Evening everyone, So a little back story on my pick up. I recently acquired this from my elderly neighbor. He has owned it since 1974, but tore it apart about a decade ago to paint it and it never got fully ***embled. It was a running driving car, but he figured he wouldn’t get to it and offered it to me to buy, which I happily did. My plans for the truck are to keep the body stock, but bring the front and back down a little closer to earth with suspension work and a different set of wheels and tires. It came with freshly refinished 16in wheels so I planned on using those. It also came with a new complete in the box hydro brake setup from Boling Bros, including pedal ***embly. The drivetrain is my biggest curve ball. Here’s my question, it is completely stock drivetrain wise, but missing a few things to run(I.E carb and plug wires, etc.). If it turns over, is it worth upgrading the carb/intake system and switching to more modern electric ignition or would it be best or more cost effective to swap out for a different power plant? I’m not looking for a race car, just a fun cruiser. That said I also have a completely rebuilt 37 transmission and a couple sbc sitting. Would it be worth it to try and put the 37 trans behind the model a motor, or would I be best to put that behind a stocking sbc and slide those between the rails? I know there are so many variables, I’m just looking for opinions, but if this was your project what would you do? Thank you in advance and sorry for the rambling.
First, count the shims. If there are none, its not going to run much longer and is awful expensive to rebabbitt.
If you have lots of shims, consider a hi compression head. This changes the car from a putt putt to a daily driver that can keep up with in-town traffic. Going faster means better brakes. I use Bendix because Lockheed are inferior. A fully synchronized transmission with overdrive makes it a pleasure to drive. I use the best carburetors ever, the SU
Bangers are really fun. But so are v8's. If it was mine, I'd play with the banger. High compression head. Down draft carb. B or aftermarket distributor. Get an adapter and run that 37 trans behind it. Drop axle. Juice brakes...done.
I would do the bare minimum to get it running and then drive it around the block and go from there. Get the plug wires, harness and junction box from a model a vendor. Find a working carb or a good core that you can rebuild on the cheap (you can always resell it if you switch powerplants). Make sure the brakes work and then take it around the block a few times and see how you like it. If you want a little more power do as manyolcars suggested and maybe find a high compression head. If you need a lot more power, switch power plants. But then need to address many other things..
Don't bother with an electronic ignition, keep it simple. Get a Model B distributor to eliminate the manual spark advance. You'll be glad you did once you see how well a properly adjusted B distributor runs. As for the carburetor, Model As love fuel. If I was starting from scratch I would probably do dual Strombergs. The stock Model A carburetor is a decent unit for driving but if you didn't get one with the car you might as well skip it and go straight to the upgrade, because you will eventually. You should order a high compression head if you do this. A Model A transmission is fine for a Model A. All the hubbub about the non synchro ****** being hard to live with is bupkis. If yours is in good shape just drive it, you will learn it and its ways quickly. Make sure you use the appropriate heavy oil, a lot of the guys *****ing about Model A transmissions are using the wrong oil in them. The 37 transmission is a good unit as well, keep it to put behind the flathead V8 you will be craving in a few months. Do the world a favor & don't put a bowtie in it... unless it's an early OHV. There are enough SBC powered Model As out there. A lot of guys will argue about this til they are blue in the face so I saved it for last. Learn how to adjust the Model A's mechanical brakes. It's not hard. When dialed in, the mechanical brake system can lock all four wheels at 60 mph if you ask it to. You can't get better braking than that without computer ***istance. Give them a chance. Why junk the old iron if it can do exactly what you want it to do? By the way, that late 31 all-steel cab is highly sought after. The wide bed, however, looks really ungainly without fenders, so plan to find a standard bed if you want to run fenderless.
I don't know man... A v8 trans is a pretty sweet upgrade and a bolt in with the correct parts. I'd take it every time over a stock A transmission, given the choice, especially daily driving and in traffic like I do. But flip side is, if you've got a working A trans, it's definitely not a dinosaur like guys make it out to be and you shouldn't let that stop ya. Double clutching is kinda fun sometimes anyways. Also agree about the brakes....but didn't want to start that argument again.
The V8 trans is definitely better but the A trans isn’t bad by any stretch… I wouldn’t pull a good A trans to swap it, but I wouldn’t put an A trans back in if it broke. I don’t double clutch mine. Always heard you have to but mine shifts like ****er, up and down. I don’t even use the clutch half the time and she never grinds.
I've seen some real piles of ****. Most of the nicer ones I can float them as well. But occasionally you get one the trouble makers. Last one I took out was just garbage. I've probably got 6 or 7 take outs, sitting around, in a pile. Can't bring myself to toss them. With the cost of a rebuilt v8 trans(if you have to pay someone) and the adapter these day the A transmission is certainly more attractive than it used to be.. Haha
Get it running and driving with stock components..... Drive it a while to familiarize yourself with the truck, and at the same time evaluate what you want it to be and how you'll use it. This is all part of the learning curve.... Don't get rid of any of the extra parts just yet, but don't charge into changing them out either. I'd go with a dropped stocker and have fun with it! When and if you decide to modify it, do one thing at a time so you can keep the downtime to a minimum and keep your interest level high. Good luck! PS: State your location (approximate is OK) because you just might find some local help/input. Also, if you decide to keep it stock-ish, check out the "Model A Ford Club of America" (MAFCA) for detailed resto/tech info.
So I’m pretty mechanical, but new to these motors. What am I exactly looking when you refer to shims? Thank you for the info! I’ll think the best route is to get it running as it sits like everyone suggest. If the motor is healthy then I will put the time in to make it the best it can as it is. That said I will definitely start looking for a B model distributor and if I don’t have any carbs, I will look into the strombergs. As for the brakes, as much as I would like to get the mechanical ones dialed, he took them apart many years ago, so it’s missing a bunch of the parts and it came with a complete and new hydraulic brake set up from Boling Bros. Oh no worries there, he is like a second father and grandfather to my girls. His birthday was yesterday and we went out to breakfast at the Waffle House last Saturday. I’ve made him quite aware that I’m honored to have the car. Thank you everyone so much for the input, as I start moving forward I will post up the progress. I appreciate all the help
The connecting rod clearance to the crank is set by shims between the connecting rod and rod cap. Pull the pan and you'll (hopefully) see shims on the rod bolts between the cap and rod. You remove them to tighten up the bearing clearance.
OOOPS Great to have good neighbors. Glad you can enjoy. I had the thought because 2 weeks back I took one of my favorite neighbors to birthday breakfast. Any way that will be one neat, sweet P/U
I've lost most of my pictures, I wanted to post a picture last night. But couldn't find one. Anyways...here's a little inspiration. Mine has the soft top. But is a wide bed.
Thanks guys. This isn’t my first rodeo, I built this for a friend of mine a few ago. I’ve haven’t dealt with the banger stuff yet, but am interested in seeing where this goes.
That's a beauty! Looks like the green one is in excellent hands. Looking forward to what you do with it.
Nice phone booth! The brake situation makes sense.... use what you've got and understand (and don't have to buy). Sounds like your neighbor can also offer some good advice and guidance, and now he can live vicariously through you.... win/win!
This thing is nice! Is the fuel supply gravity fed from the original tank? Im trying to learn all I can about flathead swapped A's.
You might be surprised how much you like that banger when you get it going. I have my 1st one now and whilst its got a few upgrades its a pleasure to drive。
- Caddy or Olds V-8 with two or more carburetors. - A four speed Hydros have a great WOW factor, but they can be a royal pain in the ***. Like distributor timing, they need a lot of adjusting but once your there and have it ready to go. - Keep the drum brakes but update them to juice. Drum brakes only suffer from one issue, ignorance and lack of maintenance. I've set up drum braking systems that I would put against any stock disc system. The Pontiac 8 lug 11" aluminum drum system was one of the best drum braking systems. - Keep it fun by keeping it simple.
Did we have to dis the use of a Chevy? Fk'n nails on a chalkboard. How much would a 250HP flatty cost? About 5 SBCs? Or 10 good used runners? I love A pickups but can't really drive long distances in em. I'm too damn big. Traded mine off and have few if any regrets. I agree on the regular trans in a banger. Learn to time the shift and it's all good. Downshifting sux but oh well. The only downside I see to a SBC convert is making the frame tough enuff to handle it. The rest is a tried and true formula. I also like the small box better. Something just so kool about it. Nice truck...
It actually is. I was skeptical at first due to age, but after being cleaned and resealed on the inside it has been good. Im actually looking forward to the rabbit hole I’m about to dig with this one, lol.
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