Mikec4193

I was in my element again...cutting and fitting stuff...love to weld rusty metal...and I did.. . Some of the metal on the door was cracking....nothing that a little MIG welding could not fix right up... Everytime I start to feel bad about making this into and old Jalopy I run into rust where rust really should not be and then I dont feel as bad anymore...here the A pillar is rotted...well was rotted...I filled it in with MIG wire and ground it off...does not look that bad really... So my new favorite place to hang out is inside the old girl...she makes smile...I even found a young fellow who live a couple counties over from me who might this spring come out and take her for a spin... In the mean time...I think I am done with it...had a blast saving it...have no desire to drive it tho...the traffic where I live it is brutal...it would be suicide to try and drive it on the roadways and it is not safe enough to run around at the local dirt track...the thing would fall apart...if it was a paved track maybe... On to the next project...still not sure what I want to build...an old Dodge truck maybe???...I was thinking about another Morris Minor maybe (rat rod)...I need stuff to work work on this winter...might even think about another VW bug or maybe an old 1950s International truck...they are pretty cool trucks too... I did it....

So I got back on the old Plymouth again...finally sold the Willys Jeep...what a relief that was...took a total bath on it too...lost every penny I spent it...oh well...old Jeeps and me...I think I need to stay away from them unless they are free Jeeps... I kept looking at these doors and the lack of wing windows was getting to me...so I put a wanted ad out on a Mopar Facebook page and low and behold...I found a fellow in the mid west with a 1939 Plymouth sedan he was turning in to a street rod and he was putting electric windows in it... So the parts started showing up at the house.... The stuff was original 1939 stuff so I was thrilled to be able to use it... A lot of cobbleating going on here to make it all fit...cut cut cut....tac tac tac...grind grind grind...repeat...

I was asking about this same thing a couple days back on one of the truck Facebook pages and I asked and a couple of folks talked about the older 6 cylinder Ford motors...when I was a kid it was called a "300" engine...I am not sure what they call them now...these were found in a lot of Ford trucks back in the day. They also talked about swapping a 258-6 cylinder Jeep motor into these chassis' this was on Dodge Pilothouse page...I see yours is a little older than those trucks. Good luck with your search and keep us in the loop MikeC

Back at it again...a lot of small stuff to do... I got the ole girl back in the shop...noticed the front brake drums were two different depths...well that cant be right...bought the same part number at the same time from Rock Auto....hmmm... Well quick jump online and find the last one that is the same depth as the one on the left here... Then I start looking at the whole front end of things...what a mess...so I rip stuff apart to try and fix it... Sometimes you just gotta get rough with these old ladies... So thankful for Rock Auto and more thankful that someone before me took the time and cobbled on this early GM front clip...I kind of understand how all this stuff works as back in the early 1980s I had a 1967 Camaro oval track car and this is the same front clip... Took me probably better part of 2 weeks to finally get all the parts back in and hopefully now it will run down the road a little better...

So I went ahead and I bought from Roberts Auto parts a brandy new cowl vent... The part number they sent me a P27XB for a 1939 Plymouth does not fit....I had to cut probably and inch off the back of it and probably 1.5" off the front of it I did make it fit...and the cowl vent does close...not sure how much of a seal will be there...not that I really care...it is old Jalopy I made up two 16 gauge tabs for the short sides of the cowl vent ...then I used self taping screws and called it good.... If anybody wants to buy the old girl let me know...I am done with her... Thanks for all the insight.

I dont even have side windows in it...not sure if I would need them or not...I hope the cowl vent doesn't mess with drivability...not that I plan to drive it much.. I am still thinking about wearing a open face helmet with it when I drive it... I know I am the squirrel .... thanks for the all the insight...

So I am about to start back on the old 1939 Plymouth Jalopy and I was looking at the cowl vent...this old heap I plan to run on the road at least once...I repaired the cowl vent drip pan a couple years back and it actually came out ok...I even cobbled a drain in so it will run outside the car.....so my question is....Do I really need to have this cowl vent operational?? Could I just put a new gasket in it and maybe put some metal tabs on it so it wont rattle when I take it down the road?... This old heap doesn't even have any dash board in it...crude and rude she is to the bone... Thanks in advance.

So my old Plymouth Jalopy is nothing like anything on here but here is what I have mounted in my 1939...I have not driven it yet but at least I should be somewhat safe...I had these belts from my last oval track car...I made a steel frame for the aluminum seat...3/8" or 1/2" grade 8 bolts to the mount the belts and the seat too...everything mounts to the frame...

Been awhile since I last posted.... The first race I saw was in 1965 as a four year old kid...many of those old jalopies had this painted on the rear deck lids... Finally got the lights to work on the old girl... Cobbled up a 1951 Ford rear view mirror.... Found an exhaust kit on Amazon... Did a lot of pipe smoke on this stuff...way too many cups of coffee too... I added these little sheet metal wings to the old hood I had cobbled up earlier in the build...I was not too fond of the master cylinder not having any cover over it... got it fire up too....put some really cool glass in the windshield...had it shipped from the state of Oregon to the state of New York... I am taking a break from it as I grabbed this old guy for a quick flip and then back on the Plymouth... Life is good....

Welcome to the forum Beautiful looking truck right there... Thanks for sharing... MikeC

Ok kids....lots of sparks are flying again in the hodge podge garage...I think we had more fun than we should have... So thankful for more what I think is 3/8" brake line...there was a big hole in the trunk lid area...had to do something How does it all go on here again...tac tac tac....grind grind grind...cut cut cut...repeat... way too much fun for one day...still grinning about it tho... So I get both sides done and I grab ahold of it and it is still flopping around....more chin scratching...more 3/8" brake line and some scrape "U" channel too... A strip of 20 gauge sheetmetal...it still was flopping around...l was told years ago...triangles were a strong shape... Had to add more supports to the inner rockers that I had cobbled together too...more 3/8" brake line...grind grind grind....tac tac tac...repeat... I have a date with my mechanic friend he is going to go over all the wiring I did and make sure this old heap will fire up...once we get it to run...then I will be putting and exhaust system on it...then tow it to the garage to get it inspected...hopefully it should pass... I have spot on my lean too where I think I will store it... I have had way too much fun rebuilding this ole heap...looking for the next project as we speak...

I use to work at the local county in DPW department...we would have to go take pictures after any fatal accidents...90% of the traveling public have no idea how close they are to the edge...especially the faster that they travel....I raced locally and I can tell you running up some guys back end is a thrill but not on the street it is not... I have built and driven several older heaps...where I live you don't even want to drive them on the roadways anymore....so now I build them to a point and then I sell them...I have no desire where I currently live to drive anything old on the roads... I recently bought a house in rural Kansas I will try it out there and see if it is any better than upstate NY where I grew up... My 2 cents... MikeC

Hey Olddodge41 I have to say this has been the bucket list build since I went to my first race at the local oval track in 1965 with my dad...I was 4 years old...I have raced oval track stuff and I have really enjoyed it but then this project came on the market...I had to grab it... I still smile every time I go out to the garage and bang away on it... I am thinking about another Mopar project when I get this one up and running...My parents had a 1939 Plymouth 4 door back in the early 1960s and then my dad had Pilothouse for several years in the mid 1960s when he was building the house I grew up in... I am in my happy place when I am making sparks.... Thanks for the reply.

So the ole heap had very very humble rocker and quarter panels on both sides...I had mounted the body and built the floor so I thought I was good to go...then I got looking at it and there was a big hole under the floor when you opened the door... So I had some I think it was 3/8" brake line hanging on the wall...so here we go again... I also had bought some 1/4" square stock for something that I was working on...so why not...let get this thing going... lots of cutting and grinding and tacking again... Oh yeah...quarter panel patches are cobbled in place too... I love saving old rusty metal...makes me smile when I re-use stuff...the quarter on the drivers side is part of the old floor pan patch...the passenger side is 18 gauge sheet metal that I had sitting around... Cowl patches were also cobbled in place...grind grind grind...tac tac tac....grind grind grind...

Hey Hickory I left my full time govt job in January...still working my part time Home Depot job but I bought a place out in Wetmore Kansas...my nephew rents a room from me so I can pay the heat and lights and the taxes on it... I am just getting stuff moving here...I will snow bird here as my wife's family is all still in upstate NY... So far it appears to be working...my son and his family are 1 1/2 hours away...I am a lot closer than a days plane trip so I think it might work out for me...I bought in a really small town so it was affordable and if I don't like it I will sell....I am giving myself 2 years to figure it out... Good luck with your search. I am in Saratoga County...we are not that far apart... MikeC