Hot Rods I found an old hot rod '34 Ford Coupe!!

I was talking to a fellow I know the other day, and asked if he had any old cars for sale. "Well, I do have an old '33 Ford coupe I have had for years, and I'm ready to sell it." I took a look at it the next day. It's a '34 5 window coupe on a '33 frame. No chop, no fenders, and a pretty heavy channel job. Filled top and cowl vent, hand hammered 4 1/2" dropped axle, and almost no rust. There is a little bit on the body under the drivers door. The engine and trans are long gone. The body is pretty straight, but there has been some cutting on the under the hood cowl area for some reason. All garnish moldings are nice, doors have good gaps and work well, the windshield even open well. All the glass is in it except for the back window. It has the 5 1/2 bolt pattern 15" Merc wheels on the front, and some old Ansons on the back. Large aircraft style seat belts are in it. It could have been initially built in the '50's or '60's. There are a few bits of upholstery left, black roll and pleat. I pick it up tomorrow and haul it home. Here's a few pics of the old beast. I got a few extras that aren't shown, a new radiator, a very scruffy '33 grill, the top 2 pieces of the hood, and a few trinkets. I have wanted one of these for a loooong time!

 

Awesome find! Congrats. What are your plans for it?


.

 

That is so bitchin!!!! What are your plans?

 

Sweet score!

 

Nice find!

 

Awesome!

 

Cool find!

 

My plans? I'm planning on doing some planning for it! It is such a sudden find and purchase....The wife likes these coupes, but she would prefer un-channeling it and adding fenders. I like them with and without fenders. I have no history on it, other than it came from Arkansas, and was sold by that fellow at a Missouri swap 13 or so years ago. The frame has been boxed by the last owner, who also added a 4 bar with coilovers in the back, with a 10 bolt Chevy axle. He also put in a Vega steering box. I am wrestling with what to do for an engine/trans. I already own a 450 hp 383 chevy with a built TH350 and 3500 stall converter. I suspect it might be a bit much for street use, but don't know for sure. I have a wonderful little flathead with old time heads and intake, but it is a V8-60, so it think it is not enough. A fellow I know has a '59 Cad engine and Hydramatic, and I also bought a '56 Thunderbird engine from this friend, complete with correct valve covers and aircleaner, plus three speed overdrive trans. It's out of a running car somone put a late model mustang engine in. However, the wife claims it for her '55 T-Bird that has a 289 in it. I also have a ZZ4 with 4 spd overdrive auto in a car that I'm not in love with too much. ('56 Chevy 4door). I like the idea of period correct, but I also like get in it and go lots of places all the time. For wheels I like steelies, but have a full set of old Ansen Sprints with it. I can pick a set of 16" wires cheap from a friend. I also can pick up a set of big and little Dayton wire wheels with new tires for a very good price. So many choices! My goal is to get it going in a reliable manner in a pretty quick time frame. Dunno if that will happen, but that's the goal. I have had many cars over the years, but this one is a bigger project than most. I don't care about paint, interior, being noisy, etc. at this time, just running. And for the wonderful wife that said "Go for it!", air conditioning so she can enjoy it too! (She puts up with me, so I can put up with AC in a car like this! ha!) As you can see, there are so many possibiliites, far beyond what I have mentioned, that I have to research and think about it.

That didn't make things much more clear, did it?

 

It must be due to the fact people are aging, but more and more of these are starting to become available lately it seems. What a great find, and it looks really solid to boot.

Don

 

Nice find. What part of Ks are you from.

 

I would put the Y block in the missus' T-bird, and the 289 in the coupe.

 

Nice find on the coupe..

 

Perfect!

 

Nice score.

 

I live in southern Leavenworth County.

 

That might happen. I own two sbc set ups, the 450 HP 383, an injected ZZ4, and the old 289. The '34 has an old decal on the windshield that says COBRA in a circle, an oldie for sure. I suspect it has had a sbf in its past, who knows what before that? The 289 in her Bird has Cobra valve covers, sooooo, maybe? It is paid for, so that is worth a lot. This will be a low budget build, not high end at all. I had a show quality '34 Chevy one time, and it about drove me nuts trying to keep it clean. (I used it a lot!) The great unwashed public isn't kind to show cars, either. I like giving kids rides, etc, so a simple built car works for me.

 

Awesome find!

 

This is the one excuse that bugs me the most on hamb about "needing" to use a modern bellybutton motor/trans. It's all in how bad you are as a mechanic. Ask Bass about his many 1000's mile solo trip from Texas to the PNW and a bypass to B'ville. He had a flat tire and a leaking clutch slave...that's it. Early hemi, multi carbs etc, bias tires.

nice find.

 

nice find, looking forward to a build thread,

 

Great Score!

 

nice car ...

 

Yeh, me too. Ha! for what it's worth, I ride old Indians and BMW's of the '50's. So I know the old crap can be plenty reliable. Some of this for me is the fact I want to do a more or less bargain build, and I have sbf and sbc engines on hand and ready to go. The only flathead I have now is a V8-60, and I don't think that would be enough to suit me. I have had a number of offbeat mills, Packard, '17 Cad V8, early Hemi, nailheads, etc. I'm working a bit on a 16 valve Roof OHV model T, so I'm not totally afraid of the odd stuff. I can pick up a good running straight 8 Buick, for example, but I really don't want a straight 8 in this car. It'd be fun and different, but doesn't feel quite right to me. In the end, something will go in it. And it is easy to change to something else later, eh? (visions of Packard V8's in my head now) I will say, though, that not all modern (or sort of modern) stuff is "bellybutton". I'd stick an inline Jag 6 in there in a hearbeat if I found a decent one at a decent price.

 

Super awesome!!!

 

Super find! Reminded me of a couple of phone calls we had at work back in the 70s.
One day the boss came down stairs and had a piece of paper in his hands. "What am I bid for a phone lead on a 33 Ford?" I won the call at $20. Ended up buying a 1933 Cabriolet no-engine/trans chopped with a genuine Carson Top Shop top, glass fenders and lots of spare parts for $1200. Actually had to take out a bank loan.
Another day same scene...this time a 34 Ford. Another employee got the number this time. Car was an old drag race/street car full fendered all steel 34 5W Coupe with filled top and early Olds/Pontiac rearend. Had full original interior door panels, headliner and all, and was a turquoise with black scallops on the top and sides. That littele feller was bought for a whopping $750. Damn, those were the days.

 

Wow!! Congrats man! That's awesome!

 

Congrats, great score!

 

Glad to hear you know old can be reliable... and it's up to you how to build the car.

I am not against "ruining" an old build if the reasons are good. A local guy who is 73 and has had a very tough journey through life, still has his channeled 34 5w that he last used as a very young guy back in 66, was flathead.

I was real happy, no,.. thrilled, to hear from his son, that they did get it together enough to sneak it out on the road last summer. I hoped he could get a ride in it, but I thought it might never happen. He is a Ford lover, so many years ago started the rebuild with a sbf-A/T-9". I am happy for him. He did good. Being painted right now, and will be road legal this season.

 

hell of a score! Congrats

 

awesome, great hot rod

 

I remember those days well. (happy sigh) Back in the '70's I bought Indian Chiefs for as little as $400 and rode them home. In the '60's I picked up an old HD flat tank single, probably about a 1912, swapped a single shot .22 rifle for that bike. It was too slow for a young man with speed in his blood, so I got rid of it. These days a superb single fender can cost as much as a whole vehicle cost "back in the day". I think I gave about $1,000 in 1973 for an old '29 A 2 dr, ready to drop another sbc in. I had well under $2,000 in it when I finished up doing that car.