It took awhile, but I finally got my doors and deck back today, and stuck them on to see how they'd look. I haven't been pushing this project too hard since I don't seem to have much time for it but hopefully I'll be reassembling things now. Granted, it's a terrible picture in my cramped house garage but here's the best view I can get of it today with the deck and doors on. I was thinking I was going to have to make some bolt-on subrails for the turtledeck to make it sit higher but now that I see it together I feel like it's just right. We'll see once the gas tank is back in it's hole.
Thanks Larry. Shocks are in a box yet, Delco Lovejoy knee-action shocks, they just bolt on, but will require some drilling and possibly small tabs welded on. My steering box mount also needs to be reworked, so there will be some touchups on the frame for sure once it's all together. The frame and suspension is just Rustoleum products so shouldn't be a big deal. I might have to add a leaf in the rear for height yet, once it's dialed in I'll do the shocks. It will have them for sure. As for wheelbase, the frame has stock length from crossmember to crossmember, but it has a spring-behind '40 axle. I'm not sure what the exact measurement is, but that setup must push the rearend foreward a good 5 inches, so I'd say it's right around 98 inches, give or take.
You've got a good eye, my man! The earlier, modified turtle deck works really well. Makes it kind of a "1925 and a half". The silver grey against the black is really slick too. Subtle and cool.
I like your car, looks like a period piece. Is it the photos or is the steering wheel high and really far back to the seat? Looking at pics from days gone by many of the rods had the steering wheel in what looks like an awkward position.
Thanks for the compliments. Arnie, we'll get together yet for sure. It's not the picture, it's really high and far back, on purpose. When the version in the first pictures was built, it had a shortened column with the wheel close to the dash, which looked right but I couldn't fit in the car, couldn't work the pedals or close the door. When I got it, Crazy Joe (the previous owner) put in a stock length column for me. I fit in it a lot better that way, but it does make for an awkward steering wheel position. For space reasons, I can't afford to cut the column down much, if at all, but I might cut up the steering wheel and basically reverse the dish on it, so it's dished toward the dash instead of toward the driver. Could gain a couple inches of chest room that way. It's one of those things that is a compromise of looks to make it actually driveable. It does look somewhat less odd with the column tube and dash in place.
Realized I never updated this thread, here's a few pictures from this past summer, at the "Showdown at Sanford Field", which is an all Flathead drag race on a WWII airstrip in Hillsboro, WI. I did race but I got blown out, still some bugs to work out of the car but it was great to be there.
Thanks! Yeah, it was super fun. My distributor was having issues, started easy and ran great up to a certain RPM but then would break up badly, so I had to hold it back. Gonna race again this year though and hoping to have those issues resolved, and maybe some real upholstery, turn signals, and a few other things done by then. Hoping for a bigger turnout at the race this year.
Dang! I'm glad you posted this after 5 years, because I don't recall seeing it the first time around. Your car looks great, and with the flathead must be a blast to drive.
Yeah, I remember you saying something about that on the HAMB before you left. Good to hear that you are coming back, hope you get it squared away! Id like to add to the car count, but a job change has put it off a couple years.... Best of luck, I'll be sure to say hi of you don't look too busy this year.
Have been working on the T in anticipation of the flathead races at Sanford Field in Hillsboro Wisconsin in 2 weeks, if you're interested in it and if you have Facebook you can go there and search for the Showdown at Sanford Field and you'll find it. Made up a more finished interior, took a while but I only have like $20 in it. Got a leftover piece of plywood from the lumberyard for $7 for the seat base, got two huge rolls of vinyl at an auction for $8 (one black basketweave roll that I haven't touched, one roll of this carmel-y color stuff that I probably only used half of to do this) plus some glue, the rest of it was salvaged leftovers. Some bits of wood cut out of the Meat Market during a remodel, a couple pieces of wall paneling, the corner panels are '54 Ford door skins cut up from a parts car. I don't remember where I got the seat foam from but it might have been hacked out of a couch on the curb.
Some in-progress shots. I also added a functional hand brake for safety's sake and to make parking easier, a recessed toe board right behind the pedals which is small but adds a ton of comfort, and redid a rough '40 Mercury wheel, painted to match the new interior. The Merc wheel fits me really well when I'm sitting in the car. To put it any closer to the dash would make the car undriveable, current position is ideal.
This is what was in there before, was temporary, the new setup is basic but so much cleaner and more comfortable.
I have a Stromberg E-fire distributor in here and it seemed to run poorly, especially at high RPM's. I talked to the guy from Stromberg and he was telling me that low voltage will make that happen, and as it turns out my generator was not working. After a few days of work I have a functional generator again and it does seem to help. Not totally dialed in yet but I feel like I'm getting there.
A few update pics just to prove I did actually race this thing, the car ran great although it's not super fast yet, but now that it's dialed in better I'll start adding speed equipment for next year. I went back and redid some old pictures that had Photobucket watermarks on them from like 10 years ago to clean up the thread. Also I should have mentioned that 2 years ago, getting ready for the 2020 race that ended up getting cancelled, Rob Paul did some work on the car that had been eluding me for years. He redid the steering box setup, added a slightly taller rear spring so it wouldn't bottom out, put on my new distributor and rebuilt a Stromberg for it, and also wired in a headlight switch. Those things all worked out great and having that done really lit a fire under me to finish this car out more. Even though the 2020 race didn't actually happen, getting past those nagging issues was a great kick in the ass to get the car on the road, finally.
Thinking ahead to the races this summer, I dug out the block letter Edelbrock heads that I found laying outside on the ground in a junkyard in Stevens Point a few years back, going to polish them up somewhat to use on the T. Got one head pretty close so far, it's a time and fingerprint-consuming project. Also got this Edmunds 2 carb intake from the estate of my aunt's uncle. Not directly related to me, but that's as close as any family member I've ever known to have flathead speed stuff. Never met the guy, and not sure why he had this, but I'm proud to get it. Also picked up a pair of stainless center dump flathead headers off of eBay for $86 shipped. They're surprisingly nice looking for the money. If they fit up well I'll consider it a fantastic bargain.
Very 'jaunty' T there, the trim around the '32 shell is EXCELLENT! So are the running gear paint shots of the Rustoleum... Hope those nice EDELBROCK heads come clean, if there are any spark plug holes that are stripped out a Volkswagen parts shop will have the BEST 14mm. kit you can get. Comes with a ream, special size tap, epoxy, and 4 bushings, (threaded inside & out) Best I've ever used, very small. Turtle deck looks like it was set by Henry... Very 'right'.
The Jalopy Journal
