31pontiac

June 2015. First car show, first time it has seen the light of day since starting this project. Paul Spotts convinced Chris B. and myself to bring our unfinished 1931 Pontiac coupes to the Pypes show in Hatfield to display similar but different builds. He had also rebuilt the motors for both cars.

With the rebuilt 428 and Turbo 350 back in the chassis, we went back to working on the body, specifically chopping the doors.

After the dirty fab work around the 428 was completed, I took it to my long time friend, Pontiac drag racer, and Pontiac engine builder Paul Spotts, who rebuilt it per my request for a low-compression, 360 to 400 horsepower, dual-quad Pontiac V-8 with a '60's look. It looks and sounds great! 1024141708.mp4

Finally back to work on the hot rod, I made the A/C compressor mount and alternator mount.

Near disaster struck in Feb. 2014. A partial roof collapse from the snow load on the building housing the '31 prohibited me from working on the car for over 5 months. Fortunately a non-loadbearing wall was enough to stop the progression of the collapse before the roof caved in on my car and equipment.

No need for apologies SPRINT 6, I don't consider it a hi-jack. I appreciate the comments. I have watched the Cammer Coupe's progression from start to its current state (are they ever really finished?) on the HAMB and the PY Forums and have met him and seen it several times at the Pypes show in Hatfield. Nice car.

In spring of 2013 a 1969 Pontiac 428 became available, so it was out with the Olds and in with the new.

Next, assembly of the new wood structure began, while constantly checking it was level and square ( probably WAY more meticulously than during the original factory assembly).

We welded the roof to the body and began removing what was left of the original wood.

After waiting over 4 months, the new wood for the body arrived late in December 2010. This is what all of the wood in the body of a 1931 GM 5W Coupe looks like. Before I began assembly, I covered each piece with 2 coats of System 3 2-part clear epoxy to hopefully preserve the wood and stabilize it from humidity-related expansion/contraction.

And then , after several years of research, it was time to cut the roof !

Not sure exactly when , but sometime in the mid to late 2000s, Pennsylvania began to allow fenderless and hoodless hot rods, so we tried a few more possibilities.

Thanks for the tip. I intend to paint the frame body color, but I'll keep it in mind for other possible uses.

Cowboydanny, the chrome plating company will need to chemically strip the old chrome off of your grille shell. I have tried to remove it by sandblasting and sanding, neither of which worked very well. They should also be able to do any metal repairs prior to plating. Also, look for a shop with a good reputation and be prepared for sticker shock. For chrome plating, you get what you pay for.

Work continued, adding the front axle, Buick drums, the narrowed rear, and wheels and tires. A lot of mockups were made also, in search of just the right look and stance for a hot rod.

The frame needed to be strengthened to handle the increased HP (300 from a stock J2 Olds), so we modified an "X" made by Chassis Engineering for a '32 Ford to fit a '31 Pontiac frame and then added boxing plates with lightening holes. Also removed almost all of the original front crossmember and installed a '33 Ford front crossmember.

In keeping with the '60's theme, my first choice for powering the coupe was a Pontiac 421 or 389. Being unable to find either one that fit my budget, I widened my search to include Buick nailheads and Oldsmobile rockets and found a 1957 Olds J2 for a fair price.

Thanks to everyone who commented. The plan was/is to go for a '60's hot rod look with a few concessions to safety and convenience. First step is disassembly ( or "deconstruction" as they say on TV ).

Triumph Italia.

Sorry if I misled anyone, modifications have been going on since 1999. I thought I would share the journey from then up to it's current state (pic is pretty close to present condition). A list of "improvements" are as follows: Replaced all of the wood in the body with new wood from Jim Rodman, Chopped top (3" at the windshield and 2.5" at the rear window, narrowed '57 Pontiac rear housing with a '62 Pontiac 3:08 posi center section, mounted with coilovers and Pete & Jake's ladder bars, eliminated the parallel leaf springs from the front end and installed a Ford style transverse leafspring and drilled I-beam forged front axle with '39 Lincoln repro front brakes and Buick finned aluminum brake drums, boxed and "X"ed the frame for strength and for power I have a '69 PONTIAC 428 with dual quad Carter 500s putting out about 400 HP on 87 octane. I will continue from the beginning next post.

Guess i'll try my hand at this 'Progression Place'. My brother and I bought my 1931 Pontiac Sport Coupe in 1976 for $500 after passing on it one year earlier. I bought our '59 Bonneville the next year and sold my half to him. In 1999 he got a 1941 Willys moredoor and a vision of building a Gasser style pickup, so I bought the Pontiac back from him. These pics are from 1999 when I got it home.

You've got a good eye JUSTA6, I had forgotten about that car, let alone seeing it in the background of that picture!

Don't know the entire history, but I think when William Pollock passed, the cars were dispursed and the building was used intermittently as a restoration shop until the current owners acquired it.

Not a real GTO . It' s a '66 LeMans with a GTO front clip, having work done in spurts as the owner comes up with money.

Pottstown, Pennsylvania. It was once Pollock' s Auto Museum ( decades ago ) and was purchased by Ragtops & Roadsters, a restoration shop in Perkasie, PA specializing in British car restoration.