Hot Rods Is this a Brookville roadster pickup? Update: NO. Now building 1929 roadbriolet/cabrioster pickup

I would use one of these, rather than washers. If 1" is a little too long, have it machined to the length you want.


https://www.oreillyauto.com/shop/b/cooling---heating/fan-spacer-kit/af8f0070a9be

One side of adapter is flat (it goes against pump centering pin, and can be machined). The other side has the centering pin.

 

^^I'm right with you, Phil. I think that would be better. I used the washers to determine just how much of a spacer I need. I have several spacers in my pile somewhere and I'll sort through them before I head off to the parts store. I appreciate the insight and help; especially when you give me a link!

BTW, got my new VA title and tags for the cabrioster today. They put the model as 'roadster' and the body type as 'pickup' on the registration card.

I ordered the fuse panels for the new wiring plan. I have to do some prep work to figure out where and how I'm gonna mount the new fuse panels. I was surprised to find what looks like what came with the car available for a whole $31.95!! I believe it will be much more work to finish installing that kit than to just redo the fuse panel to match my usual pretty simple wiring approach. I'm gonna use what wires that have been run if I can; else I'll make my own new ones.
Opportunities!
Thanks again for the help.

 

A couple things. First I painted under the dash white so it would be much easier to see under there.
Then I made the panel seen hanging above on two bolts that were already coming through the firewall... don't make new holes if you don't have to make them.
I've painted the panel and it is drying now. It will hold the new fuse panels.
Now I'm reviewing how I wired my 32 cabriolet.
I'll figure it out... I hope!

 

Got first fuse panel mounted. The additional fuse panel I need will be here tomorrow... I hope!
This panel will be hot all the time. The next panel will be activated by a relay that will be triggered by turning the ignition on. There will likely be many unused circuits out of the twenty... we'll see.

 

The good news is that the new fuse panels arrived. The bad news is they aren't like the one I had and required a bit of tweaking to use one of them... little stuff like the dang mounting holes and associated recessed holes for the screws were a tad smaller so had to be opened up with the drill press. Otherwise, I think it will work.

I'm mounting this pretty high up under the dash. I hope I don't get tired of working with a panel that high.
Now to start revamping the wiring. The wires in the kit look to be okay but they run a 14 gauge wire where I always run a 10 gauge wire... it is gonna have 10 gauge wire when I get through.
Probably okay as is but we old guys... don't usually change our thinking much at this age!

 

Good looking Roadster, to hell with what “Some” would say. I’m envious.

 

I've said it before and will repeat it. That 36 Fordy truck is just badass and very unique. I love my Deuce roadster but rollup windows would suit me just fine. We have done super long cruises from Texas and "adapted" to having curtains with a/c which is absolutely necessary in South Texas. A cabriolet would have been much more conducive to our hotrod "plans" but couldn't find one. You have quite a stable of fine cars.

 

To get the flex plate as "straight" as possible, you could set up a dial indicator and hand rotate the motor looking for high and low spots. Even a bend of .050" could catch the starter bendix while spinning the starter. If you don't have one, I can loan you mine.

 

^^Thanks, Bill, for the kind offer. I may take you up on it later but for now I want to get it running and moving. Probably should replace the flexplate but I'm hoping it will work initially. As you know, I bought the rpu primarily because of the Buick engine with an eye to swapping it into the 36 Fordy. I was gonna replace the "Australian Ford" engine with the big Buick.
I don't know that I will but this is what happens when we get to "thinking" too much!!
I had about decided not to pursue a swap and then we find out the rpu has a switch pitch turbo 400 transmission!!
I'd love to have that combo in the 36 Fordy but it runs and sounds great! Hate to fix something that ain't broke!
For now, I'm gonna focus on getting the rpu operational and see how much fun it will be... might have to make another hole somewhere!

 

Al,
I was attempting to a avert a possible issue before you attempted to start it, but if the starter spins it freely, it should be OK. A quick rotation of the motor with the dial indicator would tell the tale. If the ring gear teeth are good, replacing it is not needed. I can straighten it for you.

 

Bill, you keep on coming up with good ideas and offers to help and I'll end up having to buy you some ice cream!!
I'm aways from spinning it over... I'm chasing, sorting, and cutting wires. I think I've sorted out the ignition and starting circuit as well as the horn circuit and eliminated a number of wires that will not be used. I think the light circuit will work as he has it except the switch will get power from the new fuse panels. I also relocated one switch that he planned to use as a manual theft switch that would disable the starter button. That allowed me to remove the two switch panel he had under the dash. I like simple.

 

Left panel is hot all the time. Horn, brake light switch, and lights. Right panel will be activated by a wire yet to be run to the relay from the ignition switch when it is turned on. I also have to run a ground wire from the right side of the relay up to one of the bolts that mounts the panel to the body. The right side powers the fuel pump, turn signal flasher, and the gauges. I've removed all wires from the original fuse panel that came with the car.
Still a few wires to sort out and run down but the bulk of the main switch over is nearly complete... I hope!
Hope to get driveshaft tomorrow or Tuesday.
I will try to clean up and tie up the wiring after I'm sure I have it all figured out and working.

 

Looks like a fun project Al! It has been fun watching you work through your opportunities with a positive attitude!

 

A little bit of runout in the flex plate will only matter when cranking, so it will probably be fine "for now", as in for the next few years.

And I seem to remember these Fairmont hubcaps:

 

I'm saving those Fairmont hubcaps! Mainly because I couldn't give them away! Seriously though, I might just send them to the original builder's family. He had three daughters and those old hubcaps might just trigger a pleasant memory of their Dad to the family. I'm certain they will be MUCH cheaper to ship than the rumble seat!

Back to the cabrioster, here's what I removed.

I think my two fuse panels that are utilizing only three or four circuits per panel is much easier to understand and use. I'll make up an index card with which fuse goes where and secure it somewhere in the car... maybe stuck behind the edge of the fuse panel mount.
Now to chase down the rest of the wiring that was already completed when I got it to be sure I know what each wire is doing.
I hope I get the call to go get the driveshaft. Also, I'm thinking I'll remove the bed since I want to explore mounting the battery under the bed like on the 36 Fordy.




Believe it or not; the 32 cabriolet that came with those special Fairmont hubcaps also had an identical 1936 battery cover that I eliminated when I relocated the battery to the trunk.
Maybe it is time to recycle another part that originally came on the 32 cabriolet.
I hear 3wLarry asking about seeing the 32 now:

425 cubic inches with the complete original two four setup and the original switch pitch turbo 400 transmission.
I wonder if I can buy back one of those two four setups I sold in the past. They could go on the cabrioster; can't have too much horsepower can ya?! Funny thing is that I'm fairly certain I will never really hookup that torquey big Buick in that lightweight pickup no matter how many or how few carburetors it has!

Opportunities!!

 

Forgot to show y'all the present battery setup.

They say the battery should be near the starter... right?!
Still chasing wires and running a few new ones.

 

Put a few castors under it, it’ll be fine

 

Well, it seems there were at least a few wires haywire!! I'm powering up gradually. Turn battery on; no smoke or sparks. Turn key on and the engine starts turning over!!
Guess there are no big problems with the flexplate!!
Seems the ignition switch wires were at wrong terminals. Fixed that but now blowing fuse when connect coil to ignition wire! That's next but seems to be new coil.
Opportunities!!
PS I about jumped out of my socks when engine started turning over without ever hitting the starter!

 

That should have been on 'film' for us near seats

 

That seemingly new jim dandy hi voltage big box coil from Speedway has a dead short in it!
After it killed two fuses, I figured it out with my trusty test light. I hooked light to power and then touched it to the positive terminal of the coil... and the light came on. Dead short. Dang junk. Went to Advance and bought a Pertronix coil. I'm hoping for better luck with that one. Of course, the coil wire from the Speedway coil won't work so I had to find a replacement among my junk... hope it works! Also had to scrounge a bracket to mount the coil on the engine... now the firewall will have several extra chrome plated bolts.
I also ordered a stock fuel pump for the engine. I can still use the electric pump to prime it after a long rest.
The fuel pump does run... and it waits for me to turn the switch on!

 

Ain't she a beauty with the first coat of paint on this side?
Bought a new tach that can be mounted to the column.
I'll hook that up between coats of paint.
Wiring seems pretty close. Now to try to figure out the brakes and gas line.
Opportunities!!

 

I think this rear shock arrangement needs to be revised.


It is tight everywhere you look!!
Opportunites!

 

^^^What about moving the brake line to the forward side of the axle and put the shock on the forward side of that upper bracket and remove that "spacer" and bolt it up to the axle mount?

 

My thoughts also and I bet Al has already got that planned out.

 

I'd say that Billy has pointed out how it should be done. A spacer to space out another spacer, that just shows another cobbled together thing on that car that was done when it was all too easy to do it right in the first place.
That is a Speedway rear coil over bolt complete with cute nut. Coilover Shock Mount 5/8 Inch Bolt w/ Support Collar, 4-1/2 Inch (speedwaymotors.com)
The guy had that Coil over shock bolt and was going to use it at all costs rather than get a proper shock bolt with a built in spacer and do it right.
What it actually needs is something like the Rear Shock Mount Bolts (speedwaymotors.com) or just the normal shock bolt from the parts house that comes with a set of shocks.

 

Looking at it again I'm thinking that the bolt is too long when you just use that chrome spacer that will probably set the shock real close to being in the right spot if you remove that square spacer. Meaning that there is more bolt sticking out the back side of the lower bracket on the axle than there are threads. It looks like the brake line thing can be fixed by just moving the line over closer to the axle and using a couple of brake line hold down clamps.

 

You’re right, that IS an opportunity! What were they thinking?

 

Thanks, fellas, for the insight and suggestions... and the links to some parts!!
I removed the two square spacers today and will play with it more tomorrow. I'm trying to work some on a number of remaining issues. Critical items are the brakes and gas line. The shock setup was just too offensive to let sit. I've got an inventory, if you could call it that, of leftover and unused bolts and nuts and probably spacers of all kinds and sizes. Most of it is going to have to come back apart anyway so I'm researching as much as I'm fixing. I did get the new tach mounted under the dash... I'm not crazy about the location but it will be a good starting point. There were some issues with mounting it to the steering column so I aborted that plan for the moment and went with the under dash mount. I just want a tach I can watch when it starts so I can tell how much I'm varying the rpms after the initial startup... supposedly it has a new cam in it but I couldn't find one in the receipts.
I'm hoping the mechanical fuel pump came it today. It was supposed to come yesterday so I thought I'll wait until tomorrow to see if it showed up.
Going to a mechanical pump will mean rerouting and relocating some of the components but I would rather have it run on a mechanical pump that presumably will be at the right fuel pressure, or very close, and still keep the electric pump to prime it if necessary. The electric pump will also serve as a backup to get me home if the mechanical pump fails.

Ringer is much bigger now than when this picture was taken but I doubt he'll be much help in bleeding the brakes.
I might have to round up another garage helper. Any of y'all close to Smithfield? I got ice cream!
Opportunities!

 

Just left VA on Sunday, but ice cream.....

 

Maybe it's just the angle of the photo, Al but it looks to me like that rear shock does not have near enough travel. Looks to me like it is about to bottom out just sitting still.