Projects 1931 VICTORIA SOUTHEAST GASSER BUILD

Hey guys this is my first build thread so hang with me.... I may need some help posting. As many of you know Quain Stotts South East Gasser group is growing and spreading like wild fire not only in the south but all over the country. The Period correct gassers are more fun to watch, look at, and race! After a few years of watching these guy have all the fun I'm ready to dive in. My buddy Dog_patch Tony built his awesome 39 Dodge last year and we had a blast racing it with Quains group. If you have been to a South east race you probably saw the QUICK N DIRTY dodge with my flamed 51 merc in the pits. My good buddy Ether had this pretty solid Vicky that he decided to let go. Thankfully he remembered me asking about it.... me and Tony and Mac30 went for a look

 

We struck a deal and we brought her home! First thing I did was roll a slick up beside for a look

 

Super stoked!!! Next up is to toss in the mock up block just for giggles. Every proper gasser needs a huge mill.....right???

 

I'm starting to see it... ok heres the plan. I'm keeping the stock A frame, full fendered, nose way up, long ladder bars, early olds or poncho rear and a 392 HEMI with 4 gears in the box. You know old school gasser! I like the early look... think Larry Teeter or Teddie Bear

 

so now the work begins.....gotta lift her off the frame n get down n dirty

 

body off... lets see what kinda shape this frame is in

 

The Vic"Tori"a chassis is stone stock original and unmolested. Lets see what we can do about that. Hey whats that extra front Xmember doing on the front? More on that later.....

 

lets loose the stock rear and center Xmember

 

a little grinding and few whacks with the trusty BFH

 

First injury of the build..... boys n girls always wear proper footwear in the garage. This is not proper footwear. A short piece of 2x6 fell just right and hammered my toe, I tried to shrug it off but yea its busted good

 

ok now I'm limping around but still moving. At least it wasn't my clutch foot! Hot rods have three pedals ya know. Back to business, this frame needs a sand bath. My buddy BradsMonster to the rescue!

 

Now we are getting somewhere... fresh clean old ford steel. Wait wheres the front Xmember? Oh yea ive been thinking bout this.... We are building a Gasser here so more nose height is always better. Hmmm this 32 front Xmember has been hanging around my shop for a few years. Now heres where things start to get weird folks. See most people change out the 32 X member for model A X member cause it lowers the front of the car. Well I'm thinking if we put a 32 X member in the A frame we can gain some altitude? Sounds easy........... lets see

 

I made this snazzy little jig using a couple holes in the frame to locate the spring bolt. We gotta keep the model A dimensions and wheelbase for the desired look

 

and the modifications start.... the 32 looks like an easy swap, but oh nooooooo

the feet have to come off and up because the frame is smaller

 

also the 32 is narrower.... more slice n dice

 

the madness continues.....

 

I boxed in the corners for strength....wheelies are part of the plan

 

relief cuts to adjust the angle to match the a frame

 

This is gonna be great, and I'm gonna be here to watch it.

 

then we needed some blue wrench (my favorite tool)

 

why hasn't someone done this before? oh yea its a royal PIA!!!!

 

Now before we burn that 32 Xmember in the 31 frame I noticed a slight bow in the drivers side frame rail. I mean slight, very slight but I'm picky.

 

you gotta squint a bit to see it but its there, bowed out maybe 1 degree. Out comes the blue wrench again, I saw this once on TV. Easy as pie. Heat n Quench....

 

I'm just gonna pretend I know what I'm doing. Here we go.....

 

Well sumbitch!!! It works like a charm....

 

You don't see many Model A gassers,much less Vicky's!

I'll be watch this build,the Model A frames are anemic when it comes to rigidity and strength so go with the old adage, When in doubt make it stout,that's a beer annology but I'm sure you get the idea.HRP

 

Thanks Volvobrynk! I'm pretty excited about it. The first race for 2016 is Greer, SC on april 30th