I got a 29 Tudor A in September. It was kinda of a rat but mostly had a lot of safety problems . After I got it home I drove it for a couple of days , handeled ok , bogged a lot . It needed a horn and LP light and wiper arm to get it inspected for Texas tags . I brought it in the shop and I didn’t like the way it looked and the way the taillights were mounted . I decided to give it a haircut and change a few things . End of week one , top chopped and hadn’t fixed any of the other things I brought it in the shop for . This will be a slow build as I’m doing a COE that I’m going to be driving this spring to LSR . Will be driving am Nd working on the A as I go .
Hinges are in b pillar , they were suicide done . Not my choice , but what I had to work with . Had a top and bottom hinges . May have to put bear catches on door as I’ve never had much luck with stock a catches . Could be real bad if they opened up at speed . Blue
yup, drove '33-'34 coupes since 1991... always worried about the doors opening... also '28-'29 cowl hinges are the easiest to move... drill 2 5/16" holes in the A pillar and run 2 5/16" fine thread bolts into each hinge...
Yes , I’m a hotrodder and play with metal not aspeller or English major . But thanks for the lesson . It’s all good .
English has so many rules, and they don't always apply, rules are out the window with names... a vowel followed by one consonant is long... a vowel followed by 2 consonants is short... a hyfen - might have worked... ... good looking rod no matter how you spell it...
I always figure when someone says they are going to de-rat something there is a barrel full of non automotive pieces that is headed to the scrap yard involved. That was more like a low imagination hot rod when you got it. Nothing real offensive but not too exciting either.
Hey Blue, we've seen what you can do on your COE, why not rehang the doors the way Model A's are suppose to be (my preference)? dan
Yes it is . I did a trade with a good friend from SD . We met there . Good catch , nice little town . Blue Dan , maybe-latter on the doors . Just want to make it safe right now and use it for a driver until I finish up the COE and My wife’s 59. That don’t sound to bad ! Work , work , work ,, crack that whip............. Blue .
Personally I've never cared for suicide doors on an A. Sent from my A520L using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Other than the Mack bull dog hood ornament and the skull shift knob, it looks like a hot rod to me. Oh yea, square street rod front turn signals.....ran my share of those, but they grate on me now
I personally wouldnt run suicide doors on a Model A. But I definately would never trust stock Model A latches on a suicide door. Im nervous enough with them on my stock door 28. At a minimum, put some positive locks on them that will keep them from blowing open.
I personally would only want suicide doors on any Model A, and have installed them on all the A's I have owned except for one and I sold that one before I got around to doing the swap. So as you can see there are more than one opinion on the subject. If the first picture you posted is when you first got the car I don't see anything ratty about it. Certainly looks like a solid start, interested in seeing were it goes from here.
A lot of the bs had already been taken to my dumpster . A lot of things still have to go . Mostly it’s the safety of the thing that need attention, battery half below the floor and other up into pasanger seat . Oh yes the seats are high back buckets. Someone took most of the bolts out of the back after they had painted and never put them back . All the inside is missing all trim including the parts that hold in the windows . I think this was a nice rod at onetime , painted yellow and probably full fendered. The chassis is an old P&J with a 9” rear . You can see where the unscrewed thing and never put them back . Painted over the yellow after sanding with 24 grit and shot flat black out of spray bomb . Cut a crooked hole in back and just threw on some 39 taillights off center and facing not straight . The list went on and on , like a wire to the electric choke that was laying on the cowl that you open WS up and pull to start? I think I’ll like it . I have fixed the taillights and ........ Will show some more tomorrow. Decided to work on it till I go to SEMA at end of month . Then back on the COE before it gets to cold to paint . Latter , Blue
So , onward through the fog . The taillights were really bad in the mounting . I made up a quick pair of buckets and recessed them into the original area they used . I didn’t want to mix up epoxy primer so I shot some can primer on the raw metal of the chop and buckets. Wrong , came out this morn and the primer had lifted the old paint . Didn’t save much time . I will strip all the paint from belt line up and around the buckets and do it right all the way up to to final paint . Scared to strip the whole car at this time not knowing what can of worms I might open up . Blue
spell check may have took control, I fight spell check all the time. Mine even kicks in on the F bomb. LOL @JOYFLEA if you intend on keeping the suicide doors I would invest in some safety latches like the deuce and model 40 guys use. Or at the very least get some door bolts from the hardware store ( see pic) Its not a street roddy thing if you are worried they have been making safety latches for suicide doors since the '30s. The latches I posted are kind of back yard but they work and they are cheap. LOL
So I got a late start today. Got my flu shot and then picked up my windshield and rear glass from the glass man . That s the good news . Now the bad , my plans to only paint from beltline up went out the window . While sanding topside I had some paint releasing between primer and the yellow paint that’s under the black . There was no mechanical or chemical bond at all . I decided to go ahead and strip the hole car and start with new epoxy on clean metal. I was lucky and found little damage and body is pretty good for 88 yo . There were places where the paint had came off in sheets at one time and only had the black only .????? Oh well 6 hours with80 grit and I’m almost done . Should finish up all strip and prep work tomorrow and prime on Friday . I have some black and some white . Don’t know what I’m using . I l know black is mean and white is clean ? Maybe gray , what do you folks think . Trying not to buy any new paint . Blue
Blue, I think you stepped in it, just don't get it between your toes. I vote for gray, it shows you have a good sense of humor and aren't boring. 3 weeks to SEMA. dan
At this rate, you'll have this and the COE done before SEMA. I love how you got it in the shop, and wacked it straight away. I've factory suicide doors on my Hudson, with original piano hinges, and Bearclaw latches. Never had any issues, and I sometimes drive fast on our shirty roads, with it Rattling like crazy. Keep up the good work, maybe throw a heater in before Winter if you have room, so you don't have to wait till next Summer to enjoy it. Grey seems a logical choice for the paint, since you have the ingredients. I like black, but there's a truckload of As already black.
Color is such a personal thing, and important to the over all feel of the car. I personally am pretty boring when it comes to color. I am always kinda surprised when I look in the shop and see that almost everything I own both Hot Rods and Off Topic cars and trucks are Black. I just love Black cars I guess. there also are about a zillion black Hot Rods out there, I am right now working on a 34 Ford 3 window trying to get it done, it is going to be shiny but I am having a hard time picking the color so in the end it will probably end up Black ( damn ) I blame that on my lack of imagination. You also need to think about what you intentions are going to be with the car. If you are going to get it done and the way you want it and drive it while you are finishing the COE and then flip it. Then color becomes way more important, because in the end you are going to have to have a color that someone else ( new buyer) likes enough to lay down the cash for. Grey just may be a safe way to go. It also is kinda neutral and boring in a way. Won't really make a statement but it will be safe...
Jeff , doesn’t get too cold in this part of Texas just at night . Problem with that is the PPG paint needs 50 degrees at night for it to dry right . I’ll be driving it in time for SEMA for sure . The COE still needs a lot . Hombre , I too love black . Have my 39 truck painted black . Lots of block sanding to make it right . I hate sanding and I live on a dirt road . And I guess red would be best for flipping. I have a hard time getting rid of stuff .????? Metal Mover , 3 weeks and I’m excited. Never been before. Really looking forward to it and 10/31 will be our 30th wedding anniversary. Las Vegas! Blue
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