Projects BRIAN MADE ME DO IT: 34 Roadster Build

That a lot of matched belts. Easier today to source them but back in the day, finding 2 matching Gate's belts was a tall order.

 

I got after my paint job on the Flathead today. After masking it off (most the morning) I shot it with 2k grey primer as there was a lot of bare metal.

Then a base coat I had custom mixed. A dark transparent red.

 

I had not tried this stuff before but it is metal flake in a clear suspension, not a paint.

It came with two nozzles, one for fine flake and one for heavier flake. l chose the heavier one. While that tracked up I mixed some high solid clear and top coated it.

Hard to get a good picture in the shop

Not your fathers Flathead, unless you have a paternity suit your waiting to file.


It’s sparkly and very shiny.

I’m glad I didn’t chrome the bell, that looks sick!

It’ll be like Christmas morning getting to unwrap the engine and put it back together.
This sure beats shopping and wrapping presents!

 

They say "giving begins at home" so I won't be expecting anything this year.
No, not that, I meant a gift from you.

 

I've been wanting to do some forging so I asked the big guy for coal for xmas. Good or bad, should be a lock!

 

Hey I’m back on page like 9 being nosey about your rear springs and brackets. When the car is on the ground what angle are those shackles at? There’s not really much out there on what’s right or wrong setting up 1/4 springs so I’ve just been asking and looking at every set up I’ve seen lol

 

Billy, I don't get to say this often. Designing that car so the engine/transmission can be removed from the bottom was excellent,inspired work. Well done sir.

 

I'll do some measuring and picture taking tomorrow for you. This frame was built by a Portland legend, Darrell Schroeder. One reason I chose his shop was the 1/4 elliptical springs and his ridiculous frame jig. Wish I had a pic of that thing.

Thank you! I have built many dozens of GM F body cars over the years and the front subs are so easy to unbolt, remove without he running gear in them and lift the car off. It requires a 2 post lift but it makes R&R on the engine and tranny so simple. I made that a "must do" when I built my car. Glad I did and god you liked it!

 

I unwrapped my present today and couldn’t be much happier. Not a bb (bandit Billy?) gun but my complicated masking job paid off.

Put all my chrome fasteners back in, gauges, belts, clutch, bell housing…

The color is striking. It would good on a car but not a hot rod, IMO.

one thing I couldn’t do was mask off the intake valley. So I painted it gloss black like the carb bases. This is not very visible when installed. This color I chose cab not be brush painted, this was logical.

I did think it was funny that the only car cover I grabbed was for a Chevy. It’s a close as my roadster will get to having a “heartbeat”.

 

Step one in polishing the tranny is to build a rotisserie.
Up front is angle iron with an old distributor hold down tracked on welded to a base plate

out back, a bolt welded to a scrap piece that is bolted to my bench, I welded a washer to it to hold the yoke. There is a spacer inside the yoke to keep things tight

that should do the trick. Removing casting imperfections and paint. The garbage bag is to keep the air craft stripper from making a mess.


I don’t have to get too crazy with the polish job, not much is visible after install but I also don’t like doing crappy work. I’ll find a happy medium.

 

B-B, You are one driven puppy! The only people that will ever it's polished are the ones you run over or higher to change your oil and I know you do that part yourself.

 

I have issues man. It's rainy, work is slow while the year weens and I get bored easily. I sleep better knowing that unseen parts on my cars are polished and detailed. Hey, this is cheaper than therapy.

 

Well this is time consuming, but what else was I going to do today?

This side is nearly done. Then I get to roll it over and clean the other side. I ground off the tabs in the top cover. When I got a sizable bump at speed you could feel the trans hitting the tunnel. When I removed it there were evident witness marks. This should quite that problem.

I also removed the VIN numbers from the stamp pad on the side of the trans. Never a hood idea to leave them in there. One less thing to explain to an inspector.

 

Damn!!!!!
Lookin good Bandit!!!!!

 

I started on this side because it is the most complex. I'm getting some polishing done while cleaning and most of the casting has been ground down already. Hopefully by the end of the weekend I have it down to fine tuning. I have been putting off surgery on my index finger (ganglion cyst) until I have the car re-assembled. Doc always barks at me when I show up to have the stitches out and his gauze is covered in grease and polishing compound.

 

Oh yeah, I’ve been there and done that with the Dr’s. You’re still coming down for the roadster show?

 

“Polish a transmission “ I said
“It’ll be easy” I said
I need to stop taking advice from myself.

Paint nearly off. Hopefully start finish sanding it tomorrow.

 

Funny, I was just thinking this project and you and it occurred to me that anyone that makes it in your Driveway and past the gate should not be surprised that you're doing this. I'm so "not detailed" that I feel like I should Thank You for ever letting me in your Toy Box. I only remember one time the place looked real work was being done and the next day it was spotless again. Only seems right you'd polish that gear box.

 

We moan and groan while neck deep into the task we didnt have to take, but at the end of the day once its complete and looking at it with some amber liquid in a glass, we are happy with the results and glad we did it anyway.

 

Amber liquid he said!

 

I blame it on model cars. I would spend countless hours perfecting them and dreaming about owning a full size car with that level of detail. It never left me. I blame my upbringing and a certain hugger orange 55 post Revel kit I built once.

And truly if I hadn't taken this on what would I have done over the last couple of days? This is good time filler and I get to listen to music all day. I am using my Bose noise canceling ear buds to drown out the compressor and the air tools.

I should get a dog and name her Amber. That would be better than me standing on the porch yelling Maker's Mark! My neighbors may hold an intervention.

 

Polishing has commenced. I was covered in compound. My wife says I look like Adam Ant.
Maybe his dad.

remember to wear eye protection. Hope this doesn’t last long. I do like closer to Portland so mascara on a dude isn’t all that out of the ordinary.

 

You live closer to Yacolt!

 

I love the smell of gunpowder in the morning!

 

Cool car great color

 

Thanks. Where you from in Eastern Or? My dad was born in aGrande. Lots of family in the Lostine/Joseph area

 

Hermiston right on columbia river

 

LA grande and all the way to wallowa lake is a cool drive in a hot rod

 

Oh Man, this is too weird! Like most I also did Model cars growing up. In my Office (where no one else ever gets) are several shelves of the very ones I built. O!M!G!! Talk about reflections of reality. So, lifelong habits really do develop at an early age. So, my guess is I will never get anything of mine done even in Retirement and at my Estate Sale nobody will know what parts go with what body. (Picture me in front of the screen with head in both hands). I never thought of Blaming my Upbringing but it sure does reflect where I grew up and my surroundings. I guess even back then the State-Run childcare system was a total failure. On a positive note, I am a Damn Good welder and I know how to make Shit work that nobody else would even try. Hell, that sounds like a good message for my Head Stone.