well after about 5 years of parts gathering... and a year of slowwwwwwwwwwwwly putting this thing together we finally got Knucklehead's coupe on the road... turns out the 300 hp cammed motor is too much for him... here is a side view almost stressed out when our gl*** guy thought he wouldn't be able to use the original gl*** that's had my favorite Hamb sticker on it for about 4 years... this thing is scary fast, really was hesitant to put disc brakes on it, but since he went with the 289 motor it seemed more acceptable.... rear shot... and then some sides... and so pumped to have it out of the shop and on the road where it belongs again...
Super stoked to have this done... I have been collecting parts for it for a long time... like the aluminum model A steering wheel, which I hadn't seen before and the chrome rear end and the chromed radius rods that I have dragged around from shop move to shop move... I dragged the body back from high desert as a retirement project for my dad (aka Hamb Knucklehead) who is a retired shop teacher. But the patina was too neat to paint (yet) he had a similar one in high school and Squirt soda pop was one of his favorites so it was a score to find the model A with that logo on the side. Thought it would be fun to build something with him but it turned out to be quite a bit of work to squeeze in at convenient times... knowing I would get to drive it a lot I put a lot of time into figuring out how to cram my large body into a chop like that... turns out the secret for us was in the fire wall... and keeping it roomy thanks to some cool pedals from Wildwood that take up a minimal amount of firewall space... Thanks for the props... been waiting to post it on the hamb for almost 4 years now!
Congrats my friend!.... Nice to see it off the table on rolling!!! FINEEEEEEEEEEEEE lookin' ride........ Thanks again for the deal on the frame.
Great car, great pix. The only thing missing is a big smokey burn-out! These kinds of threads are great motivators. Thanks for posting. Now get off the computer and DRIVE IT!!!! Vance
Nice car. I'm sure if he's put off by 300 hp (seriously?) someone would be willing to trade that mill for a real turd.
Right on! 4 years, damn that makes me feel lazy. I'm throwing parts in the pile that will someday resemble a 34 ford pickup for my dad. Nickels and dimes, its so damn slow, I spent last weekend cleaning up a set of gennie 34 coupe rails for their reincarnation under his cab. I hope drag him to Montana next spring and make his project a roller..... but I think I said that last year. s.
Preacher, very cool! What is the story on the aluminum model A steering wheel? I've never heard about or seen one of them.
The story on the steering wheel is that I went into and antique store and saw it hanging on the wall.... the dealer told me he took it off a Model A he got in an estate sale and parted out... (this guy had all kinds of really neat car stuff too) I bought it off him and brought it home to check out in comparison to an original model A wheel and with the exception of a boss (which I ***ume is for a steering knob, right down to the coolest detail its and exact match... The only thing I can figure is that, the town had all kinds of irrigation c****s and maybe somewhere years ago somebody was casting a model A wheel for using on a flood irrigation c**** and they decided to add in room for the steering knob... I have used it on a couple of cars before.... and my only complaint is that in the winter the thing gets cooooooooooold!
The 30-31 Model A Steering wheel was never out of production by the original maker in the US until the 80s when several antique Ford parts supply houses started having them made by different sources, both domestic and foreign. The wheel was used on heavy equipment during these years after Model A production. That aluminum wheel with the knob boss was another variation of the heavy equipment/industrial use of the original 30-31 Ford design. I've also heard of steel wheels like the aluminum one found in refineries and other large industrial complexes. It is a goodie, that's for sure.
The Jalopy Journal
