After a few years of wanting a model a coupe I finally got my hands on one. (Would’ve had it sooner if I didn’t have to buy a ring and pay for some of our wedding) but you know how that goes. Anyway. Grabbed a 1930 Model A coupe, bone stock and running. Originally I was going to keep the fenders on it and just lower it to make it look a little gangster’ish coupe but after sitting in it and then looking at it the fenders weren’t for me. After removing the fenders and wheels a fella local to me needed them to put his recently purchased 30 A back to stock since his did not come with fenders or wheels. So for the purests out there I took a stock car to hotrod but in return put one stock car back on the road. So that makes me a little happy in the end.
After stripping it down it was on to the interior. The wood floor was rough, door cards and kick panels tattered. Made up some new kick panels and door cards. Reused the original fabric off the kicks but the door panel fabric was too far gone. So I improvised with some fabric and foam from the local store.
Now we’re on to lowering the front. Purchased a reversed eye leaf and took out the 2 and 4 leaf. Ride is pretty nice. Found some 33/34 17” ford wires on Craigslist for 20 bucks! Bought some centers for hem and bias ply Firestone’s. 600s out back and 525s up front. Mounted the tires myself with a tire bar and i was off. In the rear i went with a set of 1950 Pontiac taillights. Hood sides were off and got some straps to keep those tops from bouncing around too. Cleaned the frame up a bit also. Driving it was a bit of a chore so I got in contact with FSI for one of their distributors. Popped that in, wired it and timing it runs great and a lot smoother. Changed plugs and all fluids throughout the car to get in in shape. Headlight hiboy mounts were tossed on there. Made a little cork screw gas line while I was at it.
Sorry for all he posts but I’m just catching up where I’ve been and this is where we’re at. The gas tank was slightly leaking. Guess where. Steering column mount. Owner before me had about 5 jb tank weld patch kits on it and still leaked. Time to get it done right. Got Bills epoxy tank kit to get this thing safe and no more smell of gas in the car. Also in doing that while it sits with cleaner in it the king pins were worn to hell and gave a death wobble while coming to a stop sometimes. So that’s getting in check with a whole kit and bearing kit. Found a nice complete 8ba Flathead out of a truck also.
Oh yea. I love it. Way better than building my 01 Camaro ss. The simplicity of these cars is amazing.
If you are running those wire wheels on the later '40-'48 drums remember you need adapters. Wire wheels will bolt on and appear to fit but you will eventually crack the lug nut holes. See: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/40-ford-wheels-on-a-model-a.750368/#post-8330045 Charlie Stephens
I would suggest you buy a later 31 stock drop mount for the steering column. It will bolt right in using existing holes in the dash rail. Will save you a lot of grief with future tank leaks. You can leave the old mount in position on the tank and I doubt anyone would notice. I doubt any kind of sealer will fix your leak if you mount the column back onto the tank.
62. I cleaned out the tank pretty good with the cleaner. Then etched it. I was looking at the mount and was thinking if I can weld all around it and weld on where the rivets are. If not I think the sealer will do it. It’s going to be a few week process but I plan on doing many coats and letting it sit tilted to that side of the mount. Doing a few coats properly I see no problem of it sealing up. This tank had no rust at all and was a very slight leak from one rivet after looking at it.
Gas tank is sealed. Tested it for a few days with gas sitting in it. No leaks so far. Tomorrow that will be going back in. Tore down the 8ba I got and the pan rails are cracked on both sides. Water must’ve froze in there sadly. But on a good note a great car friend said he had a Flathead in a storeage bin. Got it for free. I didn’t know what to say to him and just kept thanking him. Short block only but is in great condition and spins over nicely. Still going to tear down magnaflux, pressure test and freshen it up. Picked up a 87 F150 4speed OD also. RTS BU 26% overdrive. So that should be fine for the rest of the year with the 4 banger.
Looks like you got a great car to start with. Good luck with it! I'd be looking to add hydraulic brakes as soon as possible. Mechanical brakes just don't cut it now with all the idiots you'll find on the road. Had my '30 coupe out yesterday and some a-hole cut in front of me and slammed on the brakes. Came close to rear ending him.
Little update. Car was all together but was overheating a bit. Got rid of the trash radiator the previous owner had in it. Also for giggles since he gave me an extra head gasket I tossed that in too. Sure enough who ever put the last head gasket on was not curtious of keeping the copper flat. Some ends believe it or not we’re folded under and tighten down with the head. Also 2 cylinders were drinking coolant. After the radiator and gasket were in the car felt a lot more crisp and faster. Then the generator locked up and sheared the pulley off. Got a rebuilt one from a fella in Massachusetts and was off again. We did a 70 mike round trip so far and hit 60mph on a level area at one point.
One more thing I forgot was my friend came by and pinstriped the coupe. We peeled off the antique white sticker stripes and decided to go with red pins. It took some time to decide but he said “trust me” and I love it. Thank you for all the comments!
Cool car. Just a thought- a good running warmed up 4 banger will run like a v-8. I’ve got one in my 30 and I’m right up the road in Ma; if you want a test drive:
Thank you towd but I just love the Flathead v8. The banger is running like a top right now. Starts right up and drives fine. It’s just not the look I like or the sound.
Do you know how you are going to do your hydraulic brakes? I’m just curious how people plan on doing their model A’s now. Kit or piece together a system? Beautiful car by the way!
Thanks Candress. I was just looking into that now because my next step is to get to car lowered and doing the hydraulic brakes. Speedway sells the bendix backing plates all assembled is one way. I also found a complete set of 46-48 backing plates too. I’d like to keep it traditional with old stuff but he easy way and probably more safer way is to buy the assembled brakes and fan them to the car.
Looks like a nice car to start with. I just moved from Rhode Island. Love the plan to put the flathead in there. Some 7.50 tires in the rear would give you some better top end speed. Good luck. oh yeah if you put that modern transmission in there I'm gonna drown a bag of puppies.
First of all, I like what you doing with your coupe, "Banger" or "AV8", either one is cool and "traditional"! Please rethink the use of the Speedway stuff, after talking with them and finding out their stuff is from overseas (China I'm guessing) I decided to go with the old way of doing it, piecing it together! I am using the '40 - '42 stuff mainly cause I prefer the outboard drums. I found complete and loaded backing plates, with all new pieces except for the shoes, here on the H.a.m.b. for about $180.00. I have also found 3 new, US made, brake drums on EBay for a total of $200.00. I still need 1 more drum, a master cylinder and brake lines, then I will have what I need. It takes a little longer to find everything that way but it's so much cheaper! Following along....
There are several companies that are selling complete US made kit's, these are the Lincoln style bendix brakes and are 2" instead of the 1 3/4". From what I see, they are good quality parts but the price is way out of my league!
The Jalopy Journal
