It's not a wagon, but it's pretty cool...my newest project!

Thank you all for your responses.
I'll keep this thread updated with progress pics.

 

I wish that one could get a body like that to replace the rusting remains of my tracker's body.

mike

 

WOW ! I love that truck. And it's that magic 32! Okay Fannie it's CUTE! If his daughter says it's CUTE I agree. jmt it is really cute.
a mainstream car ( that means Ford )????? But it's also got a mainstream engine, a sbc. Now that's really CUTE and COOL!
I have to go lay down now!:2_thumbs_up_-_anima

 

Man, that's too cool - congrats!

 

Looks like a really cool project. I really like the rake it has!

 

Little update...

Got the brakes working and have managed to make it around the neighborhood (or neighbourhood, for the Canadians, eh) a few times.

I had to drain all the old fuel and replace the plugs before it would idle and run smoothly. Still bogs down off-idle; looks like I'll be learning about Holley carbs this winter.

Driving this thing sure puts a big grin on my face!

 

I didn't get as much done on the truck this winter as hoped.
I blew out my knee playing hockey in February - torn MCL, bone bruise and torn meniscii. Had to wait about 5 weeks for the MCL to heal up before I had surgery to repair the torn meniscii. I'm not back to 100% yet, but at least I'm able to get things done!

I ended up replacing the master cylinder and all the brake hoses, as well as the rear wheel cylinders. Brake pedal is solid and it stops well.

Went through the carb twice before learning that the biggest problem was a mismatched adapter and base gasket on the intake manifold. HUGE improvement after I got that figured out!

This is what it looked like under the hood when I bought the truck:



I'm aiming for a more traditional hot rod look (less "street rod") with no billet aluminum anywhere. I fond some cool old-school cast aluminum rocker covers and a Cadillac air cleaner, pulled the headers and had them cleaned and ceramic coated. Painted the block semi-gloss black and here's how it looks today:


The firewall had 50 (yes, I counted them!) holes that had to be welded up. The 32 Ford is somewhat unique; the firewall is not welded as part of the cab; it's a separate piece. I lifted the cab off the frame and pulled the firewall for repair and re-painting.
Here's how it looked when it came out of the truck. All the paint marks are the hole diameters; I made patches for all the holes bigger than 1/4" diameter:




All the holes have now been welded and the firewall is ready for primer. (sorry, no pics)

I also found a pair of 10" diameter headlights to replace the smaller (7") lights that were on the truck. Bonus: the new lights have integrated turn signals in the main housing, so I was able to remove the amber turn indicators that were mounted on the front frame rails. This is one of the headlamp reflectors:


When I bought the truck, there was a seat in it, but it was just a piece of flat foam laying on a plywood base. The battery, fire extinguisher and main fuse panel were installed on the floor under the seat. I wanted to keep the storage functions and maintain the battery location, but I decided to re-wire the truck and move the fuse block to the firewall. I also wanted to replace the seat with a "real" seat.

I found that the Dodge Durango third row is just about perfect for what I want to accomplish. The seat cushion folds up and forward, allowing full access to the are under the eat. The back will also fold forward, allowing some "bonus" storage behind the seat back. It fits the cab perfectly; all I need to do is design and build the mounting base.



Here's how it looks when the base is folded forward:



More to follow; my forum time is up for tonight!

 

Forgot about the truck. I really love that and what you are doing with it. So far all low dollar improvements.

 

I absolutely hate when any drivetrain other than a Ford one goes into a Ford rod. Having said that, I do like the Caddy air cleaner, the Olds-style valve covers (are they Offy?), the renewal of the headers and the engine repaint. It looks ten times better and generally not like others' SBC power.

 

If ole Henry were here all Fords would have a SBC engine.
Actually most older ones do already!

 

nice job JMT on the fire wall , lights and seat(its a bueat) also the cosmetic modes for the engine should be great for a little old school its been a while

 

Cat, I just love SBC as they are a dime a dozen and never leak oil and theDizzy so easily accessible . As for Henry he still got a V8 on his face and mabye Chev needed something to copy and did not get it quite right it aint been so long

 

"Cat, I just love SBC as they are a dime a dozen and never leak oil and theDizzy so easily accessible ."

You got THAT right, dennis! They like to leak, alright.

 

This is the digital dash that was in the truck:


I wanted something much more traditional...and analog.
Found a set of used "Classic Instruments" gauges on The H.A.M.B.
Here they are mocked up:


And this is what they look like, ready to install in the truck:


I love the look!

 

Nice to see you playing with the truck again, I also really like the look of your new instrument clusters.