Projects 40 Ford Sedan "The Varmit" IS DONE! Successfully completed a Reliability Run

It looks like washington blue, but is actually called Lyon Blue.

No, I'm not a Ford expert, but I do know how to use Google..

http://paintref.com/cgi-bin/paintdetail.cgi?paintx=1940|Ford|Lyon Blue|2168

 

Workin' the quarter.

Tools of the trade.

my mentor- I'm a first timer.

 

UPDATE 4/4/13

For me, motivation comes in all forms, even something as simple as bolting on the rear fenders. Now it looks more like a car! There have been some amazing 40 sedan builds here lately, which fired me up. With my son due to arrive at the end of May and a wild 2 year old, life is busy and the budget is thin... but I'm making headway. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

I managed to score some 39 Deluxe headlights on the cheap.. I like this look

Blasted and primed the dash, I still need to fill the hole that was cut out for the radio, greased up the cowl vent, removed the old insulation from the cowl.

I picked up this used front end while in Iowa for spring break. (doesn't everyone go to the frozen north for spring break?) It's not exactly what I need but it has some key pieces like F-100 brakes, sway bar, tube shocks and split bones. Although the bones to have an arc to them... gonna hafta straighten those to make sure the caster angle isn't out of whack.


Got the original front end out and up on CL, also took the opportunity to take some pics for a lesson on leverage (rusty bolts) for my physical science students.

Here's the new-to-me front end mocked up. I still need to get a CE narrowed and dropped axle, I want this thing in the weeds! Also, I figured out that this monoleaf won't work because the CE perches are much narrower than stock so I need a spring too. But I think I can still use the sway bar, drag link, and tie rod, I will be heat bending the steering arms.

Almost forgot, the guy I bought the car from has a plethora of 40 wheels, but he gave me the worst 4 he had... haha.... so after much elbow grease and rust-o-leum, they turned out pretty good.


All for now! See you in 6 months.. haha..

 

Another thing--

Any suggestions to fixing this?

 

Looking good. I picked up a 40 Tudor not long ago. Not in that good of shape.

 

Cool, I remember the post on the Ford Barn. Let me know if you need anything, I have a few odds and ends laying around I'm not going to use. BTW, my mother-in-law just bought a home health care business in Stephenville, so I'll be getting out that way from time to time.

 

What home health did she buy. My aunt owns a ton if home healths all over this area.

 

Wow, small world. I don't know what it was called before, but it is now called "Home Care Direct"

QUOTE=Bart78;8791458]What home health did she buy. My aunt owns a ton if home healths all over this area.[/QUOTE]

 

It is a small world. It's a nice area. Still a ton of cars out in the brush around here. Just not many that want to mess with them.

 

You might want to use '36 wishbones and the corresponding drooped axle. It should allow more tire clearance. I had this on a '40 with 14" fronts and a reversed eye spring: no turning problems, but I didn't want it any lower.

 

I'm going to use the same wishbone since they are already split. The CE axle has narrower perch holes, so I will need to do is heat and bend the spring boss a little to compensate for the narrower perch mounts.

 

Wow, nice project you have going! It really is a great start! I like the direction you have going for it too. I was actually trying to buy a 40 tudor off ebay for the frame. But the guy ended the listing. Oh well, keep up the great work!

 

Thanks! I've been watching your Tudor come together as well... nice work!

 

Ok, so I need advice. Here's the question I'm wrestling with daily on this build..... Engine and drivetrain. For a while now I've been thinking about a Flathead, T5 and a CE parallel leaf kit with a 9". I would still love to do this, but here is the problem.... time & money.

So, the other option I'm thinking about to save lots of time and money, is build a period 283-327 and hook it to the original trans and rear end. This choice could get the car on the road easily YEARS before option #1. The bottom line is the amount of $$ I can put away each month is small.

So, my question is: How impractical is a small block hooked to an original drivetrain? Would it help to buy a 3.54 ring and pinon? I don't want to head across country in the thing, but I would like to go to Austin or Oklahoma City, 3-4 hour trips. Currently the car has a 3.78. Do you know what rpms it will be turning at 70 mph?

Long story short, I need to make my expectations for this build more realistic and use what I already have, but I don't want the car to be un-useable or completely impractical.

Thoughts??

 

With a 7.00x16 Firestone tire and 3.78 gears, I turn about 2400-ish at 65 MPH.

I think the stock drivetrain will be great if it's in good shape. Unless you are dumping the clutch, it should last many miles. But if it's not in great shape, it will cost buck$$ to get it there. Bearings are costly.

Something about a flathead in a '40 with parallel leafs on the back just makes my skin crawl. It's just wrong. Parallel leafs don't belong on any Ford pre-'48. Go with the SBC on the stock drivetrain, then build the big flatty and put the 3.54 gears in the banjo later.

My perpetual project car is a '40 Standard Tudor. It sits with a flathead and a Muncie, followed by a '55 pickup rearend on '36 wishbones and a stock rear spring. I'm thinking before it's done I'll replace the '55 rear with a smooth pumpkin 9-inch and some P&J ladder bars. I think I'll want to stomp the gas sometimes, and the '36 bones might bend.

 

I'm not a period correct pro or anything, but my car has the CE parallel rear springs and rides pretty nice. If your stock trans and rear need $$$ thrown at them, I'd find an old 9" and start there. If I were to build one with no suspension on it already, I'd really look at a parallel 4 link from speedway. Cost isn't bad and you can go air ride or a coil over shock. Period correct, no. But I've never had any of these parts and around here they just aren't around. On the T5, have you searched for any out of Camaros or S10's? I know guys up here buying them for under $400 and putting them in their C10's and having really good luck with them. With all that said, if your stock stuff is pretty decent, you might as well use it. It's basically free to you, and if you want to go flatty later, will already be in your car.

 

I like your project a lot. I used to own a 40 standard sedan, ran the stock flathead, Monoleaf spring front and rear, good shocks, Chassis Engineering sway bar, 3.78 rear, wired for 12 volts, rebuilt steering, 5.50 / 6.50 firestones. It was my daily driver for a while,I just rebuilt the stock stuff as I went along, best driving old Ford I ever drove, it could sit a 65 all day, with a bit extra if needed. I also fitted seat belts in it so I could take my sons to school and the family on holiday
Wish I still had it.
Good luck, looking forward to seeing yours progress.
Gordon.

 

Thanks guys, I appreciate your advice. I think I will hook an SBC to the original drivetrain but I'm not sure if the condition of the banjo so I need to figure that out.


Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad

 

Any advice on heat bending the spring perches? I hear it's easy but I've never done it before. I also have a propane torch but I don't think it was getting hot enough.
<a href="http://s4.photobucket.com/user/danhay/media/40%20Ford/photo-2-2.jpg.html" target="_blank"></a>

 

I used two part epoxy same as used to bond golf club heads to shafts it has been 9 years and is holding up good. Just need to hold together while it dries over curing time of epoxy.

 

It's gonna take a real live oxy/acet torch to heat the perch enough to bend. Propane won't cut it.

For patching those splits on a Standard grille I have, I made small splints of sheet aluminum and pop riveted them on the inside. But some epoxy like golf club guy or maybe JB Weld sounds like it would be good to glue the splints on even stronger.

 

That's what I figured. Anyone in Fort Worth have a torch and bottles I can borrow for a couple hours?


Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad

 

Washington blue. A great color.

 

Hey Dan, just found this thread. Boy do those first pictures of your '40 resemble mine! I think our cars were brothers! Good luck with your project. Al

 

Wow no kidding! If our cars are brothers, for some reason mine was in trouble with the folks and spent a lot of time being punished out in the rain!


Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad

 

I hear that. Mine spent way too many years sitting outside under a tree as well! I know the guy that owned mine in 1962, he drove it to high school. He said it was a real good car back then. Not so much now but I'm getting her done. My avatar is the way it looked in '62.

 

I have a 40 2 door sedan in process myself. Have already taken the car apart. POR15 is good stuff on sandblasted frame! Changing the power plant from the "stuck" flathead to a 87 Lincoln 5.0 with AOD. BUT....am rebuilding everything else to stock. Changing out the Closed driveshaft to Speedway conversion.........IF I could find a used one that someone doesn't need ...that would be even better...they're pricey! We should compare notes!.....good start and good luck!

 

Awesome! Post up a build thread, I'd be interested in seeing your progress.

 

If you do convert to open driveline, make sure that you use a torque arm on it. The '37 sedan that I had was converted to open drive, and they attached the torque arm to the driver side radius rod. When I bought the car, the radius rod was bent, and it finally broke from the stress. The one that they sell at HotRodWorks.com appears to be a much better design than the guy who built the sedan used.