Projects BRIAN MADE ME DO IT: 34 Roadster Build

I saw the exhaust pic, goes well with your windshield!

 

Lovin it man

 

Is that the correct Q change for this build?

 

It's like that song they taught in sunday school "This little light of mine", I'm done hiding the QC and I'm going to let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

 

Paint/clear applied. Spreader welded back together...seriously? Don't chop up stuff up until you sober up! That should be on a tee shirt.

Not easy painting two colors under a completed car but I found a way evidently. It did require a lot of masking tape, paper, Crown Royal and patience.

That's a lot of shiny in a tight space.
For the moment the plate is mounted in the center of the spreader bar.

There was already a hole there for the wiring and initial plans are to run the exhaust pipes on either side of the plate frame. I need to reinstall the QC before making final plans. But I do like the look so far. Note I retained the nerf bars.

I will put the rear end back under the car tomorrow and try to figure out this puzzle. I still need to add tail lights to this mess. All this over a few gallons of gas!!! Oh Veh!

 

Sometimes I'm really jealous of you folks who live on paved roads with paved driveways. I used to be able to keep cars looking that clean when I lived in the burbs, but now I live on a gravel/dirt road so I'll not be having any cars (or trucks or motorcycles) that stay clean like that anymore. That's the price I pay for peace/quite/solitude.

I've been watching this thread since day one. Outstanding work and results my friend.

 

Thanks for the compliments. I am a city boy, I need paved roads and pizza delivery.

 

Well; we don't get delivery out here either. It's either sweetie's (great) cookin' or run to town for us.

Later...

 

Hey "city boy", I ventured over to one of your old stomping grounds yesterday, 82nd ave.
Couldn't wait to get out of there, told my wife I wouldn't live there if they made me king of the county.

 

Uh yeah. It was never Rodeo Drive but it is more like an actual rodeo now! I worked on that street, cruised that street, got my first ticket on that street, threw up once on that street, bought a few cars on that street and don't need to return.

 

I miss 82nd, the way it used to be...

 

You must have really wanted to do that. I can't attack things once they are finished, I cringe too much. But as I say you really must have wanted to do it. Nice neat job though.

 

I wrestled with it and it came down to the need for more fuel on board. I think it will be worth it in the end but this was really tough, chopping on a finished car.

 

I escaped a bit early from the office and came home to wrench a bit. I stuffed the rear end back under the car. I like the new upper shock mounts.

I am not a car painter but I doubt many shops would try to paint two colors in such a small space. I pulled it off and it looks good even up close. I used a ton of masking tape and paper!
Back on all fours, I tried the plate in the center

and over on the left

I like the center. But the plate is too low. This mount won't work any higher so I need to do some customizing. I want the plate bottom at the bottom of the spreader.

Then the twice pipes should be easy enough to route and look more planned. The plate will also lean back a bit more, it is too flat right now. Still need to work on tail lights. I can see why guys add them to the ends of the spreader bar. There isn't a lot of options. Hmmmm

My original thought was to hang the pipes and see if the tail lights would look good at the same height. I think I will start with the pipes.

 

Maybe I'm looking at it wrong; but won't the length of the new shock mounts tend to lever and twist the rails since they are not in proximity to a crossmember.

 

On the rear plate, can't the brackets that mount to the spreader be pointed up rather than pointing down? Reversed?

 

So as I see it, you have no rear cross member now? (I'm not counting the spreader.)
Just saw Rich B's post and he's obviously noticed the same.
You've got quarter elliptics mounted forward, but I dunno...I'd like a rear crossmember.

 

That frame is fully boxed and the shock mount is welded to the end of the boxing plate as well as full mitered inside of the rails and welded on 6 seams each. The chassis is a full double tube X member and the quarter elliptic springs are mounted on both the Tube X and Frame wall. The shocks are just dampeners and have no actual leverage at all. Being you can compress the shocks by hand I doubt they will cause any frame distortion. Then add to that the Body has a 3/16" steel floor pan fully welded with 1' heavy wall square tube cross braces welded pretty solid all adding to the overall stiffness of everything. I'm pretty confident things will stay where they are. If not we'll repair it again and B.B. can paint over head again. This time I'm buying him a better face shield.

 

Outstanding build!!

 

See Wizzards response below. As for the length I could have stood the shocks up (shorted them) a bit but I copied the placement of the uppers in exacting detail from the original location. Beside the quarter ellipticals there is also a panhard bar out of view here to keep the rear in place laterally. The chocks are merely dampeners and subject to little other force than up/down movement of the axle. I am not an engineer by any means Rich, i hope I got this right and appreciate the input.

The spreader is partially under the rear on the car at the center so the brackets cannot be flipped...Anyway not without some cutting. Coming later tonight...some cutting.

The body on this car is the most over built construction you have ever seen. I am relying on that but appreciate the advice, you are one that knows what he talking about I have learned. Like Wizz says below, the frame is boxed, tubed and not going anywhere. The spreader is a crossmember though a decorative one and I also bolted the frame to the body at the rear body crossbrace. I hope it is enough!


I just had a terrible thought, If you and the Wizzard were both in the garage giving me advice I would build the greatest cars but never finish anything!!!

Yes to the face shield, my eyes can't take more metal in them. This car is built better than a Hummer (the vehicle, that is) and I did weld the bejeevies out of those shock mounts. One of my buddies noticed the distortion in the frame rails once they were clear coated, he asked what these two vertical lines are and I explained that is where I melted in the shock mounts. I will also mention that frame job was TIG'd on both sides for added strength.

I did a rear shock relocation on a 69 camaro once to run fat tires without mini tubbing. It required moving the shocks inboard of the frame and creating new upper mounts that were not half the construction of these. It never gave me any issues and I drove her hard.

Coming from you that is an ultimate compliment Sir. Thank you!

 

Dang! That is Cold B.B. True but still Cold. What a pal

 

The workmanship and finish are just great and I'm sure everything will work out.

I wouldn't have commented on the mounts if the boxing plates extended to them; but they don't.

I also think a good amount of force is put upon shock mounts and while you can easily push them in by hand it is not the same as the sudden compression brought on by a road bump.

None of my comments are meant in a negative way and you guys are probably much more experienced and knowledgeable about this stuff than me; so I will let this be.

 

No worries Rich! I could be wrong, it's never happened before but there is always a first.

 

All done! I just need to carry a roll of tape in case it rains.

License plate looks at home up high, exhaust flaking it on either side.
I bought these neat little brackets from Summit, they are actually panhard brackets but I have repurposed them.

The perfect size to hold the 8BA connecting rod exhaust hangers.

I used some 1" tube to gap them from the spreader bar for now. I will lock them in place before fabricating the tail pipes to make sure they don't move. I am thinking taking a 2x4, drilling two 2.25" holes in it 11.25" apart, 1" space at the top and secure it to the spreader to make sure they stay put. But this is where I like them.

That puts the pipes dead level with the trunk floor

The pipes are scrap pieces I had laying around from making my roaster show display a few years back. I tend to use 2.25" on everything including my 41 PU i am building. That way you have odds and ends for other jobs. 304 SS, it will polish up nice. I also picked up four 45 degree mandrel bends out of the same material. I have welding and polishing in store for my weekend.
I will run them just past the spreader bar but not as far as the nerf bars on the ends.

My exhaust inserts from the original tail pipes will complete the install then it is on to the license plate bracket (sans masking tape) and a couple of tail lights that require alteration.

 

Awww, c'mon; that blue is purdy and provides a nice contrast...

 

Just when I thought this car couldn't get better....Great job on cleaning up what was already very well done!

 

Exhaust looks good..nice touch with the hangers.
Oh, one thing, I think tan masking tape would have matched the floor bottom better though.

 

The license plate is perfect right there and the pipes flanking it looks great.
Nothing is looking out of place.
Great job!!

 

While it did make for an easy method of mocking up, I am not overly attached to the blue. Perhaps shiny silver exhaust bandage tape?

Nice compliment buddy. It is a proper place to house a blown flathead. Now it is equally aggressive from the back.

The entire system is hung with those rods that i cut down and had ceramic coated over at Russ Meeks place. I love 'em. Always mounted "ford" emblem out.

Thanks! Now I have to figure out how to mount the tail lights (small necessity). The original mount would have them directly behind the spreader bar and nerf. They need to move inboard and down below the spreader. I am thinking once the pipes are welded in place, mounting the tail lights along side them would look cool?

 

Bingo! That looks right on.