By Joe Fay
The Checker A3 was shipped from Chicago to Toledo this past Fall. It had been in Lisle, Illinois having a 1963 Continental 226 Ovhd valve engine installed.
This past fall, this writer was lucky enough to secure a small Toledo post war house in the Point Place section of Toledo. The house is a small two bedroom, one bath house built in 1948. A cute little house it also came with storage facilities large enough to store six cars!
The winter has always been a challenge for me, working outside or in unheated garages has never been condusive to making actual progress. This is the first time that I have ever been
able to work extensively on a car in a heated garage. All I can say is that, the last four months have been the most productive period I have ever experienced working on all cars, since I start fooling around with cars 50 years ago.
Ninety-eight percent of the body work was performed this past winter. Additionally, a significant amount of interior work has been performed.
The interior has required a completely new build out of door panels and flooring. Canal Street Rubber in New York city provided an exact match for the original rubber flooring. Jo-ann Fabric was the perfect sources of a deep maroon vinyl and Restoration Specialty Products has was the source for all door panel boards.
The original arm rests had deteriorated to a point of being unrestorable, so they were replace by repop 1950 Chevy arm rests. Studebaker International supplied excellent stainless steel floor runs to cap off a very professional look.
A 1952 Checker A4 Taxicab bucket seat was disassembled and rebuilt. Its and well as the rear seat is now at the reupholster to be done up in a plain maroon vinyl, just like the original. This past weekend cardboard door panel templates were created. The templated will be used to assist in cutting the heavy grade door panel stock.
The most important score this past winter was the acquisition of a glass rear window for the Checker crew in Finland.
If all goes to plan, the new windshield and rear window will be installed in late Spring. The goal for the Summer is to get this car running and on the road!
New license plate lamp installed
Rebuilt bucket seat, ready to be wrapped in vinyl
