It's rare that a professional car builder gets a free moment to even think about their own project, let alone dive headfirst into one. And it's rarer still that their personal workspace at home is opened up and shown to the public. But when Michael Moal told us about a project that he and his brother David were building with the aid of their father Steve, we jumped at the chance to take a sneak peek at what the crew at Moal Coachbuilders was building for themselves. We're all familiar with their past builds: the AMBR-winning "Sedeuced" built for Eric Hansen, Bob Dron's '32 2-Low, or perhaps the most memorable, "Toolman" Tim Allen's Licorice Streak roadster. But few of us know what the Moal trio have in their own garages.
The latest personal project from the Moal crew comes by way of Steve's son Michael in the combo form of a gennie Ford and Brookville-bodied '28-29 modified roadster. Powered by a tri-power-equipped 327ci small-block Chevy backed by a Borg Warner four-speed, the boys welded up a custom chassis before hanging a dropped axle and quick-change off either end, sprung off a torsion bar setup, one of their signatures. They also applied their collective skills to the aluminum track nose out front and the custom rear panel and alloy gas tank out back. Inside the cockpit, a set of their Moal Bomber gauges fill the dash while a four-spoke Bell-style steering wheel sits atop a LimeWorks column, mated to a 12:1 Tom Lee steering box. The whole shebang was then sat astride a set of Wheel Vintiques wire wheels, shod in Goodyear Eagle rubber.
With the rare chance to build a hot rod for himself, Michael, with the help of his brother and father, jumped at the opportunity. And although it's been an on-again, off-again project for nearly two years, the Moal crew hopes to hit the road in the modified by the time you read this.
The build started out like...
The build started out like many do, in the mock-up stage. Here, the '28-29 roadster pickup body, a Model A grille shell, and a pair of rollers are at the ready so the wheelbase and any preliminary frame measurements can be made.
A pair of 2x6-inch framerails...
A pair of 2x6-inch framerails was fabricated to follow the shape of the roadster body, just short of the 100-inch wheelbase.
The front crossmember was...
The front crossmember was fabricated to support the front of the torsion tubes while the rear of each tube is supported by this bracket that is gusseted to the tube itself, and features a built-in pad for the torsion stop.
Behind the front crossmember,...
Behind the front crossmember, each framerail was sleeved to allow the drag links to pass through. Also note the panhard bar that limits side to side movement.
Here are the components Michael...
Here are the components Michael used to make the shock and headlight mounts. Dykem layout fluid was applied before the shape and hole pattern was laid out.
The tubing X-member has a...
The tubing X-member has a drop-out mount for the transmission and features a full driveshaft hoop.
The engine mounts were fabricated...
The engine mounts were fabricated in a similar fashion as the shock mounts.
With the front suspension...
With the front suspension and X-member sorted and the engine and transmission in place, the quick-change rearend was mocked into position.
Uprights were fabricated to...
Uprights were fabricated to house the rear torsion bar tubes instead of a kick up in the frame.
Here's the modified as it...
Here's the modified as it sat this past summer. Check out the aluminum track nose and fuel tank and those cool scoops that cover the cowl vent and hairpin ends, both Moal products.
Before any of the pieces were...
Before any of the pieces were fabricated on the car, detailed drawings were first made, incorporating every aspect of each individual piece. Here, the rear shock mounts can be seen in three versions: the original drawing, a cardboard mock-up, and the freshly carved steel pieces.
The shock mounts are tacked...
The shock mounts are tacked to the rearend and the shocks in place. Check out the lower shock mount that was incorporated into the end of the framerail. That cardboard piece is a mock-up of the finished torsion arm, which will ride between two bearings mounted between the upper shock mount and the bracket seen here.
A plywood buck was constructed...
A plywood buck was constructed so that a track nose could be fabricated around it.
While the majority of the...
While the majority of the body received little modification, the rear portion was lengthened and fabricated to better suit the bare backside of the modified.