1950 Plymouth Business Coupe Electro-Mod Build

[jclars]

Having now removed the front body panels from the Lexus, I was able to more accurately measure the distance between tires for track OD in the front.  As it turns out, it exactly matches the Plymouth fender OD at 69".  

 

My next task is to disable the air bags as I start to peel away the rear and side body panels on the Lexus.   So far, it appears there is substantially more frame on this car than most uni-body examples.  Perhaps because of the electric motors in the center and battery pack in the rear.

[Sniper]

Going to be interesting

 

[oldodge41]

Following.

[jclars]

Body swap underway!  Easier to put he Lexus on the Plymouth frame, right?

[jclars]

The air bag controller was located under the front console and removed.  Took at least 4-6 airbags out of the upper door frames and rear hip area before starting to cut.  Then I cut the first part of the roof away.  I wanted to take the whole thing at one time but there are some heavy steel reinforcing beams across the top of the door opening, front and back, and inside the B Pillars.  Very impressive actually, but will cause more work than anticipated.

 

The sun roof is a nice integral stand alone assembly.  Came out whole and is in good shape - I think.  I never bothered to try it out when the Lexus was operating.  Anyone ever put a sunroof in their Plymouth coupe?  I am not really inclined as the roof shape is my favorite part of the car!

[Sniper]

Nice to see you're making progress I look forward to watching the build

[jclars]

Thanks Sniper.  First time in shop since Sunday.  Weather delay!  -3 deg F in 30 mph NE artic blast.

 

Might have only had today to get out there, as it appears more cold (w/o snow) coming again.

 

Just ordered an 1100 lb electric hoist to lift the bare Plymouth body.  Anyone have a weight estimate for the bare body?

 

 

[RNR1957NYer]

8 hours ago, jclars said:

Thanks Sniper.  First time in shop since Sunday.  Weather delay!  -3 deg F in 30 mph NE artic blast.

 

Might have only had today to get out there, as it appears more cold (w/o snow) coming again.

 

Just ordered an 1100 lb electric hoist to lift the bare Plymouth body.  Anyone have a weight estimate for the bare body?

 

 

Don't know if your question was rhetorical, but I took it as a challenge (surprising what you can look up on line!). Curb weight 3050 lbs less powertrain (600 engine, 150 tranny, say 250 for the rear end) gets you down to a ton for the chassis and body.  Visualizing the body and frame, my guess is there's more steel in the body, but with the front clip off, but doors and deck lid on the shell, my prediction is just under 1000 lbs....but your mileage may vary!   Have fun!

[Sniper]

Problem is where is the other end of the hoist going to attach?

 

I (over)built a gantry crane to handle my 230 engine.  But I have a low ceiling in the shop and no commercial gantry would be short enough to work.

[jclars]

Thanks RNR - it wasn't necessarily a challenge, but glad you ran with it.  The folks on here have more experience to draw on for a good estimate and you came through!  I was in the throws of ordering a light duty electric chain hoist on a budget.  I ended up with a single unit rated for 1100 lb, figuring I would drop the front end pieces as suggested.

 

Also glad you brought it up Sniper, because my overhead joists are about 10' above floor level.  I plan on putting 2X legs up at 4 corners with lateral bracing at two joist about 8-10' apart.  Also 8-10' between the legs, but will keep this as narrow as possible.   (The joists are full cut 2x8 old growth Doug Fir, which supposedly can support 500 lb dead load on a 10' spacing.)  I will span the center of this with a doubled up 2x8 to enable lifting by straps from 4 locations on the body to get a balance point.  Any engineer types out there are welcome to check my spacings and loads!

 

The Lexus is still rolling, so I will want at least one end of the frame open to roll it out and allow the Plymouth body to be lowered to working level.

 

John

[jclars]

Here is a pic of what I described rather poorly.  The two joists were left from what had been the 2nd floor of this former chicken coop.  I now realize that their spacing is probably more like 12 feet apart.  However, I could add a sort of truss leg up to the roof brace seen up high.  Eek, I hate climbing ladders anymore!!  This would be in addition to the corner posts mentioned in the earlier post.  I would also prefer the frame to sit diagonal in the shop to have space at the door end (from where the pic was taken) to park the smallish blue car seen in the foreground. This frame positioning would have the advantage of distributing the load on at least one adjacent exterior wall?  Don't have calcs to prove this but recall something about a "cantilevered" load?

 

[RNR1957NYer]

I'm an architect and you're starting to scare me (especially with the diagonal and cantilever talk).  Can you sketch out what you have in mind (take a picture of a hand sketch)?

I understand those were floor joists, but keep in mind chickens don't weigh much - especially when their wings are a-flappin'.

[jclars]

Ahhh, but the chicken poop was deep!  Glad to have you willing to take a look a a sketch - thanks!  Attached is my preferred "diagonal" layout, but I can square it up if necessary.  I don't show ties to the roof beam 6 ft above the joists.  Posts (columns) would need to be 10' long.

 

Oh, and one minor correction - joists are actually 2x6, not 2x8! I remeasured, but I knew you liked a challenge.  But not nominal - they are full 2" x 6".

 

Thanks!

John

 

 

Edited Friday at 09:04 PM by jclars

[jclars]

Sorry for the upside down sketch.  I couldn't get it to post otherwise!  Another challenge!

[Sniper]

You have the vertical height to use one of Harbor Freight's gantries.  But they are kind of pricey for a one time use.

 

Me?  I would think about using an engine hoist to lift one end of the body, hold it up with sawhorses and cross pieces, then lift the other end of the body and support, roll the old frame out, then build a cradle to hold the body that has casters. 

 

Or think of a way to use the lift you already have.

[RNR1957NYer]

1 hour ago, jclars said:

Sorry for the upside down sketch.  I couldn't get it to post otherwise!  Another challenge!

Kudos on the clear drawing (and I'm used to sitting on the other side of the table looking at drawings upside down)!  Those posts you show will go to the floor, correct? (ie the are not hangers from the rafters).  If to the floor, you shouldn't have any problems making it work.  Personally I'd scab new 2 x8's on each side of the existing joists, extending over each post.  I'd also like to see you tie the posts together to create bridging to help keep the joists from bowing out under load from the hoist beam (it's not a cocktail napkin sketch, but see the post-it diagram)

[RNR1957NYer]

1 hour ago, jclars said:

Oh, and one minor correction - joists are actually 2x6, not 2x8! I remeasured, but I knew you liked a challenge.  But not nominal - they are full 2" x 6".

 

Whoa - I was so dazzled by your drawing I missed this little detail - absolutely scab 2x8's (minimum) onto those 2x6's; the diagonal layout looks good to me.  Now back to our regularly scheduled programming....

[jclars]

Thanks RNR - A fellow rodder just dropped by and made the same recommendation (double up the joists) and that was before I opened your response.  So hopefully I am not scaring anyone moving forward!

 

Uh, would you mind stamping your post-it pad in case I get inspected?    

[RNR1957NYer]

On 2/7/2025 at 6:14 PM, jclars said:

Thanks RNR - A fellow rodder just dropped by and made the same recommendation (double up the joists) and that was before I opened your response.  So hopefully I am not scaring anyone moving forward!

 

Uh, would you mind stamping your post-it pad in case I get inspected?    

SSorry for the delay, John; left my stamp pad at the office - Rick

[jclars]

You shouldn't call your secretary a "Stamp Pad"!   But I'll run with it!

 

John