Projects Building My First Roadster in San Francisco

Thank you everyone for the kind words. I'm pretty down about the whole thing, but I'm scheduled to start PT next week. One step at a time.

As I write this, my mom is back on the plane to Michigan. In the coming weeks, I'll continue to balance resting and pushing myself to keep moving. I appreciate all of you!

 

Like they say, the show must go on. So what's new?

The big piece is that the gas tank and filler neck are on their way from Tanks, Inc. in Iowa. According to the tracking, they should be here tomorrow. But the fun doesn't stop there. While I've been recuperating (or should it be re-roadstering?), I've also been ordering small odds and ends. I just got my clutch clevis pin, stainless aircraft safety wire for the torque tube-to-quickchange bolts, and a big box of very small brass rivets.

And what's happening with that paint?

 

I'm really excited with how the dash is coming along, but I'd like to share it as a complete story. In the meantime, here are some items from here and there.

A well-loved four-banger on 35mm.

Roadsters in detention.

Me at work (as found by David). I love his spark plug lamp!

Era-correct masking on the dash project.
My friend Jason found me a column!

I love this local car club plaque.
That's all for tonight. I'll be back with more updates soon.

 

I could't agree more. She's my favorite person, and I'm grateful for all she does. Today's Jalopy Journal column celebrates her and provides some insight into my freshly finished dashboard project.

 

Here we have it—Version 2.0's dash! This has been the perfect project while I've been laid up. I linked the full story in the previous post.

You guys don't know how hard it's been to keep this under wraps.

I used several different types of paints. The black is lacquer that I'll eventually buff, much like my Triumph's fender all those years ago.

It's hard to tell from these pictures, but the gold and copper really come to life in the light. Not so much that it's blinding. It's more of a glow.

 

An excerpt from the article:

A quick note about the dash:

This dashboard isn’t just mine. It’s the work of two J.U.s—me and my mom, Jacqueline Ukrop. Years ago, I painted a canvas for my roommate, titled “This is the City Part II.” The name is a play off of Von Dutch’s striping on the Hirohata Merc’s glovebox, which is dubbed “This is the City.” As far as my projects are concerned, “The City” is referring to San Francisco

In all my research, I can only find one concrete example of abstract expressionist painting on the dashboard of a hot rod or custom car, and that would be on Ed Roth’s F-100 shop truck, which is pictured below. Others exist. I know it.

Once I’m feeling up for it, I’ll be cutting the dash to make way for the instrument panel. A box of 100 brass rivets showed up yesterday, so I’ll also be able to add my Alliance tag to the mix too.

Even though this isn’t necessarily a normal thing to do to your dashboard, it’s definitely traditional. Say this were actually painted in the 1950s and ended up at a swap meet, I would do whatever I could to buy it and hunt down its story. It’s not for everybody, and that’s the fun of all this. I can’t wait to see it in the car later this summer. —J.U.

 

A great snapshot of the scene snapped by my mom last week. Anyone need a groovy gas tank for their CB750?

 

So, the big question is, what's next? Well, I'm still pretty limited in what I can do, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop the project. Towards the end of my mom's stay, I realized that there was a small task that we could tackle.

The NiCopp tubing comes all rolled up. It will have to be straightened and cut before I start flaring and bending. Keeping this in mind, I roughly measured the lengths of the six stretches of tubing and called out the measurements. My mom recorded them in a text and then sent them to me. Now, from the comfort of my living room, I can straighten and cut all my pieces, which will save time down the line.

Other projects include ordering some small e-brake components, unboxing my gas tank (as pictured above), and cutting my dash for gauges.

Oh! And I have a question for the group. I'm thinking about my steering box. It's super greasy and grimy. I've given it a light scrub with soap and water, but I was wondering if anyone had any deep cleaning advice? The rest of the parts are in the Chem-Dip bucket, but this is just for the box itself. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you! Love that mindset. That's what I'm planning to do for the next month or so!

Great cleaning advice. Thanks everyone! @Six Ball, thank you. Maybe it'll grow on you while you're riding shotgun through the City by the Bay!

Thank you! I'm excited to see it in the context of the rest of the car. I have a feeling that it will work well with its surroundings.

Thanks! I feel like I've been so set in 1940s style with the current version of my car that I'm excited to spring into the fabulous '50s. As far as the colors go, the '54 Hudson wheel was the driving force behind the green. I'm really happy with how it all came together. Now what to do with the middle of the dash that I'll be cutting out...

San Francisco style!

 

On Sunday, I turned 31. We had a small get-together at my house on Saturday night, and the next day I was itching to leave the neighborhood. My knee was feeling okay-ish, so we hopped in my roommates car and headed to Pacifica.

Located just south of San Francisco, Pacifica has a refreshing, small-town feel. Back before my knee started acting up, we would come here to surf at Linda Mar. I love the taste of the ocean air and all the old houses. "Where exactly should we go?" my roommates asked. Without hesitation, I told them I'd like to go to the Ace Hardware near the beach.

This Ace has a special place in my heart. Back when I was building my first motorcycle in San Francisco (sounds like a build thread, doesn't it?) I went down here with my mom to pick up hardware to install the solo seat and P-pad. The store has a neat mid-century design, and I associate it with good times. So, for my birthday this year, we went there. I bought Simple Green, rubber gloves, and some attachments for my Dremel. We then enjoyed a nice lunch at the Pacifica Beach Hotel, and drove the hills looking at all the houses.

By the time I got home, my knee was't feeling great. Nonetheless, I mixed up the Simple Green and started the steering box cleaning process. Tonight, I was feeling well enough to finish it.

 

I'll give all of this some final cleaning on the wire wheel next time I'm in Petaluma. Can't wait to cut the flange and get this thing put together.

And, just because I haven't seen it in awhile, here's a shot of the chassis as it sits. Even if it was just cleaning parts, it felt great to accomplish a small task in the garage tonight. On my master list, we only have three more before the body swap. They are:

• Run brake lines
• Build battery tray
• Install engine and transmission

PT starts Friday, and I've been extremely diligent with resting. That said, I would love to start the brake lines this weekend. We'll see how I'm feeling.

That's the progress for tonight! Hopefully I'll be back with more soon.