blackie, thats a great find. any more details on the chase and plans?. interesting that it has a passenger car grille. Al.
I cllicked off this photo of Lurker Mick's red full fendered 'glass bodied 32 RPU at B'ville a few years back. Somebody's clunky 41 Pontiac coupe is right in the way...that's Bob K checking out the back tires. It's a beautiful car/truck.
I can't see what is so interesting about the passenger car grille - they interchange with the commercial grille and this was quite a common hot rodder swap. I very much doubt that this was anything other than a swap out. The original prototype is reputedly the only factory built 1932 RPU with the passenger car grille, headlights and raised panel '31 style hood sides. The production RPUs were supposedly shipped with commercial grilles. Both of mine came to me with passenger car grilles retrofitted by previous owners and left from my stewardship with correct commercial grilles.
I'll try to get the new owner to tell the story. I will say it's a good one. As for the grille - there was also a commercial grille in the pile of parts that came with it. The car has a V8( flatty) and one could assume that the same person replaced the commercial grille. Very nice find and I wish it were mine!
What a great find. Incredably complete truck. I located a real henry 32 RPU in pieces on the east cost, still working on getting it. Also has an interesting story.
Thank you for posting the brochure for the 32 Ute, the Type 302 is a nicer looking ute. I should have mine finished by September of 2008
Ken's Type 302 ute is going to be awesome - I sold him the body a few years back and he has done an incredible job of putting it together from what was basically a pile of panels with little in the way of inner support structure. He has done all the work himself, but I'll leave him to post pix when he figures out how. I suggested he join the HAMB and he will fit right in here - he is a straight up, stand up guy. You deuce guys should love this truck. Way to go Ken and welcome to the HAMB.
ken1939, please post some pics. i just love these deuce utes and am still looking for one myself. weasel i think i need to pick your brain, i will PM you if that is ok with you. welcome to the HAMB ken. Al.
Quote: <TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=alt2 style="BORDER-RIGHT: 1px inset; BORDER-TOP: 1px inset; BORDER-LEFT: 1px inset; BORDER-BOTTOM: 1px inset">Originally Posted by vintagehotrods I always see this one at the SoCal Open House during the Roadster Show and it looked original to me. I took this one at SoCal's Deuce Week Open House in February 2007. This is the same one that 3WLarry posted. I wish I could say I own one of these but I'm glad that I don't have to say I did and sold it. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> This is my truck and it is all metal but it has a car grille How long are the doors? Can you measure them and let me know? Thanks, Steve <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
'32 RPU doors are 28.5" at the beltline Roadster doors are 26.25" at the beltline Both are approx. 27" high
Coupla things...passenger grilles and fittings were apparently available by special order on commercials, probably almost never done in depression era work vehicles. Possibly more common on downtown delivery trucks, etc. And also Ford actually switched standard equipment on the '32 station wagons from commercial stuff to deluxe passenger during the production year. Ford bought low-production bodies outside, I think these were Budd supplied perhaps. If production failed to meet cost, I think the vendor got to eat the problem...and no one would jeopardize any chance to supply Ford during the depression. Open cars sold well in odd places...including Canada and New England...because they were bought by hard ass, penny-pinching dirt farmers for whom $5 off the purchase price meant more than freezing to death for the next 10 winters, and export markets were generally behind the USA in the conversion to closed cars as the norm.
Here are a few pics I saved from an Ebay listing. I really like the look. If I remember correctly, its sold for around 50K
This is a real 32 roadster pickup, It's came from Argentina, now in USA, I know for the sticker in the windshield, referred to a city and a workshop in my country...
But not an original Ford built cab. This looks to have been made up as it is not an accurate copy. It may be 'real steel' as opposed to fake steel but an original 1932 Ford Roadster pickup it is not. The one posted by ratamahata is the real deal. The real Ford US 1932 RPUs of which 593 were made do not have any cab parts that interchange with any other 1932 Ford bodystyle - even the instrument cluster in the dash is smaller than other 1932s and the dash itself is unique to this body only. The windshield posts are one piece and have a steel covered wood filler panel below the windshield. The windshield itself is a Model A Standard which is taller than the Model A De luxe windshield....
I recently bought another RPU/commercial cowl. It's absolutely perfect condition, but will need doors and back panel recreated. I saved a very nice subframe from a closed cab I parted out last summer. I now have the beginnings of two, and there's another '32 RPU in my small town as well. Central Iowa is the new '32 RPU mecca.
Well, that's not entirely true, but the most visible parts are unique to the open cab. There are a couple of major components that are common with the closed cab (sub-floor, firewall), as well as a few other smaller components (cowl band, cowl vent, seat support, among others). Guess it depends upon what's considered a "cab" part.
Link to an album of photos I've culled from the internet or taken myself: http://picasaweb.google.com/113771300564795668671/RoadsterPickups?authuser=0&feat=directlink
Wow, I've been collecting original 32 rpu's pictures to build one for myself, but this album is the definitive answer to all my questions. Thanks so much. Mine will be with a twist since I'm starting with half a Dagenham tudor body so it will have the factory suicide doors and that will be pretty much the only difference from the original rpu.
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