Technical Brookville Quarters

I am installing my Brookville rear quarters and i have a question. In the photo I have marked arrows at two outside points. One quarter measures 28 1/2" point to point and the other measures 29 1/8". Anybody know what they should measure?

 

I don't see a photo?

 

That’s one of those places where measurements don’t really matter. Make it look right.

Too many curves happening in a small area to be concerned with making them match. If one side has a big bow in the outer surface just because you pulled it in so it measured the same as the other side, it would look horrible.

 

I wonder if the original Ford drawing even has that dimension on it.
But it would be nice to get a handful of members to post what they've got so Rocky could come up with an average number.

 

Thanks guys. My OCD wont let them not match.

 

I would start with the trunk lid opening area, see how the lid lines up , you may need to tighten it up in the seam area were the 1/4 panel and upper deck lid panel meets

later kb

 

The qtrs will probably be tight on the deck lid in the center. Usually need upward pressure to open up the gap.
There’s several threads here on body dimensions.
I’ve used a laser to locate the center of the chassis and body to use as a reference to get panels “square” side to side.
Or a string.

 

Just be aware that no matter what dimension you set them at they probably won't stay there. The tops of the quarters at the door frame have a tendency to lean themselves out at the top over time. I actually sectioned the brace on the inside at the floor and leaned mine in more than normal and they still moved back out. Don't know how to keep them there without adding some sort of extra bracing inside. It shows when looking down the side of the car from the rear at the doors. There will be a gap at the bottom of the quarter between the door and quarter panel while the top will be snug against it.

 

Not great pic. I’ll try to find better. My old boss builds a “mini cage” to keep things lined up

There’s an upper bar that radiuses into the jambs. Out of sight with the interior installed
I did similar for a Plymouth. Built from square tubing.
A tube was fabbed from one jamb to the othe just under the belt line. Then vertical braces to the sub rails. The panel between the qtrs was attached to it as well. The trunk and door gaps stayed consistent and hopefully prevents “coupe cracks”

 

I was planning on doing a roll cage of sorts to reduce body flex

 

Here’s another style from the old boss

 

You better not put a tape measure to other places on your old Ford (or Brookville) body, or your head might explode. If you need to fix everything that doesn’t match side for side, you’re gonna have plenty of slicing and welding.

 

These old cars are not built perfect
The reproductions are built from imperfect originals.
We’d use strings/lasers to start from square. But ya still have to fit the parts.
A friend of mine has a huge jig table with an impressive measuring set up. He can measure and compare both sides of a body.
He still has to fit the parts.

 

Truth!!!!!!!

 

Make that CDO…everyone knows the letters should be in alphabetical order!

 

I remember reading years ago that when doing the model A body, Brookville took measurements from 5 different bodies and took an average measurement to make their own.
‘32 Fords were built in around 30 different factories back then and although some say that Henry Ford was ahead of his time, he still hadn’t started using computers across his factories for uniformity of drawings and dimensions, so sometimes today you can see differences from car to car.
Any measurements that someone gives you from an original Ford may not be the same as any other, and could also be different if the car has been repaired in the previous 92 years.

If it is any consolation, once finished, most people won’t be able to see both sides at the same time.

and none of this will be helpful to your OCD………..
.

 

I had seen the quarter radius, dimensions, etc. on a blueprint & it looked like a road map.

 

I had a wise man once tell me many years ago, "ain't no two sides of a boat or a car the same!" Everytime I start heading down that rabbit hole, those words pop into my head. That old man saved me a lot of work and misery!

 

If you get the doors and trunklid to fit well I wouldn't worry too much about the other stuff.

 

just for curiosity, make a paper or cardboard template of the arch of the top of the quarters and compare. I bet one is folded in/out more than the other. you should be able to get them the same. The more panels that you can get right/even the better the end result.

 

For the money the body should be better than that.

 

I had several alignment problems. I had to drill out right 1/4 panel lower bracket and pull panel in about 3/4”. I measured on diagonal to fit.
Had to pie cut one side of trunk lid.
On left door I drilled rivets for inner and outer panel. This let rhe door flex and I fitted gap at rear and drilled holes for sheet metal screws. I am sheet metal challenged,so I got help from Brookville and others.
I

 

So true! Building the rear bulkhead on my Model A had me pulling hair out. I thought working from an established centerline would be easy. Nope. The centerline on the floor and chassis is dead on but as you go upward toward the rear windows things were different. Both sides of Henry steel were not quite symmetrical and the center line seemed to shift. OCD and old Ford bodies don't mix.

It reminded me of a persons face. Both sides are different, whether your head explodes or not