Projects 41 plymouth coupe 392 hemi build thread

Thanks Skoty! The comments are very much appreciated, you are one of the people who inspire me with your skills and talent. Eric

 

i think it's safe to say it's gonna be hollands finest for sure!!
so much hand detail work,,

 

very inspiring build, can't believe i've missed it thus far...simply wonderful

 

Thanks guys! It's good to see so many people are following this build and enjoying it. I get a lot of inspiration from people here on the Hamb building their rides and the related tips and tricks. Like I've stated before, this my first build, with certain ideas and plans changing as I learn, whilst enjoying it! Thanks for the compliments. Eric

 

Glad you found it! Enjoy.

 

Once again continued with the dash today. Tack welded the two sides on the top and proceded to shape and cut metal for the lower two sides. Finally the end is near. Hopefully I'll be able to finish the metal work tomorrow.

 

Dash is looking good!

 

wow, that's looking great! I hope to be able to learn how to work metal like that one day.

 

You make me sick! HAHA! Coming along great!

 

Welded up the cowl vent, antenna and wiper holes. I'll need to hammer out the high and low spots on the metal, caused by the heat. Then I'm going to grind the welds and finish it off with lead. Going ahead with the dash tomorrow.

 

Thanks!

Thanks! I didn't know how to do it either up until one week ago. Make sure you have a good teacher and the right tools. From there it's practice and practice.

Thank you. (not trying make anyone sick though)

 

Holy shit..words fail me.

 

YES! Finally finished the metal work on the dash. I made sure the gaps have a little space left for the welds and used a dolly and hammer to finalize the shape. Then grounded the welds. It's now ready to be welded up by my buddy Martin. Unbelievable that it has taken three and a half days to get to this stage. (including thinking time)

I now realise the amount of time it takes to think and fabricate. Anyway, I'm very happy with the end result and should look killer once its back in its proper position in the car.

 

Considering I can't do much more work on the dash right now, I thought I'd start on the trunk. I first cut out the excess metal and while looking underneath I found the lower bottom brace not looking too healthy. So I drilled the spot welds, then cut and drilled from below. This part is really rotten, as you can see in the pics.

Does anyone know if there is a replacement part for this?? It will probably be cheaper than fabricating a new one. Any suggestions are welcome!

 

looking at the welds, you have to weld with more stops , weld about
1/2 " hammer the weld and weld the opposite side proceed till you are all compleet around ,don't let it the metal get to hot ,gives you less warp

 

Just for the curiosity,i googled 41' Plymouth sheetmetal parts and i found that trunk panel.
Kind of pricey,but at least they are selling them:

http://www.plymouthdoctor.com/images/automobile/40plymouth.pdf

On the page 3...

 

Thanks Finnrodder! Just found it too, just unable to see if it includes the bottom part as well. Tried to call them, but only an answer machine. I'll try again later. Thanks for searching!

 

Thanks art.flame for the advise. The warp isn't that bad, only a mm here and there. Nothing a hammer and dolly won't fix. Also, I think I may have left the gap too narrow between the old and the new metal. Thanks, Eric

 

Eric, are you going to lead the dash too? seems like a natural progression from your previous work on the top.

 

Good guess! Yes, I'll be leading the dash as well. The rounded corners will certainly require a thin layer of lead together with all the welded areas. From there I can decide if more lead is required in other places. Thanks, Eric

 

Thanks Billy, glad you like the thread. Hope to be working on the car again next wednesday. Can't wait!

 

This is a serious knarly car, everything looks pro. Keep up doing what your doing!

 

Got started on shaping some metal for the lower brace underneath the trunk. I decided to make it out of two pieces (weld it later) for ease of fabrication. After a few hours of manipulation, I got the shape I wanted. Will do some minor adjustments and another final test fit tomorrow, before spot welding the two halves together.

 

That oughta work! Nice job! Fortunately, mine wasn't in as bad a shape as yours, Eric.

 

Got the dash welded up all around the out- and inside. Still need to weld some small holes and the it'll be time to hammer the dash to perfection. The plans then are to add the metal stripes to either side of the gauges and do some leading where it's required.

 

I think you just got lucky Rock! Unfortunately when you pull a car completely apart, you find things which are in worst shape than initially anticipated. Hey, it's part of the game. Overall, I'm still very happy with the 41, it's just taking a little longer than expected. But I'll get there in the long run!!

 

Eric, my 40 has the same problem as your 41. What metal was solid looked like it was bent up during a tow or something. How did you shape your pieces, shrinker/stretcher or forming buck? Do you mind if I save your pics for a reference to fix mine? Thanks, looking good by the way. later shawn

 

Thanks Shawn. For all the shaping I use a shrinker and stretcher. Then with a hammer/dolly I get the final shape and flatten the indentations left by the shrinker/stretcher. You can save all of my pics, no problems. I usually take 2 to 3 times more photos than I publish here on the Hamb. If you need a particular pic of something, PM me. Here to help. Thanks, Eric

 

Glad to see you are making the part and not buying it! With all the nice work you have done it just didnt make any sense! Kicking ass and taking names, great job! Now back to work!

 

After final shaping, I welded parts of the lower brace. Test fitted it and clamped it into place. Final welding onto the car will be done next time I take the body off. This will make it a lot more accessable with regards to fit and welding. Going to work on the trunk area tomorrow. Things are moving along.