Projects 1934 3 window HighBoy Build Begins

Geo,
It has been awhile since I tuned in to see how you were doing on this. Man have you come a long ways....Looking KILLER. I like all the little touches you have put into this build.
Thank's for taking us along for the ride on this build.
Mayor Dennis

 

Dennis, thank you for tuning in! smile.
Today is a big deal. The exterior metal work of the car is finished. Attached are final photos of the peep mirrors attached from the inside rather than over the top of the door. You take the u bracket off and throw it away. Next drill 3 holes in a 10 gauge rectangle to fit in the mirror mounting base. The center hole is for mounting the new adapter to the base. Tap the other two holes and you can now use flat heads through the door to get the mirror mounted. poof. This is nicer and cleaner than hanging over the door!

Josh also has the nerf bar mounting completed.

WE ARE WAITING ON SIDE PIPES... Justin builds snow skis and brought in a few to use for radius specifications. It turns out the side pipe radius needs to be at 340 feet. LOL. That's not much of an arc. However, It does match the arc of the lower body! Josh was able to find a company that understands what is needed and has confirmed with an engineering drawing. IE: our desired length , arc and diameter. All was cool and then they needed pre payment. Hmmm, that's ok as well. So they received payment and now we are pushing for delivery. It's only 1.5 to 2 hours of their shop time and may not be a big priority. Hopefully this week will see it shipped.
Regards,
George

 

I was going through photo files and realized I had not posted some pictures that you might enjoy. One of the issues was that the beltline from the quarter panel to the door was all lined up but the cowl belt line had issues. It was too low amd the taper didnt match the new aftermarket hood. This became a point of NO CHOICE as the rest of the car is "right" so we can't let this slide.

The first action was to make the cowl follow a straight edge from the back. You might choke to see this picture. Josh cut the darn thing out in order to move it to where it needed to be.

This brought the quarter, door and cowl belt line into alignment. BUT NOT THE HOOD.

That's a another story... can you say swap the old hood belt line to the new hood. YIKES!

But it's fixed too!

Regards,
George

 

Dave Lane of Fastlane Rod Shop shows many times that he's cut the beltline molding from a hood to move it up or down. I can't imagine welding that long of a joint on a flexible hood edge, let alone doing it twice if it needed a wedge to widen it!

 

I can do it! but the finished seam looks like over cooked bacon! LOL

Here's some more pictures of the hood prop. The issue here was to have the prop mounted in such a way as to NOT block the view of the induction system. IE: tuck it all the way to the back of the hood. It took adding some braces to support the weight and not have the length of the hood flop back and forth at the radiator shell. I think Rex was the one guilty of doing nice job on this!
Regards,
George

 

I finally have found a Ford Script heater. This one does not have the provision for a fan in the housing. It was a fresh air intake model that had the fan in an F1 front fender. As such, Josh will cut the "Ford" out and weld it into an Atlas heater that fits under the dash. Check this off of the chasing parts list. smile Sorry the pic is just a thumb nail that I snagged from the auction.


We heard from the gauge restoration folks this morning .IE: "that they were ready to ship". Hmmmm????? That could be a problem as the artwork was to be submitted for approval BEFORE screen printing. The SW Police Special Gauge "Clean up" looks awesome. The two duplex gauges have issues. The conversion from AMPS to volts didnt happen, OOPS. The screen in the middle says Police "SW" Special and should be Stewart "SW" Warner. Both are easy to fix but didnt need to happen. The gauge folks were very nice as it was their failure to submit before proceeding. It will still get fixed with plenty of time. NO RUSH. I am adding the pictures to share as is and will show the corrected ones later.

Regards,
George

 

With the outside finished, Josh has turned his attention to the inside. He spent yesterday working on the "water works prevention" in the inner deck lid. IE: 8 big holes had to be filled to prevent water from coming into the trunk via the louvers. Josh refused to put flat filler panels in as he wanted somthing a little more "cool" . He cut the circles out and then "DISHED" or "Domed" them before welding in place. While he was there, he went ahead and provided an access cover for the deck lid latch mechanism.

Great JOB Josh! thank you!

Regards,
George

 

Doesn't this defeat the purpose of the louvers in the first place - to let the air out as you are heading down the black line going for the record?

 

Allright Jeff,

I will have to just go ahead and fess up. The first time I buried the speedometer past 120mph , it was very frightening. White knuckled from squeezing the steering wheel so hard and cold sweat running down the back of my neck. The second time was in a stock car at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Both were over 20 years ago! Well..35 years ago to tell the truth!
There is NO need to let the air out of my louvers as I am too old and much wiser for so much fun. I will just try to look fast sitting still, LOL.

Best,
George

P.S. Hmmmm....Maybe line locks and a few burn outs would be in order? I lit em up on my 48' "Avatar" and the Mrs. still points out the marks on the driveway caused by my apparently "Childish" behavior!

 

Amazing build!! I've enjoyed reading through it all. Just one question, once the car is finished, how much do I have to pay to get a ride in it???

 

Hello David,
As it will hopefully be residing in Destin WITH ME some day.... I think your driving it will be a REAL possibility. Thank you for hosting my visit to see your F4 build during my recent trip. Your hospitality was and is greatly appreciated. For any of you that haven't seen the size of some of those HUBS...OMG . ...and David moves them around the hard way. He man handles them!
Regards,
George

 

I really enjoyed talking car projects with you George and am glad you stopped by. We'll have to do some cruises once you get moved down.

 

More pictures of whats been going on...
The speedo is very heavy and the Custom Auto Men needed to find a way to hold it in the dash. Additionally, the smaller gauges required some method to hold on to them as well. Actually to clamp them in place.

A plate was fabricated with studs welded to allow for mounting the three housing in place. This plate was then welded to the rear of the 34 Dash and you can see from the pictures how it all fits together. Please also take notice of the light mounting tubes that will housing bulbs to light up the gauges through "side windows".


Thank you Rex and Josh.
Regards,
George

 

This is a very well done ride! You have had great vision from the very start!
I hope to see it before you move.

Scott

 

Thank you Scott!
We are doing breakfast at 8 am Staurday morning if you want to join in?
Golden Corral Arapahoe and Parker...
Regards,
George

 

Fresh air... a few shots from outside to get a feel for how her attitude is? Still waiting on side pipes!!! sigh. Wiring harness , EFI CPU , audio blue tooth amp, 4 ohm speakers have all showed up on the Custom Auto door step. I have about run out of things to chase and am spending my time on another shop project involving wiring of a trailer to haul the coupe across the counrty with. HOPEFULLY for the "Cruisin the Coast" run. smile

If you havent read this build thread, I would request that you take a close look at the third picture. The frame modifications ( both front and rear) are a huge COOL factor and may be so simple that they go unnoticed.

Thank you Josh!
Regards,
George

 

More pics...After the mini photo shoot Josh pushed her back inside and has started on the aluminum interior of the trunk. I will drive up in the morning to deliver the heater, Garnish Decortive Wings and a box of bell cranks and linkages for starting on the accellerator pedal hook up to the EFI shalfs.
Regards,
George

 

A few overhead shots of the 34. It is coming along nicely. The interior panels are the last big project to complete yet. A lot of little thing to finish up as we are stripping the car down for the guys in the paint shop and prepping parts for the chromer.
Josh has done a great job getting the car built, and George has been able to provide us with great parts and ideas for his build. I took a few overhead shots of the car this morning just like this view especially with the louvers and stacks.





Need to up the resolution on the photos a little blurry but if went to big the have a hard time loading need to find a happy medium.

 

Sorry, no exciting pictures on this post.BUT... STILL NEWS . The Spring Company that has my original 1937 Chrysler Lens, Bezel , Reflector and Lens Retention Springs has agreed to take a small run order and help me out. There was not a minimum order quantity, but a minimum dollar value for reverse engineering the spring, doing the CAD work and then programming the 3 axis CNC wire forming machine. I chose to order 500 springs as a balance between set up cost and small volume. To tell you the truth, I am just happy to get them. I have 5 sets of these housings with lenses and bezels and it takes 6 per set. Let me see, I need 30 pcs and have 500 coming. I am hopeful to sell a few to get some of my engineering dollars investment back. NO CHOICE as I only have 5 retention springs and they just dont exist anymore. Yes , I could have glued them in. hmmm, NOPE!

The reason so many of these are shot is that they are rusted beyond use. As such, the reproduction parts will be made from .048 T302 stainless steel wire.

The lead time is 3-4 weeks and I am hopefull to see them mid September.
IE: 4-6 weeks! I have learned to be patient and not push as large companies are being gracious when taking such small volume orders.

Regards,
George
If Interested:
Type 302 stainless steel wire is a general purpose stainless alloy typically composed of 18% chromium and 8% nickel. It is the most widely used stainless spring wire because of its high corrosion resistance properties and good tensile strength.

[QUOTE.On another issue..... I have been looking for the original retention spring clips that hold the RiLite 1904 lens to the bezel. (3 per) I have a handful of originals that are rusty and have broken tabs. Since I havent been able to locate, I have two choices...glue the lens to the bezel with RTV or make new retaining springs. I chose the latter and have sent samples to a professional "wire forming" company that will duplicate these via a CNC 3 axis wire forming machine. I might as well order 1000 pcs as the "cost per" is next to nothing after the programming and set up fees. I was teasing Rex this morning about my effort to sell these on ebay at an outrageous price over the next 20 years. I might sell a handful and at least be able to help someone else out. I will never be able to get my money back. Oh well...please dont tell the Mrs. Well, go ahead, she knows I am eccentric.

The below picture is NOT what is needed...BUT IS VERY CLOSE. The MoPar Forum fellow sells this clip for holding the light bulb in fog lamps. You can find them on ebay.

Warm Regards,
George[/QUOTE]

 

Looks ready and right for color!

Scott

 

THINKING OUT OF THE BOX

We have been struggling to find a good solution to the heater issue because I have been wanting a heater with a Ford Script. They have all been too large or just didn't work as the fan was remotely mounted. I took the last DONOR candidate up to Loveland Saturday. The "Script" was too large to transfer to space allowed on the little heater.

So , I asked Rex to get creative and figure something out. Well to no surprise...He has. Please find the attached picture. Rex decided to rotate the correct size heater 90 degrees to allow us the horizontal space to add the Ford Script logo. He would then rotate the upper door 180 degrees so that it also forced air downwards. The nice freebie is that the defrost outlet now points up. It only needs the ability to be opened and closed via a butterfly style dampener.

This Script is going to be a little too tight to fit . As such , we now have two choices....use a smaller script that I have on a 48 Ford Radio, or use the entire surface above the (NOW) lower door to add the larger Script shown in the picture. This would eliminate the upper door which I am fine with.

Rex or myself will report back with a decision and picture of the execution.


Regards,
George

 

George,
How about using a cloisonne Ford radiator emblem on the heater? Would that meet your needs?

 

Good Morning Mr. Bob,

It has been a while and I trust your beautiful 32 Plymouth Roadster Hot Rod is coming along nicely. YES, the cloisonne' emblem is definitely a possiblity. I have purchased a pair ( manufactured by a sub contractor in China for Vintique) and have studied them for this application. The arc would have fit the front curvature of the Atlas heater very nicely. The new emblem has a double sided sticky foam for peel and sticking it which would make assemble very easy. In order to use this, I would need to stamp a recess into the heater to make it look like a factory install. I am concerned with having it surface mounted and do not want anything that looks like an after thought. Machining the oval form for pressing the shape into the cover would be straight forward with the exception of the arc required. If I have to...this would be the way to go and definitely feasible. There is a plus side in that it will match my grill shell emblem and be very appropriate.

All that being said, I have no idea why my vision has been so focussed on having a stamped Ford Script. There is absolutely no reason for this and I have just been stuck, stubborn and resolute in my determination to do it. SO, a month of searching for the right donors and even going on a short road trip to look at Modet T running boards as possible donors for the stamped Script and the heater project does finally have resolution!

Please see the attached pictures from Rex last night and know how thrilled I am to get this darn thing this way. Rex has been very patient with me and very helpful in getting to this point. The small side doors from the Atlas heater will be added to the sides of the NEW housing/cover as well as the defrost tubes with dampening / shut off butterfly air valves.

An enormous amount of effort to do a little something different. The result was worth the effort!

THANK YOU REX. Very much appreciated.

Regards.
George

 

While Rex has been building a heater, Josh has been making hard board patterns to build a trunk interior. He has converted the patterns into 3003-H14 Aluminum panels and is now ready to use the bead roller to add the step downs around the perimeter for making the panels have a more finished look.

Great progress Josh!

Regards,
George

 

George, will you be using any type of sound deadening material in your car? Just curious.

I put a double layer (roof, floor, doors, firewall, back-wall) of B-quiet in that blue F1 I was working on when you came by and it made a huge difference, for the better, in terms of sounds and heat.

 

Hello David,
Yes, 3 different placements of materials. One layer of "mat" on the inner body, one layer of "mat" on the back side of the aluminum interior panels and last but not least, a "spray-on" sound/heat barrier underneath the toe board backwards for floor pan to trunk area. I am not sure what brand will be used and will leave that up to Josh and Rex (most likely Justin) to pick out. The coupe is most likely going to be very loud and everything possible will be done to tone it down on the inside. Josh was teasing me about how much to stuff the side pipes with mini mufflers. We will not know if we went too quiet or too loud until after it is fired up the first time. Definitely need to plan on being able to add or subtract.

Regards,
George



QUOTE=Hivolt5.0;9103887]George, will you be using any type of sound deadening material in your car? Just curious.

I put a double layer (roof, floor, doors, firewall, back-wall) of B-quiet in that blue F1 I was working on when you came by and it made a huge difference, for the better, in terms of sounds and heat.[/QUOTE]

 

Here is a little sneak peak of Josh's aluminum work progress. This is the top of the gas tank cover. Josh has informed me "in writing" that if I ever even think about putting any upholstery over it...that "HE WILL BURN THE CAR DOWN! " BELLEY LAUGH.....
The effort to stay foccused on details has not slacked off and it shows.

Regards,
George

 

One last post for the day... Rex has completed the heater modifications and it is ready for the paint shop to make it pretty! Script, doors and defrost.... YES SIR .

Thank you for a great job on the heater Rex.

Regards,
George

 

Mark,
You are very nice to use the word "fussy" and not ANAL.
Thanks,
George