Short story long: I bought a "titled-as" 1923 model T from a nice old fella that built it in the 80's. I liked it at the time because it looked just like a beloved hot wheels car from my childhood, despite the fiberglass body, a faux Holborn intake, and chrome all over it. I had started peeling off some of the 80's junk when one day, the quality of the build became instantly apparent when a poorly routed throttle cable sawed through its liner and hung, sending me through a guy-wire and into a ditch. I avoided being thrown out and walked away with a few bruises thanks to some lap belts I'd just installed. The car didn't fare nearly as well, though: Frame was twisted beyond repair, front end destroyed, body cracked etc. Rather than cry about it, I decided to rebuild it so I got to work stripping it down and collecting parts, with the help of my RD brothers. Without a frame table, I decided to go with the ready-built option and modify it to suit my needs. I wasnt sure if I was keeping the SBC so I went the Speedway Nostalgia frame, without motor or trans mounts, for the coilovers and decent wall thickness, added a disc conversion on Chevy spindles. I didn't want to go back to a glass body so I traded the old one to a buddy for air ride parts and started looking at steel options. The image in my head called for some pretty deep cuts in the rear of the body and I didn't feel right hacking up an original, not to mention the cost of finding one in decent enough shape in the Northeast. Repops are almost as expensive, if not more, than originals so I was running out of options. I happened to stumble across a guy in Georgia that builds awesome steel T bucket bodies with tubular frames at an amazing price. I'm sure some of you are familiar but PM me if you'd like his website (not sure the rules on links). With some test-fitting done, we did some math, drank some beers, and glued the rear end to the suspension. With the rear end right where I wanted it, we got to work on channeling the back of the body to sit at the height I wanted. I can't stand the tilted body look that comes with channeling just the front of T bodies, I think it makes the frame look bent, and I wanted mine more or less parallel with the frame and level at the finished ride height. Next, we finished off the motor mounts, which took more math and cutting than we'd anticipated.
With the motor, trans, and body mounts basically done, I started planning out driving position, pedal placement, etc. which will all come together once we start on the floor and firewall. Just for fun, we mocked up the windshield and roof, just to get some ideas.
Interesting "T" style body. Looks pretty strong, with the steel rod reinforcements. I am looking forward to seeing it built. Subscribed... Don't let any negative comments get to you, there are members that will find something wrong with everybody's car...
Looks like you had some government employees assisting. One guy working and three standing around watching
Yeah, the 327 is staying for now and it does have the double humps. I might go another direction, once the rest is all done, but it's a good running drivetrain for now.
Nice rebuild. Looks awesome, body looks great. I like the 327 myself. Mine has always performed when needed. Great pics. Thanks for sharing.
Yeah, my friends are hilarious. One of them also put a Bluetooth speaker on the floor and blasted 80's hair metal for an hour while I was helping to direct traffic.
My buddy and I made solid progress last weekend. Adam graciously offered up the bed of his '64 Ford to hack up into a floor, which went way smoother than either of us expected. It went so quickly and easily that we also got the firewall cut for transmission clearance and tacked it in place, which allowed a bit of throttle pedal mockup. Tomorrow, we'll be putting in the steering and adding some finishing touches to body mounts and suspension clearance. I'm also going to start collecting electrical components and snagged a cool old Sigflare 900. I'm really hoping things keep coming together like they have been because at this rate, I'll be driving it in a few more weekends.
We got a bit done today. We pulled the firewall back out to work out the steering and placement. Brackets for the steering column are now finished and installed. We didn't get to the trans tunnel because the junkyard has been closed. Hopefully next time will be tunnel and firewall completion.
Be careful shooting those sparks towards that open engine and carb, you'll get grinding dust and dirt all in there.
The intake is sealed, all the spark plugs are in and tight, and the carb is getting a full rebuild anyway.
Making lots of progress! Though pretty uncomfortable, driving my T is the most fun of any car I've owned...
Comfort was a big consideration for this build since it was awful to drive before the wreck. It had a vertical steering column and the brake pedal used to be right up in front of the bench seat. Now we've got it up by the firewall and it looks like I'll be able to one-foot both pedals without the column getting in the way. There's a bit more leg room now, even with the seats much lower, and the tilt back really helps it feel less cramped.
This was yesterday's first drive of the season, man I sure wish I had a top and a taller windshield, I got soaked getting back home...lol
Well, the steering didn't get finished due to a horribly out of spec front u-joint. At least he shaft is cut and ready to go in when the new part gets here. We measured the firewall twice, made a cardboard template, and still managed to cut the hole 1/4" too high. I blame beer for that one. I tacked up a quick and dirty windshield frame/a-pillar. Don't judge it to harshly, it's still getting another piece next to the glass frame and then the corners will be covered with radiused and tapered sheetmetal. The day finished out with another quick soft top mock up to give a feel for finished height.
We got quite a bit done yesterday, starting with the trans tunnel. Adam cut it out of an 80's El Camino and we cut it down to fit. There was a bit of bending and hammering to get it nice and flat against the firewall but nothing too crazy. I started cutting up card stock to make panels for the A-pillar. I'm still not in love with it but it does look better with something covering the empty space. The stubby Lokar got ditched in favor of a B&M so we started looking at where it's going to end up. Since space is limited and the B&M requires a bit of room to operate, Adam suggested integrating a battery box in the center console and mounting the shifter on top. It solves the space issue for the battery, gives me room to shift without hitting myself in the knee, and makes the cable length easier to figure out. My wheels came in yesterday but tires won't be in until today. These will get a coat of black before they get mounted. To finish out the day, we installed the mechanical fuel pump, slapped the headlights on and dropped the radiator in place to make it look more like a car. We're moving right along with it and it'll be time for a test run soon.
Oh, we also finally finished the steering and made a crossover bar so that's all connected and working as well.
Everything uploaded out of order and I don't feel like fixing it so here's a quick description of the work and pics of progress: We discovered that the battery box under the shifter idea wasn't going to work and the battery literally doesn't fit anywhere else. Rather than fuck about, I just decided to extend the bed out and put it there with the fuel tank. Later on, I'm thinking of maybe doing a cell under the bed to free up more room and clean up the look a bit. 20 inches was added in to make the total length about 36 inches. Sheetmetal and bracing will come later. The 80's rims came off and Adam shot some black on the new wheels before we mounted the tires. The tires are biased ply for trailers but I bought them because they were dirt cheap and therefore perfect for making sure the size was going to work (they'll also be great for parking lot donuts).
Today started with making some clearance for rear suspension travel by notching the body channel a little wider and modifying the floor a bit. Plenty of room now. Next, I whipped up some seat rails. We finished out the day with making some temporary throttle linkage and finishing throttle pedal placement. Every day is a bit closer to a test ride.
Today was all bed and frame work. We added 22.5" to the rear of the frame, tacked some sides on, added a bunch of crossmembers to support the wood bed that's going in, and put in frame tabs to hold it all up. I decided to go with a more traditional T windshield so that about wraps up all the major frame and body modifications.
The Jalopy Journal
