[Flipper_1938]

Picked up a pair of 16x4 space saver spares at pull-a-part on Saturday.

The plan is to cut the centers out and convert the outers to be used for use with the wire wheels. I will be converting my 15x5.5 wheels to 16x4.

Going to play with forming the dimples for the spoke nipples using a press. Not sure if I will need to add heat or form it cold.

If it works, these will be the front wheels. I want skinny 18's for the rear wheels.

[Flipper_1938]

I found another pretty car to influence the build. I really like the nose.

[MARTINSR]

That car is a piece of art. I can spend an afternoon in an art museum, I am a lover of art. That car could hang in a museum with fine art if you ask me. What a stunningly beautiful example of form meeting function.

The trick is proportions, you can change this or that, you can change that nose, wheels, windshield, etc. But if you change the proportions of wheel to body, body height, length, position of the seating, grille in relation to the axle, etc. that is where you loose it.

That is the biggest reason why cars from scratch or "different" cars like highboy Studebakers and stuff don't "work", the proportions are off.

The 32 Ford or Model A highboy on Duece rails WORK, you just can't screw them up if the proportions stay true. But start moving stuff around and you have a placenta.

The placement of the head lights on a "different" car can be moved an inch one way or the other and you loose it, it can blow the whole car.

Mocking up the car and having it outside to look at it, from every angle is very important. Move things back and forth, don't be afraid of doing something over.

Placement of every line is VERY important.

Brian

[eloc431962]

I am loving this build, looks like you are finding more cow bell you were needing . Cole

[scrimshaw]

Originally Posted by Flipper_1938

I found another pretty car to influence the build. I really like the nose.

That looks like a Chrysler Indy Racecar, around 1930.
http://www.fantasyjunction.com/cars/...20Straight%208

[RODDER18]

More pics!! Looks great!!

Kurt

[Flipper_1938]

I came to the realization that I need to work out some of the function details before I get too much farther with the form. I need to figure out the mechanics of the front half of the car.

I slid the back end of the car back a couple of feet so that I would have room on the table for the motor. I ended up making a saw horse out of a suzuki samurai roll bar.

[Flipper_1938]

Turns out the XK transmission won't work with the bellhousing that I have, front bearing retainer and seal are way different. I pissed away a good bit of time trying to figure out if I could swap input shafts....I finally accepted defeat and decided to use the OD trans.

Good news is that I found a new clutch and pressure plate when I pulled the trans.

Bad news is that the engine needs to move rearward a couple of inches to make everything fit in a 100" wheelbase.

Break out the sawsall!





I laid the stock jag front suspension on the table to see what 100" looked like. Don't worry, only spindles, hubs and brakes will be used.

[Flipper_1938]

Right now there is a tube that goes under the sump in the oil pan, I am going to re-arrange the framework so that I have a hole for the sump/belhousing to fit in and lower the motor a little more. That jag motor is a tall son of a ***** for a little car.

[boatbob2]

Hi,why are you stuck on a 100 inch wheelbase?a 105 or 110 wheelbase should give you more room for the engine. that 100 inch,is like putting 10 lbs of flop in a 5 lb bag..

[Flipper_1938]

Originally Posted by boatbob2

Hi,why are you stuck on a 100 inch wheelbase?a 105 or 110 wheelbase should give you more room for the engine. that 100 inch,is like putting 10 lbs of flop in a 5 lb bag..

100 inches seems to be the magic number for early racecars and sportscars. Lots seem to be that size. Also, the smaller I make it, the better it will look with 15" wheels.

[cboy]

Originally Posted by Flipper_1938

100 inches seems to be the magic number for early racecars and sportscars. Lots seem to be that size.

That's a good point. But MartinSr also makes a very good point. The holy grail of budget oriented scratch built cars, it seems to me, is proportion...not strict adherence to a particular wheelbase.

I face this problem all the time because I use Ford twin I-Beam front suspensions for 20's and 30's era cars. And in stock configuration twin beams are noticeably wider than your typical dropped axle. But by stretching the wheelbase and then scratch building a wider than stock body (which is advantageous in that it provides more cockpit room), I can compensate a bit for the wide track of the axles but still keep the overall proportions of the car within the ballpark so that people will recognize it as an early Ford style. At least that is my goal.

Obviously you are right there in your shop and can see much better than we can see in pictures if all the lines of the car are coming together, including the wheel size in relation to the body length. But before you start cutting too much apart just keep in mind that wheelbase might offer some flexibility that would save you cutting into what you have already done.

[MRGM]

in for the updates...looks good

[Flipper_1938]

No pictures to post, but I spent the weekend playing with front end parts. Mostly taking the jag front end apart amd cleaning everything up. Looks like I need to replace lower ball joints on both sides. I also picked up a manual rack and pinion from a Toyota Tercel from Pull-A-Part this morning.

Still sorting out what I want the A-arms to look like.

[Flipper_1938]

Here is where I started the day. A clean table from the firewall forward.



I had to come up with an idea for a frame that would accept an IFS and look good fenderless. Follow along as I work through this thing and see what I finally came up with. ....all of the blue tube is 1.5"