Gene Schilling

Cy Schilling's 1937 Nash Lafayette. In April of 2023, Patrick Schilling told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that "Automobiles have always been a part of our family beginning with my Grandfather, Cy Schilling." According to Patrick, his dad's first custom job was on the family car. "One day out of the blue, he brought the '37 Lafayette home with half the paint scraped off. His dad went nuts. He promised his dad that he would have the car finished and painted by the end of the summer. He did, and it was gorgeous. It had several layers of Marlin Blue hand rubbed lacquer. His customizations were minimal and limited to mostly accessories of the period including a Fulton Sunvisor." Photo courtesy of Patrick Schilling.

Gene took his next custom project, a 1940 Nash Lafayette, a little further. The car was traded in at his father's work, "and after his father agreed that it was in good shape, a deal was struck. Whatever money he needed beyond what he had was borrowed from his Uncle Albert in the form of an IOU note. The work started that following summer. Customizations were again mild including marlin blue hand rubbed lacquer, fender skirts, Plymouth bumpers, a spot light and wide whitewall tires accented with single bar moon hubcaps. Almost immediately the trouble began. At work Mr. McCurdy would not let him park it on the lot because he feared some of the parts were stolen even though my dad assured him they weren't. Then at high school the students with cool cars would take them at lunch and drive them around the block that the school was on. In no time my dad was called into the Principal's office and scolded. That got him in trouble with his dad so he had to lay low for awhile. He divided his time between working at the service station and detailing cars with his new Milwaukee Polisher." Photo courtesy of Patrick Schilling.

1949 Chevrolet Convertible owned and restyled by Gene Schilling of Kenosha, Wisconsin. Customized in 1952, the car was built by Gene, Kurt Lienau and Art Hubbard of Hubbard's Body Shop. The Kenoshan trio teamed up to build the custom car which was displayed at the Milwaukee Auditorium Auto Show, sponsored by the Milwaukee Motoring Association, where it gained national recognition with a picture and an article in "Hop-Up Magazine," a California publication for auto enthusiasts. Photo courtesy of Patrick Schilling.

A 1941 Nash Ambassador that Gene got in 1972. The car was still in the family in 2023. Photo courtesy of Patrick Schilling.

Gene Schilling of Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Gene Schilling's Cars

Gene Schilling's 1949 Chevrolet Convertible