Elrod Model A Coupe Thrash - Flathead V8 time

Man, everything is looking good, especially the dash!

 

One of the best looking dashes I've seen yet. And a huge step from a banger to a blown flathead to boot.

Great rebuild.


iPhone - TJJ app

 

Dude that Dash is really AWESOME!!! the whole build is great! stoked for you..

 

Hey, I gotta subscribe. Really neat build.

 

Thanks Evel. I'm looking forward to driving it!!

 

I really like the attitude of making the dash look great because it will be what you see a lot while driving! Good prospective! But the whole car is going to be great!!

Thanks for posting the ads for the supercharger! Always great to see the before pics!!

 

Too Cool!!!!! Guess I gotta get back on here i totally missed this

 

Great job keep on truckin.............

 

i have followed your car for years . built mine from yours & your info . but cant follow you down this road as i love my BANGER ! good luck ............ steve

 

Your work is inspirational. I dig that blower and thanks for posting the old Mac blower ads, all cool stuff.

 

That dash is awsome!! I really like what your doing.

 

Fix your photobucket and give em an update!

No way the car won't make Austin now. We had a couple revelations that shaved a few days each off the build time, and saved a lot of work. This car was meant to be.

 

Need some update pictures here.

 

Oh.. hello! Is this thing still on? haha. I guess I'm slacking on my updates!

Here are a few shots from last Wednesday. We had to shut it down a little early for two reasons, a big swap meet the next day that we needed to be up at 3:00 a.m. for and Anderson also needs his beauty rest due to his highly active love life. He can't seem to fight the ladies off of him after his post on converting 32 backing plates to Lincoln style Bendix brakes. Total chick magnet.

Anyways, had a few breakthroughs that may help get this car to the round up. Again, the plan is to finish this car out with paint and interior after the Lone Star Roundup, but for April 13, the goal is to make it a fully functional car.

Did a little more fit and test and looks like the supercharger fits like a glove!







We were also just a tad worried that the fan would not clear the top tank of the radiator. We have been discussing notching the tank for about a week now. I was about to load up the radiator in the car, when Anderson said, "Wait a minute.... You've switched radiators, right? That is a 32 radiator. The Model A hood line looks like it's sloping down toward the nose. What that thing needs is a spacer under the feet!" We dig around and find some small metal blocks, and BAM! Fixed the hood line, fan fits perfectly, and even the crank hole in the grill lines up with the crank pulley. Sometimes we make things harder than they need to be!




Next project. F1 steering box flange fitting in a Model A frame. This is done various different ways. Cut the flange off and put a Model A flange on. Use a wedge from Tardel, Trim the box and drill a new bottom hole. This is hotrodding, and in the interest of supporting our welding wire industry, we are going to tackle this a different way.

Made up an outter plate for the steering box that lines up with the holes and shape of the box.



This plate will be the outside of the frame, and welded in at the correct angle, so that F1 boxes can be removed and swapped out in the event that anything happens, and I also feel that it will be just as much work as switching the flange, and makes my car a little different.



It will also set the steering box just a little bit further back to make plenty of room for the headers.



And last but definitely not least.... Plans are to put a 1938 rear end under this car with a cut down 1934 drive shaft and torque tube. Well, the clock is ticking, and I can't work on this vehicle day and night so a little improvisation was in order...

I got curious on how well we actually did place the engine mounts and got out the tape measure to measure the distance of the rear of the trans to the rear crossmember.

Turns out that we nailed it! The Model A rear assembly fits exactly, bolts right up, and will be getting the Wilson Welding rear juice brakes. This just shaved a few days off the build!





After the round up, another rear will be built up for this car and I'll post updates, but for now, this will get me around town.

Also did a little more finish work on the dash. No pics of that yet.

We are back at it again tonight, hopefully with some more updates soon. Thanks!

 

Bitchin!!!!!

 

Paint and Interior sounds like a winter project, you need to break in that Flattie this summer.
Drivin season is here, Brotha!

Love the way that Ol'A is looking, y'all are doing a awesome job.
I just wish i had 2 or 3 minutes free to come help.

Can't wait to see it in Austin!

 

No problem Stevan. I know you are killin' it over there at Propwash trying to get your car on the road. Sorry I've been MIA as well, but this 81 yr old girl needed a lot of help! haha

 

It is looking really good!!! I'm impressed with the amount of work ya'll get done!

 

his wife/girl friend really does the work !!

 

Nice progress!!!! Can't wait to see it all wrapped up. It's gonna be something special, but you already knew that. Bitchin job.

 

I hope and think he knows how good he has it that his wife is understanding of him spending time with his 80 year old girl!

 

Haha. Thanks Heath. She's a little frustrated with the going to sleep at 1:00 a.m. nights and the 7:00 a.m. mornings. Three more weeks to go.. Oh Lord!

So, more updates. Pedals in the wrong place? Heat them up, grab a wrench and put some muscle in it.





Put new bushings in and a new pedal shaft, and now it works like a new pedal set up, with custom arms to fit my car. Ready for paint.



While we had the torch out, bent my shifter arm (bottom) to match a 1938 style swan shifter arm. I love the shape of those.



Next is to tackle the steering. If I did it again, I would just go with the welded on Model a flange, but I'm running out of time and this way could be done in one evening. In this build (we did it the hard way) a lot of the frame is going to be cut out, so that mean reinforcing the frame with some heavy steel tubing on top and bottom.



Next, cut a big chunk of the frame out.



I wanted the steering box to be in the exact same location as the stock model a box, and far away from the engine to allow for clearance of the headers.



That required building a box that stuck out of the side of the frame.



This got the steering box very snug to the frame and the column at the correct angle.



And with the fenders on and the frame painted black, this will be very unnoticeable.



Next needed to do something about the steering drop. Found this guy and really like how it matches the shapes on the dash.



Made a bracket to hang down from the original 31 Ford mount on the cowl behind the dash. Bam - Installed



A little extra work to make this for the column hang down, and no one will ever see it, but I know it's there!



Next up is to locate the 18 Gallon gas tank. Made some brackets and mocked them up, but I want to get my roll down rear window pan in place before locking it down to ensure the most trunk room possible.



And here is where it sat when we left last night. Wait a minute, why is it going backwards again???



More parts on order. Hopefully to arrive first of next week.

 

Looking REAL good!

I like the steering box set-up too.


iPhone - TJJ app

 

I just tuned in, and I'm sorry that I'm late! Let me tell you, the car just kept getting better with every page! This car is NICEEEEEE!!!!

 

Jason reminded me today that there are a total of 3 weeks before Roundup. I guess we'd better step it up a notch. No....sleep....'till Austin!

 

I really like the steering box set-up. sure gives me something to think about.

 

Thanks everybody! Yeah. The window for working on this thing is closing. Not to mention I am sick today. Shesh. Get out of the way normal life! I'm trying to build a hot rod. Still planning on making a chrome shop run today.

 

Mmmmmm Chrome

 

I'm thinking Pulidos. Are they still good Tyler? or is Economy the place now

 

i thought you were just swapping motors ! created a lot of work for yourself ...... cool