This is a thread i have intend to start a long time. A couple of years ago i buy me a incomplete model-T body to build a hotrod. And that is the reason i ended up here off all places in the cyberspace. I was really lucky to find a very reliable seller at ebay so i could collect what i was missing. I had see the episodes when Burbank chopper build the Bad news. So i started to google to see whats else was out there. One off the first coupe that come up that i like was this one. I even start to collect some parts to do something like this when i come to mind that i allways wanted a 50:s styled hotrod. At least since 1988 when i read Hotrod magasines 40 years anniversery. So i did some more searching on internet for 50:s hotrods and i constantly come to Hamb. I allso find the car to have as my main inspiration here. I now got a plan and collected the parts i needed to get started. I aim to do circa 1960 styled hotrod. I cant build it pure as i want it becouse it will be a new car. Some things i have to hide as good as i can and other will be used only at the tech inspections i have to do. The plan. A home made frame off 2x4 tubing i model-A style. Model-A front axle. Socal hairpins Buick alu brakedrums in front. Squareback spindels. 55 Dodge engine 66 Ford 3 spd man 77 Dodge rearaxle Model-A rear spring 7,10-15 bias ply in front www 8,20-15 bias ply in back www Wheelcovers 32 grille shell Around 6--7 inch chop Cyclestyle fenders So lets start the build. At least here. I allready have 2 year in it so far. I started to put some things together to see how it looks. When i have the propotions where i wanted i made a drawing how to build the frame on a bit off cardboard. I allso ordered a tubing so then it was time to start building.
Looks very inspirational! I spy an MKP caravan in the background too. MKP grand or grandesse? Danish quality and ingenuity from a small firm by kolding in Denmark. I will be following this!
The tubing was close to 40 feet (12 meters) I going to make a z both in front and rear. Not wery common at the time but my plan is to give the impression off a heavily channeled body but save some valuble space on the inside. As a first time builder i get some really helpful information about framebuilding in Youngsters T-bucket plans. http://www.netquickposse.org/tbucketeers/Youngsters_T_Bucket_Frame_Plans_V1_0.pdf To make 2 matching rails i made a simple jig. I added 8 inch on the frontrails to make the Z. Then i cut off the frontrails in 45° where i wanted the Z. Cut a long V in the rails to taper them. Clamped the straight side to a tubing to keep things straight during the welding. It took forever to weld. Weld 1 inch flip side weld again jump 3 inches and start over. Let it cool down until you can lay your hands on it, clean it with a wire bruch and start over. I guess i dont have to tell the importance off proper prepation on the weldingseam. Then i cut out some material in the rails to keep them hollow all the way. I made a simple weldingtable to make the rails. Made sure everything was level and take a plumb blob to mark a middleline so i could make sure things were symetrical and to take triangluated messuments. I think this was a really scary part off the build. With all the frameparts loose and knowing other the perfect match off the rails will make my car useless. I dont know how much time i spending on messuring but it pay off. When all was said and done they were perfect match. It is a 68 Grandesse.
this should be a cool build Anders. Good luck, I'll be watching. Here is mine with an 8 inch chop just as a point of reference
Nice work on the frame. I like it when a frame is so nice that it seems a shame to cover it with a body.
Thanks all for watching and kind responds. Hrm2k i really like your car. I think it is one off the best looking coupes out there. Now when my rails was ready it was time to make a frame off them. I put them back on my weldingtable and measure them to their final position and tack them. I first started with the rearaxle but change my mind. I wanted to do the crossmember first. And to do the crossmember i needed the motor and transmission in place first. And then up with the engine and start to determine the position off it. My oilfilter interfear with the frame and i wanted to keep the stock one for look. So i cut out a pice in the frame and welded in a plate to mount my engine lower. Im later find out i did the work for nothing when i had to lower the engine more. I allso tested the frontaxle so i dont get any problem with the steeringrods. But i did not see any problem there so i could go on. I will keep the stock enginemounts in front and will need rear mounts that take the twisting from the engine. Im started to fab a rearmount that would be mounted with the gearbox bolts. But the more time i spended on the first version the more i hated it. In the end i have to realise it that it was a pice scrap i built. Its now way i could do anything useful with that pice. Well just start over and do it right. Then i fabbed up some mounts to put on the frame.
I have not think about to much what it is in inches. Just eyeballing it where i think it looks cool. But for the techinspection i need lowest part free from ground with flat tires all around. With the rear motormounts in place i needed something in the front. I just keeped the stock mount and added tabs on the frame for them. And then it was time to make something to mount the front spring. I have replica off a model-A but i didnt like how it was made. So i take a pice off tubing that laying around and made my own. And then i take my cooler to determine where i wanted it. Decided that 1 inch betwin waterpump and cooler is what i want. And now started the summer. It took me 6 mounths to come this far and i was not wery impressed by myself. But reading others buildthreads it seems to be a normal pace for garagebuilt hotrods on sparetime. So i was very pleased with what i did after all. I did not do much on the car during the summer. I got alot off other things to do.
Coulda swore I commented here already, must have hit a wrong button. Anyway, nice build, glad you started a build thread Anders
Thanks. When i got started again it was crossmembertime. I started at the rear motormounts and then worked towards the rear. I allso made some notches to run the exhaust thru.
To make my own x-member i toke a pice of tubing and splitted it in half. I allso drilled and tapped some holes every 8 inch on the rails to clamp fuel and brakelines. I guess it will be difficult with the x-member in place. I could then do some initial mock up to get them in place. Then i added some some holes to give them some kind of stock apperence.
Thanks all. Tim, Your latest updates on your build is really looks great to. The next job was to put some notches for exhaust in the x-member. A boring work but i want to run my exhaust high in the frame. Then i started to fab some suport betwin the framerail and x-member. And finally i split a pice of tubing to make the pices i need to connect the x-member in the middle. But theese aint welded in yet. I waiting with that until im sure the engine and trans is in its final place. I allso need to know where driveshaft and handbrakes routing are before. I could now cut my frame loose from the table and flip it around to do some final welding.
I am a lousy writer and to do it in english dosn't help. But i think if i write a bit and add some pictures most people understand what i doing. With the crossmember in place it was time to mount the rearaxle. I had a idea how to mount it but chicken out becouse i was not sure to pass the swedish tech inspection. So i ended up with a regular 4-link. A link to a thread i started about hanging up my rearaxle. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/will-this-rear-suspension-work.957446/ I had see someone here on Hamb with a trailingarm for a Land Rover he intended to use. It have a cool I-beam look so that what i used as the lower arm. Other then that it is a regular set up with all arms paralell.
Anders, your English is better than a lot that have it as their first language. At the rate you are building this, you will be driving it before you know it. JW
Well it still is a lot easyer to read English then try to write. And in this rate we rapidly going to where the build is today. With the axle hangin in the frame i need some suspension to the rear. I hade a Model-A spring i intended to use so i started with to mount springbrackets on the axle. I hade been looking for a Model-A crossmember since i started the build but those few that was for sale where sold before i contacted the sellers. And to buy one from the states and import seems unessesary expensive. So i started to make my own. The advantige is that i can make it to fit my frame and not have to adapt something. I got some pices of iron that was perfect match to use to the spring. The backdraft was that it was 3/8 and not so easy to bend. But i could use my cheapo pipebender to do that. First i drilled a hole for the spring and then rigged it in the bender. But i got problem that the pice kinked at the top. So i hade to put it in the wisegrip to straighten it. So after i alter it betwin the pipebender and the wisegrip it starten to shape up. My second problem was that the sides bends not match. So when i was pleased with the bend on one side i put in some woodwedges there and bended the other side to match. Then i hade to move things around in the bender to do the final bends. Then i take a 1/8 sheet metal and made the skirts and finally the tabs for the clamps.
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