[cboy]

Another benchmark...after a few weeks of body work the rat is now in flat black and is beginning to look pretty close to the final product. Now it's on to the interior and the mechanicals. Many more details and pics in my journal. I am posting a duplicate of this in the lounge for those that might not check this forum.

[willowbilly3]

Nice, I wish mine was that far along. I do think the 4 bars need to be parellel with the ground though.

[cboy]

Originally Posted by willowbilly3

I do think the 4 bars need to be parellel with the ground though.

That may still happen. I put it together this way to make for a nicer looking mount on the frame. If I go parallel with the ground, the mount for the top bar has to be way up off the frame and sticks out like a sore thumb (I mocked this up a number of different ways during construction). I will see how the front ends works once I get it under power and if need be, I'll torch off the existing mount and go parallel. There IS as second advantage to going parallel...it gets that bottom mount much higher above the scrub line. As it sits, it is only about 1/2" above the line.

[crazy larry]

I can't think of an adjective descriptive enough to describe the awesomeness i'm in the presence of. if I could only find Willys's bow down and worship smilie....?.... nice work Dewey, you do rock.

[oldschoolrods]

So awesome

[Silentlion_69]

looks like its coming along pretty well. How much did you set for a budget? ( I cant remember ) How much do you have into it? ( If you dont mind me asking ) anyway its one awesome ride, Hey dont I remember you saying you were going to bring that up here to maine and give it to me for being such a nice guy

[willys36@aol.com]

Originally Posted by crazy larry

I can't think of an adjective descriptive enough to describe the awesomeness i'm in the presence of. if I could only find Willys's bow down and worship smilie....?.... nice work Dewey, you do rock.

Find it here

And I agree, cboy has done a marvelous job in an incredibly short time. I'm amazed!!

[Doc.]

Now that's what i'm talkin' about. Very nice.

Doc.

[cboy]

Originally Posted by Silentlion_69

How much did you set for a budget? ( I cant remember ) How much do you have into it?

I got a similar budget question over in the General Rodding Tech forum and here was my answer.

**************************

Like most rods, the budget gets sorta slippery as the project progresses. So I guess it depends on which budget we want to talk about. My original target, when the project started back in October, was $3,000. After opting for coil overs on the front and 4-bars all the way around, I had to up that target budget to $3,500. Now, as I'm getting near the end and scrambling to get all the odds and ends you forget about when you first set down a plan, it looks like I'll end up in the $4,000 neighborhood.

One of the major causes for going over budget is that the body turned out better than I had envisioned. You wouldn't think that would be a "problem" but what happens is that you now want the rest of the car (engine, interior, mechanicals etc) to look presentable enough that they do not detract from the body. Back in October I figured the body would turn out crappy - but passable. In that situation rusty exhaust headers, crudded up block, blanket over cushions for upholstery, stock steering wheel, raw rims, etc. etc. would be perfectly in keeping with the overall ratty look.

When the body came together the way it did, I started changing my outlook. I decided I needed to sort of bring everything up to the same level as the body...thus I have opted for moon disks to dress up the rims, nice chrome headlights, some Naugahyde upholstery, new rear tires (when the old ones had a year's worth of tread left), some dash gages, an after market steering wheel, new seat belts to color match the upholstery, and a few other frills as well. What I will probably do at the end is post two budgets...one showing the bare essentials of what it cost to get the car running and on the road (this will probably be $3,500-$4,000) and a second budget showing the total cost as the car sits - with the moons, upholstery, and other upgraded items (this will probably be $4,000-$4,500). That may be cheating a bit, but I think it will give folks a good idea of what they might expect for their money should they take on a similar project. Clearly my original $3,000 target was a wee bit optimistic. But for me, at least, the overrun of $1,000-$1,500 has turned out to be worth it. And even at $4,500, I think this roadster would be within the financial grasp of most rodders, particularly if they spread it out over a year or two of work. And that was pretty much the point of this modest little experiment to begin with.

Dewey

[willowbilly3]

I had originally set my budget at $2500. Then I found a low milage Caddy engine and tranny for free so now I can sell the flatty and recoupe some. Then I found an old Econoline that gave up its steering box, front axle and pedals for almost free. Well anyway I am still under a grand and I need a radiator (about $150 new) A rear end, drive shaft, springs, headers, carb, wiring ect. I also need a pickup bed because it is planned to be an rpu but I could always drive it as a modified too.

[Weimer]

Cboy...Did you go the BlitzBlack route? How well does it spray and cover? Did you thin it down with JD reducer, Brand X reducer, or mineral spirits?
I am curious as I have several things that I am wanting to paint with BB and any insight to yield smooth results always help.
I am really diggin' the ride, but are you going to have a hard time getting it registered for license plates?
Later,
WEIMER

[cboy]

Originally Posted by Weimer

Cboy...Did you go the BlitzBlack route? How well does it spray and cover?

The paint process is covered in some detail in my journal but the short answer to your question is no. I used the generic Car Quest brand low gloss flat black enamel. I would rate the final result mediocre. I thinned with mineral spirits but found I had to go well above the recommendation on the can in order to get it to spray right. And then I over thinned a bit and got some runs and sags. It's not the end of the world, however. Since painting I've been tackling a lot of the mechanicals on the car and every time I turn around I seem to put a scratch or a nick in the paint. So at some point in the future I'm going to scuff it up, knock down the runs, repair the scratches and shoot it all again. Hey, the whole gallon of enamel cost $35 and I only used about a quart, so I could shoot it every year at that rate. I can't give you any pointers on BB but I can tell you the Car Quest brand is pretty touchy to get thinned right.

I am really diggin' the ride, but are you going to have a hard time getting it registered for license plates?

Like most states, Wisconsin has gotten pretty savvy about registering and licensing street rods. They have a special category for "replica" hobby built cars and it will be registered as a 1932 Ford Roadster Replica. I went through this process (or at least most of it) with my '32 pickup. The state police actually come right to your shop door to do the safety inspection and they were very fair with me on the pickup. We'll see on the roadster. The questionable items will be the lack of fenders, an undersized steering wheel, and the scrub line. The scrub is "correct", it's just a question of whether the inspector wants to make me prove it. The steering wheel had to be smaller than the state requirement so that your hand can fit between the wheel and the door when turning left. The lack of fenders...well that's just flat out not in compliance. But then there are hundreds of fenderless rods that have passed the WI inspection so I'm just hoping mine isn't the one picked out to be an example. If it is, I have already picked out the trailer fenders at Fleet Farm that I will put on it to pass...and then they will come right off again.

[Ramrod]

I would drive it like that, hehehe. Awesome man, excellent! ,,,,RR

[willys36@aol.com]

Originally Posted by cboy

Like most states, Wisconsin has gotten pretty savvy about registering and licensing street rods. They have a special category for "replica" hobby built cars and it will be registered as a 1932 Ford Roadster Replica. I went through this process . . . . .

I haven't done a replica or scratch built car yet in Kalifornia (will run into that when I try to do the Mysterion) but have done a couple of "unknown" really old cars. Registered owner info was non-existent. All that was required was for a city cop to come out and verify the chassis #! Didn't even ask how I was building the car, safety features, legality of construction, nothing. From what I can tell in my limited reading of the CA vehicle code there are NO requirements for inspections of passenger cars prior to registry. Maybe there are for commercial vehicles, but sure not for cars. I could put the engine in vertically, drag the pan on the ground, put the passenger seats on out-riggers outside the car and they would take my $32 and register it for the street! Of course, if a cop saw a violation while I was driving, I would get a fix-it ticket but just for the violation he saw. Strange system!

[willowbilly3]

Originally Posted by willys36@aol.com

I haven't done a replica or scratch built car yet in Kalifornia (will run into that when I try to do the Mysterion) but have done a couple of "unknown" really old cars. Registered owner info was non-existent. All that was required was for a city cop to come out and verify the chassis #! Didn't even ask how I was building the car, safety features, legality of construction, nothing. From what I can tell in my limited reading of the CA vehicle code there are NO requirements for inspections of passenger cars prior to registry. Maybe there are for commercial vehicles, but sure not for cars. I could put the engine in vertically, drag the pan on the ground, put the passenger seats on out-riggers outside the car and they would take my $32 and register it for the street! Of course, if a cop saw a violation while I was driving, I would get a fix-it ticket but just for the violation he saw. Strange system!

You own the Mysterion? Wow!!!