A Trip Through The Studebaker Factory Archives - The Studebaker National Museum https://studebakermuseum.org/category/special-exhibitions/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/ Fri, 26 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://studebakermuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SNMLogo-RedBallOnly-RGB-Sm-150x150.png A Trip Through The Studebaker Factory Archives - The Studebaker National Museum https://studebakermuseum.org/category/special-exhibitions/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/ 32 32 The Stamping Plant https://studebakermuseum.org/the-stamping-plant/ https://studebakermuseum.org/the-stamping-plant/#respond Fri, 26 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000 https://studebaker.priemerhosting.com/the-stamping-plant/ Although Studebaker bought larger stampings from outside vendors, it produced many smaller stamped parts, such as hoods, oil pans, gas tanks, and fenders in-house. Huge presses, some capable of generating […]

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]]> Although Studebaker bought larger stampings from outside vendors, it produced many smaller stamped parts, such as hoods, oil pans, gas tanks, and fenders in-house. Huge presses, some capable of generating 750 tons of force, shaped sheets of metal into the necessary components.

Studebaker’s stamping plant continued as a automotive production facility until the year 2000. Allied Stamping operated the plant at the time of its closing, using many of Studebaker’s former presses.

About this Series

A Trip Through The Studebaker Factory was on display at the Museum in 2012.  This series of articles comes for the displays from that exhibition.

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]]> https://studebakermuseum.org/the-stamping-plant/feed/ 0 A Trip Through the Studebaker Factory https://studebakermuseum.org/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/ https://studebakermuseum.org/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/#respond Tue, 15 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000 https://studebaker.priemerhosting.com/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/ “We at Studebaker are pleased to welcome you as our guest on this trip through our South Bend plants. We earnestly hope that you will enjoy your visit with us, and that it will give you some conception of the care and accuracy employed it the mass production of Studebaker products.”

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]]> “We at Studebaker are pleased to welcome you as our guest on this trip through our South Bend plants. We earnestly hope that you will enjoy your visit with us, and that it will give you some conception of the care and accuracy employed it the mass production of Studebaker products.”

The preceding statement is from a souvenir booklet given to people touring the Studebaker factory in 1950. Studebaker’s downtown plant was at its peak at this time. The 125-acre factory site employed just under 24,000 people and produced 343,166 automobiles that year.

This exhibit will show how the factory appeared during the early 1950s and the materials and methods Studebaker used to build its automobiles. All of the photographs are from the Studebaker National Museum Archives.

About this Series

A Trip Through The Studebaker Factory was on display at the Museum in 2012.  This series of articles comes for the displays from that exhibition.

The post A Trip Through the Studebaker Factory appeared first on The Studebaker National Museum.

]]> https://studebakermuseum.org/a-trip-through-the-studebaker-factory/feed/ 0 The Machine Shop https://studebakermuseum.org/the-machine-shop/ https://studebakermuseum.org/the-machine-shop/#respond Tue, 15 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0000 https://studebaker.priemerhosting.com/the-machine-shop/ Studebaker’s Machine Shop covered over nine acres and turned rough castings and forgings into finished parts. Many of the processes were handled by automated machinery. Engine blocks, for example, travelled […]

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]]> machine shop

Studebaker’s Machine Shop covered over nine acres and turned rough castings and forgings into finished parts. Many of the processes were handled by automated machinery.

Engine blocks, for example, travelled through a series of machines that milled and finished mating surfaces and drilled and tapped over 100 holes. Each process required exacting tolerances – some down to .0002 inches (two ten-thousandths of an inch, or 1/30 the thickness of a human hair.) Certain components, such as pistons and piston pins, were assembled in climate controlled rooms to ensure consistent quality.

Engine assembly also took place in this building. Once completed, engines were fired on a test stand and run under their own power. Any necessary adjustments were completed before the engines were sent to the final assembly lines.

About this Series

A Trip Through The Studebaker Factory was on display at the Museum in 2012.  This series of articles comes for the displays from that exhibition.

The post The Machine Shop appeared first on The Studebaker National Museum.

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