Projects 22 Model t on A chassis

Hey there. I’m new to the HAMB. Was hoping someone may have some insight into the process I may have to go through to make a T body fit on the a chassis. I know it does not match up, and it may take more work than I thought but if there’s someone that has an idea I’d really appreciate it.
By the way it’s a touring body

 

A lot of work do you plan on rodding it, if so I would build a frame to fit.touring car maybe ford barn guys could help you out.

 

Hey there , yes that’s the plan. I had the thought of building it. Just unsure is all. This would be my first do it yourself frame, and not sure where to start

 

Welcome to the HAMB !!
I built mine out of 2x3 square tubing and round tube up front, did not take to long at all did a 6" kick up on rear of frame. I personally like the traditional hot rod stance.
I also have a model A frame but got it well after I built mine. Now need a body for it.

 

Bosh on the 'Ford Barn Guys giving you help!' Here's what I would do and if an old curmudgeon like myself can come up with a plan, damn near anybody can. I would remove the body from the T frame and remove anything that might come in harms way. Then I would brace the inside of the body so it would retain all the integrity it already possesses. I would then build something like a rotisserie so I could turn it upside down. I would do the same to A model frame. Using a tape measure, and marking pen I would mark where it fits and where it does not. My guess is the A frame will be wider in most places. I would make a very careful drawing of both the T body with detailed measurements to indicate width and contour, and do the same for the A frame. I would remove the A frame and proceed by several methods as a means of conforming it to fit the T body. Narrowing the cross-members, and if necessary heating and shrinking the frame, stacking them atop each other (without the cross-members to make sure they are symmetrical), and when I had them where they fit the body (Here of course is a question that I would have answered before starting - is it going to be a fender-less highboy or are you going to used A fenders? Or T fenders, or what?) Then I would carefully secure both frame halves in a jig and calculate where my cross-members were. This, of course, means you have already made a choice about the suspension, type of front cross-member, rear cross-member, front spring, axle, split bones, hair pins, four bar, etc. and type of rear-end: banjo, de Dion, etc. Of course, if I were building this imaginary T, I would box the frame rails, because I would drop in a small block Chevy with a five speed and a 9" rear end because I want my Hot Rod Hot. But, anyway, I hope I'm giving you the 'idea' that 'you' have to stand back and make a plan, come up with a budget and make sure you don't get in over your head. I'm assuming you can weld, have a welder, a place to work, and the time and money to follow through with the project, because there is a damn lot of blood, sweat and gears that go into making something that will wake up and drive out from under the shade tree, barn, or fully equipped shop and fulfill every expectation you had going in. I say this because the scrap metals yards across America have been filled with the broken dreams of false starts, poor thought out, and sloppily put together messes that never made it past the first or second obstacle course that starting from scratch to build something takes. It's not the messes of metal I worry about. It's the too big expectations that end a young man's experience of this thing we all get in our heads and hearts and minds that makes seem to sane people 'a little crazy' for what we do. So proceed with caution and use your head, plan and follow through, and good luck from a fellow HAMBer.

 

Wow! Thank you all very much for your advice. I now see the work it will take to make the a frame fit, and I may go that route, it will give me lots to learn. But incase I change my mind, when it comes to how my touring body narrows is it easier just to make a skinnier frame and run it straight or to take cuts out and bend it to contour the body

 

In most cases you make the Frame fit the Body, not cut the Body so things show from the outside. However, It has been done and here's a photo of how in progress.
The final result is this. Be it a lot of work but over all for this specific Iconic Car it really works. It covered up a Chassis that otherwise was less than attractive. What your asking probably has more to do with your fabricating skills than the end visual effect.

 

In my case, I started with an A frame but discarded everything except the front frame horns, front crossmember, and rear crossmember. The frame rails are made from 2 x 6 rectangular tubing, tapered from the cowl area to the frame horns. I contoured it to fit the outline of the body with vertical pie cuts, pulling it into place with a comealong and tack welding it to conform to a plywood template I made of the shape I wanted. The curved section in front of the rear crossmember is a "frame curve" from Welder Series.

 

I just mocked a roadster body on an A chassis to see what it would need to fit up before I sell it.

A good, strong floor and some bracketry and I'd feel good about it.



It really is just a matter of setting the body so the rear wheel is centered and then adapting each to the other.

 

Back in the 90s, I started throwing this together from a pile of extra parts. The '26 roadster body fit the Model A frame nicely.