Projects Cadillac Powered 28 Model A Roadster Project Learning Experience

Projects can be delayed for many reasons. Mine has been hanging around for 10 years. Back at it now and hope to be driving it this summer. Glad to see you are back in the groove.

 

Nice to see an update. Gold looks good on a Caddy mill.

 

I’m liking the engine color. Thanks for posting an update.

 

Not much to report but I have been picking away at some projects. I was able to finish weld the brackets on the rear end. I ran out of welding gas just as I finished the last weld. Then it was time to squirt some paint on the housing.

I noticed the pinion seal was leaking when I had the rear end sitting out of the car a while back so decided to tackle that. I somehow had the seal in stock in my toolbox. The 3rd member will get pulled too for paint and to inspect the gears and reseal the 3rd member to the housing.

Then off to a buddy’s place to replace the axle bearings. They were toast.

Much better now.


Next is to get the brake backing plates blasted so I can powdercoat them and get the rear all back together and get ready to make the car a roller. I also need to inspect the king pin bushings and replace if need be.

That’s all for now.

 

Great build, man! I was pretty exited to find it on the Hamb as I have a very similar build coming up. '29 roadster with Cad 390 & T5 on A rails with a dropped A axle. So I really enjoyed reading your thread. I really like the stance of your roadster, it's just right. What rear spring did you wind up using? Reverse eye stock A spring? I'm thinking about running a T spring on mine but I also have an A roadster spring. Also, which steering gear are you running? Great build overall, I really like the style and fab work. Best of luck with the family and the cars!

 

I went with a T rear spring on mine. It seems to fit well and got the rear where I wanted it without reversing the eyes on the main leaf. For steering I am using a Vega box.

Thank you so much for the kind words. I am still learning.

 

Keep on keeping on. Fun thread to read through!

 

With winter in full swing in MN it is time to get back on the car. February will mark my 10 year anniversary with the body and I am sick of seeing it in a million pieces. I was able to get the rear and as finished as it will get now. I was not able to pull the 3rd member as I didn’t have enough leverage. It seemed to turn smoothly so I suppose if there are problems Future Stormtron can handle it. I did give the 3rd member a coat of paint at least.


From there I decided it was time to get the front end back together. I went to ***us’ place to get the kingpin bushings in the spindles and ream them. Then after I got home I got the spindles on the axel.

Then it was getting true wishbones and rod ends installed.

 

A few weeks ago I went out to the garage to tinker a bit and maybe straighten up a little.

While cleaning I looked at the frame and ladder bars sitting on a cart I had made a few years back. I hit my breaking point.

I was able to muscle the frame off the cart and onto some jack stands by myself.


It felt good. While I was on a roll I decided to bolt the ladder bars to the rear and get that underneath the frame.



Then I decided what the heck let’s get the front end under it.



SO MUCH BETTER!!

 

Next was the front brakes. This car is getting 40 Ford drums up front. When I bought the front end a long time ago it came with what looked like food cores. Pulling them apart was really eye opening.




Inner and out wheel bearings on both sides and one of the grease seals were original Ford. It was so cool to see.

I brought the shoes, wheel cylinders and drums to a local brake supply house and they were able to reline the shoes, rebuild the cylinders, and turn the drums. I was very happy with the results.

 

Last night I had some buddies over for a garage night and we decided to get some work done.
We were able to get the brakes all out together, grease up the new bearings, and get them installed. I will have to adjust them of course.

The crown jewel of the night was installing the front wheels. They haven’t been on the car in at least 5 years.


I am hoping that I can keep the momentum up. Next is the rear brakes. Then I can install the master, plumb, and bleed them.

 

Kick***!!! Just dont get it built then sell it 6 months later! Haha many many others have given up when life got hectuc. Good on ya for staying after it! We are about to have our third child, beginning of this thread felt like i was reading my life story

 

So I have been continuing to work on the car. The progress can sometimes feel glacial.
I decided the next plan was to get the brake lines plumbed and bleed the system.
Next was to get the motor and transmission reacquainted and set in the frame. That was a good feeling.

I decided to go hydraulic throwout bearing on this car because I thought I wouldn’t have enough room to get a clutch fork in there. That was a job that fought me. After pulling the transmission 4 times and pulling out some hair in the process I finally got it to not leak.

 

Now it is time to turn attention to the body to get that mounted to the frame. With the help of some friends I was able to tip the body up and spray some undercoating on the bottom of the body. It was only slightly sketchy.



Next up is to paint the firewall and then we can mount the body to the frame. I’m getting pretty excited!

 

I figured I should probably update this thread. It’s been far too long.

Since the last update I have worked on the car, but I did not post here. Some of this is out of order. Sorry about that.

The gold paint on the engine was cool, but my poor prep work made for paint that fell off if you looked too hard at it. I ended up repainting it a dark green. I am happy with the results.

After the bottom of the body was coated, I turned my attention to the firewall. I decided on a cream color for it. It came out decent.

Then it was time to prep the wood blocks to mount the body to the frame. A quick coat of polyurethane.

And finally the money shot. It felt so good to get the body back on the frame. Plus it really helped open up space in the shop.

Next it was time for a fun project: the tail lights.
I made some templates out of cardboard and taped them to the back of the car for a visual.

Then it was time to cut into some metal and bolt them in. I need to fine tune placement and bolt them in tight still. That is why they are not perfect.

It was time for a quick photo in front of the car. I had celebrated my 12 year anniversary with the body.

This year at Iola I found a really nice grill shell. It might be too nice for the car. I’ll see what it looks like when the car is closer to being on the road.

A lot of the summer the roadster was buried. My father p***ed away last winter and most of my garage space has been filled with his stuff as we were going through it.

Lastly, I did score some sweet old chrome valve covers for the Cadillac from the guys at Iron Trap. They should fit the aesthetic of the car. I have another set of script Caddy covers I was planning on nickel plating. We will see how these work first.

That’s it for now. I plan on spending some time on the car in the upcoming weeks. Hopefully I can make some good progress.

 

thanks for the update...looking good....it is going to be a fun car I suspect

condolences for the loss of your father....God speed...and for energy and wisdom with dealing with his earthly stuff