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Hey gang,

Anyone out there with any knowledge?experience in adapting the Vortec inline 6 as found inthe Chevy Trail Blazer to an earlier car?  Just wondering why you don't see them ??

Thinking one of them would be fine in my '38 coupe or 31 Pontiac.

Bruce

Yo Gang,

I recently bought what was purported to be a T bucket roadster.  It turned out to have a 1917 Overland radster body complete with the data plate.  Windshield posts and all.

I got to thinking, since I love the idea of a homologated rod, why not Willys or Jeep engine for this one?  Overland was the forerunner of Willys and Willys made the first WWII jeeps.

The early days of my military career, bring back memories of M38's with flathead fours, and M38A1's with F head fours.  I think one of those would power a light roadster in good fashion rather than go to the later model stuff.

Any ideas out there?

Bruce

Hi Gang,

Just wanted some advise on welding equipment most appropriate for car crafting.  Plasma cutter, IG or Mig??  or all three??

I have gotten some serious advice from a couple of experienced friends that is diametrically opposed  :-)

What do you think of HTP products or inverters in general??

Bruce

Hey Gang,

Being a Native nebraskan, I shall naturally be rooting for the Huskers.  Having spent my formative years int he cradle of Hot Rodding, southern California, I shall root for the Trojans.  However being a resident of Oregon for the last 15 years and seeing how the BCS selection comittee screwed over the Ducks with their 10-1 record and picked ND and OSU for the Fiests bowl I will root against those two for the rest of my life.  :-( :x  

Just reaffirms my beliefs that politics has no place in sports or hot rodding, time for a play off system.

Bruce

Hey Gang,

I have not posted lately, been carrying a major number of hours at the local Community College and maintaining my 4.0+ average, so been busier than a one-arm paper hanger with the crabs..  :-)

Just acquired a couple of goodies.  A 1926 Peerless with complete original running gear and engine  (V8* and a roadster that was supposed to be a t bucket but has a 1917 Overland raodster body complete with winshield post and frames.  Roadster builder did a nice job of construction but welded a complete MII front end on it and it is Fugly!

Peerless is all there with the exception that some time in its past some one cut out the back portion of the body and built a stake bedd and then brought the body end cap forward and kind of bolted it all together.

My ideas???  Make two of the Peerless.  Barney Oldfield set some sort of record in a Peerless race car with a speedster sort of bady eons ago at Daytona.  I think that it would be cool to use all the orginal engine and frame and running gear and build something of a non exact replica of that car.  Then use modern running gear and build a fantatic street rod of the body.  My thoughts are rather than try and find rear doors, and recontruct the body, I would use van sheet metal of the appropriate size and build a Sedan Delivery.  Alternative, would be to build a partial wooden body from the doors back and use the original body cap on the rear.

This thing is fairly large, they were considere dluxury cars at the time so it would possible to use a light pickup chasis for running gear.  Engine compartment would host a big block, my preference would be a 500 cid Cadillac since I have a couple and the original V8 resembles the flathead Cad.

Sorry for the extensive rambling, but......

Comments, advise, slings and  arrows anyone?

Bruce

Just a bit of esoteric trivia here, we are talking about shotguns are we not??     There was an 18 guage not popular and probably very rare now.  Tey also made 10 guages and those babies had a kick.  Back in the erly days they made them as large as 4 guage that were mounted on boats and could do a job on a flock of waterfowl while at rest.  Not too sporting, that.

Never could figure out why the industry can't settle on a standard for thickness of sheet metal.  It is a PITA to convert from decimals to fractions, to guage and then throuw in metric.  Printed tables are available.

Bruce

Hey Gang,

Searching back through the dusty recesses of my memory banks...these are know as Houadaille type shocks.  The early fords used them, I believe up[ until 1948.  and the smaller ones came from MGs, etc.  My old '34 Buick had a arm front suspension with a variation of these in between the arms.

The main reason that the auto industry went away from them is that tube shocks are so much cheaper to produce.

I still think that these  and/or friction shocks are the way to go on an old timey car especially a roadster where the suspension is visible.

Bruce

Hey Whoa!  I spent 25 years in the Army and still have both thumbs intact.  

I do have some other lacertations, perforations etc. mostly due to self inflicted desires to jump out of airplanes, etc.  A couple also due to the marksmanship of some little brown guys.

I have found that career military people have a love of machinery and/or a desire to mess with things to improve or personalize them.

Check out the latest editorial in Hop Up magazine.  He expresses that attitude and philosophy quite well.

Hope your thumb heals fast.

Bruce

Welcome to the group from another Newbie.  I am also retired Army.  Retired from Special Forces as a Major in 1981.

I like your Econoline pickup, Back in the corner of my garage is a dodge A 400.  It is somehere around number 10 on my priority list.  :-)

Like you, I am thinning the herd, down to about 40 -50 vehicles right now.

Bruce

Mery post Christmas,

A month or so ago one of the Rod Magazines ran an article about innovations or products that changed the course of hot rodding.  One of the products mentioned was an Edlebrock manifold for the Ford flathead.  It featured a Y type of adapter that mounted two two barrel carbs and bolted to a larger openingin the manifold.  It was nicknamed the "slingshot"

They had a picture of it, and it rang a bell.  I had been wondering what that thing was that has been in my collection of stuff for over 20 years.

I went scrounging around and sure enough there it was inthe back seat of my '31 Victoria.

Anyone out there got any idea how rare or desirable these things are?

Hey guys,

Thanks for the info.  I read all of the sites and am printing them out for my shop library.  Beats looking through a hundred sites on the Net.  :-)

The process works well, I took off the rust from a large pipe wrench in under 2 hours.

No spectacular effects, no sparks flying, and you former demolitons types would be disappointed with no fireworks or loud noises.  Not even a witches brew boiling cauldron effect.

What I like best was hooking it up and being able to walk away and do soemthing else while it was working.

Bruce

Hey Gang,

I recently read something about rust removal on the internet, but since I have CRAFT syndrome really bad, I don't recall where.  The basic idea was to use electrolysis by mixing a handful of Arm & Hammer laundry helper which is basically Borax powder to water in a non conductive container, then use your battery charger to hook up one lead to the part to be derusted and the other to a piece of steel to be sacrificed.

Obviously the parts cannot be totally submerged.  I think that I would be leery of this in an inclosed area, just like charging a battery.

Anyone out there with any experience doing this?

Hi Gang,

If memory serves me right, the entire front suspension from and early Corvette would ber a bolt in for these model Chevrolets.  The downside would be finding one, and the price might be pretty high.

Hi guys,

Needing some ideas here for a future project that I want to start gathering pieces for now.  I have a 1931 Pontiac roadster or more technically a convertible coupe?  I has no door frames around the window, but it does have roll up door glass.  The top folds down with Landau irons on each side.  Indian head outside radiator cap, nickle plated grill, and running lights on top of the fenders.  Nice looking and definitely rare.  I have never seen another one, let alone one made into a rod.

I like the idea of an homologated car.  I will go resto rod as far as the body goes, but want an all Pontiac drive train and suspension.  I may deviate from that with regard to the front suspenison. ie air bags or whatever.

Thinking of a 389 with (Tri power, I have one) or maybe one of the older straight six overhead cams from the 60's, or one of the overhead late model sies from a Trailblazer or the Pontiac equivalent if it exists.  I don't plan on using anything too old, since at this age this will definitely be a keeper and will get lots of miles. I suppose a corporate V8 could be considered Pontiac.

I also seem to recall that some model of Pontiac makes an independent rear suspension.

Thanks in advance guys.  I am enjoying this forum immensely.

Bruce

Hi,

New member here with a question.

I know that it is possible to adapt F-100 backing plates and shoes to early Ford drspindles and drums.  It is also possible to adapt finned aluminum Buicki drums to early Ford spindles and backing plates.

The F-100 uses bigger shoes, and the brakes are self energizing.  The Buick drums are bigger, cool better and look so cool!

My question is, why not use the F-100 backing plates and shopes on the early spindles in conjunction with the Buick drums?

Now don't tell me to just go ahead and convert to discs, been there and done that on several rods.  I just want that old timey look with serviceable brakes.  :-)

Bruce