Thread: I couldn't build it for $3 K either!

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I cleaned up the pieces and beveled the edges where they fit together.

After centering the 3/8 filler pieces on the 1/4 outside pieces I tacked them together and added the pockets to the one end.

I used a MIG welder to weld the plates together. Not only are the MIGs good for welding thin sheet metal, but they will also lay down a lot of metal in a hurry if you need to. I ran those passes pretty hot. The object here was to make sure the bevels were filled and the weld was burnt in well.

I switched to TIG to weld the tubing pieces on, but in hindsight, I should have stuck with the MIG. I had to go back and add metal in few places while I was grinding them, especially in the areas around the pockets. I had to add enough to fill in the radius. I colored this area with a marker in the pics.

I used a 4 1/2" grinder to do the rough finishing and then switched to the belt sander.

The final finishing was done with a DA sander. I locked the spindle so that the disc would just spin like a grinder. The DA sanding discs don't last long, but they give a nice finish. I used the DA to round the edges and give a softer "organic" look to the piece.

I went back to the "holes" theme to add a little more hotrod look to the post. My son thought I was crazy for doing that, but I thought it fit with the overall look of the car.

If I was doing this over I would probably taper the posts slightly from the bottom to the top. Maybe just a 1/4" narrower at the top.

I'm leaning toward the high luster silver powder coat for the frame and posts so I didn't sand past 120 grit. I may go a little finer when I get to the detailing stage at the end of the build.

Well that's all I have right now and I won't get to do any more until Monday of next week. I plan to finish the other upright and cut the windshield frame down then. I also still have to weld and finish the corner posts.

Well folks I'm back. Spent the weekend visiting friends in Mississippi and taking in the Super Chevy show in Memphis. Put almost 1000 miles on the 46 and had a great time! The nitro coupes, top fueler and jet cars were awsome! The swap meet was pretty big and there were a few good venders there. Bought a few things for the T, even though most of the stuff was geared toward muscle cars.

I'm recharged and ready to get some more done on the T. Just a little piece of unsolicited advice for everybody either working on or planning their first build. Don't get so wrapped up in your project that you forget to have some fun. Building or restoring cars is hard and sometimes frustrating work. It always costs more and takes longer than you think it will. No matter how much you enjoy it, sooner or later you're gonna get tired and fed up with the whole thing. Take a break and go enjoy yourself. It'll usually look a lot better when you get back. I wasn't burnt out yet, but I try to stop before I get that way now. I spend so much time in the shop, sometimes it feels like a second job. Having some fun was what this weekend was all about!

Tonight I'm going to post some more on the windshield frame and mounts.

I finished the second windshield post just like the first and figured I would move on to mounting the bases. I'm using a cross bar and mounting plates similar to Don's setup(Project $3K) under the dash. My bar isn't quite as big. Two bolts through the back of the mounts will be OK there, but I wanted to hide the front bolt.

First, I set the bases in place on the cowl and marked their position with a sharpie. Then I ground up a couple of 3/8" nuts and tacked them to the front inside corners of the bases. I held the bases up to the cowl, lined up my marks and marked where the nut contacted the cowl. I used a step drill and die grinder to make a hole in the cowl to just fit the nuts. A short piece of all-thread was used for a stud. My intention is to fit reinforceing plates inside the cowl for these studs. The plates will be "glued" to the inside of the cowl with fiberglass "kitty hair".

The windshield frame was made from 1/2' black pipe. I cut a 5/16" slot to mount the glass and I'm going to glue the glass in with silicone so I hope 5/16 will be enough. The glass is 1/4" thick. If it's not I'll have to build another frame since making the slot wider after it's put together would be pretty hard.

My first frame was made from 4 pieces as it was a "full frame". It was 14" tall and 40 1/2" wide. The top was removable so the glass could be installed. The problem was that the top bar was right in my line of sight. Not cool! Talk about annoying. I decided to go with an open top frame.

Fabbing the frame was pretty straight forward. I used corner magnets to anchor it to the table and a 5/16" lathe bit to keep the slots aligned. Keeping it all square was the hard part as it trys to "draw" as it cools. I had to "cheat" a little by tacking it slighly out of square so that it would be square when it cooled. I could have built a jig to hold everything, but didn't want to take the time. The top was held on with screws through the side and the frame is mounted on 3/8 x 24 bolts welded to the side of the frame. These are covered by the swivels.

The final open top frame was made by cutting the first frame down. I cut 5" out of the width and 1 1/2" out of the height, making it 35 1/2" X 12 1/2". I think the narrower frame looks more in proportion. It looks like I'm going to be looking just over the top of the windshield. That's exactly how I like my motorcycle windshield to be. I can "slump" a little for protection if needed, but most of the time I look over the top. Since this thing will be a four-wheeled motorcycle, that ought to be about right.

I still have to fab the inside reinforcing plates and finish weld everything, but for the most part the posts and windshield frame is finished. Now I can move on to mounting the steering column and finishing up the door. I'm trying to get most of the fab work done to the body so that I can glue the interior piece in. Got a lot of reinforcing to do though and that means fiberglass. Man I hate that stuff.

Mike, that windshield is gorgeous; you do some beautiful work. Cutting the slot on a table saw was a stroke of genius.

Ever since you posted the "dogbones" under construction, I was waiting to see just how they worked. Wow! The adjustability of the whole assembly is perfect for a track-T like mine. Hope you don't mind, but when the time comes, I'll probably be copying your ideas...

I agree that you used one of your ten lives cutting the windshield, but it looks great.
Brad

I wish he had done his windshield before I did mine. I would have copied it too.

Thing looks very professional.

Don

Guys
Thanks for all the compliments. If this keeps up, I'll need to get a bigger welding helmet to fit my swelled up head!

Feel free to copy away. I'd be flattered. Everything that is, but the table saw thing You're on your own with that one.

Mike

How's this nice car coming along?

I was thinking about this a couple of weeks ago, too, when I was playing with ideas for my own windshield... Any progress??? We love pictures...

Yeah Mike, wasup?????? You get us all teased, then leave us hangin'.

(The crowd is getting unruley, better post SOMETHING !! )

Don

Hey folks!

I'm still here and I really didn't mean to leave everyone hanging! I was really suprised to see this old post show up again!

I was wrapped up in two wheeled endeavors off and on during the summer. I repaired my dads GL1500(he and mom don't ride anymore) and my wife and I took a little vacation on it. Been riding every chance we got(which isn't as much as I would like).

Also, my son is a senior in high school this year and I've been following his last year on the football team a lot closer. They grow up fast! He'll be gone to college before I know it!

But, all that doesn't mean I haven't been working on the T though. Just that the blog has suffered. My hat's off to Don and J Robinson, keeping up a running commentary isn't easy(for me a least).

Major stuff I've done since the last post:

Installed the dash and gages
Fabbed the steering column supports
Installed the column
Fabbed a door hinge support and beefed up the hinges
Fabbed a door stop and installed the door latch
Hooked up the steering shaft
Fabbed and installed the brake pedal and booster/MC
Installed 2 different shifters(didn't like the first one)
Rebuilt the Lokar shifter so that it worked like I thought it should
Added wood to the body
Put in 2 driveshaft loops
Cut down and installed a Speedway battery box for a small Optima battery
Built a gas pedal

I'm about halfway through my "todo list", which will finish up the fabrication stage of the build. Then I can move on to the paint and finish work. My goal now is to get enough fab work done so that the state inspection process can start. Don't know how long that will take! The last person I spoke with at the State office didn't seem to be very interested in what I was doing and couldn't answer any questions. Unfortunately, I'm pretty much at their mercy.

I'll post pictures and some more build notes as soon as I can(got to sort and resize the pics). I'll try to get something up this weekend.

Mike

Looks like you've been a busy little beaver there! Yep, we'd love to see the pictures of what you've done.

Don

There isn't much to add about the windshield after the last post. I did notice that the mounting points were off a little when viewed from the side. By that I mean that the windshield frame and posts were at slightly different angles. The cowl hinge points will need to be pushed forward on the cowl and the pivot points on the frame will need to be raised. I wanted the frame to lay just in front of the dash, but it didn't work out that way.

Since everything is just tacked together, it's an easy fix, but I put it aside for a while to concentrate on the getting the dash mounted. That way I could be sure to get the right relationships. I didn't realise it would be this long before I finished it!

The dash is a cut-down 32 Ford that came with the body and mounting it was just a trim and fit job. I had to cut a couple of notches in the ends to clear the new winshield posts and trim the top to match the cowl.

Since I wasn't trying to get by super cheap anymore, I decided to add some shiny stuff to the dash. I've always liked the old Stewart-Warner dash panels, so I ordered one of the 5 hole units from Haneline(nice folks by the way). It JUST fit the cut-down dash. No way the 6 hole panel would have fit.

The gages are Series 1 VDO and the speedometer is electronic. They have an old style look, but no way are they traditional. I lucked into these on EBAY. These are the same gages I have in my 46. The speedo is easy to calibrate and has never given me any trouble. If you've never used an electronic speedometer before, I highly recommend them. Makes recalibrating your speedo the easiest part of a gear or tire swap. Saves a lot of hassle and frustration.

After I got the gages in it was apparent that the dash was going to shake. The mounts just weren't stiff enough to stop it. I added a brace from the bottom of the dash to the firewall. Now it's pretty soild.

Originally Posted by Hotrod46

I was wrapped up in two wheeled endeavors off and on during the summer.

Dont I know what you mean!!!! I spent most of the summer months on the ol Harley.....I made more progress on my T coupe in the last three days then I did ALL summer!!!!.....

T42

I see you're in Tenn. There is some mighty fine riding in your state. We trailered a bike to the Knoxville area a few years ago for the NSRA Southern Nats. Spent 4 days riding in the eastern part of the state. It was great and I want to go back!

Mike

Or like the rodders of the "DAY"....we build what can't be done or what isn't available......rodding is not buying and displaying somebody else's wares, it's inovation and adaptation....make it work and look good.