MTFCA Forum

So now that I have a way of posting pictures again I thought I'd post the latest and current project. Neat old stump puller that needs a complete rebuild. I'm using ash and marine plywood. It will be completely sealed in a ultra high penetrating epoxy sealer, sanded smooth and painted. The owner is a large local car dealer and wants this for parades and his Ford show room. I received it December 12th. We will see how this goes. Not much good for even patterns.

The owner was trying to have his body shop restore it. He said he walked in and four guys were standing around it with a look on their face of "Wood?" what the he@@ is wood? ". So he called and asked if I would please help him with it.

The owner also said he was five years old when his dad bought it and took him for a ride. He's now in his 70's.

So here we go again... It had a cool Burmuda Bell on it.

Having fun !

And more...

and more...

More yet...

Bored yet?

Admit it...

again.....

What a beauty! There’s something about a forklift picking a body up. That’s when you know your about to really get something done

Work'n da wood...

Do you know the company that built the cab?

Hi Dallas, no we don't. There are no markings anywhere on it. I do sense that this was a kit. They used domed bolts on everything and it broke down into about 8 pieces.

Alot of mortis and tennon? My MP cab was all mortis and tennon and one wood screw in center of joint. I enjoyed rebuilding mine. That has more curves than mine. Intesting stuff.

Hurrah! Welcome back! Take some time to digest these two pics. Is it the same?

Dallas, yes all mortise and tenon. The bigger joint had one or two screws but this had nails all over everything. I don't think there was more than 15 or 20 screws. It struck me as a low cost thrown together kit.

That sure looks close to what I have here Tim. Thanks for the pics it answers my question about the lower windshield. It appears to be fixed and the top windshield just opens. Cool !!

Don, with your clues I was looking forward to a nice evening searching “Coachbuilt”, a great site with hundreds of different body companies listed. It’s great fun to search all the different companies looking for little details that match. Little did I know…..
These companies were usually wagon or carriage builders that transitioned to automobile or truck ( commercial) body builders. Across the country there were hundreds of builders, and probably dozens of large builders. The clues you mentioned and showed are the panel construction, and also metal panels applied.
I thought I’d start with the Parry Company from Indiana. Your body showed that influence to me. So, starting there, I hit paydirt with the very first search. These views are from one of the earliest Martin-Parry catalogs, after Martin merged with Parry about 1919. It’s important to remember Parry goes way back into the 1800s, and even made complete autos early on. Their body business really grew with the model T Ford , and became some of their biggest business. Their designs were patented along with the ease of shipping panels and also the ala carte style of assembling a body that would suit the potential customer.
The body you are rebuilding is probably one of the earliest survivors, and really an incredible vehicle. We know of a 1917 Parry body, of a different design ( a station wagon) that is getting restored right now.
As Martin-Parry grew and advanced, their manufacturing methods became a lot simpler than the design you are working on. Dallas knows all about the construction , and their mortise and tenon construction led to very strong, lightweight bodies.
I hope we can add all your photos to the Martin-Parry.com site, that was started by Ben Purkey. Ben has restored one of the very few survivors made for the model A Ford. These were the final bodies, as M-P became the Chevrolet Body division and was absorbed by General Motors about 1930. (. Important to remember , FoMoCo made their first wooden body cars at this same time, using Murray Body to build the 1929 station wagon. These were the first factory built Ford wagons) The site tracks as many of these wonderful vehicles as possible and a great wealth of info.

Wow that's some neat information Tim. Thank you. This one looks closest to the no. 50 cab with the no. 42 windshield setup. Feel free to use any of my photo's you desire. Thanks !!!

I haven’t had time to really look it over, but we need to always remember, catalogs were usually illustrated with artists conceptions. Some artists take “license”. We’ve found M-P to be very accurate, though. The illustration above is very early in their catalog offerings. Parry did have builders plates , and they were only about 3/4” x 1 1/2”. Very small. They may even have been oval, I forget. The two little holes that attached them would be very small, also. Ben has visited with original family members who supplied him with lots of archival material.
I hope the original body is saved, it would be quite the thing to display. I can see it painted with a nice old crackle paint job, a faux job that would cover all the beauty marks from a long life. It’s really an incredible body! Let me know if it’s in the burn pile and I’ll come running!

Tim, I haven't talked to the owner yet as to what his plans are for the original cab. It would need several pieces to be presentable. I have every piece though. Thanks for all your efforts and willingness to share.

The pictures that Tom posted on "T T Tuesday"has a tanker on it that the cab looks very similar to the one you're working on.

Well Mr. Harry Feet, that does have some similarities. Interesting !

I noticed that the thread Tim started yesterday is gone... did we offend someone?

I have the remains of a Perry wood truck bed. Front bottom corrner was an oval brass tag, "Perry" (no Martin) I put that tab in a safe place, so safe, I can't even find it!! Still have the two tiny holes and oval shadow on the wood though. It's amazing that that tag survived this long, as the bed is falling apart--has fallen apart, I should say! Have it for possible use on my '25 runabout, haven't decided yet. I also have a '25 Ford bed, but it is missing some sheet metal (I'm told, "easy fix" hmm) and you have to drill holes into the body sides so a reversal (putting the rear deck back on) isn't really an option without a lot of work--but the wood bed can be mounted with the deck bolts.

Thanks for posting Tim. I have been too busy to look at MP catalogs for the cab Dons working on. Looking good Don! Whats your project next week when the TT is finished?

MR Twinkiee send me your address so you can make room for my 4door!!!!

I'm sorry Mikey but I have no room for another project. It's comparable to munching down a dozen of your favorite chocolate Twinkies to the point of puking. Besides, those Fordors are way over my skill level.

4 DOOR FOR SALE
Some Assembly Required
Exceptional Woodworking skills a plus


Disclaimer: just saw on CL, nothing to do with sale
-had to resize picture so it’s nice and fuzzy.

Gee a Fordor.... that's different !! LOL Jus kid'n.

As the world turns I lock myself in the shop and make tons of sawdust that causes the average person severe sinus congestion. But, that's just part of the fun...

I have the seat box in and the trim is cut and mounted. The screws you see are to hold it tight as the adhesive cures. Having fun with it !

Checking the fit of things and mounting some hardware. It will make a nice ice fishing shanty if the TT thing doesn't work out !

A few more...

Thats funny! My buddies call mine the phone booth.

It’s a regional thing, Dallas! Ask a kid in a city what a phone booth is, if you want a blank stare. And all of Don’s friends are ice fishing while he’s making sawdust.

This 99yr old is trying on her new dress.

One more pic...

Sexy!!! Will you post how seat base is supported when you get there?
In the morning would be fine

LOL ... sexy isn't what came to mind. Working on the windshield frames and fitment today. Seems to be going ok.

And more pic's...

That is a beautiful work of art. Can't wait to see it completed. Will that be painted or left natural?

It will be painted, not sure what color yet. The owners body shop will be doing it and that makes me happy.

That’s a great job to be sure! Looks like a piece of well built furniture. Looks to good to paint and cover up.

Beautiful work, Thank you for posting photos as you build this cab.

Thanks guys. So this frame took a pretty good hit at some point in time. I had to bring the passenger side forward just over an inch. It took all of the 20 tons this jack could muster but it got it done.

She's look'n pretty as a picture... frame. Still have a way's to go but its getting there.

Thanks for the continued progress pics, Don. If the owner would like one of these, or more send me an email tmorsher@icloud.com and I’ll put you in touch with the man who has them. These are new, etched brass and were oval , likely attached to the rear lower edge on the passenger side. Easy to trim to shape. I like to put them on the heel panel, too.

Cool item Tim.

Mr. Pair of keets, this is just for you. Because you is special !

Just checking the fitment of the radiator/hood/firewall after straightening the frame.

Fantastic as per usual.

Don, I understand why you use plywood whenever large flat ares are called for. It is more stable than timber boards, and stronger. Was there any plywood used in the original construction?. Under paint it doesn't matter much. One could even simulate joints between boards with a scribed joint line.

Allan from down under.

Hi Allen, I can't say with confidence because what I ended up with was many scabbed in pieces here and there. This cab had visible damage and failure and over the years it was patched up with lots of nails and very little accuracy. I did replace the rear panel with marine plywood and it was originally a sheet of metal. I felt the plywood would give it as much strength without the noise. What caused the most damage was the lack of support in the most critical place, the frame mounts. From what I've have gathered these cabs were built to be used on many different truck frames and the buyer had to figure out how to mount the cabs to the frame. Sort of a one size fits all.