Projects '36DD - (My Double Duty 3-window build.)

It's been quite a while since I saw this back up.. Anything new?

 

Yeah, it has been quite a while!

Wrecked my shoulder going on a hydroslide with my 8 yr old daughter just before Christmas. I knew I was too old for that shit, but she was very convincing...
So there hasn't been a whole lot goin' on in the shed lately.

I did have Squeak Bell visiting in late January to check out the '36, and while he was here he suggested that I maybe should be fitting some kind of torque arm to the rear end. (He'd seen me beating on my Nova in a streetkhana an hour or two before - maybe that had something to do with it...).

I'm still not totally convinced that it's necessary, and I know the very same topic has been done to death on the HAMB, but I figured that if I build one now it's pretty cheap insurance if I ever get the notion to 'mistreat' this one, and at least if I do it now I can build the floor to accommodate it.

First I cut out a piece of 3/8 plate to bolt up to the banjo, then had a buddy help wrap a flange around it ('cos of my hurt shoulder) - thanks Jonno.





Then I cut up a spare '36 rear bone to use for the bottom link. Don't shoot me, it had been setting for years with the spring hanger in the dirt, and that end had all but rusted away. Was a bit bowed up too, but we managed to straighten it in the press.



Bear

 

I used a 1" OD tube for the top section of the triangle, figuring that the bottom link (the '36 bone) would be in compression under acceleration, and the top, lighter tube would be in tension.



The rear end mount will eventually pick up on 4 of the banjo bolts, and will get steel tube spacers to hold it the correct distance off the centre section.



The cool thing about using the '36 bone (aside from the fact it's a genuine early Ford piece) is that it also gives me a nice front mounting point.
I recessed a threaded steel boss into the side of the right hand lower wishbone to bolt the torque arm up to, which lets everything operate on the same arc.



Also fitted a small doubler plate to the side of the torque arm end, to beef up the mounting point.



Bear

 

Wow!
What a great thread,keep up the good work!

 

Yep!!
Nothing but Cool here

 

I like where this is going keep the updates coming.

 

Thanks a bunch, guys.
Hoping I'm back on a roll with it again now...


Bear

 

Love your buildthread, some really good skills . WOW.
Keep it up mate / Martin

 

I re-read your thread twice and I have to say your fab skills are pretty impressive! Keep it up.

 

Been wondering where this build went. Really glad to see you back at it. So awesome! Keep at it!

 

Awesome!

 

As he says "bear with me" .. lol

 

Thanks so much for the kind words, Martin.
Means a lot coming from someone with the incredible ability that you so obviously possess. I have been in total awe of the workmanship in your build.

Makes me wish I had trained in engineering instead of signwriting - though it is fun trying to figure all this stuff out as I go along.

 

Thanks again for the encouragement, guys!

I had some spacer sleeves turned up to hold the torque arm the correct distance off the centre section.



Then welded these to the arm.




Along with filling the holes where the brake rods used to mount to the wishbone and finish welding the whole piece. With all the stuff I've got just tacked up on this frame its nice to actually get one piece totally finished.



Now I've gotta' learn myself how to do a floor...

 

Glad you're back at it.

Scotty.

 

Wow! Beautiful work.

 

All good stuff here.

I believe you dictate the river of fate through your own actions. : Boyd Crowder

 

Going to be a shame to put a floor over that chassis.

 

Glad to see you are cracking along again, a real nice build. One of the wonderful things about the Hamb is watching beautiful cars built by craftsmen! Have been subscribed for some time.

 

Beautiful ,same here

 

Thanks for the encouragement everyone.

I'm finally feeling like I'm starting to make progress again. I wanted to get the park brake lever mounted up before I started on making any floor panels. I'm not sure whether it's correct for '36, but I really wanted to use this lever 'cos it was given to me by Bob Anderson of Huntington Beach the day he helped me pick up the coupe body.





As it turns out, it mounted up real easy to the gearbox crossmember I had fabricated earlier. It's probably gonna' end up coming out thru' the side of the tunnel (which will be way bigger than stock), but it should be pretty close to the original location.

I made up a bunch of templates for the floor panels out of thin MDF sheet, then once I'd gotten a feel for how things were going to sit, I started making up the individual pieces. I've never done this kinda' work before, so there's a good chance some of this stuff might end up in the trash!

First piece I attempted is the section above the rear end. I set the rear up at it's highest point of travel when making the patterns, so's I could be sure nothing was gonna' hit.

Got the panel cut and folded, then set it in place and marked out for rear crossmember clearance.



I bought a cheapie bead roller (same as HF) to stiffen the panels, which actually seems to work OK (given that I've never used one before).



The plan is to eventually fabricate a separate 'hump' panel to cover up the protruding crossmember.

Floor's going to have to be made in several pieces 'cos I've ended up with so many suspension parts above the top of the frame rails.
Here's how high the rearend sets up into the frame when bottomed out.



Bear

 

Looking great!

 

Absolutly Gordius !!!

 

Very Very nice! I love it! Lots of great ideas here. Makes me want to redo my chassis.

 

It´s a shame cover up that frame....Kenneth.

 

Thanks again guys!

I got 2 more sections sorted and set into place so I can template the next piece. I'm actually gonna' build the floor on top of the new frame and then set the body down onto it later. Not sure if that's the right way to do things - haven't seen it done this way - but I figured it would be a whole bunch easier than crawling in and out of the body to do it.

I took a pattern of the outside shape of the original floor, and used it to mark out these next panels, which were then cut and folded.



Borrowed a shrinker-stretcher to creep the folded tab around to the profile of the top of the frame rail.
I matched them up to a MDF template I had made, then once the shape was right, rolled a couple stiffening beads, and set them down onto the frame to check the fit.







Bought those Clekos off GMT at a swap meet around 12 years ago, now I've finally gotten around to using them

Next I'm gonna' make the front pans, then start on the centre section above the radius rods and finally the tunnel.
Once all that's done I plan on setting the body on and making the front of the tunnel and toeboards up to tie into the existing firewall.

Somebody please chime in if I'm doing all this the wrong way around...


Bear

 

Looking good Bear!! I've been following your thread on n off from the start and am real impressed!! I'm a bit concerned on how messy your workshop is tho...

Doing the floors and sitting the body down should be ok in this instance as the inner sill pieces are vertical and not very deep. If they were tapered in that would be different. However...if your goin to have a bit of a channel job ,you'll prob need to keep in mind that the body gets wider as it goes up. Pretty obvious I know, but with proper planning you could make fitting the inner sill sections quite straight forward.

Keep up the good work!!

Paul

 

Thanks for that, Paul.

I had checked that the inner sills were vertical, and the body will drop over without getting hung up on anything. Definitely no plans to channel over the frame - not really the look I'm going after - tho' it will definitely be getting a chop at some stage!

Cheers, Bear

 

I got the front floorpans cut out and ran some beads across them. I know there is no way this new floor is gonna' be anywhere like original, but I'm trying to keep the beads in a 'similar' layout to what it had.



The driver's side (right hand here in Kiwiland) needed some cutouts for access to the underfloor master cylinders, so after some careful measuring I tore into it with a couple of holesaws, then thought it would be nice to roll a rebate around the edge of the brake m/c hole to locate a lid flush with the floor -still undecided about the clutch m/c hole tho', as its gonna' be real close to the tunnel.





Then I thought it would be nice if the lid had a matching step to help keep it centred.



I've tried to set out the beadrolls so they don't interfere with the line of the frame and crossmembers from underneath, just in case one day some one with a real skinny head ever gets under there to have a look!



Bear

 

Niiiiiiiiiiice work as usual Mate!!