Pinch or no pinch...'32 frame + '29 A.....pic request.

I have a few questions concerning putting a '28/9 Model A on a '32 frame.

When did 'pinching' become the thing to do? 50's....60's???

Does anyone have closeup pics of the cowl area of a body mounted to the frame in either pinched or unpinched condition????

It's pinched right at the cowl right??? If not, how much does the frame 'stick out' from the cowl???

Does the body need modified even if the frame is pinched???

Alot of ??? I know...haha..

I 'plan' on getting a deuce frame (or building one) this winter and slowly start building a 40's era Model A.......I have a sedan body I'll be using until I can afford a roadster body......

Any help and/or pics greatly appreciated.

Thanks guys!!!

 

dont pinch it!
my frame is stock width from the k-member forward...in the rear i used a T crossmember but i pulled the rear rails together slightly to get it inside the body on the sides....
to fix the problem at the cowl i pie cut the cowl sides to let the body sit down flat
this isnt the greatest picture but you can kinda see the frame sticking out beside the cowl side

finally gona use that intake??

 

I probably wouldn't pinch either. It creates other problems like where to put the clutch and the brake pedals if you are going floor mount. I pinched mine pretty hard and have gotten by with it - it made it harder and I have since seen plenty of non-pinched A's on 32's and whished I had not pinched mine.

Although I did end up with a 32 coupe body that is channeled and the pinch worked for that - so I got lucky.

Getting the rear into the body and closing the gap is the bigger challenge. I would seriously look at one of those 32 frames that is flat on top like an A frame. It would save a **** load of work.

 

thats what i solved with the pie cut cowl sides...its not alot....
just enough to let the center of the body sit down onto the flat section of the frame more
then in the rear just trim the subrails accordingly to let the frame come up through
it all worked out pretty nice for me....but i was going into it blind with my fingers crossed...
this was the first car i built

Zach

 

All that pinchey, tweakie, stuff came about in the 80s-90s. No tradition there.

 

My frame is 1 1/2 inches narrower than stock full length, not pinched and I pie cut the cowl pieces like SUHR did. Gives a good fit...L.B.

 

Gonna try Zach! It's going to take some time rounding up parts.....but I really want to do a mid-late '40's era roadster, using my 18" wheels on the back, flathead, banjo rear, many FORD parts...you know, all the GOOD stuff.....I'll be asking YOU lots of questions.....you seem to know this stuff well.....

Thanks so far guys.....

Any close ups of the cowl area?????

 

I've talked to plenty ol' timers that were narrowing their '32 frames in many different ways in the late '40s and '50s to fit the preferred Model A body- the technique is traditional- only the term "pinched" is modern.

 

OH THANK GOD - I thought I had done something that wasn't "TRAD"

 

i think your right Jim...
but i believe the common modern "pinch" (horizontal Z) where the frame follows the cowl sides (like a belly pan) has a bit more modern look to it...
I'm not sure ive seen this in the past....but i wasnt looking for it either

i know they really cut them up alot for track roadster and Ive even seen some sprint cars with really thinned 32 frames

 

I pinched mine, and it did limit the space I had for clutch and brake. The swing pedals solved the problem. I think the lines are a little more graceful when the frame follows the cowl line. I'm not a fan of the flat-on-top repop rails, I solved the A body-to Deuce-frame problem by bandsawing curved hardwood slats for the body to sit on. You can see them in the side photo, they pretty much disappear.

 

Check out the Rolf Coupe build in the Tech section. There's some pretty good pictures of his pinched frame.

 

heres Manny Betes' car..unpinched




and more!

#100



heres the easiest solution

old pic

 

mine are pinched but not flat. I like the way it follows the body at the cowl.

 

Easiest $olution???? hahahaha! Yeah maybe, but...IMO a '28/9 has WAY better proportions than a '32...... '32's are too fat, esp. in the ***......knowwhatImean...

Thanks for the pics Zach!

 

After talking to some old timers (who are no longer alive and built cars "back in the day") the most common method was to make hardwood shims to mate a '28/'29 body to a '32 frame.
I've always prefered the look of an unpinched (in front) and unnarrowed (at the firewall) frame on these cars. They just seem to have a "real" traditional look and feel to them, sorta like leaving door handles and other origional "barbs" in place.

Frank

 

i think the 28's are pretty darn nice looking..i have 4 of them right now
but i had to get a 32 also....
i always said they were too big till i had one sitting in my garage....
the 32's are nice!

but anyways thats not the point

 

this is Logan's from Castaic.
TP

 

Thanks Frank.....It's settled.....unpinched for me.....

Now the decision comes down to finding a frame or building one......

Well now, do ya really need 4 of 'em???? Hahaha...

'32 coupes-yes.......'32 roadsters-not my deal.....

 

phew, thats a nice one!!

sinister....yes i need 4...building one to sell now...im actually looking for more...i have lots of ideas!

 

Zibo....that's not pinched is it??? If it isn't, I don't see the reason TO pinch......that looks GREAT!

Very nice!

 

I thought Brookville and TCI are/were the onlu people who built a '32 frame that was flat on the top... and they aren't the best looking because they are not made from stamped rails.

When I do my Phaeton.. I'd like the rail to follow the profile of the body vertically and then ****-out at the cowl like an unpinched '32 frame. I believe this requires pie-cutting the cowl.

Sam.

 

All ya gotta do after pullin that worthless 4 door body off the '32 frame is set the A body on there and trim the fenderwells so it sets down as good as it can with the rear of the body an army surplus woven strap thicknes off the '32 gas tank, if you're keeping it, and then measure the widest and longest gap between the body side and frame and cut a Hickory or Ash plank to fit it.
You lay that plank up against the side of the frame and use your carpenter's pencil to mark the curve on it and band saw it s close as you can then set it back on the frame with some old fashioned pencil carbon paper between so it will mark the high spots and then sand down those high spots and repeat a few times till is sets on there touching mostly.
Then paint it the same color as the frame and bolt the body on with the wood sandwiched inbetween.
That's how the "How-to" went in R&C back in the early '70's when Bud Bryan was building his, even then, "traditional" Model A on Deuce rails in monthly "How-to" installments.

 

SUHR, your hot rod is absolutely *****en!

Sam.

 

How about the kick up in the rear of the 32 frame. Does having the "A" crossmember make a difference,when mounting the A bodyto it.

 

I know that is a traditional way to do it... but man, are they ugly that way! At least from the side, where the frame starts looking real fat vertically.
The most natural look is the channel that an original '32 has over the frame... just a wee-bit.

Sam.

 

I know this is an old thread, but good info...anyone have anymore to add?

 

Okay, I'm looking at building a Deuce ch***is and dropping a '28/'29 roadster body on it...

Now, is this sano roadster above sitting on a pinched ch***is or not?

Pinching the ch***is pulls the rails further together, correct? Or other way around?

HC.

 

Yes, it makes the cowl width match the 'new' pinched frame width (in the same region) closer.

 

Excellent, thanks for clearing that up!

HC.