This car is all kinds of great. It all looks so natural and you make it seem so easy. Looking forward to updates.
The rear springs were well overdue for attention. As it sat I had a broken rear shackle on the drivers side (from 50 years back) and the eye had nicely gouged a hole in the chassis rail were the eye sat somehow all those years. The other side had a 4inch block that put it way below the scrub line. I went to a springmaker and investigated the dearching of the original springs and as I was driving home I stopped in at a scrap yard and discovered a skip full of brand new rear leafs off Isuzu commercial utes. $30 got me two pairs with brand new bushes and shackles. Got out my tape measure and couldn't believe that the measurements seemed like they could work. So Friday arvo I pushed and pulled and I'm over the moon with the result. The ride is sensational. . . the money was right. . .not exactly traditional. . . but that can be our secret. There is still a good 6 inches of travel above the top of the diff so I may still go for another inch or two lowering blocks later on. I do like the current height as it looks factory and not like a lowered car. Remember my goal was to emulate a early 40s coachbuilt custom.
I love this car and the visual flow you achieved. Starting with such a large car, I would not have thought it would come out looking like it was designed originally this way instead of as a modified custom. The stance looks real good to me, really right for the era you are going for, and I can imagine that awesome big car smooth ride. So many big cars now with a couple inches of travel and the experience is compromised. How much does it weigh?
looks damn good!!! my 41 sedan CAD with the 67 429 cad motor comes in right at 4000 pounds. So my guess for this custom CAD with a flathead... going to be north of 4200 pounds.
Terrific! I agree that a 1- or 2-inch rear drop is in order. Maybe that will change if the springs settle.
Great work! The whole car just flows so perfect. I don't think Westergard could have done any better!
Seems like quite a few of the projects, I subscribe to have ground to a halt Mine too Don't know how y'all find extra time and money for this hobby Getting tougher as I get older Now Floriduh in the middle of major hurricane Glad my car is inside
I would really like to see this finished, I have always liked 39 Cad. 60 Special. And this one is a notch above the rest. If this was state side I would be interested in finishing it. Frank
Don't worry guys. Progress may have slowed but the enthusiasm to get back on the 39 hasn't. Sometimes life throws curve balls that hit you fair in the chest. I'm dusting myself off and getting ready for round two. She is presently tucked away whilst i try to secure a new workshop in Brisbane. Hoping to be back on it by Christmas.
You have made one amazing creation. It looks like it could have belonged to Clark Gable or Howard Hughes. Many of us have been watching your work with awe and in envy of your skill. Hope that things work out for you and that you can get fired up again. In the meantime there are many of us cheering you on and will look forward to updates when you are back at it. We are finally moving to a different house that comes with a garage that will allow me to work on my old Ford. I live in central Canada so the first priority will be digging a gas line to the garage for a heat. Winters are long here so it is good to hunker down and have a good project. I am just wrapping up a scratch built Bearhawk 4 seater floatplane that helped the last 10 winters go faster. All the best
Been a really tough year and no progress but next year and new horizons loom. I asked Rik Hoving to do a quick Photoshop to cover the top irons. Just to get a feel for the roof shape and form. Remember this is a folding top not a Carson top. I like the sportier look compared to the sleeker hardtop. Plan might be to stitch up a quick top to use and abuse and work out any bugs, same for the rest of the car. Get it together and drive it rough for a year. Damn I need to be driving this car to work daily. Hurry up 2017.
Man your car is so awesome. You've created a beautiful work of art. I can't wait to see more progress. Best of luck. -Chris
This has been a stunning project to watch come together. Words are insufficient to express my admiration for both your 'eye' and the immense talent it took to translate the vision into reality. Bravo! Ray
Glad to see you are slowly working on it, I like the hood sides and the photo shop top. Can't wait to see it finished. If I had seen this a few years ago I would not sold mine. Frank
Glad to see progress, it looks killer with both the hardtop and folding top (and the engineering behind the top and parade boot is amazing!). I certainly hope you overcome your adversities, being able to work on the car will make things better. And, don't feel bad about the interruption, my T'bird has been being "painted" for 11 years now... ;-)
It's been a long hiatus I know. Don't worry I'm itching to get back on it. Lots of life ( and ex wife) dramas still to be sorted. I have been thinking of a solution to the issue of the parade boot front ears chaffing the sides of the folding roof mechanism when the top is being raised. I posted a rough pic of what I was thinking as a solution on the Custom Car Chronicle and Rik Hoving refined the idea with his digital customising skills. The resulting images allayed any fears that I had that it might not look aestheticly pleasing. In fact I think it really looks elegant. I will hopefully get a chance to tinker next week.
The Jalopy Journal
