Hi guys- I'm what you call an old hot rodder- mid 70's and still enjoy working and building up the old ones! Several years ago I purchased a 1939 Ford COE from a close friend, and set it aside as I finished a '39 sedan. I have begun working on this COE and have a question concerning ***les. I never got a ***le from my friend(who has unfortunately p***ed) as he never had one either- he had begun the build using a front clip from a Trans Am.... Is it possible to buy an old 39-40 ford frame with ***le to use for this vehicle or can you purchase a 39-40 ***le? Being in Ca, I have gone through the pain in the rear process/steps to get a new ***le for a vehicle build (called "special ***le" for kit cars, etc) that Calif offers 500 per year for the entire state! I would really prefer to not have to do that again. Any suggestions or help would be appreciated! Also, not sure how to post a pic of the COE here? (not computer literate!) Chuck "Munger Machines"
Welcome Chuck! It's pretty easy to post pics on this forum... Use the Upload a File ****on below, select the pic from your computer and that's it... And I'm sure I don't speak out of turn by saying "We ALL want to see the pics!".... On the ***le, I have no idea what it might take in california, but if they'll accept ahem "any" 1939 "VIN", that's what I'd do... the numbers on my 1941 were under the radiator on the frame. That's what I'm using in NH. But, we have a simple VIN verification process here where a cop will show up and fill out a form... I suspect your CA process might not be so simple...
My '51 Henry J was built in Long Beach and was ***led using the Henry J Body Tag. The drivetrain is '74 Pontiac Ventura and that VIN Number is on the cowl but it is ***led to the Henry J Body Tag. It was then ***led by the previous owner in Ohio with the same Body Tag number and is now ***led to me with the same number.
Thanks for the welcome and the posting info Wetskier, I imagine I will try to keep the pictures coming as I progress along. Being as it has a front clip, I will look to see if there are any numbers on the frame. Hopefully I can find a 1939 or 40 ***le or frame with ***le to use! I am posting some pics- the truck coming home, and the progress on the bodywork. It has the Pontiac drivetrain all the way to the rear, but the engine needs to be redone over and the ****** too. Both have sat for several years. The engine is not frozen and turns- which is a good thing. I have even thought about what several others have done- purchase a cheap old motorhome and use it's frame and ***le, like a rolling ch***is. Lots to think about! Tried to upload the pics but a screen came up "The following error occurred -problem uploading your file"????? They are jpegs so I don't know.
Yes, a chopped top and custom fabricated bed. Still not able to upload pictures for some reason? You can see a couple of pictures of it at mungermachines.com Any suggestions of what I am doing wrong in the uploading?
I look forward to the progress... I should probably admit it right up front.... I did have some uhhh.... inspiration from your truck....
As far as the ***le goes, ***le issues have become quite a hurdle in the past couple decades. VIN swapping became much more noticed. As I understand, CA, TX & OK (the notorious TX me too state) have the most onerous processes. I'm actually currently in the process of trying to get a ***le on 1976 Scout II for my teenager. I hired an expert to ***ist me. She filed all the paperwork; the state contacted the last known ***le holder and he initially wanted the truck back - a risk we were prepared for. Once I explained the situation and heard there was a teenage boy in love with his old truck, we were fast friends. We are going the storage lien route. I've also heard of folks "selling" their un***led vehicle to a person in a state that's easier to navigate the ***le re***ignment process, then buying the vehicle back with the service cost lumped in to the transaction. That takes quite a bit of trust as you actually sign ownership of your property over to them. I don't know that you couldn't have a signed contract spelling out the arrangement in the event things went south, but that all seems pretty iffy to me. Welcome to the group and good luck with the legal portion of the build! JML
Great! I always like to share ideas methods or anything else I might help a fellow rodder with- have done it all my life. There have been many others who have been inspirations for me, from their build websites or.... Always glad to share
Thanks JML! I knew it was going to be a real h***el when my buddy died He was a great friend and an inspiration for me to attempt projects that I normally wouldn't have attempted. He was an excllent metal fabricator!!
I bought a COE with a bill of sale only. I then purchased a ***le for a '41 ford truck from a local guy who has thousands of ***les (nowhere on the ***le does it say what type of truck and its likely nobody cares) . With ***le in hand I now needed a bill of sale from the "owner" on the ***le which was a long defunct wrecking yard. The guy selling the ***les also supplied a blank bill of sale with the yard's letterhead which I then filled in with the appropriate info. The final step to getting it transferred into my name with a new ***le was to get an appraisal. A local guy gave me that based on a couple photos and the actual bill of sale. So, armed with the purchased ***le, bill of sale and appraisal I went to the license bureau and within 5 minutes had a ***le in my name. The vehicle is currently registered as "unfit" until such time as its ready to be plated and driven BUT its legally in my name. Oh, this whole ordeal took less effort than it sounds like.
sweet! glad it was so simple! Wish it were for similar for us. We're three full months into our ***le process and have an unknown number of weeks yet ahead of us. not in Oklahoma!
This would work in NH for registration and ***le, but might not p*** muster at state inspection time since they began visually inspecting the VIN tag...
Yeah, not that easy here in Calif either! Only thing I can do is try to find a good ***le for a 39-40 Ford truck...or buy a frame& ***le (as cheap as possible). I've gone that route of going to the Highway patrol- the DMV referee - then getting all the paperwork together- then waiting until Jan 1st and be the first 2 or 3 persons in line(5a.m.) at the DMV, to rush in, hand the paperwork, the gal rushes to the phone to call Sacramento and hopefully get through! Only 100 "special build" licenses given in Calif for the year!!! Their all gone within 15 min of the DMV opening!!! And if 1 simple thing was missing or wrong- wait another year! Don't want to go that route again- too stressful!! Saying my prayers for a ***le Chuck
My sister lives in N H and she says the inspections are pretty thorough- not to rusted, etc. When she was in Maine, they didn't p*** one of her vehicles- too rusted!
No- still having trouble getting and posting pictures. Have spent an hour trying to get it to work. Just get a blue box with a ? in it, or with Safari, a torn page! Am going to check with Apple tomorrow and see what the problem is. I got this new computer a year ago and am still working on issues converting from the old one. Have several pics from the work I'm doing on it this past month but it won't let me upload.
Chuck, this is Dan in Jamul, I know your truck, it is indeed sweet, sat off Bancroft in Spring Valley, with a NOT FOR SALE sign on it. When I registered my '48 in 2011 I had an Iowa registration signed off 5 years earlier plus the vin tag was still on the firewall, the original frame was long gone. I used a vehicle registration outfit located at Jackson Dr. and Grossmont Blvd. in La Mesa. They came out to the house and verified the vin matched the old registration and it was a done deal, no mention of checking the frame #. You might want to contact one of these registration outfits and see what exactly they can do for you legally and gather that info and at least get it registered. There are adds in Hemmings of places that reproduce original style stamped vin plates, if you can find a "pink slip" of a Ford truck and get that number put on the new vin tag it may fly.
Hi Dan! Yeah, the truck sat down there at Bob's for a few years while I was building my '39 Ford sedan(which has taken way too long-painters and upholstery guys have not been my best choices). The shop there moved to Missouri and my buddy set up shop back there. I got a call from his son the end of last year that he had suddenly p***ed! Broke my heart-he was a good friend and hot rod buddy for 20 years, I miss our times together. But he taught me a lot about metal work and I am really grateful for that knowledge. Did you know him- he also lived(his parents) in Jamul? Love your COE Dan! And a 29 too? I've got a '30 -5 window. I'm sure we have met somewhere in this county?
Trying again Finally got the pic of your COE!!Awesome and I see the resemblance- looks fantastic. Here's some progress
The hood and grill I got from Ron Holland just before he p***ed in 2019- I had a home fabbed hood on before, good for somebody's rat rod now-needs some metal work. Spent last week pipe bending the top railing for the bed. The picture shows how I attached the grill to the fibergl*** hood. Now to find some hinges!
Of course I was! We've both been working on them so long at this point, I can't even hazard a guess at which one of us had the sleeper in place first.....
The Jalopy Journal
