You are exactly right about the dickering at the swapmeets. I'm from Texas and have been selling and buying at swapmeets for over 30 years and some people love to dicker and some not. The thing that turns me off is when I have an item I'm asking a thousand for and someone offers two hundred or one-seventyfive and they're upset when I say no. Making offers is always fine with me, but I like them to at least be legitimate or in the ballpark.
i put a little extra charge $ on the parts as some guys can't bring it home if they didn't dicker you down...
Swapmeet folks come in all different forms. Some are upstanding citizens and some,,, not so much. The best part about dealing with them, is the transaction gets over pretty fast and you can move on to the next deal. I do the same as Smitty and put a little up charge in my asking price. It all washes out in the end.
With the front brakes completed and undecided how I'll go with the rear brakes, I moved on to installing the engine and trans. When I had my house built, I talked the builder into installing an I beam in the garage. It's really coming in handy 20 years later. I set the body so the firewall was as close to the fuel pump neck as possible. But I needed more space so I slid the body back on the frame and did some hammer and dolly work to get the clearance. I kept working at it and until I got the space I wanted. I took some shots at what I'll be dealing with when I move onto the body later this year. Lucky for me I scored these sub rails for $100 just down the road in Willington CT.
seeing the coupe body hanging there, hard to believe it was a sport coupe not that long ago... how about adding your sport coupe and coupe pix on this post... so i don't have to go looking for 'em ? like to see them side by side... great work... go J go ! ...
Thank you Smitty. This is the best I can do. It's the only pic I have with the body setting on the frame.
Hi Bob. I meant I slid the body back to do the hammer work. I'll be using all the original frame and body mounting holes, so there shouldn't be an issue with alignment. Thanks - John.
The body is back off now and I'm fabbing my clutch linkage and running the front brake lines. here's some pics. I dubbed over the serial number because you never know.
Thank you Rand Man. It wasn't an easy decision for me, and after seeing some very cool sporty builds sometimes I wish I left it alone. But no looking back, its a coupe now.
I've been searching for a good deal on a gas pedal, that was easy to modify. With no luck on the web and a break from house chores during my staycation, I stopped over to N.E. Pease's in Palmer Mass. He told me he began collecting parts in 1959, and it started with one part and now he has over one million. I asked him for a 1935 Ford truck spoon pedal, but he didn't have one. But,, He did say I could search some of his loose parts bins he had below in his warehouse. He led me through what seemed like a maze of car parts stacked from the floor to ceiling at every corner we turned. Actually it was like being in a Fun House for car junkies like me. He could sell tickets just for the walk through. After picking through several crates and boxes I came away with an unknown gas pedal linkage and carb linkage. Not exactly what I was looking for, but when I touched it, a picture popped in my mind. With all the boxes checked on my Honey-do-list I was able to get back in the garage. First thing I did was straighten out the linkage to see what I had. Next I cut the bracket in half and tack welded it back together. Shortening it to three inches so it would fit my firewall. This hole was already in my firewall and the linkage to the carb seemed to line up pretty good. Here's a pic of the back side of the firewall, you can see the other side of the linkage. At this point I was thinking of the picture in my head. I was like "How do I attached this linkage without drilling holes in my firewall"? After a couple minutes a new picture came to me, and I went and got my one inch square stock. I cut off a piece and then cut it in half. Next I drilled a 3/8 hole in each piece and welded a bolt through it. Here's a pic with the bolts welded in. After many test fits I welded my brackets to the back side of the fire wall. At this point I bolted on the pedal linkage so the carb side was connected at the top. I decided to work my way backwards to the foot pedal side. I'm missing a couple pics here to describe how I bent the rod into shape. But it's really just some heat and test fitting - many times. I cut the foot pedal from a small scrap piece of angle. I tapped a 3/8" hole in the pedal linkage and welded a bolt to the bottom of my home made spoon pedal. This way I could remove it, if I didn't like how it came out. Here it is attached, much like the way I dreamed it up when I found it in the bowels of Mr. Pease's parts warehouse. It functions pretty well and the carb has a built in return spring, but I'll probably add another one at some point to make it a little stiffer pedal.
With three days to spare I made my goal to have a yard driver by the end of August. Here's the SYC out of the garage on her own power. First time since I removed the four banger last Fall. I'm still waiting on parts for the pulley to fan adapter, and the radiator is on the way. So no video yet.
Here's a short video driving up my driveway and going through the gears. This is about as far as I'll be taking it for a while. I need some time to fill up the coffers for the next phase.
your ride was a flashback... sounded like my virgin hotrod rides, complete with rattles and bangs... go j go !
No tail pipes yet but the front half of my Speedway 1-3/4 exhaust is done. Makes the neighbors happy.
Back in the Fall I picked up this set of F2 backing plates from 26 lakes on the Barn. I've been reading a lot about rust removal using vinegar, so I thought I'd give it a try. I sprayed down both the plates with straight white vinegar and then tied them up in a plastic bag for two days. Here's how they cleaned up after spraying them down with water and just a couple minutes with the wire wheel. Ready to replace the 40 plates I fab'd last year.
Just went through the whole thread. . . . . Again!! That's a neat, tidy hot rod you're building. Looking forward to seeing you and it around. New England scene is rockin!!
The Jalopy Journal
