1938 Plymouth coupe new member

[The honey wagon farm]

1938 Plymouth coupe arrives first week in February along with a 37 sedan just now diving into the possibilities of making a comfortable hot rod. Hope someone out there welcomes me as I’m going to need all the help I can get I have not restored or built a car in 20 years. 

Edited December 13, 2022 by The honey wagon farm

[SteveR]

Welcome to the group! There is a plethora of knowledge here to make use of.

[The honey wagon farm]

Thank you

[Plymouthy Adams]

welcome, unless you are about to embrace a modern fuel injected engine with ring tone from the differential etc. and making/altering or buying a stand alone harness....not much has really changed in the retrofit of the basic drivetrain with one major exception.  Your pockets likely will need a bit of lengthening so when you dig for the money it will be there....refill pockets as needed....!!  Cost of parts is up, shipping often more than many parts.  

[The honey wagon farm]

Well I’m entering the project slowly and not impulsively. 
because I only have so many dimes to rub rub together. 

Edited December 13, 2022 by The honey wagon farm

[Plymouthy Adams]

a dime will not even work at a Penny Arcade...I would gather to say based on years ago when my child was young...that the average game was minimum 50 cents to play....it has been 25 years since and I would be scared to ask the cost today without a chair nearby to sit.  We have good games at the house that are free to play, I foot the bill for the initial costs....they are, rake the lawn, mow the lawn, weed the garden, wash the cars, wash the house, split and stack firewood..etc etc.......tones eye to hand coordination, builds muscles and character...we running very low on character these days.  Fun for all...!!

[moparfun]

Welcome, Lots of good people and great information here. Get as many books on your vehicle as you can and what you can't figure out someone here will have been there done that, so don't hesitate to ask, Welcome

[Marcel Backs]

Welcome to the site. Before jumping into your endeavor it is important to understand that there are many products out there which will help you greatly in your project's completion. By the same token there are many reproduction parts made off shore which will cause you grief and cost you a premium price in the process. I am speaking through my own experience so far. Since I have restored cars from all of the big three, I have found that restoring a GM product is much more economical. Although MOPARS (and to a slightly lesser degree Fords) are  beautifully appointed automobiles with great style, be ready to pay more to get your project to completion. Sticker shock is more relaxed when buying parts for my 39 Chevvy compared to the 40 Dodge. Parts availability, quality and price is way better for the GM crew. Since you are building a hotrod, and using many new parts. you will be affected less than someone taking on a full body off restoration (like me) to original condition . I suggest you stick to NOS parts when possible since period parts are of much greater quality than the "stuff" from your big Chinese made North American parts "suppliers". Do not be afraid to ask when needing advice because you have thousands of years of collective Knowledge on this site. All the very best to you and may your project go smoothly. M  

Edited December 13, 2022 by Marcel Backs

[The honey wagon farm]

Thanks to everyone for the warm welcome. I will probably have to lean on everyone of you for the assistance. The best benefit I have is both cars that I had purchased a 38 coupe and a 37 sedan four-door both are complete so I won’t need a lot of extra parts to restore the vehicle. Do not plan to cut and chop I plan to use the original stock front end and rear end because after doing a tremendous amount of reading I discovered that they are very strongly built and I can convert everything over from kits to disc brakes. The only change I’ll be making is I would like to put a small block V-8 Hemi for my Engine. Nothing fancy more practical just wanna build a cruiser. 

[SteveR]

I had a 1930 Ford model A Blind back. I did not do much research before buying it. (dumb me) After I found out I had a good body and frame and that the rest was junk. No front or back seat, fenders, transmission, rear end was stripped and the list goes on. I thought I would street-rod it. I had a 350 4 bolt main with a turbo 350 tranny. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish my project. What would I do differently.... My opinion is Chevy engines belong in Chevys, not Fords, Mopar engines belong in Mopars. Thats my 2 cents worth. BUT it is your car and you should build it as YOU want.

[Los_Control]

Rule #1 ..... WE LIKE PICTURES!!!  

Your plan sounds great ..... I would not count on using the original tapered axle rear end. ..... You can, I doubt the small hemi would break it.

Working with the tapered axle is a pia, finding stock replacement brake drums is a pia .... there is a guy who sells re-pops for $400 each on ebay.

That is the curse of building a older Mopar .... parts availability.

 

A Ford Explorer 8.8 or a Jeep cherokee Dana rear end is readily available in a wrecking yard, they have a wide selection of gear ratios .... they are cheap, easy to get parts for, they share the same wheel bolt pattern as your car ..... they are the correct width, or close enough.

IMHO, if you are going to swap in newer motor/trans, I suspect you will need to build/modify a drive line to fit, build your braking system ...... I would change the rear end while at it. ..... There are front disk brake conversions available & advice from others on getting top performance from existing front end.

 

As far as your motor selection ..... I say choose whatever floats your boat.

 

 

 

[allbizz49]

Congratulations on the 38!! I've been looking for one. My girlfriend and I bought a house built in '38 in June , I'd love to have an old Mopar of the same year parked out front. Oldest I have is a 49. Also, what are you considering a small block hemi?  A DeSoto or Red Ram? I ask only because I am putting a DeSoto 291 in my 49 Plymouth business coupe. Good luck and have fun with your build. 

[38plymouth]

Another 38, about time....I have owned a 38 p6 4 door how about 25 years. It's a low mile almost 99% original car. Sadly I barely use it anymore and it sits in storage...I should sell it but just can't convince myself to do it.

[Dan Hiebert]

Rule #2...see Rule #1.  Welcome, you've come to the right place.  And if the esteemed Forum members don't have the info (although doubtful) you're looking for, someone will know where to send you to find it.

 

 

[Sniper]

I think the 38 Plymouth is my favorite body style

[The honey wagon farm]

Thanks for the response. I pick up both the coupe and a sedan Wednesday of next week I will proudly post some handsome pictures of my new find. I’m doing a lot of reading on the correct combinations for my 350 hemi 5.7 going go back with the old style carburetors, 

I will probably keep the front end as I can just converted them over to disk breaks with a kit; but I know the rear end has got to be changed for the extra torque I have not yet come up with a good combination for that, also looking for a nice four-speed trans that will complement the hemi. You are all right.  I think I’ve chosen the right site and group to help me through my venture.

Thanks to you all I’ll keep in touch. 
 

Edited December 15, 2022 by The honey wagon farm

[Marcel Backs]

My friend has a 38 coupe and it is definitely a class act decked out with a Dakota V6 an a 5 speed.. Given the price of petrol up here, he hit a home run in all respects with that beauty. And I agree with Sniper, your model is one of the nicest from the late 30's. M

[The honey wagon farm]

Thanks for the kind words. I just wish I could convince my wife to stop thinking I was stark raving mad!!

Edited December 16, 2022 by The honey wagon farm

[andyd]

I tell my wife that I have been playing with cars longer than I have been playing with girls............she thinks I'm joking..........have had the 1940 Dodge since 1971, its been a hotrod since 1973, see pic........have been married since 1980.............lol...........seriously tho' your car, you build it your way..........welcome aboard from Oztralia......Andyd

[The honey wagon farm]

Beautiful. Thanks. Maybe my bride will get inspired when she sees how the car looks when complete. 

[SteveR]

Side note: When My Grandpa was in the Army in 1917-1919. He heard some officers talking about how they were going to move some wagons. My Grandpa being a farm boy, age 32 at that time jumped on the wagon and moved them. He was promoted to Wagner. The wagons he drove were what they called, "Honey Wagons" but had nothing to do with real honey but a yellow human liquid that we flush down the toilet.

I hope thats not what your farm is all about.

Your name just struck me funny and brought back memories of my Grandpa. ?

[TooBadBrad]

I have a 38 coupe for 25 years, my favorite car!

I'm running a LA motor, 727 and 8 3/4 rear. Just added a gear vendors overdrive.

I used the stock front end with a disc conversion for years until I got tired of the "strong arm" steering. Converted to Scott's IFS with power rack & pinion. What a difference! That made the car a real pleasure to drive anywhere, anytime! My wife will even drive it now.

 Since your building a hot rod, I'd strongly recommend changing out the front end. Yes, it's more money but not that bad when you consider money spent rebuilding and upgrading the stock stuff. I installed mine myself even though I had never done any kind of frame work before. It was challenging but doable. I did have a professional welder come in and finish the welding after I tacked it together.

[keithb7]

I concur, my favorite year Mopar is 1938. I am biased as I have a coupe and a sedan, both from '38. Both are stock. One is no better than the other. Both are great and fun to drive with their unique features. Check out this photo from the Mopar dealer in 1938.  Not bad for a poor economic year. I think I see 1 left over '37 in there.

 

 

 

Edited December 16, 2022 by keithb7

[SteveR]

1 hour ago, keithb7 said:

I think I see 1 left over '37 in there.

Yep 3rd from the left is a 37. It also looks farther down the line there are a few 37. 12, 13, 14 look like 37s. As my car is

[sidevalvepete]

On 12/17/2022 at 6:20 AM, SteveR said:

Side note: When My Grandpa was in the Army in 1917-1919. He heard some officers talking about how they were going to move some wagons. My Grandpa being a farm boy, age 32 at that time jumped on the wagon and moved them. He was promoted to Wagner. The wagons he drove were what they called, "Honey Wagons" but had nothing to do with real honey but a yellow human liquid that we flush down the toilet.

I hope thats not what your farm is all about.

Your name just struck me funny and brought back memories of my Grandpa. ?

You're on the right track Steve. 'Honey wagons' in a rural sense Downunder are large tractor drawn tanks that are used to transport and spray cow muck onto pasture.

 

Welcome aboard from me too. I am a fan of the '38 model year too. Look forward to seeing your progress and some more pics. I have learnt lots here.?