Is Cubel's Fordwood still in business?

[MWalker]

I'd like to buy a body wood kit for the T I'm currently building. I have called Fordwood a few times and emailed them several times over the past week, with no response. Does anyone know a way to get in touch with them other than the email address and phone number listed in their website? Thanks.

[MWalker]

Are there any other sources for body wood kits, or are they the only game in town?

[Steve Jelf]

I saw a discussion of wood kits on FB yesterday. According to comments there, you can get kits from other sources, all of them costing twice as much or more. That's hearsay. I haven't researched it myself.

[Will_Vanderburg]

There is no other way to contact those people except by phone, post office or email. Period.

Let's say you want to get a 25 touring body kit. A kit from Classic Wood Products in Greensboro, NC is $2,600

That same kit from Fordwood (Cubels) is $1,500

BUT, and here's a kicker. If you want a roof kit for a Center Door Sedan, it's approx $800 bucks and Cubels is the only game in town.

Now, that being said, their foordwood.com website has no update info or even a copyright date on it. However, this link https://shop.fordwood.com/ has a copyright date of 2019. And using our 25 body as a benchmark, it's not even listed as something they make.

I contacted them 12 to 13 years ago about a body kit and was told there was a 9 month wait. I ordered from Bob's who gets his kits from Classic Wood and had it in a week and a half.

[Will_Vanderburg]

The hearsay I have heard is Cubel's will not make a kit if they aren't in the mood to do so.

[mtntee20]

In the past, Fordwood would take your order and when they received enough orders (however many that may be, say 2 or 6), then they will make the kits up. That way, they can cut 2 or 6 of each piece to supply ALL the orders and not have to keep switching between different body kits. So, you may get in on a production quickly OR you may have to wait for a year.

I do know their kits are very well done and fit extremely well. Unfortunately, they do NOT make kits for all body styles of Model Ts. The center door sedan is NOT one of their offerings. Seems there are enough of us out here that need that kit to make it profitable to offer.

Good Luck,
Terry

[John kuehn]

I don’t know how much profit there is to be made in making Model T body wood kits. Seems like it would be enough to make a living but I’m just guessing. Seems like in the past I ‘heard’ that Cubel’s kids took over the business. But again it’s sort of hearsay. If that’s the case that’s what happened to Howells sheet metal and anybody who wants T repo sheet metal knows how long it takes to get a response from them. Maybe not all the time but most of the time.
The key to building a body kit is the plans to make them and keeping the pieces to be able to use a pattern to make more kits in a shorter time. I’m guessing but seems like it would be the way to do it.
Mel Millers plans were popular because they were for the open cars. I don’t think he made any plans for the closed cars.
I have a feeling that the folks who make the kits now use his plans. Just guessing of course.
This was talked about in an earlier post and the possibility that someone would make T body wood plans avaliable for hobbyist to use.

[MWalker]

I talked with Steve at Lang's, and he said that Classic Wood Products doesn't make kits for the earlier cars. I'm building a '15 Runabout, and that's one they don't make.

[Will_Vanderburg]

I compared my Classic Wood touring kit to a set of Mel Miller's drawings, and it was extremely close. You are right in that he did not do any drawings for closed cars.

Fordwood was indeed taken on by the children of the original founders. That was about the time I was originally sourcing a body kit. I bought my kit from Bob's on April 21, 2008 for $1,300 and it was drop shipped from the manufacturer to my father's house in NC for 58 bucks.

[MWalker]

Well, I finally got a response from Anna Cubel today. She said she had been out of the office for the past week. It now looks like I might get some body wood after all. They don't have what I need in stock, but she said she would have them make what I need next.

[John kuehn]

That’s good to hear that can still be reached. Hope you get the body wood in a reasonable amount of time. It usually takes persistence to get a hold of them. That’s what it took when I ordered the tack rail kit for my 21 Touring. But I don’t think they make the composite tack rail. They must get it from another source. But I did get it a few weeks later.

[HornsRus]

back in the old days when i was wooding bodies.guys would buy kits here and there,then when they gave up putting them in, they would bring then to me after a while i would show them the wood stove.ha,ha. who ever made them didn't know there left hand from there right. maybe they are better know. charley