Black Rat 55

DJ3100 said:

I would not have considered that approach - too much work. The fenders came out great. Thanks for posting the photos of the tool.

Click to expand...

Yeah, my rolling tool didn't work as well as hoped. It would have been easier to feed thru if both bottom rollers were driven and with a gear reduction, however, I didn't want spend a bunch creating something unproven and unlikely to be used again. I just used materials I had laying around so I only invested my time in it... The big prob with it is that it didn't really stretch the metal - after a pass, I'd adjust the top roller down to give the fender a curve but it ended up rippling the edges. In the end, the biggest contribution the roller made was to give the fender it's profile and the center peak.
If I was to do this again, I think I'd just shape the fender first with the planishing hammer then give it a pass thru the roller at the end, that way the lines of the peak would be crisper and I wouldn't be trying to iron out all those ripples. The final shape still turned out OK and as fenders go, not too hideous...

They look great. Do you think using the roller on something like a trailer fender would give you the cross sectional shape without distorting the edges?

Super job on those fenders....and the rest of it too.

DJ3100 said:

They look great. Do you think using the roller on something like a trailer fender would give you the cross sectional shape without distorting the edges?

Click to expand...

Probably...actually you could just run a trailer fender thru a bead roller - make some custom dies to do a center peak or use a standard die to make a reveal around the edge?
I first got the idea for the rolling machine from an episode of the Biker Buildoff series- there was a team from Austrailia that had one they made and used it to make aluminum bike fenders. Boy, they cranked it thru like nothing, though it was just a simple curved profile - of course that could have just been the magic of TV, editing out the hard work...lol

My bead roller and most that I have seen don't have enough throat height put a bead in the center of a fender unless it was a very flat fender. That's probably why your fender shape is so unique.

However it got there the detail on the fenders is excellant, as is everything else on your build.

DJ3100 said:

My bead roller and most that I have seen don't have enough throat height put a bead in the center of a fender unless it was a very flat fender. That's probably why your fender shape is so unique.

However it got there the detail on the fenders is excellant, as is everything else on your build.

Click to expand...

Hmmm.. you're right, the throat on my bead roller is too narrow also. So much for that idea... I guess a variant of the roller I made would work better - metal rollers made to closer tolerances and maybe a chain drive to connect the top and bottom rollers for a more positive feed. A future engineering project perhaps.

All disassembled, frame cleaned up to paint and pix with it done, Tremclad (Rustoleum) grey primed and gloss black topcoat.

Frame all painted up and assembled, installed the air system and got most of the plumbing done. Painted the grille shell and put in the grille to get a look at it.

Four words: out of this world!

Even basic sheet metal work is over my head. I can't imagine how tough it must have been to create a cab like that.

Motorhead said:

Four words: out of this world!

Even basic sheet metal work is over my head. I can't imagine how tough it must have been to create a cab like that.

Click to expand...

Thanks ! It's all relative I guess, I wouldn't have thought of [S or even tried to create a frame like yours... looking forward to the rest of your build !

Here's some more progress shots, cab and doors, other parts in primer, some pieces already done in black. I'm doing it all in my 20 x 20 garage, just hang a drop sheet to cover the rest of the junk and spray away, them move the finished parts out into my Costco plastic garage. It's a bit of a juggling act but somehow it works.
Dissected a couple of 350's I've been hanging onto for 25+ years, settled on the one on the stand, came out of my 75 Monte Carlo - just a 2 bolt block but it has 194 valve heads. It's going .030 over, flat top pistons, lumpy cam and some basic head porting, yer basic SB Chevy. The other engine was a 74 350 out of my old Blazer a 4 bolt, but damaged the block and gouged the crank badly tearing it down since it was siezed #%@$$!!! Interesting thing about both these engines is that they both suffered from the typical 70's flat cam lobes.. they must have used some really soft cores.

Cab and rest of body parts, fenders painted, used Tremclad (Rustoleum) semi gloss black with 1 quart flat black added to the gallon to dull it down a bit. The straight flat black shows marks too easily and weathers too soon for my liking. I mixed a couple different browns to get the chocolate milk shake colour I was looking for and shot the interior with that - it's actually only a little darker than the original interior colour of the 55..

Looking great! Always nice to check out your progress. Very impressive work!

Holy smokes, simply beautiful. You have mad skills! [cl

What everyone else said!

Thanx fellas for the support. Here's a few more pics - cab in the daylight, engine assembled and mounted on the frame. I know, it's another SB Chevy but they are so darn cheap to build, plus I've had the thing laying around for 25 + years so it seems like it deserved to be reborn as a hot rod engine.
Maybe I'll use the straight 8 Packard engine I'm hoarding for my next build...

What would be more appropriate than an SBC for a '55? Everything is just right!

Your fender roller is very informative-especially the idea of driving both rollers with a chain. I've watched a local metal roofing supplier bending rolls of flat metal into corrigated roof sheets using multiple rollers with varing degrees of pitch on the dies to get the eventual ridges/rolls-I've seen some 'mistakes' where the roofing piece has a twist or a bow from the dies/rollers out of tension correctly..I guess doing a fender all in one pass is too much for the metal and makes it wavy?. The roofing process would do that in 5 or 6 seperate rolls. I go there and get roller/die envy.?? The guy already thinks I'm a nut--he's building barns, and I'm in totally different universe. I'd like to get a hold of his machines while he's gone and see if they can't be abused into making a fender

I really enjoy seeing your work. I've dabbled in fender work a little recently and it has made me much more impressed with your project.

Thanks for showing the work..

PA41

PA41 said:

Your fender roller is very informative-especially the idea of driving both rollers with a chain. I've watched a local metal roofing supplier bending rolls of flat metal into corrigated roof sheets using multiple rollers with varing degrees of pitch on the dies to get the eventual ridges/rolls-I've seen some 'mistakes' where the roofing piece has a twist or a bow from the dies/rollers out of tension correctly..I guess doing a fender all in one pass is too much for the metal and makes it wavy?. The roofing process would do that in 5 or 6 seperate rolls. I go there and get roller/die envy.?? The guy already thinks I'm a nut--he's building barns, and I'm in totally different universe. I'd like to get a hold of his machines while he's gone and see if they can't be abused into making a fender

I really enjoy seeing your work. I've dabbled in fender work a little recently and it has made me much more impressed with your project.

Thanks for showing the work..

PA41

Click to expand...

Yes, I've seen machines like that, another one that comes to mind is the gutter rolling machines. In either case those machines are desined to put ridges and bends into fairly thin sheet metal or aluminum and produce a flat or straight piece. With the fenders, the problem is that you're trying to put a curve or radius into it at the same time. It would take more precision machining of the rollers and the overall design to control the warpage so that the metal is not only bent but stretched at the same time. It wouldn't surprise me if such a tool exists out there. Another way it could be done is with a custom set of dies on a Pullmax machine, but then you are into the big bucks...

zzrodder said:

the problem is that you're trying to put a curve or radius into it at the same time. ...

Click to expand...

Thanks for your thoughts on this ZZ. I'm a real newbee at metal forming. I've got maybe 20-30 hours of hammering tin, and am amazed at how little I got done in that time for the effort. I'm more of a tool nut (OCD) than a craftsman, and am impressed with your rollers you fabbed up. I'm interested in breaking the process down into smaller, simplier steps. I've been working with fenders that have a peak in the middle that I built 1/2 of and filled in the side (See the Bentley Speedster Build). I also broke that task down in smaller--12"X6" pieces, that were manageable for the tools I have.

I was considering fabbing up Oak molds and pressing the small 1/2 fender pieces with a 20 ton air over hydraulic shop press-(something like these pics), and welding them together to build peaked fenders similar to the last pic..

Like I said-I'm a tool nut--own a sawmill and a 850 Case Buldozer for 'fun' and I NEED more tools..-I'm a real new guy at metal forming. Do you think this would be a viable approach to fender fabricating? I'm kinda hooked on fenders.

Any suggestions-ideas-tips?

Thanks

PA41

I've seen your build, lookin kool.. I have made fenders before and a few scratch built bodies, all without an English wheel or any other elaborate tools. I know what you mean about breaking it into smaller pieces, that's what I usually do, stitch them together, hammer, grind, repeat. For the curvy pieces, I often beat them on a sandbag then run them through my little Eastwood planishing hammer to smooth them out. I find that it is best to work on both sides of the car or both fenders simultaneously, like, do a piece on the left, then the right etc., so you can keep them matching.
Here's some pix of my Hennway pickup, all handmade, the fenders are made of several sections though the first step in making them was to form the edge bead from 3/8" rod. I modified the leading edge of the fronts and trailing edge of the rears later to bring them down farther (last pic).

Assembly update, cab on the chassis, got it on using my cherrypicker and a sling inside the cab, landed it by myself without putting any gouges in it!