Nikki Belford's first car was her stylish 1950 Ford convertible, a 15th birthday gift from her father. It has become something of a tradition to re-gift her with the car, as she got it again when she turned 30 and recently once again, when her husband, John, finished the second restoration, a full frame-off rebuild.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
One of the requirements for the latest restoration of the Ford was that it had to retain its original steering wheel and horn ring.The black rim and burgundy horn button complement the original look of the interior perfectly.
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Comfort is the key for rear seat passengers, who also got leather-look vinyl seating spaces.
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Blackwall BF Goodrich tires mounted on Rally American steel wheels help maintain the original look of the rolling stock, which is accented by factory-style '50 Ford hubcaps and trim rings.
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Hard to believe, but the Ford's original seats were reused this time around. Scott Downey resculpted the contours at his upholstery shop, with John Schmidt stitching the high-end faux leather to tuck in tight to the new design.
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Low-key was the operative theme under the hood, where a 350 cubic inch Chevy crate motor, with no chrome or billet, was used to supply power. This engine replaced a 283 Chevy, which had replaced the original Ford flathead at the time of the car's first restoration.
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John Belford added blue dot glass inserts to the factory tail lights, which now glow a lot brighter, thanks to LED bulbs.
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The door panel design was modernized, but kept simple in keeping with the overall look of the car. Original door and window handles were retained.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
A set of Haneline gauges is neatly incorporated into the single instrument pod, including a speedometer an four accessory gauges. Note the pinstriped accent highlighting the crisp edge of the heavily reworked dash.
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Another iconic piece of trim is the hood crescent, reminiscent of a Roman warrior's helmet.
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The bumpers were smoothed and rechromed, as was all the grille work in the car, including the classic center bullet which marks the car as a true `shoebox Ford.'
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Downey's Upholstery also handled construction of a new color-matched fabric convertible top, which fits like a glove. New hydraulic cylinders were installed to ease the raising or lowering of the top.
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The new interior beckons the Belfords and their passengers to go for a ride on beautiful Indian Summer weekends.
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An overhead look at the driver's controls reveals the modified column shift, which features a golf-ball shift knob, just like the one added to the car years ago in one of its previous lives.
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Chad Ward brought his pinstriping brushes to bear on the paint of the shoebox convertible, using a dark brown color to accent the Fawn Biege body and interior panels.
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It's hard to say which way the car looks better, with the top up or down, but most folks would probably vote for this look.
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Notice anything missing? The clock bezel is gone from the center of the dash, as is the radio speaker grille. John Belford said the original dashboard was `way too busy,' so he spent an estimated 40 hours cleaning it up and smoothing it out. It was worth the effort.
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The convertible earned a nickname many years ago, now noted by a special pillow kept in the back seat. Family and friends know the story and that's about all we can say about that.
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Belford chose to leave the trunk original, with a new black rubber mat holding cargo, since the car was rebuilt as a true daily driver.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
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