Another build thread? Yep, my track-style T

[J. Robinson]

Wow!! You have got a lot done, it really looks good, great craftsmanship.
Ken

Thanks, Ken. That means a lot coming from you. The craftsmanship and ingenuity on your roadster is outstanding!

[J. Robinson]

...and have built 3 cars on here. You are a man of few words, maybe that's why you get your cars done and I don't.

Don

Nobody has ever accused me of being a man of few words! "Motor mouth" is usually more like it...

[FMXhellraiser]

Man that engine turned firewall looks amazing! I am stealing that idea from you. On my T that I want to someday build, I wanted to do a sheetmetal firewall even though it's a glass body but now I want engine turned on top of it as well. Did you go to bed feeling drunk and spinning when you close your eyes after looking at all those swirls?

[J. Robinson]

Thanks FMX. Although it's tedious and time consuming, it's not difficult to do and makes a neat effect. It's also a good treatment to do on a dash insert. No, didn't feel drunk or dizzy; just tired wrists from trying to control the drill. The neat thing about that effect, when you walk past and the light changes, it looks like it's moving...

[J. Robinson]

Ok, I have a hood support lip on the body; now I needed one on the nose. This one turned out to be pretty simple and I accomplished it in about 30 minutes. I took a piece of 1/8 x 2 flat stock (bought at ACE Hardware), cut it to length, and bent it with my bare hands (No, I'm not faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, or able to leap tall buildings! It's just soft metal... ). Once I was satisfied with the fit, I tack-welded it to the back edge of the brackets that hold the nose piece on. I will weld it solid when I remove the nose later.

Now that I have something to mount it to, I can fabricate the hood next.

[J. Robinson]

I didn't get as far as I wanted today , but I did get one hood side cut out. As I stated somewhere above, I am making the hood from reclaimed steel industrial shelving. During some renovations at the school where I teach, some old shelving was replaced. I salvaged five pieces of the old stuff that was in pretty pristine condition. The finish is somewhat worn (who cares?), but there are no dents or gouges; that's why I grabbed these pieces. The one in the first picture is typical of all.

The second picture shows the "tools of the trade". I used a metal yardstick, a framing square, a tape rule, a Sharpie pen, and some aviator snips. (I would have used my air-powered metal shears, but they decided to die before I made the first cut!) In this picture I have already removed one lip off the shelf and trimmed the edge (closest to the camera) straight.

In the third pic you can see some of the layout lines. I just measured from the firewall to the nose piece with the tape rule, transferred the dimensions to the steel with the metal yardstick and framing square, marked the lines with the Sharpie, and cut out the shape with the snips. It was almost a perfect rectangle, but the top edge is 1/4" longer than the bottom.

Once the rectangular piece was cut out, I held it in place on the car to determine where I needed to cut the bottom out for frame clearance. Then, back to the table one more time for a quick trim and this step is done. The fourth pic shows it taped on the car. Before I quit for the day, I tried this piece on the opposite side of the car; it fit fine but is 1/8" too long. It will be simple to make the second piece; I will use this first one as a pattern and just shorten it 1/8".

[oldrodder43]

WOW, that firewall is excellent. You're a genius, I would never have thought of that, nor how to accomplish it. Doesn't the drill/brush want to 'run away' and just spin all over the place. That's what would happen to me, and when it was 98% done so all that time and effort would be wasted! Perley

[J. Robinson]

I didn't get as far as I wanted the last time, but it worked out OK. As it is, it gave me time to study what I had done and I decided to cut 2 1/2 inches off the top of the hood sides. I did this so that it will simplify building the exhaust system later. So.., after trimming the top off the side that I already made, I used it as a pattern to make the opposite side.

On the right side I encountered a little clearance problem with the outer water jacket on the intake manifold, so I made short work of it with my Sawzall. I'll complete this modification later...

With the hood sides cut to fit, the next step is to reinforce the top edge. The reinforcement is added there to stabilize the edges where the hood tops will meet and latch to them. I made the reinforcement pieces from 1/8 x 1 1/4 flat stock. After cutting the flat stock to length, I drilled 1/4" holes along the top edge of the hood sides, 4" apart.

With the reinforcement strip situated half under the hood side and half exposed, I welded through the holes to attach the reinforcement to the flat stock. After welding, I dressed the spots flat with a grinder. There are some small dimples left in the welds, but rather than risk warping the panels with more welding, I will fill these little imperfections with glazing putty later when I'm doing paint prep.

[J. Robinson]

With the reinforcement welded in place, I drilled a 17/64 hole through the hood side and reinforcement in each end, clamped the hood sides in place, and drilled matching holes in the hood support lips on the firewall and nose. I attached the panels with 1/4" stainless steel button head allen bolts. I will add mounting holes at the bottoms of these panels later; I still have more work to do on them first.

Meantime, with the panels temporarily in place, I was able to begin making the patterns for the hood top pieces. The top will be made in two halves with a piano hinge down the center. Using good ol' trusty poster board again, I cut and fit the left half. That was as far as I got today...

[FMXhellraiser]

Looks awesome. That hood and sides are going to be smooth and clean. Going to run any louvers?

[J. Robinson]

Perley - Yes, the drill tries to run away; you need a strong grip on it. Once you get the hang of it, though, it's pretty easy. If you make a mistake, just go over it again.

FMX- Funny you should ask... As it happens, the guy who gave me my first ever ride in a hotrod (in 1960 or '61) has a louver press. I have a call in to a mutual friend to see if he will punch my side panels...

[Itoldyouso]

Wow Jim, that hood is going to be terrific when done. Starting to look like a real track car. BTW, if your Buddy doesn't come through on the louvers, let me know. We used a guy in Orlando for Dan's tonneau cover and he was really good, and a super nice guy. Price was only $ 2.00 each, and he even offered us a rebate because not all the louvers would fit the way we prepaid him for. We told him to keep the $ as a tip, but he insisted we had a credit on his books. I would recommend him in a heartbeat, and he is right in your back yard.

You are cooking right along there.

Don

[J. Robinson]

Thanks, Don. I really like the look of it with the hood so far. Louvers will be the finishing touch. If I don't hear from my old friend soon I'll be wanting the address or phone number of the guy in Orlando.

It won't be long now until I blow this thing apart for finishing...

[Ken Thurm]

Jim,
It's really getting close, and really looks good. Have you decided on things sticking out of your hood, velocity stacks, headers? I know I should just wait and see but I was just wondering. Are you going to do any of the engine turning in the dash?
Ken

[J. Robinson]

Thanks Ken.

Yes, the carburetor(s?) will be sticking up through the passenger side and the exhaust will come out the driver's side. I am actually going to make two right side hood half pieces. That way, if I change induction later, I will already have a hood piece that I can trim to fit the new system.

The dash will be engine-turned to match the firewall. When I paint the body I will give them both a generous coating of clear urethane.