Well as you all know I recently bought a 51 ford project, its chopped and has some other work done to it, as I have discovered it has some good work and it has some bad work done to it, there were definatly 2 builders on this car. So what I have done isstarted fixing what the bad builder of the two did, starting with the passenger side door, it has some really poor welds and did not fit at all, I also decided to round the door corners and hood corners on the car while I was working on it. so here are a couple pics from today, my first day working on the car. The first pics show the welds I am having to fix, firstis his and the second is mine that replace his. Added one of a interesting sight on the way home, a semi with a load of hay turned over onits side today and dropped its load of hay along the side of the road...slowed traffic down for quite a while so as I went past it I snapped a pic. Jim
Well I have been working on the ford some, been quite the mess really, it was one of those cars that looked better than it was thats for sure! Here are some pics of what I have done so far....Jim
It has gotten its new exhaust, I rebuilt the front of the car, rounded hood corners, frenched the headlights, rebuilt the lower fenders under the headlights, used 2" exhaust tubing bent to build the grill shell, then used a floating 52 kiaser grill bar, smothed the original bumper, welded the bolts to the back of it, pulled it up 1" closer to the car, so it fits nice and snug, I also welded a 3/8" round rod down the center of the hood to peak it, then slpit the very front of the hood and redid the front of it pulling the nose of the hood back just about a half inch or so from the bottom of the hood all the way to the top of the peak, hard to explain but in person it really shows, I really love the look of the car in the front, it is quite different than most shoebox fords out there in the nose, now on to the rest of the car to make it my own. Jim
Well I know its been awhile since I have updated you guys on this car. So here it is, its a mess!!! I have litteraly rebuilt the entire car other than the frame and roof. It had a 1/4 over the other 1/4 on both sides and neither one matched. So I cut them off and then took a pair of front fenders from another shoebox and cut them out and have been building 1/4's out of the to give my car radius wheel wells. Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
Well I guess I can't post pics from my phone.....I will get some posted this evening when I get home. Jim Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
This is a rough idea of my new tailight treatment.....I am extending the 1/4's and adding these lights, I had dual frenchedd 59 cad lights on each side but I decided that was a little too common so I did away with the windsplits that are a shoebox given, and I am doing the 1/4's smooth and radiused like in the previous post then using these lights, and I am using a 50 Chrysler station wagon rear bumper on the car that I will be smoothing and narrowing to fit the car. Jim
Here is what I got done today, I am using a 50 chrysler wagon bumper, I narowed it 3" on each side to fit my car, this is the first time I had ever done a bumper, it was a different job but it came out really well. Here are some pics. Jim
Little more progress, diddnt like how far the bumper came up the sides of the car so I took 4 1/4" out of each side then tucked the bumper right up to the body and lowered it about 3.5 inches, been building bumper brackets now, should have them finished up tomorrow and be back to sheet metal work on the rear of the car again. Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
That piece of sheet metal is just kinda clamped there to get an idea of what I am dealing with. Here is another shot. Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
Karmann Ghia or Type III lights? I would not have thought of using those but they look pretty good on there.
They are type III, really good eye! I think they are going to look really good in the car, they have a nice flow with the top and the slanted b pillars. I have changed every piece of this car now! LOL Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
I like the Type III lights.... And if you want a change, you can go the euro flat ones for a sleeker look.
Well working on the taillights, they will be set back about 2" closer to the body yet, I have to notch the sheet metal to get it on back there....Man making the mounting plates for these was a nightmare!!! If anyone is considering using a set of these TRY, TRY to get the metal from the Packard where they mounted, these things are very deceiving, they have a little bit of an angle to them that makes the sheet metal have to kinda twist, then they have this funky little bit of a wedge shape that hey slide over the body skin with....I don't know how to explain it other than it took me a full day to make the 2 mounting plates alone, then another full day to make the sheet metal that comes out from them to weld to the 1/4's on my car, which I still have to build.......I don't know if I am ever going to get a rear on this car!!! Here are a couple rough pics.. Jim
The Jalopy Journal
