Hot Rods Modified Murray - Race to the road! Progress in Review!

Didn't want to bum you out but thought it might be worth a mention before you got too far.

Chopolds said he does 3/16" and sometimes as big as 1/4". He said anything smaller by the time you do body and paint if the vehicle flexes there is a good chance of chipping the paint on the edges. Flop was doing 1/8" gaps and a number of painters suggested they were too small.

 

All right... Then I guess that's what I gotta' do. I may actually have to shorten the door lip, though. I don't want to shorten that space between the door jam and the 1/4" window any more than it all ready is.

 

Bwahahaha!! Awesome!! Good point...

 

scootermcrad -

I've been following your build with great interest since joining the H.A.M.B. (in 2006) ... and I've been following this particular thread for over a year now ... but (until now) have yet to post any comments in it ...

So let me just say that your "Modified Murray" [or is it the "Butchered Briggs"?] is turning out to be one of my all time favorite builds on the H.A.M.B. !!!

Your build threads are very enjoyable reads ... great photography & descriptions ... thanks for sharing your progress with us!

You should be very proud of your creation ... I've been blown away by your craftsmanship, your well thought-out & clever design, and your attention to detail.

Congrats on this milestone ... I really look forward to seeing your "Bitchin' Briggs" in person!

 

Hey man! I REALLY appreciate the words! Means a lot! When I read the nice stuff you folks have written, it makes it so much easier to keep going and keep pushing on. Sometimes the creativity level gets low, and the inevitable burnout that follows, but it's always the nice comments you guys have that lift me back up.

The other reason that I continue to keep posting is because the constructive input as well as detail arguments keep me in check. Helps me stay true to my vision. I can't tell you guys how many days I say to myself, "I'm building a shortened Fordor sedan. Wow! What a DUMB idea! What the hell was I thinking?!" But that only pushes me to keep the details true to the era and design of the build. Frankly I have no friggin' idea what I'm doing! HAHA! I'm mostly learning all this metal work stuff as I'm going and the input I get from you guys and the great tech I read on the HAMB is what has kept me learning.

The funny thing is, I'm really NOT a fan of shortened sedans. So I REALLY hope I can succeed at building this to not look like a shortened sedan... (if that makes any sense)

Thanks again for all the great input and support, guys. I'm nearing the end, but it still seems MILES away!

I will continue to post pictures of my "learning curve" as long as you guys enjoy it.

Cheers!

 

Scott,
It was fantastic to see you and Holly again. It was great to catch up.
I hope to see this car in the Suede Palace next year. Hopefully beside my 34!!!!
Lets set a twin goal??

 

Make that triplets!! I'll bring my '35!! Wait, how many miles is it from The Carolinas to L.A.? Nevermind, I'm probably going to fly in again hahah!!!!

 

I'm down Jeffery as long as Scott agrees, it's ON! Let's DO this.

 

Add me to the list of people that want to meet Scott in person and see the finished car, sure has been fun following the build.

 

Thanks guys! Great seein' ya' Nate!! Glad you guys got back okay...

Only a small BIG update, since it was GNRS weekend. I only worked on Sunday, but the big part is...

...I finally sat down and tried my hand at TIG welding! HAHA! With the help of a few HAMBers giving me some tips on where to start (after turning the switch from "off" to "on"), I just sat down and ran beads. It was a BLAST, but I sure have a ways to go! Gonna try to practice a couple times a week. I get the concept completely, but have to work on feeding that fill rod consistently and keeping the torch steady. Practice practice!

This was my first T-joint... I guess it's not bad for only learning how to set up the machine a couple hours before and NEVER welding with O/A...



Can't wait to keep learning!!! Really a fun welding process...

Earlier this week I finally carved out a bowl in an Ash stump that Crazydaddyo hooked me up with. Guess his neighbor was cutting down a tree...







But one thing that was going to get finished, come hell or high-water, was that door gap!!! I think I have it licked, now. Needs a little more grinding on the inside to get the lines good and straight, and some other work at the top corner and bottom, but the overall gap is good now...



Something else a played around with a bit was that pesky belt line... I simply worked it with a tool I made out of flat stock. Worked the lines down on the body just a bit and UP on the door, just a bit. Going to work on it a little more, but I can see it starting to take shape. Was a lot easier than slicing and dicing, just to weld and add all that heat to the panel. Too risky for a line that's only about 3/32" off.

 

The car is looking fantastic, and a really enjoyable and helpful thread.
Thank you.

 

Every once in a while I flip back to the first page of this thread and marvel at the progress. Truely inspiring.

 

I got the door exactly where I wanted it and made sure it wouldn't move. Then I essentially used a piece of flat stock and worked the edges of the half-rounds (belt line feature) downward just a tad below the quarter window, and did the same but upwards on the door. Just need to work a little more below the quarter window and it will be all set.

To open up the gap on the door, I simply cut a vertical slot from top to bottom about an 1/8" away from the jamb, persuaded it over, and then re-welded from top to bottom. Wasn't as much work as I thought it would be. Had it wrapped up in a couple hours.

Next I'll move over to the other side of the car and replicate all this crap I've been doing over the past few weeks...

BUT FIRST! I'm going to shift my attention back to the HEMI. I want to finish up the headers, get the radiator repaired, finish up the linkage, and I want to hear it run again! I think that will help keep me focused, if I can hear it run again.

Thanks drjones!

 

Scooter,
What kind of machine is your TIG?
I see Miller has a new "wireless" foot control. I would love to get one of those for my unit.

You never cease to amaze me with your skill. Your a natural.

 

Thanks buddy! It's a Miller Synchrowave 200. It's actually on loan to me (thanks Andrew and David!!). I think it's going to RUIN ME! I have nothing to compare to and basically zero experience to communicate, but so far it's been easy to set up and use. I like it! A wireless pedal would RULE! I can tell you that!

 

Ah yes TIG welding...

Lucky for me my father-in-law is a retired industrial arts/welding teacher and he got me started on TIG back a couple of years ago. Before I bought my own machine(Lincoln Squarewave 175) I would bug our fab guy at work to use the TIG while he was away at lunch. I was welding every thing I could find together! Got to be that it was all I wanted to do!

Finally got good enough to start building my chassis and going into it I told myself that I would NOT grind ANY welds. Hahaha basically forced myself to do a good job. TIG welding is very rewarding and lots of fun. I haven't gone back to MIG ever since.

Probably won't be long and you'll want your own TIG. Good times.

Damn, get this thing on the road already man.

 

Essentially, yes. I can access the back side of the panel with the quarter window regulator out. No biggie. Little harder with the door, but I can still get a dolly in there. With the way that I'm striking it, most of the movement is in the bead itself, but some movement is transferred to the surface panel. We're talking 1/32" or so of movement in the bead, though. Very little movement! I'm splitting the difference between the door and the quarter.

In addition to this, there is enough meat on the panel to do just a bit of shrinking and stretching in the panel face itself to do any fine tuning. I'll use the hammer and dolly to planish an area and then use the shrinking disc on the opposite side of the feature.

 

Yeah! The bug is already setting in! I may end up selling the MIG, spool gun and all, and try to pick up a TIG, one day.

I know I know... I'm workin' on it man!

 

The car is looking awesome Scooter! You really worked your magic on the beltline and door gaps. Your TIG welds aren't too shabby either.

Hold onto the MIG, you never know when it will come in handy. Hold onto the TIG for as long as you want, it's probably gonna be quite a while until the new place is wired for 230v.

 

Thanks buddy!!! When do you guys officially move in??

 

Wait! You mean that funny ridge around the middle of the body is supposed to line up?! Crap. I gotta go....

 

Hey I actually just got the same welder a few months back. Your welds look killer! Ive been practicing for a while now and still have a long way to go before i get the perfect over lapping dimes look lol. Tig is awesome tho!

 

Great!!! Thanks Dave! That rules! Let me know the damage! I'll get ya' fixed right up!

Haha! Awesome!

No way! Stop being nice! HAHA! Too much heat (120A), puddle was all over, and I kept sticking the fill rod. HAHA! Still looks better than some of my better MIG welds though! I love the way the beads look with the TIG! Still have a lot to learn and a 1000 more hours of practice to go. Then I want to start some aluminum welding.


Okay! Today I should be able to pick my radiator up from being repaired so that means tomorrows agenda is this:

1) Re-focus energy back to the Hemi - linkage, radiator, fuel lines
2) More TIG practice
3) Work on polishing the E-Wheel Anvils on the lathe

The lathe is just about ready to go! Had to make a 9/32" chuck key to work with my large 4-jaw chuck (which needed some restoration last night), and the now I just need to chuck something up and set up my tool post to the correct height.

Busy weekend! Looking forward to it though...

 

A ridiculous amount of work!

Basically, I had to cut out the rear jamb along the B-pillar from the bottom almost all the way to the top.



Tacked a filler piece in place and checked the door gaps again...



Getting better!



Unfortunately I ran out of welding wire, cutting wheels, and pretty much every other abrasive I use all in one day, so it's not perfect yet, but it's pretty darn close at the end of the day. Still a little tight higher up on the post, but that's an easy fix... Sort of. Gotta' have the supplies to finish it though. HAHA!



So that's about all I got done. Welded up the top door jam too, but forgot to take pictures. Not much to see anyway. Was a PAIN welding upside down as well as taking down the welds and blending it upside down. Had to be done though!

That's all I have for this week...

[/QUOTE]

super great job awesome a friend also works on his murray bantam style ,you've met him a while ago ,
Indeed indeed awefull amount of work even more satisfying when my friends did'nt notice it, and asked me what i had done to the body for the last 4 weeks

 

Scotty boy,
I just noticed something I hope you don't mind me asking.
In this photo:


Are your pillars an even width from top to bottom or is it the perspective of this picture that throws me off?

Nate

 

Hey Scooter.... Where is the photo update??? We are waiting to see those carbs....

 

Okay... I was going to wait until I finished the linkage for the 6x2, but I'll show you guys what I've been up to....

Well, last few weeks have been super busy, but I did get some time in the shop to work on some odds and ends. I'm refocusing a bit. I really want to hear this engine run again, and frankly I don't really like letting it sit without being run once in awhile. So I'm back on the Hemi trying to get all the details wrapped up.

First, I pretty much have the headers wrapped up, with the exception of the cut-out tubes. I'll be on that soon, but I don't need them spliced in to run this engine, so I at least worked on getting the file marks out for the time being. Here's how they worked out...





I got the radiator repaired and the filler neck changed up. The shop that did made the original right angle filler neck used some crappy Japanese car looking thing. It was crooked and it would have stood up really high above the grille shell. So that had to go. They made me up a remote fill which I plumbed in-line. Looks WAY better and will be much more functional. Spent just about all day getting the radiator and grille shell set level as well...



So this weekend I spent time on the 6x2 setup. Hard plumbed the carbs and started working on the cross-shaft brackets for the linkage...

Hard lines will need a little more tweaking so they look nice, but it's a good start. Hoping my flairs are good! HAHA!



Then I spent FAR too much time just cutting out these brackets, but so far so good. Used some scrap 3/16" steel I had laying around.



Drew them up in CAD first...



Setup up on the mill...



After drilling holes, chamfering the edges of a few, and dropping some counter-bores for washers...



Then I rough cut each bracket out using a cut-off (man I wish I had a nice band saw!!!!!)...



Then cleaned up, de-burred, etc...



That's as far as I got. Took 4 hours just to make those friggin' bracket parts. I still have a little clearance trimming to do so they mount correctly. Once they are mounted up, I will check to make sure the cross shaft is square and then I'll tack the brackets together.

In addition, the 6x2 progressive linkage I have has aluminum control rods. This is fine except on the progressive portion of the linkage. The collar has to slide without sticking on the shaft and it's REAL sticky with that soft aluminum. So I will replace that portion of the linkage with stainless. Might even replace all of them with stainless. We'll see how it looks when it's polished up.

So that's it for now... Hoping to have this thing running again by the end of the month. Seems possible, but just a lot of little details to wrap up to do it right.

Next month it's back to sheet metal. Wanna' hear it run again first!

 

Aluminum being sticky aside. Guess what most of the abrasives are made out of? Aluminum oxide!!

 

Yep! You are correct!