Projects Mid 1950’s east coast America inspired ‘30 coupe build in Aus

Hey guys and girls,

My names Des, I’ve been on the H.A.M.B for quite a few years but been quiet lately with so many other things on the go.

My buddy Nick and Wardy have both motivated me lately to share on here what I’ve been up to, there threads have been great to see and a good representation of what’s going on down here in Australia.

For a year or so I’ve been slowly building a 1930 model a coupe that’s heavily inspired by east coast America around the mid 50’s.
I’m a huuuge fan of traditional channeled cars and I wanted to build my daughter who turned 4 today a hot rod that we can enjoy while she grows up and age gracefully.

I think I’m best to start sharing pics and telling you about our progress so far and give you an idea of where I want this car to head.

So I’ll start sharing pics and info, this is a home built, old chrome, mostly all old parts, early ford little pages inspired car.

I hope you dig it and get a kick out of this.

Cheers
Des Russell


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Ok, so I’m going to keep this brief because I’m known to carry and a bit and talk a lot. Especially when things interest me.

I keep seeing a mate from Adelaide (SOUTH AUS) sharing this 28/29 roadster project on Instagram. He had it for sale for what I thought was very reasonable, but a heap of stuff that I wouldn’t want. I kept thinking about it cause it was a good deal.

I pulled the trigger and bought it!
basically a stock roller with engine, gearbox, radiator, grill etc.
4 nice 40 for wheels slapped on it, a nice roadster cowl. Some ok roadster doors and a pretty toast right hand side roadster quarter.
Heaps of spares, a windshield and so on.





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So this was exactly 2 years ago, now that I’ve gone back through my phone and seen how long ago it was.
Good thing is you’ll be able to see this car progress really quickly haha.
Also I had just erected this new garage space at our house and I hadn’t even set it up when I started fucking around with this car.
You’ll see my shed progress in the back ground too.

I should mention, I haven’t pushed on this car because
A. I really just want to enjoy building it.

B. Me and my partner run a car show called the Boogaloo invitational, no called the boogaloo camp out and we have also ran 4 hotrod tours to America under the name boogaloo tours since starting this car haha.

C. We have a 3 year old daughter and real jobs.

But that’s enough of my excuses.
Let’s check it out, I pulled this sucker apart and sold off evything I didn’t want.
At the time I had my heart set on this little red pickup I’d seen many times in this one little pages magazine I had.
It was a red 28 roadster pickup, channeled, flathead.
This was my original plan, something very similar, also something not super nice, just something that I could put my ‘just get it done attitude’ to work and have something we could drive everywhere and not worry too much about.
As we know, plans change. But for now imagine I’m collecting part to build this little guy.....


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Here’s the little red RPU I was talking about, how damn cool is that.

Also I didn’t mention.

We live in Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia, 1 hour north of Melbourne for those Americans and Canadians out there.

It’s amazing just how much stuff you pull off a stock model a and get rid of when you want a flathead powered all early ford juice brakes car etc.

But there’s always someone that wants to buy it all.
And this kid came and bought everything on the ground of the chassis I didn’t want.


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So I was rounding up all my parts and putting the feelers out for any bits and pieces I need to get me moving.

I started getting shit together to blast which is always fun to lay all your parts out on the ground.

To be clear, the plan was mid 50’s east coast and to me that was the period of time where channels where in, flatheads where in before everyone started using olds, caddy and y blocks ect.
Chrome was in and pinstriping was too.
The car was to be flathead powered, early for gearbox and rear end.



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Here’s some pics to go along with blasting and setting up my frame after priming for kickup and boxing.


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I’d include my buddy Kyle in on the blasting to save money and help him progress too.
We planned to mock up in the shed side by side and do the same 4 inch kick up.
So that’s his little model a chassis t cowl project in the pics, as well and some of the early ford stuff that got blasted.


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My buddy Ryan Ford has a few flatly cores to come look at.
99 blocks, so same as 1940 mercy but also used in trucks.
The one I chose seemed to have the signs of and old hot rod motor but defiantly was an military rebuilt motor because of all the stamped engine numbers on the block.
I dismantled, cleaned and set up a molasses bath which worked amazing.
Ps this block was relieved, 30 though over and ported and polished already haha crazy.


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Cut and welded some Cory Taulbet bungs in the 35 wishbones I had.
Migged the plug welds and v’d snd tigged the rest.
Dropped 34 axle by Gary Paige and new stainless (legal in aus) rodtech perch bolts.





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Photos of inspiration





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Chassis kick up and boxing.
4 inch kick in the rear. Box the rails and weld in front crossmember.
I won’t tell you full secrets, however my buddy Kyle designs these nice swoops laser cut kicks. I’d done one previously on my roadster. Did this one similar but nicer. Included some internal fishplates and staggered welds in all plates to ensure the strongest join.
The kick up also extends the chassis 7.5 inches to allow for spring behind like the 36 rear end I plan on using.
Also welded bung inside stock body mounts.


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Chassis work continued.


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Once the chassis was welded except for the underside of the kick up I took it out of the jig to do some mock up and clean some welds up before re priming.
Returned from a trip to the states with some more parts in my bags and some on a pallet to ship back home.


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Flathead block out of its second stint in the molasses bath which works amazing, pressure washed the hell out of it, then dropped it to my engine guy to crack test and deck etc.
The verdict came in, good to go.
And head and intake where sorted, I had to have matching Grancors seeing at they where made in Chicago and sticking to my east coast theme, plus they rule and super rare, especially here.



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Clamped on some NOS offie headlight stands and old chrome arrow headlights with my little daughter Frankie.





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Cleaned up and reprimed so I’m not always battling surface rust






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Some stuff off to blasting.
The theory with this car was anything I could paint as I go I would, I had ideas of colours for running gear colours.
I don’t care if shit gets chipped and whatever I just wanna make this project a rad driver.





I always like a lot of the cover cars of rodding and restyling that had white (birthday cake) flatheads and axles etc if not chromed.
I got white enamel mixed up the was a slight off white so not to make white walls look dirty all the time haha.


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Got a new 32 grill shell and insert.
This would later cop a 4 inch chop.
Insert too and centre will be painted white bars.




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I got some 16x4 and 16x5 40 ford wheels blasted and painted them this powder blue colour I thought I liked but hate it and get the new tyres fitted up for now anyway.
I have calnevar chrome sides and beanie caps for these.



I had my buddy Ryan Ford come around and lay some gold striping on everything I’d painted white.
And did some mock-up assembly.

Frankie hanging out with me in the garage.

A little mock up assembly


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This is where the project takes a turn, I sold all the 28 stuff and everything else left over and bought a 30 coupe body from the states. The deal included him building a big crate. I felt this was more towards what I’d really wanted, a heavily channeled model a coupe.
Now we’re talkin’

Off to LA then off to Melbourne on a boat.




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Steel whooping old chrome is the best then a quick polish and on.





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1939 transmission all cleaned up painted and striped.

Stopped by the engine place to see the progress and was super surprised to see this.


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Engine specs roughly are.
60 though over pistons, isky valve springs, stainless Chevy valves, solid lifters, potvin 3/8 cam, fully balanced, lightened flywheel and ported and relieved.
Won’t be a rocket but it should be nice and sound great.


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BODY ARRIVED!!!!!
Stoked, it needs normal patches but it came with all patch panels new and I was very happy with it, couldn’t help but take some pics get it inside and start cleaning it up straight away.


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Lower cowl patches welded in, cut, tigged and hammered as best I can.
I’m stoked with this.


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3 reasons birthday cake flatheads are cool.
Fred and the gang here.



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Just get it done......
Weather was perfect out in the spray booth today.



The grancor heads rule. Ps this set of heads is exactly how I received them and they looked rad so I didn’t get them blasted or cleaned them up at all, I want it to rule and look authentic, not too fresh and clean, if that makes sense, it’s all in my head.....



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And just like that I was off to the states again on another hotrod tour for the hot rod reunion in Bakersfield then rpm nationals the following weekend and everything between.
I did well on the old chrome in the suitcase again.


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Everything just great!