Projects fit the frame to the body , or the body to the frame ?

i have a 30 model A coupe that i'm in the process of building. i decided to go with a brookville high boy 32 chassis . this weekend i set the body on the frame and lined up the most forward mounting point and stood back and checked the line up. looks like it needs to slide forward about half an inch which shouldnt be a problem . however , the frame looks to be about a half to three quarters of an inch too wide towards the rear . so , what would be the best fix here ? cut the subrail and move the body out a bit , or slice and dice on the frame ?

 

I'd verify 2 things...one, is the frame made correctly? And two, check the body width as well...maybe verify with mounting point on a stock A frame.

 

Did you consult W/ Brookville and specify your intentions? Did you get the frame from them and tell them what you were doing? Make's a world of difference to the pic's/ what we are seeing....

 

Using a Brookville chassis too. Is your' s pinched for model a? I haven't put my body on it yet, so I'm subscribed.Good luck with it.

 

Somehow stretching the body outwards is surely going to create a bunch of problems- for instance, the profile of the doors wouldn't work with the stretched out rear quarters. I'm not getting the pro street style step in the frame, unless it's for a 32 body with modified wheel houses. Looks to be a neat body. Seems like the frame is the issue?
Chris

 

Don't pull the body outward. That will just look bad. Pinch the frame in to fit the body. You will be much happier with the results.

 

i spent quite a bit of time on the phone with brookville . they had questions and i had answers . i would assume brookville goes off standard measurements when they build their frames.

 

yep , i ordered the highboy 32 frame to fit a model A body . pinched at the firewall . looks good there , just the rear portion sticks out not even a half inch . just enough that it's noticable.

 

Show us pic of the front....where the cowl meets the frame.

Ray

 

Thanks for posting those pics. I can see the considerable difference between the front and rear. Clearly, they did pinch the cowl area of the frame. Have you discussed this with Brookville yet? It might be useful to show them the issue at the rear and see what they have to say.

Ray

 

Please post their reply to this issue. I'm getting a little worried now. I' going to mount my body on soon and see if there's a problem with mine.

 

i sent an email this evening . we'll see what happens

 

no problem , i'll share what they have to say. is yours still bare metal ? mine is epoxy primed so i know i wont be able to return it . i'm just gathering info for the best fix .

 

How about a picture of what there is of cross support inside the body?

 

That frame looks too wide. Even in the front. Even the front. In the front I would like to see the inside of the frame even with the inside of the body mount, maybe even a 1/4 inch inside of that. Just my opinion.

 

Mine's still in bare metal, boy what a pita !

 

That's why we test fit in bare metal always...
You need a pinched frame cause that isn't. That sucks man.

 

I also think the frame should be reworked instead of the body. If you go trying to pull the rear quarters out a bit you are going to have a huge amount of alignment problems in the doors, as well as the decklid. I know it's going to be a pain, but you probably need to slice an inch or so from the rear crossmember (a little each side) and pull the rear frame horns in. Might need to do a bit of slicing in the center crossmember too. All this while the frame is clamped to a stiff frame table to keep everything square.

 

I don't see any floor structure in your body is there anything holding the sides of body?

 

That's what I want to see.

 

Pictured- #1-Stock cowl channeled on a stock boxed frame- 1930 Model A coupe.
#2- stock 31 roadster cowl on stock frame showing cowl mounting area ( front bolts -only 1 in each side for mock up)
At the cowl mounting brackets ( 2 holes each side), a stock frame is 31 3/4
inches from center cowl mount holes to center cowl mount holes

Brookville frame doesn't look right to me. (???) Hope this may help.

 

In your 2nd pic:
e
The body needs to be shifted, there should be maybe an 1 1/2" from the body to the frame. When I set an 'A' body on the '32 frame I can run my finger around the perimeter, with the fingertip touching the frame the body will be at 1/2way between my first joint and knuckle all the way around the body and it has to be consistant. If you have the same reveal on the other side you have a real problem. The pic of the cowl show the frame too wide. No big deal, its only paint.

 

I'm going to measure mine across the cowl area and right before the rear wheel well and compare that to the body in the same place. I'll post them, anyone know what it should be ?
OJ, the Brookville chassis for Model A is flat on top so the body should fit pretty flush, at least that's how they describe it in their catalog.

 

Some one else asked earlier about the floor in your coupe. It is the original or has someone replaced it. On my Sedan, some one had cut out the original inner original framework and welded in a sheet metal floor. They had that body all out of wack!

 

This is a coupe sub frame ( upside down)- first cross member ( from the front) is the wide one about 16" back from the firewall. I don't think you'd see it in his pictures- too much angle

 

Does this assist with dimensions?

 

ya but look in his trunk area i dont see anything

 

stock subrail only . i removed the rear portion to clear the kick up in the frame. and yes , i did add supports when i removed the rear portion

 

it helps . i have a request in to brookville for their measurments so i can compare.