Projects A Speedster Comes Out of the Weeds—Build Thread

Perks of moving shit for me.

Sent from my SM-G965U using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I love that little brass piece!

 

I’m back on the headlight project. I pulled the old battery hold-down out of molasses, hosed and sanded it down, then cut out the sections I’ll use. This first pic shows the basic concept: the tubing on which the Tilt-Ray brackets pivot will be welded to the angle brackets. Pay no attention to the pitting—that’s what All-Metal is for.



Fitted and chamfered:



Roughed together:



These will get a lot of finish work including gussets, but today I wanted to mock everything up first, just to confirm it would work as I envisioned. So here again are my existing lights: too high and prone to pivoting out of adjustment when I drive.



And here it is mocked up with the Tilt-Ray bracket on the pass side—I’ve got full adjustment and the light is held firmly in place.



Huge added bonus is that the headlights will be lower and look much cooler. Here’s a front view, new mount on pass side, old mount on driver side:



Side view also has a much better flow, to my eye.



All in all, I’m calling this a success. Onward!

 

Amazing thread. Such a cool car, well done!

 

@ClarkH walking in a Designer and Engineers shoes is a Challenge...considering Function, Looks, Strength and, and, and...Many times I think of those very people when taking on such things...curse them sometimes but its mostly admirable and it's thought provoking.

Glad you have better adjustment and the new position looks good and I'm looking in a Crystal Ball and it's not certain but I think there might be fenders...and you may probably have mentioned it already more recently and I missed it...thoughts?...the array of possibilities are varied...

That pic above is incredibly animated and makes my eyes go funny...
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Your Crystal Ball is crystal clear, @Stogy. With the splash aprons in place, the car kind of begs for fenders. I've been pouring over your Fixed Rear FendersCycle-Style Fronts thead for inspiration. I'm leaning toward the seriously cut-down styles in that thread, as opposed to the fully enveloped look of the side-car fenders that came with the car.

 

ANY chance of these getting another chance? Even as just a mock-up? I know they're big and bulky, but they are really interesting looking, and a piece of the car's history. I'd love to at least see what they'd look like.

 

Oh, absolutely. For the rears, I'm thinking. And likely bobbed--which for all I know could be a crime if they're off something rare. I'll mock them up again sometime. Too big for the front as I envision it.

 

Here's a pic from @Stogy's thread showing similar styled fenders on the front. A very different vehicle, of course.

 

https://www.mdislander.com/living/on-the-road-again-brown-to-compete-in-great-race

...hmmm......just snooping...those vintage fenders you have are either Custom Fabbed or may be aftermarket servi type, Sidecar or perhaps fronts off a big late 30s, 40s bike but that raised rib/bead running along the center from front to back is not on any Harley fender I've seen...or for that matter any make I've looked at...

Is there evidence of hammer welding inside? Maybe they were spare Tire rings with split cycle fenders grafted on...

Credit to Photographer, Owner
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Maybe I'm in the minority, but I'd love to see these go back on the car!

 

Minority, I don't think so Peanut, I'm all for where Clark decides to take it and those may play a part...at the link below he did a series of Fender Mock-Ups and Visions and there's some cool things to consider...

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/a-speedster-comes-out-of-the-weeds—build-thread.1003005/page-10#post-11816700

 

Just an Inspiration 1

...I guess I should explain what I did here...the Fenders where borrowed from Ole Woodybackside, the Top was a tweaked, possibly a little lowered...Modded T Top and the rear window in the top is a tip to the trunk lid...the headlights moved sorta as Clark has done without those fancy holders but in Artsy land you can get away with that......

I did add a Winterfront grill some have horizontal but I chose One with vertical vents which would obviously be open most of the time and ditched the Pines logo as it clashed with the Mercury Wings...

In addition I added some rockers and a modded 34 ford Bumper to round out the vision which is really a look into what could be...myself I'm very happy with it and yes I'd like to see other combos...but this was a laborious first...

Oh yeah the foot step that probably would only be on the other side but then you wouldn't see it...

Credit to All that Inspired This
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Clark,

I'm with Squablow and the others on this - I think those maroon fenders would look right at home on your car. They have a certain art deco flavor that to me is reminiscent of the balloon/pontoon fenders you might have seen on some of the coachbuilt bodies coming out of Europe in the 1930's.

Granted, you car is not a coachbuilt classic, but to me it is what a working man would have put together based on inspiration coming from some of those coachbuilt cars.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do. You car is looking awesome. Thanks for taking us along on the ride.

Steve

 

Hey, thanks guys. This is definitely getting me thinking. I guess I should mock up those maroon fenders again now that the car is more complete. My gut says they might look really good in back, but perhaps too "heavy" for the front.

I definitely lean toward what @Stogy posted in his very-cool rendering (which, incidentally, my wife just loves). Especially those small, swoopy front fenders. If I could find a pair like that, I'd buy them in a heatbeat.

 

@ClarkH, I will say I've looked at a Shiload of Cycle Servi Car, Sidecar, Front...but none...zilch have the raised rib in the center...I am thinking they may even be Utility Trailer or other Municipal/Business Cycle Cart Utilitys but again certainly very rare indeed regardless of origin...Do you by chance know where the owner possibly worked?

As for the Swoopy Boatail fronts they could be Modern, Fabbed by he Builder Ford Reiche Senior or an aftermarket vintage/non vintage accessory...The backs actually have a fair bit of swoop as well...I noticed they took the Fronts off for the race...​

 

The big fenders remind me of the Tucker Carioca concept. Maybe it's too space-agey for a pre-war speedster but I really do like those fenders on their own. They might be one of those things that's cool looking on it's own but doesn't work on the car, I'm not sure, but I just want to see what-if. The unknown history of them makes them even more tantalizing.

 

Just an Inspiration 2

Credit to All that Inspired This


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Wow, this is cool stuff. @Squablow, I've seen Tuckers in person, but have never even heard of the Carioca. Very cool concept, even if it is "far out" of my period. Stogy, thanks the mockup with the different rears--and the Trimotor!

It's been a long time, so I dug out the fenders for another look. It's kind of interesting. They are clearly factory and unaltered. There are two pairs, and their profiles are similar on the outside, but different on the inside. The raised ribs are much wider than you'd expect, when viewed head-on. The bad news is that two have serious damage, and each of the bad ones is from a different pair.

Here's one of each; note back.


Here's a view of the raised ribs--again, this shows one from each pair.



They sure look like they're from the same manufacturer. So either trike/servicar rears from similar years/models, or maybe some kind of wild four-wheeler? The speedster was built in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle by an employee of Hill Machine. For decades there were two wrecking yards nearby, just north of the Ship Canal. (One finally closed just a couple years ago--my brother, whose shop is nearby, bought their wrecker.) I'm sure the old Mercury body came out of one of those wrecking yards, and probably the fenders as well.

 

No room in here for a decent pic, but you get the idea. Pretty tight. My tires are rougly 6.5" wide, the fenders 7.5".

 

Just an Inspiration V3


...This is an interpreted Cycle Style Fullness and Honestly I applaud any way that's Strikes Your Fancy I like them all...to me its tough...all period correct....

Your Fenders despite not finding a match could still Plausibly be Motorcycle Sidecar as alluded, perhaps Factory One-offs, Prototypes.

They are certainly Period Correct Late 1940 to 50ish...I hugely searched even sidecars many brands and years...But perhaps two wheeled trailer or a Metalshaper that perhaps was paid for a Custom Set not unheard of...be cool if somewhere there was a P# stamped in...

I got a laugh out of the name of the Camper...The Average Joe Camper...



https://averagejoecamper.com/history-of-teardrop-trailers/


I found out a period connection to the Swoopys...Auburn...



Credit to Photographers, Owners

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OK, gotta say, that looks pretty darn good.

Auburn! Good to know. My wife literally hooted when I told her. "Of course they are!" she said.

Amazing you found that. And so fast.

 

Space-Agey...From a Time when the Moon was Cheese...and Rockets were going to Get to the Moon and beyond and the Rocketeer was watching over Gotham City prior to the Caped Crusader...Beautiful Art...and Wild Concept and Boatail

Its all an Artistic Vision as you say and worth one more windtunnel mockup with a beverage and soak it in, You Have the Pieces of the Puzzle and perhaps the Inspiration becomes a Reality that is at the Hands of the One that wields the Tools and the final decision...

Maybe That's what triggered the Build Clark inherited Literally with some Artistic License of Course...
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@ClarkH one thing you may require are those outer braces to support these Functional additions. Whats the mechanics behind that? 50-70 mph revolutions all day long and our roads as of late...pretty crappy here and there...Can the Outer Braces just be decorative with well chosen robust rear bracing to backing plate or otherwise to offer full support and think about the Roads...at speed these are attached to the backing plates...Would the rears be fastened to the Chassis with outer brace capped and decorative?

Why I say that is the Outer brace has an engineered grace about it and a decorative Fastener could fill the Axle Hole.

 

I really like the Stogy photoshop above with the big fenders, although I think I'd like them more with the braces on the fenders, those are so cool! Since the fronts will turn with the wheels and the rears never turn, could some kind of hubcap-replacement be made with a bearing in the middle so the fender braces could attach to the wheels on the outside? I realize that's a ton of work and engineering but it would be amazing. Could even put some kind of small hubcap outboard of that, attached to the fender braces that wouldn't turn, floating style.

Of course this is all easy for me to say because I don't have to build it, nor is it my car, but would be a stand-out feature.

 

When we start talking about the braces, we move from theoretical to practical discussions. And that's where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. The fenders and braces were made for narrower tires. The fenders will just clear the 6.00 tires on my 16x4 rims. But the factory wheel cover would interfere with the braces. So keeping the braces would require an engineered solution like you suggest, @Squablow.

But then I'm left with this: how high would I need to lift the car in order to change a tire? And would the braces interfere with the wheel clearing the studs? Are we moving into the realm of removable fenders? That's a lot of custom engineering just to keep the braces, cool as they are.

Going back to @Stogy's latest version:



I really like that. And I think the look is helped by the fact that Stogy has trimmed the front fenders, lopping about 20% off of the front. I think they need that; otherwise the look is too Batmobile, at least for my tastes.



I'd probably take a little more off, so even more of the front tire is exposed. Something more along the lines of the maroon RPU posted earlier. Here's a cropped version:



The sectioning could be done in such a way as to eliminate the damaged portions. In other words, I'd be cutting out bad material anyway. In addition to rust through, one of the front fenders was dented at some point and the raised rib was "fixed" with a ball peen hammer. I can elminate most of that in the sectioning.

You guys are giving me a lot to think about, and I appreciate it!

 

I think Mercurys look best with no fenders.

 

Agreed, speedsters in general look better with no fenders

 

Quarantine must be getting to you.

I like those fenders. but they do not belong on that car and if you put fenders on that thing.... I'm buying the car at your estate sale and promptly taking them off....

On a side not, I have a BUNCH of spare tire covers that we could make some fenders out of...if something less bulky strikes your fancy.

 

@ClarkH the fenders I used to form the fenders on the full fendered Inspiration were modeled using 47 Harley Sidecar as they have very similar shape to your current unknowns.

The fenders on the Brown Roadster Pickup are 1949 + Harley and Squablows Shared Artwork interestingly has a fender similar to your originals with added Trim to give a nod to the later 49+ Harley fender...

Trimming your Originals Now to suit your desire is period correct and totally an individual decision.

It does involve way more consideration than one might imagine...As alluded added Bearings, Support, access and wheel removal...The rears might be better anchored to the Backing Plate as well and perhaps that was a given from your perspective already...as Fixed to frame will have wheel movement within the fender to consider with bounce and body roll adding clearance considerations where there isn't much due to Tire Size.