Projects Building My First Roadster in San Francisco

Thanks everyone! I'd like to imagine that this car was found in an old San Francisco garage and recently unearthed after a long slumber.

Last year, David and I worked really hard on the stance. I couldn't be happier with how it sits. I think the tall front tires are going to help me not bottom out as I crest Russian Hill. Time will tell.

 

On Saturday morning, I woke up, hopped on the motorcycle and headed for San Francisco's Old Car Picnic.
Naturally, I was drawn to San Francisco's only other flathead-powered A-V8. Rumor has it that it's an old Vern Tardel build. Note the trailer. He hauled a couch and a BBQ to the park!
Stoner's T kicking up the hay.

This chopped Packard was my pick. Such a heavy hitter.

 

After my morning at the park with the friends, I jumped in my truck and headed north to Petaluma.
Being greeted by my favorite hot rod always makes me smile.

David and I had a great half day at the shop. I had some brake parts for Ted's quarter-mile machine, and David helped me out big time by brazing the pedal shaft retainer since it was too thin to weld.

The master at work!

 

Before heading home, I stopped by the local hardware store to pick up the pieces I needed to finish the job on Sunday. I brought the whole assembly inside because, well, why not!
The following day, I spent the afternoon painting, greasing, assembling, and installing.

I couldn't be more pleased with the finished product. It's clean, sturdy, and operates smoothly. As I looked at the assembly in the car, I thought to myself, "I'm really getting better at this stuff."

 

On Sunday, I also ordered a handful of parts ranging from gauges to banjo fittings. I fully intended on making templates for the aluminum pieces for the floor tonight, but that will just have to wait for another day.

Now, for two more shots to wind down for the night.
The recipe is: Hudson wheel, 1932 Ford dash, Moon column drop, Stewart-Warner "Mate" cluster, and old hot rod upholstery.

Later this fall, I'll be painting the axle bells, spring, and shackles white. That's all for now!

 

Thank you so much, Brian. I really appreciate it. I feel like all my years of research are really paying off right now, although some of the elements happened so serendipitously, like the old torque tube headers and chopped windshield frame and posts from the mid-'50s. What a journey it's been!

Thank you, Nick! It's special to be able to give them life again. When I was looking at that photo, I was surprised to see how few pieces are reproduction. I'm just doing my best to build them how they really did in San Francisco during hot rodding's Golden Age.

There are few things I like in this world more than details. If there's an opportunity to make something special, I'll do it. The trick is just not going overboard!

Thank you so much. That was the goal. Once it has a little bit of paint on it, it'll really flow together. Everything in due time. Can't wait for our roadsters to meet one day!

 

On this evening's trip to the garage, I focused on the pedal area. First, I did some trimming to give the clutch pedal more clearance. I worked in short bursts with the cordless grinder, trying not to annoy the neighbors. Once I got as far as I could, I decided to switch gears and call one of my old roommates to catch up.

As we talked, I pulled out some card stock and started making my template for the floor area around the pedals. By the end of our call, I had the template looking and fitting right. I painted the card stock because, well, why not. I'll have a picture of it in position tomorrow.

Cutting these aluminum floor panels isn't a required step at this point, but I figured it was a low-stress activity. This weekend, I'll be fitting the gas tank and potentially drilling the filler neck hole, all of which get me closer to disassembly.

Oh, and tomorrow I'll have some fuel block questions. That's all for now!

 

As promised, here's my template. There will also be a center piece that will go right above the column, but I'll dial that in once everything is in position. (The whole thing will shift left a little bit, too.)

 

Hahah that's some good on-the-spot thinking. I'm sure that interior had plenty of "sole."

Thank you! That's the goal: make it feel as-found. I'm so excited. Now it's really feeling like a car rather than a conglomeration of parts!

 

It was a light evening in the garage tonight, but I was able to put in a couple of hours worth of work.

Before I did, I conducted a little science experiment with my new water temp gauge. The good news is that it works. I felt like a real moonshiner with this setup.

Down in the garage, I spent a little bit of time messing with the gas tank mount. I'll be finalizing it this weekend, so I can check it off the list. Although chaotic, this shot reminds me of something you may have seen in an old Rod & Custom.

 

Next, I modified the instrument cluster ever-so-slightly to accommodate the ignition switch from the previous version. I'm still trying to decide where to put the push-button from @Hitchhiker. Maybe it'll go in the cluster? Maybe it'll go on the far left of the dash? I'll have to think on that one before I drill a 5/8ths hole in anything.

 

For the final project of the night, I made two more templates for my floor. There's no rush on these. I'll cut them out of aluminum as time allows. Don't worry, the real ones will be painted black. Note that I removed the pedals so I could start thinking about bushings.

 

Great starter advice, friends. I think I have a plan that I'll be able to act on later this week.

This weekend, I spent a couple of days finishing up the gas tank mount.

The tank is fastened via six grade 8 bolts to a piece of 3/16ths steel that spans the width of the car. That piece is then bolted through the subrails to the frame via four 1/2 inch Grade 8 bolts. Rubber insulation was used to reduce vibration.

Once the tank was secured, I took a 2-1/4-inch hole saw to the tulip panel.

Once the filler neck was poking through, I moved the lunchbox latches slightly inboard. Now the steering column, gas cap, and latch are all in a line. The extra holes will be filled soon.

 

The only other development from this weekend was that I took a gamble on an original SW water temperature gauge off of eBay. I was mainly buying it for the cast aluminum mount, but when it showed up, I decided to give it a try while eating breakfast. Michael supervised.
And you know what? It worked!
I'm playing with location, but it looks right at home here. I didn't get a picture, but it matches the column drop perfectly.

 

As I closed down the garage tonight, I stopped and took a moment to reflect on everything that's happening on this project. We've been checking off a lot of "to-do" items as of late, and I'm feeling really good about how my skills as a hot rodder are developing.

I'm fortunate to be able to have a project like this, and I'm grateful that I get to share my progress on here. These are special times.

 

On this car, every piece counts, and all my friends seem to realize that. The other day, I received a small box in the mail from @So Cal Brian B. Inside, I found a thoughtful note on bright green paper and a very special sampling of cotter pins.

Best of all, they had even spent time in the North Bay city of Benicia.
These are the kinds of things I absolutely love.

Can't wait to unbox them and put them to good use later this fall!

 

In the meantime, I've been catching up on some light reading from my friend Kerry.

And I'll end things tonight with a question: does anyone know what size fittings this fuel block takes? I'm planning to run my SW fuel pressure gauge on one side and a barb end to connect to the mechanical fuel pump on the other.
That's all for tonight!