I bought that when they first offered it online as a download and also bought the California Custom Roadster plans from them on a download a week or so ago. You have to be able to read between the lines of Chester's book as some of the methods suggested are a bit on the crude side by today's standards but if you have your buddy help with it and use his shop equipment to do some of the steps rather than using a torch and grinder you can turn out a pretty nice car. Building one low buck but nice is still about spending time, both in the build and the hunt rather than dollars. Things like block sanding an painting the frame and other pieces rather than powdercoating or chrome. Building a mild engine with over the counter parts house parts than building a bragging rights engine with all the advertised in the rod magazine trick parts. Running a stock ignition rather than using a mega dollar trick race car ignition.
I also got the original when they released it as a download but I never never did get the updated “How to Build a T-Bucket Roadster on a Budget”. Also, I bought "STREETROD 101: Hot Rod Frame and Chassis Construction." Got some great ideas in that. Youngsters plans helped a bunch too. I found a recycle yard that sells steel by weight, not by shape. Saved a bundle on flat stock. All the steel for every bracket cost about 30 bucks. Scrounging is a big part of the fun.
I built mine for about $5000.00. I bought the Speedway Motors body for $400.00 as it had gone through several people who did nothing with it. I built my own tube frame. Everything else was given to me by people, I traded for or I built myself. I am a good scrounger, and I have most fabrication tools that are needed as I fabricate Hot Rods for a living but it is nothing that could not be duplicated by someone else. Here are a few of the low dollar items on the car: -'37 Ford axle, and spindles. -Model A front wishbone. -F-100 front brakes. -Stock 289 Ford. -Points ignition. -Autolite 2 barrel carb. -Toploader 3 speed tranny. -Non posi 2.79 geared 8" rear end. -Mopar steering box. -65 Mustang radiator. -Schoenfeld IMCA modified headers. -'37 Ford wide 5 front wheels. -Chrysler Cordoba rear wheels that were flipped backwards. I did buy all new clutch and brake parts, master cylinders, hydraulic throw out bearing etc. The tires were almost $1000.00, but they have the look I was after. This car starts instantly, draws a crowd, will go anywhere and always leaves a smile on my face.
I built all the T bodies for Total Performance and still have all the molds, heres a Total T I spotted at a local car show last year. What do they say "Best Bang for the Buck"
under 4K, SBC, steel body runner. Just gotta wait n watch, the parts will find you, they just wont do it when you want them to. Mine took nearly 7 years to finish.
Hey Drive Em: I've seen those cordoba wheels used before like that. They look really old LOL. What years were they on and do you need to modify them in any way to get them to register on the axle properly?
Did you build them right up to the end? Reason I ask is, we have an earlier body and it was very well finished when we got it, but Mickey had some displayed at Turkey Run just before he closed up and the bodies looked different........big parting lines, etc. Just wondering why they were so different. Don
I would get a body before ever starting to fabricate and weld a frame together. You can design and build as you go and combine ideas you like into your own build. Drive Em, That is one cool looking car. I love the frame design.
Not to hijack the thread but Ive been thinking about this for a while as well. I just got offered a frame and body cheap and been going back and forth about it, but I was wondering if instead of using the glass bucket body if I could use a reg 27 T coupe body on the aftermarket t bucket frame. I kinda like the looks of a chopped t body better then the t bucket. Ive been looking in speedway and on here in the hamb trying to find any information I could dig up or see what I need. Love to have a hotrod but not sure if this is the deal to start with..
Not sure if a tall t coupe would fit "as is" on a std bucket chassis. they always look so much bigger than a t roadster. haha, when's the last time you heard someone say a tall t coupe looked "big" in any way? Any tall t experts wanna weigh in here?
No mods were needed to flip them around. As a matter of fact, the little recess needed for a mag wheel shank style lug nut washer are already in the wheels. I believe mine were off an '81 Cordoba.
You certainly could. You would probably want to channel it a bit which is going to require a new floor and sub structure, but as far as fitting yes. "T" coupes are basically the same from the beltline down as roadster bodies, at least '26 and '27 are. As far as chopping that one... Search Mercury Charlie's old "T" from the mid 2000s. Part of the cool of a tall "T" is NOT chopping it!
not to change the subject, but who made that body your neighbor gave you (need louvers) I ve had a t body just like yours and have never been able to find out who made.like you it was given to me.any imfo will be appreciated.
I really like the tube chassis, I wish I would have built mine that way, as I am putting off doing that at this point. I really do want to yet.
Cool, I'm hoping to hit a few yards this week. I'll have to keep my eyes open for some of these. running em reversed like that makes them look really wide too! I assume they're about 7" wide or so?
Thanks Nut, I've decided I'm gonna go ahead with this build. In fact I've gotten so pumped about the project that I've reread "chesters book" completely just since I started this thread LOL. I even got out in the shop and started prefabbing some of my brackets using chesters templates.
Drive em: any good pics of how you mounted your mopar cowl steering box? Or is the a build thread for this car?
I believe you could build a really bitchin 60's style T all period correct with some chrome goodies and everything for less than 10k. And I mean really bitchin. I've built it in my head a few times. The only thing is the parts hunt. This may be next for me..(after my wifes roadster)
I agree... I helped Turkeyjerk build this one... steel body, healthy 377 stroker, it boogies and he has WAY less than 10k in it.
Exactly how mine started. Glass tub, aftermarket chassis. Was an easy thing to weld up body mounts and put my steel body on it.
I did build them up to the end however I don't think any of my bodies went south because of shipping cost and Mickey must have had them made down south. All my bodies were finished
Given that you have the mill, tranny and posi, you have a good start. Realistically, my guess based on experience would be $8K...no frills. I have 3x that in mine not counting the time. However, that includes the cost of the stuff that you all ready have. All that being said, when you experience the open wheels and power to weight, you can see why this is a lot of people's definition of fun!
I built mine for just under 6000.. alot of that money went to buying shit that didnt end up on the car when finished.. lessons learned.. Anyway its a fiberglass body that I got in a pile of other junk. Its on most of an orginal 27 TT frame, random craigslist stuff, ebay, speedway, etc.. If I had it to do over again, I would have shit canned the frame and just bought the cheap 400 dollar speedway frame and installed some mounts.. Mine aint Traditional, but i think it is unique, the best is it was pretty much a fun project
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