Folks Of Interest Question for Model A builders.....

So we are now trying to move onto a build that we really want to have our hearts set on. We just sold out '36 due to not enough tools and knowledge about the car and now we want to start a build on a solid MOdel A project. Now hear's my question

We don't know how we should go about starting this project:

We are currently looking at an already started hot rod project. It's in primer and that makes us a little wary. The car has been chopped and sectioned. My other half (boyfriend) is a but husky so we dont know if a chop AND a section on a model A would be a good choice for us...it may make the ride a bit uncomfotable. It's sitting on deuce rails, the frame is done, 9 inch rear, front end and brakes are done, etc. It needs finishing. Our concerns were; A) it's in primer and who knows what kind of hack job can be underneath. It looks solid and the seller claims no filler/bondo has been used to his knowledge (he bought it as a work in progress too) We dont want to start with hack....we want to enjoy this build and we'd be mighty frustrated if we started stripping the primer in prep for paint and found a hack job underneath. B) I'm concerned about my other half comfortably fitting inthe car for prolonged periods of time since it is not only chopped...it's sectioned too. The car needs tires wheels, and to be set upto run our 425 nailhead. Joey is excited about this one since the relatively expensive parts are all there and its already set up as a hot rod.

Now we have also looked at a completely bone stock '30 Model A coupe, all original original paint, original interior, no rust, no rot, and no body work that we could find after heavily inspecting the car. It runs, drives, starts right up, etc. Its in wonderful condition. New wide whites, spoke wheels, etc etc. The floors are solid. Its in wonderful shape. If we bought this car we were planning to drive it and enjoy it the way it is for awhile until we saved up funds to start making it into a hot rod. It would need the frame set up for a nailhead, eventually a chop (no section), we would remove the fenders. We'd leave the paint the best we could and have the exterior look "pre-war" era. We wouldnt go to radical on the build because we want to make the chages relatively subtle and not over the top.

Eventually we want a hot rod. So do we go after the one thats a work in progress and already set-up but could have potential issues lying under the primer or do we go for the slightly more expensive bone-stock coupe that is a complete driver with no rust or rot issues, gl***, interior, etc that we could enjoy for a year but eventually make it into something....

We have 2 great options but i want to hear what the HAMBers have to say who have exerience with building MOdel A's.

 

If your guy is big then a chopped and sectioned A isnt the ride for him!
a 4 inch chop is borderline for me and im only 5 ft 10.

a project thats been traded a couple of times has SOME issue with it that people are running into and wanting to p*** it on. I'd leave it be.

The stocker sounds good, that way you can have fun with it and make it exactly what you want.

Doesn't seem like much of a question to me....

 

Thanks for the reply. We are going to go see the work-in-progress onetoday so he can sit in it. He sat in the bone stock one last night with the stock seat and even a moderate chop in that would probably be too much.

We dont have a ton of fundage but i think that if we could drive the stocker for awhile and enjoy it the way it was; we could get our own game-plan and make it what we wanted. BUt my other half seems to think starting with something that has already been set-up would make us better off.....

It's a never ending battle

Im hoping a handful of opinions straight from the horse's mouth will steer us to the right car

Thanks for any input !!

 

I have a unchopped Model A and I am 6' 4". With no brackets under the seats I can sit in there very comfortable and still have 5 or 6 inches of head room.

 

I would have to agree with gearhead graphic- There a reason for the project one being traded off and no one finishing it. I have a 1930 model A coupe with a 4" chop, I'm 6' 4" and its almost to much chop. Go with the stocker drive and enjoy till money is in hand to build the hotrod version. This will give you something to drive and enjoy and time to get the complete vision of the hot rod you want to build it into. Just my 2 cents

 

exactly, seat bracketry can be changed much easier than finding how to get comfortable in a small car.

Our A has a 4 inch chop and running seats from a honda car (no idea what model, they were in a junk yard 25 years ago) we still had to narrow the seats, but they are plenty low to the floor.

 

Go with the stock one and then sell off the parts not needed to help the hot hot rod. Just an Idea

 

If your dude is big, I doubt he will fit comfortably in the chopped/sectioned one. I'd start with the stock one. It sounds nice and there will be a lot of parts on it that you could pull off and sell, parts you don't need if it's going to be a hot rod. That will kick start your funds for the build. I always prefer a clean slate over someone else's abandoned project.

 

Thanks for all of the replies. We have a friend who deals with resoration T's and A's and he has some folks who will buy the old engine and drivetrain, fenders, etc if we choose to go withthe stock one....which makes it much easier

 

Gearhead Graphics makes an excellent observation. Be careful when someone uses phrases like "to the best of my knowledge" ,"I don't" know, but I was told". Don't presume some unknown person(s) who started a project would do right or any better than you would. You just don't know. Regarding interior room: "Husky" is different than "tall". About the widest seat that will fit reasonably in a Model A is a Chrysler minivan middle seat. (Some are wider than others I don't know which is from the narrow one, which is the one you want to check.) Find a narrow seat minivan so you both can sit in it together and see if meets your needs. No one has all the tools and equipment they need or want. Why will your Model A build require less tools than your 36? Putting a nailhead in a Model A will require some fabrication, probably reversing the firewall, at least partial boxing if you use the Model A frame, fabbing the rear suspension, new middle crossmember. A good plan to consider would be to buy the running car, build a complete running ch***is (Model A frames are comparatively cheap) and mount the body after the ch***is was complete, doing the body mods at this time. Good luck with whatever you do sounds like fun.

 

Just my 2 cents, but here goes. I would go with the original coupe. Enjoy it NOW. Formulate what you'd like to do. Research and get to know your options. Buy a used A frame (A good one should be available cheap and local). While you're enjoying and driving the coupe and getting to know people, you can be ***embling the nailhead into the 2nd frame, setting up suspension, etc. It will be especially helpful to have the complete coupe next to your 2nd ch***is for dimensional reference etc. When your ready and have a full plan in a year or two, swap the body and enjoy the "new" car. If the 2nd ch***is work gets stalled or interest is lost you can still be driving and enjoying the coupe, and if real hard times come, you can sell the driving coupe easier than a dis***embled project like the other car your looking at. Just thinking out loud, Bob

 

I'm don't think I have ever seen a sectioned model A.. Chopped, channeled, but never sectioned.......

 

Option #2. the Hot rod one sounds like a problem.

 

mOVE UP TO SOMETHING MID'30'S. If your man is a bigun a model A of any type is too cozy. my '34 tudor is as small as i can drive without wearing it. I'm 5'10 and 250.

 

I would go the stocker route also, then you can build your vision not finsh someone elses vision. I am 6 foot even and 200 lbs. and my model A is chopped 4 in. and that is just enough , if it were sectioned also I would not fit. hope this helps...

 

The stocker could have hidden issues just as easily as the hotrod one. Get a depth magnet that tells the depth of body work such as bondo and go all over the each body to see if any filler is there and how deep it is. It's a must have tool when your buying any car that isn't in bare metal.

As for a sectioned A. I have never seen one of them. Get us some pictures of both.

Good luck either way.

.

 

sorry guys; i read the add on the hot rod wrong.its channeled. We went and checked out the hot rod one. Its a cool car, nice chasis, ch***is is finished, etc. Its a neat car but nees some rust repair and finishing. We thought it was really cool and a great start and weve been hashing over our options all night long.We decided we didnt want to finish and drive someone else's build. We want to make a car our own.

We decided to go the stocker route. It'll be here tomorrow night or tuesday. We shall see. We're excited although a little wary too. Spent a pretty chunk of change in our book on it but that can be expected. We have a 425 nailhead that will be run in the car eventually but for now the car will remain a banger until sufficient funds can be made regaurding the ch***is and such for the nailhead. Maybe we will chop it over the remaining winter and have a fenderless, chopped, pre-war era looking hot rod to run around in on a stock ch***is and spoke wheels. Probably would look pretty cool

Will keep everyone updated. Thanks for all the helpful words.

 

I think option number 2 is the only one I would consider.

I bought a stocker that was complete and in running cond***ion and looked decent.

It needs a couple of patch panels, but you wouldn't know it from ten feet.

I paid 6K for it sold the fenders for 1200 and it did have hyd brakes though.

I have replaced most of the brake components and installed a new front spring, drop axle, tie rod with new ends and modified the rear crossmember and used a t spring. Picked up 40 ford wheels and bought new firestones.

With all the parts and tires I have bought, minus the sale of the fenders I am totally into the project about $6500.

It looks good, I chopped it four inches, I am 6 foot and 210lbs. It should work fine.

Now I have a driving cool prewar A and I can now move forward with planning my hot rod 32 ch***is with a Y block. When I get it done I only need to swap the body onto the new ch***is and I can sell the old one, or pick up a cheap, not so nice body and put on it and sell it that way.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=626730

You may have seen it but here is my thread.

Good luck, lots of good advice previously posted!

 

The space in the stock coupe is not a good reference to what its going to be when hot rodded. In most cases, people remove the package tray from behind the seat which gives you another 5 or 6 inches to move the seat back... also putting you farther back into a little bit wider area of the body. Another thing is that if you stick with the model a ch***is when you hot rod it, the nailhead in a big motor and as its already been said, you'll have to set the firewall back for clearance and you'll lose atleast 5 or 6 inches of leg room. The stock seat is also not a good reference unless you were dead set on using it in the final setup of the car. Those seats are super uncomfortable, thick and bulky.

I'm 6'5" 300lbs and drive my 31 Model A Sedan on 10hr + hauls all the time. I have the seats set back a little farther than stock, but still have room for an adul to sit in the rear seat... I'm setting my 30 coupe up with the seats in about the same spot and Its got enough room. If you're lookin for comfort and ease in the build, you probably should've stuck with the 36. If it was a ford, You could've picked up a couple ch***is engineering kits that would've made the practically a bolt together with a minimal amount of tools needed.

 

I'm 300lbs and 6' 4" fit very comfortable in my model a. It all comes.down to how you set up your seats

 

id go with the stock coupe, and do as others have said and just build another ch***is and running gear while enjoying the stocker. and my buddy has a chopped and sectioned 28 sedan, talk about rediculously short. It'd be one of those you let your head stick out of the top while driving

 

Ditto here on the stocker route. Exactly what I am doing here. We sat in channeled ,chopped, and chopped and channeled coupes and they just did not fit me. If you don't fit in your car you wont enjoy it. Besides it will be your creation and not tagged as "so and so's " old car............

 

i'm 6'1" and around 250 lbs. There is more to consider that roof height in a Model A. It is a little car, and the body gets narrow at your hips. You really have to like the person sitting next to you....

I have a 28 coupe, I chopped it 3 inches. The roof has plenty of headroom, but the windshield gl*** is shorter than the roof height, so I am looking out the top of the gl*** area.

I have taken long trips in mine (6+ hours) and it is a lot of fun, but I like the comfy size and ride of my 47 Ford WAY better.

 

i would buy the stocker and see how yiou like it. maybe you want a bigger car. But in the mean time you can build a frame, or buy a rollling ch***is when one shows up. A bangers are a whole lot of fun, with some juice brakes, 35 wires, a little lowering and the fenders removed. Haveing a runing model a is priceless.

 

If it were me I would look for a pretty much done Tudor instead of a coupe. You want it full fendered. Why? Very few are building tudors and they hold your better half better. full fendered because you can use the original ch***is and give it a nice rake especially if you Z the frame...no need to get a 32 frame.
The green one was built in the 60's
Guy

 

I've built ALOT of Model A hot rods. Always started with a stocker, or just a stock frame. That way I know what I have. Option #2, hands down, let someone else sort out Option #1.

 

This may be an unpopular opinion and I mean no disrespect but if that 36 was beyond your current tools and ability then any hot rod project is gonna be a mighty big gamble. If you're not at a point where you can look at a body and know exactly what going on then I would stay away from buying other peoples projects for now. A nice stocker would fill your need to have a car now and then whenever you're up to it make a cool little AV8 or something.

 

we knew what was going on with the '36. We're not that stupid. The thing with the '36 replacement parts is that they all come stamped flat and it becomes very difficult to roll them to the body line when there is the bead in the metal. It bends and its not pleasant to deal with. We dont have an english wheel; etc so bending them by hand was not an option for us. The car needed rockers, floors, subrails, etc. We didnt have the tools to make the subrails (same bends and flow as the car). The car needed a lot of money to fix it....in which we dont have. On top of that the car came to us dis***embled so we're never sure what was supposed to be where or how it was going to look. It wasn't the right car for someone who is a blue collar worker, not enough money, and a one car garage. That car needed a dedicated person with money to fix it and the knowledge to do so. It wasnt a first timers car... So we let it go.

Starting with a project that is a lot more simple, complete, and solid is a much better option for us. A model A and a '36 Ford Coupe are two totally different ball games. The body lines are totally different, you have multiple different sources for parts and patch panels...not just one **** source.... The parts to fix anything are readily available and relatively inexpensive

With a Model A; we actually know people who can help us with it; unlike the '36. We have multiple LOCAL parts sources for anything we could ever need for it.The Model A's are much more simple to work on all around. The roofs are easy to chop, and you can make them hot rod with doing very little. With the Stock Model A that we are buying;its complete. It's all there. Its a driver...the floors are solid...interior is all there. We can drive it and enjoy the way it is until we get a plan together. Witht he '36....we wouldve had to wait years until we could even think about driving it. You have to know your limitations and the '36 was over our limit at this point in our lives. I think we're in a much better situation now. We have a complete, running, driving car that we can enjoy and make what we want...as we learn.

I hate to write a book; but thats our story and why we wound up in this route. We went and looked at both cars; studied them pretty heavy. We could've bought the already hot rodded one. It needed work but it was the type of work we were apable of. In the end; we want to be driving our own creation and that was the deciding factor. Stay tuned for a thread about our recent acquired "A".

Thanks for all the opinions. You've helped us make the right choice

 

No need to justify your actions. But the was very well written. You will get more enjoyment by switching projects and get behind the whee much sooner it sounds like.

Now get a build thread going!

 

we will! havent gotten it home yet. Tomorrow night. When it is here; pictures will be shared