Duncan's (sort of) project - 1940 Ford

[Duncan]

2 hours ago, datsunfreak said:

 

That is what we used on Tim's '64 Econoline and it worked a treat. 👍

 

 

I had a few of those vans, including a '64.  Was something on the column the broken? (Just wondering)

 

And of course, the new/repro fuel sender replacement did not go in smoothly.  I suspect I might have an aftermarket replacement tank.  Everything mounts the same as the original, but the float is fouling the side of the tank.

 

The VDO unit had the float located going off to one side, so I'm going to have to jigger it around to work.  The arm is stainless steel and I need to add a bit of length to it, so I am now waiting for some 50/50 acid core solder to show up.  ugh..

 

  

 

Fortunately, the sender is easy to get to from the trunk.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 1, 2023 by Duncan

[datsunfreak]

1 hour ago, Duncan said:

I had a few of those vans, including a '64.  Was something on the column the broken? (Just wondering)

 

As we often do, it was a complete bumper to bumper rewire. And the aftermarket switch was just made it a heck of a lot easier. It integrates the hazard switch, as well as simplifying the wiring for the rear lights.

 

On an old car with single rear lights (combo brake/turn), it's almost a necessity to have this style of switch when doing a complete rewire.

 

Being a (not well cared for) 60 year old van, everything was very crusty. The guts of the stock switch were falling apart. In fact, the only thing electrical we kept was the original wiper motor, which also took some cajoling to get it to work. 

 

 

Edited December 1, 2023 by datsunfreak

[Duncan]

I got it working,  I re-clocked the unit in the center by drilling out the spot welds and rotating it around.  I bought a spare locally in case I screwed it up. (They're only $39!) 

 

When I hooked up the sending wire and ground wire and manually moved the arm to full, both senders only register to around the half mark on the gauge.  Apparently Ford used a very strange sending system from around '32 until '58 or so.  Even though you can measure the impedence, the gauge doesn't fully read it like a normal gauge. Somehow a small heating unit is involved and I don't really understand it all, quite frankly.

 

Anyway, I'm okay with it because I had very little gas in it when I installed the sender, and it moved just a bit off of empty.  I filled it up this morning, and it was just past the half mark on the gauge.  All I care is that it reads correctly towards the bottom.  I'm sure I can get used to the shorter range on the gauge.

 

I love the original cluster, and very happy with how it looks.

 

Total shocker!  The speedo is within 1-2 mph of the speedo on my Satellite GPS! Who the hell would imagine it would be that accurate with no calibration...

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Duncan]

I'm going to veer off my Ford thread a bit here..

 

Found a small internet board that has upholstery guys.  Told them I was having a very difficult time with the 40 Ford seat backs.  They all affirmed my belief that they are the Cast iron Exhaulted Bitch Mother of all Fuckers due to the reasons I suspected.  I decided to shelve that for a bit. 

 

i thought I might try to kill the proverbial two birds with one stone, so I acquired a ratty Datsun 620 bench seat.  I figured I could pick one up rather inexpensively, refub it, then sell it off at material cost.  I got one for less money that I imagined, and (much to delight), they come apart with removing just two M10 bolts!

 

The seat cushion

 

 

The seat back

 

 

I suspected these had been recovered at one time, and with getting the covers off, indeed they were.  It's funny because when you do body work, you run into all sorts of things that had been done where you just scratch your head and wonder what the fuck was someone thinking.  Nothing quite like that here, but it's obvious these have been done.

 

The old cover

 

 

 

A layer of foam and that fluffy cotton (I forget what it is called) which hasn't been used on newer cars in quite a few decades

 

The springs

 

 

This was unexpected.  I usually put a layer of burlap on top of the springs, then a thin-ish layer of jute padding, THEN a layer of vinyl.  It's also weird that the pieces were sewn together.  The previous trimmer must have wanted to use up some left over scraps.

 

 

I scuffed up the frame with a scotch brite pad and got it painted.  The springs were like new compared to the 40 Ford.  Even my wife saw them and commented on how clean they were.  That is highly irregular for the lovely Mrs Duncan..

 

 

And even though the paint was not really dry, it was dry enough to get the burlap on..

 

I'm thinking I might do this seat in a slate grey color.  Slate grey is a very neutral color, and will probably go with any truck regardless of the interior color.  I thought about black, but most Datsuns do not have a/c.  Even though I prefer black interior, I know it's hard to live with in a warm climate..

 

Anyway, I'm trying to do this seat nicely and not necessarily quickly..

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 7 by Duncan

[Rustbin]

Looks like a good start, often seats have a wire going across the springs to keep them aligned and to spread the load. I was a little surprised when I didn't see one but upon checking out my 510 rear seat and seeing only a little one on the center section I thought "maybe Datsun didn't bother". The fluffy cotton is felt, it didn't come stock but has been used to build up the padding by upholsterers for years. I glue a decking felt over the burlap then a higher density 1 inch foam that I roll over the edge of the seat frame and hold with hog rings before stretching on the new cover. I know you already have covered seats before but I'm just trying to be helpful. Rooting for you.

[Duncan]

When I did the seat cushion on the Ford, I did (pretty much) as you described in your post.  I'm also using 1" high density foam on both the cushion and seat back.

 

There are a few alignment wires on the seat back, but none on the cushion.  The springs on the Datsun seat are pretty firm, and the flat bar they are attached to is also quite stout.  They don't appear to have any sag in them, so I'm figuring those Japanese engineers know better than I do. 🙂

 

I enjoy keeping busy, and I like the challenge of doing this.  I'm keeping an eye out for some more cheap ratty seats I can refurb. I don't have a lot of room to store them, so it's going to be one at a time..

 

Thanks for posting.  I appreciate your input.

 

 

[iceman510]

I've only done a bit of upholstery, mostly just cover repair or replacement, but it is a great skill to have.  It's fun watching your projects.

[Duncan]

The wife has a new item in our front entry way..

 

[Duncan]

Well shit..

 

I drove up to the Upholstery Supply place where I buy foam today, and there's a sign on the door saying they moved.  I drive over to the new place, and it's much smaller.  The old place had this huge back room, and the biggest bandsaw you ever saw.  I assuming it might have been designed for loggers, or similar.

 

An older latin couple owned the place, and they had been there for years, and years.  The building was sold, and they had to move out. They didn't have room for the foam or the bandsaw, so they aren't selling foam anymore.  They were super nice people and had really good pricing. 

 

I hate seeing the little guys get the shaft like that..

 

 

 

 

[datsunfreak]

On 1/12/2024 at 10:43 PM, Duncan said:

I hate seeing the little guys get the shaft like that..

 

FWIW, my local mom&pop I use does sell online and ship?

 

https://jjsupply.com/collections/upholstery-materials-1

[Duncan]

Thanks John.  The lady called me today and said she made arrangements to get foam pre-cut from another supplier.  I ordered what I needed, and she even quoted me the same price.  I told her if she was paying more, I would gladly go with a price increase.  She said the price was fine, and she can get the foam in sometime later this week. 

 

These people are really nice, and they are about half the price of a larger supplier near me.  I don't buy that much, but I'm going to buy whatever I need from them if I can.

 

 

[Duncan]

Picked my foam up Friday, and it rained all weekend and Monday, as well.  Continuing on after the storm went through.

 

 

I'm jelly of you guys with all these big shops.  We have no room here im So Cal..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 25 by Duncan

[KELMO]

On 1/24/2024 at 7:54 PM, Duncan said:

I'm jelly of you guys with all these big shops.

Just so you know, the bigger the shop, the more crap you tend to stuff in it.

I was thinking the other day that I should sell a couple cars.

So I could have more room.

So I could stuff some more crap in the shop.

[Duncan]

2 hours ago, KELMO said:

Just so you know, the bigger the shop, the more crap you tend to stuff in it.

I was thinking the other day that I should sell a couple cars.

 

Should you decide to sell one of your 1200 Coupes, give me a heads up.  I had a yellow Coupe, and I much preferred it over the sedan.

 

Now that I've taken up doing some upholstery, I've taken up every last bit of room I have.  I still get stuff done, but it's a pain to constantly shuffle stuff around.

 

 

[KELMO]

23 hours ago, Duncan said:

Should you decide to sell one of your 1200 Coupes, give me a heads up. 

Funny you should say that.....

 

PM sent(here in a minute or 2).

[Duncan]

Took me a while, but here's my first seat upholstery job.  It certainly isn't perfect, and I still have a lot to learn, but I think it turned out fine. 

 

[datsunfreak]

That looks nice! Wanna do some 510 seats? 😄

[Duncan]

56 minutes ago, datsunfreak said:

That looks nice! Wanna do some 510 seats? 😄

 

Well, after doing some work for one of our friends, I decided that the saying "no good deed goes unpunished" was indeed true.  The list of people I do favors for has whittled down to a very small handful over the last couple of years.  

 

I just turned 69 years old a couple of weeks ago, and I can't work nearly as hard (or as long) as I used to.  My plan is buy some seats and do them at my own pace.  I don't want any time pressures.  I plan on selling that 620 seat for quite a but less than an upholstery shop would charge just for recovering them.  If I keep working at it, I figure I can get my chops up a bit, and possibly help some Datsun owners out.  The Datsun stuff is a bonus because it's fairly simple.  And while I don't currently own a Datsun, I'm still a Datsun guy.

 

It's funny because I just did a little paint and upholstery work for my neighbor on his old BMW 2002.  (The Pantera owner) While we were working on it, I kept thinking him and I were like you and Tim.  We've nicknamed ourselves The "Two Schmoes in a Garage"  He's a great guy and a great neighbor.  We've helped each other out a lot over the years.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 13 by Duncan

[KELMO]

6 minutes ago, Duncan said:

despite not currently owning a Datsun, I'm still a Datsun guy.

Thats the spirit buddy.

[Duncan]

I put the 620 seat up for sale.  I have $100 buying the seat, and about $100 in material.  $25 is for misc parts, sewing supplies, and gas!

 

I'm also picking up a 720 seat tomorrow. for my next project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Rustbin]

Getting into the upholstery business I see. The 620 seat looks good, and to go for another means it wasn't too bad. I've seen a lot of reasonably nice cars with Mexican blankets because guys just don't know what to do with the seats, you can help them out.

[Duncan]

On 3/14/2024 at 7:18 PM, Rustbin said:

Getting into the upholstery business I see. The 620 seat looks good, and to go for another means it wasn't too bad. I've seen a lot of reasonably nice cars with Mexican blankets because guys just don't know what to do with the seats, you can help them out.

 

Absolutely not going into the business.  Just working on getting chops to get better at it.  I'm not taking anything in for anyone.  See my response to Datsunfreak above a few posts.   I'm done dealing with people except with a rare few exceptions.

 

I like helping Datsun guys out, and the seats are relatively simple, which is good for a beginner.

 

 

Edited March 16 by Duncan

[Duncan]

Sold the 620 seat I recovered.  Picked up a seat on the cheap for a '80 720 pickup.  Hopefully, I can learn from the mistakes on the last one.

 

 

Ironically, I pulled the cover off this one, and it had a another cover that was covering the original one.  I can't believe some shops will do that, but I guess low ballers will low ball.   The 720 had molded foam originally, and I was hoping to make some repairs and use that, but it was too far gone.

 

I've been really ignoring my '40 Ford lately.  My wife is going to Japan for two weeks, and when she gets back, I need to get some stuff done on that.

 

 

Edited April 10 by Duncan

[Duncan]

On 3/14/2024 at 7:18 PM, Rustbin said:

I've seen a lot of reasonably nice cars with Mexican blankets because guys just don't know what to do with the seats, you can help them out.

 

The guy that bought the seat was absolutely thrilled with it.  He texted me how nice he thought it was, then he texted me again the next day repeating the same message.  I pointed out some of the little snafus I made, but the price alleviated those concerns apparently.  🙂  The guy was older than me, and he was a retired Navy guy.  I'm a Vet as well, so I was happy to help him out. I'm hoping this one will be a repeat.

 

 

 

 

[EDM620]

On 12/2/2023 at 5:31 PM, Duncan said:

Apparently Ford used a very strange sending system from around '32 until '58 or so

What impedence does the float work through? I recall there are different ranges on the senders