Thanks @mad mikey for the new (to me) word. I'll add it to one that came to me at work 5 decades back as this kid was acting out in front of his Mom Jerk weed!!!!!!
It might take me a while to get past, 'cause I will be checking out the cool thing you will be cruisin'....
Well I will pass you , let you catch up, admire your ride, pass you again, let you catch up, OH HELL , this would go on for miles.
Henry didn't build the Ford bodies in the first place, someone else did. He paid someone to hauled the bodies into his factories and put the bodies on frames he paid someone else built, and then he put his name on them and sold them. What is the big deal with "Henry Steel"? There is no such thing. Henry bought the bodies someone else assembled and made them into cars. If Brookville would have been around back then, old Henry probably would have bought bodies from them too. Most people would read the Ford name on windshield ID card as the make at some car show someplace, and would give Ford the credit for it, regardless of who put the pieces of the body together. Henry died a long time ago, he didn't care who rebuilt the body after it left his factory as long as it matched his quality standards. Heavy means slow? I was cruising down the highway this afternoon in my 5,000 lbs truck at 75 mph in a 65 mph speed zone, I was in the slow lane getting passed by nearly everyone. As all these cars came whizzing past me, most slowed down to take a look at the truck, then passed by with a thumbs up, or a few pictures taken, as they moved on. Just think, an old heavy truck, in the slow lane, getting passed by everyone, all while exceeding the speed limit by 10 mph. At least many of them took the time to slow down a bit, and show me their approval, before they moved on. I'm betting most had no idea which manufacture built the truck originally, and they probably didn't care how much of the truck was original. It only matters to SOME car people.
See the gray car in my avatar? It started out as an old jalopy racer body, no frame. I was able to save the panel around the back glass and quarter windows. Every other body part came from gennie 33-34 body parts found on the HAMB classifieds with the exception of "Steve's Auto Restorations" made quarters, tulip panel, deck lid and panel below the deck lid. The rest comprising of interior panels, floors, etc were shop-made. If I'd have insisted on using only Ford parts, I'd prolly still be chasing down rusty, dented parts that were waaaaaaaaay overpriced but I didn't and I've had the car on the road all that time I'd wasted finding gennie parts.
I don't know if I would go with a Brookville body. I've been looking at Model A's lately and nice, running roadsters are going for less than $15k around here. Two and four doors in really nice shape are out there for less than $10k. I think if I were going to start another project I'd consider starting with one of these complete cars.
The biggest issue with starting with a nice looking, running, and driving car is you really don't know what is laying under the paint. If you like everything that is there and are able to use it pretty much a is, you may be able to overcome cobbled up body work. If your buying it because its cheap, but plan on making a lot of changes "to make it your own" you may find yourself upside down pretty quickly. You need to really look over a "nice running and driving car" to be sure the basic car is actually good. $5G worth of parts for a $15G price tag isn't a very good deal if its not something you can drive while you are "making it your own."
Yet with a Brookville I think you can eliminate the panel behind the seat and have a bigger floor to begin with. Lotta work...
The people who have the patience to take an original body or even several bodies and coerce them back into a not only usable but often desirable vehicle deserve an immense amount of credit for their talent and perseverance. We wouldn't be here without people like that. However, it doesn't mean that someone who used a replica of the originals is any less of a hot rodder at heart, and because of these replicas our hobby continues to thrive. I'm in the group that builds to suit myself, and while its always nice to hear that someone else likes what you accomplished, I still only build it to suit my dream of what I think it should be. I have a Brookville body I'm using. If I had to only rely on the availability of an OEM Henry.......it would never happen.
Build what YOU want YOUR way. That is what this should be all about. I have a 'glass bodied '34 3w coupe and a '36 Ford Fordor Touring Sedan, chopped 3", Chevy 383 stroker. If people have an issue with the fiberglass body, Chevy engine in a Ford, customizing a four door sedan, etc.,they are free to build THEIR dream. What I DON'T do is pretend I am something I'm not. I don't take credit for work others did (we can't all paint, weld, fabricate, etc.) on my cars. I don't claim the coupe as FOMOCO, I don't show it as a '34 ( not fair to those hot rod craftsmen that have 90 year old cars that they massaged to their current state). I also stay in my lane, primarily posting in Off Topic because of my late model drive trains, updated suspension, and out of respect for tradionalists. Just because I don't run a flattie doesn't mean I don't like them. One last comment, owning both a bona fide old car (the '36) AND 'glass 'replica' ( the coupe), I can vouch for the presence of a 'soul' in the real steel that is missing in my coupe. I love both cars, but there are times I sit and think about the '36s past; how it ended up on the used car lot that day in April, 1975, where dad paid $550 to begin this project that has outlived him, and will represent him when completed. The coupe did not exist until I gave Outlaw Performance a deposit, and they made the body and frame for me. I am the start of its story. You wouldn't let someone tell you what color to paint your car, don't let them tell you what to build.
The Jalopy Journal
