The 1926 Fordor that I re-wooded last winter has returned. The owner didn't have much luck finding anyone to do the paint and finish work and I caved..again. Oh well, at least I won't be bored this winter. It will be a complete resurrection, should be fun.

Cool pictures

I missed seeing it by one day. Any idea what those two holes by the radiator support rod are for? I have them on my Fordor and my roadster but they’re not there on my Canadian ‘26.

Looking forward to reading the posts.

Tom, I have them on my 27 also and I believe Ed has them to. I have no idea what they are for, they never were used for anything on either car.

I have those two holes in my '27 Fordor also and don't know what they're for. Mine has a Highland Park body on it and Budd stamped on the inside of the doors under the upholstery. The block and frame number match and the date for them is October 18, 1926.

Keith

Don, I will be waiting for updates. I enjoyed chapter one. Looking forward to chapter two.

Ok this Fordor has a non-original headlight setup. It has the correct size lens but the bar and headlight mount isn't correct. Do any of you guys recognize what this setup is off of? Thx in advance.

My memory is failing, but I think this setup was used for the first cross bar. Late 26 or early 27.

The crossbar appears to have been nickel plated at one time. Is that possible?

I think this was the first crossbar used on the '26 models, after the headlights with no cross bars proved to not give enough support to the front fenders, so this style tied the front fenders together much better. This style cross bar was not nickel plated from the factory but may have been plated by the owner.

Keith

Don,

I also have that bar. Mine came from the late John Danuser and I'm putting it on my early 26. It's pictured in Bruce's book.

Oh wow, so they must have overlapped the model year a bit with the fender mounts. Learn something everyday....now to retain it~
Thx Tom

Don, I don't think I've seen two 1926 front fender braces the same. I believe the last time this came up on the forum, there was no consensus. There were so many factory type braces, and accessory braces, that it's almost impossible to pinpoint it.

Ed I know both of ours was the same design. Sounds like they used up the leftovers on the early '26's..

I was referring to the braces that were used along with the early 1926 headlights. The early 1926 T's had headlights mounted on pedestals, like the Fordor you are doing this winter, with no tie-bar. At some point, the tie-bar "brace" was implemented. 1927 brought the final design, which mounted the headlights to the brace.

Parts is parts and they are coming in..

Don

That accessory bar is aftermarket, for the fender mounted 1926 lamps, made by Marquette.

These could be had in painted or nickel finish. Put a re-nickeled Marquette bar on my '26 Pickup to dress up!

Here is another adv about the premium version in nickel plate!



The bar and nuts were plated, the mount that goes under the Ford headlamp remained painted.




One for sale at swap



All the bars made to fit under the Ford fender mount early '26 headlamps are aftermarket, many different mfg. too. Ford didn't make a support bar for the fender mounted lamps, there is no Ford part number.

Wow!! Thanks Dan, you confirmed what I found on this car. It looks to be a Marquette and was nickel plated. I really appreciate the information. Thank you !!

I really like the looks of the nickel plated rod. You are right, it really spruces things up. Sweet.

Don, still looking for a right front door panel for my 26 Fordor with red stripe. Keep me in mind if you run across one. Thanks, Joe

Will do Joe, not sure if this car has one or not. I will check tho.

Well here we go...this car has the bolt slots for the door windows rubber weather seal on all four doors.

Scratching the surface....

Always enjoy your updates Don !!

Thanks Gary you always have kind words.

Does anybody know the best way to clean up these door sills? And just how bright were they originally? Thx in advance..

Don that is one silver fliver. Looking great. Look forward to more updates.

Thank you Dallas, its getting there...where ever "there" is ??

Don

Those sill plates are a zinc alloy, I recall just cleaning well, and then buffing on a wheel to bring back some shine to them.

Thanks Dan, I have tried wire brushing them in the past but that didn't improve their looks at all. I ended up painting them. I will try your way and see what results I can come up with. I appreciate your response.

Don, a wire brush is way too abrasive. The metal is soft and requires a bit of a delicate touch. It also does oxidize and dull down over time.

Thanks Dave, yeah I know the wire brush wasn't the way to go...so I will try it on a buffing wheel. I appreciate the help !

I haven't tried it but, would a Scotch Brite pad work? Just a thought. Dave

There are various grits of "Scotch Brite" (That's actually a brand name, but it describes best what I'm talking about) up to 2000 grit used on models, so yes, you could use those, I would then follow up with something like Simichrome which apparently leaves a slightly protective coating. I've seen the zinc plate polished up like chrome, but it doesn't last very long! I wonder how polished they were originally?

Entering into the primer stage of things. After 4 weeks of welding, patching, grinding, bumping and filling these rear fenders are about as good as they will get. Gheezzz~

Don, I am glad you post some of the craft that you do. Beautiful work. Thank you.
Did you get the door sill buffing/shining sorted?

Hi Duey, thanks for the complement...no I haven't tried to clean those up yet. It will be months before I need them and now that the priming is just about over...months of sanding will be in my future. Yee haa~

Taking a break from the never ending sanding. Thought I would start the fitment process before I do any drilling. Going good in some places and being a ex-wife in others...

Just crawled out from under this 90 year old beast. Had to take a sit to let these old bones move back to where they belong. Had a nice conversation with Denny Newman (Clio,Mi) about the amount of work that goes into rebuilding these old cars. He has done many and he has done them to perfection. I could never compete with his talents but I still have to ask. Is the never ending sanding (3 months worth so far) and fitting and re-fitting all really worth it. I don't feel anyone that hasn't done a old car can grasp just how many hours one can put in to a project. What do you think?

Looks sharp! If you need a break, come on over and help with my fenders.

Oh real cute Jason !! I'm hoping the worst is over soon. Every time I take on one of these Fordors I tend to forget just how difficult they can be. But it will get done as soon as the Blu Emu kicks in.

Don, yes, your months of work will pay off. I'm not going to the level you are and my end result will show. It's kinda like when I was learning to play guitar and you hear someone else play. One reaction is to set your guitar down and walk away from it. Another reaction to get encouraged to practice more. It looks so good, enjoy working on it.

Thanks Vern, I guess as I nurse my aches and pains the question came to mind. Two days of working underneath the car tends to remind one of his accumulated rotations on earth. Its all good and I'd rather be strained than bored...I think~

After seeing your posts over the years, your talent doesn't go unnoticed and efforts are well worth the time you spend. Is it over restoration or is it pride in what leaves your shop? You certainly can be prideful of what rolls out the door !!

Thanks again Gary, I'm really not disgruntled yet. The owner was here yesterday and he just had a grin from ear to ear. I was explaining to him what I had to do to get the doors right. He just stood back and stared with a big chit eat'n grin. He wants this ready for the National Tour in July. We will see. Merry Christmas !!

When restoring my 24 Coupe I used a bench mounted buffer I bought at Harbour Freight for 39.95 on sale.
Well worth the money. I used it for small nickel plated pieces and the door sills. They sell different grades of buffing material to use on the buffer wheels.

The sills cleaned up pretty nice and smooth but I don't think they were meant to retain the bright finish as new. Mine are original and like others have stated made of some type of aluminum.

I know reproductions are available but I don't know what they are made of.

Thanks for the input John, I will be bringing the subject up again in the future. I hope to get these cleaned up to spiffy level. My buffer is buried in respirators, paint guns, paint chemicals etc, etc.. Should be fun to see how they turn out. Stay safe!!

I got the chance to look over this beauty on Monday, This will be a great car. Don is massaging not only the 90+ year old parts to perfection, but also the new parts that go on this 26. The new fenders needed work after shipping, you would think new parts wouldn't need much work, not always. Keep sanding Buddy, you're getting there! Merry Christmas, JD

Too cold and total lack of humidity to paint, so I'm stitch'n instead. Heck of a lot easier to drill those visor holes without a engine to work over...

Thanks Don for the reminder I have to do that to on my Tudor.Your right it's a lot easier with motor out.

Welp with the temps in single digits and NO humidity, I'm still not able to paint anything. So I thought I would work on some smalls... a before and after..

I just found a coupon tucked behind the mirror on the drivers side sun shade. Do you think the guy knew it wouldn't be found until the last day of 2017?

Don't forget to carry this thread over to 2018 Don. Can't wait to see this beauty in paint !!