Projects 1928 Model A 2 dr Phaeton Build

Well Peter, you either work fast or we all answer questions slow. The new hanging pedal set up certainly solved the under floor issues, and the gas cap in the rear panel solved the filling issue. Please don't let this comment piss you off, but with your drive and talent, you could have hidden the gas filler behind a flat door that could hinge under the belt line and with decent gaps the whole thing would have disappeared when painted. INMHO gas caps, including the ones on my 40 fenders, look like a pimple on the end of a nose.

 

No worries. I considered a gas door, but it would be equally incorrect as the initial plan to recess the license plate panel and hide the filler behind the license plate. Since I was unable to find period photos or documents showing either option, I fell back to the Priority #1: 1955-Period Correct. The guys back then would've just grafted on an old ford fuel filler neck and done a rear mounted fuel tank/cell.

I know 98% of car guys wouldn't care about the presence of a fuel door, but I'm building this one because I'm part of the other 2%.

~Peter

 

Looking good. I bet if you paint that clutch master black it would vanish. You also won’t likely have anyone laying in the ground looking in your open drivers door all that often.

 

Got the oil pump and pan installed finally. Made sure to spend some extra time getting all the gaskets perfectly aligned and also took the time to redo the flywheel safety wire.



Then I got it mounted on the Engine Test Stand. I realized awhile ago that due to the water pump/motor mounts, that it would be difficult to paint the engine on anything other than the test stand. That way I can get even coverage on all areas without having to move anything.

So I tried a new method this time, I sprayed down the concrete all around the engine with water prior to each coat of paint, this mimics what is done in full-size spray booths to trap dust. Worked really well, and at the end all I have is just some reddish water to squeegee into the drain. No dust all over the shop.



I made a cardboard cover to the exact dimensions of the intake gasket, and Saran-wrapped an extra pair of headgaskets I had to cover the head surface. Worked really well and far quicker than taping and trimming all those edges.

Started with an adhesion promoter and high-temp Primer:


I already fully painted the oil pan, so I'm mostly focusing on the other areas of the bare block.



First coat of color going on. I'm using a Dark Ruby Red that's hard to capture in photos. It's much darker and richer in person. Sorry for the overexposed pics.


I shot 2 coats of Engine Clear over top. This is above and beyond what they would've done back in the day, but it makes it SO easy to clean and detail vs Single Stage engine paint.

I'll let the paint cure overnight before unmasking and moving on to the next stage.



Should be getting heads and intake installed next and start getting all the little things setup for start-up and break-in!

~Peter

 

So, can you show us the paint products that you used on the engine? I’m sure you have a system as you do restorations. Always looking for new and better products. Thanks

 

My process for Engines differs slightly from general autobody painting, so I'll lay it out here for you.

I try and stick with Aeresols for a couple of reasons, namely because they're so quick to spray and require almost no equipment maintenance or purchases. I've tried VHT, Eastwood, Rustoleum, etc... and the best for me is Duplicolor. For a higher-temp surface like an Engine, it's never let me down. Sprays even, dries shockingly fast, and results in a very durable surface.

So this applies to engines that have already been cleaned/hot tanked by a machine shop.

Step 1: Degrease. I use Duplicolor's Foaming Prep Spray: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/shw-ps200
Spray it on, let it sit for 30secs and then go over it with a paper towel. This gets any remaining oils off the bare surface. This is important so that you aren't contaminating your scuff pads

Step 2: Scuff Pad. I use 3M Maroon Scuff pads to go over every surface. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/...QLgwKaFrlAjlxZBIKi4slazMSm2NEHwxoCKcQQAvD_BwE
This helps dull the finish on fasteners to encourage paint adhesion, and also lets paint stick to surfaces that were painted from the manufacturer (like the water pumps in this case).

Step 3: Tack Cloth. Get all that dust you just made off the engine.

Step 4: Prep Spray again. This time I use the PS100 because it dries very quickly and leaves no residue: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/shw-ps100

Wipe off with a low-lint paper towel: https://www.uline.com/Product/Detai...5Z83l4zjNwiAC9E34_VNDyNYlL0KCfhBoCdmsQAvD_BwE

Step 5: Adhesion Promoter. This one is a little unorthodox. It's meant for helping prep plastics for painting, but I find it works perfectly in this intermediate step to get the primer to stick to any zinc-plated fasteners and especially to any exposed gasket edges or bits of silicone sealer. https://www.duplicolor.com/product/adhesion-promoter/

Step 6: Engine Primer. Duplicolor makes a great Engine Primer, I just wish it came in colors other than light grey. Makes it difficult to paint Black motors especially with that light base coat. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/shw-de1612

Step 7: Basecoat. I would typically use a Duplicolor product here as well, but their Red is just too bright for what I wanted. So I picked up GM Red from Seymour on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0088LVBUQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The following is how I do all primer/paint steps on an engine.

I do multiple coats. First, I start at every nook and cranny that's difficult to get at. I go around the entire engine and make sure to get coverage into those areas first, because they'll be easiest to get at now. After the first pass with that method, I then go back and hit the overall areas, don't worry about total coverage at this point, just get a good medium coat on everything. 3rd pass is coming back and touching up light spots and making sure everything is coated. I then grab a super bright LED flashlight. I prefer LEDs that are White so you get a poor-man's "Sun Gun". This is handy for ensuring the coverage is even. The grey primer helps here, because it will be glaringly obvious to see in contrast to the dark Red. Any touchup areas get hit with light coats, always making sure not to get runs or splotches.

I used 1 3/4 Cans of the Red to paint this engine, including fully painting the Oil Pan in advance.

Step 8: Clear Coat. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/shw-de1636

As I said above, Clear isn't traditional and some folks don't want their engine to look "wet", but for a driver, it's a must! Spill a little oil on this engine, and you can wipe it off with a rag and leave zero residue. The clear from Duplicolor is a Hybrid-Ceramic for performance in high-temp environments, and is also Gas and Chemical Resistant.

I'll typically do 2-3 light coats of clear. This will harden overnight, but doesn't truely set until the engine is fired up and gets to temperature.

They've held up over the years and I'm very satisfied; and the fact that anyone can replicate their performance in their home-garage speaks volumes to the quality of the product line. I'm not sponsored by them, I just get wholesale pricing through O'Reilly's through my business.

~Peter

 

Thank you for the detailed process. I have never clear coated an engine, but may do so for the next one. It makes sense.
Enjoying your whole build, thanks for sharing.

 

Engine assembly is in it's final stages now.

Got the new ARP studs installed with the recommended sealant.


Then got the Edelbrock heads installed. I really splurged on the studs, and the ARP washers & Acorns really do help justify the expense. They also look really nice without being too flashy.



Before installing the heads, I did check Spark Plug Reach. I wanted to see the difference between the .437 (B6L)


The .500 (BPR6HS)


And the .750 that Edelbrock recommends (BPR6ES)


I'm sure I'll ultimately go with the .750 reach since that's apparently fine with these heads, but I figured better safe than sorry when it comes to ensuring the plug is the right length. Don't want any shrouding going on.

Intake is next on the list. Still need to port the new one and get it painted.

~Peter

 

Making Good progress.

 

The engine looks great, such a simple things makes a great difference.

 

I recommend spinning the engine a couple times, then checking the electrodes. If they hang down too much they will become too familiar with the valves.

 

Will do, I previously measured valve and piston clearance to these heads, but always worth another test. Thanks for the tip!

~Peter

 

This intake originally was on a 59A Flathead in a 1934 Ford Truck we owned, so I'm sentimentally excited to breathe new life into it.

Started out pretty grungy, and someone in the past did a half-ass attempt at removing the Offenhauser logo, so my first job was getting it cleaned up and get that area repaired.

^I'm replacing the Generator stud with a new Stainless assembly I picked up.

So, I'm not a fan of mixing speed parts, for example, Edelbrock heads and Offenhauser intake. That's just my own little personal preference, so I decided to finish the job and remove the Offenhauser letters from this one.

I have a certain belt for my finger sander that does a really nice job on aluminium.



I painted the intake Cast Aluminum same as the heads. Did a single coat of clear just to make it easier to clean without getting too glossy.


Did a little polishing of the ports on the block side, and ported the carb-side to match the larger bore of the Big97 Strombergs.


Date code of 6/17/05 means this isn't a very old intake, but it's actually a pretty seldom seen one. I'm sure it'll get some curious looks san logo.

Should get it installed tomorrow. Engine assembly is going quick now!

~Peter

 

OK Mr Street Rodder, the 90s called and they want you back......

 

Progress looks great!

 

Ouch Tman, Rod&Custom maybe, but never Street Rodder.

 

Assembly continues:


I got a new phone, so now the ruby-red color shows up much better. Replaced the power-valves and jets on the Strombergs to get them close enough to start with for this application. I'll refine the settings once I get the cam broke in and get the engine running smoothly.

~Peter

 

Spent Christmas Eve in the shop working on the Flathead.

Got the carb linkage and lines done, the Stewart Warner Temp senders polished and installed, and made a coil bracket from an 8BA bracket.



It's really tough to find a liquid fuel PSI gauge that reads low enough for these cars, let alone one with a period/timeless style. This one just needed a quick polish and it screwed right into the Stromberg Banjo adaptors.

I'm re-using the original Ford Spark Plug looms, since they have a much better reputation for avoiding spark plug wire jumping like the cheap chrome individual looms.

Got all the Stromberg plug wires run and I'll get them terminated tomorrow. I'm going to run these black suppressed wires for now, and maybe upgrade to suppressed cloth ones down the road with more period ends.



The coil bracket was a happy little project. Took an original 8BA style bracket, flattened it out and added some length so it can bolt to the intake.


Really keeps it all nice and tidy while reducing the risk of anything getting caught in the belts.



I gotta do some final work on the headers before they go on the engine, and I still need to work out the fuel pump-rear carb line orientation.

Have a great weekend!

~Peter

 

Peter ... great vision, execution, attention to detail, and story line and photos .... which all shows what you do for a living. Most excellent.
God Bless and Merry Christmas

 

Ran into a few fitment issues with the Lakes Headers that I built, suffice it to say that they'll require some additional fabrication to work the way I plan, so I'm going to plan B in the interim.



Got a pair of Flowtech headers through Speedway, they fit good other than the outlet being 2.5" for some reason. That diameter would be good for a 392 Hemi, but looks silly on a 239ci Flathead. So the passenger side got necked down to a 2" mandrel bend to get it under the starter and headed in the right direction.


Temps should be okay for the starter for now, I'll likely end up ceramic coating the headers, so that will definitely cut down on the radiation. I left this side with that slip joint for now, I'm planning on 2-bolt flanges throughout the exhaust system to allow for easy removal and replacement of mufflers/pipes.



Passenger side got heavily modified to clear the Borgeson Vega steering box and linkage. It's still 2" overall surface volume, so gonna flow just fine, and once it's behind the steering linkage you won't really see the transitional area.





So other than the Fuel-Pump to Carb line and getting some radiator hoses, it's ready to run! Exciting times for sure!

~Peter

 

Cool project! Thanks for sharing your progress and your knowledge and talent. I am enjoying this.

 

That sounds healthy!

 

I've been enjoying this thread about your Model A flathead motor build. you've been calling your car a 29 but the three little mounting holes on the lower left rear of the body are for a body mounted tail light only used in 1928. Small things for small minds!

 

Correct, but it's titled as a 1929, so I figured I'd use that for legal reasons.
~Peter

 

Ran into the usual plethora of issues with getting an engine running. The biggest one is that I realized that the radiator on the Easy Run Stand was a crossflow orientation, which meant that each side of the hoses was just bypassing all the tubes and just flowing in and out the side tanks. So it was getting up to 220° within 10-15min of running. So I put together a quick means of installing the Aluminum radiator I'll actually be running, and that fixed that issue.



I got the fan spacing exactly like in the car, and it never got above 185°, no matter the RPM. Very happy with that. Now I'm going to get the headers back on the mockup engine so I can get the rest of the exhaust built and then install all that on the test stand for noise level tests.

Finally found a paint color that caught my eye, since everyone is doing Washington Blue now, I'm looking for a 30's-40's style blue that will be different but still appropriate.


This one is Glory Blue, hard to photograph since it changes color in various lights. It's a single-stage that will spray nice and be easy to polish and touchup as the years go on. I'm not 100% locked in, but I do need to make a decision in the next month or so.

~Peter

 

Looking good! Where did you source the hard to find psi gauge? Got a brand name?

 

Here's where I got it: https://www.ebay.com/itm/295221120443

Unfortunately, it's not working very well. Even though my rebuilt fuel pump is putting out 2-2.5lbs the gauge will sometimes read zero, and sometimes will read between 1-3psi, but never a stable reading. I'm still looking for a replacement. Luckily it's easy to change out. Though in this case I really don't need to worry about it since the OEM Ford pumps work just fine with strombergs.

~Peter

 

I feel like I found a similar looking even lower psi gauge on speedways website but I bet it’s been over a year. I think it may have had a small logo on the face but for the most part looked like it was supposed to. Might be worth a look?

 

Yeah, found a couple period-appropriate replacements there:
https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Mallory-29138-1-5-Diameter-Fuel-Pressure-Gauge,287822.html
https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Auto...Mechanical-Press-Gauge-1-1-2-0-15,113615.html

Thanks for the recommendation!

~Peter