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Traditional 1929 Ford Woody Wagon Hot Rod


Dennis Lacy

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It's interesting I have been looking for a set of wires for a future project and I have several sets of these on hand and never rated them until I saw them on your build. It has made me realise that they are a good choice for wires.

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Dennis, that looks totally cool! Honestly, I loved it when I first saw it. When you swapped the wheels to mags, I thought, "Hmm, that's cool, but I liked it better with wires...." Now back to wires, and with taller tires, I like it even more. 😃 The fab work on the chassis and suspension are great!

-TIM-

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I like where this is going! I did like the shiny wheels but then, two of my woodies have early V8 wires so I totally get your dilemma of choosing the right set. As as inspiring as your work always is, I have two of these built and three of the Monogram 1930 woodies so for once I won't be tearing into a new project to keep pace with yours - woohoo! Don't worry, I will still be watching closely.

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On 3/19/2023 at 3:41 AM, alan barton said:

I like where this is going! I did like the shiny wheels but then, two of my woodies have early V8 wires so I totally get your dilemma of choosing the right set. As as inspiring as your work always is, I have two of these built and three of the Monogram 1930 woodies so for once I won't be tearing into a new project to keep pace with yours - woohoo! Don't worry, I will still be watching closely.

Thanks Alan! I made up the wire wheels before I had a car in mind and as I looked up and scanned my shelves of kits the Model A Woody practically jumped down into my hands. The two really do go hand in hand. That’s why I had to revert back. I love the look!

Edited by Dennis Lacy
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UPDATE!

I’ve gone ‘round and ‘round on what motor to put in this project but one in particular kept standing out to me. I had a partially assembled AMT small block Chevy so it was propped up between the fenders and  the Rochester fuel injection unit from Revell’s 1957 Chevy 150 “Black Widow” set on top. I’ve been wanting to build a hot rod with one of these early Injections for years. 

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With the decision made it was time to start pulling parts. To get the combination of engine / trans that I want it will take pieces from 3 different engine / trans halves. From left are the Revell ‘57 283 with its powerglide trans chopped of, Revell 1948 Ford column shift trans cut away from its Flathead and the open driveshaft tail housing cut away from a Revell 1940 Flathead. 

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The 283 engine halves are glued together,  the back surface sanded flat and the adapter bell housing from a Revell Tweedy Pie T attached. 

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The 1948 column shift trans halves were glued together, the front and rear surface sanded flat then attached to the adapter bell housing. 

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The open driveshaft tail housing halves were glue together, trimmed and then attached to the back end of the trans. I’m going to use the optional trans cross member from an AMT ‘29 Roadster (represents a cut down ‘32 Ford k-member) but it has a round trans hole in it so the hole was made “D” shaped to match the trans tail housing. 

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The finished engine, adapter and trans stacked together. 

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To hold up the front of the engine I built a saddle plate reminiscent of the old Hurst front mounts. I drew a design on a piece of .040” sheet. The original ‘57 Chevy front brackets that are molded to the timing cover were cut off and repurposed at the ends of the main plate. 

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Mount pads were added in the front corners behind the cross member. The previously mentioned trans cross member was tacked into place. It was only tacked because I’m going to take it back out to enlarge the exhaust pass thru holes. I’m also going to refine the front pads a bit and the back edge of the front cross member needs to be relieved for crank pulley clearance. 

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With the basic engine assembled and fit to the frame it was time to figure out the details. In addition to the block, the cylinder heads, timing cover, water pump, belt drive, fan, starter and fuel injection come from the Revell ‘57 Chevy 150 “Black Widow”. The chrome script valve covers and chrome oil pan are from the Revell Tweedy Pie T. The Hedman headers first appeared in the late 50’s so they are period correct although I don’t remember the source kit. The air horn scoop is also of unknown original from my parts bin. 

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And of course the obligatory mock up with the engine in place. I love the look of the early fuelie small block!

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That’s all for this installment. Plenty more to come!

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16 minutes ago, Can-Con said:

Never thought about using the GM fuel injection setup on a rod . Might have to do that when I build my '32 Chevy panel. 😈

Now that would be cool! I’ve seen a few hot rods over the years with Rochester injectors. Two bothers I know that have a shop here in Southern California, Veazie Bros, finished a beautiful ‘34 3-Window last fall that had a 1963-1965 style injection on a real healthy 383 stroker small block.

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Edited by Dennis Lacy
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UPDATE! 

Had an unexpected day off today thanks to a long power outage at and around my shop. ⛈ ☠️
 

Because of that I got a little unexpected bench time this afternoon! I wasn’t fully satisfied with the setup of the engine so I made some changes. The script valve covers were ditched for a pair of extremely popular Cal Custom finned covers. They are a perfect dimensional fit to these heads (the script covers were a little long) and I like how the fins match the finned top of the injector plenum. The air horn filter was ditched for the factory air filter housing. A chrome generator and a coil were tacked in place for a more complete look. Finally, the obnoxious parting lines on the headers were cleaned off and I did some shaping to make the tubes more rounded. The end result makes me super happy!

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With the engine refined I had to do another another mock up. To make the body look more complete the tailgate was taped into place and then the hood sides were cut away from the top and it was taped in place to see how the car looks with a hood top. I absolutely love it! The top clears the generator nicely and the air filter housing tucks nicely behind it. 

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Now I think it’s really starting to come together!

 

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As someone who has personally installed an SBC in front of an early Ford drivetrain, I'm amazed at your level of detail in the bellhousing area.. looks just like a Cragar or Wilcap adapter!  And that Hurst mount!  That's exactly how I built a (1:1) 40 Standard Tudor about 10 years ago. 

Not to mention the stance and the overall attitude is spot on. 

I put a Vette fuelie engine in a 48 Ford convertible some years ago. I think mine came from a Revell 59 or 60 Corvette kit. Just having finished a 57 black widow last year, that FI 283 is pretty nice. Might have to get another kit just for the engine.

Edited by Dan Hay
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