'm also watching certain items on ebay. The charging system isn't working properly and I'm looking to fit a 12V alternator and fit small resistors to the gauges and a large resistor to the wiper motor. That way I'll be able to wire up 2 speed wipers and run modern 12V accessories like GPS and phone chargers. Down the track I also want to fit a suitable Vintage Air or similar a/c unit to the car. This unit will also have a heater core. Fortunately at this stage nothing needs to be down to the engine besides a good tune up and nothing needs doing to the driveline at all. I've found a man within the last week who does the faux woodgraining on the dash, door interiors and window garnishes. I've also had quotes on soda blasting and a complete repaint of the exterior and also on a window rubber kit, so it's all slowly coming together. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted October 17, 2013 Author Share Posted October 17, 2013 :D, I've started the restoration process. I've been able to get a 6V 18W globe for the brake light for $3. One quote I had was $10 each. I also looked on the net and found one seller selling them for $20 each. I ended up getting a box of ten for $30 from a motorcycle shop. Early next week I'll drive her to a brake place to have the brakes checked and a quote drawn up for any repairs necessary. The charging system will also need some work (the generator charges soemtimes when it feels like it) but I'll be able to do that myself. Whether it's a generator or regulator problem or a bit of both at this stage I don't know. Eventually I think I'll fit a 12V alternator so I can run 12V accessories etc. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Old Blind Dog Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Sounds like FUN!!!! Good for you! cheers Old Blind Dog Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted October 18, 2013 Author Share Posted October 18, 2013 :D, Thank you OBD, I must admit I'm looking forward to having her on the road looking all shiny and new again. I'm hoping next year's Catalina Festival at Rathmines (a wartime RAAF flying boat base on Lake Macquarie, about 30 minutes drive from my house) in November 2014 will be her first as new outing but I won't be disappointed if it's November 2015 either. It will be good to see her sitting next an aquaintance's 1939 Oldsmobile Sport Roadster. This car is even more rare than my Pontiac. Of the 10 built in 1939 at GM-H's Woodville plant in Adelaide this is the only one of these left in captivity. Both cars are a beautiful rich burgundy maroon colour. Or at least mine will be when it's finished. I'll keep you posted on progress with pictures also when I find out how to work this photobucket thingie. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted November 3, 2013 Author Share Posted November 3, 2013 :D, At the moment the old girl is at the doctor's having her brakes fixed. She had one working brake; all the others had seized wheel cylinders so I'm getting them and the master cylinder relined and rerubbered and then refitted to the car. She also needs the brake drums honing and new lings bonded to the shoes. Something I found out when I went over there the other day to take some pics is that contrary to what I thought from having read the manual (which is a US publication) my car has lever type shockies all round. According to the manual the rears should be telescopic types so the lever types are obviously a GM-H choice. They also need overhauling as she has the typical floaty US "boulevarde ride" thing happening. It appears that the rear shocks are hydraulically linked and the only reason I can think of for this is that they also act as rear sway bars. The front suspension is independant with coil springs, lever type shockies and a steel sway bar. I'm thinking while I have the wheels off it might be a good idea to get the shocks overhauled at the same time. The gentlemen doing the work is an older man who started his apprenticeship in the early 60s and frankly I glad he's doing the work as the younger guys there just look at it and scratch their heads. This older man does all their older vehicles. Next job is a 12 volt alternator conversion. Also for some strange reason the speedo doesn't work. The odometer does but not the speedo. Not to worry, the instrument panel will be going to the local instrument place for repairs and servicing. I might buy a new temp. gauge if I find that it's the gauge and the little bit of fault finding I done so far seems to indicate it is the gauge. Also new decals for the instrument panel all available on ebay. Now I just need to find a clock for the glove box lid. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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