We might be crazy, but we're not stupid. Hydraulic brakes are a period correct upgrade.
We might be crazy, but we're not stupid. Hydraulic brakes are a period correct upgrade.
Ford began using hydraulic brakes in 1939.
Front end:
This is going to be a work of art Woody!
(...and Dave).
We have one area of Swiss Cheese on the frame, right behind the original banger's motor mounts. Unfortunately, this is also where one of the legs of the new K member will go. There are a bunch of original holes in the same area for various brackets and such that we will not be using.
The plan is to drill out the bad rust holes and weld in some steel angle to reinforce the area. The patch will be plug welded to good metal through the holes and seam welded along the edges. Fortunately, there is still space to fit the legs of the K without modification.
Just a mock up before I trim down the patch.
The other side of the frame is nice and solid, but I will weld in a similar patch so that both sides are equally stiff.
Plug welding through the existing holes in the frame will also clean up the look of the exposed rails.
Can you guys keep a secret?
Didn't think so...
We have secured a transmission, and it sort of violates the whole Pre-War theme. By a lot. It's a brand new T-5 five speed with an S-10 tail shaft.
There was a bit of debate about the best way to get power from the Flathead to the rear. I wanted to go with a more traditional column-shifted Muncie three speed, but Dave wanted a modern five speed. His checkbook cast the deciding vote.
At least it will be hidden away and have a vintage looking shifter. Think of it as Pre-Gulf-War.
Woody wrote: Think of it as Pre-Gulf-War.
I found a part on Craigslist that we needed and drove an hour each way to pay $25 for it from a nice guy with a pretty cool A-V8 Tudor.
This car has an earlier (but not early) Flathead. I think it's a '39.
Nice car!!
woody, you are my new hero.
for many reasons.
and im looking forward to the flathead tech. just bought one today.
are the holes in the split radius rods reinforced, or is just drilled through both sides? had a set once that was just drilled, and was amazed at how flexible they were.
Dusterbd13 wrote: woody, you are my new hero.
...and Dave.
petegossett wrote:Dusterbd13 wrote: woody, you are my new hero....and Dave.
We thank you.
Dusterbd13 wrote: woody, you are my new hero. for many reasons. and im looking forward to the flathead tech. just bought one today. are the holes in the split radius rods reinforced, or is just drilled through both sides? had a set once that was just drilled, and was amazed at how flexible they were.
They're just drilled, but still seem pretty strong. Reinforcement and a repaint wouldn't be all that difficult if needed though.
What kind of Flatty did you get?
one attached to a completely unmolested, stone stock 51 f1.
dads "new" truck. hes leaing it unmolested barn find style, rebuilding whats broke, and using it for his lowes truck.
the flattie has almost no compression. so were going to yank it and rebuild it. probably a little hotter than stock, so thats why im looking for tips from a guy currently doing it.
Dusterbd13 wrote: one attached to a completely unmolested, stone stock 51 f1. dads "new" truck. hes leaing it unmolested barn find style, rebuilding whats broke, and using it for his lowes truck. the flattie has almost no compression. so were going to yank it and rebuild it. probably a little hotter than stock, so thats why im looking for tips from a guy currently doing it.
They didn't have much compression to begin with!
1951 was a pretty good year for these engines.
I love this build! Good Job DAVE!
Reinforcing the frame.
There were some thin areas and a few holes on one side. I drilled them out so that I would have better steel to work with. It's just tacked for now. I'll finish welding it in a few days.
The new welding stands are a big success.
Lots of clamps.
The second frame reinforcement patch came out a little nicer than the first.
The Copper Spoon.
There are a lot of original rivet holes in the frame that we no longer need. Some will remain in place because I like the way they give the car an original hotrod look. But others need to get filled.
Since copper melts at a different rate than steel, you can back holes in steel with a piece of copper and fill the hole with weld. The weld doesn't stick to the copper. I had read about copper spoons, but when I asked if they had them at the (very good) welding supply store that I shop at, the guy at the counter had never heard of them. He said that they must be more of a body shop tool.
Harbor Freight to the rescue. Ten bucks.
Once the holes are filled with weld, you can clean them up with the knuckle remover.
In addition to rivet holes, I used the spoon to back up a pair of holes on the upper corners of the frame where the original cowl mounts were. Dirt and water had accumulated there and caused the frame to rust through. The brackets will be replaced, as soon as we can find them...
The end result is a little short of perfect, but we will be smoothing out all the blemishes in the frame with All-Metal before we paint it.
I'm not terribly proud of how I went about this one, but this was the worst spot on the frame. I couldn't get a get a patch to sit flush behind the bad spot, so I carefully filled the holes in with weld. The whole area has been substantially reinforced, so this was just a cosmetic enhancement, even though it's on the bottom of the frame rail.
Again, All-Metal will come to the rescue here.
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