Author Topic: Going back to my roots...  (Read 2649 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Going back to my roots...
« on: March 15, 2023, 02:30:40 PM »
The last year and a half has been a struggle to say the least. After retiring in Nov. of 2021, I busted up my ankle bad while cutting wood, had a heart attack a month later (Christmas eve of all times), then lost my Dad 3 months later. It's taken a while to recover from the heart attack, but I think I'm about back to 100% now.

My Dad introduced me to flatheads from the time I could walk. I used to help him rebuild them, doing anything that a young kid could do. I'm now going back to those roots. I've been collecting parts for this '37 Coupe for years. It's a super solid car, but has been in storage for the last 50 years. I helped my Dad rebuild the engine, but it only has a few hours run time on it....50 years ago. I decided it was time to finally dig it out and restore it.

The plans are for a full on restoration, to a level that I did my Mach 1 to. I have some really nice hard to find pieces for it and am currently tracking down the last couple of parts that I'll need. It'll be 95% original, with the only changes being lowering the front about 3" and rebuilding the original 85hp V8 with some speed goodies. I have an Edmunds dual carb intake, some NOS Stromberg carbs, a pair of Edelbrock heads and I'm considering putting a Mercury stroker crank in it, which I have. I still haven't made a final decision on that one though, but regardless, it'll be a vintage type build with the original drivetrain.

It's already in my garage and I've already finished taking the nose off and stripped the interior out and will be pulling the body off the chassis this spring. Everything will be gone through. There is remarkably little rust in the car, with the only repairs needed being at the lower fronts of the rear fenders and a small spot on the floorpan. Everything else is solid and just needs stripped and hand finished. I'm excited to get this thing on the road and plan on driving it every day so long as it isn't raining. I figure it'll be a 2 year job, provided nothing holds me up.









Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

Falcon67

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2151
    • View Profile
    • Kelly's Hot Rod Page
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #1 on: March 15, 2023, 03:22:07 PM »
Cool car for sure.  In another timeline, I could see building a 36 or 37 into a nice "gasser" for bracket racing. 

mbrunson427

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 914
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #2 on: March 15, 2023, 03:26:03 PM »
I think you should start a thread in the member projects section, even though it's not an FE, it's still cool! I feel guilty, sometimes it seems I'm the only one who consistently posts there.

I've always wanted to build a flathead, for similar reasons, that's what my grandpa use to hot rod with back in his heyday. Looking forward to seeing your journey

ALSO, if you need someone to take that white F-100 off your hands let me know  ;D  I've had my eye out over the last 2-3 years for a decent farm truck I can hack around in
Mike Brunson
BrunsonPerformance.com

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #3 on: March 15, 2023, 04:02:45 PM »
I think you should start a thread in the member projects section, even though it's not an FE, it's still cool! I feel guilty, sometimes it seems I'm the only one who consistently posts there.

I've always wanted to build a flathead, for similar reasons, that's what my grandpa use to hot rod with back in his heyday. Looking forward to seeing your journey

ALSO, if you need someone to take that white F-100 off your hands let me know  ;D  I've had my eye out over the last 2-3 years for a decent farm truck I can hack around in

I'll do a thread if anyone here is interested enough, maybe in this section though since it's not FE related. I'll have some additions to my Mach 1 to add at some point this year. I'll be going through some fairly major changes on it.

That '75 is super solid and the 390 in it runs great. Only thing I don't like about it is it's an automatic. I'm rebuilding the carb and cleaning up some butchered underhood wiring currently. I thought about selling it, but these days I couldn't afford to replace it, and I need a beater truck just as you mentioned. I may need to at some point, to help fund the '37 and my '55. We'll see.
Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

jayb

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7400
    • View Profile
    • FE Power
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #4 on: March 15, 2023, 04:38:45 PM »
Doug, sorry to hear about the health problems, that can really set you back.  Glad you are doing better now.  When I saw the pictures, first thing I thought of was "Gasser with an SOHC!"  Its cool that you are keeping it original, but once you get it done, perhaps the engine swap bug will bite... ;D
Jay Brown
- 1969 Mach 1, Drag Week 2005 Winner NA/BB, 511" FE (10.60s @ 129); Drag Week 2007 Runner-Up PA/BB, 490" Supercharged FE (9.35 @ 151)
- 1964 Ford Galaxie, Drag Week 2009 Winner Modified NA (9.50s @ 143), 585" SOHC
- 1969 Shelby Clone, Drag Week 2015 Winner Modified NA (Average 8.98 @ 149), 585" SOHC

   

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #5 on: March 15, 2023, 05:19:08 PM »
Sorry about your healt problems Doug. Nice Coupe, I have a 37 sedan that was my dads first car
If we should nit pick thats not the original engine in a 37. Thats a 24 bolt,( just a better engine)
 38 and later  Vs 37 21 bolt heads. Only year with 21 bolt heads and waterpumps in block exept English flatheads
that are 21 bolt and pumps in block all through the 50s
And please make a thread
« Last Edit: March 15, 2023, 05:23:05 PM by Heo »



The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #6 on: March 15, 2023, 10:52:17 PM »
This car is absolutely staying flathead powered. I like living in the past, and cars like these are time machines. I have other toys for going fast...lol

Heo, good catch. It is a '38 engine. By original I meant an 85, but should have clarified. I think the early 24 studs are the best flathead design. The first ones to incorporate modern bearings, and better cooling.

I have a humpback parts car that I've robbed some parts off of. It's in bad shape, but had some surprisingly nice Deluxe parts on it. Spent a week doing this original wheel. I still need to paint the hub, but there isn't a crack in it. I got really lucky there. Because it hasn't seen daylight in 65 years, the gauges were really nice also.







« Last Edit: March 15, 2023, 11:23:47 PM by cjshaker »
Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #7 on: March 16, 2023, 12:43:54 AM »
Interesting with that wheel and that it was in a 37. It was said here in Sweden that
that straight spoke wheel was leftover 36 Deluxe wheels that was used up in european
37s. while US 37s got the bent spoke deluxe wheel. But...as usualy when someone asume
something about Ford it proves to be wrong.
Dad bought the 37 in 58 and brought home some more 37-39s for spareparts so
i have lot of spares. Two deluxe wheels but not in that good shape,not cracked but worn.
That Deluxe runningboard moulding the humpback have i have a NOS set, a finnish guy showed
up with a english flathead and the mouldings and wanted to trade for something and we never
heard from him again.
Mine was a 60 horse original but im installing a 24 bolt out of a Universal carrier(Canadian
truck 38-39 engine machined for full flow oilfilter)

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?&q=universal+carrier&docid=607987084200512479&mid=7872F48F1617F5A5928F7872F48F1617F5A5928F&view=detail&FORM=VDRVSR&ajaxhist=0

I have the block machined and ready for
assembling and a rotating kit from H&H Flatheads

And then i have the 36 coupe parts cut up with an axe and a few 36 sedans that im planing
to build a frankenstein coup out of :)not had the time to start it yet. Either powered by my
Fe stroker or a 289 as i have a rebuilt 289 and a crossram intake laying around



The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #8 on: March 16, 2023, 01:38:15 AM »
As I understand it, American '37 Deluxes had the straight spoke wheels, changing to the bent spoke sometime in '38. Mine has already been converted to '40 style hydraulic brakes, so I got lucky there. I will also add an oil filter. I hadn't heard of the French flathead until you mentioned it some time back. They're interesting. Most of my experience is with the later 8BA engines, so I'm relearning some stuff on this one. Luckily, my Dad had stashes of flathead parts, so I didn't have to search for anything. I'd love to see progress on your Sedan. Those trim pieces are super hard to find.
Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

blykins

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4801
    • View Profile
    • Lykins Motorsports
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #9 on: March 16, 2023, 04:30:56 AM »
Very cool project.  Never built a Flathead, but I have a soft spot in them just because of my grandfather and the stories he used to tell about them. 

Sorry to hear about your health issues and the loss of your father.  That's a lot to swallow all at once.
Brent Lykins
Lykins Motorsports
Custom FE Street, Drag Race, Road Race, and Pulling Truck Engines
Custom Roller & Flat Tappet Camshafts
www.lykinsmotorsports.com
brent@lykinsmotorsports.com
www.customfordcams.com
502-759-1431
Instagram:  brentlykinsmotorsports
YouTube:  Lykins Motorsports

6667fan

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 719
  • Every Second Counts
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #10 on: March 16, 2023, 03:12:15 PM »
Nice to see a 37 getting some love Doug. Can’t swing a cat without hitting a ‘40 around here. My father had two different 40s. One was a beautiful convertible. After he got back from Korea he learned my Grandmother had sold it!

Good luck with project and it’s great to have that part of your father still with you
JB


67 Fairlane 500
482 cid 636/619.
Tunnel Wedge, Survival EMC CNC heads, Lykins Custom Hydraulic Roller, Ram adjustable clutch, Jerico 4-spd, Strange third member with Detroit Locker, 35 spline axles, 4.86
10.68@125.71 1.56 60’

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #11 on: March 16, 2023, 03:21:39 PM »
Sorry to hear about your health issues and the loss of your father.  That's a lot to swallow all at once.

Brent, as you're aware, life can slap you around sometimes. It took a while, but I'm moving on with life. I'm just grateful to have made it this far.
Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #12 on: March 16, 2023, 03:21:54 PM »
As I understand it, American '37 Deluxes had the straight spoke wheels, changing to the bent spoke sometime in '38. Mine has already been converted to '40 style hydraulic brakes, so I got lucky there. I will also add an oil filter. I hadn't heard of the French flathead until you mentioned it some time back. They're interesting. Most of my experience is with the later 8BA engines, so I'm relearning some stuff on this one. Luckily, my Dad had stashes of flathead parts, so I didn't have to search for anything. I'd love to see progress on your Sedan. Those trim pieces are super hard to find.

Dad converted mine to 39 brakes while he used it. Or as he said from Hysteric to Hydraulic brakes. Biggest difference on the earlier  engine are the floating rodbearings and the distributor
Do you know that with a 8ba type timing cover you can use a chevy distributor to get a modern dist with mecanical advance. Or a much easier
to find than flathead, chevy magneto I have a Ronco  magneto from a chevy im going to use. there was some slight modification to the chevy dist needed
but nothing major
 If you are going for the Mercury crank you must bore the block to 3 3/16 (STD 8BA, C8M )  to get the rods down trough the cylinders i converted mine to the newer crank and 8ba rods  it was plenty of material in the cyl to bore it. I think the machinist said there where 1/4 inch left after the bore
I to would love to se some progress on the sedan ;D The chassie is rebuilt and the little rust there was is repaired. Tooltray beneat trunklid and same as you the typical front of rear fenders. Bought one NOS rearfender from an old Ford shop for 100$ ;D and with my own healt issues i have realiced that i must finnish it now




The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #13 on: March 16, 2023, 07:54:59 PM »
There's no way any Chevy parts are going into this build ;D  The front mount distributor and lack of modern advance is a big drawback, but with an electronic conversion, at least I won't have to deal with removing the distributor just to get to the points, although with the quality of todays stuff, I may be better off with points ??? I'm okay with the lack of modern design though, I have plenty of rural roads to drive, and I'm not in a big hurry to get anyplace these days.

The boring is why I haven't decided on the 8CM crank yet. Even though there's plenty of material in these blocks, I hate the idea of removing more material between the bore and exhaust valve, which I'm sure you know is the real area of concern for cracking. It would be nice to get the insert bearings though. Still mulling this one over.

I'm lucky that my tool tray and rear panel is solid. That is unusual for these cars.

Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

frnkeore

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1128
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #14 on: March 17, 2023, 02:24:38 AM »
I wish I had the '39 For Tudor Delux, that my dad bought new, but, it was wrecked in '56 (not bad, rt front fender and grill) but he didn't fix it and in '60 he had it hauled off for junk.

Afrter WWII he worked as a mechanic at Meyer & Welch, a Ford rebuilder and owner of the Novi, Indy Car. My first car was a '48 Merc coupe, that I wasn't  to drive until I got my license, couldn't resist and he haul that off for junk but I got to keep the eng & '39 trans. It was bored 3/16.

You probably have the "Helmet" type dist (3 bolt) A good up grade for that, is the later crab dist but, it's 2 bolt, you can get a adapter or change the timing cover. It's  easier to work on, too.

Also, you can keep your full floating rods, if you offset grind the Merc crank, to 4 1/8, for the needed 2" journals. You'll need custom pistons for that though at the smaller bore.

Another thing you can do, is put SBC exhaust valves in it, both for the In & ex. It doesn't gain to much, but they are cheaper. A very good valve job, will help it. If you do your own valve job, I can give you a Black & Decker type pilot I might even have a Sioux.

You'll probably spend a lot of time at Speedway Motors ;)

I'd like to see a project thread, too.
« Last Edit: March 17, 2023, 02:27:27 AM by frnkeore »
Frank

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #15 on: March 17, 2023, 04:13:58 AM »
Thats why i use a Scintilla magneto  thats not made by Chevy
just adapted by Ronco to fit a Chevy ;D



The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #16 on: March 17, 2023, 12:53:22 PM »
Yes i know about the cracking from exhaust seat to cyl.
And i considered it both one and two times before i bored
the block.
I see it like this....the block i have seen cracked there often
are from heavy trucks, probably often overheated due to heavy loads
leaky radiators when those truck was old in the 50s the owner did not care
just bought another V8 Ford for a few bucks and scraped to get another engine to flog until
it died ( I have a Mercury 312 Y-Block that was in a heavytruck that they overheated so it torched
the heads  between middle cylinders on both heads, exhaust valves next to each others)

I on the other hand will use it for "sundaytrips" with a light load under ideal conditions so i figured
i bore it and find out

That tooltray is unique that it dont need repair. Owner often stored the snowchains there in the wet jute sack
to keep the tray moist  ::)



The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it

Gaugster

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 396
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #17 on: March 17, 2023, 05:19:57 PM »
Very cool project and I'm glad you are back to health. I'd keep it as stock as possible externally. You just don't see many split windows that are mostly complete any more. Looking forward to following this one. 👍
John - '68 Cougar XR7 390 FE (X-Code) 6R80 AUTO

cjshaker

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4449
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #18 on: March 18, 2023, 12:59:25 PM »
You probably have the "Helmet" type dist (3 bolt) A good up grade for that, is the later crab dist but, it's 2 bolt, you can get a adapter or change the timing cover. It's  easier to work on, too.

Also, you can keep your full floating rods, if you offset grind the Merc crank, to 4 1/8, for the needed 2" journals. You'll need custom pistons for that though at the smaller bore.

Another thing you can do, is put SBC exhaust valves in it, both for the In & ex. It doesn't gain to much, but they are cheaper. A very good valve job, will help it. If you do your own valve job, I can give you a Black & Decker type pilot I might even have a Sioux.

You'll probably spend a lot of time at Speedway Motors ;)

I'd like to see a project thread, too.

Frank, I have to do more research on ignition upgrades like you mentioned. I learned from my Dad and he never ventured beyond stock factory set-ups, so I admit a bit of ignorance on some of this stuff.

My thinking is that the later insert type bearings are better, maybe because that's just what I'm used to, but I see it as being harder to get oil around both sides of the floating bearing enough for good protection. I also think that's why Ford changed things in these years and they have remained that way to today.

The ONLY reproduction parts I will be using are seals and weatherstripping. I have NOS and good used parts for anything mechanical that I may need (my Dad was a hoarder of old Ford parts), although I did swallow hard and bought the Dennis Carpenter reproduction grille. The cheap ones just didn't cut it with me.

I on the other hand will use it for "sundaytrips" with a light load under ideal conditions so i figured
i bore it and find out

That tooltray is unique that it dont need repair. Owner often stored the snowchains there in the wet jute sack
to keep the tray moist  ::)

Heo, you're probably right on the boring. They certainly won't be abused like they used to be. This car came to my neck of the woods 60 years ago from a state that didn't see snow or salt. That's the only thing that saved it.

Very cool project and I'm glad you are back to health. I'd keep it as stock as possible externally. You just don't see many split windows that are mostly complete any more. Looking forward to following this one. 👍

John, the body and interior will stay 100% stock. They're beautiful cars just the way they are. This is the look I'll be going for with the rake. Like this car, only the wheels will be changed from the stock "wide 5" to a '40s style.

Doug Smith


'69 R-code Mach 1, 427 MR, 2x4, Jerico, 4.30 Locker
'70 F-350 390
'55 Ford Customline 2dr
'37 Ford Coupe

Heo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3281
    • View Profile
Re: Going back to my roots...
« Reply #19 on: March 18, 2023, 01:35:09 PM »
Dough, Beautyful coup in the picture, my sedan was washington blue like that from the factory.
Thats the style im planing to. Mostly stock, droped frontaxle, dual exhaust, finned cyl heads.
some dual or tripple carb intake mostly for cosmetic reasons. You dont happens to have a
few spare Eddie Mayer dual highrise intakes taking up space :D
 Wheels i think i use some wide fives 16x5 1/5 "reversed" wheels  i found on a hay wagon.
 With 37 caps and trim rings they look nice when the cap dont protrude  outside of the wheel
I dont know wath they originaly came from but the wagon was built out
of a 36 five window coup :'( :'( in the 50s :'( the wishbones was used in the build and they where
out of much thicker material than usual ford wishbones and the drumbrakes looked different than
a ordinary 36 and the material in the wheels was much thinner than a stock Ford wheel but they
are stamped KH (kelsey hayes) like a regular ford wheel
« Last Edit: March 18, 2023, 01:51:48 PM by Heo »



The defenition of a Gentleman, is a man that can play the accordion.But dont do it