Projects 60's Era Street/Strip Model A Coupe

I get it. People are divided on them but it's okay because I really dig them. They have been part of the plan for a long, long time. When they're the body color (or chrome because I have a killer chrome pair) they'll fit right in.





We're talking about the 1960s, where guys took customizing chances and got funky at times.

Anyone who wants to PayPal me $.02 for the chrome plating fund, feel free!

 

I dig them. I have one somewhere that I've been trying to figure out how I want to use.

 

Chopped Model A Coupe Wood (Part 3) - Adjusting the B Pillar wood for good 1/4 window fit:

The wood kit is almost ready for some sealer. It was a really nice afternoon, so the A got rolled outside so the wood could be prepared. There was some overspray from when the car was put in sealer, not a lot but I figured I've gone this far with the other wood, I could spend a little time at least knocking it down a bit.

For some reason, the thought came into mind to check the quarter window garnish fit. I'm glad I did because I noticed that the B pillar wood hung out enough that there was going to be a sloppy fit when it came to installing the glass.

The B pillar wood was chopped at the top when I replaced it so the wood sat a little too proud at the top.

At this point, this wood kit already has far more attention than any Model A that came across the assembly line, so why stop now? Hahaha.

I figured a paint stick was about the thickness that could be workable. (I have no clue, I'm winging things - so if you're doing your own wood kit - verify your own fitment.) I sat the stick beside the B pillar and marked sacrificial marks on either side with the paint pen.



At some points it was probably 3/16th too thick.



I used a belt sander with some rough grit and an orbital (with a finer grit) to follow up. I did have to get creative at the top, that took more effort than anything else. It went quick, just being careful to check each side's mark.



I checked it with the paint stick a couple times and got it very close.

Now if there needs to be adjustment to fit the glass snuggly, I can do that by tweaking the mount surface of the garnish.

 

Chopped Model A Wood Kit (Part 4) Sealing the Wood:

Do we need to seal the wood? Probably not. This car won't ever see the weather that the original wood kit saw in the last 91 years and that wood was still mostly intact when I got the body... hahaha.

But, there's been a lot of time and attention put into fitting the kit, so why not continue on?

My only real concern was that water would get in through the windows and into the wood and I wanted some protection. Here's the thing, though, sometimes I forget that I live in the desert and no longer in the humid northeast. And, originally, I was thinking to go overkill and seal it with a waterproofing sealant. That's just not needed.

Thanks to some HAMBers, I got pointed in a good, traditional direction. From there, some searching lead me to some great information on the how-to of using pure tung oil and such.

Here's the HAMB thread with the wood painting/sealing discussion for anyone interested.

All that said, here is where I'm at, so far:

I started by ordering some pure tung oil. I couldn't find any available, locally, certainly not at the big box stores. Those stores, I'v learned, do have products called "Tung Oil" but it doesn't much resemble the pure stuff, there are driers and other chemicals. The amount of actual tung oil is low.



Everything was already prepped, so I mixed the first coat 50/50. Tung oil is thick and it dries slowly. To get it to penetrate well on the first coat, it's recommended to thin it. There are a few options folks use, I decided to try turpentine, which is also something not as commonly found these days. Home Depot didn't have it but the hardware store did.

I mixed a half-cup of each and I assumed that might have been too much but the wood soaked it right up. Something I saw repeatedly as I was reading/watching/learning about the stuff is that you repeatedly apply the mixture as the wood absorbs it. That it's not so much as coats as it is one longer application.



I continued to apply until the wood remained shiny and wet for a period of time. Once there, I let it sit for 30 minutes and touched up here and there (especially the end grain). It's crazy how much it soaked up.




I wiped off whatever residue was left and that was the end of the first coat.

I check it this morning and there wasn't all that much seeping but it wasn't dry to the touch. I know this because I touched a piece of wood and instantly touched my nose and I could smell turpentine for half the day. But, boy-oh-boy did it look pretty. Especially the pieces above the doors, they had this really nice brownish honey color.

Tung oil dries way slow, the drip pan (it's new, I figured I could use it afterward) is still wet more than 24 hours later. I read where some people's projects took more than 10 days to dry!

Anyway, I cracked a window in the shop and went about my day.

Also, side note, this stuff is flammable, so take proper care of your rags and materials. They can spontaneously combust. My friend's parents' business burned down to the slab due to improperly stored chemical rags. Even @Ryan had a scary situation in his shop.

When I came back to the shop the wood felt much drier.

Some woodworkers work their way to straight pure tung oil but mixing less thinner into the tung oil, something like 50/50, 70/30, 80/20 and then straight. Others start with 50/50 and then move onto the straight tung oil. I'm not finishing floors or picture frames, here, hell it isn't even going to be seen or thought of once there's an interior. So, we're going straight next.



First, I went over everything with 0000 steel wool. It was recommended to lightly sand in between coats. Speaking of coats, that's one of the downsides of this process. It needs a few coats/applications. I've got a few things that I'm waiting on, which leaves me time to mess around with this stuff.

I poured a half cup into my measuring cup and used nearly all of it. There was probably a tablespoon left.



Here's what's interesting. After it's applied, you let it sit for 30 mins or so. While waiting, I went around again and touched up little spots, nowhere near as much as last night but the end-grain still soaked it up. It still looked nearly as wet as when I first brushed it on but there wasn't much on the towel afterward - hardly anything. I guess I'm easily impressed. Hahaha.

After I had sanded/prepped the wood for sealing, I wrote a little blessing that will be hidden away eventually. This is something we did back when I was framing when I was a kid and it just stuck with me. I still sneak blessings into every build, remodel or renovation project.



Here it is after being wiped down after the second application. It has a little deeper color. I'm eager to see what it looks like tomorrow.

 

Don’t you Love the color? I use Tung oil on most everything (I rescue old chairs) and three applications seems about right. Good Stuff, Brent!

 

Love the look of the wood. You have a great eye for detail. Top notch!!!

 

Just Primo.

 

I enjoy how deep the grain looks. It's neat how finish brings out the details in the grain. I can see why woodworkers enjoy the hobby.

Question for you, after your 3 coats, do you wax or topcoat or anything? Any recommendations on how to finish this? Once it's done, it's done.

Thank you! I really appreciate that. I am definitely a fan of putting attention into the details.

Thanks, Joe! You've been a big help.

 

Good call on tung oil and turps. I also use a linseed oil and turpentine mix on some things.

 

Excellent summary on Tung oil. One of the best I have seen. What to expect tomorrow? It will soak in more and dry more and the really nice gloss will be gone. it will take a couple days to dry completely though

 

Thanks.

Yep, there's no wet gloss, even after the first wipedown. I went out and looked at it this AM and there was only one spot where oil seeped. I took a blue shop towel and wiped a few pieces and there was little, if any, that transferred.

I'll say this, I used a new, white shop towel to wipe, at first, yesterday and I can see the lint. So, don't do that if you're a newb like me. It will come off when I steel wool it before the next application.

This stuff is very forgiving.

 

yeah the "gloss" isnt really like a polyurethane or even shellac like we are used to. As it dries and ages it even loses what it has. its more like a sheen. I probably didnt choose my words very well. But yes, it will go away. To finish, let it dry longer than you think. 0000 steel wool is what I use, then tack cloth if you feel like it (I dont), then I use cotton or linen like an old t shirt or pillow case. You mentioned spontaneous combustion - yes watch that when you are done. Good job!!

 

Great posts man. Loving this

 

Brent, nothing on top. Down the road you can always put on more if you like. Works for me, Carp.

 

If you have sanded it smooth enough old baby barf rags work awesome to polish it out. I use them on gun stock finishes.
I believe they are called "receiving " blankets. They are thick flannel.

 

Mount it on a radiator cap and wire it up. Ala 50's boat stern light.

 

That would be a popular Thread...

 

@-Brent- the Wood looks Good!!

 

Wood Sealing Continued and Bending an Offset into a HURST Shifter Stick:

Tired of seeing pictures of a wood kit? I am!

I will spare us all... and only post 4.

In that wood painting/sealing thread I wrote that now I understand why folks say to be patient. Doing the second coat, I came back the next day (impatient) and applied a half cup - and it took it. But on the advice of a HAMBer who knows more than me, I waited a little more than 2 days to do the 3rd and it took more than a half cup this time.

Wet 3rd coat and "dry" second:





I let it sit for over an hour while I goofed off in the shop. Then, I wiped it all down with blue shop towels.





Set out in front of the coupe where they'll stay until they're all cured up. I have read anywhere between 3 and 10 days. 3 days is doubtful because earlier today, there were a few small spots that looked drier but you could tell the oil was wet. I don't think another full day would have dried it fully.

They can sit there for a week and after I'll either put them in back the car or put them in a box or something and stowed of the way.

Since the rags combustion seem to be a hot topic after Ryan's video, I took matters into my own hands and skipped the step where the rags do their own thing and I post a picture of the coupe burned to the ground. It was a nice night for a 5-minute camp fire.



Alright, so that's that for the wood, hopefully. It was fun but it's time to move on.

The kids had an early-out day and they were doing their own thing in the house, so I took an hour to try something I'd been thinking about.

I picked up this random Hurst stick, locally, for a couple bucks and it was long enough that I thought I could make an offset shifter stick for some practice.

The plan is to use my diamond shifter stick but before I go about making the offset for it, I wanted to figure out where and how high to make it all.

I probably won't ever use these two but I'd rather learn with these. Here it is stock:



Unbolted it an put it in the vise:



Heated and applied pressure:



Then I just winged it. I made a couple marks, tried making this one a little different here and there compared to the other stick I have.





It came out decent. This offset fits me better but I want to have my wife sit in here, too, and see how much this interfered. The stick could be brought over a 1/2"

 

Sorry for the typos, I do most of these posts from my phone and I have gorilla thumbs apparently.

 

Very cool.

 

Fire good, when it's on your terms

 

Looks sharp

 

Great work Brent! You are definitely in the neighborhood on the shifter location. Any adjustment would be personal preference. Mine is just a little more forward but I have the stock bench seat and package tray. I am considering losing half the package tray for a bit more leg room but then the shifter will have to be bent back to almost where yours is now. If I was sitting in your car I think I would be more than comfortable. Just make it comfortable to you. I don't think it will infringe on passenger seating but a bit of spousal approval never hurts.

 

The inner panel of my driver's door has issues. It's bent, has cracks and the guys who put it in sealer ground right through the metal in certain areas.

I had looked for an inner section for a while and ended up finding a worn-out A coupe door to pull the section from. It's crusty but I think it will clean up well.

This is something I've never done, which is exciting. I'm glad to have done this one first, it was good practice for the door on the coupe.





The first side. Most of this hammered back straight.



Once I got both sides done with minimal damage, I tapped it out with a dead-blow hammer.



The worst of the panel, which really isn't all that bad. It needs some broken screws removed, a couple cracks fixed, and a little more hammer/dolly work. I'm going to sand blast it and figure the best way to get this panel replaced.

 

Looking great buddy!

 

Getting caught up with your coupe Brent. Great posts as always. Everything looks great.

 

Thanks Andy and Mike!

Chipping away a little each day.

 

Brent, I am really enjoying your build here. I had to go over the GJ to read your garage remodel as well - that was equally enjoyable (& took quite a while) as well. Thanks for taking the time to photograph and post what you do as inspiration to the rest of us!

 

Thank you, I truly appreciate that.

I'm sitting in the coupe as I type this. I just put a couple hours in on it, tedious/fun stuff.

I remember the old days of the HAMB when some of the legends of this place took the time to post up details in threads that were so helpful.

So, while I'm pretty much a hack, personally, I do try my best after a lot of thought.

What's nuts to me is that there's still stuff that we haven't gone into depth/detail around here. So, if I stumble on it (usually when I can't find amswers/pics) I try to post it up... and that takes time, haha. There's been a few nights where I stayed up late for an update.

Maybe it will help someone out, someday? Or maybe my kids will look me up to see just what I was doing all those nights in the shop when I came in with dirty hands, smelling like "hot rod" to tuck them in.