It was a stock frame. I put about 600 ft lbs of torque on it. One front frame horn dropped two inches and the other up two inches.
I am continuing with my 32 mock up. I have got the front end on and I am mocking up the Vega steering. I am at the point I need to order a steering column so I need to establish the length of the column. I am going to use a stock 32 bench seat (see photo of the seat originally done in 1961 and in great shape). So I need some schooling on what it takes to bolt the seat in. Does the seat just set on the floor as is or is there fillers or brackets?
There are rail sliders and adjustable ratchet type of mechanism. There are 4 5/16 fine thread bolt that bolts the slide mechanism to the floor. Depending on how original your floor structure is
All the repo frames I have seen mount the steering box level. I think that is less desirable than the way Henry did it. His tilted down. He used a solid shaft so he had to but it still work fine to tilt the box as much as possible. It reduces angles in the shaft and lets the box sit lower. I bend the steering arm way up. This gives more clearance in the front for engine parts.
To get the column figured out I would get your engine in with the actual headers you are going to use and get the shafts and u-joints mocked up through the fire wall. Helps to have the floor a toe kicks established too
On a 32 five window, the seat was mounted on a pair of tracks and there was an adjuster for front to rear movement. UP has the tracks part number B20407 {2 needed) and the adjuster ratchet is B20405, the handle is B20406 and the bracket is B20403.
I use a stock seat , No tracks ,I used 3/16 stock bar , mounted to Original location on floor, then moved seat back as far as it would go,,then marked Original seat pan bolts on the 3/16 plate , drilled & taped .. I am 6 ft , shoe 14 DD, with flat firewall .. I made my own column . I started with a 4 foot 1-1/2 Od ,adjusted then cut to fit for my liking, Chromoly tube ,With stock 32 drop , Test length and comfortability, I then made a spacer for between drop & dash Same shape 1-1/4 thick , then added sealed bearing with flange , with 3/4 hole , less then $100 Not including the Strange quick disconnect $150 , No turn on column , hidden under dash.
Thanks for the reply’s and especially deuceman32 on the seat assembly. I found the sliders in the boxes of 32 parts I bought and I ordered the needed parts from UP. I guess the plywood part is correct (see photo) because it lines up with the three seat pan holes.
While I am waiting on the seat parts I thought I would mock up the rear frame horn covers and spreader bar. I have a question about the two forward 1/2 inch diameter holes (see photo). What are they for? Are they supposed to bolt to the body?
I making some good progress got my hood alignment good thanks for the tips. I am working on the grill now and have a question. The trim piece that goes around the grill shell is a strange shape. Is this correct and just bolts into the shell at this odd angle?
I have yet to install my new U.P.I. left front but thus far the only issue I see at this point is the underside of the wire bead rolled edges have some sharp edges, while of little concern aesthetically beware the fingers.
Yes your grille trim looks fine. Do you have an original grille shell, or a repro? The repros probably don’t have the correct holes and braces to accept the trim stud.
I've built a few Deuces in the past I start at the rear and work forward, if you think fitting the fenders is a pain wait till you try and fit the hood, it is amazing how long it takes to line the hood up correctly, basically it just takes time and patience to get it right. It does help to have a extra set of hands. To get the hood to fit front to back on both sides the basic set up is 32" for the hood hinge. The radiator shell might need to be raised on on side or the other to keep every thing alligned also the cowl may need shimming. Some almost fall in place and others are a lesson in futility,the more you work on hood alignment the more little tricks you learn,some of us have worked on Deuce hoods for years and they can still be a PINA to get right. Again, patience helps. HRP
@lcfman glad to hear you are making progress and getting help when needed. You might want to post what you have found to help others. What fasteners did you use and where? Where there any bumpers, shims, springs, webbing needed and where? Which parts needed to be modified in shape or hole placement?
Per RodStRace comments I offer some observations. I have a good OE Ford grill insert and purchased a Brookville shell. It’s a no fit issue especially top to bottom. While the fit is almost there I am going to have to massage the shell to make it fit. Now for my question. I am mounting the door window garnish and while I understand the top portion uses barrel nuts what size and how should the bottom screws be mounted? I think the bottom screws are #8 one inch long and screwed into the wooden window frame. Let me know if that’s correct.
Depends. If you level your frame and install the crossmember flat you will have the 7 degree of caster that's built into the crossmember. But in reality you probably want some frame rake ,( 3 degrees typical) and some tire rake ( 2-3 degrees typical, more with big/little). Both reduce the 7 degree in the crossmember. And you probably want 7-9 degrees of caster when done. So, if you want most / all of the caster built in (as opposed to front suspension adjustment), you need to figure some of the rake variables before welding in the crossmember. That's why many aftermarket crossmembers built in 10 degrees - weld in flat, loose 3-4 degrees due to rake, have 6-7 degrees of built in left over.
Continuing the mock up on my deuce coupe making some progress but slowed down by a no fit problem with OE grill insert and Brookville grill shell but have a plan to fix that. I wanted to get everything mocked up before making it pretty. Anyway I need some advice on raising the front end 1 1/2 inches. I thought of a spacer/shim between the cross member and spring but not sure if that’s the best way. The front end is a Pete and Jakes setup with a 1 inch drop cross member and dropped axle. I thought I had it calculated correctly but missed it about an inch to low for the stance I want.
Your standards are way different from the norm. I don’t see how the standard dropped axle and A style crossmember, without a reversed eye spring, could make your car too low. 99.9% of the guys with those parts are happy with them.
I think most cars are being built with a nose down so called “California rake “which looks great but it’s not what I want. I want the front tire to be even with the front fender with no gap seen between fender and tire.
You mentioned a spacer above the spring. The easiest way would be to add two short leaves (8"-12") to the spring and add a longer center bolt. The compromise is a bit stiffer ride quality. An actual spacer is doable but a bit harder to execute. You would want the top to match the crossmember and the bottom the curvature of the spring. If you weld the spacer to the crossmember you just need a hole on the bottom to capture the center bolt. If you don't want to weld it in, I guess you could either have a pin on top to replicate a center bolt top or drill the spacer through and get a long centerbolt and bolt spacer to the spring.
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