Projects Building My First Roadster in San Francisco

Amen! That sounds like one hell of an adventure. I'll have to start spending more time in the Sunset!

Hahaha very true.

Thank you! As soon as I left the airport, my friend Michael dove right into a carefully curated neon tour. Our first stop? Superdawg. After four hours on a plane, I can't think of any better welcome to the Windy City.

Servin' up dawgs since 1948!

 

Tonight I'm in a small town in rural Wisconsin, but by lunchtime tomorrow I'll be in Minneapolis for Back to the Fifties. If you're planning to go to the show this weekend, please let me know. I'd love to meet up!

 

Sports rods, flatheads, old friends, new friends—lots to catch up on from my weekend in Minneapolis. Full update coming when I get back to San Francisco. My favorite truck at the show.

Ultimate flathead at Union Speed.

 

Minneapolis was an absolute blast. I was there from Wednesday though Monday, and it seemed as if there was something fun around every corner.
Like this Model A roadster, for instance. It looked as if it was an older resto rod that was backdated to 1940s style. Talk about a great stance!

This supercharger was impressive, as was the detailing on the engine. I aspire to have fit and finish like this on Version 2.0's 59AB.
Same goes for this flatmotor, which powered a Deuce highboy that is very much in the same style as Version 2.0.

For those of you who read my weekly Jalopy Journal column, you'll recognize this old Mechanix Illustrated sports rod.

I would have loved to have cruised down old Minnesota and Wisconsin backroads in this thing. Power comes from a two-carb flathead V8.

My mom drives a '61 GMC 3/4 ton, so you know how much I appreciated this truck. I'd never seen one with a Sears dually kit before.

Banger inspiration from a friend of @MN Stumpjumper. Hopefully I'll catch you next time!
I also was able to catch up with @Speed~On and check out his Chevy family wagon and flathead-powered Tudor. Next time I hope I can hang out longer!

There's a whole lot more to be said about the trip, but I still have a few more updates to get to. If you're looking for more pictures, you can see them on the Jalopy Journal here.

 

Without a doubt, the true high watermark of the trip was running into @Tuck and cruising around his old stomping grounds in his chopped Shoebox convertible.
I hadn't seen him in years, and it was so fun hearing about his projects. He gave me some great advice on welding, flatheads, fabrication, books and more. I'm not a custom guy per-se, but this car is on a different level. I think it's because it's approachable—and basically a hot rod. The chop, radiused rear wheelwells, louvers and flathead all work together so well.
This Shoebox was designed to be filled with friends and cruised on a warm summer night. So, that's exactly what we did.

 

The night I got back, I immediately walked into the garage and started working on the roadster. I've been experimenting with the exhaust and wanted to try a set of baffles.

I started with these eight-inchers and took the car for a test spin. It's pretty quiet at idle and not much louder when you get on it. I bought a four-inch set, but I plan to trim these shorter and shorter until I get the sound I like. The straight pipes were cool, but wearing earplugs while driving around town got old pretty quickly.

Where'd I go on my test drive? Golden Gate Park. I've never driven the car there due to street closures, but this was huge for me. I remember walking around these streets and paths during the original Covid lockdown dreaming of one day building a Model A roadster.
Rolling through there as the sun began to set made me feel some sort of way.

Two days later, I was in Idaho, which is a story for another time. Thank you everyone for sticking with me, even when the progress is slow. I'm looking forward sharing more roadster happenings from here and there in the coming weeks.

 

Thank you for reading!

Thanks!

Thanks, Tim. As of right now I plan to. Maybe I'll even take the roadster next year? More likely the year after that.

 

Very productive day at the shop yesterday. I'm so excited that we finally have the stance figured out. Full update happening soon.

 

Greetings from Des Moines. Lots of H.A.M.B. happenings going down, and I even got to hang out with the Keystone Kid! I'll be at the show all weekend and Columbus next weekend for work. In the meantime, make sure to check out the latest roadster update on The Jalopy Journal here.

And yes, I had to swing by this Iowa FLW treasure that was built around the same time the red five-window (above) was channeled.

 

Woah, that's a new bit of trivia for me. Wright marked his buildings with his signature single red tile by the front door. I bet this tied into the color of his machines.

I wish! I really wanted to knock on the door and chat with the owners. I'll do that when I drive Version 2.0 over there.

Same here! What a multifaceted guy.

 

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I’m writing this from the back seat of the company truck as we make our way east from Des Moines, Iowa, to Jasper, Indiana. The sun has started to set, and we’re clipping along on old highway 61 in Northeastern Missouri. The seemingly endless fields of corn have turned to rolling hills and bushy trees, all soaked in golden light.

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Sidebar 61 Revisited

I have a lot to report from my trip to Iowa but, before I do, let’s talk about developments in the build. Last Tuesday, I drove up to Petaluma for a full day of hot rodding at di Falco Fabrications. We had a clear plan in mind: get the car sitting right.

What do I mean when I say “right?” Well, when we got it going as a roller, it became immediately clear that the rear was too low. We had removed two leaves from the Model A spring pack last month, and we decided that we were going to put them back in.

So, as David focused on customer work, I removed the rear end and disassembled the leaves. I think this is the third time I’ve done this, so I’m glad to say that I’m getting proficient at it.

With the spring back together, we conducted the most scientific test of them all: jump on the crossmember and see if the suspension bottoms out. David and I took turns and both got a good laugh out of the process. Note the traditional chain hoist that David saved from the dump!
Here's a screenshot of a video. I will say this: it was pretty interesting to watch the spring, shackles and axle all working together from above!

Well, after our test we decided that we needed to make some spacers for the top of the spring. This would help stiffen the spring while also adding an inch to the ride height. With that, we went to the back and pulled out some extra Model A leaves.

Springs are tough, so David suggested we cut them with a torch. We traded off cutting duties, and I learned a lot about everything from flame type to technique.
To answer @HOTRODPRIMER's question from my other thread, I'm using this as practice for when I bob the rear frame rails.

 

With all that back together, it was time to figure out the rear wishbones. After rummaging through the parts pile, we produced two cut-down 'bones as well as the pair that Donny Welch sliced and diced for the Havenscourt Model A pickup. Our plan was to combine them to make a useable set.

Then, something strange happened. We went to size up the Welch wishbones and they fit perfectly. We're talking bolt-on. It's a total coincidence, considering my torque tube is a conglomeration of '35 and '40 Ford parts linked to a quickchange rather than a banjo. Both David and I were baffled.

So, all I need is the correct hardware and we'll be one step closer. I jumped on the mini stepladder to take a photo, just like we did back in the biz.

Once that was checked off the list, we had a little bit of bonus shop time. I suggested we try out the new dropped tie-rod ends and narrow the tie-rod.

After a quick pass with the bandsaw, I discovered that the tie-rod is a solid piece of metal. Remember, I'm new to this. For whatever reason, I expected it to be hollow and we would have to slug it. Not the case here!

Instead, we "Beveled the crap out of it," as David so aptly put it, and then set it up in his fixture. He then welded it, and I'll be carefully cleaning it up when I'm back from the Midwest.