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11-15-2012 -- The blisters are being crafted! I went out to the shop today at lunchtime and Dan was well along with the first of the blisters. He started by creating cardboard patterns delineating the outer edge and the "fold" line where the flange transitions to the bulge. He then made a frame to hold the flat sheet of steel while he hammers it into shape, using cardboard gauges to measure the depth. The cardboard gauge will also ensure that the blisters on each side of the car will be identical.
11-20-2012 -- And here's what the blister looks like clamped in place:
Needless to say, I'm very pleased with the way this project is proceeding...
12-21-2012 A new and interesting challenge has arisen. If you examine the back side of the hood sides, there are two features you'll notice. There is an angle iron stiffener welded to the side near its lower edge. The latch mechanism consists of a rod that extends the length of the hood with offset latches at each end and a simple linkage in the middle that is moved by the hood handle. The rod rotates to engage or disengage the latch plates at the front and rear of the hood. Here's a picture:
The problem we have encountered is that the handle assembly is right up against the valve cover on the passenger's side when the hood is secured. In addition, the torsion rod part of the hood mechanism barely clears the front of the valve cover. Check this out:
Dan has already come up with a recommended solution that we have discussed (Color me surprised!). We'll probably move the control handle downwards and to the rear on both hood sides, keeping them symmetrical, and drop the entire latching assembly by a couple of inches to eliminate the interference. Stay tuned!
8-2-2013 Dan has gotten back to the blisters and here is the result:
Notice how Dan is welding the cut ends of the louvers back into the side of the hood in such a way that the contour of the louver ends follows the upper curve of the blister itself. I think the effect will be that this is the way the hood side was originally crafted. What an artist in metal!
8-22-2013 As of today, Dan is working on the left side hood blister. If you're a close observer, you might notice that the left side blister is placed slightly forward of the right side (Count the fins forward of the blister.). It's because of the slight offset in the banks of cylinders in a V-8 engine, which places one rocker arm cover slightly forward of the other. The goal here was to place the center of the blister (the point of highest clearance) Directly over the highest point on the rocker arm cover.
8-29-2013 And as of today, the left side hood panel is pretty close to being finished:
BTW, sometimes it's fun to just stand back and appreciate how far we've come on this project...
Tail Light Surgery...
The car was originally delivered with a single, left-side tail light and a single brake light (The right tail light was a $20 option that very few people opted for; turn signals were non-existent in 1932.). I had acquired a spare left tail light stalk and asked Dan if he could cut and resection it to make a right-hand light. We did this on my '32 coupe and it worked very well, resulting in the option for turn signals and dual brake lights. A couple of weeks ago, I visited the shop and Dan and Deron suggested that the lights would look better if they were made shorter and lower to the bumper. Today (1-8-2012) I went out and saw the results:
Dan and I discussed the need for replacement bumpers. When I acquired the car, it included the original bumpers, which had been replated, probably 40 years ago. As Dan would say, they had been "loved on" a little too much. The plater had gouged the surface with a grinder in several locations, the surface hadn't been properly prepared, and the plating was coming off in several locations. I mentioned that when I restored my coupe I had located a gentleman in Ohio who reproduced the Model PB Plymouth bumpers. I couldn't recall his name, but said I'd pursue a new set of bumpers.
I finally remembered the bumper man's name -- Paul Bowling of Buckeye Rubber Products in Lima, Ohio -- and I called him. He hadn't made any bumpers for a while and he no longer has a chrome plater that he can trust to do his work, but he's making us a set of bumpers that we can get plated. This was a big deal!
11 January, 2013 -- Today I took Andy Jattuso, a long-time friend, out to visit the car. He had not seen it in over a year and was quite impressed with the progress. I guess it's harder for me to appreciate how far we've come, since I usually see the car at least once per week. It was fun watching Andy go over the details of the progress. That's Clint Rankin talking to Dan and Deron Shady in the background.
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