That was discussed when we initially looked at the car. Couple of reasons we didn't do it, the car's proportions wouldn't be stock (I reckon Henry J had a good eye on him), also I've seen a few where the hoods have been extended, not as easy to do and make look clean and tidy. To be honest I'm glad we've done it this way because it's unearthed so many things on the car that needed to be sorted ie the bent rear wishbone, the twisted frame rails, mounting gearbox etc. I'm in no doubt that all of this hard work will be worth it
Pete's on a roll, he's a one man whirlwind! "Had a bit of time today so started on the right hand exhaust. Already had the manifold done so was just a case of mirroring the left side and welding it all up. The left side is now fully welded and the right just has a few welds left to complete. Finally a pic of one of the inside welds on the actual exhaust. All the insides should be the same. Hope you are all still finding this interesting, let me know if ya getting bored etc. Pete"
Great stuff Pete beautiful work mate as always, can't wait to see it in person. Whilst on the subject of exhausts I've got another update from Jim at Royal Kustoms who has been whittling away again at the block. The first picture shows the standard bore of the exhaust port 1.5" (38.10mm) Jim ports everthing to match the gaskets, second picture gives you and idea of how much needs to be removed. The gasket opening actually measures 1.7" (43.18mm). Sexy huh? This old Flatty is going to have the lungs of an opera singer. At this point I have to thank both Pete and Jim for the work that they're doing, both of them at the top of their game, cheers guys, very appreciated. Jim recieved the spare mild steel exhaust flange which turns out measures 1.5" internally. Which isn't a bad thing as the exhaust bends measure up at 38mm ID (opening up to 2" at the collector), this means that I'll have to chamfer the inside of the header pipes to smooth the flow out. All told this car is going to breath like it's been sucking Trebor Extra Strong mints it's whole life!
Us get bored? You gotta be kidding! This is great stuff.... and thank you for the great pics and commentary. I'm coming to England next year (it's my country of birth) and would love to see it in person.
Just let me know when you're hoping to come over. I'd be more than happy to meet up, maybe even go for a proper pint and some pub grub.
wow...thats great workmanship, the toyota box is cetainly something i'll be looking at for my own flathead! keep up the good work!.......cheers Jick
ok first time seeing this....ummmmm holy shit thats some nice work. Seen the little drag car for your daughter....man you have some serious skills. This car, not even finished yet, is in my top 5. Please leave the body in the same state....gorgeous.
Few more photo updates for you guys. To make the removal of the exhaust a little easier and to add some clearance above the rear exhaust bobbins, Pete fabbed up a pair of aluminium access panels that will get screwed in later on.
Great start to the morning, took a trip to Parcelforce to collect my new heads.When the guy advertised these as NOS he wasn't kidding, all the ali flash is still in place from the casting and there are no marks or visible signs whatsoever that bolts have even been put into them. Has to be one of my best finds yet.
After ogling the heads for 20 mins with Pete mumbling lucky bastard under his breath, we turned our attentions back to the old collander. We dropped the exhausts, dropped the motor and box and pulled the petrol tank out (needs to be cleaned and sealed so that we can get shot of the ali tank in the boot). With everything out of the way Pete could focus on cutting out the bulkhead to then weld in the 1.2mm rolled panel he'd made previously. Pete beat a return edge on the panel to make welding it easier and leave a lot cleaner finish. A lot of tacking and hammering, welding,hammering and dressing Next thing to do will be to work out how the return at the base of the panel will run into the cab
Just in case any of you guys were wondering, Pete's got a handle on the transmission tunnel "been tidying a few things up today. Wanted to get the firewall recess finished. The main part was done the other day, so just needed to sort the return, weld and clean. Took me longer than I thought but came out OK. On to filling the existing hole that the steering colum went through. Make a simple plate and weld in and clean." this car is getting so close to being completely pulled down before the final build up. Roll on summer <!-- google_ad_section_end -->
"Now the bit I'd not been looking forward to. The little brackets that hold the rad stays were well fucked. One had been welded on some time ago, not a bad job but would have been nice if they'd flatened and welded the cracks in the firewall before welding the bracket. The other one was just cracked and loose on the rivets. So, first thing was to cut them off, hammer flat the cracked plate and weld and clean. The one that was just cracked went nice but the other was an arse. What was left was thin and didn't want to be straightened. So it was never going to be stong enough to do the job required so I decided to weld a 40 x 5mm flat to the back for support. Job done. Tomorrow I will be mostly beating ally!" <!-- google_ad_section_end -->
I have been admiring the build on your coupe... wise move to rebuild the frame... looks much better. That Pete surely does some sexy fab... that k-member is pure art IMO. I like those swoopy headers and the firewall is looking good. Thank's for sharing your build... good entertainment on these cold winter nights. Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the kind words guys, it's great to get feedback and support from likeminded people, pretty important when you start thinking that you're the only person mad enough to do this!
I missed this thread until now. I love how this car is coming together. That K member and headers are beautiful.
Here's the latest update from the man that can, check out his tig welding...sexy as f@#k! "As I said last time I have been mostly ally bashing today. Not alot to say really so I'll just leave ya with the pics. Cheers......Pete" Righteo guys you're now fully up to date,this is where the car sits now. I've got a week off work (yippee!!!) and myself and Pete are going to finish up the small bits that need doing. Body mounting bungs, finish the welds, rear shock mounts etc. Hoping to pull the body off and send it off to be shot blasted (no frets we're only doing the interior at this point and bulkhead). Chassis is going to be stripped, Pete is going to attempt to straighten it (please be kind God) finish welding the K member and then she's away for powder coating. Rear axle will be taken down to Jim's at Royal Kustoms, who's going to rebuild it with the Spadaro open quick change I have. Has the makings of a cool week, how else would you want to spend your holidays?
Nice work on the bulkhead and trans tunnel.Great welding! If I manage to get a holiday,I'll be doing much the same as you,but without the benefit of a 'Pete' in my toolbox. Mark
Cheers Nick, glad you're enjoying the build up. Keep your eyes peeled, I'm hoping to get some engine news from Jim at some point and the body should be turned around soon too.
The Jalopy Journal
