Wood or Metal floor in your HOT ROD ??

wood in pre war cars
but steel in post war cars

I used 1/2" oak plywood in my '27 T
in the cab and in the bed

early construction pic...

 

Just read this post. I'm gettin wood rite now!!!.....OLDBEET

 

wow... i dodn't expect so many wood users. (what do i know?) lets see some more pics.

 

1/2" plywood. I've since insulated it. I bought the car with the wood floor and had thought about changing it to steel. Never got around to it and have had no problems at all. Seems to have cut down on road noise over the steel floored A's I've ridden in too.

 

I like the wood floor system but, how do ya safely mount seatbelts?

 

I don't!!!! Yeah, I've heard all the lectures, and I'm still not changin' my ways.

OK, but if I did, I would just use some flat plate on the bottom side of floorboards. Don't ever bolt seat belts to a frame -- in a severe wreck, if the body become loose from the frame, you'll be cut in half by the belt.

 

I've got 3/4" plywood in my coupe... the same wood since 1972. The car is channeled and the wood pretty much sits on top of the rails and crossmembers. You have to set the engine and transmission pretty low to do it this way, but there's no hump and taking the seats and floor out of my car only takes a few minutes and makes it so nice to work on driveline issues from right inside.



JOE

 

The entire floor isn't wood, there are steel channel crossmembers that are a structural part of the body, at least on my A roadster, and they are where you could attach the seat belts.

 

Hello..This is the floor in my 1930 Ford..I took the valley pan out and used wood..Mounted my brackets for bucket seats..I tore out the back shelf and rebuilt it in wood..
Duane

 

Damn good thread. The success stories almost have me re-thinking my decision for a steel floor for my '33 chevy coupe, but I'll tell you a horror story: I met a guy that completely rebuilt a beautiful '34 chevy 5-window, and used 3/4" plywood on the floor. After a few years, that plywood started sagging and now his doors are way out of adjustment. He's pretty bummed out, because to replace it is a huge job since his car is complete with fenders, interior, etc.

SO, I suppose the key is to make sure the majority of the wieght is supported by steel cross-members, then the plywood is not a load-bearing structure? I'm an ex-bodyman, so I'm a freak about body alignment, that's my only worry about wood.

 

I put 3/4" 13 ply plywood with black formica on the bottom side on two of my hot rods and it was the best thing I ever did.

It dampened the sound, it insulated against heat... and it was definately STRONGER structurally that a piece of steel.

Sam.

 

Certainly! Sounds like this guy had no supports at all, except around the perimeter. You still need crossmembers. Do you the thickness of the plywood he used?

 

Now that sounds like a pretty damn good idea.

 

Custom made, stainless steel.

 

I think he used either 3/4" or heavier, it might have been 7/8". I think you're right, he didn't have crossmembers. I could be wrong, but when I dug my coupe out of the ravine I found no steel cross-members under the body, just the rotted out wood. It seems crazy, but it appears that Chevys didn't come with cross-members under the floor? I wouldn't build one without them......

 

Well, that's where the term floor "boards" comes from. I am using a combo of both in my 37 pickup. I will be channeling it but useing the original floor. The section where your feet goes will be wood. No load on it at all. It's just so your feet don't hang out Fred Flintstone style.

 

As long as your body/cab is braced up structurally with steel, then wood is a good flooring.

But yeah, wouldn't want to use wood in any car that started getting "fat". Trucks...maybe.

 

Steel for the win!
My firewall was mangled badly! My floors were non-existant, so I had no refernece as to what was supposed to be in there.

I used 12gauge cold roll sheet to make my tunnel in the 1935 PU and the firewall and the cone shape between the two. I welded it into the original steel cab support peices that go across the floor. It is thick enough to not need beads. I bent the bottom of the firewall and the bottom of the tranny tunnel to a 1/4" horizontal peice and that is what the rest of the floor rests on. It says I used 10ga, but that is wrong, its 12ga.

I then used 16ga for the floor but didnt put beads in it. I wish I wouldve out beads in it, as it "oil canned" a little. But it really is only where your feet go as there is a lot of cross support structure in an original cab. I welded the floor boards in with beads 1/2" long every 4 inches. I then used seam sealer on both sides of every seam.

Yes, the M/C door really is held on with 100MPH tape. I havent got around to putting a hinge on it and latch.

You can see how I did the firewall at the RRT thanks to Frank (enjenjo).

http://www.roddingroundtable.com/tech/articles/firewall1.html

No, I didnt pick that steering whell out, it came with the $40 column from a wrecked Camaro. Yes, its still on it, Im lazy.

Ill talk about the 34 Sedan in another post.

 

In my 34 Sedan, it was one of the floor board kits. It seems the guy I bought it from tack welded the peices in then used gobs of rubber sealer stuff that is pretty stiff. It seems ok, But I plan to tear the whole car apart to fix a few things and Ill address its floor installation then.

It has 20ga Sheet with lots of beads in it. Seems pretty solid, and doesnt rattle.

I dont have insluation or carpet in either, and neither is rattly or obnixously loud. I think once I put some mat and carpet in, they both will be as nice as about any new car you can buy today.

Plus, neither are flamable, nor do they mind a good power washing at the car wash.

 

I'm using 16 and 18 gauge cold rolled steel removable panels over a bunch of square steel tubing cross-members that go sideways and front to back (3/4 x 1/8" wall tubing) with lots of 1/8" cold roll steel gusseting. The largest unsupported span of sheet metal is only about 12". It's very solid.

The big problem I see with wood is that it's flammable. They'd never allow wood floors in any kind of racing sanctioning body. If you decide to use wood, you might want to think about lining the underside of it with something like 20 gauge steel for fire protection.

In another car, I replaced what used to be floor and kick panels made of 3/4" plywood that dropped into recesses in the surrounding metal floor with a structure made of 3/4" x .093" wall square tubing, with a few 1/2" x .093" wall square tubing cross bars going both directions and covered that with 18 gauge steel (with a few beads in it) that was welded to the tubular structure underneath. I can unbolt it to pull it out just like the plywood did, but the sheet metal over tubular steel feels much stronger and solid and it's fire-proof. You would be surprised how stiff and strong 1/8" or .093" wall square steel tubing is once you weld it together into a framework, and the sheet metal on top of it feels really strong and solid once you bolt or weld it to the tubular structure underneath. It's not "tinny" or "garbage can sounding" at all once it's secured solidly (unless you use sheet metal that's way too thin). Even 1/16" wall square steel tubing feels pretty strong once it's welded into a structure. Don't be fooled by how flexible a 20 foot length of square tubing feels at the steel yard. In short sections it's really strong.

 

steel is real....and a hell of a lot stronger and safer,cut and roll a bead or two in the floor pans....good luck rooster

 

I used 3/4 fir plywood painted both sides for my 28 model sedan. Put driveshaft loop and good amount of steel cross members and suports. Has been on the road now over 2 years plywood is great shape. I drive in the rain and still the floor is great it is good sound and heat barrier allso. Repalceing a bad panel if needed would be a simple proceedure at that. John

 

I've seen both plank and plywood, and alot of the old plank floors I've dealt with have been split.
For strength, I'd put my money on plywood.
Hell... I'd rather have my 3/4" plywood floor over an 18ga sheetmetal floor for that matter. Metal might just dent and take it, but it might open up like a beer can too.
I bet 3/4" plywood would absorb it best with it's crossed grain.
I wonder if the Mythbusters have ever made a rig to smash a spinning driveshaft through a car floor...?


...and...


Cool idea with the formica, Sam. Nice finishing touch.


JOE

 

I'm using plywood in my Bantam. A coat of glass resin and then paint underneath should pretty much weatherproof it.

Flatman

 

Spent the last two days making plywood floors on my A/bone

 

Only wood in my pre-war cars.

 

just an idea but.....

3/4" plywood with spray\roll on on bed liner.

Its waterproof, obviously durable and relatively cheap. i once saw a teardrop trailer completely encase in Rhinoliner. people use it on boat hulls too.

 

W O W !!! I wasn't expecting SO many responses! The majority seems to say "wood" and a lot of guys say it is for " sound dampining " BUT with an open exhaust is that really an issue?!?!? I came across a wood product called "MDF board" --medium density fiber board-- what is this compared to say regular -plywood, or hardwood, or particle board-????...Ken

 

Wood works good ... but if you have a decent transmission hump ... the wood is more difficult to make the curve.



The metal looks BETTER ... painted up ...

 

MDF is probably not a great option IMO, plywood has structural capacities and it handles water better, MDF gets wet 1 time it swells and distorts, Treated plywood. I like the bedliner idea on the bottom side for waterproofing!