Register now to get rid of these ads!

Hot Rods A 40 Ford Coupe for Uncle Mike Build Thread

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by The 39 guy, Oct 27, 2014.

  1. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    Thanks for the compliments and the heads up on the thrust bearing /clutch switch issue 34toddster. I had seen this comment ( from you I think) before. I took it into consideration during the process and decided that since at this time I am just using the 8 inch stock clutch that the thrust bearing wear would be minimal.

    I do drive my cars more than most guys in my area and will do my best to test the theory.

    Today is the start of our last car show weekend of the year here in our valley. The coupe is ready to go and it is time to have some fun with it!
     
    i.rant likes this.
  2. 34toddster
    Joined: Mar 28, 2006
    Posts: 1,482

    34toddster
    Member
    from Missouri

    That's why you built it go have a great time. Have fun!
     
  3. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    A few of my club members joined me on a beautiful cruise in the Northwest today. We traveled from Wenatchee WA. to Leavenworth WA., then took the Chumstick Highway to Plain.
    [​IMG]
    The leaves are turning and so we were we, on a curvy uphill road from Leavenworth to Plain WA.
    IMG_9233R.jpg
    That is is build buddy Dons' 37 chevy on the left.
    [​IMG]
    There is a nice 5 mile straightaway just before our lunch spot at the 59er diner on Highway 2.
    IMG_9245R.jpg
    The 59er Diner is a popular restaurant full of 50's memorabilia and serves good food and is famous for it's milkshakes.
    [​IMG]
    Driving down the Tumwater Canyon along the Wenatchee River.

    [​IMG]
    Forest fires have ravaged this canyon in the last few years and changed it's look considerably but it is still beautiful.
    [​IMG]
    Coming Home with Wenatchee Washington on the right.

    Gorgeous day !Moderate temperatures,good friends,great scenery and a new Hot Rod to drive! This was my coupes' longest shake down run to date right at 100 miles. She handles well in the curves and has enough power to pull the hills. The PCV system seems to be working great. There is no sign of blowby in the engine bay.The speedometer quit working on the way home so we will have to sort that out. I thought I had the shift linkage fixed but it locked up on me twice. We will have to take another look at that the linkage this week. The old restored heater and it's fancy electric water control vave worked well also.

    I was following your orders 34toddster! It was a great time and fun!
     
  4. falcongeorge
    Joined: Aug 26, 2010
    Posts: 18,341

    falcongeorge
    Member
    from BC

    Man, next year I gotta get the family out of the city more. It really is beautiful here, especially in the fall.
     
  5. b-bob
    Joined: Nov 4, 2008
    Posts: 1,097

    b-bob
    Member

    I've been following along off and on since the beginning too. I kept wishing I had Don there to help get things done. My 39 was done from the frame up too, but just went back together without the "extra" work and detail you and Don did to yours.
    Hopefully I will get a little more done this coming winter, a few smaller items still need to be done, what do you think of replacing my non-working wipers with a forty system?? I have all the parts and made templates to locate the holes in the top of the cowl. My headliner is glued in real strong to the w/shield opening and will tear if I try and remove it to fix the stock system. Not sure what to do, have just ignored it till now.

    I like you third brake light you did, a must with the small taillights on these cars. I have the led's as well.
    Good luck fixing the 'bugs' that all new projects go through. Brian
     
  6. the 39 guy I have really enjoyed this thread! It was cool that I got to see your car on it's maiden voyage I checked it out on the flathead run right before we left to head back to bend for the night.
     
  7. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    Yes without Don this 40 would be along way from finished. We have worked well together. Knowing he is coming over to work with me has inspired me to work on the car more often than I would have on my own. And of course a lot more gets accomplished when the two of us are at work.

    I highly recommend replacing the 39 wipers with the 40 style. I worked on a 38 deluxe sedan for a buddy. His wipers had two separate electric motors. I thought they looked pretty cool and they worked fine in the shop but when we took the car out on the road at freeway speeds the wiper arms would float in the wind until they were like eyebrows above the windowso_O. The were useless in the rain. Perhaps a stronger spring in the wiper arm would have helped. I eventually took the wiper arms off and put them in a little box that we put under the seat. They were just there in case a policemen stopped him or if he was going to be driving in the rain under 45 miles per hour.

    I think removing the old equipment would be a difficult and involved process but worth the effort. I cant remember if you have a 40 type windshield installed on your 39. The roll out windshield frame might give you some issues if it is still there.

    Thanks Glendale! from the pictures that were posted it looks like you guys had a fun journey and a good time at the flathead run!
     
  8. It was great to see the 40 in person last weekend. Beautiful car! Still thinking the baby moons will finish off the exterior perfectly.
     
  9. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    IMG_9257R.jpg
    I think this is a properly equipped garage ;) . Mrs. 39 Guy disagrees:( Oh well it was good for a photo OP anyway....

    Thanks rramjet! I am sorry I didn't get to visit with you more. I do have a set of baby moons for the car . They will be the first set of hub caps that go on the wheels. Don't know when that will be but they are here in the shop and ready to install.
     
    j-jock, kidcampbell71 and LOU WELLS like this.
  10. godlemmy
    Joined: Apr 5, 2006
    Posts: 61

    godlemmy
    Member

    More on the 39 drop top
     
  11. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    It is an OT car, you know Street Rod..... If you want more info I would be happy to send you a PM.
     
  12. godlemmy
    Joined: Apr 5, 2006
    Posts: 61

    godlemmy
    Member

    That would be great. I have a 39 coupe that was my 16th birthday present from my parents. Still a basket case. I'm going to be 45 in November. Can you say long term project. It is next on the list after my other OT project is up and running. Any suggestions would be great.
     
  13. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    We have put about 400 miles on the car so far.We are slowly checking off all of the little things we have found to fix or modify. We took it in for an alignment check today. We had set it pretty close with the tape measure so he didn't have to do much. The castor was just under 6 degrees. Nick said it was the best dropped axle car he had seen in awhile.

    So a few posts back I made a trunk spring modification. At first I thought we had the dropping trunk lid problem solved but after a couple of days it became apparent that the lid could still be dropped by a gust of wind......:eek: So I decided to try another modification that I had seen done on these 40 coupe hinges.
    IMG_9280R.jpg
    It is kind of hard to see but the pin I am pointing out stops the rotation of the arm. My plan calls for routing out the socket out about 3/32"
    IMG_9281R.jpg
    To get access to the socket I clamped the arm in a vise and then used bailing wire to hold the arm out of the way.
    IMG_9282R.jpg
    I used an air grinder with cylinder bit with flat end to make the cut.
    IMG_9286R copy.jpg
    Before the modification the open hinge angle was 28 degrees.
    IMG_9283R.jpg
    After the modification the open hinge angle is 14 degrees.
    IMG_9186R.jpg
    Before modification.
    IMG_9295R1.jpg
    Sorry the picture is bad but this is after the modification.
    IMG_9295R.jpg
    Another lousy picture of a good modification.

    Hows it work? Works good. You now have to apply some down pressure to get the trunk lid move down. I would not want to apply any more pressure than this takes to start the lid down . Possibly the spring modification would not have to be made if you try this modification first. I will feel much better about leaving this trunk lid open around the grand kids and friends now.
     
  14. joel
    Joined: Oct 10, 2009
    Posts: 2,463

    joel
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Great pix of the short road trip with friends. I can't wait until I can look out over the hood of mine. Your rewards will be great on the road and at shows. :cool:
     
  15. Rich B.
    Joined: Jan 23, 2008
    Posts: 761

    Rich B.
    Member Emeritus
    from Portage,IN

    Wow, what a great build thread! The craftsmanship, and attention to
    detail is inspiring! Thank's for posting!

    Rich (Iv'e worn out a lot of Dremels also! LOL)
     
  16. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    That is a great compliment coming from a talented guy such as yourself! Thanks!

    I should buy stock in the Dremel company so I can get some of my money back for all of those cutting wheels I have used on this build.
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2015
    Rich B. likes this.
  17. Rich B.
    Joined: Jan 23, 2008
    Posts: 761

    Rich B.
    Member Emeritus
    from Portage,IN

    I know what you mean, I like to grind down the high point on my tacks
    with it. I wanted to ask what size Mig wire your using ? I like the look of
    your over laid tacks which are bigger than mine. I'm using .023 most of the
    time on 19 gauge. I finally ordered a roll of ESAB .030 which was all I could
    get. I haven't had a chance to use it yet.
    Rich
     
  18. UNCLECHET
    Joined: Dec 3, 2002
    Posts: 1,209

    UNCLECHET
    Member

    Subscribed! Cool project!
     
  19. neilswheels
    Joined: Aug 26, 2006
    Posts: 1,209

    neilswheels
    Member
    from England

    Wow, it's out!! excellent, great build, and inspiration to keep going.
     
  20. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    Yes Rich, the SpoolArc ESAB Easy Grind .025/0.6mm worked well on the sheet metal stuff.
    I used Hobart .030/0.8mm AWS ER 70S-C on the chassis stuff. I am not sure which welds you are talking about though. I am rally a lousy welder and much better at grinding.........

    Thanks UNCLECHET and neilswheels !

    Not much going on this week. I injured a shoulder playing tether ball with the grandsons last week. The medical care wheels seem to move pretty slow around here. I bet if they felt like a knife was sticking in there shoulder and being twisted every time they moved or tried to lay down that they would have a little more empathy and try to get the dadgum thing fixed.:mad:

    Don has been working on the heater motor. The heater vibrates too much on the high fan setting and we would like to get that fixed before the car goes to upholstery.
     
  21. joel
    Joined: Oct 10, 2009
    Posts: 2,463

    joel
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Sorry to hear about your injury. Some days it feels like pain is just a part of life, but I hope you get it fixed soon.
     
  22. Wow. Looks great to me as well !!!

    [​IMG]

    Congrats' on your well deserved driving time. Good luck with the ole' shoulder !
     
    LOU WELLS and 36 ROKIT like this.
  23. The 39 guy
    Joined: Nov 5, 2010
    Posts: 3,523

    The 39 guy
    Member

    Well got some good news on the shoulder injury. It does not require surgery. I will be doing some PT though to hopefully speed up the healing process. I did manage to get a couple of little projects done on the coupe though.

    IMG_9311R.jpg
    I installed the chrome trim on the glove box. I used a 3M trim adhesive to glue them on.

    Don spent way too much time fine tuning the heater. I had bought 3 heaters of the same brand and style and he tore all three apart until he found the right combination. Turns out the reason my heater required so much repair was because the back motor bushing was worn out causing it to vibrate and shake the heater to pieces. Anyway it runs quiet and smooth now. I think you could toast a taco on the heater in a couple of minutes.
    IMG_9305R.jpg
    I wanted a trunk light and I had taken this one out of a Honda Passport (I think) last summer. I had to build a bracket to mount it The bracket on the left was made from some aluminum flat stock, The piece at the top is 1/4" thick ABS plastic.
    IMG_9306R.jpg
    I bolted the bracket to the license plate frame mounting studs.
    IMG_9307R.jpg
    The aluminum bracket is then sandwiched between the light and the ABS piece.
    IMG_9308R.jpg
    It's a little modern but I like it. It should be able to survive having the lid slammed onto the junk in the trunk on occasion.

    I made an appointment for the upholstery. He should be able to start the project in January. We will be starting on Don's 54 mercury tomorrow so the coupe will be set aside for awhile while we install new quarters , repair the front fenders and possibly install a new drive train. I may start a thread on the Mercury. I will post up the results of the coupes interior project when it is done.

    Happy Holidays to you all!

    Sam
     
    36 ROKIT likes this.
  24. okiedokie
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 4,777

    okiedokie
    Member
    from Ok

    Yes please. Do a thread on the Merc.
     
  25. Landmule
    Joined: Apr 14, 2003
    Posts: 459

    Landmule
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I second the motion for a thread on the Mercury project !
     
  26. joel
    Joined: Oct 10, 2009
    Posts: 2,463

    joel
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Nice job on the trunk light; I may have to add one to my to-do list. Also , it's good to hear "no surgery required". I'll watch for the Merc thread.
     
  27. okiedokie
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 4,777

    okiedokie
    Member
    from Ok

    Sure hope the flooding is not harming you and yours.
     
  28. joel
    Joined: Oct 10, 2009
    Posts: 2,463

    joel
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

  29. LOU WELLS
    Joined: Jan 24, 2010
    Posts: 2,749

    LOU WELLS
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from IDAHO

    You saved that old ford and turned it into a fun coupe for this century.

    HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! 0433c6_fdc7d19f198e4fc4a65ed55154faa060_jpg_srz_147_89_75_22_0_50_1_20_0.jpg
     
  30. olscrounger
    Joined: Feb 23, 2008
    Posts: 4,770

    olscrounger
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

Share This Page

Register now to get rid of these ads!

Archive

Copyright © 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. Terms of Service. Privacy Policy.

Atomic Industry
Forum software by XenForo™ ©2010-2014 XenForo Ltd.