Customs 1937 Dodge, Ol Bessie Is Coming Home

Great score mate! those bits are all in real good nick

 

Good spares against the next drunk driver. Got enough now to redo all four sides, cowl and full rear quarters if ever hit again. Might go back for the frame. It's perfect though a bit short for the dodge but could also serve as a spares supply. I think the hood and grill shell can sell though. They are different and I already have 2 dodge hoods and grill shells

 

Bodywork is done. Dad emailed. Car is in the bay and totally wrapped in plastic to keep it free of grease while the front and rear suspension and drive line is installed. That is big big news! New rolling stock soon and 310 horses to go go go!

 

I'd love to see some pics of those running boards you got

 

I havn't seen em yet....the car is 6 hours north of me..builder seems to like em and Dad says he opined that they look to be very well made....maybe Dad can shoot pics.

Meantime:

Mailed Dad a big box of parts, including the nearly pristine headlight buckets off the local 37 Plymouth. He immediately took it all to the builder and they went over them and compared.....most of the Plymouth parts I sent will be going onto the old dodge, including headlight buckets, trunk handle, trunk mechanism, trunk hook, trunk hinge washers and bolts, bumper bolts (stainless capped), the license bracket for the trunk (Plymouth is perfect, the dodge one is way pitted), etc.

Also ordered the headwinds 7" headlight adapters....as the original lights in 37 were 8 1/8". So, on arrival, I'll do some preassembly and install the halogen bulbs and then ship them up to Dad for the shop. That way, we can be sure the adapters are properly assembled and non of the springs get broken.. ... the spring assemblies are about $40 each set for repops and six each sets are needed to mount two lights. I have 5 original good condition spring assemblies here and should have three good spare assemblies up at the shop....so, room for one error on each side before I have to spend way too much for repop springs and clips.

 

Can you post a link to the headlight adapters that you ordered Thank you Hobo Jim

 

Www.headwinds.com

 

thank you I will check them out Hobo Jim

 

Yep, yer welcome. Good luck. I'll post pics here when mine arrive and before I send em forward to Dad.

 

Email to Dad tonight....(From the windshield sticker, looks like the last registration of this car in NC was 1968.....that's a long sit)

Dad,

Picked up the last of the purchased parts of that 37 Plymouth sedan.

Windshield....fair to poor lower frame, good upper frame and good trim. I believe overall, the windshield in Mr. Walkers shop is better in the frame and the trim.







Windshield hinges for spares.



I have all the nuts and bolts for the windshield installation as well.

Windshield crank mechanism for a spare....this was the gold under the dash. Its not available at all and the only one I saw for sale in years was $1000. This one is complete, fully functional and a spare part (the one under the dodge dash seems to be in fine shape) so I'll put it back as what breaks is the tape and the gear. (Fond memories as a kid, Dad driving, me opening the windshield about 8 to 10 inches on a frosty day and the cold air blowin tears out the corners of my eyes as Dad steered Bessie down the road, Ram leaping off the long, long blue hood....soon, soon again.)



Finally, I have a complete set of Factory running board brackets. So, you and Mr. Walker let me know what works best for the smoothie boards at the shop.....the new brackets I already shipped up with the smoothie boards or as needed, I'll send these originals if the fit is better. I suspect these will be a near direct bolt up as the smoothie boards were supposedly made to attach to the factory brackets. Either new or old brackets is fine, whatever is not used, I'll hold as spares/repair parts.

 

Morning email to Dad.....

Dad,

Working on the 37 Plymouth windshield frame this morning. Glass was broken, so separated top and bottom halves and got it out of there.

As for the frames, I'll upgrade my assessment of this spare part.

Stainless trim is good to excellent.

Upper frame half is in exceptionally good condition.

Lower frame half is much better than first look indicated. While rust is heavy, upon separating (successfully and without damage) the lower stainless trim, the lower frame itself is easily repairable and will serve as a fine spare for the original windshield frame if we need it. This one needs heavy cleaning and rust removal and has only a few small pin hole that can be filled with lead. Heavy abuse with awl and screwdriver tip all over shows very strong steel around the pin holes. Eventually, I'll do further clean up and hit it with rust converter to hold it where it is against a future need.

 

Awesome update Sharps,
I got chromed headlamp rings from Headwinds too, but I have to "adapt" them to my pods.... another challenge.

Cheers Mudgy

 

I am hoping no more adaptation is needed on the headlights here. I have the springs, cups and v-springs for installation and am crossin my fingers. (Them lil parts is pretty salty! Hopin we dont' break any and wind up have to buy em at high cost.)

 

Back from a whirlwind training tour of Nevada and Kansas.....6 airplanes in 7 days....I'm worn in or out but for sure, I don't have a clue what time it is on the east coast....but, a package arrived in the mail while I was out and some therapeutic effort tonight and an email to Dad and a package going up Ol Bessy's way tomorrow morning....

Dad,

The Headwinds headlight inserts with dual beam halogen blubs and trim is in the mail to you. Photos below.

One side is done an ready to install inside the bucket when the bucket is painted and on the car.

The other side is nearly done. You need to recover at least one v-clip, one spring and one cup from the old black headlight bucket at Mr. Jims shop.

Instructions and installation trim is also in the box.

Use caution with the springs....they are $180 for a set and I can't buy just one part, I have to buy a full set of springs clips and cups to get just one part!

The bulbs are halogen, dual beam, sealed. A significant upgrade over the original silvered reflectors and bulbs. Mr. Jim and his crew will wire these on relays pulling direct from the battery....so no worries about the old days when the 6v sealed beam kit we installed used to blow the single fuse on the dash every 10 minutes! It'll be perfect, just like a modern car.

Rich

 

Some more searching around. Period looks, modern performance and a quick email to Dad this AM as I have found what I want to complete the lighting out front....
Dad.
Ordering the attached photo soon. Last item for a while, a bit tapped out!
But, these will be the front turn signals on the Dodge. Will forward them to you on arrival. While they appear to be a vintage fog lamp, they are in fact wired with a dual filiment 1157 bulb connect to the running and turn signal system.
Since they appear ground through the bumper bracket (like the originals would have, and which is a long term unstatisfactory arrangement), I will likely add a separate ground wire before shipping. This will allow tieing back to the frame or ground side of the wiring harness.
Next you're at the shop, likely soon as the headlight adapters should arrive at your house today....shoot me a photo or two of the car and grab a quick progress update. Also, if any more funds are needed. I have a bit of room on the credit card.
Rich

 

Someone asked for info on the lights above and the various options on bracketry, lighting, etc....

Couple options...same store, differences in catalog.

So, rodtique. On ebay. Sample link below. Now on ebay, from rodtique you'll find 6 and 12v incandesent set ups with choices of bracketry in alloy, steel, painted steel and chromed steel. In addition, you'll likely see the coupon code for about $20 off.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/12-Volt-Turn-Signal-5-Amber-Fog-Running-Lights-Chrome-Brackets-Car-Truck-1-/290943683926?hash=item43bd984d56:g:0RQAAOxyUfFTkd4S&vxp=mtr
Or.....

Slide over to http://www.rodtiques.com/ and you'll see a white lens/yellow LED set which I did not find on ebay. In addition, you'll find other options on stands/brackets in the catalog that so far I have not seen on the rodtique ebay store.

The stock appears different between the two catalogs, so, check both to see all the possibilities.

 

Saturday email to Dad.....

Dad,

Front turn signals and running lights arrived.

They are set up to ground thru the brackets (like many original old accessories) and bumper to the frame. I'll add a proper wired ground from the bulb socket and then ship them to you in a day or so. They look good and will resolve any lighting/signaling issues for Bessie's Front End.

Now to figure out how to switch her butt from brake/run only to break/run/turn using the original rear lamp buckets. I have spare rear buckets here to experiment with, perhaps a new set of internal bracketry is all that's needed with a proper socket.... Will ship the solution when its completed and proofed.

Rich.

 

We've had too many old cars and trucks through the years to even hope for a ground (self grounding or via bracketry) to last at any level of quality and eventually need a ground wire anyway....so....

Opening these up they appear to have had a ground but in the modification for use as park/turn instead of fog, said ground was removed. Since its riveted in, and since there is a convenient hole already provided in the bulb socket, that's where I'll connect ground to.



Black is run, green is turn and since its the only color I have, blue will be ground. A soldered spade terminal and screw and nut and fish the wire down through the mounting post with the other wires.



Snap the bulb back into the modified lens assembly and snug it down with the spring wire and its ready to go back together. Then I went out to DeerGetter, connected the wires to the battery and lovely....amber and bright amber on both light assemblies. Packed em up and tomorrow they ship north to Dad and Old Bessy.

 

Well, another big shout out to JacksPA and his pal who sold me the Plymouth parts to help with our restomod of Old Bessy by way of needed items and spares. I have already shipped the items we needed forward and put the rest back for spares and small parts when the finish work starts.....and....rapidly approaching break even on the cost. Those items I just couldn't use cause Plymouth is different than dodge, trim, badges, headlight lenses, etc. Still got two big pieces that won't work for the dodge and I expect they will push me just over the top, or at least pay for all the fancy doodads in lighting that I've recently acquired. But, I sold a Plymouth badge last week and got me a nifty pair of camo sneakers and some camo flip flops for the April fishing trip with Wncdeerhunter......So, rest easy fellas, no stinky feet on my side of the cabin this trip, new clean shoes!!!!!!!

 

Email to Dad this afternoon. Still waiting on him to get to the shop, take some pics of the car and get an updated status. But, he's definitely enjoying receiving all the packages of parts! Like Christmas each week via mail.

Dad,

I have disassembled and started rehab of the 37 Plymouth/Dodge tail light bulb sockets and brackets. The rebuild described below will provide us quality rear lighting and stop, run, turn out back.

I am converting to 1157 bulb for stop/turn/run (turn switching occurs at the steering column so only 2 filaments needed in the bulb) and adding a ground to eliminate all the joints that defeat the ground on old cars.

The brackets are check fit and new bolts/washers/bezel screws added. A bit of time with the flame wench and good lubricant was required to remove the 79 year old screws but got them loose without damaging the brackets or the threads in the brackets.

I will order and install the sockets next week and ship the assembled sockets/brackets to you. They will get a final test fit and when it comes time to install them in the old dodge buckets, Mike only need drill out one original rivet to remove the old brackets/socket assemblies and then simply put these upgraded assemblies in in their place. On reinstallation, the pop rivet is optional....the screws will hold them just fine.

Photos below and I'll let you know when they ship.

PS These buckets and stands are excess and one is dented and cracked. I think the ones in the shop are in better condition. If Mike and Jim are satisfied with the original 37 Dodge rear light buckets and stands at the shop, let me know, I'll sell these.

 

Just off the phone with Dad.

He hit the shop yesterday. Took a bunch of photos but didn't get them downloaded yet....mebby soon.

In any event, looks like he and the crew are double please with the Headwinds headlight adapters and feel able to finish out the recovery and installation of the final spring and cup set from one of the original headlights.

As well, they are all tickled with the fog lamp conversion to front run and turn signal lamps for mounting on the front bumper brackets.

The car and all the associated sheet metal has moved from the sheet metal bay to the paint prep bay. As of Friday, the Drivers rear fender has been removed. That's the accident damage side and Mike the body man supervisor is not happy with the shape and flow down the rear quarter and across the replacement fender acquired off the Raleigh car back in the 90s. So, that section is currently being reworked.

At the same time, with the better natural light in the paint prep bay, Dave and Jim are going back over the roof one more time. Some rust scaring and blocking of the prime reveled the need for further bare metal work to be sure all the rust on the roof line is gone and to refine the swoop across the roof.

Meantime, I tap my toes and wait patiently. But its a bigger crew on it now and its moved one bay over, so, huge progress. From Dads discussion with the crew, next step appears to be, Heidts front suspension!

 

Mom and Dad hang out at Starbucks daily.

Evidently, there are regulars there that have told Dad they want to go down, next visit, and see his car!

I'm glad its up there where he can be so involved with its restoration and upgrades.

 

Back from Ol Kantuk and thinkin about tail lamp brackets the whole time I was working. Decided since the old ones were rusty and though serviceable, very pitted and weak, and the fact that the original corroded sockets forward mount the socket (leaving no room behind for the modern replacement sockets that rear mount the socket), figgered I'd better make up new ones. The bulb remains in the same relative position, but now there is plenty of room behind for a new 1157 socket assembly and the associated wiring and addition of a ground wire to the entire set up.

So, some strap steel, slightly heavier than original bracket metal and a forward bend to accommodate the rear projecting sockets and wiring. And, all that's left is to install the sockets, when they arrive and stop at the hardware store for stainless steel bolts and nylocks. All the rough fitting is done in the 37 Plymouth buckets....I'll check again once the wiring and such is done but they should be a drop in fit in Ol Bessy's buckets when I send em up to Dad.

 

Dad,

The bulb brackets on the Plymouth were very badly rusted and weak. I suspect the same for the ones on the Dodge. So, makin up new ones. The new sockets for the 1157 stop/run/turn bulbs are riveted into place on the replacement brackets...after which I removed the wiring and soldered the sockets to the brackets.....essentially rendering the rivets as simple place holders now the solder is doing all the work.

In any event, one bracket is near finished, test fitted to a bucket and checked out on the battery....wires marked for assembly later. All seems to be well with it and I'll finish the second bracket after some turkey hunting this weekend and get em painted then up to you.

Oh yeah, I did the reassembly with new stainless steel hardware and lock nuts.....no rust later that way.

Rich

 

looking bloody great mate
I bet your Dad is a pretty happy fella

 

Thanks. Finished up the second last evening. Just clean off the flux from soldering and I think I'll get the brackets in prime and paint. Then ship em to Dad.

Mom says as soon as a box arrives, he stops what he's doing, opens it up and then goes straight down to the shop to show/talk over the new parts with Mike.

Its coming up on a year in the works in July. Its also getting harder to accept that its gonna take a while longer!

 

Mate you are powering along. One year isn't much to me doing what I do (slowly, obviously!)

Cheers, Mudgy

 

I agree with Mudgy don't worry about the time just enjoy the time the lighting is looking really nice Hobo Jim

 

Thanks fellas. Just hard to wait it out.....I'm ready to roll with Dad. We've waited too long already.

But......

Finally, Some Photos! Back apart again....last rust work and blending of the left rear quarter to fender, I Hope!!!!!! Three craftsmen on it now.....they indicate suspension is next!

 

Email to Dad

Dad,

I see the tail light buckets and stands in the trunk. On the way is the new brackets and sockets for inside the buckets. Mike will have to remove the stands.......drill the heads of the screws off if stuck, new stainless hardware is included with the new brackets/sockets.

Also included is the stainless steel screws to retain the lens and bezel.

Once the screws are out of the stands, the old bracket is held in with a single brass rivet, just behind the weep hole. Drill it out. Toss the old brackets. The new ones have been fitted to the Plymouth buckets here and the 2057 bulbs (Brightest incandescent bulbs available) have been tested.

This is a two filament bulb with a third wire added for a good ground. They will provide break, run and turn signals with any modern factory or after market column....just like a new car. No worries.