Another build thread? Yep, my track-style T

[J. Robinson]

Bill - Yeah, that last time is like assembling a big model car. Everything is already fabricated and has been together once, so it goes fairly quickly... I'll see you there.

FMX - I'll be driving my coupe at the Turkey Run. If you want to see the T, try to make it to Billetproof in March. I hope to be driving it then.

Don - If I moved to Daytona it would take away all the fun of driving my cars to get there! I admit, it is nice being in a location that has so much "car stuff" going on. Daytona (45 miles away) has two major rod runs at the Speedway and now the Dream Cruise. Rossmeyer's Destination Daytona (Harley Dealership - 60 miles away) has a cruise-in every 3rd Saturday. New Smyrna (27 miles) has a cruise-in every 2nd Saturday. This one is big and well-attended. Sanford (32 miles) has a cruise-in every 4th Saturday and my home town of Titusville does the first Saturday of every other (odd numbered) month.

The Dream Cruise is this weekend; right now it's raining and is predicted to do so all day and most of the night. Tomorrow (Saturday) is the big day. Hopefully, the rain will quit by tomorrow morning. I'll let you all know how it turns out...

[firebird77clone]

It's been fun watching you build it. I love everything but the fake rust....

[Itoldyouso]

You didn't mention Dan on the next trip. Does this mean he won't be going, or that the RPU won't quite be ready by then(which I totaly understand given my current progress)?

No Steve, Dan's car won't be making it this year (again ) but through no fault of his. He is working 15 hour days right now plus playing every Saturday night, and doesn't have the time or energy to bust on the rpu like we were doing a few months ago. He's ok with it though, and is going to try to be up and running for Billetproof in March. He is going with us though, driving the tow car with Don's T behind.

Don actually tried to talk me into towing my T too. hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. THAT will be the day!!

Don

[stovens]

Glad to see it will be a family event. I too have slowed down, mostly financial, but winter coming is an incentive to get going again. I just wish the lotto would pay off!
I figue I have lots of firewall holes to patch, replumb the new rear brakes, and replace the front body panels that were removed this summer. Also lots of bolts to buy. If I did it all over I'd have bought an entire engine bolt kit from the get go!
J.R. sorry for the highjack. Can't wait to see you car back together with paint. I like the roadster look reminds me of the early race cars!

[Itoldyouso]

Yeah Jim, sorry for the hijack..........but at least Bob hasn't shown up with any pictures of his "cuties" yet.

Don

[OFT]

Boy oh Boy, Jim-can not wait to see this car going back together. Our events here this time of year (in northern Colo) have names like polar run, ect. I'm jealous, except your summers sound bad.

Will you be doing write up-pic's as it goes together?

Earl

[J. Robinson]

firebird77clone - Don't worry, the fake rust will be very minimal. It will only be there to fool the "uninitiated" into thinking this is a steel body, but won't detract from overall appearance. I've seen some "patina" jobs that were way overdone...

Don - Tow car??!!! Tell Don Jr. I had about 300 miles total on my coupe when I left here for Indiana two years ago. We made a 2400 mile loop through western Tenn, Indiana, the Carolinas, and back home with only one minor incident (ignition wire came off the coil in Alabama). Ya gotta have faith in your work!

Stovens - It is styled after the track-T's of the late 40's & early 50"s with a little 60's "altered" influence thrown in.

Hey, you guys didn't hijack anything; it's all related to the topic of building hotrods. Uncle Bob has been mysteriously silent recently. I guess this thread hasn't "inspired" him like yours did, Don.

Earl - Summers here are hot and humid, but tolerable and generally pleasant. The only disadvantage is the occasional tropical storm. It's worth the tradeoff, though, not to have to put up with snow and freezing temps. I get to ride my motorcycle and drive my hotrod year-round... Yes, I'll be posting pictures all along the way until it is finished and on the road.

[Dave Severson]

Have a good trip with the new car! Should be a fun one, hope the car (and everyone else) behaves along the way!!!!

[Itoldyouso]

Don - Tow car??!!! Tell Don Jr. I had about 300 miles total on my coupe when I left here for Indiana two years ago. We made a 2400 mile loop through western Tenn, Indiana, the Carolinas, and back home with only one minor incident (ignition wire came off the coil in Alabama). Ya gotta have faith in your work!

I know what you mean, Jim, but Dan and I talked him out of towing his car last year and it ended up eating that valve enroute. If we would have not given him a hard time about it he could have towed it there and at least driven it around town a little. The valve would have eventually broken because of the too long pushrods, but he could have probably gotten the weekend at TR out of it before it died.

After some of the problems we had early on with his T, he is just starting to regain confidence in it. The engine seems fine now, and TCI looks like they got this new transmission right. But it is so important for Don to drive his car around Daytona this year there is no way Dan and I will "advise" him not to tow it.

Here are pictures of just a few of the "bugs" we had to work out of his car.

Don

[Bob Parmenter]

Uncle Bob has been mysteriously silent recently. I guess this thread hasn't "inspired" him like yours did, Don.

Been pretty deep in a remodel project the past few months Jim, so time online has been reduced. Or maybe I'm just mellowing in my dotage.

[OFT]

"I get to ride my motorcycle and drive my hotrod year-round... Yes, I'll be posting pictures all along the way until it is finished and on the road."


Jim,
I drive year round also (except sold the Harley few years ago). Just need to dress a little warmer. Went with a new Hot Rod Air ac/heat unit. Used to have Vintage Air unit. Heater core broke and just as cheap to go with new inside unit. Have yet to connect the A/C part. Only had it in for 8 years. Maybe this time around I will get A/C hooked up. Like the hot rod air connections on top. That is reason I went that way.

Hot-Humid---YUK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hot is in the 80's. Humid around hear is above 30%. And you can keep the "tropical storm" part. I used to be a claims rep. for State Farm Fire Ins., (for 17 years). Had to handle a lot of the storm/disaster claims, so no thank you.

Earl

[Itoldyouso]

One thing about our 200 percent humidity, it sure give a car patina in a hurry. You can't buy that kind of aging!!

Don

[OFT]

One thing about our 200 percent humidity, it sure give a car patina in a hurry. You can't buy that kind of aging!!

Don

You got me :

Earl

[J. Robinson]

Don - I had forgotten how serious Don Jr's breakdown was. I was remembering the problem with the Pittman arm... I don't blame him for being a little "gun shy". Although I only had a few hundred miles on my coupe when we left on our midwestern loop, I had been driving it intermittently for about a year and had already discovered (and fixed) a couple of problems.

Bob - Glad to see you're still here. Your lack of visibility had us concerned... I don't think I'll ever forget the picture of Rosie O'Donnell with a hairy chest. Every time I see her on TV I think of that image. I guess I am permanently brain-damaged now...

Earl - I'm originally from Indiana. Up there my friends still put their motorcycles and hotrods in storage in late October and don't bring 'em out until May. The weather is just too unpredictable. I've never been sorry for leaving there. 80 degrees is mildly pleasant here; it's not hot until it gets above 92. Anything below 60 is freezing!

Don is right about instant patina; grind a piece of steel until it shines and leave it. Come back the next day and it will have an orange look to it - surface rust has already set in. Whenever ya do grinding or sandblasting here, you need to keep a primer gun ready so you can coat the bare metal immediately!

[J. Robinson]

OK. Back to work! I've been a bit distracted the last couple of weeks with Biketoberfest and then the Daytona Dream Cruise, but I did manage to get about an hour of work in on the roadster Sunday evening. In my last update I had been finish-welding on the frame and some other components. I did not, however, get around to finishing the rear end bracketry. Everything has been solidly tacked in place for months, but not finished...

I began by marking the weld areas off in increments of just over an inch which divided each of the welds into eight sections. I began by welding the back inch of each outer weld area (welds closer to the ends of the housing). Then I rolled the housing over and did the front inch. Next I did the bottom inch of each, then the top. Then the lower back, upper front, lower front and upper back. This way I was always welding 180 degrees from the previous weld to minimize warpage of the rear end housing. When the outer welds were complete, I began the process again with the inner welds (closest to the center). By strapping the radius rod brackets to the rear housing this way, they are super strong and the welds go all the way around the housing which equalizes and minimizes warpage.