chief prep

Kinda backed up here so let's do this chronologically.
Techie stuff first...

chief - 1929 ford roadster pickup with hallock windshield

The Ventura Nationals was over Labor Day weekend,
and Chief was in need of some attention before the 400 mile (RT) drive.
Last week I had started on a little project that was kicked around
the old shop and yard for the past 2 years.

big

When the RPU was updated,
the placement of the grille and body had changed.
The temporary 6-year  hood was a bit too long.
Here's a "how to - fit a hood".

under taped

The easiest way to measure up the hood is to not use a tape measure,
or any numerical measuring device.
Get some tape and cover up to the edge of the lip.
If you think this is to protect the nickel-plating or paint you're half-right.

precision

The next step is the actual measurement part.
With the hood clamped in place,
the same tape is layed out on top of the hood excess,
about 1/16 past that bottom layer.
Then sharpie out a line and cut away.

work bench

This hood had some fancy dingleberries on the end.
These were whittled out many years ago.
I decided maybe this was a good time to clean them up.

not shiny

Yeah they're old road sign scrap...
This took too long and when nightfall came I lost interest.

scrap

A couple days passed by,
and I realized it was time to go on the road trip to Ventura.
Better finish things up...

oily

It's hard to admit but I'd been neglecting simple mechanical stuff.
First was checking all the oils.
The overdrive half of the tranny was really low.
A good opportunity to clean stuff up.

catch can

Next up was the rearend.
I knew this was going to be low.
This banjo has a "hot rod works" open shaft kit installed,
and included was a vent that blows all the oil out.
The JD catch can had disappeared during the rebuild,
and the perfect replacement appeared on the kids model shelf,
a Testors paint thinner bottle.

banjo rear end vent

Instead of spewing the oil all over the rear of the car,
now there is a little overflow bottle.

child labor - jakob - 2013

That friday was a hot one,
even so Jakob had pitched in his sweat equity,
by wiping down the entire car.
Chief hadn't been this clean in a long time.

machine

Meanwhile it was back to the hood.
I had stalled out as there was no way to attach it easily.
The hood had blown half-off once on the freeway,
so instead of a fancy quick release mechanism,
some simple 1/4-20 bolts and a couple tabs were whipped up.
Crude but effective.

prototype

The most important thing we did was whip out a cushion.
I always wish there was some foam about 15 minutes into a long drive.
Fortunately there was a roll of thick foam lying around.

cushy

A light check and the hot rod was ready to go.
Instead of leaving,
the wife tempted me with a couple margaritas,
and after a much needed nap,
I took off a little after midnight.

spider

The drive up was great.
The sweet spot to drive through LA is from 1-4 AM,
no traffic only big rigs.
The cushion was super comfortable,
for the first couple hours anyway.
The hood didn't fly off!

chief - midnight run

Strange to leave at 1:30 AM wearing shorts and a t-shirt.
Next stop - Ventura Nationals car show...

TP