Technical Shortened 32 rolling chassis for a model A

Wow- that looks waaaay better than I assumed.

If you're in northern VA and want someone local, contact @oj at clarkecountyspeedshop.com .
He did the '32 frame for my '28 A. However, its WB is 107.5".

 

Thanks to all that have forwarded along helpful information! This certainly aids in my search!

 

Hey @oj , I was going to list you as well, but I couldn't remember your handle. Thanks @Just Gary .

 

Thank you! This may prove helpful!

 

I wonder how he achieved that engine fitment with what appears to be relatively minor firewall recessing. This car was part of the inspiration for my first post in this thread.

 

OJ is a highly skilled craftsman and I consider him a good friend. I may run this by him as well!

 

One of the unusual things I did on my car for engine and fan clearance is move the radiator forward into the grille shell by 5/8 of an inch. It's the combination of lots of little things that frees up the necessary space.

 

Thanks Guys, thats very kind, I'm not sure how deserving I am for doing what I love to do.

 

Somebody posted the photoshop paint job of this car on this thread. It is 105" wheelbase. The T roadster I built was 92" if I recall on shortened 32 rails. I took 16" out of the side and kicked the rear up on that one.

 

Do you know what he did to the firewall, I have not seen much information on how he recessed it

 

I'm not sure, but you could PM him and ask.

What engine are you going to run? An electric fan (if you're running a hood) is also a way to free up space. And mounting the engine lower will create less need for firewall modifications.

 

The current plan would be to run a SBC.

 

I only had to recess the firewall in my 31 two inches for a small block Chevy, non-hei distributor, short water pump and mechanical fan, but that was with a stock for '32 106 inch wheelbase. You'll have 2-1/2 inches less to work with. Mallory makes a short distributor, and you could always go with an electric pusher fan – that should be enough to fit it in without firewall modification.

The best advice I can give you is to mock up the engine and transmission, including distributor and cap, water pump and fan, into the frame with the body, grille shell and radiator bolted to the frame. You'll know exactly how much space you have, and where you can steal additional space from.

 

I thought I post'd that, but went back and looked and it was gone???? I get ghosted here a lot...lol some times I feel like a motherless child....

 

There is only one answer = TCI, Total Cost Involved was created by Ed Moss 50 years ago in his backyard on a Model A street rod chassis. I have sold many TCI frames since 1987...none better. 800 984 6269, totalcostinvolved.com
Jim Mothershead, 410 474 2244

 

Does TCI make custom frames such as shortening the rails? I did not know they offered such bespoke changes.

 

A Model on 32 rails look mighty good to me , dont try to talk him out of it , help him with what he wants if you can

 

Don't know if this helps. I used original Model-A cross members and bobbed the tail. I did move the front cross member forward 1-1/2" to allow for the larger Hemi, otherwise it was a standard Model-A fit.

 

Shadow Rods ‘32 frame rails are 2 piece, split in the middle so they can be shipped easier. They include a gusset to weld in. They could be easily shortened.

 

I have a friend that has a chopped 31 hiboy coupe with the original frame and a set of 32 rails installed over the A frame rails, kinda like a cover if all you want it for is aesthetics....it worked really well and makes the car look lower over all due to the added depth of the 32 rails...I had been around this car for a month until I crawled underneath to pull the tranny when I realized what the builder had done..... pretty cool actually

 

That is certainly interesting. I think with that amount of effort I would prefer doing a total frame swap though.

 

The term “frame swap” makes it sound like you think you can simply unbolt your body off the stock frame and bolt it onto the hot rodded frame. It won’t be anywhere close to that easy with a 32 style frame. Much easier with an A style frame, but still not really a Remove, Replace, Drive.

 

This is the Only company that I know of
I''m sure there others ,
32 style frame for A 's with out modifying the body oven A

Waldens

 

The Waldens kit is intriguing. I do not know if he still makes them or not. I know it may not be considered perfect but is an interesting option. Does anyone know of another company that offers a similar set up? Has anyone on here used a Walden's set of rails for their A?

 

I asked about this style frame Walden was making here on HAMB ,If there was someone else producing because
Walden retiring / slowing down , the response was kind of smart a$$ comments, I plain to try to duplicate the mods from pic on a set of 32 rail's for the A roadster I have here since I was 19

 

Are you intending to recreate a Walden frame? If so that is a very intriguing endeavor.

As an aside, the rude, condescending, and internet tough guy comments are pretty lame. Maybe it was a fad to be kind of rude on this forum a few years ago but in my opinion it really is not helpful to the growth of the hobby. I do not think many of the somewhat impolite comments would be made if the interactions were being made face to face, however the barrier of the internet makes people bold beyond their stature.

 

I wouldn't have called it a Fad, early on there was titles for members Fk'n New Guy was the first & Grenade Inspector was the 2nd,
It was a way of sorting people out, to make sure they understood the values of the forum. Rude for no reason is different, jibing on the other hand & pointing out divinations on the rules is fair game.

 

Just the mods to 32 frame rails to mount the A body with out modifying the sub rail, the rest of the frame as I prefer , I have built / welded together a few 32 frames on saw horses ,

 

I just went back over the thread, the mods must have deleted all these things you're talking about.

 

It seems a lot of guys don't know how this "model A roadster on deuce rails" thing got started. It began in the late thirties and forties when the 32 Ford was oldest, and therefore cheapest, Ford with a V8. But there weren't that many 32 roadsters, as 32 was not a big year for car sales and by that time roadsters were not too popular.
But, you could buy a 32 Ford sedan junk the body and pick up a Model A body in any junk yard for $10 bucks. Roadsters were more common in those years and they made lots of Model As for 4 years.

One problem was the A frame was straight while the 32 was curved. This made the A body sag and the doors bind. The cure was to cut a strip of wood and profile it to make a flat surface to set the body on. There were other details but heck, teenage boys did this swap in the back yard hundreds of times.