Projects Screw It Im gonna go for it! 36 Ford coupe to be

Ok, So I cant stop thinking about it. Sometimes I think I'm sick in the head because I think about this project more than work or eating. I feel like if I post something here than Ill have no choice but to step up and follow through. Ever since that guy Geir in sweeden magically transformed that 1936 Trunk back turd into that beautiful coupe it won't get out of my head. I picked up a 36 trunk back a couple of years ago now, and haven't touched it. I had some other cool stuff, which now the lawyers and soon to be Ex are enjoying the proceeds from. So Im left with this car haunting me in the garage. Also I have 7 year old twins that I am primarily responsible for, A soon to be train wreck of an Ex who is never going away (at least until the kids are 18 ). A new girl who this whole thing could be a deal breaker for...Several half hearted attempts to sell it brought no interest "darn". So now Im sittng in my rental house with I guess what would be a 2 car garage and this car. It came with a SBC which apparently had been gone through/souped up a bit, and is pretty much ready to go?? My problem which is pretty common, I think, is to get past the planning stage.

I cant decide if i want to keep it ol school or upgrade the mechanicals. It has the original flathead in it but condition is unknown.

Plans for the body would be to lengthen the door and cabin a bit as well as the tail/entire wheelbase. I recently woke up thinking about widening the whole thing too, like what if the coupe had been designed in the gas guzzeling 70's? Or maybe just widening the front wheelbase and let the back stay stock... that would be wild right??

It definitely is gonna be a tail dragger. Should I keep the original running gear or upgrade??.. Ive been reading the HAMB pretty intensely the last couple of days and I realize that keeping it stock is the "right thing to do" but i wanna tear down the freeway at at least 85 without thinking about it. I dont enjoy being broke down on the side of the road Ive done that plenty.

I'm gonna need lots of encouragement (kicks in the ass) but I feel like if i put it out on this site then Ill have to follow through.

Let me also say that I am by no means qualified to do this other than the fact that I have been into cars since before I had a drivers license. I have a welder and have dinked around before.. I'm definitely too dumb to know that I shouldn't even be thinking about it but what the hell. I'm about to turn 40. If not now, then when?? So wish me luck and mark the date... The Sweed did it in a year... Can I have 3 please ..... Hold me to it and watch the carnage ..Its either that or talk me out of it soon.....Hell I just realized I dont even have any great pictures to post. I included the inspiration. Basically the car is solid... no floors but came with aftermarket floors and a SBC firewall that need to be installed... I'm thinking that channeling is the way to go for some of the lowering but havent found much in my searches. I also like the big trunk lid look that will be a tall order......

E

 

GOOD LUCK!

I will be watching and taking notes.

 

Good Luck With the proyect !! DO IT MAN, IM DOING SOMETHING IMPOSSIBLE HERE!! BUT WE ARE DOING IT !!!

SO IF YOU WANT IT - GO FOR IT !!!!

GOOD LUUUUUUUUCK!

 

You can do this just click on my link and see what I am doing. Also look at hellonwheels build as well. Just take your time and measure alot and you will get the car you want.

 

You KNOW what you are going to do. Go ahead. Do it. Get it. Then, take your time and plan in advance everything you do. If the realities of life become unmanageable then go ahead and sell it. But at least you'll have given it a shot. And, please, keep us updated with words and photos.

 

I just devoured Hellonwheels thread. I'm sorta glad I didn't find it earlier cause it would drive me crazy waiting for updates. What I learned is that "I want to be different just like everybody else" as some wise HAMB'ER said somewheres. But never the less the cat is out of the bag and I'm movin forward.

 

I'm going to be the party pooper here....you've said already that you aren't qualified to do this, and have a welder,and that you have "dinked" around before... honestly think about whether you can pull this off before you turn that sedan into a piece of scrap. Can you shape flat steel into compound curves ? Do you have the tools, or the means to build the tools you'll need to create compound curves in sheetmetal ?

And as far as widening it goes, um....no, Ford had the proportions down pretty good already.


I'm in no position to buy that car, but would really love to own a mid to late 30's sedan someday, and I'd hate to see a Ford tudor ruined, no matter who's it is.

Disclaimer : It's your car, do what you will, I'm only pointing out my opinion.

 

Locoe; seems like you posted this thought as a request for some guidance. If not, please disregard my response.

First, your primary goal must remain your kids. Period. They must be your sole focus. (definition of Must.. look it up)

Second, keep it simple (stoopid), make the car drivable. When you can drive it down the street, it demonstrates to all the straights exactly who this cat really is. (and who really gives a f what they think) The sweet old Ford remained in your possession for a reason, it is up to you to keep it alive.


To the car:

Bolt the body to the frame.

Install affordable drivetrain.

Wire drivetrain to fire as desired.



Equip with brakes.

Drive it.

Optional:

Install seats, glass.



Your project is the grand sum of who you are today. What you may learn tomorrow only matters the day after that. If, on that day, you find a drive train and have learned to fab it up, do it then.

For now, dream big, learn more, pay attention, enjoy what you have. You are miles ahead of most.

Ex-wife ?, tell me about it. I gotta couple. Feel free to PM me about that particular madness.

Yes, a couple of us are nodding our heads saying... yup, been there, lived that

Dale
Cleveland OH

 

OH NO! Another thread about cutting up a valuable old Ford sedan to make one of those impractical, cramped, belly button coupes. How many '36 Fords are left? Pretty soon, people will think Ford made nothing but coupes and roadsters. Please consider the historical value of that crumpled, rusty sedan, and don't follow the misguided footsteps leading down a path to rack and ruin already trod in the hot rodding mud by Bigrat and Salt Flats, Hot Rod Ron, and me. It's, wait..., me?

Never mind...

 

big question....with all the excitement going on.....dont lie to yourself, can you commit to finish it once you start cutting (ton of man hours +cash)..if your cant sell it now, its not gonna get any easier after you start cutting....some cool thing could done with it now with a lot less labor and bring some decent coin...say split bones, sbc(fire away), a really basic hot rod (the twins will have room too)that could be a lot of fun...

but if your gonna go for the coupe, I wanna watch!

 

I don't know, I like the lines of the crusty one you posted better than the coupe. I'd rebuild it using those basic lines. But it's not my car so good luck with it.

 

Find the home made tools for metal shaping thread and spend some time reading there. It's packed full of tools that may help shape some metal if you plan to stick to your plan of majorly modifying the sedan. It will take bucket loads of effort. Good luck.

 

You already have too much on your plate,,the twins are your first priority and believe me at 40 you still have plenty of time to fulfill your dream.

Why not build the car as a nice driver and stay away from major body modifications,,build it drive it,haul the kids to the ball game before they reach the age of 18 and had never rode in a hot rod.

I have had long term projects and you can loose interest in it fast when it bogs down the dream will become a nightmare.

I'm not saying that is what will happen to you,,but if you lack the skills and the equipment plus all the cash it will take,,,,it takes it can and will be frustrating.

If you do proceed with the project,,I wish you all the luck in the world and I will be in the cheering section! HRP

 

So where will the twins ride if you make it a tiny coupe? Get it driving with the body like it is, then you can decide whether or not to coupe-ize it.

 

hey lowcoe,
Any one can restore a car it takes a MAN to cut one up!
BE A MAN!!!
I love the coupe pics

 

Having been a single parent, and into cars. I would build on what you have. Build a nice 2 door sedan, Fix the body but don't alter it, Run the chev motor. Upgrade to modern brakes, and install a basic interior. You will not have time to finish more, and if you try the kids will get the short end of the deal and this may haunt you the rest of your life. Going the quick route you will have time with the kids and be cruising with them and creating the next generation of hot rodders.

 

Looks like a solid start.
If you want to "cruise down the freewau at 85 MPH and never get stuck breaking down", run the SBC you have and go through the front suspension, etc. Sure, you can run the flattie, but it will cost you more to get rolling. Depends on your desired end result and budget.

Get the drivetrain and chassis completely done which might take you a year. If at that time you're burnt or are losing too much quality time with the kids, you can run he sedan body and enjoy it with the twins while you practice working sheetmetal and acquiring/building tools. Maybe hit a Metal Meet style seminar or two?

You can then start looking for 36 sheetmetal. Maybe even find a sedan shell to start on. This way you can work on the Coupe conversion while enjoying the sedan, eventually making a Coupe body swap years down the road.

How will the kids/girlfriend fit in the Coupe? Rumble seat!

And to spite the ex I'd name it "The Second Time Around".

 

Welcome neighbor. It's nice to see somebody else from Fallbrook.

I tend to agree with the two posts above. It seems like you already have enough stress in your life without taking on a project for which you may not have the skills (yet) or the equipment (yet).

Get that puppy running and on the street. I say that because it sounds like that is do-able in the short run and I have the feeling you could use some successes right now, considering your circumstances.

All this is just my opinion, of course. Whatever you decide, feel free to shoot me a PM if you need a hand. I'm not a very good fabricator but I'm a decent mechanic and I give decent moral support.

All the best to you.

 

Get it going the way it is!!! You'll always have it around anyway, then you could chop it up in 10 or 20 years if you want to.

 

Wow, Thanks guys for all the input.. Gives me a lot to chew on. The response is more than I could have hoped for and much appreciated. I think there is a lot of wisdom out there if one is willing to listen. And, yes I was sorta soliciting advice... Lets start with the running gear and get to dreamin... I also have two plastic scale model 36's on order to hack up and butcher first so never fear you that are scared of the carnage.. the plastic will get it first...

 

Thats so cool that the guy who's quote I quoted replied to my post! Gotta Love the HAMB!

 

Ok, So this is my one weekend a month where I get to play. I dug the car out and got to it. On the advice of some hambers... I am gonna focus on the chassis first... Makes sense.....The body came off pretty easy as I bought it from a widow who's Husband had started the tear down.. Only one rusty bolt to grind away to release it from the frame... Thats pretty cool... Ive read many a post where one has to grind every bolt out... I think its a california car.....

Anyways next the body came off... later I thought maybe i should have done some bracing. However I lent my welder out to a guy while I was moving so I guess I couldn't have done it any how... It held together fine... I'm using a device that I think is called a Rolf O Matic to lift it off...

Rolled the chassis out into the sunlight to check it out.. Small amount of road grime.. Only found one area of rust on a body mount, other than that it looks pretty cherry. Pulled the motor and transmission out... I'm trying to figure out the pros and cons of using the stock trans with an adapter to the 283 that came with the car thats ready to go. vs say a T 5 transmission and a 9 inch rear end... What will I gain in performance, vs fabrication time and expense? Not to mention keepin it original.

How Do I post the pictures in between the paragraphs??

 

Here are a few pictures of the model that i mocked up to check porportions. Basically the car would be widened approx 6 to 8 inches down the centerline. Lengthened 6- 8 inches through the door and 6 to 8 inches behind the rear wheels requiring that the rear half of the rear fenders be extended as well. With the added length I think the roof looks good at the stock level with no chop. With the exception of the nose looking a bit stubby, I think the proportions look sweet. This type of modification would lead to some issues.. Like sourcing a widened solid front axle.. Perhaps a comerical car or truck could be used as a donor for the solid axle.

 

lucky, I wish I had your car. Theres a local guy who has a 37 coupe trunk for a hundred bucks arround here!!!

 

hell with two ex-wifes myself and raising my kids, the thing that saved me from going to the nut house was to go in the garage and make/brake/remake something.......... do what you want and maybe the kids will help out.....

 

I say go for it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

For your sake, keep it as simple as possible. No shortening, lengthening widening, sedan-to-coupe, or the like. Drivetrain and mechanicals first. See if that flathead will run. Go from there.

If keeping it simple means possibly selling this one, and buying another car that requires less body-work etc. then consider that. We need to be aware of our limitations. If you bite off more than you can chew, the project won't get finished. We're not all JimSibley. Good luck.

 

I agree with some other posters on here. Keep it a sedan. You say you have twins. If you get a new girl and all want to go for a ride????? The sedan will have a back seat. I also think if you want to "get you fabricating feet wet" You could convert it to a slantback. That would be a whole lot easier than jumping into turning a sedan into a coupe. I am not one to keep anyone from building their dream but I have one girl and I think that a sedan comes first a coupe second. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with it.

 

um I may have forgotten to mention that i Have a weekend cruiser for the kids to ride along in...hopefully bitter xmiss wont torpedo that too... I wanna cut some metal....

 

Can't wait for the cutting to begin. Again feel free to see my build and ask any questions you need answers for, that's why we are all here.