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Features 1932 Ford project -Have you ever cut a car in half?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by modelacitizen, Jul 15, 2013.

  1. ChopTopJimmy
    Joined: Mar 14, 2007
    Posts: 1,451

    ChopTopJimmy
    Member

    Very cool father and son project. Enjoy the times that you spend together working on this. Keep the pics coming. CTJ
     
  2. ss34coupe
    Joined: May 13, 2007
    Posts: 4,239

    ss34coupe
    Member

    It is too bad that they cut up so many 32-34 Ford coupes back in the day to make race cars. Glad to see you bringing this 32 coupe back to the street where it belongs. It is something I like doing as well, and there are two old race car coupes in my garage now. The red one is a 33 and is now the black one - and the white coupe is a 34 I recently picked up, waiting its turn. Takes a lot of time and effort, but you will get it done!
     

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  3. I was wondering if your frame had been narrowed as well but the K member will take care of that anyway. My cabriolet body was shortened 14" and sectioned at the belt line as well. It looks like the sectioning of your 5 window was done at the very bottom. That is a very good thing, if it had to happen at all. The firewall and a new deck lid will be all you need to "benchmark" the width. The b pillars will guide you for the height. You guys are off to a great start. Looking forward to the build. Tim
     
  4. rcnut223
    Joined: Oct 12, 2006
    Posts: 1,275

    rcnut223
    Member
    from wisconsin

    Here's one cut in half the other way! :)
     

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    kidcampbell71 likes this.
  5. alchemy
    Joined: Sep 27, 2002
    Posts: 20,405

    alchemy
    Member

    I think you found half a fordor RC.
     
  6. six pack to go
    Joined: Aug 2, 2008
    Posts: 1,938

    six pack to go
    Member
    from new jersey

    Good luck buddy, cant wait to see it on the street!
     
  7. nailhead terry
    Joined: Mar 23, 2008
    Posts: 1,458

    nailhead terry
    Member

    Mine was chopped wrong and the cowl was screwed so cut mine in about 15 parts it's just a puzzle keep at it
     
  8. Looks like a great project! I'll be watching.
     
  9. desotot
    Joined: Jan 29, 2008
    Posts: 2,036

    desotot
    Member

    It's definately a worthwhile project.
     
  10. fortynut
    Joined: Jul 16, 2008
    Posts: 1,038

    fortynut
    Member

    I'd say it was great for those that cut up so many old cars back in the day. They were there, and just leaning back in my chair and thinking of how much fun they had racing those cobbled together monsters around a dirt race track gives me goose bumps. By the very fact they did such wild and crazy stuff makes these cars all the more alluring today. And, if they whacked up a few, more power to them. When I was growing up, cars like the narrowed deuce, that is being normalized, raced at the track where sprint cars were king, and were referred to as 'B' cars. A lot of them ran inline sixes, and they were some of the buzzingist engines imaginable, and could hot lap faster than some of the sprints. I'm speaking, of course, of the fifties and early sixties before sprints got wings, and in the period where jalopy races had been separated from the more powerful and faster purpose-built cars that raced on tracks that are still part of circuits in the South, and Mid-West, and for the most part remain in an updated, and certainly faster form today. By the very fact this car, and the other one, shown, participated in racing, to me, gives it a special vibe unlike the unmolested cousins that are preferred by many. Bragging rights are to be preferred over other attributes, and I have to say that when you have this one going, you'll have earned a few, including the history as described.
     
  11. the-rodster
    Joined: Jul 2, 2003
    Posts: 6,945

    the-rodster
    Member

    You're right.

    You have a car with SOUL.

    Can't duplicate that with a repro body.

    Rich
     
  12. Hurley50
    Joined: Feb 3, 2012
    Posts: 596

    Hurley50
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from NC

  13. hotrodsneverdie
    Joined: Jul 17, 2006
    Posts: 754

    hotrodsneverdie
    Member

  14. mike bowling
    Joined: Jan 1, 2013
    Posts: 3,560

    mike bowling
    Member

    Looked pretty cool to me the way you bought it.For sure would have had people doing double takes trying to figure out why it looked different. Great find whatever you do- congrats to you and your partner in crime. (I just went back and checked out the pictures again and noticed the "non-skid" pad on the rear 1/4 to climb in through the roof.Really COOL rig!)
     
    Last edited: Mar 16, 2014
  15. woodbutcher
    Joined: Apr 25, 2012
    Posts: 3,310

    woodbutcher
    Member

    :D More fun to come.
    Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
    Leo
     
  16. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    Glad to be putting that winter behind us. My dad sold his 28 Chevy and now the deuce is tucked safely in the garage. We continued work as much as possible over the winter. The frame continues to be our focus. The more we worked on the frame, the more problems we uncovered. Cracks, bends, twists, dimples and bondo. yeah bondo. But we have set our course and we will set this thing right. We completed our jig and finished removing the crappy boxing plates that ran the length of both frame rails. We purchased a nice set of original '32 frame blueprints and we are going inch by inch checking everything. Thankfully many of the original mounting holes for the cross members and sub floor mounts revealed them selves as we continued work. So once we have rails tacked to the jig we be able to use these landmarks to help sort out all the issues. Its a labor of love for sure. Time well spent with dad.
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    kidcampbell71 likes this.
  17. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    The work on these frame rails was so horrible... they had these super shady looking rear frame extensions welded on to them. We had the rails sitting on cinder blocks at one point and I was removing part of an old bracket with a hammer and chisel when suddenly the welds on the rear extension literally sheared off. Whoever did the 'fabricating' on this thing should forever be banned from holding a tool again. What a mess!
     
  18. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Good save, that should be a nice one when you guys get done.
     
  19. cheesegrater
    Joined: Sep 1, 2011
    Posts: 114

    cheesegrater
    Member
    from california

    Treat it just like a big ol steak & just fix one piece at a time & another sugesstion dont jump around & leave a lot of unfinished things.Get the frame dialed in first that way you have a nice starting point
     
  20. Glad to see someone else who is making gems from junk. Good luck!

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  21. Any updates?

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  22. mgtstumpy
    Joined: Jul 20, 2006
    Posts: 9,214

    mgtstumpy
    Member

    Progressing nicely. Not that hard to get back to OEM dimensions and worth the effort. :) There is a fellow down under over on the west coast who widened a glass 32 coupe to use OEM Jag IFS & IRS and install a Bentley W12 engine. Well executed but FUGLY IMHO!!! Just because you can do something doesn't mean that it should be done.
     
  23. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    Thanks guys. We FINALLY got all the ugly poorly constructed junk off the frame. We now have the project in a forward gear so to speak. At some point the passenger frame rail had been crunched really badly. It split and kinked at the crest of the sweep over the rear axle. Then it was haphazardly welded back together with a horrible bulge in it. So we split it back apart at the old weld and my dad did several hours worth of hammer and dolly work on it to massage it back in to place. We also started laying out our measurements on the jig so that we will have precise, established points by which to measure the frame. So the next step is to get the frame rails mounted on the jig and start getting this thing back to oem spec.
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  24. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    Its been a while. We've continued working. Slowly but surely. The frame continues to be the focus of our efforts. It's getting there though. At this point we have managed to get rid of the worst of the buckles, splits, twists and dents. We have welded the rear frame extensions on and things are lining up as planned. We need to address some issues with the front frame horns next but the worst of this mess is behind us now. Looking forward to getting our fish plates welded in and boxing this sucker.
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  25. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    ok... its been way too long since I updated this. Life has thrown us a bunch of curveballs but we are continuing to make progress. We handed the frame over to a local hot rod shop to have to some final straightening done on it before we start welding on suspension brackets. I think our hard work was worth it. The owner of the shop said it's one of the nicest deuce frames he's seen. Oh and we also finally got around to cutting the body in half so we can restore it to it's proper width. We will have several more pics soon.
    disaster_zps04dc05be.jpg DSCF0001_zpse1384dc9.jpg DSCF0004_zps4b0280f5.jpg DSCF0005_zpse1423b9a.jpg DSCF00043_zps82fa02a4.jpg DSCF00062_zpsab0477f7.jpg DSCF00102_zps4507bebb.jpg DSCF00112_zpsc9c56196.jpg IMG_1435.JPG IMG_1440.JPG IMG_1441.JPG IMG_1443.JPG IMG_1444.JPG Untitled-1copy_zpsaa969d1a.jpg
     
    brEad, slv63, kidcampbell71 and 3 others like this.
  26. modelacitizen
    Joined: Jun 24, 2006
    Posts: 878

    modelacitizen
    Member

    okayyyy... progress. The frame is finally back together and squared up. The body is finally sitting at its proper height and width. Now... on to the patching. And there is a lot of it haha
    DSCF0003.JPG DSCF0004.JPG DSCF0014 (1).JPG DSCF0015 (1).JPG DSCF0018.JPG DSCF0019.JPG DSCF0003.JPG DSCF0004.JPG DSCF0014 (1).JPG DSCF0015 (1).JPG DSCF0018.JPG DSCF0019.JPG DSCF0003.JPG
     
    Ric Dean, patmanta, brEad and 4 others like this.
  27. Squablow
    Joined: Apr 26, 2005
    Posts: 17,388

    Squablow
    Member

    I hadn't seen this project before, neat to see the progress, it'll be all worth it in the end, good work so far. Many would have thrown in the towel and bought a new frame but glad to see this one saved.
     
    slv63 likes this.
  28. big duece
    Joined: Jul 28, 2008
    Posts: 6,830

    big duece
    Member
    from kansas

  29. Ever cut a car in half ? yep just the other way...
     

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    kidcampbell71 likes this.
  30. 392
    Joined: Feb 27, 2007
    Posts: 1,206

    392
    Member

    I love these old threads, cool build.
     

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