Thanks for all the feedback. Updates: Purchased a set of 16" wires for airbag w/ vintage whitewalls - Like size tires Model T's out of storage and mocked up for measuring frame. Color - Denim Flat Blue w/ creme firewall...red wheels. Engine trimmed in red. Hey Everybody, I am fairly new to the site but have been buying stuff up lately from some other members. I am only 23 and this is my first trad. rod. My experience has mostly been with mustangs. I was told that I should put up my project plans and progress of my '26/'27 T coupe build. I have been gathering parts over the last 18 months but was mainly the body and engine until recently. I have also been book marking the crap out of tech articles. Here are the specs/goodies I currently have. I have talked with a few members about their setups as well. I am wanting to build a traditional hot rod. I am going to plan on using as much "vintage" stuff as possible. I am considering going with a color scheme of either black and red or maybe a creme w/ burgundy. I kinda like the look of a good clean motor with a creme firewall. This week I plan on rolling my parts car out of a bay and start putting my body back together as it is apart...will post pics soon. Here is what I go thus far. Coupe Body Coupe doors...need skins (fordor.com...shipped) Decklid skin (fordor.com) Having a frame built ( 122" w/ 12" Z'd rear, spring perch in front) '53 Merc Flathead...needs rebuilt Dickster 2 97's Intake System 39 Lincoln backing plates '65 Buick Alum 45 fin drums Banjo rear w/ good 3.78? gear Mopar steering box (cowl) Built bomber seats (.063 alum.) '59 Caddy column Plans: Get 3" or 4" dropped axle 37-41 spindles get steering nailed down. Determine tire and wheel combo...def. whitewalls speedway coilover kit in rear. With the holiday's coming up my frame will not be done until mid january...gives me time to settle on my front and rear suspension. What ya'll think? Nick
I think you should get your tires and wheels real soon. Trust me, it helps to start there so you can set up your stance at the begining. Other than that, I'm jealous that you have a complete T coupe body... r
I agree...any recommendations? I am thinking whitewalls with bigger in rear. Not sure what year rim looks good. Do like the look of baby moons. Nick
Asking people what they think looks good will get you hundreds of different answers. And may not be the look you are wanting. I suggest you find pics of cars YOU like and find out the exact parts and sizes that guy is running. Look for posts by owners and PM them for info. Look at new car mags for info in the features. Buy old car mags to see how it was really done "back then". Or post a pic of a car you can't get specifics on, and I bet we could guess pretty close to what parts were used. When building a hot rod, only your opinion really matters.
I agree with the wheels.. its the first thing you need to get the stance right... 15 inch Early Ford wheels (38 - 42) Tires: Firestone Gummed Dipped 7.00 X 15 rear and 5.60 X 15 front thats a good set up for a "T" I don't know what size these are but these are early ford w firestones Good luck
Welcome! There is a T coupe club here, and a lot of build thread info. Here are some famous HAMB T's. Keep us posted on your project.
I like the stance of the one in evel's as well as blackout's. I have emailed both owners/past owners. Black out sent me his info. What are good places to get tires?...anyone have wheels like that shown in evel's post? Will I run into any clearance issues with the buick finned drums? I know this is the ultimate and completely opinionated question but how should my frame be setup? I have posted my current specs. My worries are that (1) it will be too long and (2) it will be to low for driving. I live in country and want it to sit low but also don't want it to be down on the ground either...I think there is a grey area. What have other coupe builders done? Thanks
Dempsey, the blue one is mine. It has a 117 inch wheelbase which in my opinion is just about perfect. The car rides great, it sits low and I have only had one problem with clearence and that was a small one getting into a temporary garage.
Join the Alliance and buy from Coker or any of the other Alliance Dealers listed on the board here. The wheels are '40's Ford steelies. r
Thanks for everyone's help and advice. Keep it coming. I got till mid-january to decide on my frame dimensions and front and rear setup. Nick
Well I am a alliance members. Any vendors have coilover or coil spring kits? Any recommendations? nick
Question on wheels. I have looked at some other rides and like the look of the mid 30's wires but it seems to be a sin to run them with buick drums. I already have lincoln plates I could just run regular drums? Nick
Dempsey... you say traditional in one breath, and coil-overs in the next. I think you need to decide on a theme/era. For instance, '50s would more likely be a cross spring, '60s could be either cross spring or coils (not coil-overs), and '70s could be coil-overs. Keeping your build to a specific theme/era makes for a more aesthetically pleasingand flowing appearance.
I agree that I am blending eras. I know that 50's style would have not had as low a body as I am planning. I also know that a rear spring would be more traditional but with the car being a coupe the rear suspension will only be exposed if you look under the decklid. With me running a banjo I think it is close. I am leaning towards coil springs due to availibility and ride improvement. The front end i am wanting to run a dropped a axle. I know that the buick drums puts it more around the late 60's or 70's which I guess was starting to be disc...not sure I wasn't around. I do like the look of the wires and I think combined with a flathead and accents will be more the 50's style look. I know that cowl steering is also probably 60's or later but believe it looks cool. Question. What accents popped out on a 50's/60's hot rod? What did they look like? In my young mind traditional means a i beam front axle with drums, flathead/nail/hemi engine A, T body w/ 40's or earlier wheels. Where does traditional becoming incoorect? Thanks for the feedback.
Accents seemed to be mainly scallops in the 50s, flames in the 60s. Not the seaweed flames, just real basic. Flake was 60s, but with steel wheels or early mags, not wires. Another 60s thing was white tuck and roll. Of course, this is generalisation, and it's your rod, you can do whatever takes your fancy. However, although a lot of guys here say "build what YOU want", we all yearn for the approval of our peers, whether we admit it or not.
Thanks for the info. I think defining what is traditional and not traditional is somewhat open to the viewer. Disc brakes aren't 50's traditional but do they keep a rod from being it...not in my opinion. Same with 350's, coil springs etc...Like everyone said it is up to the builder.
Well the bodies are out of storage. I have the best set mocked up in the floor. I took some pics but forgot to bring my camera home. Next step are the patch panels and such. Will post some pics in a few days. nick
This was my project for a while. I ended up selling it because the longer I worked on it, the more I realized that I wouldn't fit in it! Haha. I wanted a really long, stretched out look to it. I was going to drop an inline 6 292 into the rails. I've always been a fan of the whitewall cheater slicks, but they don't come cheap! About three bills each....OUCH!!!
Yeah, definitely get your wheels and tires that you "just gotta have", they will really dictate a lot of the vibe of your car. Next, play around with them propped up next to your car's body. Make sure the whole deal is outside where you can really stand back and take in the proportions. Prop the body up, down, raked, flat, forward, back, whatever, playing with wheelbases too. You'll stumble onto something that'll float your boat. That's when it's a good time to break out the tape measure and start figuring out chassis dimensions. Now haul all your parts back inside the garage and start making it happen. For what it's worth, 120" wheelbase is FUGLY, just my opinion.
Mine ended up being longer looking than I'd expected, so yeah. I agree. If I ever build another one, it'll be much shorter.
Thanks for all the feedback..keep it coming Well I purchased a set of 16" wires w/ decent mockup white walls. they are taller in the back and are very close to what I will run. Actually will run the rear tires when the car is done for a lil while. From my measurements it looks like my frame will need to be around 118 to 122" depending on everything. with that being said I plan on having the rearend pretty well centered on the rear but am going to run a spring over or spring behind but will be in front of frame so that puts me at about a 120" wheelbase. I don't know how to get it much closer. My flathead with truck bell and balancer is about 32"...add a corhuskers s10 setup and I really dont need the bell past the firewall or my shifter will be in a bad spot...guessing? I understand the close quarters. I have a couple buddies over 6' and there will be little chance they will be able to ride. I am only 5' 9" so it isn't bad...my wife barely is 125 lb so will not be horrible. Looking like it will be similar to my cj as far as width. Nick
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