The Stude Dude - Transcript
[Narrator]
Stuart Tritt of Kimball collects cars but don’t bother asking him if he’s a Chevy or a Ford man because in Stuart’s garage it’s all about the Studebaker. And like most serious collectors Stuart’s fascination with the Studebaker began when he was quite young.
[Stuart Tritt]
That’s what I learned to drive in was a little ’59 Studebaker Silverhawk with a six cylinder. I couldn’t get in too much trouble because it didn’t have enough power but it was a neat looking car.
[Narrator]
That neat little car and Stuart parted ways but not without leaving a void in Stuart’s cruising happiness.
[Stuart Tritt]
I didn’t get serious into collecting until 1974. I found out there was a Studebaker Car Show in Cheyenne, Wyoming and I decided I’ll go up to it. I joined right then and there and bought two cars I think within that year.
[Narrator]
If you’re a Nebraskan your ancestors were probably more familiar with this mode of transportation because it was sets of wheels like these that launched wheels like this.
[Stuart Tritt]
It is a 1950 Champion Business Coupe. 1950 was the year that Studebaker made the most vehicles, roughly about 275 thousand. And this is a rare enough car that they only made 841 of these. It’s just a single seat car and then a trunk extends well into the cab of the car and businessmen hauled around all their wares in it.
’50 was what they referred to as the bullet-nose... ’50 and ’51. And that’s what people remember when you say Studebaker. This Business Coupe here will probably... I don’t know if I’d push it much past 65. They got upwards of 30 miles a gallon which was unheard of back when the gas was real cheap.
[Narrator]
Stuart’s collection also includes this 1962 Lark Daytona Hardtop, a 1966 Lark Goldenhawk, and this, a 1962 Studebaker Champ Pick-up.
[Stuart Tritt]
Studebaker was...they saw the end in sight I guess you’d say when they started manufacturing these things. So they did everything on this lower budget as economically as they could. It’s got a Lark front end. The box on it is a Dodge box. They were made by Dodge, that’s why it’s about four inches wider than the car.
[Narrator]
Stuart bought this Champ Pick-up fully restored which is nice when you can find it, and afford it. Which brings up the other part about car collecting – restoration.
[Stuart Tritt]
The hardest part of restoring is after you’ve kind of taken the car apart, its cleaning and painting each piece. The most enjoyable part is putting the thing back together. It takes your mind away from all your daily stresses. It may create its own stresses.
[Narrator]
Of course, this leads us to wonder, does Stuart own his favorite Studebaker?
[Stuart Tritt]
I don’t own my favorite Studebaker but it would have to be a 1937 Coupe Express. That was the pick-up which was the forerunner of either the Ranchero or ElCamino because they were a car body with a pick-up bed on the back.
[Narrator]
If Stuart has sparked your enthusiasm for the Studebaker check out the NEXT EXIT website. There you’ll find a link to the Studebaker National Museum.
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