Thread: Hello and questions about '32 Ford coupe kits

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I would suggest you take your time, if you're not already planning that way, and continue to study the options. As just an example for emphasis, not intending to dis you here as you admit you've been away for quite awhile, your not being at least familiar with the name Wescott when it comes to glass bodies is telling. Dee has been making glass bodies since the late '60's, a true pioneer and still at it. His bodies have earned a very strong reputation, and nobody doing it today has been at it longer. (a little inside baseball thing, he's very close to releasing a very cool '32 5 window body) That being said, there are other folk out there that are quality body builders. You mentioned Outlaw. They do some very good glass quality, and structurally they seem to hold up well. Depending on how picky you are about shape will determine if they stay on your list. They chose to eliminate the reveal around the windshield (looks similar to a '33/4 now), and the upper portion of their doors is a bit "squared off" looking. Again, it's a terrific product, and if those "customizations" fit your taste they'd be a good choice. Those are some of the things I mean by your wanting to spend more time, in order to figure out what exactly you want.

You didn't mention budget either. Any way you cut it, unless you stumble across the highly unlikely uninformed person with a barn full of neat ol' stuff, you're going to have a significant amount of change in one of these. A fellow was on the board a few days ago telling us about his winning a glass '32 3 window roller assembly. It was still missing a few obvious items such as a radiator, and of course probably didn't have all the bazillion little things that make a car complete. The folks who raffled it off claimed there were $40k (cdn) in parts. That's very believable. The Wescott '32 3 window body alone goes for around $19k, not counting packaging and shipping. The Outlaw isn't very far behind that. Looking around you may see an occasional glass body that looks like the good ones selling for say $8k. But again, referring to another recent post from a guy building a Willys, the difference can be eaten up in fixing the cheapie body.....in a hurry, especially if you want to end up with a top quality piece. That fellow mentioned something like $24k in professional work to get the body ready for paint if I remember correctly. Just to toss another comparison into the mix. Brookville Roadsters is releasing this summer their steel repop of the '32 3 window. If you haven't heard of them either, they are the steel equivalent of Wescott, been in business a good number of years, and are respected for their quality. They build their body to be a near duplicate of the factory piece so it's got a stock height roof, and all the gennie features like exterior hinges, and such. For rodding you'd probably want to put in more bracing for cowl strength, a place to hang the steering column, and so on. Those are priced at $24k. Not too much more than Wescott's glass body, so if steel is a preference there's an option.

Just to give some more emphasis to what you've already figured out to some degree. Below is a picture from the L.A. Roadsters swap meet this past Father's day. Look closely at the sign for his asking price.........and yes, that's for just what you see in the pic, not including the trailer. Yep, it sold.............don't know if it went at asking, but I'd bet it wasn't far off.

Welcome to the site. You chose wisely coming here as there are many very experienced car builders here. I too would advise you to take some time in here and with research outside on your own before choosing your path. That said, knowing what I know now, for glass I would buy Wescotts and for steel I would buy from Brookville. I would also trust Outlaw for a good glass body.

I have a coremat vinylester resin body that is thick, light, and strong and inexpensive; and that has/will take me many many more hours to finish out etc. I have gaps in the doors and trunk lid that (as Bob once said) you could run a herd of cats through

I am extremely pleased with my Cornhusker Rod and Custom frame and Heidts suspension componentry though the afore mentioned frames I hear are good as well.

Regards, Kitz