Customs So I've had this old car for awhile

"Sway Back"", that's a good name for it.

 

yea probably right. Like an old sway backed mule.

 

Hey P&B,

Cool car you got there. Reminds me of the 37 Nash I sold early last year, before I bought the Plymouth. Someone else on the HAMB owns it now, in Iowa. Ya got a project that'll keep you out of trouble for a while!

Paul

 

Gonna be a sharp ride... What kinda late model motor are you thinking of running?

 

Nice project car. Much hot rod potential.

 

Paul,
If projects kept you out of trouble I would never be in trouble. This one is going to be awhile before I really get to it. I have to finish up my driver and get the Stude out of the way. I'm thinking a year out before I really do much with it. I may seperate the body and get a good look at the chassis this year. I need to strip some pieces that I won't need and get them to someone who will use them stuff like that.

Anyone want some vacuum wipers?

390 about a '66 or so. Ha you were thinking something real later weren't you.

 

Yeah I was thinkin' later model SBC or SBF. Don't know of to many people who consider a FE engine as later model.... lol

 

We still consider late '60s cars to be late model. I hate to admit it because it makes us sound real backwards but the majority of what we have owned and driven over the years was built before '68.

That doesn't make us traditional by no means just that we have always bought cars with two criteria, what we like and what fits the pocket book. Probably why we have never owned a Duece or a Stutz Bearcat.

 

Those FE motors can get pretty pricey too. I had a 57' Ford with a 406 and 3 deuces . Had a war pension in that thing and It ran ok . Never like I thought it was suppose to. Had a 63' Falcon Sprint with a 289 , solid lift cam, 3 deuces and a 4 speed that would eat it alive. I dont think you could over turn that 289 . I bottomed out the sprint factory tach numerous times.

 

Hey P&B- when I did the photoshop, I used the original pic- I chopped it 2" and pushed the fenders up about 2.5". I also left just a bit of a body line where the rockers would be. The changes were subtle enough that I wasn't sure if you would notice, other than the running boards are gone.

 

This is basically an over the road car. By the time it is road worthy we will be living ninety miles from no where and may want to get to no where on occasion.

I will no doubt go through the engine but I am not after making it kill, I have a couple of those in the stable already. It just has to have enoigh grunt to get the little sedan up to speed and keep it there for a few hours at a stretch.

Something that has amazed me about the old Ford is the weight. The way it sets sans glass, upholstery, and engine it tips the scales at 1000 lbs. With a little bit of creativity it could easily be a be in under 3000 lbs. I would have expected it to be at least another 500 lbs the way it sits.

 

What is it about you guys in southern Missouri? I bought a 53 Coupe from a guy in Springfield a few years back. It had a stainless steel marine style vent on the rear deck. Said it may have been for venting the trunk - either for Moonshine or hunting dogs. I'd believe either story.

 

Your pic is actually a lot closer to the way the car should look. If I recall the running boards are between 2.5" and 3". I think that these cars look best with a 2" chop. I have seen them chopped to the max, but with 2" from the front they look like a fella with his hat pulled down low over his eyes.

I'm not going extreme with the suspension, I have a 4" dropped tube axle that my dad was manufacturing back in the '60s. Never been on a car. And I'll get the rear with de-arched springs and shackles. All it needs to do is hide the tops of the tires.

I love the color by the way. That is really close to a tan that Ford used way back when if not spot on. Maybe some maroon Tommy the Greek style stripes and its done.

Actually I used to ride around with a fella that run shine in Central MO. He had a '57 Ford all original looking with 2 sets of air shocks for when he was loaded and a medium rise 427. It was actually pretty roung looking and sounded funny.

I'm pretty sure that the county mounties knew what he used it for but I guess the rules were you had to catch him loaded and you really couldn't tell with the shocks pumped up.

The sedan took the long way around to get to good old Missouri. It was in Texas for awhile then lived with the toddster while it was waiting to end up with us. I would have liked to seen it while it was still a runner, I am guessing by the rear under it that it must have been flatty powered. Basically way back when they didn't have a lot of competition power wise so it really needed to be able to carry a load and skoot around on the back roads in a pinch.

It still has mechanical brakes on it so I'll just about bet it was decomissioned a log time ago.

 

Very nice. Good luck with the build.