Waking up a Sleeping Beauty, 1934 5 window

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by TJ

I would polish up that old paint and drive the heck out of it once the issues are corrected. A very nice 5 window.

That is The Plan right there. It looks better in pics than in real life, but it is really sweet. It is seriously scratched, cracked and worn at the edges but to a perfect level that another scratch will go unnoticed and not cause any mental anguish. I will admit to polishing one of the door tops and it comes up wonderfully but I'm trying not to get distracted with bling until its reliably cruising.

[Seth Swoboda]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

I was talking with the wife last night about how much I intend to use it and at what rate I would thus need consumables (that I should stockpile now). I figure I will use it about 2000 miles a year (I have a few old cars but this one is my absolute favorite, it is just so beautiful and classy!). I'm 53, my parents are both still alive, healthy and driving at 78 and 82 thus I figure I have at a minimum 30 years of enjoyment of this car ahead of me (I've had my '47 Chevy coupe for 27 years so that is no stretch for me). At a total of about 60,000 miles of usage I will need to do several rounds of wires, plugs, caps, rotors, points and on and on. 60k should avoid an engine rebuild if all goes swimmingly. Ive been lucky thus far on eBay not having any competition for low cost NORS and NOS bits and pieces and hope to eventually have 6 sets of everything in a bin for 10,000 mile service intervals. I know some stuff will have to be bought fresh like condensers but plugs, caps and rotors will not go bad sitting around and other things like wires should last a lot longer than 10k miles. Am I nuts, or is my thinking correct on this consumable usage? Is 10,000 miles (5 years at my intended use rate) between tune ups realistic? I have not had a points car since the late 1990's (other old cars either have modified late model factory distributors or pertronix).

I drive my '37 Tudor hard on a daily basis, except for winter time. Micheal Driskell set up my distributor and I rebuilt the fuel pump with an ethanol resistant diaphragm. Skip Haney rebuilt my coil. I have 4000 miles on the car in almost 3 years. The paint is old and crusty. The engine, transmission and rear end were rebuilt when I put the old car back into service. I also rebuilt the entire front end. I'd drive that junk coast to coast if I had the time.

[PeteVS]

Originally Posted by jimTN

My reply should have EV8s instead of ev9s

You could have edited it out.

[al's28/33]

give it a good polish, check front end and brakes and all electrical wiring. DRIVE IT. ..............AND..... keep that storage space from caving in on the car, sheesh there's a lot piled in there.

[UpNorthGreg]

Very nice car. Get it running right, polish it up, and start racking up the miles.

[Strick]

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Larry - hope to meet you and see the car one day. I’m about the same age and live in Marietta.

[Brendan]

Originally Posted by Terry,OH

In My Opinion a great start is to have the distributor, coil and condenser checked out by one of the places with distributor machines, Such as Skip Heney in Fla. or Third Gen Auto in Tenn. This can eliminate several problems and keep the car running. Skip can also rebuild original coils using modern technology inside.

Yes! this is a good start, also have your coil rebuilt. i had this done on my 36 pickup, my pickup is very dependable

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by al's28/33

give it a good polish, check front end and brakes and all electrical wiring. DRIVE IT. ..............AND..... keep that storage space from caving in on the car, sheesh there's a lot piled in there.

Yes, I have 15 pounds in a 10 pound garage. If I get rid of any of of it I will need it the next week! I really need a shed but cannot bring myself to spend $3500 on a wooden box to put a $50 lawnmower and my vintage bicycles in. The other bay has a blow apart '40 coupe projects that is encroaching on the space. That "should" be going back together, but I bought this new distraction. No girlfriend like a new girlfriend.


It needs kingpins, parts already here, on the list.

[The Art Doctor]

Originally Posted by Strick

Larry - hope to meet you and see the car one day. I’m about the same age and live in Marietta.

I actually hang out in Marietta quite a bit with the Rottenwood Garage guys. If you know of them they generally build Model A's and Chevy C10 trucks. Dave's black extended cab A pick-up on Jeep running gear "Model J" is/was their calling card. I tend to hit Piedmont Church most months and sometimes Worship in one of my other cars. I have two fieros one black and one silver both Formulas, a blue/white and rust 56 Pontiac 2door wagon and a black 47 chevy coupe with blue firewall and no hood; you might have seen one of them. When this one is road worthy I will try and get it up there occasionally but its all highway for me as I'm ITP though there are slow ways to get there.

[The Art Doctor]

I sent the coil off to Skip. While I am waiting, I pulled the carb off. I found it to be very clean outside and inside with just a bit of residue but the brass float was heavy. I shook it and there was obviously gas inside and the boiling water test found a small crack. Might explain the very sooty plugs. There is a helicoil where the inlet goes but looks fine to me and no evidence of leakage. The pump leather is surprisingly good and all passages were clear. I did take it apart and flush it with my homemade carb cleaner (acetone, ethanol, toluene and xylene mix) run thru a spray gun set to round pattern. All cleaned up and new float on order. One bit at a time and Ill have a runner.

[Bored&Stroked]

That would cause it to flood and run rich for sure.

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

I sent the coil off to Skip. While I am waiting, I pulled the carb off. I found it to be very clean outside and inside with just a bit of residue but the brass float was heavy. I shook it and there was obviously gas inside and the boiling water test found a small crack. Might explain the very sooty plugs. There is a helicoil where the inlet goes but looks fine to me and no evidence of leakage. The pump leather is surprisingly good and all passages were clear. I did take it apart and flush it with my homemade carb cleaner (acetone, ethanol, toluene and xylene mix) run thru a spray gun set to round pattern. All cleaned up and new float on order. One bit at a time and Ill have a runner.

[Terry,OH]

I prefer Stromberg Carburetor parts (see their web site for parts and service info) Max Musgrove is their technician he rebuilds and offer's advice, order from him directly. The model 40 is the correct Stromberg Carb. yours could be one. The brass idle mixture adjustment screws shown above are original style with half a slot on top.

[Zax40]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

I actually hang out in Marietta quite a bit with the Rottenwood Garage guys. If you know of them they generally build Model A's and Chevy C10 trucks. Dave's black extended cab A pick-up on Jeep running gear "Model J" is/was their calling card. I tend to hit Piedmont Church most months and sometimes Worship in one of my other cars. I have two fieros one black and one silver both Formulas, a blue/white and rust 56 Pontiac 2door wagon and a black 47 chevy coupe with blue firewall and no hood; you might have seen one of them. When this one is road worthy I will try and get it up there occasionally but its all highway for me as I'm ITP though there are slow ways to get there.

Originally Posted by Strick

Larry - hope to meet you and see the car one day. I’m about the same age and live in Marietta.

Pretty sure you guys already know each other

Larry, that is a beautiful 34. I can't wait to see it back on the road. What is the local V8 group you are part of?

[The Art Doctor]

Zack, we may as its a small crowd of us types around here, hard to tell who is who on a forum in real life. You probably know if I know them before I will.


This car is too nice. Its so much further along than my '40 ever will be in a realistic time frame. I'd like to make Russ' event in November with it but one piece at a time is moving kind of slowly but its how I work. I gave myself a year when I bought it but probably spring at the earliest.


Local V8 is RG#24 of the EFV8 club. We meet just up the road from me at JR's Loghouse on 141 on first Tuesdays at 1pm most months. November and December we will not as there are other events scheduled. When I joined 11 years ago when I got the '40 I was the youngest guy of around 80 members. Covid didn't kill them physically but they aged a lot during that time (most were older to begin with). Now I am still the youngest but we are down to around 25 plus spouses with about a dozen regularly active. Average of members age is easily high 70's with several in their 90's and me the lone 50something. I've been President for 5 years. Only a few still have rolling cars and only one is pre-war a very nice 36 trunk back fordoor (there is a sleeping '39 I've never seen). Rest are all early 50's, a few are woodies. Some have moved on to power steering and air conditioned 60's fords.

[The Art Doctor]

On the new parts front I went ahead and got a new Drake tank. I'd been watching it for a while and Speedway had them "on sale" with free shipping. I also had an eBay 10% off coupon from buying too much stuff so to the door it was $375. I figured that was good insurance for a car I intend to keep for 30 years. No sure what I am going to do about the gauge. I see there is a adapter plate to put the hydrostatic sender in the Drake tank. Not even sure if it works. none of my hot rods have never had a functioning gas gauge, just take a pic of mileage and fill up after 150 miles. This one has a trip odometer so I don't even have to take a pic just reset and fill up. I am thinking one of two ways: adapt the hydrostatic sender by cutting the top of the old tank out and drilling holes that adapt it to the drake tank or trying adapt an early ford electric gas gauge from something like a 1938 behind the '34 gauge front and using an electric float sender. Probably need to make up my mind before I take the tank out........any ideas? If either does not work there is always the trip odometer.


Also Skip came through lightning fast with the coil. It looks great and I will get it on there in the next day or two. I replaced the ballast resistor with the modern style one, was getting very low voltage at coil, and I am still getting a too low reading through it. 6.5 at the ignition switch, 6.2v in to the resistor but only 2.4v out at the terminal and still 2.4v down at the coil so its not the coil wire it is the resistor. I have another modern style to try before I pay the $29 to get the old style one.

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

On the new parts front I went ahead and got a new Drake tank. I'd been watching it for a while and Speedway had them "on sale" with free shipping. I also had an eBay 10% off coupon from buying too much stuff so to the door it was $375. I figured that was good insurance for a car I intend to keep for 30 years. No sure what I am going to do about the gauge. I see there is a adapter plate to put the hydrostatic sender in the Drake tank. Not even sure if it works. none of my hot rods have never had a functioning gas gauge, just take a pic of mileage and fill up after 150 miles. This one has a trip odometer so I don't even have to take a pic just reset and fill up. I am thinking one of two ways: adapt the hydrostatic sender by cutting the top of the old tank out and drilling holes that adapt it to the drake tank or trying adapt an early ford electric gas gauge from something like a 1938 behind the '34 gauge front and using an electric float sender. Probably need to make up my mind before I take the tank out........any ideas? If either does not work there is always the trip odometer.


Also Skip came through lightning fast with the coil. It looks great and I will get it on there in the next day or two. I replaced the ballast resistor with the modern style one, was getting very low voltage at coil, and I am still getting a too low reading through it. 6.5 at the ignition switch, 6.2v in to the resistor but only 2.4v out at the terminal and still 2.4v down at the coil so its not the coil wire it is the resistor. I have another modern style to try before I pay the $29 to get the old style one.

[Terry,OH]

When either of the distributor points are closed, the voltage to the coil is reduced to about 3.V that is what your seeing. To get the highest voltage at the coil make sure all of the wires connections at the ignition switch, resistor and coil are clean and tight. Great to also check at the battery and foot start switch.

[The Art Doctor]

Ok, moving forward. Got the car up on ramps and cribbing so I could get under and check things out real well. There was a lot of smoothing going on with the frame and floors. The frame does have some really deep pitting on its upper surfaces, stuff I would have cut out and replaced but 50 years ago when it was restored they blasted it and painted it. I'm not tearing it apart, it is what it is and that is good enough for me. The transmission is leaking from the drain plug and the rear end is leaking from several bell bolts and the drain and fill plugs. I have yet to check fluid levels. The only thing I see that needs immediate attention is half the brake clevises have nuts welded onto them. I am guessing their internal threads are stripped and the nuts are now the threads. Those have to go. I got the gas tank out. I was expecting it to be really horrible. It was not all that bad. The worse part was getting the band off the spare tire. That is not easy to do or I must not know the secret. The '34 sending thingie is trashed. Lots of cracks, perforated tubes and the bottom part is all rusted out. The vent was totally clogged. Might explain some of Bruce's issues with it dying out. The hydrostatic gauge port was plugged with a cork. There is a thin hose coming of the gauge back but I guess it goes to no where or was just for show. The new drake tank is very nice. It has a valve in the filler neck like a new car that you put the pump nozzle through to keep fuel from splashing back out when you fill it. I have ordered a stock drake 36-56 sending unit and intend to used an electric gauge behind the '34 face and housing.

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by The Art Doctor

Ok, moving forward. Got the car up on ramps and cribbing so I could get under and check things out real well.