Paul White Posted December 7, 2020 Share Posted December 7, 2020 Hi all, I am currently doing a refresh of the floor pan, front floor and fire wall timbers and coverings. I was hoping that other '36 owners out there could post some photos of unrestored examples. What I am particularly interested in is the file wall board that encompasses the steering column, brake and clutch pedals. Also interested in how the timbers were joined/ butted together where the firewall board meets the floor pan board. Thanks in advance, Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted December 7, 2020 Share Posted December 7, 2020 Just curious, is this a Fisher body? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1939_Buick Posted December 7, 2020 Share Posted December 7, 2020 41 minutes ago, Bloo said: Just curious, is this a Fisher body? From https://forums.aaca.org/topic/342332-1936-buick-carpet/?tab=comments#comment-2019712 Quote Thanks, my '36 is a RHD Fisher Body out of South Africa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted December 7, 2020 Share Posted December 7, 2020 I remember that thread now. I will be interested in seeing the answers to this question too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 8, 2020 Author Share Posted December 8, 2020 HI Bloo, I am too, I am off the road at the moments having the seats, carpets, underlay and floor boards out. I want to cut the new and fit the new floor boards before I fit the replacement floor coverings......suffering withdrawals from not being able to drive my old Buick for quite a few weeks. Cheers paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pont35cpe Posted December 8, 2020 Share Posted December 8, 2020 Paul, i have made new floor and toe boards for my `36 Buick 40series coupe. I only have the original pass. side toe board, the other pieces were missing. My original piece is 5/8" plywood and has a piece of compressed fiberboard(1/4" thick) nailed on top, this same fiber board is attached to the metal trans. cover with split rivets. I plan to use a floorboard insulation in place of the fiberboard. The toe board is installed first and the floorboard butts to it. I just noticed the original piece i have has tacks around the perimeter(underside), looks to have had a felt seal. My new boards i made with 3/4" plywood and cut a 1/8" rabbitt around the perimeter(underside), i also had to notch the underside of the driver side boards for pedal arm clearance. My driver side toe board is cut into two pieces, for pedals and steering column. Attached is some pictures, i`ll try to answer any questions you might have. First pic is of my original toe board. Tom 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groselle Posted December 8, 2020 Share Posted December 8, 2020 Paul, My 1936 40 sedan had the original floor boards. They look just like the ones that Tom has shown except there is a larger cutout for the pedals and steering column. The extra space is taken up by two metal plates with slots for the pedals and column. One mounts to the bottom and the other to the top of the floor board. There is a felt pad sandwiched between the two to seal the space. Here a few not so good pictures but you should be able to make out the top plate. One is the original, the other is my replacement. I can take better pictures when I get home tonight. I might also still have the original floor boards. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 16 hours ago, pont35cpe said: Paul, i have made new floor and toe boards for my `36 Buick 40series coupe. I only have the original pass. side toe board, the other pieces were missing. My original piece is 5/8" plywood and has a piece of compressed fiberboard(1/4" thick) nailed on top, this same fiber board is attached to the metal trans. cover with split rivets. I plan to use a floorboard insulation in place of the fiberboard. The toe board is installed first and the floorboard butts to it. I just noticed the original piece i have has tacks around the perimeter(underside), looks to have had a felt seal. My new boards i made with 3/4" plywood and cut a 1/8" rabbitt around the perimeter(underside), i also had to notch the underside of the driver side boards for pedal arm clearance. My driver side toe board is cut into two pieces, for pedals and steering column. Attached is some pictures, i`ll try to answer any questions you might have. First pic is of my original toe board. Tom Excellent Tom, thanks for taking the time to respond, just what I needed, Cheers Paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 9 hours ago, groselle said: Paul, My 1936 40 sedan had the original floor boards. They look just like the ones that Tom has shown except there is a larger cutout for the pedals and steering column. The extra space is taken up by two metal plates with slots for the pedals and column. One mounts to the bottom and the other to the top of the floor board. There is a felt pad sandwiched between the two to seal the space. Here a few not so good pictures but you should be able to make out the top plate. One is the original, the other is my replacement. I can take better pictures when I get home tonight. I might also still have the original floor boards. Again, thanks for taking the time to send the photos and looking forward to the additional ones when you have time, Cheers Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groselle Posted December 9, 2020 Share Posted December 9, 2020 Here's a better set of pictures of the metal plate on both side of the floor board. I also found the original boards and have included a picture of the driver's side board. I'd be happy to make some sketches for you or even ship the two original boards your way. Greg 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 Hi Greg, the photos are excellent, the photo of the original board explains a lot! The one original plywood board I have (over the battery) has no remains of a felt cover (possibly due to the battery being in close proximity) but there is remnant of the black sealant around the edges that might be there in place of the felt. I sampled a bit of the black sealant and burnt it. It started bubbling and gave off a rubbery/ bitumen type smell. The same material seems to have been coated along the floor running along beside the door sill. It overlaps an original brass plate. I'll post some photos shortly. Cheers Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted December 9, 2020 Share Posted December 9, 2020 In my 1936 Pontiac, also Fisher bodied, there are felt strips tacked along the edges of the boards. I suspect it is to prevent squeaks. Just the edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 In researching an article on '36 Buick trunks I found reference to felt strips being fitted to the edge of fittings as well. Can you tell what type of tacks are being used, flat-headed furniture type tacks? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted December 9, 2020 Share Posted December 9, 2020 Unfortunately the car is put away for the winter and not easy to get to, To the best of my recollection they were ordinary upholstery tacks (blue tacks). Probably smaller than the ones you might see inside a seat. There could be some still there to see if I could just get near it. There may have also been glue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary W Posted December 9, 2020 Share Posted December 9, 2020 Hi Paul; Just an idea, but would you consider a "self-adhesive" felt strip for the perimeter so you don't have to tack it in place? the weight of the board would surely hold the felt secure and if it gets all gunky and spoiled after use it can be easily peeled and replaced. Mc Master Carr sells it in different grades, heights, widths....... Gary 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 The attached photos relate to my earlier post concerning the black sealant. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted December 9, 2020 Author Share Posted December 9, 2020 6 hours ago, Gary W said: Hi Paul; Just an idea, but would you consider a "self-adhesive" felt strip for the perimeter so you don't have to tack it in place? the weight of the board would surely hold the felt secure and if it gets all gunky and spoiled after use it can be easily peeled and replaced. Mc Master Carr sells it in different grades, heights, widths....... Gary HI Gary, thanks for the tip, I had been considering something like this but have only found rubber strips so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pont35cpe Posted December 9, 2020 Share Posted December 9, 2020 Thanks to Gregs pictures, i now know where these "2 metal pieces" i have go, but not going to use them. I plan to route a recess around the 3 openings(pedals/steering column)and use carpet padding to make a donut seal for each. I`m also modifying my dr. side floorboard by cutting a 3"dia hole for access to the master cylinder. My hole cover is what 40s GM cars had for access to master cylinder. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted January 5, 2021 Author Share Posted January 5, 2021 As I mentioned previously, I decided to re-use the only surviving original floor board, being the one over the battery access panel under the front seat (see my image above dated 10th December) that has the circular chamfered finger hole. In preparing the original panel for painting I lightly sanded it back noting that the black original "paint" came off in a fine powdery mid-brown form that destroyed a part of pants I was wearing, seemingly confirming the use of a bitumen sealant. I also noted two tacks near the under side of the finger hole. Sand back 80 odd years of dirt I found a square outline in the sealant and two additional nail holes forming a 3 inch square around the finger hole, presumably, there had been a piece of timber or rubber tacked down on the under side of the board to stop dirt entering the car's cabin. I was wondering whether anyone else had noted the timber/ rubber cover and if so would you be kind enough to post a photo? Finally, I managed to find a bitumen rubber sealant product which I have now used on the original board and the first of my newly made boards, I got so carried away that I forgot to take a photo of the previously mentioned square outline. Cheers, Paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groselle Posted January 6, 2021 Share Posted January 6, 2021 Mine had a piece of canvas tacked over the back of the finger hole. I replaced it with new canvas that has a slit cut into it to allow the connector for my trickle charger to pass through. My battery door also seems to have been painted red originally. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted January 6, 2021 Author Share Posted January 6, 2021 Hi Greg, thanks for the reply. I didn't think of canvas but on reflection the absence of any remnants that you might expect from timber or rubber does suggest a material that could wear or tear away from the tacks. Interesting that your battery door was painted red. Cheers Paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Stewart Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 Hi Paul. My original 36 has a certainly original, roughly square piece of what I would call thin leatherette (black) over the hole, attached with small tacks. The tacks are rusty but seem to be the typical blue tacks. Cheers, Bill hi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Stewart Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 Paul, Additionally, the felt around the floorboards is about twice as thick as you can easily get these days. It was rather casually fitted and tacked only to the bottom. The felt extended beyond the edge of the floorboard about 3/4 of an inch and folded up the edge when pushed into position. (Probably more than you ever needed to know about that subject). Cheers 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 Thanks Bill, too much detail is never enough for me!!! Hope you and Betsy are well Cheers Paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 On 1/9/2021 at 5:01 PM, Bill Stewart said: Paul, Additionally, the felt around the floorboards is about twice as thick as you can easily get these days. It was rather casually fitted and tacked only to the bottom. The felt extended beyond the edge of the floorboard about 3/4 of an inch and folded up the edge when pushed into position. (Probably more than you ever needed to know about that subject). Cheers Hi Bill, just another question, is the felt one large square or just strips tacked along the edges? Cheers Paul 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groselle Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 Here’s a picture of the back of the passenger side floor panel. The felt is just an approximate 1in wide strip tacked down about every 3 inches 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul White Posted January 12, 2021 Author Share Posted January 12, 2021 18 hours ago, groselle said: Here’s a picture of the back of the passenger side floor panel. The felt is just an approximate 1in wide strip tacked down about every 3 inches Thanks Greg, much appreciated. Cheers Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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