Another build thread? Yep, my track-style T

Hi Jim, I'm new to this club (if that is the correct name) and have spend the last few days reading your build thread. I must admit that I have had to go back and reread some of the input from fellow members in regard of how you have nutted out problems etc. I have enjoyed your thread and also have learnt a great deal from it,thankyou. Now I know you were going to use those bucket seats then changed to a bench type of seat that really got my attention,but towards the end of your threads you stated something about using bomber type seats. Why I'm asking is that I am almost at the stage of working out seating for my Bucket and want to get away from that sitting on top of the Bucket to sitting inside my Bucket feel. I had not thought of the idea of using (oh heck,my brain has gone dead) ribbon I think then foam to form the seat base as like you and your friends,my T will be driven and not trailled, so must be comfortable to drive and when I arrive to theplace I'm driving to ,I don't need a walking frame to be able to walk.**)I also noticed that you havn't posted for awhile so I hope all is well up your side of the world.
Cheers Whiplash.

Hi Whiplash and welcome to Club Hotrod.:) Yes, all is well here. I have been sidetracked on home improvement projects and not spent any "quality time" on my T build for several months. Also, we have been having one of the coldest, longest winters in history for our part of the country, so when I do have time to do anything, I end up staying indoors quite a bit.:HMMM:

Like you, I want to sit down low in my T. I have studied the old "track T's" of the late 1940s - early 1950s and most of the drivers of those cars sat down low. The high seating position with a tall windshield and really tall top is a trend that came about with the fad-T's of the 1970s. There's nothing wrong with that, just not for this style car. I also needed to get down low enough that a rollbar wouldn't look out of proportion. The first set of seats looked like they would be just the right thing, but the shape of the bottom boosted them up too high when I tilted them back to a comfortable position. If I attempt to remove the upholstery and re-shape the bucket, then the upholstery won't go back in. So, rather than ruin a perfectly good pair of seats, I have put them aside to use on a '64 Falcon gasser project that is awaiting my attention.

The wood frame with web straps in the bottom is nothing new; upholsterers and furniture makers have been building seats like that for a couple hundred years (since before springs and foam rubber were available). The straps will stretch and move slightly to relieve pressure on the tailbone and hip joints... Now, however, I am considering tearing it all out again and getting a pair of bomber-style seats. Military surplus aircraft seats were the common type of seat used when the "Roaring Roadsters" dominated the short tracks of the post-war era and I think they would look good in my roadster. Whatever/ whenever I decide, it will be posted here.:rolleyes:

In the meatime, check out the thread below. Don (Itoldyouso) started out to build a "budget" T roadster. He blew the budget early on, but built one of the nicest T-buckets I have seen in a long time. The pics don't do this car justice; in person it is just fantastic.:3dSMILE: http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23618 .

Post some pics of your car on this forum. We all like pictures!:D

Thanks for your rapid reply Jim. I will try and upload some photos of my T and I will get in first.... The steering wheel is on the right/wrong side and yes, it does make the problem of fighting your way around the starter motor for the steering box.

Hey Jim, Am I right in shout out one loud HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you today. I also started in on Don's Itolduso site and agree..... awesome car and well worth the 200 + pages.....need read,thanks.

Sorry I forgot to post a better photo of my T.:eek:

Thanks, Whiplash. Yeah, I'm 62 today which means I am now officially an old fart!:rolleyes: That's OK, though. Now I can blame all my mistakes on senility!:D:LOL:

Your T is lookin' good. It is nicely proportioned. I like the longer bed; it's a pleasant change from the thousands of short ones we see most of the time. Nice choice of wheels, too. I noticed in an earlier pic that the body has steel reinforcement inside. Did it come that way or did you fabricate the reinforcement yourself?:cool:

Happy birthday Jim! Do something fun today.

Hi Jim, I originally purchased the car 10 years or so ago as a finished legal road worthy car that I enjoyed driving over our summer months. I worked out what had to be improved and what needed to be reworked to make it safer and better mannered driving car. When purchased it had a wooden flat deck that once had stake style sides on it which I didn't like so managed to find a fibreglass pickup bed and tailgate for it which improved the look. Again used over the next summer but one of the main problems with it was that the rack and pinion steering was bolted direct to the I beam and apart from been worn out, the car wandered all over the road which made for an unpleasant drive. So, I am sure you can guess what happen then? I pulled it apart to fix one problem and ended up with a bare chassis sitting on the garage floor with the idea of while I am doing that I should also do this etc. The only original parts on the car now are the basic frame, body, 350 block and t400 trans and the 10 bolt diff. After getting it all together apart from final paint and upholstery and using for another summer I decided I need opening doors to aid in getting my old bones in and out of it, hence the steel work. I have also lost my job recently so that has pulled the handbrake on at the moment. I have to get out in the garage and start playing with my tig welder again to improve my welding skills so that when the money starts flowing in again I will be confident enough to get stuck into it quickly.:)

Hi Jim, I originally purchased the car 10 years or so ago as a finished legal road worthy car that I enjoyed driving over our summer months. I worked out what had to be improved and what needed to be reworked to make it safer and better mannered driving car. When purchased it had a wooden flat deck that once had stake style sides on it which I didn't like so managed to find a fibreglass pickup bed and tailgate for it which improved the look. Again used over the next summer but one of the main problems with it was that the rack and pinion steering was bolted direct to the I beam and apart from been worn out, the car wandered all over the road which made for an unpleasant drive. So, I am sure you can guess what happen then? I pulled it apart to fix one problem and ended up with a bare chassis sitting on the garage floor with the idea of while I am doing that I should also do this etc. The only original parts on the car now are the basic frame, body, 350 block and t400 trans and the 10 bolt diff. After getting it all together apart from final paint and upholstery and using for another summer I decided I need opening doors to aid in getting my old bones in and out of it, hence the steel work. I have also lost my job recently so that has pulled the handbrake on at the moment. I have to get out in the garage and start playing with my tig welder again to improve my welding skills so that when the money starts flowing in again I will be confident enough to get stuck into it quickly.:)

Happy Late Birthday J.
Love that intake. Looks realy cool to be sure. car is coming along great!

Whiplash. Cool T. must be different driving from that side!
Don Jr.:)

Hello Don Jr, I have just looked up the Atlas to find Bonita Springs and man that place looks to close too aligator swampland. I would be to afraid to let my pet cats or dog out encase their make a meal for something. You haven't told us where your dad was moving too,hopefully not too far from you.I have never been out of NZ and if I had the money to, I would love to fly to LA,purchase an old rod and travel all over your great country. Thanks for the compliment on my bucket. I am envious of your T too.

Hello Mr. Blue! Thank you. Did you ever go any farther on your plans to build a Grafitti Coupe?:confused: We'll be wanting pictures when you do... Is your dad moving his living quarters, his shop, or both? Tell him we're all waiting for updates on his '27 rebuild and Dan's roadster pickup.:rolleyes:

Whiplash - Looks like the 10 years has paid off so far; nice car.:cool: There are a few on this site who will adamantly disagree with me, but putting a rack & pinion unit directly on a sraight front axle is just trouble looking for a palce to happen. You apparently experienced that and I'm glad you changed it. I bet it drives much better now, huh? If you have enough pics of your proceedure for opening the doors, there are some of us who would like to see a "how to" thread on that.

Don Jr.(Mr. BLue) and his dad (Itoldyouso) have two of the nicest T's that I've seen in recent memory. Both are always immaculately clean and impeccably detailed.:D When I get mine on the road I'm going to park it on the opposite side of the field so mine won't be compared to theirs!:LOL::LOL::LOL: Seriously, Don, maybe we (you, your dad, and I) should make plans toward the T-bucket nationals in another year..?;)

Hi Jim, Don't put yourself down man, your cars are special to you and I would believe everyboby on this site would appreciate the workmanship that you have put into them. I think it would be a sight for sore eyes to see all your T's together, and I mean,not across the other side of the field. I joined the T Bucket Forum before I was lead to this site, and now I spend all of my time here because of (1) the people are so friendly. (2) most of the people are Christians which I admire being one myself. (3) And there is so many Knowledgable,helpful people here.

Sorry, but I don't have the confidence on a " how to " thread. I struggle out in the garage attempting to put my ideas I have in my head into fact and I end up asking the Lord for forgiveness because I get so fustrated because my brain says "do it this way,but my hands do it that way,and it is rubbish". So I tend to do most things 2 to 3 times before it passes my inspection. My X-wife always said I was a perfectionist in everything I tried.:HMMM:Maybe she was correct:)

Jim,,maybe if Whiplash takes the pix,and e mails them to us,we could help with the how to..Just a thought..:)

Well guys, to be totally honest,I'm just a dumb blonde that has just managed to teach myself how to use this laptop, so to start my own thread would be like asking me to build the next space shuttle:D:D:D. But in saying that, I have taken some more photos of where I'm upto on steeling out the bucket body for opening the doors..so with baited breath... I will try to upload them... Sorry If I am pushing in on someones thread.:) Sorry I have just previewed this post,and man, have screwed up big time.... now how do I resize those photos again.:HMMM:

OK, I'm almost computer illiterate, so if I can do this, anyone can...:rolleyes: Somewhere in your computer you should have a photo editing program like Microsoft Office Picture Manager or maybe Photoshop. Whatever pictures you are going to post on this forum need to be resized. The ideal size for here is 640 x 480. It's big enough to see everything, but small enough that we can see the whole picture and read the text without having to scroll from side to side (very annoying:whacked:). When I am doing it, I open a picture, click on "Open", click on Picture Manager (the picture opens in a new window), click "Edit Pictures", click "Resize", select the size I want, click "OK". Then click on "File" at the top, select "Save As". I usually leave the name of the picture whatever it is and put an "a" after it and hit "Save". It puts the resized picture back in the same file right next to the original.:3dSMILE: It sounds a little complicated at first, but after you do it a couple of times you can fly through the steps. If you have problems, send me a personal message so I can give you more help.

When you get a chance, click on "Edit" on your previous post and delete the pictures. That will let this column go back to its normal size. Then you can resize the pictures and re-post them so we can see 'em.:cool:

Jim, just wanted to let you know this has been the best build I have had the pleasure to read. The other nite I found this and stayed up too late and read till my eyes crossed just to get to the end. GREATTTTTTTTTTT. You are just as talented with the posts as is apparent with the build itself. I always wanted to do just that. But I would forget to take the pictures at the correct moments. So much was lost. Your teaching abilities sure do show. Can't wait to see it finished. It will surely be a sweet t. Hope the manifold works, I too know only one thing about computer controlled cars, that is that I don't know anything about computer controlled cars. Keep up the great work.

Hey Whiplash, looks like you got the hang of it now...:HMMM: Now that I can see the steel reinforcement you did, looks like a nice job. Bet it sure makes getting in & out easier. I wish I had seen the way you did this before I put the side bars in my body. They are tied to the roll bar, so opening my doors is out of the question now...:(

dlotraf33 - Thanks for the compliments.:3dSMILE: There are several really good build threads on this forum. When you have time, check out some of the threads started by Itoldyouso, Ken Thurm, and Brianruppnow.:)

Funny you should mention my manifold... I built it a few months ago and it is still in my garage, bolted loosely to the engine in the roadster. I was supposed to ship it to Indiana a while back to have the carbs and plumbing installed, but I still haven't done it. I need to make a minor modification to it to include a vacuum port for the PCV system and I am still vacillating on the color.:confused: Anyway, I hope to have my home improvement projects finished in another couple of months so I can get back to working steadily on the roadster.:rolleyes::D

Hey Jim,Can you help this old dumb blonde fart out please. I have tried to find Brianruppnow build thread and some of the other posters that are quick with a joke or advice, but I keep hitting my head up against the brick wall as I just don't know how?

OK, Whiplash, no problem.:3dSMILE: Brian has done dozens of threads, though, so you may want to look through the index. If you click on "Members List" at the top of this page it will take you to the beginning of the member directory. Click on the letter "B"; that will skip you past all the "A's". Find "brianrupnow" in the list (I think he's on page 57 or 58 of the "B's") and click on his name; that will take you to his info page. Click on the "Statistics" tab and then click "Find all threads started by brianrupnow". You'll have to scroll through the list to find topics you may be interested in. Below is one of Brian's threads that is typical of the stuff he does - well written and nicely illustrated:cool::
http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28617

Jim, just got done catching up on your build thread. Glad to see you are still moving ahead.......love the intake setup.

I'm all up for the T bucket Nationals if you want to go sometime. We might have to stop every hour or so though to get the circulation back into our backsides. :LOL:

Keep us posted on how you are coming with the track t.

Don

Thanks Jim for your help. Just spend the last hour or so checking out all 10 pages of threads by Brian and skimming through some with titles that jumped out at me,awesome. Now if anybody missis me,that where I be,reading his threads starting 2004 to present.

Thanks, Don. I haven't been moving too fast on it for the last 10 months or so:rolleyes:. I spent last summer building a new screen-enclosed porch and an outdoor deck on the back of my house. That led to a couple of other home improvement projects and now I am preparing to build a new garage!:3dSMILE: I'm trying to get all the expensive stuff done before I retire at the end of May.

The T-bucket Nationals are in Colorado this June, so next year they should be back on this side of the Mississippi. Hopefully I'll have my roadster up and running by then and we can (tenatively) plan on going...:cool:

Whiplash - You're welcome. Lots to read there. While you're reading, here's one on a nice T-bucket build by Hotrod48 that may interest you, too: http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30147 and if you like detail to the max, check out Ken Thurm's thread on his Deuce roadster: http://www.clubhotrod.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34927 Enjoy!:D

Thanks again Jim for the links. Now you and Don talking about the T Bucket Nationals and meeting up is just driving me nuts wth envy. You know humans can send men to the moon but ask them same humans to link the worlds countries together with some bridges so we can partake in some of those neat runs,it is just tooo hard eh!!! Computers have made the world smaller so I shouldn't complain.

In case anybody is curious... I am finally closing in on the time when I will be able to start working on my roadster again. The list of home improvement jobs suddenly got longer a while back when we were invaded by termites! My wife and I came home from the grocery store one Sunday morning to a swarm of the little bastards in our family room.:eek: There is very little wood in this house (concrete block walls on a concrete slab), but they had found a way in to the wood trim in the family room and were working their way toward the roof...:mad: After the exterminators were finished, we had to repair one wall and replace some trim in the family room. That, of course, led to repainting the whole room, buying some new furniture, rearranging, etc...

Finally, I am back working on my garage that we started a while back. I only get in a few hours every day before the heat sends me indoors for relief. Anyway, here's what I did. I had a slab poured and then had a Carolina Carports 20 x 28 "triple wide" carport installed. Now I am in the process of enclosing the carport to make it into a garage.;) I did it this way for two reasons: First is cost; by having a steel carport installed and then enclosing it myself I saved several thousand dollars in materials. Second, the carport is rated for 130 mph wind. That's an important consideration here in hurricane land. If I had built a conventional wood frame garage, I would first have had to pay an architect for a set of certified plans (about $600 - $800) and then had an inspection after the frame was up ($500) to verify that I had followed the plans in regards to structural wind resistance. Here's a pic of the carport; I could only go 20 feet deep because I had to stay the appropriate distance from the property line, so I went triple-wide. This is the same depth as the garage that is attached to my house, but six feet wider. It ain't huge, but it'll be like wide open spaces compared to what I'm accustomed to.:D

As for the roadster - I determined that I didn't like the wood seat frame and back that I built for it, so I threw them out and replaced 'em with a pair of Kirkey aluminum seats from Speedway Motors. I don't have them mounted yet, but with them just sitting in place, the car looks a lot more "racey".:cool:

Very kewl (and a huge money saver!) idea on the carport, Jim!!! Nothing like beating the politico's at their own game plus ending up with a better structure to boot!!!

Double atta-boys to Jim for the plan of the month!!!!!!!!

Sorry to hear about the termites and all the carpentry jobs you have been doing. I for one really miss your updates on the T. You were busting hump there for a while, but life does get in the way sometimes.

Are we going to see you at Turkey Run or will you be home watching reruns of This Old House. :LOL:

Don

Dave - Thanks for the atta-boys, but I can't take full credit for the idea. A neighbor of mine did this same thing a few years ago and I stole the idea from him...;) The really amazing part of this structure was how fast it went up. Three guys rolled up here with a dually pickup and tandem trailer loaded with all the pre-fabbed components at ten minutes 'til five in the afternoon. At 7:20 I was signing the invoice and writing the check for the balance owed! Two and one half hours, complete!:eek: Mine was the third one they had done that day. The boss said they were working a little slow because of the heat!:HMMM:

Don - I'll be at the Turkey Run; I can set my DVR to record This Old House...:LOL::LOL: If I have any more trouble with termites, I may be watching "Flip This House"!:3dSMILE: The bad news is my wife keeps watching "Curb Appeal" and getting ideas... Also, now that I'm retired, the "honey do" list has grown substantially.:rolleyes:

[QUOTE=J. Robinson;
The bad news is my wife keeps watching "Curb Appeal" and getting ideas... Also, now that I'm retired, the "honey do" list has grown substantially.:rolleyes:[/QUOTE]

Ok Jim, we guys have to stick together. Here is how you get out of all those honey dos. What you want to do is become such a pain in the neck that she shoos you out into the garage to get some peace and quiet. You need to be underfoot constantly (this usually takes about a week). Be at her side every waking moment.........take over the cooking, make her sit with you and watch YOUR tv shows (even if you hate wrestling, make her watch it with you:eek:) start reorganizing the whole house, move furniture around, change the location of the pictures on the walls, stuff like that.

Next, start doing all the laundry and put bleach in with the colored stuff and use waaaaaaaaaaay to much fabric softner. Get up at 5 am and "insist" she do housework with you at that time. Believe me, a week of that and she will be pushing you out of the house and into your garage. :LOL:

If none of that works, start becoming extremely "romantic".....chase her around the house 24-7. That is the last resort, but I guarantee it works. :D Mine only let me do the laundry one time!!!

Don

Jim
What are you going to panel the sides with? I imagine insulation isn't a issue there? 2 and a 1/2 hours wow!:cool:

JR only just found your build thread, keep up the good work, very interesting.

Now now Don, Jim is happly married with children,there must be another way of getting garage time without the messy divorce!!:HMMM:
Although the extremely romantic idea has some appeal for any guy, but that can also backfire and one ends up too worn out to crawl out to the garage.:LOL:

Don - I may take your advice next year when she is retired, too. School starts up again in two weeks and she'll be back at work; if I took over the household chores, she'd be thrilled! Of course, when she comes home at the end of a day, she'll expect to see progress on that list...:rolleyes: Right now, though, I need to stay on good terms - she is a fabulous seamstress and I am going to need some upholstery work on the roadster soon...;)

Stovens - I am going to frame in between the steel uprights with 2 x 3 lumber (because it's the same width) set at 24 inches on center. The ends will be framed with 2 x 4 lumber set 16" on center. Then I will clad it with T-111 vertical grooved plywood siding. I am using that because it matches the siding on the entryway and garage front of my house and this garage is visible from the street.:)

Roadster32 - Welcome. Hopefully I'll have some progress to show here before too much longer. By the way, cool avatar.:cool:

Whiplash - Happily married 39 years this month! Our only son is 35.:D And you're right, even though my wife is only a year younger than me, she can wear me out any time she chooses...:LOL::LOL:

Well, it took me a while in all this heat, but here it is.:D I still have some work to do on the inside, but the exterior is finished. The funny thing, to me, is that it looks smaller now that you can't see through it...:HMMM: Anyway, it won't be long now and I'll finally be back to work on the roadster... Oh yeah, total cost? About $6400.:cool:

Jim,
That really turned out nice. Is that your work shop or your home for finished projects?
Ken

Well it's about time! :D I got all excited when I saw you reposted on your thread, thinking maybe some track t progress, but this is the next best thing.

Nice shop Jim. Now make it all dirty from work. :D

Don

Nice job Jim, and at an excellent price!:cool:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by J. Robinson

Oh yeah, total cost? About $6400.:cool:

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Is that price including the slab? Up here, it would cost more than that just for the concrete. I priced concrete for a 26 x 36 ft. garage and it was almost $11,000. Of course, we have to worry about freezing which wouldn't be much of a concern to you.:)

Oh yeah, nice garage.

Thank you all for the compliments. I'll be using this as my main shop. My wife has lived with me tracking metal shavings, bondo dust, and overspray into the house for over 35 years. Now the fumes and dust will hopefully stay outside.:rolleyes: I'm going to drywall the inside and then I'll be ready to get back to work on the fun stuff... maybe next week??:3dSMILE:

RestoRod - Yes, that's everything so far including the steel overhead door and the automatic opener. The 20 x 28 slab (4 inch thick) cost $1400. That was the total price that the concrete mason charged; it included the fiber reinforced concrete and all his labor. You should call for another estimate. I'm sure it's more expensive in your climate, but almost 10 times seems exhorbitant..??:confused: