Hot Rods Spalding Bros Repro, for "Too Tall" Ganahl.

Yeah, Marty...It`s pouring over here....

 

I am working on the instrument layout for the dashboard. Pat emailed me the OD dimensions of the guage bezels and the pressure pump flange. Making them out of paper, and with 7/8" space between the bezels, this is how it looks. I am off to buy a 2-5/8" hole saw, so I can proceed.

 

The torsion bars arrived today, they are shipped in these protective tubes. Gary Schroeder calculated the spring rate to be .725 for the front, and .700's for the rear. This will get us started, and when Pat runs the car on dirt, we will possibly need a minor change on one corner or the other. I bent the front arms, to run parallel to the axle. Now I can machine the bosses that weld to the axle to attach the arms, and weld the "Jack Pads" on the frame, at the other ends of the bars.

 

Interesting........

 

Jewelry!

 

Not to get ahead of you... what will the torsion bar mounts on the axles be like? This is a fantastic build! Gary

 

The fronts will be bosses welded to the back side of the axle. I am going to fab a bracket off the axle, to reach around and make it "double shear" on the mounting bolt. Also, the RH arms, front and rear will be slotted for articulation, and the LH arms will serve as a center locating device, just like the original.

 

Nice design - beautiful execution.

 

Hello Marty,

I have the same tach as the original car. I'm not sure if you have one but I can measure mine if you need and exact size. Sorry I haven't read all the pages on the build but I'm starting now. Just wanted to throw it at yea in case you need the size. Mines going into my roadster. By any chance do you know what year the tach was made???

 

I think Pat has a 5,000 RPM tach for now, perhaps down the road he will find the correct one, but as he says, "it's not a restoration of the original". Welcome Aboard !

 

I'm sure Pat Swanson up in your corner of the US can find any of the correct gauges you'd need. As well as any other missing Jimmy parts. Surely you guys are familiar.

 

Rear bars in place. Happy Thanksgiving to all !

 

Looking good makes me want to build one. Questions could you have run the front bars inside the frame rails, or did you need the with. I am following with great interest Have you got plans? Thanks Frank

 

It would have been easy to have installed the bars inside the rails, I did one like that 40 years ago. This had to be like the original.

 

It's time to cut the guage holes, Pat sent me a couple of 2-5/8" guages for fitment. I bought a new Lennox 2-5/8 hole saw, Lennox saws have always served me well. After drilling 1/4" pilot holes in the 18 guage steel dashboard, I clamped some plywood to the back side for support and to keep the dowel on the saw in alignment. I used a tach that I had for a visual, everything worked out fine.

 

Fantastic work Marty, beautiful.

 

Great idea backing it up with wood for the cuts.

 

Thanx again for keeping us dummies up to speed. Gary

 

A while back I expressed the need for a section of a turtle deck to do a repair. Baby Earl responded with a PM and pictures, and a generous offer for the part. I replied with thanks, and my hope to find something maybe closer to me. As it turned out a friend, Bob Lick from Eastern Oregon, had just what we needed and shipped it to me. It has a few bumps, but it is not pitted, and very solid for being over 90 years old. I hammered on it a little and bead blasted it, and will be fitting and installing it soon.

 

Marty, That piece does look better than what I have,, Isn't it great to have good friends.
Baby Earl

 

Thanks again for your offer Earl. Meanwhile, I machined the bosses that will attach the front torsion bars to the axle. I also sawed out the "jack pads" for opposite end of the bars. Some grinding and, and using a ball end mill, to provide a pocket for the jack bolt to seat on and index, welding will be next. Tomorrow, I plan on removing the front axle to fit in the Bridgeport, to cut the 7/8" and 1/2" holes in the axle, to slip the bosses through.

 

wow - tons of little details - all nicely executed

 

Absolutely!

 

Frenchtown and Terry, the details of the original car, set it apart from the rest of the competition. It's my privilege to get to build it as close to the original car as possible. Documenting and sharing the build process with interested parties, is also a fun aspect of the job. For any of you that are familiar with my standard Track Roadsters, I have at least one more to build, and have been wondering whether to start a separate thread, or fold it into this one ?

 

I'd like to see a separate thread. For one, the Spalding car is a special case, almost in a class of it's own. Then you said "at least one more" so if you start another thread you could roll in additional builds into that thread. It would be good to make it a thread on building a generic track roadster, so we can get a bit of history and discussion on how they were constructed and why, a sort of track roadster Wiki.

 

^ +1

Been following this one from the start, great work. Thanks for sharing.

Ed

 

Separate thread vote from me too.

If you start it now with some basic parameters, maybe we all can be looking for pieces you may need.

 

I have been thinking a separate thread would be the better way to go. Since there is quite a contrast in the construction both cars, one being a race only, and the other a dual purpose machine. The black car is one of 10 that I built on the same platform. I have jigs, fixtures and precise measurements to make for a speedy, fast moving thread. The new car will be built for my friend Bill Towers, from Delaware, as a replacement for the car pictured. I had been building it for Bill, had it well on the way to completion, and a local buddy wanted one. Well, Bill being the nice guy that he is, sold it to Brent, who did a great job finishing it up. These cars are labor intensive, but inexpensive in the parts department, using early Ford suspension pieces, raw steel tube and sheet aluminum. They are nimble, handle well, have the feel of a race car, and ride decent for an 1800 lb machine. Thanks again to all of you, for your interest !

 

Your use of the phrase "dual purpose" got me thinking. Is your jig adaptable enough to fit a straight six? I'm thinking about a car that would be legal for HA/GR and as Ryan's HAMB dirt tracker, if that event catches on. Unbolt the brackets for rigid rear, kick the axle as far right as possible, hook up the buggy spring, and sling dirt!

I've got a question on your rear hoop. Years ago I test sat in a Gratiot Sprint T. I did my Ray Charles impression to check for clearance. I put a knot in the back of my head that may heal in the next year or so! Have any of your clients reported this problem?

 

Hitting your head on the roll bar has never been a problem for the driver, as you are holding the steering wheel for body control. If you have a passenger that needs a smack on the head, a sharp, quick, tap on the brake will do it ! These cars are "race proven", 6 out of the 10 have made laps on the dirt.