Early Ford V-8 Club Forum

FORUM RULES: Users agree to these Rules when using Forum.

The site administrator reserves the right to change the terms and conditions of the user agreement without prior notice to the user. It is the responsibility of the user to regularly review the terms of this agreement.

The user agrees to the following terms:

All information that you provide to us for your membership is correct.
You will not use your membership to spam, harrass, or exploit other members in any way.
Vulgar, Abusive, Racist and Sexist Language will not be tolerated.
Commercial-type sales postings will not be allowed.
No mass posting or flooding of the boards is allowed.
No Advertising of parts or cars; no Ebay or business/commercial ads (please use the "Classified" for ads Wanted or For Sale).
VIEWING MULTIPLE TOPICS ON SCREEN: You can choose to see more than 10 Topics at a time ... Log In and choose "Preferences" from the top bar on the Forum page. Scroll down and Change the "Default Topics Returned" parameter to 25 or 50, and save the changes. Since this setting is stored in your browser 'cookies' (if enabled), it seems to use that stored value even if you are not logged in. So, if you use a PC that you haven't logged into the forum from, the setting still seem to remain at the default.
EXTERNAL PHOTO LINKS ON FORUM: You can still use external photo links in your posts on the new forum. They follow the rules of any link in that they have to have the URL link qualified down to the full image file name (example: .jpg). The links will open in a new browser window, the same as an uploaded image attached to a post. Since an image attachment to any post does not display inline with the post, the results are the same. You can use multiple external links within a post. This link is from photos on a site from Don Clink's 'Deuce@75' albums:

http://donclink.com/deuce_75_1/images/dscn2950.jpg

Using links from photo sites such as Photobucket can help in "size" issue with uploaded attachment files. For best viewing in web browsers, photos should be around the 800x600 pixel range, and probably not more than 1024x768. Most cameras today store HUGE jpg image files, as the default settings are in the 7, 8, 10, and 12Mb image sizes. The image files that are then attached are very large, and the browser can't display the full image size without using the scroll bars. Use the re-sizing functions of your photo editing software to reduce the image to 800x600, which reduces the file sixe and the image load time in the browser. Don uses Google's free Picassa3 software, which is an excellent photo management product. All of the photo albums of the Deuce, Grand National, and Auburn that are links on the NORG site were built using Picassa's web creation functions. And it's free? (THANKS to Don Clink for the info!)
HOW DO I SHOW MY EMAIL ADDRESS ALONG WITH MY USERNAME? You can LogIn on the Forum, and select PREFERENCES. On this page Members can add optional information such as their City,State, Country; Occupation; Hobbies: list a Homepage; list AOL Instant Messanger Handle; Signature; "Make Email Address viewable to others;" and even change the number of Default Topics shown on a page. WHEN others click on your profile, they will see this information.

EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / 1947 Ford 2 door coupe

Reply to Discussion | New Discussion

<< previous || next >>

Posted By

Discussion Topic: 1947 Ford 2 door coupe

cooporcoupe

10-03-2012 @ 4:44 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 1
Joined: Oct 2012

Just picked up a 47 ford, and I plan on restoring it soon. My question to this forum is. What way do I go, orginal or off just a little bit, does it matter?
It will come down to money but everthing does right.
There in no engine or transmission in car at this time.
Very little rust, inside is a mess, seat covers and door panels gone, some gauges missing but all in all I think I got a very good deal.
Please help me. I have a line on EARLY V8 PARTS I can get just about anything from them, don't know where they get the stuff but it is priced just right.
I also would like to know what can I expect on cost re-doing this car. I am going to retire soon so time is not a problem money wil be.
Thanks
John

juergen

10-03-2012 @ 7:04 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 257
Joined: Jan 2010

Nobody chimed in so here is my 2 cents worth.

About 10 years ago I sort of restored a 39 Sedan Delivery doing most of the work myself. I farmed out the engine machine work and the upholstery. I built a bored Merc engine from used swap meet parts but had a rolled and pleated seat and door sides made. It cost me $10,000. It would cost me more today. Just the rubber parts will cost over $1000.

The sad thing about restoration today is that you can probably buy a completed car in the same shape as your restoration for less money than the parts you purchase even when the work you do yourself is considered free. Of course the labor beats watching TV and slows down your beer drinking.

fla48

10-03-2012 @ 7:39 PM

reply profile send p.m.

New Member
Posts: 128
Joined: Nov 2011

My thoughts are, restoring a car is a hobby. Just take your time with it. Most of us take years to complete a rebuild. As with any hobby, they are all expensive, but if you set a budget and stick with it, it is a very fulfilling feeling when you get it on the road. There are lots of resources out there at your disposal. Good luck with the project. My personal preference would be to keep it as close to stock as possible, not to hot rod it.

supereal

10-03-2012 @ 9:10 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 6819
Joined: Oct 2009

As mentioned above, you should be prepared to face unanticipated expense to even reach safe driving condition. I have a '47 myself, a convertible, that was drivable, but barely. We operate a large general repair and machine shop, so much of the project, except paint and body work, was "in house". Even so, the total cost, to date, has reached nearly $30,000. It is a very nice fun car, but not a show example. Soaring parts costs, alone, have made even limited restoration hard on the wallet. If you are not prepared, your car may end up as one of those sad, abandoned projects.

trjford8

10-04-2012 @ 8:06 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 4215
Joined: Oct 2009

John, if you have a car with no motot or trans and it needs body work, paint, and upholstery you will easily spend $10,000-$15,000. Even if you do a lot of the work youself it will still be expensive. The secret is to set plan and stick with it. Don't continually change you mind after you start or the costs will rise substantially. Stock or not stock will be your decision. This site deal mostly with stock cars that have some minor modifications. No matter your decision we can help you with a lot of questions as there is a lot of experience on this site regarding old Fords.

TomO

10-05-2012 @ 7:24 AM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 7253
Joined: Oct 2009

To answer your original question, restoring the mechanical part of the car to stock is usually less expensive than modifications. Upholstery can be less expensive by going non-stock, but Mac's sells a stock kit that is reasonable.

As this is your first restoration, you will probably find it easier to go stock, rather than having to re-engineer thing to make the car road worthy.

Check out the vendors on this site, most of them have a good supply of reproduction parts. Join the V-8 Club and find a Regional Group near where you live. By doing this, you will have friends to advise you on the parts that you will need, be a source of some parts and lots of friendly companionship as you start down the road.

Tom

<< previous || next >>

NOTE: YOU MUST BE A REGISTERED USER AND BE LOGGED IN TO POST (and reply to) messages in this forum. If you are a first time user, please click the CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT in the masthead above to register and Log In. After that, all you do is LOG IN to enjoy using this site.

DISCLAIMER: The V-8 Club does no independent testing of any of the opinions, thoughts or suggestions presented in the website on the Forum, in the Tech Tips section, or any section. A reader should consider the website to be a forum wherein differing solutions to a particular set of circumstances may be discussed. Ultimately, the selection of an item for an individual's vehicle must be based upon the independent study of the vehicle owner in consultation with people in the hobby and restoration experts.

Early Ford V-8 Club Forum

Merchandise Questions

Membership Questions