Ha! Poor guy, the mean old boss is making him build deuce frames again! Sheesh! Just cut it in and form the reveal by hand with a flat chisel, a big hammer, and some big C-clamps. Weld it up and smooth it out with a flap disc on a angle grinder. Might be kinda tough on 3/16" but it works well with 1/8". I agree with the others too, your overall shape needs some adjustment.
What you are doing is great....real hot rod spirit. Drive over to the J.W. Rod Garage and buy a set of their frame rails. They are located in Wisconsin, between Milwaukee and Green Bay. Use the Wescott blueprint dimensions to set up the jig. You might have less competition if you contour the rails to fit Model A bodies.
I'd guess nearly 1/2 of A's being built are going on a Deuce chassis, and I think more A's are being built than '32's. Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
Pat and zack of thunder road rod and custom build the best 4 piece 32 frame I have seen, however I still think that stamped rails look the best because they have the correct rounded outer edge, where as a welded frame does not. Do your homework, before going into production, as stated above buy a set of jw or asc rails and measure, that way you can write your program for your plasma table to cut the correct shape, also, one thing to keep in mind, while most of it is correct, and is good enough in most cases, westcotts drawing is not completely correct to a original frame.
Yes I think a lot of people are using 32 rails on Model A's I think it might be a decent market for you. especially if you are close to the price point you mentioned.
would it be hard to convert the 2 that i have started. i dont have the bottoms of the rails capped off yet.
i know some 32 pickup frames had smooth sides. do you guys think the 1st 2 i made would work for that application granted i can get the shape correct. i should still be able to cut and move things around still, to get the required shape that i need . if they are that far off i guess i would have to start over, worst case scenario. i guess i wouldnt be upset if they were unusable. the material didnt cost really anything. they were just scrap pieces from work
you know.after looking at pictures from other frames that that guys have posted i believe you guys are right. the shape as far as all the different curves that the frame takes on isnt quite right. back to the drawing board i guess
From what I can see they look very useable but Aren't these first two being used on your personal project? It might be worth it on the next set to find a way to stamp that reveal I think there would be a lot more people knocking on your door. Maybe find a way to use the same jig and change it back and forth for model a and 32 just an idea i guess?
32 pickups used the same frame as the cars did, the only 32 frame that did not have the reveal, was the bigger double b trucks, anyhow I am sure the 2 frames you have already started are useable, for some type of hot rod, like I said I am not trying to discourage you from building 32 frames, but if you are going to do it, and sell & call them 32 ford frames, they need to be correct, otherwise you won't be in business long. Goodluck
i think i may look at doing A frames instead of 32's. i dont know, maybe both if i can get this 32 business figured out. regardless i need to get the outline of the frame correct along with the reveal. especially if guys want 32 style on their A's. yah. ill probably do both. i think im getting pretty close, so when do you need the rails for your '26
no. i agree 100%. they need to be correct. i cut an extra side rail last night, removed a section and tried forming the reveal by hand, then welded it back in place.. i didnt have a hole lot of time to work on it, just did a quick trial to see if i could get it to come close. they didnt turn out too bad for only spending half an hour on them. if i took my time they would have came out alot better, i know i can do it its just going to take time. a friend of mine was going to post the pics for you guys but looks like he hasnt done it yet. ill get a hold of him and have him post them
Not too bad so far...they just need a little tweaking. Below are a few pics of a frame I fabbed a few years ago. It was mentioned a couple of replies back. Here's the link again: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=299105 You really should check it out. I formed the reveal over a form I made out of square tubing and it came out pretty nice. The pinch in the cowl area was incorporated in the rail pattern as was the slight kick up at the rear. The rail was also contoured to fit the A body. Pinched, kicked and boxed all at the same time! I had dozens of requests to build this frame after this post (it won a Baileigh Tool contest years ago). I think fabbing these for model A's would be your best bet for marketing frames. As already mentioned, 32 guys want it perfect. If I had a 32, I would have bought stamped rails and went from there. Good luck.
i would think there would be a market for a frame that is even similar to the 32 frame. it would look a whole lot better than all the T-bucket frames that a lot of people are using.
I have looked at the building thread you made when you did your frames. Wow. If you don't mind I'm going to do mine the same way. If they turn out as nice as yours I'll give you all the credit.
The question should be can I sell some after I've invested all the $ and time to make 6 or so? I don't see a lot of frames being sold, and people are very particular in what they want. It's always champagne for the price of beer. Keep it a hobby and it will be fun.
Make sure when you weld the 4 pieces (top-side-bottom-side) together that you weld them corner to corner....as the weld bead will help to round things off. Sharp corners on the frame rails don't look very good.
my son and wife went to pick up the frame rails that 19-c is letting me borrow. will be making a jig and figuring every thing out that needs to change. i thing i am going to lean more towards the "A" frames along with maybe a few 32's. will keep you guys posted with pics as things progress. maybe ill see some of you in St Paul this year at the swap meet
Glad I could help with the 32 rails. Please keep us posted with your progress. I know I am excited to see things develop. You are on the right track
Traditional?....were 5 speeds out there before 1965?.......just kidding......better watch out using traditional and late model parts...it gets nasty on here......all in fun boys, so don't get upset
ok guys. got the ASC rails in the shop and did some comparing. i need to changge the front horns and just a little on the back. looks like the kick up in the back is at the correct height but from there back the angle is off. will tweak it a little in the front and back to get it perfect and i should be on my way. i will post picks this weekend or sooner on what i changed along with the asc rails in the jig and all the changes i made. with the way the reveal looks on the asc rails i dont think its going to be a problem putting them in whichever way i decide to do it.
Great to see you are taking this project on and coming along well on it. Thanks for keeping posted on it. It's fun to see someone put a project like this together!
another question. with all the holes that are in the top side of the rails, are all of them being used. and what size bolts are being put in. i am going to weld nuts in before i cap the bottom of the frame. also, is there a hole in the frame on the drivers side that the steering arm is some how connected to the steering box.. is that some thing i need to put in or is it better to leave it out because of the different steering applications.
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