Thread: Opinions wanted regarding '36 Ford Slantback

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I have the opportunity to buy an all original '36 Ford Slantback for a decent price. My first thought is to get the car, drive it as is while I get a new roller chassis, engine, trans, etc. Then lift the body off the frame, sell the entire frame, running gear, etc intact to a restorer. Built the car with a Roadster Shop roller chassis and the engine, trans, rear end, etc into a nice rod. What are your opinions? Here are a few pics of the car.

Mike

I can only hope that someone who appreciates it for what it is gets to it before you do.

Do an "old school" rod. Hop up the flattie, put in a '46-48 Ford or Merc rearend and trans, upgrade the brakes and other items , maybe some steelies and moon caps. Leave it fairly stock but with a growl .

Originally Posted by techinspector1

I can only hope that someone who appreciates it for what it is gets to it before you do.

Inspector, your opinion is it should be 'saved' and kept all original, please elaborate on "someone who appreciates it for what it is". Where is the true spirit of hot rodding? Thanks for your opinion, I do appreciate it.

Mike

As much as I LOVE rodded '36s, that one looks like a great "historic" vehicle- but ultimately the choice is yours. I too have thought about how nice it would be to start with a nice car to rod.

Everybody has a car that they want to own someday, this one is at the top of my list. When I was a kid a guy who owned a junkyard had a black '36 Fordor that I drooled over. He had wide whites on red wheels with caps and rings, a little rake, a white tuck and roll interior, and through the louvers on the hood you could see a red flathead with two carbs and lots of chrome. That car was bitchin'.

If I had yours I would simply update it with '40 brakes, and do the exact mods I mentioned above. Your Tudor is great as is, but a little updating would make it over the top. I'm like you, I'm a hot rodder, not a restorer, but this one doesn't need the streetrod approach with IFS, 350/350, etc to make it cool. I think that would ruin it and make it just like 10,000 others. If you did it like I described you would have all of us old timers climbing all over it.

Don

what a beautiful car! Zupe up that flathead like Don says and you'll have lots of us drooling. Makes you want to dress up and head out on the town for a fun evening!

Taking perfectly good stock cars and making rods of them is what we do...........
About 10 years ago I just missed a similar situation, though it was a '35. Same body, standard model, black, though it was original down to interior and paint except for one reshot fender, supposedly only 48k miles.
What you do depends on what you plan for it. If it'll be a distance cruiser, normal street rod kind of deal, your plan sounds typical. If you just want a local putt around car I'd give it an altitude change, big 'n littles, a throaty dual exhaust. Add hydraulic brakes, during which you decide whether to use the wide 5 wheels, or switch to the more common 5 1/2" bolt circle. Play with contrasting wheel colors, remove the bulky spare from the rear (hide the holes by moving the license plate mount)........and enjoy. The stock rear ratio is probably too low for much more than 50-55 without really wrapping it up, and probably overheating. Speed parts for those 21 stud engines are much more difficult to find than the later engines, so you'd have to figure what you could live with there. The stock frames are plenty good if in decent condition, look for rust through at the body brackets and where the X member ties into the outer rails. Places like SAC, Chassis engineering, and Speedway, among others, sell plenty of suspension and brake kits to make updating a breeze. The sbc fits just right without firewall mods, though could be just a bit tight for a mechanical fan depending on the rad you use (it's the lean back toward the top that gets you).

That's great find! No matter what you did or didn't do, it's going to look great. But for goodness sakes, don't pass her by!!!!!!

A neighbor had a '53 Dodge convertible, I offered him a good price and he was going to sell, but he found out I was going to modify it so he kept it. Several years later he died and his heirs had it crushed. So much for keeping them "pristine"!

i think i would up date the brakes on it and some up dates and drive the wheels off of it. i would have a hard time cutting it up? when up can hop your butt in the seat and go

Most of todays car guys are not of the age that they would had those kinds of cars as stockers back then anyway, so there are probably no real nostalgia issues.
We are, after all Hot rodders for heavens sake, If you want to make it modern go for it.
In 64 I drove a nice 41 ford two door sedan to high school, but if I had the exact same one now I'd cut it up anyway like I would have then if I could have afforded it.
In 82 I did find a fairly nice 40 Ford deluxe sedan delivery. Soon it lost the flatty, and straight axle for a BBC, an A-frame front supension, and a 7" channel.
Why would anyone leave them stock?

John

Originally Posted by 41willys

Most of todays car guys are not of the age that they would had those kinds of cars as stockers back then anyway, so there are probably no real nostalgia issues.
We are, after all Hot rodders for heavens sake, If you want to make it modern go for it.
In 64 I drove a nice 41 ford two door sedan to high school, but if I had the exact same one now I'd cut it up anyway like I would have then if I could have afforded it.
In 82 I did find a fairly nice 40 Ford deluxe sedan delivery. Soon it lost the flatty, and straight axle for a BBC, an A-frame front supension, and a 7" channel.
Why would anyone leave them stock? john

....... well why would you cut up car tie it up for more then one year dump $$ in it and then find out you just do not like the car ? i have seen it happen .if it runs why not drive it find out it is some thing you really want to put $$$ the car is nice if it was not all there i would be the first guy handing you the torch .i cut in more then one i must be getting old

I see both sides of the fence on this one. What makes it a tuff call is that it looks 100% stock, pristine and fully intact, not to mention running. It would seem criminal to hack it up and sell off the frame and power train, when one could say find a non runner or body skin and use just that. But hunting down all of the pieces you need for a work in progress is hard, time consuming and expensive, while this car obviously is ready to go now. I'm guessing you can't find an aftermarket body like say for a 32, though to be honest I don't know for sure. One of those HMMMMM moments. Pulling the engine and replacing it without cutting and doing the same with the transaxle, etc. gives you the option to keep the stock stuff if you decide to sell it down the line to a purist.
I would hate to see a chop job on this one though, since one in less restorable shape would do at that point, and then your talking lots of internal mods, that will waste the stock stuff in there. JMHO.

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

....... i must be getting old

Yep you must be
Old guys alway look back with fondness and try to keep the past alive. It takes us young guys to be daring and different

John