I have started several threads doing things on my 32. I have decided to just start a build thread. The body was a 2 door Sedan that was rolled. the roof was a total loss. I got a bare frame for it and started putting parts on it as I got them. The motor came from a friend, who pulled it out of a 35 in favor of a bigger motor. He kept it i nside for many years, as he said it ran too good to s****. I drug it home and changed the oil, fed it from a gravity tank, hooked a battery and resistor for the ignition, and two garden hoses in the water pumps. It fired right up and ran good. Other than fuel leaks there wasnt much to do to it. There it sat for the last couple years with the rear axle not in. I finally got some spare time, and blew the dust off. It took two evenings to mount the axle and cut down the torque tube and driveshaft. Once that was done I had some friends over and we set the body on the frame. I then put on the dash, F-100 steering gear, hood, etc. once that was done it was time to start straightening the body. I started with a little fire on the winshield posts. Then I turned my attention to the DS A pillar. it had been squashed causing the door bottom to pooch out several inches. a come along, hammer, dolly, then eventually a slice and weld restored it to its upright position. coming up soon, I will be relocating the upper door hinges, and starting to mod the body lines to something representing a Cabriolet that has been streched.
I started relocating the upper hinge to just below the body line. It is lightly misaligned when clamped straigjt to the A pillar. I need to decide whether to bend the hinge, or put a slight offset in the pillar. any suggestions?
I moved hinges on my 32 ex 5W, to build a cabriolet. I did have to slightly bend my hinges, but they are not 32 Ford hinges; they are 31 Dodge. I think most cars used hinges from a major supplier, and i never found out if they are forged, or if they are cast steel as some people call them. I believe I have seen a crack in a similar year hinge, so they might be cast. A minor tweek should go OK. Some pics of my fake cabriolet, and also pics of my 32 Nash with what was called a "5 p***enger convertible sedan". Maybe you will get some inspriration. I built tops for both cars. The Ford is a solid roof which removes, and the Nash has a folding roof. Note how the Nash door has one front upright piece for the hinges. This makes doing a roll-up window slightly less complicated, because that front post keeps the door gl*** aligned and ridged. The heavily modified doors on my 32 fake cabriolet don't have that post.
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