The Floor

The floor was the next item to install.  I  slightly channeled the body ¾ of an inch which  set it outside of the frame a small amount.  This  allowed me to shim and square the body to the frame and also have the body overlap a small amount .  The frame will be custom built on my plywood table and that will be shown later how to set up and build.  In the picture, the body is off the floor with 2 x 4 ‘s  and then I took 1x 2’s to set the 5/8 ths inch plywood on.  I should stop here and tell you that I set the body on the 5/8 th’s plywood and marked the outline of the inside of the body and cut it out so that it would be ready to mount and glass to the body. This was done prior to setting the body on the floor.  Now that the body was set and the  1 x 2 ‘s were in place,  I set the cutout floor inside the body and centered the floor to where the gaps were about equal all around.  I glassed the floor with two layers of the 1 oz. mat in three or four places on each side to set the floor. I let the glass kick before adding any more around the inside. Be careful not to bump the body when doing the initial glass work as this will or can shift the body and the floor.

Let me tell you an easy way to work with glass mat:  take a piece of plywood or ¼ inch masonite and wrap it with wax paper and tape it with 2 inch masking tape. Buy and use some cheap latex disposable gloves on your hands.  Cut the mat into whatever size pieces you are working with.  I never go more than about 6 x 8 inches.  Any bigger and you will have trouble taking it from the board to the work.  Mix up the resin and catalyst , use a 2 inch cheap brush and apply the resin to the mat and tap the brush up and down with the end to force the resin into the mat.  When the mat looks somewhat translucent and there are no dry spots , pick up the mat with your hands and place in onto the work.   Then take the brush and work all the air bubbles out and smoothe the resin out.  Don’t leave a thick coating of resin on the mat.  It will only crack and then it serves no purpose.  Be sure you overlap layers if you are doing a long or large area.

The floor is in and also the rear divider.  Notice how the glass is laid in against the body and the wood.  After the body is glassed and rigid on the top – then I will turn it over and do the same on the bottom.  This will sandwich the floor , firewall and rear divider together with the body and will become very strong and durable.

Rear seat body panel

This long panel was made in two separate pieces. I didn’t take a picture of how I made each piece , but this is how I did it. I took a piece of aluminum siding about 4 feet long and bent it in my brake at about a forty degree angle. Check the angle of the body ( top) with a piece of welding rod or heavy wire , and match that angle. After that was done, I laid and taped wax paper over the top and then put three layers of one oz. fiberglass mat over the wax paper. The lower piece that is held with the clamps was made using a 2 x 4 to get the 90 degree angle. Wax paper was wrapped and taped, three layers of 1 oz. mat laid up .When both were set, they were cut and sanded so that there was about 5/8 ths to ¾ inch overlap on the body. Fiberglass bondo was used to attach the lip ( overhang ) and when set, sanded and smoothed and then two layers of 1 oz. mat applied over the new piece to the body fro m the top and three layers from underneath – joining the part to the body. The angle piece was attached using the fiberglass bondo as a glue to the two surfaces , clamped , and the excess wipe off. When set, two layers of mat were run across the top and three layers on the bottom or underside.

Clamps removed, you’ll notice the space between the new panel and the body.  This was filled with some rigid fiberglass panels cut from some scrap I had left over from another project.  To make these panels, take a flat piece of plywood or masonite , cover it with wax paper , and lay up three or four layers of the 1 oz. mat. When set, remove, measure, cut, sand , and fit.  Glass from the top and bottom.  You could even use a 2 x 6 for the mold and this would give you the angle on one end.  Smear the angled end with fiberglass bondo and clamp together leaving one inch to bond to the underside of the back part of the body.  When set, lay 2 layers of mat to the top and three on the bottom tying the body to the part.

 This shows the fruits of your labor.  This procedure puts the strength back into the body so that the floor , back divider, and the firewall can be added to square up and strengthen the body so that the frame and components can be built.  With this kind of pre work done – some block sanding and a little bondo work is all that is necessary and the body is back to better than new.

 

This is just another angle showing the work done.  The opening is the same as a stock one – I sort of cheated on this one – I have a stock metal 27 roadster body that I took the measurement from. 

Here is a rear shot .  I actually made the whole assembly even more rigid by adding two more layers of 1 oz. mat over the entire repair.  The body ridge on both sides will be added later using several 1 inch strips glassed to the body , sanded, and s haped.  A thin layer of regular bondo will be used to put the finishing touches on that and the rest of the repair.

In the beginning

I traded for this body. It had been slated for a straight line car, but never completed. The glass is in good shape and has a bottom roll pan that was installed at the factory. This is good because it gives about 4-6 inches more depth inside the car when built as a high boy.

This is another shot showing the extent of material removed from the back and the type of channel that it was slated for. Notice the stands I built. I use these when I asseble and fabricate other cars. Easy to build and raise the vehicle - with tires and wheels - 12 inches off the ground. As you can see, they are also handy for other things.