1949 Bentley Boattail Speedster

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http://www.oldbug.com/heb.htm

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PA41 said:
Didn't get hardly anything done all weekend over thinking it...


PA41
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I've been told that you can't force ART. Inspiration will come when IT wants to.

I think you have one heck of a project in the works. I wouldn't intentionally make it bad in the name of rat rodding....maybe do decent work and just leave it raw/let it surface rust..
 
^^^^^^I agree w/ tha' flipper on both points![cl[cl

this is lookin too good to rush.....just drive the rusty t this summer while getting the bentley art-project AKA "fenderfetishfun" into its proper form


and ya, i'll stop in and pick up the shop fer ya..........'someday'...:D
 
Shea Laking said:
:eek:

Guess it pays to be a God of Speedmetal!
Wonder if they cut up a real Auburn to build that?....[S

Either way, it's WAY cool. Thanks for the link, kzoldman.[P

Regards,
Shea:)
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If I was really around that car, I'd probably get arrested. I tend to 'touch' them--hell I WALLOW on them!!!

I Have a buddy that was color sanding a blue Vette he was restoring. I don't remember doing it, but I had that blue dust all over me when I came out of his shop--looked like I rolled on his hood or something..:)

Really are art, aren't they?

PA41
 
DJ3100 said:
PA, My ideas to get the sheetmetal gaps filled: Make a pattern from newspaper or butcher paper. Cut and tape where there is too much paper; cut and add paper where it is needed. The pattern will get you started on making it from metal, but won't be exact. Use 18 or 20 ga sheet ( I think 18 ga is easier to weld and stretch). Cut and weld where you cut the paper, add metal where you added paper. Remember, you don't have to do it out of one huge piece of metal you can weld pieces together. If you need to shrink in some places, use a torch and heat the area to red. If you need to shrink a lot, hammer on dolly on red hot metal, but quit when you hear the hammer contacting the dolly (just push the metal down, don't stretch it). You'll be surprised how a lot of persistance will get what you want. I think a weekend per side would get it done.
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Thanks for the info DJ. The pattern making sounds like a good way to go I can do scissors and tape:) The little piece at a time is good too--Kinda breaks it down in a managable size.. Making a huge fender at a whack is kinda daunting..

I believe I'll solidify my position on the regular stuff I blew through--steering colum--brake pedal--floor etc--then get the fenders and tail attached pretty much as they will be, then settle into the sheetmetal fabbing--in the mean while collecting up all the hoods/tops/curves I can scrounge up to maybe rob some bends from...

All good info--thanks..

PA41
 
PA41 said:
If I was really around that car, I'd probably get arrested. I tend to 'touch' them--hell I WALLOW on them!!!

I Have a buddy that was color sanding a blue Vette he was restoring. I don't remember doing it, but I had that blue dust all over me when I came out of his shop--looked like I rolled on his hood or something..:)

Really are art, aren't they?

PA41
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Seeing the picture of James Hetfield's Auburn, reminds me of the reaction I had when I first saw Billy Gibbon's "Cadzilla" in the flesh...It was at Speedorama or Speedsport indoor show, I can't recall exactly what year. Anyway, my reaction to that car can be summed up quite simply by one smiley-[dr It just blew all my circuits, not just because it was a "radical custom" but because it was thoughtfully designed, restyled and reshaped-not just change for change's sake. The candy eggplant was the perfect colour for it, too.

Now, Mr. Hetfield's Auburn-Again, obviously restyled and reshaped. You can just bet there's been some HEAVY hours put in on metal shaping on this one. But also, it's been thoughtfully restyled. What it began life as is totally obvious. I don't know who built it but they obviously show great respect for the original stylist. I'll have to find more info on this one and read up. I NEED MORE!!!!:D

Anyway, YES they ARE art.

Regards,
Shea:)
 
DSC02555.jpg


Check out the historic race car in the background. The entire body was made from 12 - 16 inch squares of aluminum - riveted together.
 
I hate slow computers!!!:mad:

Anyway, I discovered that the 1936 Auburn 385 boattail speedster owner by James Hetfield was built by Rick Dore Kustoms. Their website www.rickdore.com hasn't been updated for some time, thus has no info on the car. There are, however, galleries of several other of his nice builds.

As an aside, I found that, apparently, Mr. Hetfield bought the Auburn off of e-bay...:D

Guess that's not just for "poor boy" scroungers, eh?:)

Regards,
Shea:)
 
Just relax PA. Don't worry about fit and finish, just think about form and function. If you have to squint a little to blur the little imperfections, it's all good. Stay away from the webs and skulls stuff, it won't need it. Hollywood starlet or trailer park tramp - both have sexy curves, ones just way cheaper. ;)

As far as the back, don't worry about the ridge, it'll come naturally. You may need to either narrow the tail 'tip' several inches or extend it somehow to get a point. OR just let it be as it is for now and eventually put a end cap on it if it bugs you. I think it'll be good a little rounded. When you trim the roof sections to where they need to be, it will probably form a slight ridge naturally. You're not building a replica, so do what looks good.

Here's the rear of that Duesy. The rear has no peak ridge until right at the tip. (look at the trunk line) The 1930 Cadillac speedster has no ridge either - does go to a point though.....


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Oh, another thought: yours is already wider than a original speedster would have been, so don't get caught up in trying to make it conform to an Auburn, make it look good on it's own.
 
That looks like a Decorides Car--maybe Foose design?? They sell glass kits for something along that line for about $10K, and a completed car for $60K to $160K

Delahaye--:) It's a kick to 'namedrop' stuff like that to my car buddies. Theres a whole different 'car jargon' spoken with this old/exotic stuff.. I like to do the 'baffle em with BS' thing. See that funny look come on em--They still do the "350, turbo 400, 750 Holly Double pumper, world heads, Strange axles" talk we did when we were kids..



Now I do this to em--"I was looking at this dual cowl phaeton, that a coach company built from a Duesy SJ for some prince of India.. I've always wanted one, but A Mk IV, Bentley Standard steel saloon would have been a much better starting point instead of trashing an SJ.. What were they thinking?!" :D

I usta do that with EFI, but most guys are catching on and I've started running into guys that know alot more than I do about em..

Money talks N BS walks. I am actually using some of the info I'm getting about these exotics, but mostely I'm a 'walkin man'. :)

PA41
 
Flipper_1938 said:
It doesn't appear to match side to side. May just be the paint.

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Restorers would't usually tollerate something 'off', but some of the real 'classics' that I've seen -before they were 'classics' were kinda rough. I was around a couple AC Cobras as a kid in the 60s, and both were bad beat up--aluminum skin with no inner fenders made them real fragile. Also knew a fella that owned a Studebaker Avantie new. Talk about a rough, whopperjawed car! I thought it had been a wreck and some vo-tech kids got a hold of it.. Also remember a Hemi Cuda on the showroom floor at a dealer that had factory bondo work on the roof pillar that looked like it was done with a concrete trowl and spray cans. Ahhh Da good ole dayz?.. :)

PA41
 
The 80's were just as bad for fit and finish.

My parents went to go buy an Oldsmobile in the late 80's. Out of the 30-40 cars in the body style they were looking at, NONE OF THEM didn't have an obvious physical/cosmetic flaw. Roof to A-pillar seams off by 1/4", roof to C-pilar seams off by 1/4", Mis-matched door gaps all around, and big freakin' scars in the leather for the seats. It was almost comical going from car to car pointing out to the salesman why we wouldn't want each car.

They ended up buying another Honda Accord.
 

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