Sheltering In Place

[stretch cab]

Like so many others our schedules have been greatly reduced during this virus situation.  My wife asked me last night what I was going to do today and it was nice to be able to tell her that after a short day at the office I would hit the garage and spend some quality time there.  I am blessed by having some interesting cars (to me) and a wife who likes them too!

 

Unfortunately the picture shown is my garage in NC and not my little 12x20 garage I have here in Florida where my work is but at least I do have the chassis of the car pictured in the corner to work on.

[Dandy Dave]

Nice. What is it? 

[AHa]

"It" is unknown. His grandfather had it. As of now, it seems his grandfather amalgamated a couple of different cars. He is restoring it as is.

[stretch cab]

The chassis is early Chevy war 4 cylinder water pump motor for power.  Radiator headlights and steering column are early fire truck parts. Body is homemade from aluminum. 

 

[Laughing Coyote]

So you could badge it as a "Chire" brand automobile.

[Laughing Coyote]

How about a radiator badge design too? Red and brass or black and brass. 

 

 

 

 

[gossp]

I have for a long time wondered about these made from pieces cars. There is obviously a segment of the hobby that looks down on them, but they did exist when the component parts were only a few years old... guys will start talking about pictures and documentation of any particular car when you approach it that way. 
 

When I first got into brass era cars I was a teen, and my father that raised me in antique cars had his interest moving earlier.  Back then, brass era cars were very hard to acquire.  Most changed hands privately, and at dollars that seem like nothing today but were formidable to my father then and insane to me as a dumb kid. Early parts on the other hand.... were cheap!  I always wondered if those groups I enjoyed touring with so much would accept a mutt made up of period parts. I never built one... I played with dads cars until I had my own (thanks to dad).... I am still mostly playing with dads cars (he has better cars)... but I always wondered if a modern made conglomeration of pre-15 pieces would be welcome.  

[stretch cab]

Gossp, there is a large group of speedsters made from scavenged parts and a lot of old fire trucks have been converted to speedsters.  The Model T in my picture is a put together truck.  My grandfather hauled laundry between Ft. Pierce, Fl and Okeechobee, Fl in a T similar to the one in the picture.  When I was young (63 now) grandpa and I scavenged parts and he made the T to match what he remembered from his youth.  He added the back seat to accommodate riders but believe me, you did not want to ride with him.  It was scary!

He loved to tell the story of coming home one night from his laundry run and ran into a herd of cows on the road.  He always claimed he hit one and its horn came off lodged in the radiator.  He made it home and the radiator only started to leak after grandpa pull the horn out.  That was his story and he loved to tell it.

I am blessed to have the Model T that I helped him build, along with the other cars handed down from my dad.  To me, my cars are memories of good times.  I don't even need to drive them.

[stretch cab]

Laughing Coyote, your badge would sure add to the mystery of the car.  I'm hoping to find an American LaFrance radiator emblem or make one.  Plans are to make it appear factory as a fire chief's car.

[padgett]

In Florida you would change the C to a 4.

[gossp]

I don’t believe an ALF would have a radiator badge in the brass era, so you could just make a script for the business part of the radiator to get the job done... unless the shell on it has a hole to cover up... 

[padgett]

And if you think the roads are safer now:

https://www.agweb.com/article/trump-waives-hours-service-rules-emergency-transport-food

[stretch cab]

19 hours ago, gossp said:

I don’t believe an ALF would have a radiator badge in the brass era, so you could just make a script for the business part of the radiator to get the job done... unless the shell on it has a hole to cover up... 

I wondered if they had a badge since it does not have a hole.  Grandpa made a badge and called the car a Dyke which is an abbreviation of our last name, Dykes.  He soldered the badge on but I think that when I buff out the brass radiator I can clean it up.

 

The idea of putting a nice American LaFrance brass name plate on the finned part of the radiator is excellent!  I'm sure that I can have one laser cut for not too much money and it would shine nicely in contrast to the black radiator fins.  It would also add to the believability that the car was indeed a factor fire chief's car.