Starting to seriously look at what glass 1932 Ford 5 window offerings are out there. Can't afford to break the bank, that's just not realistic for me. That said, if you had $15-20,000 to spend where would you head for a nice roller. Looking at these 2 so far: http://www.trcauto32.com/index.cfm/...duct_id=30/category_id=16/mode=prod/prd30.htm http://supremehotrods.com/1932-ford-5-window-stage-ii-chassis-a-body-combination-plus.html What others should I talk to and seriously look at? Planning a road trip to see some in person and talk to builders. Wanting a hi boy, 4 bar or hairpin front with a dropped axle, 4 bar or ladder bar rear, 9" rear and a 2-1/2 or 3" chop. Will keep the stock gas tank location. Would really like to have opening front windshield and cowl vent. Probably a 302/AOD sitting in it. Thanks for the input. Share your opinions and experiences. SPark
Prices aren't bad.... for a '32 roller. I can't help thinking I could build an awesome T Bucket for $15K. But, I'm a Buckethead, so....
Your price range is high enough where you could shop around for an original steel body and frame. You won't get anything super nice for $15-20K but you could get "something" to work with. If your metalworking skills aren't that great I suppose I could see the allure in a new fiberglass body but I just can't imagine sinking the time and money into building one. If that's really what you want though, I'd keep my eyes open for someone's abandoned project. There are a lot of fiberglass bodies and new aftermarket frames that never got very far and owners are willing to unload them for much less than they have into them.
Check out the completed/sold listings on eBay and see what you can get for that kind of money. Looks like there are driver 'glass 32 coupes selling for that, and at least one roller 5W on a frame with some money stuck into it for $10K. Would be worth holding out for the right one to come along, and/or making a road trip to pick it up, for that kind of savings. Didn't see any bargain priced steel bodies but they do come up for that kind of money if you're willing to put work into them.
Check out NewAgeMotorsports.... nicest glass 5w on the market with swing out windshield, external hinges, and optional cowl vent opening. http://www.newage-motorsports.com/
Be patient and look at the HAMB ads and you can find what your looking for. I recommend buying a real steal body and chassis but that's me
Brian bass has a nice roller for sale on instagram. https://instagram.com/p/BYB4upgnXNw/ Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
In the 32 glass body market I second New Age Motor Sports. More money but well worth it. Closest thing to a steel body in appearance you will find and very well built.
Sent a message to New Age motorsports already. Have looked at their bodies before and really like them. Still interested in what else is out there. Wanting the most bang for the buck, aren't we all? Thanks, SPark
That body appears to be assembled (in a manner of speaking) from a number of pieces with the doors in particular being uppers from the belt line up mated to door skins that have no inner panels. Could it be brought back to life? Of course it could, but some master metal working skills are needed. That one is not for the faint of heart, much less a thin wallet which most of us have.
That one is not for me. I will probably go plastic unless I fall into a steel deal. Also have a feeler out to Russ Nomore on their complete roller packages. I really like the looks of the New Age body but is it worth $4-5000 more for the exact same parts besides the actual body. I see they use round tubing bracing where most others use square. Advantage/disadvantage in that?
This one is in LA. x prohibited[?] Posted 3 days ago print ◀ prev ▲ next ▶ Original All Steel 1932 Ford 5 Window Coupe - $27500 image 1 of 22 1932 Ford 5 Window Coupe fuel: other title status: clean transmission: other This is probably one of the nicest, all original, steel, 1932 Ford 5 Window Coupe's you will ever come across. Complete, all Henry Ford steel!! Chopped 2" - Not 1 spoon of Bondo. This car has been indoors for over 50 years, just take a look at all the photos. Boxed Chassis - Tubular X Frame - Body has been stripped, acid washed, and oiled. Fenders were sandblasted and then sprayed with red oxide sealer. Complete less Motor - Hood - Firewall - Suspension Comes with; 1931 Cadillac Dash and Stewart Warner Gauges Direct Sheet Metal Floor Pans & Tunnel Original Headlight Bar Coil Over Shocks Extra Springs Gas Tank Windshield Frame with New Rubber 1956 Chevy Rearend Original, DMV Cleared 1932 CA License Plates Briggs VIN/Body Tag This is the real deal, for real money. NO TRADES, NO CASHIERS CHECKS, NO BEGGIN'!! You can view the car at my antique store in Lucerne Valley, CA by appointment. Call for any questions or more info. Thank you. do NOT contact me with unsolicited services or offers post id: 6277161912 posted: 3 days ago email to friend ♥ best of [?] safety tips
Appreciate the offer but that is a lot of parts I don't need and missing a lot that I do. I'm probably going with a glass body and a complete rolling chassis from the same mfg for compatibility. Hi boy, full roller.
Why do you want fiberglass? If you ever attempt to sell the thing, you will get ten grand less at least. It's way more logical to spend a couple grand more now and reap rewards later.
I'm looking at everything. Will probably end up with plastic just because of the cost difference going in. I would rather have a glass body rod than no rod at all. I'm just trying to be realistic. Most steel bodies I'm seeing will still need a lot of work or parts still (firewall, floors, doors, patch panels, etc), or the body costs what a rolling glass car costs. That may be the straw that kills the project from ever starting. Same reason I don't want to buy a full fendered car with a suspension system style I don't want just so I can change it all or sell it off. Steel would be nice, and I would take it if it shows up for me and I like it, but I'm not offended by a nice glass body on a new chassis. That's why I am asking questions about who has had good luck with body/frame combos. Getting some good PM from those that have been there and a couple have confirmed some of my thoughts and concerns.
When I was researching which 32 5window body for my project, I spent quite a bit of time doing so. I did not want to get an original steel one for crazy amounts of money, that have the bottom 1/3 of the body rusted away and spend the next five years rebuilding, so I went the fiberglass route. New Age Motorsports- well made and has a lot of options, pricey but you get what you pay for. Russ Normore- I think is a pretty nice body and has some options you want. Bebop- I think is a decent body except the stock type door hinges are in the wrong location. (like a roadster) If you choose to do hidden hinges, that would not be a problem. Davicki- In my opinion, this one is not really a good made body. Trunk and door jambs are poorly finished. This body will take quite a lot of work refining many of the unfinished issues. Downs- They were making them for a while and were decent. With all their restructuring and hand changing, I don't know if the new Downs is still making them. Wescott- Does not do a 5 window body, just a 3 window. The selection of 5 window bodies is much less than 3 windows. There are other makers also, but you want to make sure you get one that has all the inner structure completed and not just an empty shell. In the end, I went for the New Age body, mainly due to Ed has more info out there than anybody else on the body. Lots of photos and videos of the finished product. It is really well built, but you have to remember, its hand made and is not perfect. It was really flat when I got it but it did shrink some over time after putting it out in the sun every day for roughly 6 months. There were some air pockets in the fiberglass here and there Once the stink is out of it, the fiberglass is fully cured. that's when you start the body and paint work. You have to keep in mind that even though its new, you will still have issues to deal with like refining contours, door and trunk fit etc. If you think its ready to scuff down and paint when you get it, then you are sadly mistaken. If you do that, you most likely wont be happy with the end result down the road. I spent countless hours refining the body and addressing the air pockets etc, to my satisfaction, and did not rush the job. I bought just the body from New Age and had Ionia Hot rod Shop fabricate the chassis. My car is pretty period correct for the early to mid 1950s. Highboy with a 1949 8BAFlathead, T5 five speed manual, 1949 Ford rear end with split wishbone rear suspension and an straight axle up front with hairpins. It is a Traditional style car with a high level of finish. If you would like photos of my project, let me know. I would be happy to help you in your quest or answer any of your questions. Bill
Thanks for the info. Much appreciated. I know the Downs bodies are still being made on "restored" molds: http://www.trcauto32.com/index.cfm/...oduct_id=22/category_id=9/mode=prod/prd22.htm I wouldn't consider a body without the inner bracing. Also well aware of the amount of work to get the body right before paint. Guess it will come down to whether I want/need the flip out windshield and working cowl vent (currently considering the New Age) or without (Downs). Once I decide on the body I will start beating people up on chassis. Some are single tube some are double tube. I would think the double tube would be much stiffer and overall better. 3 pictures are 3 different builders. 2 are single tube center crossmembers and the last one is dual tube. Thoughts there? Thanks all!
Same on body bracing. Everything from 1-1/2" round with 1/4" plate to 1" square with hardwood. First 3 pictures are NAM, last 3 are Downs.
Personal opinion, but I'd go with single tube it makes routing your exhaust easier and IMO will be just as rigid. I boxed an original frame and added a 2 x 2 trans crossmember with just two legs toward the rear, looks like a backward K member. It's been driven all over the Midwest and is extremely rigid, never an issue with creaks and groans or doors popping open. BTW, the inside of that New Age body is about as close to stock appearing as you can get. Nice!
Been getting some great messages and emails. Very much appreciated. As of now, I'm leaning real hard towards a New Age Motorsports body (with flip out windshield, opening cowl vent, all stock handles for doors and trunk, 3" chop. Still on the fence about the roll down rear window) mounted on a Pete and Jake rolling chassis (9", beam front, hairpins, Vega box, Ford mounts for a SBF/AOD, probably a triangulated 4 bar and coilovers). Wanting a stock gas tank and a hi boy, think this is getting me close to where I want to be. Going to take a little drive down to Peculiar, MO next week and do some talking and looking. Still considering a T5 instead of the AOD, have to decide for sure on the rear suspension bars (ladder or triangulated 4 bar). Will probably have more questions after talking to them! Been sending emails back and forth with Ed at NAM. Getting my questions answered there. Thanks for all the help! SPark
Sell off the original '32 parts you don't want and get the Chinese ones you do want. You'll be money ahead there, the parts will go quicker than you can ship them and It will pay for your time. The effort into a Tupperware car doesn't return- looser every time, the same effort into a steel car and it's hard to loose on.
I built a New Age Motorsport 32 5 window coupe and it is by far the best 5window glass body you will find. Go to their web site mine is the red one with camel leather interior. I got the wind down rear window and loved it. Check it out it is one the first page.
Here is my BeBop 5 window build. The hinges don't bother me 1 bit. 9 out of 10 people won't even notice. www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/the-sohio-special.1070934/
Thanks for your opinion. Not into buying parts just so I can try to sell them. Not headed after Chinese parts. I'm not a steel vs glass snob as many others are, if it looks good, looks correct and I can safely drive it that's what it's all about. Would rather do a glass car now than wait another 10 - 20 years to do a steel one. Don't think I have another 20 years left in me and I'm realistic on what I have to spend. I've survived cancer, have a heart issue and need to get going on this project. I looked at Bebop but I just can't get past the hinges. I would look at them every time I walked up to the car and they would just scream out at me. I'm the kind of person that wants things to be aesthetically pleasing and I can't do that. Like the looks of your built though! Thanks all! I do appreciate the info and opinions SPark
It's not about being a snob, it's just the reality and not an opinion. Facts are the buy in is bigger, efforts return value and that value holds. There are folks with BIG money who saw a need to fill and reproduced the bodies in steel, they made a good decision. The next step up is original.
Build the car the way you want to. It doesn't sound like you are worried about a return on your investment but more worried about having a finished car. If you are worried about how much you can get for it after its done, then buy one already done. That's the only way you would ever be above water. Most, if not all cars, will cost way more to build in time and materials, than you will ever get out of them when you sell them. Get your money out of it in the enjoyment of the car. Don't listen to the steel is real crowd , where many don't have anything nice to say unless its real steel. "Tupperware car" etc. Many don't have even good things to say about the steel UPAC body because it has off shore stampings, so its not real steel either. But an original Henry body with the bottom 1/3-1/2 that is patched up with panels made in China, is real steel? Go figure. I don't regret my decision at all about having NAM build my fiberglass body. I may have gone the UPAC steel body route, but it was still in development at the time I started my project in 2012, and would have cost roughly another $8000.00 more than the NAM body at the time. At least I can say my body is 100% American Made! I doubt you will be disappointed if you go with the NAM body.
I built a 29 roadster with a glass body From A.I Fiberglass, at one time they had made a really nice body, but we were unaware that the company had been sold several times over the years and the quality had gone way down. They had one that the person that had ordered it bailed on it so he lost his deposit and we just had to pay the balance. Looked great when we picked it up....but when it made its way onto the frame, it was easy to see that it was crap. It took almost 3 years or work to get it straight and get all the needed reinforcement into it. You get what you pay for. After that experience I will never screw with a glass body again. (still keeping an eye out for a deal on a steel 29 body to replace the glass one with) If you must have a glass body, get the best one you can afford. You will be money and time ahead. I would look for a steel body, an abandoned project. but that me. they are still out there that are affordable. I scored an solid 32 Tudor body and frame a few years back for 1500 bucks. keep looking and you will find them.
Build a Tupperware hot rod. Keep looking for a good original steel body. IF you ever find a proper original Ford body TO YOUR LIKING, buy it, restore it and swap the bodies out. Sell the glass body. Or better yet, buy it and build another 32......sell the Tupperware one.....if you have to.
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