Hot Rods Fordman1's T Bucket Project

I will try and post up everything to date, but if you want you can check out my posts on another website for me getting it from North Dakota to Oregon (an epic road trip) and my work on it since then to today. As I move forward I will track my efforts here on the HAMB.

Breif synopsis: After talking my grandpa into a building a T when I was 10 or 12, I started hauling parts out of his junk pile to build one for me, plus he wanted to correct a lot of things from the first go around. Then college got in the way and he finished the build without me and then I moved to OR so it just sat. Once I got it out to Portland, I felt the need to fix things I couldn't live with and make it my own. He was completely on board with me doing work, he was just happy I liked it and drove it! We lost Warren on Valentine's day, but I feel like I am with him whenever I am driving or working on the car. It has taken a back seat the last few months to my "winter car" 1950 Ford, but next winter it will start getting some more refinement.
http://ruffrodders.com/forum/showthread.php?t=55917
http://ruffrodders.com/forum/showthread.php?t=47424

 

Cool old bucket, you don't see many with flatmotors in them.

Don

 

Great photo thread...your little girls will always remember Dads old car! I know my kids did, they remember riding in the rumble seat sans seat belts!! Very nice to have a car such a long time and have your grandfather be such a part of it.

 

thats very cool i hope it stays in the family for a long time ,

 

nice ride...keep it in the family.

 

Me likes very nice looking rig makes ya think of dirt roads.

 

First update, four DMV offices, multiple hours, long lines, tons of different opinions, referrals to other offices and more senior people. BUT.....today I finally got them to change the ND title from my grandpa's name to mine and send me a Special interest vehicle plates ASAP. Thank god that is taken care of!

Next up will be stab in the isky cam my grandpa never got around too, 16" rims with new tires, drop the front axle, new exhaust, search out a steel body, recover the interior, and swap gears (trans or rear).

 

So after all the DMV hassles, all about the year of the car and that screwing up DEQ requirements, the state DMV calls me to ask what year I want the car to be!!! So since I am not set on keeping the fiberglass I just went with the frame year, so 1928 since it is a Model A frame and my buddy has a pair of 28 plates. I will post a pic tomorrow of the new OR SP plate mounted! Now it is legal for my wedding on Saturday!

 

I like it and I like all your improvement Ideas.

 

Got my single SV Plate, I am all legal!

Steel Rebel, thanks for the approval. When I make the switch to a differnt body I am going to use the fiberglass body to make a Lightning Bug replica!

 

Well I am back from the honeymoon! On the way to my wedding my buddy, who knows how to drive a manual, may have been hot rodding a little as the throttle started sticking and the trans started grinding. Since I have been home I think I have the sticking throttle worked out but it seems that one of the oversize shafts may be wobbling a little. Not sure on the trans, it is full of gear oil, so I guess I will just watch it.

 

Just one picture of the car at the wedding with some buddies. That is me in the tie.

 

So I need some new tires for my daily, so I got approval from the wife to get new tires for the T bucket and put the rear radials on my truck! Gotta get two more 16s sand blasted and painted, then order up some 5-5.50x16s and 7-7.50x16s. Probably from Coker and not sure if I will go black wall or white walls.

 

Haha, nice man!

Love deals with the wife


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Hi Fordman1.Looks like another fun project.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

 

Once the wife is on board, its a downhill coast from there.

 

Yesterday was a great day: 12 hours, 600 miles, East vs West Flathead Run III put on by the Inland Emperors in Vantage WA. Cruised at 60 mph the whole way and the weather/scenary was perfect. A few frightening sounds but nothing fell off. Gotta put a new gasket on the fuel pump cover on the intake as that was leaking. If my math is correct I was knocking down 15 mpg. I still think the 94s are running a little rich so there is some tuning there. If a local HAMBer is interested, I could use some lessons on how to tune a flathead! Otherwise, need to do some end of the season maintenance and get it ready for the rain to set in around here. Thinking that once I have my 50 squared away I will start looking at a body swap for this thing!

 

Drove to work yesterday and somewhere along the way I lost the key for the master power shut off switch, so I just bypassed it. Too bad my grandpa wired the car as having constant power regardless of what the key was doing so now it will most likely kill the batter while keeping a light on for the flashers and the parking brake if I leave that set. Also there was blow by at the gasket for the mechanical fuel pump cover so I took it off, cleaned it up, tried to make it flat as well as gave it a new gasket. Hope that helps!

 

My set of 16" wheels are getting sand blasted and planning to get at least the rear tires soon as I need the rear tires for my daily. Budgetary reasons will force me to wait till the spring. Planning on 7.0s but may go with 7.5s to get the RPMs down. 4.5/4.75 Fronts will still be a few inches taller than the current radials and since I am running a wide 46-48 front I beam it may have to be dropped, but we will see.

 

Still haven't gotten around to buying the tires but may just order them and have them sent to the April Swap Meet that Coker attends to skip shipping fees. Need to put all new gaskets in the flathead and box the frame, but kind of want to wait on pulling the motor until I have a T body for it. I need to search about shortening the closed driveshaft as I would like to change the wheelbase when a new body is found.

 

I really dig this little car! err truck! haha

 

Thanks! Sometimes I can't believe it is mine. It isn't perfect, not completely period perfect but it does reside in my garage.

 

My buddy has some vinyl tuck and roll in white that he has talked me into covering my interior and the truck bed tonneau cover. Plus I plan to cut and weld up the tailgate so I have somewhere to sit at car shows this season!

 

Any suggestion as to going with the 7.0 or the 7.5 by 16 for the rear on a 4.5" wheel? With a 4" rim up front I think I am locked into a 5.0-5.25 as the shortest in the front.

 

First nice day of the year so I took the T out. New tires will be delivered by Coker at the Portland Swap Meet this weekend, though sadly my '50 will be up for sale there as well. Hopefully closing on a house the end of the month so I can start setting up my first real shop at my own home, very excited for that. Also worked out a deal to trade my extra car projects in ND for on steel T body (either a Coupe or a Sedan!). Bringing back lots of parts, grandpa's work bench and the new body over Memorial Day weekend. Turning out to be a big year!

 

New tires in the garage, can't wait to get them mounted up! Too bad buying a house takes so much damn time. Oh well, soon enough. I think I will use the tire irons my grandpa had to try and mount them myself.

 

I have never mounted bias plys but thought I would give it a try after reading up about it on here. It went smoothly so I probably did something wrong. Wheels and tires look great! Hoping to get them mounted up this weekend and go for a spin.


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What sizes did you get?

 

I bought 5.00/5.25x16 fronts (smallest I could get for my 4" rims) and 7.50x16 rears (pretty huge for my 4.5" rims). They look awesome! The red wheels are from my 1947 Ford back in North Dakota and the grey ones are from my buddy Jacob. We both happened to have mismatched pairs that made one complete set! It will have quite the rubber rake. Can't wait to get them on the car and snap some pictures.

 

Thats gonna have a bitchin' rubber rake!