Projects My 1960s Traditional Model A Coupe Build

Since I joined the HAMB in 2007 at age 14 I wanted a 1930-31 Model A Coupe. Through about 5 years I looked high and low all over Craigslist, old farm places, and creeks around the state. I have found many cars through this time and ended up pulling plenty of them home to drive my parents crazy. I found plenty of Tudor Sedans and tons of cars from the wrong era's.
Around 2011 when I was a Junior in High School I found a giant yard full of cars and stumbled across a great looking 30-31 Coupe body that had hardly any rust on it but looked to be doomed from the years of sitting on blocks that seemingly sunk into the ground and now slightly resting the body onto the ground. I tried for over a year to get this body and I got your typical story of lies. It was our families car...we will fix it up someday..etc...
So I moved on and looked even harder and near the end of my Senior year of High School I went to a guys place near Kearney, Nebraska to look at a possible coupe project that ended up being 3 partial bodies that would have taken even more parts and lots of time and to add to that it was totally over priced for a kid that was a few months from turning 19. So me and my buddy headed towards Gibbon, Nebraska because I recalled a lot full of pickups and cars the year before. As we went to the shop Mr. Dwight Bond welcomed us into his shop with out being introduced ever before and showed us everything he had and sold us a few parts here and there. He told me his son had a 30-31 Coupe body that was actually in 2 pieces. I went and looked at it and I gave into temptation 2 weeks later and got it for myself with the money from working and the help of friends and family from my graduation party. This was just the beginning!
(Just a Hint- This coupe pictured now isn't the actual project, it's what started everything for me..)

 

Looks like a great project, glad you finally got one. Will be watching the build.

 

All good things take time. As long as you have perseverance you will be able to complete your project. It looks like you've acquired a good collection of parts. As you build when you find you don't need certain things sell them to fund the parts you don't have. Good luck, I will be watching your car come together.

 

Shortly after I bought the First coupe body. I began buying more and more parts that I knew it needed to have to be repaired. The quarters the I got with the coupe are in amazing shape and luckily didn't need hardly any work other than the upper half and lower still need to be welded back together. I got a better door for the Pass side and even took a gamble on a couple flatheads... as that was my first choice at building a early 50s hot rod and that has since changed to now being a 60s hot rod due to a few cracks... During the time I was looking for a flathead I bought up a lot of old flathead speed parts for very cheap. But those dreams were shattered thanks to cracks. Just before I started College at Southeast Community College for Precision Machining and Automation, my Dad and I took a road trip to our friends place in North Liberty, Iowa to pick up a complete 1964 327. I then brought it back and took a few night classes to machine and rebuild my motor myself and at that point I had decided that was the motor for the Coupe and that after looking through a few of the 60s Hot Rod Magazines and looking through plenty of Rodders Journals and their Scrapbook it would be cool to build a 60s style hot rod.
A few years prior to all this a great friend of mine that was helping me find a rearend for my 1937 Plymouth Coupe Gasser, I noticed he had a Model A coupe on his yard and asked and he assured me he wouldn't let it go and would get to it soon.. as time went by I hardly saw him for 2 years and when I finally saw him again he explained to me he was very sick and had gotten cancer...but he was feeling better and was taking care of it his own way without treatments. I kept in contact with him and occasionally checked up on him and soon lost contact with him again. Late this February, out of the blue I had a voicemail on our home phone from Tom asking to get a hold of him soon if I was still interested in his coupe. I was so excited to not only get the opportunity to buy the car I wanted before but to actually hear Tom feeling good!
As a couple weeks went by and discussing prices we settled on $1200 for the coupe and the extra parts he had for it to make it as perfect as he could for me. We loaded it all up and talked about me coming out more often to help him out around the place and maybe buy a few other parts and possibly a 57 Harley. We kept talking occasionally and he once again became very weak and ill and couldn't hardly talk at all.. The man must have known his time was soon.. In mid July Tom Passed and I took it pretty hard as I was in school and couldn't go to the rosary or funeral. Instead that weekend I did what I thought he'd rather see me do and we went to the KKOA Show in Salina, Ks to get more Ideas of what I was going to do with his coupe. Since I felt it was the best way to honor a great friend his car became my main project and main goal for the next few years ahead!

(This Is the Current Project Coupe!!!)

 

Tom also had another sweet as old hot rod drag car I tried buying but couldn't see myself paying what he wanted for it even though it was seriously one badass car. Sad part is that it was caught in a field fire before he acquired it..
A 28-29 Coupe made roadster with a 348 tripower 4speed. Wild ass looking front susp. and a huge roll bar and a big ass weight in the trunk.

 

A few Better Picture after she came home!

 

Looks like an awesome start to your build!! The new body is much better. Looking foreward to your build!

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Lookin good! That body looks pretty solid!

 

Looks good man.im putting together a 31 as well. Just got mine from an old timer in nc.
ford for life

 

Awesome project!

 

goodluck man

 

Thanks guys I will keep posting more tomorrow!

 

That thing rules. You said ass a lot

 

What can I say Im an Ass kind of guy

 

Good for you man. Good to see another 60's build! Good luck!

Hack

 

sorry about your buddy tom. sweet score man. you have any pics of the 57 harley?

 

Never got the chance to see it. Only told me about it.
Thank you though.

 

...good luck on the build

 

You have got a good start to your build! Good luck with it.

 

Great find. Hope your build goes well. Definitely a big Ass project


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We then moved the coupe inside to work on pulling the junk rearend and old frontend off so we could begin bracing and jigging up the frame to straighten things up and make it all square. We used unistrut and the floor to keep everything square and at the correct ride height at the front half of the frame and splice the frame to create the right rake I was looking for. Through this time I assembled my frontend and smoothed up my front wishbones. I had already done my front brakes in high school for a project in Skills USA State competition. I had to go and get a 59 Ford Fairlane 4 door that we had gotten a while back for scrap price so I had a great 9" rearend to use with one of my posi center sections I paid $75 for. Also throughout this time I had a problem with buying more crap I really didn't need but, the price and temptation always gets to me... I bought a 26-27 Model T Sedan body got a price i couldn't pass up....$200. 1953 Chrysler 331 Hemi, Not Stuck... given to me. And one of the 2 Buick Nailheads my dad bought for $50 each. Oh and these "new" never used Goodyear Bluestreak 14X8 Slicks a guy gave me. More to come!

 

The Coupe my dad selfishly traded for wheels and tires in the early 70's that started the whole hunt for me.
The 59 Ford and the rearend I'm going to be using!
My Brookeville Dash and 33-34 Mopar Gauges.
The Cracked Enemy- Flathead I gambled on that turned over and almost ran but was a crack whore.
And my best friends 30-31 5 Window.

 

Goodness Darrin you have some cool shit.

 

I got more lol you will see more as time goes on!


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You Nebraska boys have all the fun.

 

Man, great read! Nice to see a young dude into this hobby! Best of luck to you!


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I think I found my 1/4 windows man, an I have a nailhead too lol


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For my frontend I have a Chassis Engineering 4inch drop axle, a matched spring, split 40 front bones all smoothed up, speedway spindles, 46-48 Ford backing plates and 45 fin Buick drums.
We also decided to notch the frame and make the correct angle of rake. So at that point we had the front half of our frame set and straight.

 

How much was your axle?


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Darrin,
This looks to be off to a very good start. Only thing I see wrong is your work space is way to clean guy. (just joking) nice shop.....If you ever get close to Marquette stop by my shop as I would like to meet you and talk hot rods.
Mayor Dennis