Another Build Thread - My '32

Don't know if this will help you or not but figured I'd throw it out there.

When I set up an AC system I usually mock my rubber lines up with heater hose first. I go ahead and loosely install the fitting I’m going to be using where they need to go. Depending on the fitting, usually 1/2, 5/8, or 3/4 inch heater hose will slip into the fittings. As the heater hose has usually been stored in a coil it has a natural curve to it like the AC hose does and this can be an advantage as you can often make that curve work for you when laying out the hose (trying to bend the AC hose against the curve to make it lay the way you want can be a big PIA).

I usually start out with the heater hose a bit on the long side then trim it to the correct length when it’s fully seated in the AC fitting. Once I’m happy with the line layout I take a marker and draw a line on the fitting and hose so I know how the fitting are supposed to be oriented in case they get bumped when I take them into the parts store to have the actual line made. That’s especially critical if you have a hose with an angled fitting on both ends that HAVE to be properly indexed from each other to work.

When I take them into the parts store to have the lines made up I tell them to make the lines the same length as the heater hose. On the lines that have an angled fitting on them I tell them to make sure the curvature of the AC hose is oriented the same direction as the as the curve on the heater hose.

For me it works like a charm, once I get the hoses back they always end up fitting and are the correct length. Make sure you tell them you want the heater hoses back…….that way you can lay the piece of heater hose on top of the new AC line and verify they cut it to the right length and the fitting were oriented correctly before they were crimped. Depending on the length of the heater hose it can often be used to connect the heater core so it doesn’t go to waste.

All that being said, it’s been a long time since I bought heater hose so I don’t know how pricey it currently is. I do know it should be a lot cheaper than AC hose (besides being a lot easier to work with when mocking up the system). If you screw up on just one AC line and have to have it remade chances are that the replacement line and fittings would end up costing more than the cost of heater hose for mockup.

Life does have a way of interrupting projects, huh?

It sure does, Dave. I got the bathroom remodel about 90% done and my wife had to have surgery on her back. Now I'm chief cook, nurse, and physical therapist for at least the next month... Maybe THEN I'll get to work on the '32 again.

I'm baaack! Finally!:rolleyes: Geez, it seems like forever since I've spent any time on the '32. Anyway, the wife has mostly recovered from her back surgery and the bathroom remodel is finally finished. Except for my involvement in Electrathon racing, I should be free to make progress.:)

Before life interrupted, I had turned my attention to the A/C hoses. After about three or four trips to the computer to order different fittings, I had everything I needed. It was about that time that I got sidelined.:( Finally, yesterday I was able to get back on the hoses and complete them. I have a borrowed hydraulic crimper (swedge tool) that installs the hose ends very neatly. I cut and fit all the different size (diameter) hoses before I crimped anything. While the hoses were in place, I marked the position of the ends on the hoses with a gold sharpie (visible on the under-dash pic).;) Then I took each hose off, one-at-a-time, and swedged the ends on. Finally, I tightened all the connections. I'll put the vacuum machine on it soon to check for leaks.:HMMM:

Here are some pics of the finished hoses. Thankfully, most of the hoses are out of sight when the hood is in place.:cool: The pink zip-ties will be replaced with black when the grille shell goes back on and the mounting points are finalized.:3dSMILE:

Nice work on the hoses, which are a genuine pain to deal with! Having the crimper is a huge help, vs having to take them all to the auto parts store and explain how important it is that the marks line up EXACTLY, and praying that the guy was listening!

Sorry for the slow response - Electrathon racing season is under way now...:rolleyes:

My good friend Mike Krupp bought the crimping tool, so I bought the vacuum pump and gauges. Mike is building a '37 Chevy sedan and we'll use both pieces of equipment on both cars. We help each other frequently and, yes, having access to that tool made the job a lot more convenient.:)

Today I finally put the grille shell back on the car. In order to do so I had to cut some material away to provide clearance for the A/C lines. It was a simple process, but every little step is a step closer to completion. Next is finishing the hood and making the new front mount for it.:whacked:

Well, it's been a while. Life gets in the way.:rolleyes: I actually did some fabrication, but then there was Christmas and all those obligations, a couple of Electrathon races, and there is always some "honey-dos" that pop up. So.., what fabrication did I do?;)

I sidestepped the hood and grille shell modifications for now so I could do the wiring. First, I needed a place to mount the fuse block. I considered putting it behind the passenger seat, but I have power seats. If I blew a fuse in the seat circuit, how would I get to it if the seat wouldn't move?:HMMM: The passenger side under the dash is crowded with the A/C hoses and hardware that needs to be accessible, so it turns out that the fuse block needs to go in the common driver's side cowl area.:o With the location decided I needed a mount for it. I started with a piece of scrap cardboard and, through cut and try method, I made a pattern for a mount that fits between the square steel tubes in the cowl. I transferred the pattern to some 16-gauge aluminum, cut it out, bent the flanges on my benchtop brake, and put thread inserts where the fuse block bolt holes go.

Finally, I drilled and secured the mount in place with big-head 3/16, steel shank pop rivets.:) Now the real fun begins - wiring.:whacked:

Well, it's been a while... again. I haven't been totally absent, just doing obscure things. I'm in the middle of Electrathon season, which keeps me sidetracked sometimes, and since my last posting here I've been doing some wiring... slowly.:rolleyes:

Anyway, here are some shots of what I've accomplished between races and "honey-do's". After labeling all the wires on the harness so I could see what they are (wires are labeled anyway, but with tiny print that old eyes don't see well:whacked:), I bolted the fuse panel in pace and started connecting things. I didn't like the under-dash panel I made earlier, so I scrapped it and made a much simpler piece. This little piece hides the bar I added to support the A/C unit and also gives me a place to mount the light and wiper switches.;) I covered it with a light tan vinyl that I will be using on the door panels and headliner. In the picture you can see the 3M #90 spray adhesive. I've used this stuff for years and always had good results. Of course, the edges are folded around the edges and stapled on the back side.:3dSMILE:

So here is the panel installed under the dash. On the far left are the light and wiper switches. The rest is just plain.:)

The second picture is the beginnings of my second version of a pattern for a console. It still lacks the top portion where it would fit against the bottom of the A/C evap unit. I'm not entirely happy with it, so I may scrap it and try something else. I had intended to mount the radio and the power window switches in it, but now I'm considering the possibility of making an overhead console instead.:rolleyes: Time will tell.:HMMM:

OK, nothing earth-shattering to relate. I haven't added anything here since March because I haven't done much.:HMMM: I was deeply involved (maybe I should say embroiled) in wiring when I hit a snag. This is not my first rodeo; this is the 8th car I have wired and most of them have been pretty much snag and problem free. The first 5 that I did were done without a wiring kit! I simply built a fuse panel, bought an array of different color and gauge wires, and strung one wire at a time until they were done. My '31 has been on the road for 17 years with no wiring issues.

The last three, my son's '50 Mercury, my Track-T, and this one I have used pre-fab'd wiring harness kits. The Merc and the T went together without issues, but this one almost drove me to do something regrettable - like involving gasoline and a match! Anyway, as it turns out the problem was not with the wiring harness, it was my choice of components and a silly mistake. I literally walked away from this car, closed the doors, and spent my time and efforts on other things for a while. So, what happened? Here is my saga of ignorance and stupidity...:whacked:

The wiring kit I bought was the same exact make and model I used on the '50 Mercury. It all went well until I finished wiring the turn signals. The headlights, parking lights, and taillights all worked as expected. However, the turn signals would not flash no matter what.:eek: OK, that wasn't completely unexpected - all the lights in my entire system are LEDs. I installed the lightest duty flasher I had and still no dice. I ordered new flashers on Amazon specifically for LED applications. Then the rear signals would work, but the fronts would only work if the headlights or parking lights were turned on! I've encountered similar problems before - the fronts aren't sufficiently grounded, right? Wrong! Every test I ran with my continuity tester and multimeter say I have a good ground. I switched the wires on my parking lights and turn signals - same result. Also, the indicator lights in the dash would come on, but wouldn't flash no matter what! GRRRR!! OK, I'll do something else and come back to this later.

I haven't had this thing running since I set the body on the chassis. Maybe I ought to just turn the key and fire it up. Yeah! So I turned the key and it sounded like the starter is about to fall off! I haven't messed with it at all, haven't had the starter off or loose or anything, so what the hell?:confused: I don't know why the starter suddenly sounds different than when I had it running before, but I know it needed shimming. I loosened it up, shimmed the outside bolt with two thin washers and tried again. Now it sounded like it was binding - I had shimmed it too much. I loosened it again and removed one washer. It sounds better now, but acts like it's "dragging" and this is a brand new starter! At this point I was thoroughly disgusted and disheartened. I walked out of the shop, closed the door behind me, and went in the house. That was in late March...:mad:

Finally, last week, after not touching the '32 for almost 8 weeks, I had a mental revelation. I bought two little non-LED clearance lights for a trailer. I spliced a wire into the rear turn signals and hooked up the clearance lights. Presto! All the turn signals suddenly work like they are supposed to!:D I have mounted them inside the trunk where they will never be seen, but they make everything work properly including the indicator lights in the dash, so they will be there forever. Now for the starter problem...:rolleyes:

I wanted to get the thing to crank properly. I didn't think it was turning over fast enough to start. I turned the key to "start" and the starter still sounded like it was dragging. After a couple of seconds I stopped, waited a second or so and tried again - still dragging. I went to the trunk to disconnect the battery so I could remove the starter and have it tested. When I touched the negative cable it was too warm; not just a little warm as normal, but too warm. It wasn't hot enough to make a blister, but uncomfortably warm enough to be abnormal.:HMMM: I started feeling the connections and where I had the ground bolted to the frame, the bolt was hot. OK, on a little further investigation I discovered that the bolt I had used was too long. The nut on the bottom had bottomed out on the unthreaded part of the bolt and froze. Sure it felt tight on the two wrenches, but it wasn't holding the cable tight. I replaced the bolt with one a bit shorter (had to cut the other one out) and now the starter works fine.:)

So, it turns out that the wiring harness is just fine; it was just a matter of educating myself. Henceforth I will always put at least one set of lights in the system that are NOT LEDs.:cool: Also, I guess I will now probably always check for tight bolts when installing cables. Sometimes self-education is frustrating...:whacked::3dSMILE: The good news is I'm ready to get back to work on this thing.;)

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

Henceforth I will always put at least one set of lights in the system that are NOT LEDs.:cool:

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Good to see you back at it, Jim, thanks to the mental revelation! And with that henceforth statement, sounds like we can look forward to another build after this one!!

I don't know, Roger. I never say never, but I have remarked to other people that this will probably be my last build... At 74 I don't know if I have enough stamina and determination left to complete another build.:whacked: However..,:rolleyes:

I have always dreamed of building a replica of a 1959-'64 Watson Indy roadster. Imagine the attention it would get showing up at a cruise-in in a street-legal 1960s Indy car.:cool: I have a copy set of A.J. Watson's original blueprints. All I need is the replica nose and tail cones and I can fabricate everything else... Maybe someday.:D Gotta finish this one first.:HMMM:

A fella I used to work for many many years ago had a little cliché he used to rattle out when things went wrong: "If at first you don't succeed try, try, try a gin."

I suspect we've all done that "walk away for awhile...." thing. The subconscious mind keeps working on it and eventually connects to the mostly awake brain and we can continue on.

There's a guy on the HAMB that built a Watson style roadster a few years ago, he's a metal wizard, did a fabulous job. In fact had to do much of it twice because of an accident.

Here ya go Jim: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/...dster.1044692/

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Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

Here ya go Jim: https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/...dster.1044692/

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WOW! Talk about some metal working skills! That guy is AMAZING!!

Jim I have similar problems with vintage receivers. I had taken down my Kenwood receiver and stored it away while I cleaned up my Sunporch room. Months later I found an RCA Jack plugged into the Dolby in Dolby out ports I figured when I disassemble thcomponents attached to it I didn't want to lose the jack so randomly plugged it onto the first jack I could while moving stuff around. Bout 5 months go by, I clean the potentiometers on the Kenwood because they were cause static and volume issues. This is one of the Monster Recievers Kenwood made and even with my power Hungry Dahlquist speakers, It still can be deafining at medium output. So I was quite surprised after cleaning, even at full power the sound on any speaker attached, was very low volume. I went onto AudioKhama web site, got help from the best, reread the original owners manual and the service manual. Got so frustrated as it work perfectly before being store 5 months. I left it put it away and did something else. Wioke up one night and thought about the RCA jack. Next day reread the manual. It says you need jumper cable on the Dolby in and out puts. Every othere receiver from Marantz to Pioneer, ect from this 70's era of analog receivers have main input and out put s that if aren't going to a separate amp, need jumper cables connected from input to output side. Once I figured out this(mind you this beast has a ton on rca jacks for multiple turntables, 3 sets of speakers, aux, 2tape recorders, list goes on) so seeing dolby in and outs did't trigger my brain as something to pay attention too, any works fantastic! Sometimes walking away is much better than a hammer or gas and a match...Great Job.
PS you are the guy to buid the indy Watson!

GOOD GOLLY! Time sure gets away...:HMMM: I'm still alive and well, just haven't done anything noteworthy on my Deuce. I just looked at the date above and nearly choked; it's been 6 months since I updated here! I've been doing everything else and spending almost no time in the garage or shop.

Back in March the left front tire on my Model-A came apart and went flat on the way home from a local cruise-in. That led me to replacing all 4 tires on it. They all still had plenty of tread left and no dry cracks, BUT... they were all 17 years old! A good friend (a former tire dealer) told me he never runs a steel-belted radial tire more than 6 or 7 years old because, no matter how good they look, they are a ticking time bomb.:confused: Old bias ply tires can run forever until the tread is gone, but steel belts have a definite life expectancy. Lesson learned. This concept was just reinforced when a friend up in Indiana recently popped a front tire on the way to Pigeon Forge. It happened at about 70 mph. The car (a 'glass bodied Deuce roadster) went into the median, snagged the separation cables, spun around, and came to rest in the median facing the wrong direction. The front axle was snapped, left front half ripped off, frame diamonded, bent and twisted, body cracked in several places, grille shell and radiator destroyed and 3 of the 4 wheels damaged. Luckily, neither of the guys were injured, but the car is totaled.:CRY: The cause?? A new-appearing steel-belted radial tire with the production date of 1991!:HMMM: Tires are branded on the back side with the week and year of production. Learn to read the code (it's easy) and take care of yourself.

So, what else has kept me from the shop? It started with the never-ending "honey-do list". I had several things that I had put off because of my wife's back surgery last year. Just as I was getting to the end of my list, I got Covid!:p Fortunately, it only kept me down for about a week, but then we found out my wife needed additional surgery - this time on her neck.:eek: It was done on September 1st. The recovery for the neck was supposed to be easier and shorter than for her back, and it has been, but about the time I was able to leave her alone I pinched the sciatic nerve in my back! HOLY CRAP!!:mad: So, here I am now with a limp in my walk, a touchy back, and constant fatigue (a leftover from Covid). So I haven't abandoned my Deuce or this thread; I'll get back to it, I promise.:)

Take care of yourself Jim! Been through the neck and back surgery many moons ago, tell your wife it's all worth it eventually! Hoping you both heal up quick!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

GOOD GOLLY! Time sure gets away...:HMMM:

Back in March the left front tire on my Model-A came apart and went flat on the way home from a local cruise-in. That led me to replacing all 4 tires on it. They all still had plenty of tread left and no dry cracks, BUT... they were all 17 years old! Tires are branded on the back side with the week and year of production. Learn to read the code (it's easy) and take care of yourself.

So, what else has kept me from the shop? It started with the never-ending "honey-do list". I had several things that I had put off because of my wife's back surgery last year. Just as I was getting to the end of my list, I got Covid!:p Fortunately, it only kept me down for about a week, but then we found out my wife needed additional surgery - this time on her neck.:eek: It was done on September 1st. The recovery for the neck was supposed to be easier and shorter than for her back, and it has been, but about the time I was able to leave her alone I pinched the sciatic nerve in my back! HOLY CRAP!!:mad: So, here I am now with a limp in my walk, a touchy back, and constant fatigue (a leftover from Covid). So I haven't abandoned my Deuce or this thread; I'll get back to it, I promise.:)

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Well you have had a busy 6 months! Good call on the tires.. I better learn to read those codes, the coupe got it's tires back in 2011 I think.. but that isn't the age of the tires, that's just when I got'em. Surgeries and covid for the 2 of you really sucks! Sciatica, been there, had surgery to fix it. okay 10 years now. Relax and enjoy the holiday season best you can.. then when things calm down maybe you can get back into the garage. :D

Well, something finally got done!:HMMM: Since I have trouble getting up and down, I was reluctant to do anything that requires me to crawl under the car. I try to think of everything I need when I go under, but it never fails - I always need some unanticipated tool after I'm down there.:( My wife offered to come out and sit while I work under the car so she could hand me whatever I needed. I appreciated the offer, but she often has trouble finding the correct tool.:confused: Anyway, I accepted her offer because I wanted to put a new filter in the transmission and install the new pan. All we needed was to work out when we would do it between doctor appointments and other obligations.:rolleyes: A couple of days later my good friend and fellow hotrodder, Mike Krupp, made the same offer. My wife was relieved that she wouldn't have to do it, so I jumped at the chance. When we started, Mike insisted I let him take the lead. He went under the car, and I became the helper!:o Anyway, after he made a trip to the parts store to get the correct filter, the job was done without any difficulties. Many thanks to Mike!:3dSMILE:

Got a song dancing in my head, it goes something about "I'll get by with a little help from my friends / gonna try with a little help from my friends" 8-)

Dang Jim. I’m sorry to hear about your string of bad luck. I’m glad to hear you are getting back to some semblance of “normal”. Getting out in the garage always makes me feel better. Thanks for the reminder on the tires, my Camaro has some 12 year old rubber on the back, and it’s time to quit playing that game.

I too am sorry to hear of your troubles. I definitely know all about the back issues as I share them. Some days are better than others. Hope yours get better.

I know of two people that had old tires let go. One fellow totaled 2 different street rods for the same thing. Another lost the rear quarter on a C3 Corvette.

I don't take any chances with old tires.

Folks, I have been fortunate to see Mr. Robinson's hotrods in person. I can honestly say that they are a work of art, including this 32! I am a former student who has stayed in touch over the years. He has helped me with my projects more times than I can count. When I recently came to him with my ideas for a Model A build, he did something for me I never expected. He let me take his Model A for a spin! That sealed the deal for me on what I am going to build but more importantly, the trust he held for me to take something he worked so hard on for a drive touched me. It's not often I am given such an honor. I have always considered him a friend since high school and I hope he knows how much that act of kindness meant to me. I am currently hunting and gathering parts for my own Model A coupe and look forward to one day parking next to him at a cruise in! Thank you Mr. Robinson!

My thanks to Smokeyco for the complimentary tribute. (I won't reveal his real name; that's up to him.) He was a student of mine when teaching was still a fun challenge, and he was (and still is) one of the "good ones".:)

Well, I finally got something done on the '32 today!:cool: After countless delays and a nasty bout with a pinched sciatic nerve,:( I am finally able to do some work in the shop. It's only a small accomplishment that didn't take long, but every step forward is a small victory. Some time ago (at least a year ago) I bought a rear-view camera and monitor system. I soon determined that the camera that came with it was going to present mounting problems. It was too bulky and there just wasn't a good place to mount it, so I bought a license plate frame with an attached camera. Problem solved... NOT!:mad: The hookups were not compatible - the monitor cable had a 5-pin plug, but the camera had RCA jacks. UGH!

OK, so I found some adapters on Ebay and ordered them. They were wrong. The RCA jacks on the camera were females and so were the adapters!:rolleyes: OK, so I'm not electronically savvy. Back on Ebay I found the 5-pin adapters with RCA male plugs. They came in sometime last week and a quick trial fit told me they were correct. Today I mounted the license plate frame on my old, expired plate (just for trial purposes), bolted it on the car, fed the cable through the grommeted hole in the trunk, and made the connection. I still need to mount the monitor in the interior, but for now I just used a couple of wires with alligator clips to make a temporary connection. It works great!:D Pics below show the license plate frame with camera and the view on the monitor screen. The toolbox is just a couple of feet from the back of the car, so the image is a little distorted.

Hi Mike, Nice to hear you were able to get out into the shop! And a rear view camera can be helpful, my daily drivers all have'em and it is very handy! So if I can ask? what did the final setup cost to add it into the 32? Just general costs should be fine. TIA

Initially, the whole rear-view camera / monitor kit cost $149 on Amazon. That was about a year ago and since then I have seen them for about $80. Anyway, I didn't like the size of the camera that came in the kit, so I bought a license plate frame with built-in camera for $36. Then I had to get an adapter cable to put them together and that was another $12. All together just a couple of bucks shy of $200.

I've been cleaning the shop this week. I had so much stuff piled on the workbenches and on the floor around the car that I barely had room to work. Maybe I can get serious again now. I've made a punch list of what's left... UGH!

PS - It's Jim... not Mike.

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

All together just a couple of bucks shy of $200.

PS - It's Jim... not Mike.

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Thanks for the info... I was talking to myself??? :eek:**):whacked::LOL:

Nice work on the camera install. This is an addition to my 40 I want to make as well. You literally can see maybe 10% of anything behind you in that car. It surely makes backing up difficult.

Well, I finally made some real progress. I spent a few afternoons putting some order in the messy shop so I have room to work now. I started playing with some poster board and illustration sheets several months ago, but never finalized the design for my console. Now, needing someplace to mount my backup camera monitor, I decided I needed to finish the design so I could translate it into a permanent structure. At one point I was ready to throw the whole mess out and mount the monitor above the windshield. I looked at that possibility and held the monitor screen up there, but it just wasn't going to work well there. Finally, I looked on Fat Cat Rods website in the interior pictures to see where they mount their rear-view monitors. They mount them in a console under the dash, so...

Bound with new determination to make it work and with ideas from those pictures, I revamped my old illustration board mockup and finally got a design that should work. The console should give me space for the monitor screen, a radio, and a place to mount the toggles for the power windows, fan override switch, and auxiliary lights.

Using the old mockup, I added side panels that reach all the way to the firewall and adjusted the location of the hole for the shifter. I then discovered that the addition of the full side panels made it impossible to remove/replace the thing in one piece, even with the shifter lever removed. So, the bottom piece and the under-dash unit will need to be in separate pieces. OK, so be it. (First pic)

I cut the mockup apart and used the pieces as patterns to make the permanent structure. (Pics 2 & 3) The face and sides are made from Luan plywood, the flattop / cup holder piece is made from a piece of 1 x 10 lumber, and the curved back piece is made from .025 aluminum (scrap leftover from one of my Electrathon cars). The under-dash section goes right in place with the shifter lever removed and the bottom section fits snugly to it. I'll use some aluminum angle to make mounts for it and after it's upholstered the seam should be barely noticeable.

Nice work on your console Jim.

Thank you, Ryan.

I've been working on the Deuce, slowly, but haven't done much that's "picture-worthy". I've been diddling with the console and playing with the rear-view camera wiring. I have finally arrived at what I think is a reasonably comfortable layout. I have mounted the rear-view monitor as high as possible on the console. Directly below the monitor are 7 switches. The two on the ends and the one in the center are double-pole double-throw switches. The ends run the power windows and the center one operates the exhaust cut-outs. One of the other toggles turns the rear-view camera on and off and another is the fan override switch. The other two toggles are unused right now, but they will allow the addition of other accessories later. I have all the console wiring routed through a 12-wire marine plug so console removal for future service is simplified.:cool::3dSMILE:

This thing will get upholstery and a switch plate before it's all done, but that will come later.

Good to see the progress, Jim. What feels like baby steps add up, and all of a sudden it's time to check things out with a drive around the block!!

Ah, how right you are, Roger. The day after my last post I set the console in the car, plugged it in, and everything works as it's supposed to.:D Small victories are what keeps us going in this hobby... er sport... uh endeavor... whatever it is. Anyway, on Wednesday, with everything important hooked up and working, I took the car down off the dollies, fired it up and moved it out of the shop under its own power. This was a relief because I had no idea if the transmission was any good!:confused: It was given to me with the engine, but neither I nor the giver have any idea of its history. My wife heard the big-block rumbling and came out to see what was up. I handed her my phone and she shot the following pics of me driving up the street and back... twice.:3dSMILE:

Finally!! What a relief... It has taken me much longer than expected to reach this point - the first test-drive. I didn't go far enough or fast enough for the transmission to get through all four gears, but I'm encouraged that it's probably OK. The carburetor needs to be adjusted (or possibly replaced), the timing needs to be set correctly, and the brakes need adjusting, but I'm pleased. I still need to install the third brake light, horns, rear view mirrors, windshield wiper, and charge the A/C system, but there is "light at the end of the tunnel" now.:cool:

That's awesome Jim! That had to be a great feeling! Are you going to paint it now or just prime it and drive it some this summer?

Indeed great news, and it looks great! The stance is perfect, and it screams Hot Rod!! Congrats!!

Nice Jim .Hey I was having carb problems for last few years but was turned on to this product Star Tron Enzyme formula fuel tank cleaner. Even if your tank is clean adding literally a very small amount stabilizes gas for two years. As gas flows thru carb it cleans them, too. This stuff is great! It was designed for boats that sat around for years.
get this specific type.
http://www.starbrite.com/images/labels/93664.A1.png

Very nice looking car, Jim. The proportions are right.

Did you have grin in your face? I'm sure you did and you earned it!

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

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Finally!! What a relief... It has taken me much longer than expected to reach this point - the first test-drive. :

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It always does for me too!
I was going to have a retaining wall built and backfilled before Christmas.
I haven't got even the wall itself done so far.

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

:, but there is "light at the end of the tunnel" now.:cool:

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Keep watching it mate; I've found that sometimes it's a bloody great train coming straight at you!