Featured Art & Inspiration Firewall Management

Making something look shitty on purpose when you have the skill and ability to do better is lame.

 

Some cars and projects would look pretty stupid if the repairs made weren't blended to the finish of the rest of the car.

 

Yes, I agree with you there. But tidying up wires and hoses, or even closing up extraneous holes are not one of them.

 

I wasn't walking yet in the 50s, so not personal experience here.
Consider what's happening. A person of a certain character wants their transportation to be something different and even in the 50s a bit outside or skirting the law. Sure, they could buy a postwar car and get around. But they choose to go with the low cost, 'antique' stuff and mix, match and modify so it's as light, fast and flashy as they can afford. Something to reflect their own personality and fit in to a small subset.
New cars still run 6 volt batteries/generators and that '32 chassis without the body still has the 20 year old wiring.
They may add a few accessories or replace damaged stuff, but the harness is fairly minimal and serviceable. It sure isn't going to make it faster! A complete new harness probably isn't going to be fabricated, it will be cobbled together from existing stuff or maybe a small section from the junkyard.

My guess is an AV8 is going to be leaning pretty hard on this.

 

For me personally the dividing line isn’t so much tidy routing or care in placement but the level of attention the wiring draws.

I bundle everything in asphault looming with shrink wrap at the ends and splits. I try to make it look nice.

But some guys have a different bright ass plaid fabric line for each thing, each with some crazy ass spiral land line phone cord looking end, and a little engine turned bracket to hold them and it makes it very distracting to me.

Most often I see this on the same cars that really dress up the alternator to try and get it to “blend in” so no one noticed it hasn’t got a generator. And instead of it just disappearing like painting it black would have done, now all anyone sees is the ridiculous decorated alternator.

on the extreme opposite end if every wire is tucked and ran threw a tube in a frame rail, under the valley pan etc etc to the point that you can’t see any wires it just feels like a sculpture. Like it doesn’t feel like a car. One of those little subconscious things that pings as somethings off.

Also seems like a real pain in the ass to service.

finding that middle ground is what I think is the best. Make it nice, but don’t make it a feature.

hopefully that makes since?

 

Takes less effort to make things look good than to look cobbled up ...

 

If you are thinking firewall with a Model A roadster, you need to look up articles on Bill Neuman's roadster. He was editor of Rod & Custom back in the early 60's. That is the firewall to copy.

 

Joey, just changed mine up. After 10 yrs. of a red firewall, I more or less copied the interior color. Also being old and sometimes lazy, I chose the dark gray hammered look. Not quite traditional, but I’m enjoying the look. Hope All is Good with you, Carp.

 

For non show cars I'm thinking it would be like any teenage or young adults through the decades (since the HAMB era wasn't my time), little money, little skill and very little patience. Speed vs money in the shortest time possible to driving status. Running wires out of existing holes, leaving them untethered was all par for the course.

But it all comes down again to personal taste, what you like, what catches your eye. Personally I like the middle ground, bundled cloth covered wires, but easy enough to repair/modify for the future and easy to maintain. I like small details here and there, not all of us are pros and it's fun to try something new (milling a part, engine turning...).

 

Yep, I fit that description A place for everything and everything in its place. On my roadster I welded straps to the inner fenders on both sides to secure my harness behind the body bead line, driver's side is the lights, signals, horn, etc. The other side is the coil, gauges, engine stuff. I used fabric covered wires that are matched to my color-coded fuse panel diagram for ease of service,
and they are bundled by these little leather straps with snaps that my daughter made for me.
I didn't have to, but I like things neat and orderly...and preferably no wire ties. And plastic covered wires with laser printing on them, while helpful when wiring and repairing, don't look that nice IMO.

It's a bit anal but I build cars to my liking, and I like them neat and shiny.

 

Fair point. Even when I make something "shitty" its done with careful planning and execution. And isn't haphazard with wires running everywhere

 

Are you really questioning your decision making and resolve at this point?!? If it's the only thing standing between you and driving - it's an easy call.

And no matter what you decide, you think any of us believe you'll leave it alone afterwards?

Keep going bro - one way or another the finish line (for now) is right in front of you!

 

@Bandit Billy I love how you have yours done. Nothing super over done just nice. You go nuts on the polishing and a few other things but it just makes me think of old hotrods that were built after the war and you can tell that guy worked in the air force and it all spilled over to the hot rod.

I think you have a good amount of restraint with your clever solutions and don’t breach the line of fucking up a car that’s been finished.

I see that now and then when a guy just needs to build another hot rod but instead just keeps adding needless shit to the one he’s got.

 

Thanks man! I appreciate that.

 

Here's our '32 5wd Coupe circa 1958 . . . when it had a 1953 Chrysler HEMI (331ci) engine with four (4) Stromberg 97 carburetors and a Cad/LaSalle transmission . . . hence the MOON fuel block and the brake & clutch master cylinders mounted on the firewall:

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. . . the firewall stayed that way until 1975 . . . when my father & I installed a 1958 Chrysler HEMI (392ci) engine, 1969 Dodge HEMI (manual shifted) torque-flite transmission, Volkswagen Bus steering unit, and a new polished aluminum firewall:

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. . . and here's a @pgan photo of what the firewall looks like today:

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My firewall is clean. No master cylinder, voltage regulator, relays or wires or ignition coil. The M/C is under the floor and everything else is on the passenger side of the firewall tucked away from view. Under the cowl cover on the inside though? Not so pretty as some others. it's tidy enough under there but it's not as OCD as some others with their perfect wiring harnesses. The only thing on the firewall is a period Model A accessory oil filter whose mounting bracket perfectly mates with the detail of the firewall.
Andy

 

Tidy and secure wiring lessens the chance for electrical fire. Don't make it messy on purpose if you have the option and ability to get it all looking good now. The only things visible on mine are two looms of wiring wrapped up nicely with electrical tape, the fuel block and pressure regulator. My voltage regulator was originally on the outside but I flipped it to the inside of the firewall post painting the car. All of the major stuff is mounted on a tray under the cowl. It is as neat as I could get it but still a little rough.

 

^Tidy!^

 

Cobbled up crap in 1950's is still cobbled up crap in 2025 and would be nothing to be proud of unless its some famous original untouched car .
IMO there is no reason to do sloppy crappy work that directly shows your skill and talent to make it look like your some untalented kid from 1950 . Id wan tit to look like a talented kid did it from 19 50 instead .

Im not saying it has to be over the top extra special but loose wires and crap laying all over the place is to me not really acceptable . One would think in 75 year on a original hot rod some one would have time to fix the just get it running mistakes of the day.

My opinion make it look like it was built by some one with skill in the day if you want a some what period correct car .

 

I like that truck . How much was it chopped ? I see all three hinges still on the door . I like that .

Im building one now but with a Hemi . Plan is a small chop and channeled

 

Any thing worth doing is worth doing well. Just because they were sloppy back in the day doesn't mean you have to be. If your intention is to make your car look like it was put together by a teenager in a hurry and you can be proud of that, do it. But make concessions to keep your car safe and fun to drive without too many sessions sitting by the side of the road, or perish the the thought burning to ashes while you watch.

 

It is chopped 6 and channeled 5. I am short dude and it is cramped, but I still drive it around to buy dog food and drop stuff off at the post office.

 

I know you’ve seen it Joey but here is what Lanny did on the Bachelor’s Button ‘58-‘61.

I think there was a battery cover at one time. It got lost and I need to make another.

Here’s what I did when I built my ‘34 Chevy. Factory bulkhead in the middle and I hammered out a ‘40 Ford type cover for the big harness. Asphalt loom everywhere and fabric coated wires where you could see them.

 

When I swapped out the blown up flathead in my 40, I was faced with this mess in the engine compartment.
Each wire had its own plastic loom.




Now it looks like this. Still have to deal with the bundle coming from under the dash.
Look past the el-cheapo valve covers. They came on the engine; to be replaced in Phase II, when the intake gets switched out.

 

That’s a slick looking blister @cactus1 !
@flatout51 made a blister for his A firewall as well.

always a neat detail.

 

There is a difference between busy and rag-tag.

 

Considering Joey has gone to the effort of painting all the little parts White, I don't think his intention is to try to emulate a low effort, rushed, talentless teen!

 

On my 41 PU I welded up appoximately 112 holes prior to painting. I like a tidy work place.

The tags are applied with double sided tape, rivets are glued in. I did have to put the brake booster and M/C on the firewall as I ran out of room under the truck. But I kept it as tidy as possible. The wiring is routed through a vintage Cal Custom regulator cover. Again, cloth covered color-coded wiring under the hood and more leather wire straps.

 

Is there a fitting to go directly from the 90 to the fuel line available?