Reconstruction of a '34 Chevy Master Coupe

[Landman]

Cleaned up the glove box lock guts and reassembled to the newly chromed knob and mounted on the door. Installed the instruments in the cluster bezel.

Sanded the primed bolts and sprayed with chrome paint. I'll get some of those truss-head bolts. The only reason I hadn't bought them earlier is that their (McMaster Carr) engineering drawing shows a chamfer around the outside edge.

[mike brady]

Pat,

If you know of a way for Canadians to order from McMaster Carr, would you mind sharing ?

Thanks, Mike

[Scotts_DG8]

Pat,

Screws aside, I really like how the dash is looking great. Your wood graining effort as pictured really has turned out nice. Scott...

[Grandpa]

Pat, I had a similar problem in finding a commercially available match to the 5/16" NF slotted truss head screws used in the convertible top linkage for a 1941 Buick. A NC screw could not be used since the screws thread into the linkage and the nut is only a jam nut to lock the screw in position. Since I was unable to find a matching truss head screw, I had a local shop make them out of stainless steel. Grandpa

[GARY F]

yes, that woodgraining is beautiful, so is the rest of the job

[jpage]

Those are truss head screws but they are not uncommon, similar to round head but flatter and with a larger diameter. Totally Stainless should have those in stock! If not Mcmaster - Carr should have them. If not I worked for a large fastener house in western Pa,they could probably get them too just let me know! Jim

[Landman]

Thanks guys for the kind words and the suggestions for the bolts.

Several one-handed tasks today. Connected the engine end of the oil gauge capillary tube. Installed the glove box in the dash. Installed the handbrake handle. Installed the rubbers on the pedals and added a couple of clips to the bolt above the clutch pedal to hold the speedo cable and the wire harness.Cleaned up & painted the door lock buttons.

[Tinus]

Tinus,

Did I send you photos of the door post brackets?

Pat, Yes u send me the photos of the post brackets.

[Woodfiddler]

Several one-handed tasks today.

Pat - you accomplish more one-handed, than I could with two, and that one hand takes great photos! That dash is looking real, real good. I hope the cooling weather doesn't slow you too much. Then, the holidays are approaching too. Will they allow more or less time in the garage? Keep up the great work up there, many of us are following your progress closely!

Chuck

[Landman]

Chuck, thanks for the kudos. The weather doesn't penetrate into the garage, I have a gas furnace.

Very little work today. Spent most of the morning looking for some parts a fellow hobbyist. Also had a visitor who came by to look at the car. Then my daughters came for lunch. Helped my wife a bit with her bookcases.

Ended up draining the rad and removing the bottom elbow which had a heater hose attachment on it. Touched up the new one. I have to remove the rad to install it in the grille shell when it comes in. We will then install the new elbow without the heater hose attachment.

[Landman]

Finished removing the rad. Also removed the cradle/fender brackets assembly to touch it up. @#*&!!!! The paint I used wrinkled the paint that was there.:mad:

Installed the three wire loom clamps that go in the front crossmember. Took out the harness and did contiuity checks on all the wires that had two ends. There are a couple in there that have markings that aren't on the instruction sheet.

[Roger Zimmermann]

Also removed the cradle/fender brackets assembly to touch it up. @#*&!!!! The paint I used wrinkled the paint that was there.:mad:

Ah! the pleasure to have different paints on a part! The best way is to remove all to avoid incompatibility...

[Landman]

The infuriating thing, is that they are both from the same manufacturer except one is labelled "professional". All along I thought the difference was in the nozzle.

[Landman]

Threaded the wiring harness around and through the various orifices where I think it goes. Relied a bit on my insufficient dismantling photos. Hooked up the generator, dimmer switch, brake light switch and laid out the rest to be in place when the rest goes on.

[Ian_Greenlaw]

Nice work Pat. I like watching where your up to as I'm lagging a bit behind you so I get ideas from your method and progress as to what move I'll do next.

I'm being extra careful to keep my fingers away from any machines !!!

A bit frustrating at the moment as Xmas approaches and everyone goes into meltdown. I'm looking forward to being left alone to work on my car once all the other chores are done.

Ian

[Roger Zimmermann]

Pat, I have no experience with cars from this period. I'm just surprised that most wires have the same color with the exception of the tracers which differ a little bit. I suppose that it's correct for that time...Who supplied the harness?

Regarding the routing: I replaced the engine's harness from my '57 Brougham. I did many pictures but, when installing the new harness, I still had questions and doubts! OK, I know that a wiring for a Brougham has two or three wires more than on your Chevrolet!

[Landman]

Roger, I was surprised to see all the wires the same color too. For now, they have numbers and letters on them. Those might fall off in time. As far as the routing, I was going to run them to the back inside the frame which felt like a safe place. However someone at VCCA reminded me that when they built the car the warness was attached to the body, not the frame as it was already in place at the body drop. It follows along the main sill on the driver's side. It was supplied by The Filling Station, the major supplier of Chevrolet parts. I do not know where they purchase them.

[Roger Zimmermann]

Mines were supplied by YnZ's Yesterdays Parts for all 3 vehicles I have. Pricey, but I don't regret the expense. There were some errors which is undertandable with more complex wiring. Especially for the Brougham, I checked and compared the old and new wiring carefully. It did not prevent that I had to do some correction when the harness was installed, like a wire too short or a wrong connector. For the Brougham, I did not replaced the wiring for the electric windows/seat memory, nor the harness at the back of the car as they were still in good condition.

Did you kept the old wiring to see if the wires had different colors?

The person who told you that the wiring is not going into the frame is right; sometimes it is useful to have some knowledge about vehicle manufacturing/assembly!

[Landman]

I wouldn't be surprised if YnZ was Filling Station's supplier. So far, only one is too short and it isn't part of the harness; it is the wire that runs from the coil to the distributor. They must have assumed the coil was on the side of the block just above the distributor while it is on the firewall.

[Landman]

Picked up the grille shell. The doors are ready too but Ididn't have enough room in the car.

Ran the wiring harness the rest of the way. By the way, Roger, upon closer inspection I found that each wire has different colored tracers.

[Landman]

Installed the grommets through which the headlight & horn wires will fit. Uncrated the grille, surround and center bar. Started fitting the bolts in the grille surround when I realized I hadn't cleaned and painted the keepers, so I did that. While the paint was drying, I masked the shell to avoid the inevitable scratches and started cutting & fitting the welting.

[Landman]

Installed the grille in the shell. Had a ***** of a time removing the masking tape afterwards. Managed to make a few tiny scratches .Stood there looking at it and it seemed something was missing. After a while, what's left of my memory engaged and said; "Splash apron". Sure. It mounts on the same bolts as the grille . So off comes the bottom part except one where the bolt head skipped its moorings. I needed an exotic combination of pliers to hold the bolt to get the nut off. No much squeezing power in my right hand yet. Installed the splash apron.

Positioned and secured the welting. Before I put the rad in there I need to make sure the Chevy emblen is at the right height. The good people at VCCA will help me with that. Looking at several photos , I think it's in the right place.

[Scotts_DG8]

Pat,

I've got a few custom hand tools just like that in my tool box. The grill is looking nice though, just saying. Scott...

[Landman]

Mounted the central brace and the radiator to the shell. Picked up the doors.

[Landman]

Not much in the last couple of days. Masked the rest of the hubcaps to paint the black stripe.

Mounted the grille shell/rad assembly along with the support rod. Fiddled with the hood hinge retainers and the hood hinge itself. It doesn't fit in the retainers. Checked the supplier's catalog. It says "trim to fit". Will do.

Spent part of the afternoon fixing my snowblower before it's needed again.

[Landman]

Began playing with the passenger door. Installed the dovetail, sound deadener for the desired "thunk". Installed the door check links to the car.

Installed the glass in the vent window frame. Trial fitted the vent window assembly and the other window components. Lots of fiddling and adjusting coming up.

I find that the splines in my expensive rechromed vent window cranks are just about gone. I wonder if that was caused by the plating process or I just sent worn items. :confused:

[Landman]

Dec 27 - Installed the lacing on the rad shell. Also set the rad shell/firewall distance using a spare hood panel. Took out the repop hood hinge to double check. It doesn't fit in the hold down brackets, it is too long and the holes are 2.5" apart instead of 3.5" which is what they should be. Gave up in disgust. :mad: Checked the catalogue. It did say "Modify to fit".

Dec 28 - Tackled it again. Marked and drilled the holes where they should be. Trimmed the pin part to fit the keepers. Shortened the hinge to match the old one. Mounted it to the spare hood panel and trial fitted to the car. Still too tight. Had to let the rods out 1/8". Then I got nice gaps. That took almost a whole day. Who said it was going to be easy! At least now, when I put the hinge on the painted hood (which should be here next week along with the rest), it should fall right in place. Then I went and got a box of beer. After all it is Friday.

[Luv2Wrench]

Looks great Pat!

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Nothing like a reward to oneself after a hard days work!! Hang in there.

Ben

[Landman]

Assembled the other vent window.

Ran a bead of window sealer and wrapped the rubber around the windshield and rear window glass. That is messy stuff to play with. Now I know what Chris was talking about.

Installed the door glass in its channel and installed the side seals in their tracks. Peened the tracks over the rubber to hold it.

There was lots of window sealer left so I put some in the gap between the toeboard end plates and the side of the cowl.

Installed the new elbow in the radiator's bottom hoses.

[Landman]

Started on the roof insert. Put in a layer of burlap to support the cotton batting. Put down a few rows of very thin 2-sided tape to hold the batting in place. Laid a masking tape around the opening and marked the location of the nailing slots. Laid down and trimmed the batting so it just covers the opening. Spread the grained vinyl over that and started tacking it in place.

[Ian_Greenlaw]

Hi Pat,

Love your work !

Interesting roof. Mine is made with timber and then covered, then it is laid in the roof opening in a bead of Dum-Dum ( or equivalent ). It is then screwed from the inside of the roof to pull the roof down into its sealant layer. Yours looks slightly more complex than that.

Ian

[ply33]

Hi Pat,

Love your work !

Interesting roof. Mine is made with timber and then covered, then it is laid in the roof opening in a bead of Dum-Dum ( or equivalent ). It is then screwed from the inside of the roof to pull the roof down into its sealant layer. Yours looks slightly more complex than that.

Ian

Sounds like a early '30s Chrysler Corporation built car. Seems like that is how they did Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge and Plymouth from sometime around '30 or '31 until they went with the metal "turret top" to use a GM term.

[Landman]

Hi Pat,

Love your work !

Interesting roof. Mine is made with timber and then covered, then it is laid in the roof opening in a bead of Dum-Dum ( or equivalent ). It is then screwed from the inside of the roof to pull the roof down into its sealant layer. Yours looks slightly more complex than that.

Ian

Hi Ian,

Actually this is a bit different from stock. On cars with radios there was chicken wire to support the wadding. It served as the antenna as well. I clearly remember it when we played in that car as kids over 55 years ago. The burlap is also there to support the wadding. I don't know whether it was there in radio cars as well. On the original setup, the fabric was held down by a nailing strip which had bolts in the corners to help hold it down. Mine will use wireon which came with the roof kit. The nailing strips are no longer available but aluminum strips of the same profile are. You have to drill them for screws and bend them to go around the corners. I have them but I'm afraid I'd make a mess of them.

[Tom M]

Pat,

Nice start on your roof insert. I too used the wireon. I had a hard time trying to find the aluminum strip where did you find it?

Instead of using chicken wire I purchased a sheet of birch plywood and screwed and sealed it to the top bows and along the edges.

Should be leak proof now Hopefully

Here is a link to some photos of mine after installation.

Packard Top Installed Photos by packin31 | Photobucket

[Guest PortCity PanHead]

Pat, every time I'm at a hard spot or feel overwhelmed, I'm going to look at this page. I'm just starting my '39 Master DeLuxe 4dr and I want to take my time and do it the right way--that is to say, LIKE YOU! I really appreciate your fastidious documentation and the rich history behind your Chevy. The picture your daughter made for you brought tears to my eyes. You've got a fan in South Carolina, for sure! Keep it up!

-Blake

Edited January 9, 2013 by PortCity PanHead
fat fingers (see edit history)

[Landman]

Tom. I got the aluminum strips from the Filling Station, an important Chevy supplier : https://www.fillingstation.com/.

Hard day at the office today. Finished nailing the grained vinyl. Masked up the area where the nailhaeds are & laid a thin bead of seam sealer. The I nailed the wire-on, laid a bead of seam sealer on the inside and closed it. Managed to get some wrinkles. Also had a tough time trimming the fabric that stuck out. Sliced into the wire-on in a couple of places. Should have trimmed it before putting the wire-on on it. Disppointing results.

Edited January 10, 2013 by Landman
Spelling, as usual. (see edit history)

[Landman]

Pat, every time I'm at a hard spot or feel overwhelmed, I'm going to look at this page. I'm just starting my '39 Master DeLuxe 4dr and I want to take my time and do it the right way--that is to say, LIKE YOU! I really appreciate your fastidious documentation and the rich history behind your Chevy. The picture your daughter made for you brought tears to my eyes. You've got a fan in South Carolina, for sure! Keep it up!

-Blake

Thanks Blake, glad you're enjoying it.

[sambarn]

Pat, That car is sure coming together. I come back and track your progress all the time and love what I see. I know this is a piddling point but earlier you referred to the chicken wire in radio car roofs. All Master Sedans for 34 (I don't know about the other models) had the antenna built in to the roof. This was so they would be radio able, since that decision would be made, car by car, at the dealer. Ours has the antenna but has never had the radio. Keep up the great work!!

[Landman]

Today I tackled the woodgrain on the window garnish moldings. I have to let it set then there's three more operations to go through before they're done. Also primed and painted the black line on the other 5 hubcaps.