1936 Ford Project Part V: New Chassis

The rear of the chassis is...        read full caption The rear of the chassis is finished off with a Briz bumper and shortened brackets from Autosport International. The gas tank is a Rock Valley unit that has an internal fuel pump for the Ford EFI system. Check out the specially designed exhaust tips and the perfectly symmetrical exhaust system that Borla Performance installed. Although it’s partially covered by the crossmember, you will see a chrome-plated fuel filter from Street & Performance. The tires are BFGoodrich, and the wheels are Halibrand with knockoffs.

The Fatman Fabrications chassis...        read full caption The Fatman Fabrications chassis was equipped with the top-of-the-line tubular Mustang II front suspension and brakes from Engineered Components Inc. We chrome-plated the upper and lower A-arms, the shock came plated, and the spindles and sway bar were powdercoated chrome silver. The SVO Ford engine was painted Ford Ultra Violet to match the frame and car, and is running polished early-Mustang GT valve covers, a polished aluminum short pump, a polished 90-degree oil filter adapter, coated Ford Motorsport headers, chrome-plated stock pulleys, and chrome-plated Painless alternator and air conditioning compressor brackets. The engine is also equipped with the Ford Motorsport tubular fuel-injection system hooked to a polished intake manifold. The purple wires from Taylor Cable Products look good on the purple engine.

The rearend is a narrowed...        read full caption The rearend is a narrowed 9-inch Ford that was modified by Currie Enterprises. It’s also running a Currie limited slip unit and 3.55:1 Richmond gears. The third member was also painted to match the body color, and the sway bar and springs were powdercoated chrome silver for a nice contrast. Look at the great job Borla did on the stainless steel exhaust installation. We ran the stainless steel brake lines on the driver&8217s side of the car and the dual stainless fuel lines (fuel delivery and recovery) on the passenger side. The gas tank is a stainless steel unit from Rock Valley. It was polished by Joe Stubblefield Polishing.

When we removed the body from...        read full caption When we removed the body from the Fatman Fabrications chassis, the frame had a coat of surface rust, primer, and purple overspray. It wasn't a problem because the frame had to be sandblasted prior to painting it with primer.

The chassis was totally stripped...        read full caption The chassis was totally stripped of parts, then delivered to Paradise Sandblasting. There Craig Criger got the chassis back to bare metal without a problem. The light, sandblasted texture of the chassis will help the paint adhere.

The chassis was painted with...        read full caption The chassis was painted with PPG DP40 light gray primer, then the front and rearends were installed and the engine was dropped in. At this point we had to fabricate a pedal assembly for the brake and clutch. (A step-by-step installation story will be published in the next issue.) We managed to get all the painted and chromed parts looking good with just a little elbow grease. It's amazing what you can do with lacquer thinner and chrome polish.

After the pedals were fabricated,...        read full caption After the pedals were fabricated, the chassis had to be disassembled again. This time it required sanding in preparation for paint. We're getting very good at this.The chassis was painted the same color as the body--PPG Ford Ultra Violet using Concept urethane--then we started the reassembly process by installing the rearend. We wanted to offset the color a little, so the springs were powdercoated chrome silver, and the shackles, bolts, and U-bolts were chrome plated.

The chassis was painted the...        read full caption The chassis was painted the same color as the body-PPG Ford Ultra Violet using Concept urethane-then we started the reassembly process by installing the rearend. We wanted to offset the color a little, so the springs were powdercoated chrome silver, and the shackles, bolts, and U-bolts were chrome plated.

The excellent brake system...        read full caption The excellent brake system came from Engineered Components Incorporated (ECI) and features vented rotors, GM single piston calipers, sturdy mounting brackets, top-quality pads, and durable bearings and seals. Obviously, there will be no problem slowing down this '36. Note that the chassis features Fatman Fabrications tubular A-arms with coilover shocks, and comes with a hefty front sway bar that will give the car good cornering ability. The front suspension also looks fantastic.

Front-end detailing included...        read full caption Front-end detailing included chrome-plating the upper and lower control arms, all the nuts and bolts, the sway-bar bolt, the washers and spacer, and the rack-and-pinion ball joint. The spindles, rotors, and sway bar were powdercoated in chrome silver. The coilover shocks were delivered with chrome plating.

The ECI-supplied GM brake...        read full caption The ECI-supplied GM brake calipers were painted Ultra Violet to match the chassis. Note the superior fit of the ECI parts. The vented rotor will stand up to heavy-duty braking without overheating. In the background you will see a braided steel brake hose from Total Cost Involved Engineering.

The Borgeson steering U-joints,...        read full caption The Borgeson steering U-joints, rods, and Heim joint were chrome plated so they will look nice snaking through the engine compartment.

We decided to run Briz bumpers...        read full caption We decided to run Briz bumpers on the '36, and wanted to suck them in closer to the body, so we ordered a set of polished alloy bumper brackets from Autosport International. (In a future installment we will show a full bumper installation.)

We reinstalled the Ford Motorsport/SVO...        read full caption We reinstalled the Ford Motorsport/SVO 302 engine and T5 five-speed trans. The engine and trans were painted Ford Ultra-Violet using PPG Concept paint. The early Mustang GT valve covers, water pump, and intake manifold were polished.

This close-up shows the master-cylinder...        read full caption This close-up shows the master-cylinder arrangement and the routing of the stainless brake lines. We used a Total Cost Involved Engineering brake-line kit that comes with aluminum brackets. A close look will reveal the brake-light pressure switch and two pressure valves from ECI. We also installed an adjustable proportioning valve for the rear brakes. Ford Motorsport provided the driveshaft, which had to be cut to length.

We had to fabricate a clutch...        read full caption We had to fabricate a clutch pedal to work with the ECI master-cylinder arrangement. (Check out the next issue for a complete how-to.) The power booster was delivered with gold cad plating, and the cap was chrome plated for a little sparkle. The brake pedals were powdercoated chrome silver by Andrews Powdercoating.

Since we're running an Electronic...        read full caption Since we're running an Electronic Fuel Injected 302, we had Rock Valley Antique Auto Parts build a stainless tank equipped with an internal Ford electric fuel pump. This tank fits in the stock location, provides additional fuel capacity, and is baffled for fuel stability.

The Ford 9-inch rearend was...        read full caption The Ford 9-inch rearend was narrowed and rebuilt by Currie Enterprises. The springs are from Posies and have been powdercoated. The sway bar is also powdercoated and features chrome brackets and links. The Rock Valley gas tank was polished by Joe Stubblefield for a nice appearance. You will also see stainless fuel lines running on the side of the frame. Fuel-injected engines need a fuel line as well as a return line.

We ran dual 3/8-inch stainless...        read full caption We ran dual 3/8-inch stainless lines along the frame. Street & Performance carries the polished fuel filter and chrome line brackets that were used. We polished the fuel lines on an Eastwood Company-supplied buffer.

On the fuel-line installation,...        read full caption On the fuel-line installation, we curved the lines toward the Rock Valley tank. From there we ran braided steel line with aircraft fittings. At this point the sending unit for the Ford Motorsport gauges was installed.

The stainless steel gas lines...        read full caption The stainless steel gas lines were curved at the front of the chassis just in front of the cylinder head so that braided lines could be run to the fuel injection system. We modified the original Ford connectors by welding aircraft connectors to the inlets.

Purple Taylor spark plug wires...        read full caption Purple Taylor spark plug wires were used to match the engine color. We also employed Ford's shorty pump, which works with a serpentine belt system. Headers are a Ford Motorsport item, and we are also running a Ford Motorsport/SVO tubular fuel-injection system.

Two steps forward and one step back. That's what it seems like sometimes when you build a street rod. And that is certainly the case with this '36 Ford cabriolet. We started the car by trial-fitting everything to ensure a proper fit before any paint was applied to the body. When we were satisfied with that, the car was disassembled and painted in pieces. We painted the body while it was still on the chassis, which had a nice layer of surface rust in many areas by then.

Primer and purple overspray covered it in various places, too. This really didn't present a problem--all along we knew the chassis would have to be sandblasted before it could be painted and detailed. As far as the painting was concerned, we had two choices: We could paint the body after removing it from the chassis, or we could remove it after the painting. We opted for the second choice. Since we already showed you how the car was painted, we will illustrate some of the steps it took to get the Fatman Fabrications chassis looking good.