Thread: Budget for a 32 Roadster

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I have been working on the roadster pickup (my avatar) for a year now, doing mostly everything myself. I paid $2000 for the semi finished project, but all I managed to salvage was the main body shell, butchered frame, 40 Ford spindles and S10 rearend. I sold the chrome undropped I beam axle and various "wrong" parts for $300. I only paid $200 for a used small block chev engine and turbo 350. The metal body had to be completely torn down and rebuilt from scratch, I fabricated a new bed, and used fiberglass fenders, splash aprons, hood, and grillshell. After the body was completely rebuilt in steel, I paid a professional bodyman $2500 to do the finish bondo work after I had welded on it for 6 weeks straight---(thats the only work that I have farmed out). I boxed the original frame and built new crossmembers. Over the last month I have spent close to $4000 for a Grant steering wheel, Ididit tilt column, a Lokar shifter, Billet Specialties column drop and dash insert, Autometer gauges and a third steering column universal joint. I still need to spend $1000 for Coker wide whitewall tires, $1000 for paint (I will paint it myself), $1000 for an interior, and probably another $1000 in miscellaneous brake and wiring stuff. I currently have $16,500 invested, at this point in the build. If I hadn't farmed out the bodywork and had used wrecking yard steering parts and gearshift, I could probably be at the current state of build for closer to $10,000. I am a bit wealthier and a lot older now, so tramping thru the wrecking yards trying to find cheap parts was not done this time around. I am not sure about 32 Fords, everything for them is more expensive, however considering that the cost of my body and fenders and new bed and bodywork came to close to $5500 I think I could have bought a budget fiberglass body and been just about at the same point I am now for the same money.--I do believe you can buid a respectable hotrod, maybe even a 1932 for under $20,000 and thats in Canada where things cost about 50% more than in the States. However, for that price you would do everything yourself, farm absolutely nothing out, and get real friendly with your local wrecking yard owner.

Originally posted by Don Shillady
While we are just chatting I note that I have not found a chrome spreader/bumper for the A frame horns and the tecnical guy at Brookville says you have to cut down a '32 front spreader bar, any tips on that?

Don,

The original Model A frame horns have a single bumper hole in the front. The 32 has two. The Model A also has a cupped washer behind the hole to give the bumper bolt a stronger purchase. You can leave the washer in place or remove it. I have seen spreader bars fitted both ways. You modify the 32 bar by cutting off the two bolt flanges and welding in plugs that have a tapped center hole. Not very difficult. You can make the plugs out of mild steel plate with a bolt welded on the back. If budget is an issue consider making one out of mild steel and painting it. It will give you some practice and you can upgrade to stainless later.

Bib

Originally posted by Bob Parmenter
Rod,

Go to the upper left of the page and change your "style", color seems to be the best choice.

Yep that worked. Thanks buddy

Originally posted by topsterguy
. . . but you could put $2000 into a Gibbon body and you still wouldn't have a Wescott! . . . .

That aint NO lie !

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Originally posted by Bob Parmenter
Rod,

Go to the upper left of the page and change your "style", color seems to be the best choice.

Originally posted by rocknrod
Yep that worked. Thanks buddy

Worked for me to.

Bib and Bob, Thanks. On a previous A, which I did not finish, I used a threaded rod through a 2 1/2" pipe with large washers welded in the ends and tightened nuts on the ends and painted to match the frame. I guess I was mainly asking about welding stainless steel. I did not know it can be welded and then polished, so I will have to look around for someone with experience welding stainless and get one of those '32 spreader bars because I want a shiny one this time.

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Originally posted by Don Shillady
so I will have to look around for someone with experience welding stainless ...............Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Look into marine repair/fabrication shops, there's lots of stainless on boats so they should have experience. It occurs to me you're going full fendered. The ends may be not visible under the fender/splash apron and not require repolishing unless you're really compulsive.

I bid a Deuce Hi-Boy for a guy awhile back. With no billet, crate motor, TCI trans, paint, and upholstery it came to $32,500 out the door. The guy looked at me like I was nuts, said that was way too much money and left. He called one evening last week and wanted me to refigure the bid with a reman motor and trans, no interior. After some conversation, he told me that my bid was at least $5,000 lower than the other 3 he got!!!! Deuce's aren't cheap !!!

Don;
You did not mention if your running fenders or not , I asked in a previous thread and maybe you missed it. Were you at BeBops in January 6th or 7th ? If so my Son and I were there also , weren't you picking up fenders with a friend of yours ? My Son has a stainless spreader bar for a Model 'A' that was from a previous car, he may part with it I'll have to ask. If so let me know your dimentions between rails ( ID ) and we'll see if it'll fit.

Bob ; Thanks for the info on Style, now I can see Bib's Car, WOW ! Nice HOT ROD Bib ! Thats what hot rodding's all about. Love the Flat paint , it's a late model motor, Crate ? or what ?

Jr. Rodder; Lots of good info for you, as Bib said lots of time we don't think things out enough and it ends up costing us more in the end, sometimes to save a buck we end up spending twice as much to correct our mistake. I'm not sure what your abilities and skill levels are, but I built a 'T' Bucket back in the 70's, I was newly married and a new born just arrived and on a REAL STRICT BUDJET , and as Bib said I had a Vision of a bucket in my head since I was 17 and started out by purchasing a set of plans from California Custon Roadster, buying 20' of 2X3 Tubing and building my own frame on a plywood table I built, by using wrecking yard parts I kept the cost down and I had only 5k in the whole car, it took me 4 years to built it, and by doing all of the labor myself I saved a lot, back then you couldn't order all of the parts and brackets like you can today, you had to either fab it yourself or get it from wrecking yards, and it turned out better than I had ever imagined. I'll have to try to copy an old photo and post it. I made the entire front end out of Stainless steel including the tube axle and polished it all " By Hand " I'd never do it again but it saved the cost of chromeing. Stainless is hard to work because it do darn hard. You can buy a wrecked car and get your drivetrain , steering column, wiring, and a lot more to hold your cost down, and maybe sell off the good body panels,glass andother parts to retreive some of your money to buy parts you need. After I started my 3 Window project I noticed on Hot Rod Hot Line , http://hotrodhotline.com/index.php
in the For sale section that there a lot of abandoned projects available out ther and you may find one ther and sometimes save a ton of money that way. Keep us posted and ask lots of questions, there a wealth of knowledge here at CHR and a lot of wonderful Gentlemen that are more that willing to share it with you and help guide you when you need it. That's the best part about Street/Hot Rodders ther always willing to help one another when they need it . Good Luck !

Tim, That wasn't me a Bebops in January but I am interested in the spreader bar. The measurement seems to be 25" to the outside of the frame horns so the interior dimension should be 24 7/8" or 24 3/4" allowing for the thickness of the frame metal. Send me an e-mail message and let me know a price and shipping information.

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Well this thread seems to have gone past it's original idea so let me work on the Model-A spreader idea. My Brookville frame measures 25" on the outside of the frame horns and probably I need a one-hole mount with a bar of 24 3/4" for the inside of the frame horns. Speedway lists a '32 front bar as 23 3/4" and a set of 1/8" spacers. I guess there is some way to make the '32 bar work with thicker spacers or washers which won't show due to the width of the frame horns and the splash apron in front with the full-fender setup. If I don't hear from Tim in a few days I guess I will get the '32 bar from Speedway and figure out a way to pad the ends with 1/2" spacers. Comments? Suggestions?

P.S. I just went back into the woods where I threw an original Model-A frame that came back from the sand blaster riddled with holes and I measured the distance in the front of the original. It came out to be 24 1/2" on the interior of the frame horns due to the reinforcing washers welded in the channel of the horns. I guess that means I can probably beef up the width of the '32 spreader with washers or 1/2" plate on each side to fill the gap after I convert it to a single-hole mount. Just thinking out loud, comments?

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Originally posted by Tim Guzowski
Bob ; Thanks for the info on Style, now I can see Bib's Car, WOW ! Nice HOT ROD Bib ! Thats what hot rodding's all about. Love the Flat paint , it's a late model motor, Crate ? or what ?

Tim,

I really appriciate the complement.

I debated the crate motor thing. But I really wanted to build my own motor. Alwas have. Around here early Chevy 350 blocks are getting hard to find. Mine came out a a 76 pickup that I found in a yard in Salem, Arkansas. I paid $100 for it. It was well used. The crank and heads were junk. But the block cleaned up at .040 over and I scored a reground crank for $100. The heads are Vortec units out of a 98 pickup. Low milage, they cleaned up with a valve job. I am running KB pistons and an Edelbrock Performer cam and intake. It is a very mild motor that gives me all the torque the tires can hold. While it was apart I spent the better part of a weekend cleaning up the casting flash and detailing the bock and heads. Money wise, a crate motor would have cost about the same. But crate motors do not come with self satisfaction built in.

Don; I wil check with my Son and see what he wants to do with it, it is a real nice Piece though, give me a few days , I won't forget you either way, OK ? Hang Loose.

Bib ; Thanks for the reply, Yep I reall like that ride, I agree on the Crate motor , sometimes I'm sceptical on buying an old tired motor "trying to save some Dough" and then have to dump a lot more into it reserecting it , and end up having more into it than a new Motor. OH the trials and tribulations of being a do it yourselfer. Bet at least we get the satification, ' Good or Bad' The late model heads was a good Idea though.