My project has finally gotten to the point where it's beginning to look like something so I thought it would be a good time to start a build thread. I found a 1934 Ford BB heavy on CL which originally came out of Montana and at some time in its life it transported the U.S. Mail. My plan for the truck is to build a flathead powered traditional hot rod using a mix of old and new parts. Since I wanted to make a fair amount of changes to a stock chassis and the BB frame is too heavy, I decided to start from scratch. Here are a few pictures of the truck when I picked it up.
I would love to have my mail carrier JO-ANN drive up to my mail-box in that... I would not complain about the bills... go jo go !
The BB " heavy " front axle is a lot " heavier " than a passenger car / pickup front axle. It is not the same axle.
don't know if you got the rear window garnish... same one from '30 to '34 trucks... they also used model A style 3 bolt window regulators... memory says '28, '29, '30, '31, '33. '34 were the same thickness axles... [not calling horseracer wrong.. but want others to realize that I believe there are not 2 choices of '32 axle as has been promoted on the hamb before]... 1932 was [taller] but the only place I have ever heard heavy axle is here... memory said '32 car and pick up were all the same...never seen one taller than another '32... I have been wrong, but .
Great looking truck.... You found a nice one.... Whatever you do please don't paint the cab and doors.... They are perfect the way they sit
Once I had everything for the chassis measured and located, I took my rails and drawings down to Schroeder Speed in Portland to fab the perimeter frame. They had a 33/34 frame fixture and did a great job boxing, pinching, kicking, and sectioning my frame.
Starting another project myself using a new Winters QC and new French FH block. Your perimeter frame is really slick. Looks like your using Lincoln brakes?
I decided to do a quick mock up of the rear axle and frame to get a rough idea if my clearances were going to work. At ride height I will need to "C" notch over the axles about 1.5" to get 3" total clearance. The tires are Lester 7.00x18 and the wheels are 5.5x18 from Rally America.
With the perimeter frame ready to go I decided to build a chassis table. I used 4"x4"x1/4" tube and found a set of heavy duty adjustable casters on Ebay.
Now for the controversial step. I made the decision to strip the cab. You can't see it in the pictures but the roof needed a bunch of straightening. The drivers door was wrinkled. And there were a bunch of spots around the bottom of the cab where the metal was thin. I dropped the cab off in Portland and had it chemically stripped. Here it is after I got the cab back.
That looks solid. I liked the old paint with the U.S. Mail on the doors but it is yours. Your vision. I hope that you make it shiny and not some flat paint that looks like primer. My opinion but it is yours to do with what you like.
I really liked the original patina and if I were doing some form of rat rod it would have been a perfect candidate but I wanted to get all the sheetmetal straightened out. I'll be incorporating the "U.S. Mail" logo in some form on my build. Just haven't decided where yet.
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