I was looking at some super car pics and my mind started to wonder a bit. Has anyone widened a model a body 6" or so? What the hell would that look like? I'm trying to picture it from the back on a low channeled job. Cut that fucker in half and add 6-8". Probably a dumb ass idea but I had to ask... What's your thoughts? Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Find a picture of a Coupe from the rear that YOU like and have one of the talented guys do a photoshop to it, it will give you a good idea. Otherwise, look at the rear of a Dodge/Plymouth Coupe close... or even a Rockne.
Way back when I joined the HAMB, there was a fellow (big fellow) who did that to a chopped closed cab pickup, and it looked great. But I don't think we have access to files that old anymore. It was very nice. Gary
Been one off and on Maine Craigslist last couple of years. 30 or 31 on a Monte frame and bright yellow. Looks an A on wide zoom. To each his own. Tim
There's a few rat rods like that , its about the proportions with a model A. They have a sweet spot to change and a limit.
Previous discussion on this subject - http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=343224&page=2 Truck
That's the truck I remember. I think there was a build thread, right? Gary <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
I think what makes the black pickup work is that widening a '30-'31A pickup makes it look like a later Ford pickup. It is visually similar to what the factory did with design advancement. It looks 32-'ish or even 34-'ish. I think that if you did a '28-'29, you would have to lengthen it in the doors by the same amount that you widened it. If you did 3" longer, and 3" wider, it might fly, leaving some to scratch their heads, if done well.
There was a 30 Ford tudor phaeton from Dayton, Ohio that was done in the 50's. The article doesn't mention it, but I am sure the original owner told me he widened it around 4 inches. The build is beyond words, especially when you look how long ago it was done. Check this out! http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?title=Charles_Mayenschein's_1930_Ford http://www.efairborn.com/people/Mayenschein/Phaeton.htm
I'd say that it is potentially possible to pull off on a sedan. It would be difficult, though, as the amount added in would differ along the length of the body. The concept that springs to mind is a sort of phantom semi-factory luxury body style, to which end I'd be inclined to work in some subtle styling quirks to differentiate it from a stock sedan. For the same reason I'd want to keep the firewall width stock, so that the body doesn't need dedicated hood, fenders, etc. It's clear that the widening would have to taper: quite a lot of taper in the cowl, less between the A and B pillars, and pretty much parallel in the rear quarters (or rear doors, if a Fordor). The fabric roof insert is looking like a blessing in disguise here. I wouldn't do a chop. The whole idea would be to emphasize the spacious-luxury aspect. The rear fender recesses would have to be deepened, almost made little tubs, to bring the width across the rear fenders back to stock. This would indeed be a full-fendered build. The apparently narrow rear fenders might impart a bit of an early-'30s European look.
I owned a widened Model A coupe once. Got it in a swap. I didn't realized it was widened until I tried to use an original trunk lid on it. Turns out it was widened about 1.5" from stock. You couldn't tell. r
one of my friends had a 32 coupe in the 70's that was widened 8 inches with a chopped top and channeled on a radically z'd 32 frame front and rear ,bottom of body hung a couple inches below frame , front axel was dropped 4 inches , he put 65 T bird running gear in it and put 66 tempest bucket seats console and instrument cluster in it , bottom of body was so close to ground it drug when the guy at midas pulled it on the rack . he totaled it after a few years after building a 401 hp tri power 390 ford and lower geared 9 inch cause he got in too big of a hurry to show off how fast it was [didn't hook up rear breaks ] and tri power linkage went beyond center and stuck wide open :\
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