Another Build Thread - My '32

[J. Robinson]

Wow! That's sad. And scary.

The closest call I ever had was years ago with a 7-inch air powered angle grinder. I was grinding on something for my '31 coupe. It was just below waist level and I was wearing a baggy old tank top. The wheel caught my shirt tail and wound it up all the way to my stomach. Fortunately, the sudden movement jerked my finger off the trigger and the shirt stopped the wheel just as it contacted bare skin. All I got was a raw abrasion about 3 inches long and a half inch wide and a shredded shirt. If it had been the more powerful electric grinder it probably would have disemboweled me. Lesson learned; when I'm using a grinder now I make sure my shirt tail is tucked in or at least not near the grinding wheel.

[firebird77clone]

I've had two minor injuries from angle grinders.
One, the wheel grabbed a piece of sheet metal which I was trying to avoid. Result: a small divot near my wrist. Could have been tourniquet and Emergency Room.

Another time i recal, i was working down low, and the wheel grabbed my coveralls. I got a deep scratch across the knee. Could have been a permanent limp.

Both times were result of a momentary lapse of attention.

My angle grinder is my favorite tool, and probably the most dangerous. I have removed the guard on occasion, but it always goes back on as soon as possible.

[Driver50x]

I've used the 3 inch cutoff wheels on a die grinder for years. For some reason it never dawned on my to try a 4 1/2 wheel on an angle grinder. I tried it a couple days ago, wow what a useful tool. I made a pair of front batwings, one with torches and the second with the cut off wheel. I think the second one took about half as long as the first one. And that was just using a $15 Harbor Freight angle grinder.

I've been fortunate to never have any scary incidents with the cut off wheels. I did however have one of those 3M gasket cleaning pads fly off, and it felt like it neutered me!

One question Jim. How did you cut the inside radius for your coil over axle bracket? Did you just make a series of cuts and then grind it out?

[firebird77clone]

A hole saw works well for such things, but the cut and grind method is almost faster.

Pay the extra $ for stainless steel rated discs
, they outlast about 3:1.

[J. Robinson]

Yes, Steve, I cut as close as I could with the same 4 1/2 inch cut-off wheel (had to finish the last little bit on each cut with a hacksaw). Then switched back to the regular grinding wheel and finished the shaping with that.

[J. Robinson]

I've been incommunicado for a month; I've been doing home maintenance stuff... Anyway, I'm at the point where I'm ready to install the engine and trans, but I don't have the body yet, so I don't know exactly where to position them. I probably could have had Clarke Hot Rods put the mounts (at least the front ones) in the frame for a small fee, but I didn't even think of it at the time. So.., can one of you Deuce owners lend a hand? I need to know the dimension from (1) the center of the rear axle to the front edge of the cowl lip or (2) center of rear axle to the center of the front motor mounts on a Chevy engine or (3) the distance from rear axle center to where the bell housing meets the engine block (Chevy). Any one of these measurements can put me on track to get the engine and trans in the chassis.

Thanks in advance.

[figure8]

I would wait till you get the body as aftermarket bodies vary especially the firewall. Otherwise just tack the mounts in as you may wish to go forward or back / up or down

[rspears]

Jim, on a Pete & Jake's '32 chassis, Show-Me roadster body - tape measure taped to top center of the rear drum I got 75" to the front edge of the firewall, and 91" to the center of the SBC motor mount. I can check again in a couple of hours when my grandson gets here to hang out, but those are real close from my "project".

With a "holder" and a straight edge I'd put the firewall at 75.25", and the motor mount more like 91.25". That's with a wood block square against the tube for the motor mount bolt, projected out a foot, measured straight back to the axle tube center to the center of the motor mount.

[rspears]

20170628_122419.jpg

20170628_122357.jpg


Jim,
Just to be clear, the "firewall" dimension I gave you is the flat, leading edge of the cowl. I took a couple of pictures showing that the firewall (flat on ShowMe) is set back 1.75" from that leading edge, and a second showing the clearance on the HEI dizzy. I think you'll find that the leading edge of the cowl value will be pretty consistent between suppliers, but the "setback" may vary a bit. I had to cut out the tranny hump and modify it to clear the bellhousing on this one and may have to relieve just a bit to clear the distributor hold down screw boss.

[J. Robinson]

Thanks, Roger. That gives me some really helpful info to work with. I'm picking up the engine tomorrow (Thursday) morning and I'm anxious to get back to work on this thing.

Figure8 - I would love to have the body, but I don't know when that's going to happen. I still haven't found a buyer for my Track-T. Yes, I will leave everything tacked until I can finalize the location.

Thanks, guys.

[J. Robinson]

I have the engine and trans sitting in my shop now; the only thing holding me back is the ungodly hot weather here which makes welding unpleasant! Anyway, I shifted things around in the shop today so I can start fitting the engine and trans into the frame. While I was moving things around I stopped to take a few pics...

Even with the wrong tires on the front, the stance is pretty good. The truck arms are tucked nicely underneath and only partially visible from the side; the front torsion bars are completely hidden. As viewed from the front, keeping in mind that the front shocks are not there yet, only a very small portion of the torsion arms are visible. I think this makes for a very clean appearing front end.

[jerry clayton]

Check Wescottauto.com for tech section with all chassis /body specs

[J. Robinson]

Thanks, Jerry. I already have Wescott's frame diagram in my files. Unfortunately, with all the dimensions on that drawing, none show the location of the firewall! Also, their body pictures do not include ANY dimensions. I have also checked Gibbon, Dearborn Deuce, Speedway, and anyone else I can think of - no useful dimensions there either. It's almost as if they have some weird agreement to keep those dimensions a secret! I guess they don't want folks like me building a chassis until we purchase a body. Bull-hockey! Thankfully, Roger was able to provide the measurements I need to proceed.

[Driver50x]

That front end does look neat. It looks like the springs are missing! I also love aluminum slotted wheels.

[J. Robinson]

Ha, ha! I'm partial to those old slots, too. I've had the rear pair for nearly 20 years and used them on several different builds as mock-up wheels and ran them on my coupe for a while. Had the front pair for at least 10 or 12 years. I don't know if anybody still makes them, but whenever I get 'em I keep 'em. I also have a set of 14 inchers, but they are from two different makers. Two of them look like these and two have more squared off slots and are Chevy bolt pattern (5 on 4.75).