The topic of wood frames in early vehicles has come up at various times since I have been a member of this forum. I have always wanted a pre-war vehicle of the era, but have yet to find one when I had spare money, or priced at a figure I was willing to pay. Each time, the thought flashes through my mind about how to deal with the wood. Between graduating from high school & joining the Air Force, I owned a hot rodded '28 Model A, don't recall any wood framing, but back then, I was too busy living trying to keep the big Oldsmobile V8 between the frame rails, looking cool to my buddies, terrifying the adults, and avoiding the local constable, to worry about such minor details.
While enjoying my morning coffee, I saw that our very knowledgeable member "Studebaker Wheel" (Richard Quinn) had replied to the thread "Cab over truck" ( http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...Cab-over-truck ). Rather than hijack that thread, I thought I would start another discussion specific to the topic of wood framing and what special challenges & techniques, in light of today's technology, exists for dealing with it. The following, is a portion of Richard's post regarding the subject...
"The down side of the cab forwards was that they were the last Studebakers to use a wood framework for their bodies and replacing the wood, which is almost always bad, is a very tedious and expensive proposition. "
Is there a good reason (other than strictly adhering to "original" for a true museum quality restoration) that another material couldn't be substituted? How 'bout unistrut, angle iron, or composite materials? Many years ago, at a local charity car show, I met a retired gentleman who had moved down here from Michigan, We were viewing some high end restorations that included late twenties to early thirties cars. There were Packards, Pierce Arrows (1), Cadillac, and a number of other makes with wooden framing. The man claimed he was an expert at rebuilding/restoring the wood for these types of cars. He even gave me a business card advertising his services. During the conversation, he rattled off an impressive list of vehicles in museums he had done. However, that was years ago, and I can't recall his name, nor do I know where that business card is, and I would be impressed if the man is still alive.
To me, if it was very expensive to restore wood framing years ago...just finding someone with the expertise, knowing what types of wood to choose, etc., could be even more daunting than the prohibitive costs. Thinking that most of that wood framing would be covered with upholstery, is there any reason why other materials couldn't be substituted? I have seen several "Resto-mods/rods" with big powerful V8's that I know originally had wood in the framing. Have those been "upgraded"(?) to handle the twisting torque of the modern power plants?
Just curious, because I have long dreamed of owning one of these cars. I'd hate to fulfill the dream, only to find it a "nightmare" because of failing to recognize the reality of dealing with rotted wooden components.
While enjoying my morning coffee, I saw that our very knowledgeable member "Studebaker Wheel" (Richard Quinn) had replied to the thread "Cab over truck" ( http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...Cab-over-truck ). Rather than hijack that thread, I thought I would start another discussion specific to the topic of wood framing and what special challenges & techniques, in light of today's technology, exists for dealing with it. The following, is a portion of Richard's post regarding the subject...
"The down side of the cab forwards was that they were the last Studebakers to use a wood framework for their bodies and replacing the wood, which is almost always bad, is a very tedious and expensive proposition. "
Is there a good reason (other than strictly adhering to "original" for a true museum quality restoration) that another material couldn't be substituted? How 'bout unistrut, angle iron, or composite materials? Many years ago, at a local charity car show, I met a retired gentleman who had moved down here from Michigan, We were viewing some high end restorations that included late twenties to early thirties cars. There were Packards, Pierce Arrows (1), Cadillac, and a number of other makes with wooden framing. The man claimed he was an expert at rebuilding/restoring the wood for these types of cars. He even gave me a business card advertising his services. During the conversation, he rattled off an impressive list of vehicles in museums he had done. However, that was years ago, and I can't recall his name, nor do I know where that business card is, and I would be impressed if the man is still alive.
To me, if it was very expensive to restore wood framing years ago...just finding someone with the expertise, knowing what types of wood to choose, etc., could be even more daunting than the prohibitive costs. Thinking that most of that wood framing would be covered with upholstery, is there any reason why other materials couldn't be substituted? I have seen several "Resto-mods/rods" with big powerful V8's that I know originally had wood in the framing. Have those been "upgraded"(?) to handle the twisting torque of the modern power plants?
Just curious, because I have long dreamed of owning one of these cars. I'd hate to fulfill the dream, only to find it a "nightmare" because of failing to recognize the reality of dealing with rotted wooden components.
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