Thread: I couldn't build it for $3 K either!

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I started by making some patterns from cardboard. I like to use tablet back type cardboard. It's easy to cut and it gives a better indication of what the metal will do. If the cardboard won't bend to fit easily then the metal is going to need persuasion.

The back piece is flat. No problems there. The side piece needed to be formed to fit the complex contours of the cowl.

First I "cupped" it slightly. I used a medium ball peen hammer and used my vise as a "shot bag" to support the metal. Open the vise slightly and work the metal in the opening between the jaws. The object is not to beat the hack out of it either. Just work it using not much more force than the wieght of the hammer. I used my hand to hold the piece while I formed it because it didn't take much effort. I don't recommend whacking your fingers.

After I had it cupped I tacked the back and side together. Then I heated the top of the side piece and wrapped it around top of the back piece. You'll notice the slight angle on the top of the side piece. That was needed to get the two pieces to mate up when I made the wrap. I figured that out with the cardboard.

After I rolled it there was a gap in the front. I knew that was going to happen. I heated the area and used a cresent wrench as a forming tool to gently work the edge into a curve. Kinda like working the bill on a baseball cap. I had to do this a couple of times to get the fit right.

Then I buffed the piece up with a belt sander and DA sander used as a grinder.

The rest of the pics.

Next I made the upright hinge pieces. Not to complicated, but I managed to screw them up by drilling them to 3/8" instead of tapping them to 3/8-24. That stuff happens when you work too long and too late.

So I made them twice. I guess practice makes perfect!

I made a quick jig to hold them aligned while I tacked them to the bottom part. Just a piece of 3/4" square tubing and 5/16" all-thread. Working by myself means I spend as much time figuring out how to hold things as I do actually building. Vise-grips rule!!

At this point I haven't finish weld anything on the brackets. I wanted to make sure it would work first.

That is an absolutely great solution to the windshield brackets. I wish you had done that before I did mine because I really like the way you did them.

You are right about the one from the body people never fitting right. My '27 is a Speedway body and I bought a Speedway windshield. When I started mounting it, there was about a one inch gap on either side. They finally had me make a cardboard template and send it to them so they could make me one that was about two inches narrower. Their body, their windshield, and it didn't fit.

You are doing not only a great job of building your T, but in presenting the info too. I'm loving all these build threads going on, so interesting to read them.

Don

Great job on the posts!!!! Now, where are all these guys who say we just build our "kit cars" with "bolt on" catalog parts... Tell me, in the course of the project so far, how many of the "bolt ons" went on without requiring some form of modification????

Yeah Dave, they come in a big box and take a whole weekend to put together.


Don

Thanks guys.

My experience with "bolt ons" is that they RARELY do!!

Even REAL "kit" cars don't always go together right.

I'm an old fabricator and would rather build stuff instead off trying to rework something that was supposed to fit.

By the way Don, I went back and studied your windshield before I made the decision to change mine. It just looks right.

I'll try to finish what I have tommorrow night. Gotta get up at 3AM to go to work!

Mike

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

Yeah Dave, they come in a big box and take a whole weekend to put together.


Don

Hmmmm. My Camaro came in two boxes, the Ranchero was in just one box so it will be easier, I'm sure.....

Why does it seem that mounting the windsheild or at least trying to figure out what size you need is the toughest part of building a T Bucket?

I bought my post from TP and temporarily mounted them to see what size I needed before I ordered The windshield. I admit I was not smart enough to use round stock to trial fit, I just mounted them to where they looked like they fit. $400 later and a windshield that didn't fit I was not happy. I wasn't going to spend more money so I disassembled the TP frame and cut it down. Then I cut the glass on my tile wet saw. this is not the route I would recommend, but it does fit well.

Live and learn!

With the exception of engine parts (and dang few of them) and electronic parts, I can't really remember a lot of store bought goodies that didn't require some mods to work right!!!!!

The last car I built out of a box was a 54 corvette, took 5 trips with my pickup to get everything home. After 18 months and $11,000 I had a car. Must of been a kit because everything fit first time around....... LOL

I guess the T bucket kit cars can go together a little more easily IF you are willing to settle for a so-so car. But if you want it to be right, we start redoing things to make them fit and look better.

Perfect example is the Total Performance upholstery kit. My kid bought one for his T project, and when we put the bed cover on it the cover stuck out 3 or 4 inches too far. Looked like a high speed wing back there. Called TP, and they said most people just use it that way, but some people remove the staples in the front, reshape the plywood base to fit the contour of the body better, and then restaple it. This is supposed to be a drop in interior package.

Something tells me we will be reengineering the interior when it comes time to intall it.

Don

[QUOTE=Itoldyouso]I guess the T bucket kit cars can go together a little more easily IF you are willing to settle for a so-so car. But if you want it to be right, we start redoing things to make them fit and look better.

I can't believe you used the "kit" word!! When I bought mine I started ordering everything because I just thought that's how you did it. After watching some of the car's being built here I could have saved alot of money.

No, actually I think these kit rods and cars fill a very important niche' in the marketplace and provide some people who either don't have the tools and skills to build one from scratch, or who do not want to spend months and years building one with a means to get into driving a running car.

The TP car we are doing for my Son Don was a perfect example. Even though we ended up not using the TP frame, we still had a rolling chassis in 4 days. If we had used their frame it would have been one evening. For someone like Don it is perfect because he is now working 6 nights a week and doesn't have time to come over to the shop for months on end to build it. He has all the major parts sitting there waiting, including the engine and tranny, so all we have to do is some minor welding and then start assembling the car (after painting stuff, of course).

The plan is to wait until June or July, when his playing gigs should slow down, and then jump on it and try to have it running by November for the Turkey Run. It looks possible based on the simplicity of the car.

Don

Dang, Mike, I almost missed this thread... I've always had a soft spot for T roadsters (probably because my first ride in a hotrod was in a T). In the late 70's when street rodding really exploded there were dozens of T-buckets at every rod run I attended. Most of them were carbon copies of each other; fat rear tires, skinny fronts, high rear ends, tall tops, radical rake, vertical steering columns. They seemed to lose popularity in the 80's and 90's, but what a resurgence lately. Some of those old "tall T's" have come out of mothballs and more are being built, but I really love it when someone comes up with a new twist on an old theme. I really like the proportions of your car, the different front suspension, and the shortened '32 grille shell.

I really enjoy these threads because we, no matter how many cars we've built, can still learn and get ideas from each other. In particular, I am watching your progress on the windshield mounts. Since I began my roadster I have been pondering the windshield because I am yet to see any available brackets that fit my imagined outcome. Seeing your handmade brackets has opened a whole world of possibilities and I thank you for that bit of inspiration. Keep the pictures coming...