Ok so I'm new here but I thought I would let ya'll know about something that happened just recently that almost made me cry. My grandpa has a 1929 Model A and he moved it out of the garage to clean the garage up. He lives on a hill on a very busy road and while it was in the driveway it slipped out of gear, rolled in the road, and got hit by a SUV. The guy didn't even attempt to stop or anything. Luckily he has good insurance on it and he took it to his friends shop, who I am currently working for, and we are goin to fix it. It's pretty bad and it will take a lot of work but I know how much this car means to my grandpa so I want to get her back on the road. Heres some pics of it at the shop. Sorry for the quality, I didn't have a camera with me. So yesterday I pulled out all the interior, removed all the fenders, running boards, headlight bar, etc. to get it ready to do the body work. The car is a little rougher than we thought so while we have it stripped down we are going to do some rust repair. Hopefully I can work hard on it and get it done in time for some summer cruising.
Thats a nasty hit, but I've seen way worse put back together. You're gonna be busting ass to have sumer cruising in it. Good luck!
That is disturbing for sure. Looks like the door took the worst of it. Fenders,running boards etc can be bought new if you want to save time. Quarter could be saved if necessary. I love 28/9s, hate to see this happen, good luck with it.
at least nobody was hurt (i assume) the suv probably didn't even get banged up. to bad. hope you get her fixed up.
I feel awful for your grandpa. I can't imagine having a beautiful Model A for a long time and having it suffer this kind of disaster. However, it sure looks repairable from the pictures. The fact our going to work on it for him is a bonus. Let us see the pictures of the resurection and finished job. Frank
Ya no one was hurt in the accident. were gonna try to pull it out best we can starting Monday. My grandpa already had a spare front fender. All the other parts we are probably going to buy new. We were hoping to save the quarter panel but once the rumble seat was removed we discovered some rust that the PO had tried to hide instead of fix so we are going to try to find a patch for it. I'll try to remember to take my camera to work Monday and get some shots of it.
I, sometimes, question these "slipped out of gear" stories. I mean, a car is parked on a slope, in gear, and, somehow, it overcomes all the pressure against the drivetrain and, magically, jumps out of gear. Hmmmmmmmmmm??? Still, it is a tragic loss, but repairable. Lotsa time and $$$$ will make it better
At least nobody got hurt ,you"ll get back together but put a good e-brake system on it ,could have been worse.
Well, first of all Welcome to the HAMB, glad nobody got hurt. Once you get it all apart check the chassis for square, you have to have a square foundation to rebuild on.
thanks for the comments everyone. Ya we are going to try to pull out the dents then we are going to take the body off to finish the more minor bodywork as well as check to make sure the frame is straight. and from what I heard (which I've heard this from alot of people) these trannys were notorious for slipping out of gear so when people raced them back in the day they would put a hook on the dash to slide the gear shift into while going down hill to stay in gear and maintain a certain speed without riding the brakes. so it does happen.
sorry I haven't posted any updates. Right now I am currently not working because of a back injury and waiting to find out if I need surgery. We've got it back to a rolling chassis. New frame (powdercoated), floating motor mounts, jewish overhaul on the motor and trans, new brake rods and return springs, bellhousing, trailing arm, wheels, etc. Got the body back to almost straight. Just needs some more block sanding. Getting ready to prime all the sheetmetal for mock up. Also there was alot of rust we didn't see until we got it all striped down, especialy in the subrails, so that set us back. Pics (sorry for the crappy cell phone pics): Don't have any of the body as it sits but I'll try to get some soon.
Man, that is a heart breaker, Sorry for you and your grandad, that is some serious metal on that Model A,, Good Luck,,,,Sam
Ok the accident was a real pain but it kind of did you (and your grandpa) a favour. It allowed you to find the hidden rust which has been dealt with. Now the old girl is fresh and ready for another 80 years and more.
thats what i was thinking. all in all, the positive outways the negative. i wonder if your grandad would mind if you slipped in a v8 flathead while your at it....
The Jalopy Journal
