1932 FORD MILLER HAULER SPECIAL ~ PICK-UP ~ ALUMINUM BENCH SEAT

The aluminum bench seat was designed and built by Brian Stinger.  It is completely made out of aluminum buck rivets.  A bench seat was fabricated because it fits the truck cab the best.  Brian designed it in two pieces….the bottom and the back.  The seat bottom has two doors that are attached by piano hinges. Under one of the seat compartments is the wiring harness and under the other one is a tool compartment.  The seat back tips forward on two quick release pins so there is access to the rear window…..which was made to go up and down by a leather strap.  The back of the seat has lower back lumbar.  The upper back of the seat is slightly contoured to fit a person shoulders.  Bell-holes, bead-ribs and doubling up of the aluminum was done to give the seat strength.  The top center of the seat was topped off by an acid etched…vintage aluminum winged badge that came off of Brian’s old furnace from his basement.

Source: http://stingershotrodshop.wordpress.com/2010/03/02/1932-ford-miller-hauler-special-pick-up-aluminum-bench-seat/

1929 Model A Ford Roadster For Sale

It was relatively simple even in the days of Henry Ford's Model T and Model A to load up a roadster with speed parts and accessories but true craftsmen took creation of their personal rides many steps farther. One of them was E.J. Walton who created this one-of-a-kind Model A. Walton is believed to have been one of the principal fabricators and body builders for Harry Miller, reportedly the fabricator behind the Miller-Fords and Gulf-Millers.

This 1929 Ford Model A Roadster is believed to have been built as his personal car. While its engine is modestly hot rodded with a copper plated cylinder head, fabricated copper intake manifold, Stromberg downdraft carb, custom exhaust and Mallory dual point distributor. But it is the custom coachwork that sets this Ford apart from all but the highest concept custom roadsters. The complete body -- hood, passenger compartment and custom boattail rear deck -- is hand hammered out of aluminum, then left unpainted in an object demonstration of superb panel beating and joining skills. The radiator is contained within a hand made vee-front rounded shell painted black. The hood sides are separated by a fixed center panel with four stack-like projections, also in black to complement the radiator shell. The hood sides have diamond-shaped embellishments in black which are repeated in slightly different proportions on the frame covers under the doors.

The breathing areas of the bodywork - grille, hood sides and the decorative elements under the doors - are covered with basket weave metal mesh. Black fenders, frame covers and running boards set off the aluminum body. The rear deck of the body is gently rounded in a semi-boattail shape with an opening lid for luggage and tools. Red wire wheels, including a pair of sidemounted spares, provide a touch of color. It is upholstered in black leather with a black cloth top and has been carefully maintained with attention to cosmetics like the paint on the fenders and the upholstery.

In addition to its oral history connection with E.J. Watson its origins are supported by its present chain of title which begins in Asheville, NC where Walton settled after his racing days were over. A meticulously constructed example of the talent and creativity of an old-school fabricator, sympathetically preserved for years, this 1929 Ford Model A Custom roadster is a piece of American automobile history with style, performance and delightful patina.

 

$76,500.00
 
Stock Number: 4715

Please visit the Purchasing Info section if you are interested in a car or call us at
314-524-6000 for immediate assistance.

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Gordon Buehrig's Custom Cabriolet

the folowing are portions of interviews with Gordon Buehrig by David R. Crippen on  July, 1984, in Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. These interviews were held by the Edsel B. Ford Design History Center, Archives & Library Collections, The Edison Institute (now named the Benson Ford Research Center).

it was always fun to be able to drive a Duesenberg, and I had no idea that I would ever be able to afford one, but I wanted a custom-body car, and when the Model A Ford came out in 1929--well, it was 1930 model that I bought--I visualized redesigning that body and making it into a custom car, so I traded my Buick Roadster in and bought a Ford Victoria (I think that's what they called it--the two passenger convertible).

Before I got delivery of it, I had made a full-size body draft of it--what I wanted to do--and made arrangements with Augie Duesenberg at his race car shop to build the body for me. I drove the car from the dealership out to Augie's place, and first thing we did was take the body off the chassis.
Then, we cut the body back of the body B post, which is the back of the door, and that rumble seat (all that area), we threw that away and kept the body frame sills, and we mounted the body back on the chassis 4 inches aft of its normal location. Then, we built a dummy cowling, or extended cowling, so that the fire wall was moved forward into its normal location in relation to the engine.

Then I had to build a new engine hood which was 4 inches longer than the regular engine hood. Then the back of the body was all new, framed in wood, and paneled in aluminum, and it extended just a little bit beyond the rear axle, and then I had a large trunk on the back, and on the inside I had a single seat facing the center.

The passenger seat was built so it would fold forward so that you could get into that rear, one-passenger, enclosed rumble seat. It was a blind quarter convertible--beautiful thing. I lowered the--cut the windshield down to the top of the upper hinge on the door, and that I think was 31 inches. So, the body was 3 inches lower than the regular Ford.

At that time the Weyman Body Company was going out of business, and I bought some of their hides of leather for $5 a hide, and when Augie was through with it, we moved it across the street to the Duesenberg plant where they allowed me to have it painted and trimmed by the head trimmer and the head painter at Duesenberg. We did have a good paint and trim shop.

So, the quality of the car was equal to the Duesenberg, and I had drove that car almost 100,000 miles, and I finally sold it in Auburn later on when Mr. Ames told me he thought I should drive a company car. I regretted that all my life, and I tried many times to find it.

It was written up in the Ford Times magazine, and about three or four years ago a friend of mine by the name of Bob Ahmanson in California --I made some drawings for him. I had enough information that I could reconstruct a body draft from it, and I originally did this for Bill Harrah.
Bill wanted to build one, and he bought a car, but he never got around to it -never got around to scheduling it through his shop, but Bob Almondson did build one. It was written up in a magazine not too long ago as the most beautiful Model A ever built and so forth.

But, I think it's kind of significant in that as far I know this is the first time a designer took a stock car of that sort and modified it and made it into a different type of automobile. There had been a lot of speedsters built, you know, in the old days off of Model T's and so forth, but the process that I used, I think, was probably the first time that had ever been done...