I think it is time to resurrect this build thread took a little time off (2 1/2 years ) to move to another property, completely rebuild a 1850's house, build a new shop 26x34 with a full attic and attach it to the existing 18x18 carriage barn. It has been an exhausting time but we are just about finished. With colder weather here now I have pulled the project out of storage and have tried to remember where I left off back in April of '18! Fired that Olds off for a few minutes. It seemed to remember how to run after all this time. Working on the exhaust, making hangars and tying it all together. I will shoot some pics and update this in a day or so. Glad to be back in the shop.....sanity is making a marvelous comeback. some shots of the new place Before: after around 1/20: More to come.................
I just reread the whole thread beginning to present. Your looking realy good. I am envious of the new shop. I am sure that it will be alot easier to heat and enjoy your time in.
In the meantime I had a good friend take the frame and build or bend up some 2 inch exhaust. He has a tubing bender from a shop that closed that makes it much easier so long as you are good with angles. We managed to keep all of it hidden up in the frame rails but took the easy way out and turned the tips out in front of the rear wheels. Waiting on hangar bushings at the moment then I can finish hanging the pipes. Put the finishing touches on the ebrake set up. I built a side bracket that attaches to the tranny case and bolts to the Model A ebrake handle. Then I built a small crossbar that fits under the tranny tail and welded some brackets to the cross member plate to accept the ebrake cables. then fabbed up some arms that are welded to the crossbar, attached the connectors to the e cables and made some adjustments on the rod that goes to the brake handle. Seems to function as I had envisioned, one more item out of the way. Got to finish up those exhaust hangars and then it will be time to pull the engine so I can finish up the brake lines.
I just discovered your build and since you are about to finish your brake lines felt I should tell you what I did on mine. I have my master cylinder behind the firewall and like you, have brake lines going through the firewall. I made bulkhead connectors there from inverted line couplers silver soldered to a piece of steel strap.
Slow day but I did get out in the shop for a while. Grabbed some 1/8 inch plate and cut out some brackets to support the exhaust. Got some isolators in and have everything pretty well lined out. Now I need to burn them in so I can finish the exhaust and then start pulling the engine to work on the brake lines. Snowed today, miserable out but warm in the new shop
Pulled the engine and tranny out today. time to work on the front brake lines and then I can start the tear down in prep for finishing everything for the paint process. Made a couple of hose brackets for the front brake hoses and welded them to the frame. Went down to my local Napa store and picked up two hoses that fit the Buick wheel cylinders. They are 15 inches long which is near perfect for this application. Grabbed some Nicop 3/16 line....$42 for a 25 foot roll! Man prices have just gotten out of hand in the last 2 years. Only need 5 feet so I sourced a premade 6 footer at another store which will do fine. Will start bending some line now.
Moving right along, you should have the frame & suspension painted in no time. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
finished bending some tube, made a few mistakes... too many ups and downs and corners would help if I had a really good bender. I have probably five but none that will make those real close bends so I improvise which is where I get into trouble. Regardless of the issues it is done for the moment. Still have to tie the MC in but have to wait for the body as it is mounted on the firewall. Now that the front lines are in I can break down the frame. Been at that most of the day but it is apart so I will now start all the finish welding as most everything is just tacked at the moment.
Welding, welding, and more welding till I ran out of wire. Best deal in town is at Tractor supply at $37 compared to the local welding company who is almost twice that! Now I am out of gas, always something. first big snowfall coming tomorrow so I may be out of the shop for a bit. Wanted to be in paint next month. ????
Get your tank filled before the storm & hunker down in the new heated shop to get the welding done....... Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
I buy a 2lbs spool of .030" steel, and one of stainless steel welding wire... put them in the cart's box for when needed... that 2lbs steel has bailed me out on a Sunday or two...
good idea Smitty! Never used SS wire although I do have a small spool of it. Doesn't it require a 100% of Argon and not the 75/25 with mig??
That it does. FWIW Lowes has 2 lb and 10 lb spools of mig wire, pretty reasonable. Don't buy the stuff from Harbor Freight, it isn't good stuff. It's not an AWS sanctioned wire, which means it's basically factory 'whatever we wanna make' stuff.......if you go with an AWS sanctioned wire you can't go wrong.
i have not had a problem with the stainless using 75%... but i only use it to put a rounded end on '35 hood trim after i cut them to a custom length... then grind, file, sand and buff ... .
Good to know Smitty. I may have an opportunity to try that as I have a set of SS bungs to weld in. At the moment I am looking for snow shovel. Still coming down hard, looks like 12-18 by the end. Won't be welding today for sure.
just a dustin' here so far... careful... i only weld stainless at 75% for show... the welders here were right about 100% argon, your life depends on those bungs...
well then i guess i can sleep tonight ! i have also used the ss wire to rosette weld through the lower / back side of a '31 grill shell so that the "bump" that forms on the outside is all stainless, when ground / buffed any weld that would show is also stainless ... $0.02.
Thanks Glenn. It has been a long ride. Hoping to make a lot of progress this winter. 18 inches of the white stuff landed yesterday, 4 feet at the end of the drive by the street. too wore out today to do much. Hard to leave this recliner
For the last two days I have been stripping the frame, doing some small repairs and sanding a little bondo. This afternoon I picked the frame up and set it in the truck. I will take it up to the paint booth tomorrow weather permitting. Hope to get it in paint this week and back home.
Brought the fresh frame back to the shop and set it on some saw horses. Will start with the easy stuff first, remounting the fuel and brake lines. Then I will install the center cross member. Tore the rear end apart and finished welding the larger trailing arm supports on. Then some general clean up. Really needed to be blasted but that is not going to happen with the winter weather outside and the fact that it will not fit in my blast cabinet so I scuffed it off, degreased it and put on some Por15 on the rusty areas. Tomorrow after it is dry I will take it up to the paint booth and will shoot it and the rest of the small parts. That should finish the painting for the moment.
The frame looks great Walt. Looking forward to seeing it go back together Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Ran into a small road block with the crossmember. It is 1/4 inch plate with 3/8 bolts mounted horizontally between the X's tying the two sides together. So, I bolted up the drivers side and when I went to attach the passenger side the holes for the bolts were off just about 1/2 inch! I have certainly seen things get off a bit when putting the pieces back on after paint but never this much. After due process I used long bolts and attached the vertical part of the crossmember and pulled the two sides back into alignment to the point where I could easily attach the horizontal piece. It appears that the side rails had buoyed out after I had removed the crossmember or during lifting and transport to the paint shop. Pic of the cross member when removed for paint there was no noticeable movement or stress on the X's. I guess it is what it is. I am moving on.... much to do.
I had the same thing with my crossmember after painting. I also had burn marks on the wheel mounting flange on powder coated rear drums that defy explanation. Gremlins in the garage.
Slow week this week. Paint booth is tied up so I am waiting to pick up some required pieces to move forward. Think they got sprayed yesterday so I will go up there this morning to see if that happened. Meanwhile I worked on pulling some of the parts out for the clutch etc. Put the throw out bearing and clutch fork together and detailed the bellhousing. The clutch fork boot was non existent so I rummaged thru some unused stash and found a later GM piece, made a new bracket to hold it in place (top right in pic), drilled and tapped 2 new holes in the housing to hold it in place. Does a much better job than the open hole. Pulled my rebuilt clutch out of storage and the 176 tooth flywheel. Searched around for the MIA bolts that were here 2 years ago! Then realized that I am also missing the pilot bushing that I had purchased probably 5 years ago. Amazing the amount of time I spend looking for things I know I have. Cleaned up the elusive pilot and drove it home, test fitted the bell and tranny. All looks like it was meant to go together but then realized the block was missing the alignment pins. fortunately, I have several later 51+ bells in stock and one had the two pins in place. Got lucky on that one. Got them out, cleaned them up and installed them in the block. Now we are good, I hope. Then the furnace in the shop tried to start but the motor bound up. So put my furnace tech hat on and began to look into that. Hmmm, motor is shot.....called my fellow hot rodder furnace guy in. Back and forth for the rest of the day and half of the day yesterday. Now down to 17 degrees and 40 in the shop. Had an issue with mating the squirrel cage with the right motor but after a lot of reengineering we got 'er done and had the heat back. End of the delay for now. Mounted the flywheel and torqued it down to 85 foot pounds. Now I need some hardware to bolt everything else together so today I will be out in public (rare excursion lately) finding said hardware. More updates as things come together. Waiting on supply from Sacremento ford and Amazon (new rear seals, imagine that).........
The Jalopy Journal
