My coupe went down the road this weekend. I spent a lot of time with it, and it was a neat-looking car, but it was never as much fun to drive as I expected it to be. So, it made sense to take what I could get for it and start a new project. This picture shows its most recent form. Adios, Ol' pal.
you sold that? i mean, that's an amazing car. looks beautiful. please do tell what your next project is.
That is a beautiful car........ but what do you mean by "it was never as much fun to drive as I expected it to be". I'm not trying to be a **** but your the 3 person I've heard say that and I'm kinda worried/puzzled (i'm building a '36). one of the other people said he thought he wanted a hot rod, but after having his on the road he found out he wanted a custom more.....something more of a cruiser with a nice ride.
I had the same question. That car is definitely beautiful and no doubt got many positive comments. Was it underpowered? Too slow? Too heavy? Too high off the ground? Inquiring minds need to know.....
I have a '36 3-window and it's a blast to drive. Right now it's deadlined. It has good front rear balance, handles and rides nice. Dropped front axle. I drove it so much I wore the 350 SBC out. I'm building a 327 to go back in it. It's more fun than my '40 coupes, pickup and other stuff I have. Roll down the side & rear windows, crank out the windshield, pop the cowl vent and go for a cruise. When I take my Chocolate Lab with me, sometimes he likes to stick his head out the rear window and watch some cars behind us. The soccor moms and kids in the mini-vans love that . My wife loves to drive it and is on my *** to get it going. I guess I should obey her wishes.
My '36 5w is absolutely the best rod I have ever owned. It's a pleasure to drive on the highway, gobs of power and super dependable. Now if I can just do something about the heat coming inside the cabin from the big block........ I'm another who wonders what you didn't like about the 3w.
Man, that was one of the most beautiful cars on here, hope you got what you wanted out of it. I'm sure we won't be disappointed with your next one. Mootz
Not enough fun? Ok, everyone who has had enough of '36 Fords, let me know... cause I don't have enough of them yet. I love that car, love that you only chopped it 1.5 inches and I really love it when you ran it w/o the skirts!
The '36 IS an awesome car but Tony's the Man. By letting that one go, we'll all get to witness another cool one that's in the horizon now.
What kind of running gear/suspension was in that car? I would love to know how you got it to sit like that. What size wheels/tires? JH
Thanks for the many kind words. Nice to hear. The next project will probably be a '56 Ford. It won't break much new ground, but I have a combination in mind that hasn't been done before. There are also things to do on my other cars. Why wasn't it as much fun as I expected? I don't want to whine, and I certainly caused everything I'm about to say. These were the issues: 1. The blown flathead was based on the wide-eyed expectations of the 15-year-old kid I once was. I expected it to make a noise that would wake the dead, and to be scary fast, but it didn't and it wasn't. It was very expensive and I always worried about overheating (came close in the end, though. The addition of the 5-speed, 3.80s, and a crossover in the exhaust made it respond and sound the best it's ever done). 2. I spent a couple of years trying on the taildragger look, and eventually I got it to look the way I had imagined, but I felt like an imposter driving it. When it was really low the ride ****ed (duh), and the driveline didn't much like it. The blower motor with the taildragger stance were an unnatural marriage to me. In the end I gave up on the stance. 3. The ride and handling were pretty normal for a 70-year old Ford, especially a lowered one, and no worse than my other prewar cars. To me the look was cool, and I thought that it should be cool to drive, but it still felt like a 70-year-old Ford. Maybe, as an old fart, I would be happier in a s****t r*d. 4. It was still a long way from "done". I wanted tunes, a custom dash, a spiffy interior, a complete repaint. To do all of that in a style consistent with the car's look and quality was going to entail serious money, but I'm retired now and have no disposable income. The gr*** is greener? Maybe, but my shoebox turned out _better_ than I expected, and it's very green indeed. I wanted to enjoy driving the '36 as much as the shoebox, and I didn't. Hot rods are never finished, and much of the fun is in their development. I'm just gonna play in a different yard fo while.
It's a shame you didn't like it. That's the best looking '36 Ford I've ever seen! And you can't consider a blown flathead to be a "racey" engine - I bet it only makes as much power as a stock late model 302. Thanks for the new wallpaper by the way. Got any more pictures of it without skirts?
I had it in the Russo and Steele auction in Scottsdale. It stalled out there, and was bought post-auction by (I think) a guy from San Diego. I haven't met him or talked to him, but he was at Barrett-Jackson. Update: The buyer was Ralph Whitworth, who bought a bunch of cars at BJ. He's building a museum in Winnemucca, NV, with rods, customs, race cars and stuff from the 1950-1970 period.
Front end is a Superbell dropped axle with a Posie's reversed-eye spring and 600-16s. Rear is now parallel leaves (Durant monoleaf) with big lowering blocks -- about 3". The frame got a big kickup (maybe 4"), and the trunk floor and driveshaft tunnel were raised when it was 2" lower than it is now; I don't know if all of that would be necessary at its present height. Rear tires are 700-16s.
Never said I didn't like it -- I love it! I just didn't enjoy driving it as much as I thought I would, and I was daunted by the left-to-spend to really complete it. Of course I agree that it would be faster with a late OHV, but that wasn't consistent with the era I had in mind (not that a 5-speed is, either...). I have a zillion pictures of the car at various stages. This picture is probably the best skirtless one I have (thank you, DRD57), although it was not yet low in back.
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