Another Build Thread - My '32

[34_40]

Hot rodding sure was a lot easier when I was young and didn't care about creature comforts...

Whew... I guess I am still a youngin'..

[rspears]

Whew... I guess I am still a youngin'..

Just wait until you move to New Mexico!

[34_40]

Just wait until you move to New Mexico!

HMmmmm.. a car with no heater or A/C.? in the southwestern desert! Might be ...... interesting? LOL

[J. Robinson]

I haven't been here for a while. Aside from a couple of "honey- do's" I have no real excuse. I was so frustrated with this project that I just walked away from it for about a month. The problem is one I created for myself by doing things out of sequence. Lesson learned - now, do as I say, not as I did - I should have mounted the condenser before I ordered the hood.

After I mounted the radiator I drilled the brackets and mounted the grille shell. That was a few pages ago... After that I measured the distance between the cowl and the grille shell and I ordered a stock length hood top for a '32 Ford. I mounted it and made latch mechanisms, etc., also a few pages ago. Then.., I began installation of the A/C system and that's when the feces collided with the rotary oscillator - the condenser wouldn't fit behind the grille. I bought another condenser, 2 inches shorter and 2 inches narrower, hoping it may solve my dilemma. It didn't. That's when I walked away, before I did something stupid.

After staying away from it for a while and thinking about all the options, I have finally resolved that the best solution to my problem is to move the grille shell forward an inch and lengthen the hood to fit. If I had just done this part BEFORE I bought the hood, I could have ordered one an inch longer - Live and learn! The pics below show where I simply drilled new holes in the mounting brackets to move the shell forward and the resulting gap at the front of the hood.

[36 sedan]

Bummer, but with your skills I'm sure you'll have looking great in no time!!

[Hotrod46]

Hate you have to redo the hood. It's a lot of work to fix something like this. I know the repair will be like it never even happened considering your high level of quality work.

At least I know I'm not the only one that winds up with these kinds of problems. "Well Sh##!!!!", seems to be said a lot more in my shop (to no one in particular) than I want it to.

[34_40]

Good to learn that I am not the only one who has that happen! LOL.

Yeah, we've all done it.

[figure8]

If your hood is stock length maybe you could trade it, or sell it and buy one 1" longer

[J. Robinson]

OK, it's been several days (5 weeks!!) since I did anything. The holidays had to come and go and we've had visitors intermittently. Then I did some work on one of my Electrathon friend's cars, etc., etc. It's always something... I considered selling the hood and replacing it like Figure8 suggested, but no telling how long it might take to find a buyer and then I'd have to order the special length hood and wait. Once I get moving on something I'm not a very patient person, so fixing what I have will be my course of action.

Anyway, a few days after my last post I cut and shaped some 16 gauge steel filler pieces to extend the hood (first pic). The front edge of the hood was folded under, so the finished thickness is a few thousands of an inch over 1/16th of an inch. 16 gauge steel is approximately 1/16th inch thick, so it was a good match. Today I finally got some time to spend in the shop welding the filler pieces in place. I welded them on the bottom side first; spot-stitching about 3/8 inch apart (2nd pic) and then filling in between a few at a time to avoid any serious warping.

After finishing the underside, I flipped the hood halves over and welded the outside. I did it in short sections, moving around randomly again to avoid warping. I neglected to take a picture, but it looked the same as the underside. After all the welding was done I ground the welds flat inside and out, first with a stone wheel and then with a soft disc (3rd pic).

I had to do just a little hammer-off-dolly work to straighten the corners (very minor warpage). A tiny amount of body filler will fix the pits and grinder marks when I get to it. The last pic is the newly extended hood back on the car.

[34_40]

Came out just fine I'd say.

[40FordDeluxe]

That looks nice. Do you plan to extend the small portion of the center hinge so there is no gap there as well?

.

[J. Robinson]

Sorry for the delay in answering. I've been doing too many other things and just haven't spent any time here. Yes, I will either get a longer center hinge or I will fabricate an extended mounting "T bracket" for the front. Whichever I do I will show it here.

I'm in the middle of my Electrathon racing season and building a new car for that plus the wife and I are beginning to remodel a bathroom. I probably won't make much progress on the '32 for a while.

[J. Robinson]

OK, it's been a while, but I got a short break from everything else to do something on the '32. I need to get the plumbing done on the A/C system so I can begin wiring. The next component I need to put in place is the drier. I'm mounting it up high on the firewall so I can keep the hoses up under the hood and mostly out of sight.

The drier that came in the kit came with a pair of little strap brackets ( on left in 1st pic below). They would be OK if this thing was completely out of sight, but they are just raw steel and it wouldn't be long until they get rusty and ugly. I decided I could make something that would look a little better and avoid rust. I found a piece of .040" thick aluminum in my scrap bucket and made a one-piece bracket to replace the two straps (on right in pic). I hand polished it with some Wenol paste. Next I drilled the appropriate holes in the firewall and installed a pair of 1/4-20 Rivnuts (Pic 2). Finally, I bolted the drier in place with a pair of stainless steel socket-head bolts. Next comes the hoses...

[figure8]

Update? Curious as to your progress

[J. Robinson]

Hi Figure8. I'm a bit embarrassed to report that I haven't done anything on the '32. After I made the bracket (above post) I started trying to run the hoses. I soon discovered I didn't have the fittings I needed, so I went online to get some more. Having never plumbed an air conditioner before I of course ordered the wrong fittings. After they arrived I discovered my mistake, so I ordered some more. After the second set arrived I decided to route the hoses differently... Back to the computer to get some different angled fittings. Now I think I finally have everything, but I'm up to my ears in finishing the bathroom remodel. Hopefully I'll get back on the '32 soon; I should have had it done a year ago, but life keeps getting in the way...