What if you unchanneled the body? Car looks very long now....the unchannel would add some visual height to the car, so it wouldn't look soooooo long.
I seldom tell anyone how to do things, only how or what I would do. So here ya go do with it what you want. First I'd check tire pressure, sounds silly I know. Light cars don't cause much tire squat under low air pressure. Next I'd get the car off the ground and grab a front Tire by hand and turn it Stop to Stop to feel resistance. If it's tight or hard to turn by hand find out why. Next I'd shake the rear side to side and see just how far it will go. It shouldn't go much at all if any. Then I'd remove the rear shocks and coils to see what's moving and why. If everything checks out good borrow a set of Fresh radial tires, put them on and go for a drive. Some time is the simple things that get away from us. Believe it or not Rubber has a life span of usage. Tires get old and Stiff and just stop working. Most don't believe that till it's proven to them. 10 year old tires with deep tread grooves is still a Junk tire. The Wizzard
On your brake pedal I always ask people what is your natural reaction under emergency when some one pulls out in front of you? It's right foot to the brake, not left. Now think about the first time you let your Squeeze drive it and that happens. You don't need heat to bend the shifter handle. It's tubeing. I use a V belt pulley, keeps from kinking the tube. The Wizzard
alright pist-n-broke i went through your check list aside from removing rear shocks and coils. i have 30 psi all the way around (i have no frame of reference for what this type of tire should be aired up to) jacked up the front and its pretty smooth no tight or rough spots shook the back and it was pretty solid good point on the brake pedal, back to the drawing board on that one the shifter is safe to bend where i need it to? im going to go ahead and use the v belt pulley method you mentioned im looking into my options to ditch these center bolt valve covers, i keep seeing tall and short valve cover options which one is the go to
There are Date codes on tires. Google is your friend there. Your probably good at 30, it should be on the tire. Again check your Caster or have it done. 6 to 8 is a good place to start. Less than 4 and your all over the road.
IDK, Brett, I'm not sure that triangle is doing what it's intended to do. It looks like a V that's solid at the point and connected to the rear in the center with a leaf spring shackle. I don't think I've seen a triangulated setup quite like that before and I'm skeptical of that shackle there. Also, your tires may just need to be balanced.
patmanta your right. That should be a pretty ridged mount. We are use do seeing a heavy slip tube set up that don't allow flex. Apex rod is not my first choice. Personally I'd change to a Track locator on the lower 4 bar. The Wizzard
This is a good point. Plus, once you have your spring over setup, you can always take that next step sometime later down the road, using the same parts, if you decide you need to.
is it even a possibility to un-channel this body on this narrow frame without it looking funky. im not sure what else a guy could do as far as pedal room aside from getting a narrower brake pedal and moving the throttle down some.
Un-channel gives more foot room.....which is very limited in a T. Spring over a DROPPED AXLE would shorten wheelbase and sit low. Taller windshield would make it more fun to drive at speed. This T looks great with body sitting on top of frame.
Not much for inspiration, but I have a 27 on 32 Ford Frame, and the Tardell 27 has been my go too as well. Sent from my SM-N920P using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
@graceandco @ChuckleHead_Al Nice roadster...and nice air filters!! @torqueshop That's definitely a Deuce (1932) Grill!!
Something else just occurred to me. Have you thought about moving your gauges and cutting a relief in your dash panel?
Well I managed to check a couple things off the list today. I got rid of that ugly air cleaner and replaced it with a 14" k&n pre charger. and got rid of the head light covers patmanta am i missing something with the dash? i dont follow what you mean. also i check the trans tunnel and there is zero room to dish it out. i dont mind the fab work and they do look alot better unchanneled so i may go that route.
I would think long and hard about raising the body to gain foot room. From where I sit it only seems to me all you will gain by doing all that work is more space from the top of the floor to the bottom of the dash. Is the dash causing you any issues with your Foot? Raising the body will Not create any more space for the Brake pedal, steering shaft or move the Trans cover. How can that give you more foot room for the Gas pedal? The floor pan is going to Stay as the floor pan is. By the way, that's a Shit Load of work. The Wizzard
pedals are a seperate issue, i was thinking on unchanneling it to make the car look more proportioned and to set me down in the car farther. the dash is pretty low it would hit the top of my shin if the seat didnt set me back so far
If the body is channeled 3 or 4" and you un-channel it, you gain 3 or 4" of interior height. Every inch you gain is helpful. Three or four inches is a lot of extra room in a confined area.
I hate to bring you down since I like your plan for this car overall, but as far as a traditional hot rod look goes, a K&N filter is about the least traditional looking air cleaner possible. The Cadillac one sat up awfully high compared to the top of the cowl and was also painted up kinda dorky but it was at least a period correct part that was a popular swap onto cars. I'm not really sure what specific period you're trying to achieve overall but that air cleaner kinda feels like a step back. A cast aluminum scoop might be a better choice, or even if you are able to cut out the base of the Cadillac air cleaner and make it drop over the carb more without restricting airflow too much, then repaint it, that would be good too.
im not really going for period correct im just going for what appeals to me personally. i put k&n filters on everything i own. this particular one came off an engine that i sold out of my C-10 project so it didnt cost me anything and i personally think it looks ten times better than that gawdy cadillac. when i have a few extra bucks that i dont need to invest somewhere else in the car i may spring for an oval finned aluminum air cleaner but for now this suits me.
If the car is in drivable condition and safe and legal ,then get in it and drive the hell out of it , have fun with it, let it be seen,change the miner things that YOU dislike to YOUR likes,then go drive it again on the hottest days and on the rainy crappy days ,just be very careful most states are against that but sometimes you cannot help it ,get that water and dirt spray in your face and the sun , and wind, burns on your skin of being a bike guy you should know about that that part of it ,these cars are very sensitive to weather conditions and after all of that and YOUR OK with it then drive it some more in joy it have fun meet new people,you will,here what they have to say , disregard most of it, take in other people's comments , ideas and suggestions ,they will come, disregard most of them,and keep on driving and having fun then when it's time to make some changes that involves the car to be torn down plan it for the off seasons if at all possible believe me I know what it's like to build from payday to payday....All I'm saying is get in and in joy the ride and the fact that it's yours and its what YOU want and like, you will I enjoyed the hell out of mine.... Sent from my QTAQZ3 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Un-Channeling this car would indeed be A LOT of work for the sake of being able to dish the trans tunnel. What I meant with the dash is, look at cutting it up so your leg can move between the pedals easier. That looks like a 32 style dash insert which swings lower than a stock 27 T dash. Also, what's going on with your seating? That's another suspect for bad ergonomics and an easy place to start. Show us your seats. Do you feel too far forward or back in them? Do you feel too high or too low in them? I think now that I have slept on it, that the seating situation is the place to start and may be the culprit. Another option to consider after the other things, is ditching the spoon gas pedal and converting it to a bottom hinged pedal.
Here are some proportions to consider: highboy your T body on TT frame rails, kicked up in the rear to your liking, and suicide up front. There's plenty of clearance underneath for driving -- the pic was taken in a riverbed. I've put about 40,000 miles on the car since 2010, and every failure lets me make the car a little better.
I was just thinking the same thing. And @Ric Dean is right, cowl steer would let you put your pedals just about wherever you want them.
the seats are another thing i would like to redo the ones in it now are just a peice of ply wood with cushion for the bottom the cowl steering sounds like the easiest way to go about it. i may be wrong but it seems like i can use my steering set up i have now if i mount it in the body out of the way and all i would have to do is get longer connections? the
Cowl steering done PROPERLY requires structural support fastened to the frame , usually steel tubing in an inverted U similar to a roll bar...if you want to do your own fabrication see " my single seat racer build " by ONECOOLCAT, he did a nice job
Pist n Broke is on the right track. Leave your front axle where it is. Mint out everything plus the alignment, etc. as already suggested. Is the front axle square to the rear axle? It might not be. Is your Ackerman close to correct? It might not be. I would leave the body channeled as it is. You can work around the ergonomic issues. Focus on minting out and dialing in what you have mechanically and dealing with the obvious cosmetic - the red, the air cleaner, the grille and all that. That gets you a vehicle you can drive and not be ashamed of without taking it all apart and starting a science project you may never finish and it might still drive shitty. Make the motor look vintage, too. Definitely. If it has an HEI distributor, replace with conventional points. Go old school on what you have - dialed in - it will be killer.
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