Hot Rods Paging Pgan - Build thread for the sedan?

I drilled a hole in my intake behind the carb for a PCV valve. The oil fill tube acted to suck in clean air as the PCV sucked out gasses into the pcv port on the carb. I made a baffle below it too so it wouldn't suck oil.

Edit: It was on an edelbrock performer RPM. The still have a flat boss for the fill tube, so I drilled that out for the fill tube as well as drilling behind the carb for the PCV

I love these 4 doors, it's probably the only way I'll ever have a steel 32-34 Ford. Someday.

 

Thanks for the update Pat. We understand this is your retirement project, and we're all happy to get updates as you feel like doing them. Gonna be a great car.

 

Hi there Pat, love your track T with Chevy Wayne 12 port head!
Also love the books you wrote on engines and hot rod articles over the decades, truly amizing stuff!!!!!!
I am trying to find out when Phil Weiand started making the Weiand Drag Star manifolds for early hemis? Can you help me out? or know someone that worked at Weiand who can help me out, also how many did they make?
I also want to find out about the Edelbrock 8x2 Cross ram that Vic Edelbrock made in the 50's I think? almost the same as the X3 cross ram, but instead of 6x2 carbs, it had 8x2 carbs, how many were made, any sold to the public? Part number? Happy New Year Pat, your sure deserve to enjoy your retirement working in the shed and writing, really enjoy the Rodders Journal books I have, Priceless!!!! God Bless

 

Hi there Pat I was told by a long time Rodder, that a 1935 or 36 Ford truck firewall will fit into 33 or 34 Ford , and then you can fit a Chev/y block/Buick engine and have a stock factory firewall, you have to make side panels to hook up with 34 cowl, many thanks Brett

 

Brett,
Thanks for your kind words and appreciation. However, my retirement expressly does not include writing in the shed (or elsewhere), and consequently means I no longer have to research stuff I don't know. I'm afraid I don't know the answers to any of your specific questions off the top of my head, or even where to direct you to find answers. Sorry.
Pat G.

 

@Brett Wells

Sorry Pat. No hijack here, but to the above, referenced gentleman, @scootermcrad and his Hemi Index. Here's a post to start.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/hemi-tech-index.118764/#post-1349295

Tons of hemi stuff, and users on the HAMB. Start a thread, if the above link doesn't resolve your quest, although I think all you need to do, is to find a referenced thread, and individually ask on the said pertinent thread.

Pgan back at the helm. Carry on. Over and out.

 

Hey, keep that racket down over there! Great thread, Pat.

 

Hope you had a Merry Christmas, and we are all hoping for a good new year. We had a great time with Bill and Sabina in SF, and Bill and I went over to his shop Xmas day to see the three projects he's thrashing on for the South City R&C display at GNRS this year. Come to the car show in Pomona end of this month and check it out--you will be impressed, guaranteed.
Meanwhile, back in the Ganahl garage...

Actually, this is in my office. This is the original w.s. frame that came in the car. Bob Barnes at Verne's Plating said it needed a couple small holes brazed, but it came out excellently. Those well-used mags behind it are my '48-'67 Hot Rods, with little R&Cs and Car Crafts above. The rest are in binders in the garage.
Now, in the garage...


After some hand-sanding with 80 and 120 grit, plus wiping with lacquer thinner, I was pretty close to bare metal quickly. No rust. Hardly any dents.



This was about it, right rear beltline.



Otherwise it was just a bit of Bondo over the leaded original body weld joints, which I first sprayed with DP-50 sealer, because I learned long ago that Bondo doesn't like to stick to lead (or brazing). Can't figure out what happened in both rear door jambs, but some old-school bodyman did some gas welding in the corner, and leaded the jambs, top to bottom. This was the most filler I had to use.


I debated leaving all the factory spotweld dimples and divots around the firewall, but I couldn't restrain myself from filling and smoothing them, at least a little.





This is the direct-to-bare-metal high-fill primer Junior recommended. And this is how it looks after one good, full coat on the body. I don't know about you, but I think this is one pretty good-looking body.


Had to fill the four big holes for the spare tire mount in what I assume is the original rear apron. It wasn't perfect, but it had never been crunched.


It doesn't matter how messy your workbench gets, keep your spray equipment clean and it will work right and last forever. I got this cheapie gun at my local Tool Shack because it has a 1.8 nozzle, necessary for spraying the high-fill, heavy primers. Works great. I also still use the DeVilbiss JGA that someone gave me, free and well-used, in the early '70s.


This is as far as things got as of last night. Don't be fooled by photos, though. There's still plenty of block sanding and reprimering to make this nice body better, especially on the fenders. Note roll-down plastic "curtains" in the background to keep overspray out of the rest of the garage.
You might remember that this car had a large decal in the upper middle of the windshield with an I.D. no. for Kirtland AF Base in New Mexico. Given the lack of rust and highway damage, and the abundance of desert sand and silt everywhere inside the body, it is now my guess that this 4-door Ford was purchased by the U.S. Air Force in 1933, and spent the majority of its life driving on unpaved roads on that desert Air Force base. Thank the lords that no scruffy hot rodders ever got hold of it!
Oh yes, one more thing. You're not going to see a whole lot of reports on this stage of the build progress, because I have realized that watching body and paint prep is even more tedious and boring than watching paint dry. So you'll see more when something more exciting happens--OK?
Cheers, Pat G.

 

Nice looking body.

 

I'm enjoying following along with this. Neat car, Pat - should be a great driver!

 

Awesome.

 

When we last spoke, I had just gotten a second coat of high-fill, bare-metal primer on the body (after much block-sanding), and was just starting on the left front fender. After several boring days of 40 and 80-grit block sanding, lots of hammer-and-dollying, a little Bondoing, then a lot more of the same, the left fender has a coat of high-fill that makes it look better than it is. This week I started on the right.

Turns out these 85-yr. old fenders were a lot more nervous than they looked, under the recent red primer. Who knows who-all banged and beat them back out over the years, but somebody with some talent smoked them over quickly, including a sizeable (about 4" x 8") handmade patch panel in each. They were almost metal-finished, but not. Each required a little more welding, grinding, hammering and dollying. And so was the case with each whole fender, as you can see part-way through the process on the right one. Here's a closer look before I added a bit more Bondo.



The best part is there was only one crack in the bead, which I welded up; otherwise they're pretty good. So after a couple more days of blocking and gently hammering down high spots, this fender got its first primer coat.



This next photo was spontaneous. I noticed where I'd set some of my tools, and thought it made a neat picture:


Did another round of blocking and primering on the body, too. But that's enough for this week. Think I'll get my neglected roadster out and give it some exercise since the weather here is nice, nothing's on fire at the moment, and no mud is sliding in our canyon.


Cheers, P.G.

 

Pat, Starting with your cousin David's 53, almost 30 years ago I have seen some pretty cool builds come out of that old garage. Looks like your still having fun. Glad your still willing to share it with us. Have fun and enjoy retirement. Larry

 

Larry, Larry...please don't remind me about my cousin David's '53! You don't wanna know--and I don't wanna know--what's become of that car. Coulda, shoulda.
But, yes, the strong emphasis here is on retirement and having fun. The best things about this '33 build are that it is my own car, I plan to keep it forever, and I only have to build it to my own standards. It's never going to be in a car show, I don't expect it to be featured in any magazine (other than showing son Bill's building talents, which is done), and best of all there are no deadlines. I don't even have to stop and take pictures unless I want to. So I'm pleased and honored that some of you want to see and follow the build process. Yes I do enjoy the build, fabrication, paint, and polish process (for the most part...did I leave out frustration?). But on this one I'm much more anxious to get it done and out on the road so Anna and I can enjoy driving it on two-lane blacktop.. So now I'm going to turn off this new-fangled computer and get out into that old garage.
Pat

 

Pretty damn cool.

 

Pat I will never mention "THAT CAR" again lol. But discovering that first issue of Rod and Custom on a magazine rack at the store and following your various tech stories, is what brought me back from the dark side of building late model pro streets , and back to the classic hot rods and customs that inspired me growing up in the 60's. For that I and I am sure many others thank you. Now quit reading this drivel and get back to work so you and Anna can enjoy many miles and smiles in the 33. Larry

 

Here's a quick report that will probably be more pictures than words. It's tedious, time-consuming, and boring. It's the stage that every mother who ever had a teenage son learning to do bodywork marvels at--you put it on, you sand it off; you put it on, you sand it off; you...get the idea.
It's called "blocking." At this point I've sprayed the whole gallon of Direct-to-Metal high-fill primer on the body and these three pieces, and block-sanded it with 80 and 120 grit at least four times. The darker spots are DP50, where I've covered bare metal that I've sanded down to (again), in preparation for some coats of regular high-fill primer.



The blocking process also includes numerous applications (and subsequent removal) of catalyzed spot putty. You use a hammer and dolly to lower any high spots you uncover, then fill low spots. Here are a couple examples in a rocker panel, plus a door jamb (they got the most).


As I mentioned previously, the only spots that needed much bodywork in the body itself were the factory weld-seams, which of course were leaded. This one in the middle of the roof was the worst. After trying to hammer down a large lump, I finally had to grind it clean and get out the "magic blade" to shrink it. This was the final coat of filler, before and after sanding with the block shown. You can still see one high spot.

I started on the back fenders today. They looked, and even felt, pretty good until I started sanding with a flexible block and 120-grit.

The discouraging part is, the more you sand, the worse it gets. At least at first.

Actually, these fenders are really in very good condition. I sprayed RustMort on some old surface rust, then picked down the very visible high spots. The best part is that the beads are straight and unbroken.

So by 5:00 I got a first coat of DP50 sealer on the fenders and that spot on the roof. Next comes a coat of high-fill primer, blocking, spot putty, hammering high spots, more blocking...you get the idea. However, come Friday, I should have some more-exciting news. Good news. See ya.
Pat

 

Must be a show car with those smoothed out doorjambs.

Would it be easier to bolt the rear fenders and apron onto the body for sanding? Then you aren't chasing them all over the floor.

 

Another two weeks of blocking and primering, blocking and primering, more blocking and primering. Oh oh, a little hammer-and-dollying. A little more Bondoing. More sanding. A leeetle more Bondoing A little more hammering. More sanding. More Bondoing. More primering. More blocking. I swear that's all I've been doing for the last couple weeks. Nothing else. Believe that?
Well, the body itself is getting close. But one thing I had to do was rehang the doors to make sure they still fit the openings. The hardest part of this job was getting the glass, mechanism, and runners out of the doors. Took an entire day. Like working a Rubick's cube. But here are the empty doors in place. They look pretty good.



Until you start block sanding, and you see things like this:

There were also places that needed a little grinding/filing of door edges as well as grinding or filling of body channels to adjust gaps. Not much, but some. In the process I discovered one big surprise:

You might not be able to tell from this photo, but when I removed a striker from a door, I looked twice at the color underneath. Yes, it's Army khaki green! Remember I told you the car had a Kirtland AFB (New Mexico) decal in the windshield, and figured it had spent it's life on a dusty desert airbase? Well I know Kirtland wasn't established until '42 (and there was no Air Force yet), but this 1933 Ford sedan was painted Army-issue khaki at the Ford plant (there's nothing but bare metal underneath), so it spent the majority of its life on bases, not public highways.


This is somewhere early in the Bondo/blocking process, which was mainly around hinges. Suicide doors, you know. Donny at Bill's shop spent quite a bit of time bending, grinding, and otherwise fitting the hinges/doors, so mainly I had to get the skins straight. This doesn't look like much (and it isn't compared to the fenders), but....


This is why they call this a work bench. (Photo op; couldn't resist)

And this is just the first coat of bare-metal primer on the doors. More primering and blocking to come.
But remember last time I said there'd be some good news this time?

This ain't perfect, but it's pretty damn good compared to how it started. The biggest problem is that this grille had been bent, welded, ground, and chromed a few times before. Bob Barnes at Verne's Plating didn't even want to do it. But I said, "Let's copper it and see what happens." Well, he has some "special guy" for jobs like this, who did a lot of silver soldering, hand filing, etc. Then he coppered and buffed it--FIVE TIMES--before Bob did the final polish and laid on this chrome. As I told Bob, I didn't want Pebble Beach...Redondo Beach was just fine. But this came out way better than either of us expected. Thanks Bob.
Adios for now. Pat

 

Looks great Pat. You will be cruising before you know it. Larry

 

I love the Army green factory paint discovery! The USAF was formed from the Army Air Corps in 1947, so yeah this car probably served its early life in the air corps then the USAF, way cool by me! This car has... The Right Stuff.

 

For those of you cooped up in snowdrifts out there with nothing better to do, here's a very quick update on the '33 quatro-porte:


This is what I did yesterday. No, it's not lacquer, it's DP90 (now DPLV), which is a sealer and adhesion promoter, which I am hoping will accept lacquer layers over it without wrinkling. I'll find out in a few minutes, because that's what I'm going to try today. Let ya know how it goes.
Later, Pat

 

Glad I stumbled on this thread. I have always admired your skills as both a writer and builder.

Sent from my SM-G955U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Looking good! Larry

 

The car is looking great Pat!

I started the the thread, but never thanked you for taking the bait and allowing us all to follow along. I think I can speak for the masses in saying we're enjoying following along, and thank you for taking the time to post.

(We'll wait until later to ask for a travel log of Pat & Anna's excellent retirement hot rod adventures! )

 

Thanks for build thread! That is one nice body.

 

I don't know what your plans are for your top insert but I like the original look of fabric.
Here is what I did on my '33 back in the 70s.
I sheared .100" aluminum strips and screwed them to the top bows.
We glued 1/4" firm foam down and then the vinyl.
It was solid as a rock.
Been sitting for over 25 years since the blanket got split but is next to be completed behind the RPU.

 

Looking good so far , nice Fordor

 

One Big Step Forward:

Yes, This is actually a first coat of black lacquer--just a first coat--and just on the body, two right-side doors, and rear splash apron. This will be the first of several, with wet block-sanding in between. But it's a big step.

And One Step Back:
So this is what I did most of last week: More sanding, filling, sealing, priming, blocking, banging, filling, sanding, priming...you get the idea. These are the left-side doors and rear fenders, getting close. From 80 down to 320 grit.



And this is what I did on St. Patrick's day (my feast day, you know). No, this isn't lacquer, it's more DP90. But that means lacquer comes next. Hopefully tomorrow. Speaking of feasts, Anna cooked an excellent traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner and I drank lots of green-canned O'Douls. Today, to take a break from all this retirement work, I'm going hiking.
Man, I wish I had a nice, clean, well-lit spray booth. But why change now? At least I'm not working on dirt in the backyard, or out in the driveway, anymore.
Cheers, Pat

 

Let's see what's in the old garage today...
Ooooh, we're making a little progress. This is a first coat of black lacquer on the other two doors and rear fenders. (And a slight redo on the rear apron. Don't forget the Ganahl garage motto: A Job Isn't Worth Doing Unless It's Worth Doing Twice.)
This means we've got lacquer on the whole body other than the front fenders and hood. But after letting this dry and shrink a bit, next comes wet-sanding with 360-grit, and more lacquer coats until it looks straight and smooth enough to color-sand and rub out. Some patience required.
Bill thinks I'm hauling ass on this project. Personally, if I can paraphrase in my best Californiaese: Dude, this is, like, taking FORREVERRR!!!
PG