Projects Barrows Coupe aka “FIRST BORN” 1930 Model A (1970’s build )

Backing up a bit, I had to relieve the floor of the car when the body went on I order to clear the new shifter, linkage and pedals.

So before I started on the interior I had to address the huge hole in the floor

Finished trans tunnel





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Love it.

 

After the trans tunnel was buttoned up I was able to heat and bend the pedals, install the steering column and wheel and start installing the interior.




I dyed the old teal pleated dash to match the new ivory interior color.


I had purchased a lot of vintage glass shifter knobs over the summer.
This one matched the interior perfectly.

Installed some vintage SW Gauges I pulled from an old freightliner out of a junkyard


This is about where I stopped to head south to TROG 2019. It left me 2 weeks before The Gathering of The Faithful show.
The same show I unveiled the car last year. I had hoped to do another unveiling of the car at this years show on 10/19.




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Wow!

 

Throughout the paint process I had known I was going to switch from the old tired Holley 94’s to Stromberg 97’s.
I had been looking for them at the swaps and did some horse trading with Pete Flaven.
In total it took 7 complete carburetors to build 4 good carburetors.
It took me 3 weeks of sandblasting, ultrasonic cleaning and rebuilding to get the carbs good to go.
Even at that point the carbs needed to be pulled apart and completely gone through again.
The end result was four carbs that would certainly be far superior to the old 94’s.

I refurbished the linkage and had to reengineer it to run the strombergs. Replaced the old steel linkage rods with stainless ones and repainted the carb bases and linkage with single stage black.


Fabricated a mount for the regulator and new fuel gauge.

 

I picked up a really nice Vertex Magneto from a local speed shop and sent it out to Pat Mason of Mason Racing Ignitions in Pa.
he added advance to it and went through it making sure it was good to run in my motor.
Also added a steel gear for street use




Joe came over and helped me set up the carbs and helped me time the car with his buzz box.
I learned so much building the car.
He was instrumental in the rebuild of the coupe.


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...Quite the Journey @Mikel50...thanks for the detailed information and pics to match...I guess next year is going to be a very exciting year...

 

Before I left for trog joe and I have everything a good once over and we were able to fire the car off. Broke in the new cam and made sure all systems were go.
They weren’t quite up to par.

The carburetors still needed cleaning and adjustments.

I ended up having multiple wiring issues with all of the wiring in the car.
When I returned home from trog I dug back into the carbs.
Joe and I tore them completely back down and went over everything meticulously. We found several issues in each of the carbs.

Wiring wound up being one of the largest issues in the car rebuild.


I ended up cutting a majority of the wiring out of the car.
I installed a new fuse block (6 circuits) and rewriting both front and and rear end of the car. Ie. lights marker lights plus everything to the motor and gauges.
I added a wideband meter (02 sensor) in one of the headers to have the ability to see how the car was running and to be able to watch the air fuel reading.
I added a tach to the car. It never had one or a Speedo.
Running the Mag I needed to find an old mechanical tach that would run off of it.
eBay was the place to go

I added green glass indicator lights for the turn signals in the dash also




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WOW! (I think I lead with that when I found this thread.) Fantastic job with the rebuild! I was concerned when you started. You had said “this was your Snoopy” and that you were going to preserve it as close to as built as possible. Instead you’ve taken it forward without losing any of what made it special in the first place. Great job! (And i’m crazy about that color.)

 

Awesome job Mike! I love the color choices you made.
Lots of work in a such short time! Now I feel like the local Sloth!

 

WoW!

When Brad owned it, was it always black or did he run it in yellow and then paint it? Just wondering if you ever got the scoop on it or if he knew / remembered.

I like the color update. I feel you have really kept the vibe of the car, but making it your own without straying to far.

 

brad is sharp as a tack... he remembers every detail of the car.

He painted it yellow originally



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This is it in its first rendition.
BB 396 w moonroof in the early late 70’s early 80’s
It first had a 30 grill shell and wide tires.
Each picture I just posted the car had been changed if you look closely.
The car evolved several times into the 90’s when he finally put primer on it.


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Carbs were all put back on, wiring was “done” the car fired right up and ran with no issues. According to the gauges everything was as it should be ... then the old radiator let go.
Quickly I realized what had happened. I had replaced the old cap with a new cap.
I had used a 13psi cap instead of the 7psi cap that had been previously on the car.
It ended up splitting the top of the radiator tank where brad had modified it.
After some trial and error (emphasis on error) I was able to sweat out all the old solder, clean the old copper tank and resolver everything back. It took quite a few tries and it tested my patience and skills. But I got it done
I used soapy water and I purchased a rubber drain plug and put it in the lower hose tube on the radiator. Used my compressor, filled the radiator with soapy water and lightly pressurized the radiator to locate the leaks.
It worked like a charm


It’s not pretty , but neither was it before and you don’t see any of it when the grill shell is on








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After the radiator was re-installed I took the car outside under its own power
The day before the show I still needed to do a test drive to make sure all things were sound.




On my way out of the driveway. Something popped in the clutch / hyd throwout bearing.
(This was Friday at 11 am, the show was Saturday at 9am). I was feeling defeated, I had spent so much time working on the car, that I just figured it wasn’t meant to be.

I was looking at my finished car sitting in the driveway. Unable to move, leaking fluid.
I was pretty bummed to have come so far to fall just short of the finish line.

After about an hour I came back to my senses and figured I could get a new line made, drop the trans and fix the issue.
So that’s what I did.
I was able to get my 76 year old neighbor and my 75 year old mother to come over and help me push the car back into my garage.
It was comical to say the least.
But we did it


This ended up being the culprit
The bleed line from the hyd bearing. It had come in contact with the clutch.
I had inadvertently moved the line when rewiring the car.


After a long day and into the evening I was able to get the car back together and take it for its maiden voyage. Now as a fire breathing small block with 4 strombergs, a hot ignition and a 4 speed.

The car absolutely flies !! (compared to before)
It was awesome ... everything I had hoped it would be. !!

This is the same gas station I drove it to and took pictures in front of a year ago, when I first drove the car.




Back home safe and sound...barley slept that night.
I was able to drive the coupe to the show as planned the following morning.

It was great to be able to see a lot of people that had been following along on Instagram.

The feeling of accomplishment was worth the exhausting efforts.
The acknowledgement from people about the work and car itself was just as rewarding.



Big party at the house following the show as usual.
Had a lot of beautiful cars at the house.



One last parting shot until I post some videos.

I took this picture when the car was sitting broken in the driveway.

It speaks for itself.

I love my hotrod [emoji1360]


Thanks for the compliments.
I appreciate them all.

Mike


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Wow, you really hung in there ! That is one Bad Ass Hot Rod !!!

Rich

 

Here’s the first walk around outside

 

Way to go Mike! You made that car your own, while still keeping the nostalgia of Barrows original Hot Rod. That is one cool car man.

 

Just enjoying my hard work



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N I C E.

 

First test drive at 10pm. Night before The Gathering.



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Promised my mom a ride before the winter. [emoji23]




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Sounds killer! That idle is great and barky

Any more shots of how that lower radiator outlet was raised?

 

Yes. It's 1/2" copper plumbing pipe and 90° elbows and a whole lot of solder
I'll post pics from my phone in a bit


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Very cool build, taking your Mom a ride was great. My Mom is 81 and she loves hot rods.

 

Thanks man!

 

Awesome. I liked the car before, but you did an awesome job updating it while leaving its heritage. It's perfect.

 

Great vid with your Mom! Car sounds mean - well done!

 

NAILED IT. Good for you taking mom along for a ride.