I finally came by a '40 dash to install in my '29 RPU this winter and invite anyone to share pics of their Model A with a '40 dash. Any "in work" pics would be appreciated. Thanks.
Questions I have about the '40 dash install: 1. Is the '40 dash molded to the Model A gas tank?? or bolted?? 2. If the '40 dash is molded in, can it still be somehow removed for interior maintenance, repair, etc?? 3. Is the Model A dash rail still used after installation of the '40 dash?? Would really appreciate hearing from someone who has done this and/or seeing "in work" pics of the process. Thanks in advance. Russ V.
This is a quick report on the start of my install project. I blew the car apart and am now trying to get the steering column and dash to work together in the new arrangement. First pic is of the current gauge panel...pain in the butt to try to work on..and it has been there since 1980, so I guess it is time to go for the '40 Ford unit. FWIW: The '40 dash is a near-perfect fit width-wise, but is much deeper (hangs down lower) than the Model A gas tank dash, so we either have to live with this or make some alterations to allow the existing tilt steering column live where it has been for the last 25 years. The reason I pulled the cowl off the car is that the car will get a full new set of wires for 2014. Access means a lot to us old dudes!! My buddy, Sheldon Freels, lives in Overgaard, Arizona and came down to make sure nothing dumb was done. He is a very experienced and talented street rodder.
Bolted in .... narrowed between glove box and gauge panel, ashtrays filled ..... formed metal in area of posts .... gauge panel enlarged ,glove box door narrowed...
I love the look of the Tombstone roadster dash....different. Here is a pic of another '40 dash in a '29 roadster that I came across on the HAMB.
The '40 dash was mocked up in postion...the upper lip was temporarily clamped under the cowl hoop and then the dash was bolted through the ash tray access, using 1/4-20 bolts. With this done, I could calculate how much the steering column needed to be repositioned...and then how much I had to cut out of the bottom of the dash for steering column clearance. Pics show cutting the column mounting at the base of the firewall to allow repositioning of the steering column and new brackets to remount the upper portion of the column. Also shown is me committing hari cari surgery on a near perfect '40 dash to let the column raise up a couple of inches into the base of the dash. When I am satisfied that the steering column and dash will live together, I will fab a new 1/2-tunnel at the base of the dash for the column.
Looking good so far. Glad you didn't narrow it as much as in the Tombstone roadster. Something gets lost when you have to whack too much out of it. You know you're gonna want to put a '40 wheel on there once you get everything worked out. One thing leads to another. Isn't that the way it always works?................Don.
thanks for looking. I cut the ashtray out and it fit like it was made for it.I welded it to the model a rail so it bolts in or out. It looks better with the glove box and gauges in
When I put a '39 dash in a '30 "A" I cut about 1" from each end and it fit very good. welded it in compleatly ...but then I removed the fuel tank also. That 51 dash looks good also.
UPDATE #3 Because form follows function, and cockpit comfort is a priority, I cut the gauge panel opening loose from the dash and raised it 1 1/2" and welded it back in again. To ensure the opening dimensions were not changed, I made up a wooden buck from a hunk of 2x6 plank and fitted it into the opening during the surgery. With the gauge face opening repositioned, I now had plenty of room to lift the tilt column into a comfortable position and allowed for the column-mounted ignition/start switch to function. A hunk of 18 ga was formed and welded into the base of the dash to provide a channel for the column. Rattle can primer made it look like I had made some progress. Check out the pics. Next step is to deal with the dash ends, drill and bolt the dash to the top rail, weld in the lower column opening back into the firewall.
UPDATE #4 I am finding that mounting the dash into a Model A roadster is no biggie, but making it work with my tilt column made a lot of awkward fabrication and changes to the column mounting necessary, as well as raising the gauge opening in the dash. Unanticipated challenges. I now have the steering column adjustments made, dash and column living together, and decided to take a breather and mock up a glove compartment box out of cardboard....mostly as a diversion from working at the base of the steering column. Original fuel tank face has been mostly cut away and is in the discard pile. It's gonna be pretty neat having a glove box!! I have a hunk of 6061 aluminum to mill for the gauge mounting...and dash ends still have to be finished.
Update #5 We are on the final stretch...dash ends are filled in, dash fit has been verified, and now finishing touches get applied. Gauges have been purchased from a fellow HAMBer, should work out great. Pics show the dash ends in raw metal and my crude pre-Painless/Ron Francis electrical center built in 1980. It will be replaced with a really neat unit from NEXUS Wireworks, Lethbridge...looking forward to upgrading.
REPORT #6 Hope I'm not boring anyone, but just had to share a couple of "back in the car" pics with mock-up gauge panel installed. I also got a gennie gauge panel trim ring with the dash, so that was definately a good thing. Check out the indent I fabbed for the ignition/start key access. Not traditional, but I originally put that column in the car in 1980.. Some of you guys were still out on the playground. I love the '40 dash look...gives the roadster a fresh look!! Russ V.
Hey, if you are going to go to the trouble of mocking up the gauges, at least have it doing 100 mph..."am I wrong?!" LOL! Looks great, nice work.
REPORT #7B] With metal work on the dash complete, it went to the sandblaster, and I figured that the headers built by Mark Weiss in SoCal many years ago deserved high temp power coating, so off they went also. In the mean time, we reinstalled the cowl back on the car. Anyway, the dash is back from sandblasting, headers are gleaming and back on the roadster, VDO gauges purchased from fellow HAMBer, Sal Seda in Winter Park, Florida have arrived. They were a great deal....nice to have HAMB-associated help out there in the world. Pics tell the story. Now on to the Super Bowl party. (Go Denver)
Hey Russ, great to see you working on another cool project and Shel keeping an eye on you ;~) That dash is coming along nicely, you do good work. Just about got that y-block ready to start, gonna be a nice engine. And thanks again for your hospitality that day! Bryan.
There's a lot of work involved in putting a 1940 dash in a 28 29 Model A versus a 30 31 Model A. Good work! Posted using Full box of Crayons on the Kitchen Walls App!
REPORT # 8 I concluded that the dash would look better with the radio mounting hole filled in, so it is. And, with help from Crazy Steve on the HAMB, I was able to sort out the wiring maze coming out from the steering column...(signal and horn wires)...by function. One at a time. Steve was a prince for jumping in to help. Anyway, the column wires are now sorted and attached to a terminal strip inside the firewall. The Nexus Wiring CDP (Central Distribution Panel) is beginning to be wired and life is good here in sunny, sandy Arizona. Pics document the progress.
REPORT # 9 Final report Proof of the pudding is in the pictures!! The dash was primed, final gauge mount was hole saw'd and made to fit and then it was all assembled. I still have not decided whether to fill in the clock opening in the glove box door.... And still need to get the gauge mount plate to a machinest for fluting, but that does not mean I can't drive the car and enjoy the new look!! Hope this exercise in upgrading my ride was not tooo boring!
MORE DASH WORK, Jan '15 Proof that a real hot rod is never really finished follows. The car made it through the summer up in Montana, but I was not really pleased with how the tilt steering column was forced to "sorta" fit below the dash panel. I took the dash apart and cut the gauge section from the dash and rewelded that section another 1 1/2" higher, and then made dramatic provision for raising the tilt steering column up higher. This will allow full tilting action and keep the steering wheel up out of the way of my beer gut....getting in and out of the cockpit. Pics tell what was done.
REPORT 10 Final dash install report. The repositioned gauge portion of the dash allowed for lifting the tilt steering column all the way to the "up" position which provided easier entry into the cockpit. I now have mini indicator lites for ign, turn signals, and idiot gen failure lite working. This install is very do-able, but providing for the tilt steering to work properly forced a lot of extra work. But in the end, I am pleased. Pics tell the last tale.
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