Colin Peck - Wooden-Bodied Vehicles: Buying, Building, Restoring and Maintaining

One of the most often overlooked aspects of any restoration or newbuild project is sourcing original specification hardware. Specialist suppliers of period handles, locks, hinges, window winders and the like do exist, but are few and far between. So one of the key messages is, try to ensure you collect as much of the original hardware as you can when you collect that project vehicle, even if they are only good for patterns.

Ive previously mentioned the need almost to turn detective when pulling that wreck from a barn, the undergrowth or a farmers field, and to cover the ground where it has lain with a metal detector, or even search on your hands and knees if needs be. While some hardware can be sourced from specialists, other parts, particularly those that are unique to the wood-framed model in the product range, just wont be available as repros and you may end up scouring the country and paying an extortionate price for some obscure bracket or lock.

In general, many of the wood-framed vehicles built in-house by major manufacturers, and sold as their own products, are supported by car clubs and specialist suppliers today, as these usually carry a wide range of hardware fittings. However, vehicles supplied as a chassis/scuttle to a specialist body-builder usually ended up with hardware sourced from local suppliers, and trying to find a match today wont be an easy task. In some cases you may find suitable replacement fittings in unlikely places, such as the local boatyard or mobile home suppliers, and you may even find that parts from another vehicle type may be a good fit and match; in some extreme cases you may have to resort to getting parts custom made.

Sourcing original-style hardware for any restoration project is not going to be easy.

Barn finds can often be missing many hard-to-find and unique hardware, so check to see if everything is there.

Dovetails that help locate a wooden door in perfect alignment are available for most US-built cars, but not every supplier carries those that are unique to the woodenbodied station wagons. It pays to measure the old parts and to try and cross-reference them to repro parts if OEM part numbers dont match up with suppliers.

Trying to replicate a complicated corner bracket like this could be a slow, painful and costly exercise.

Heavy-duty brass hinges were used extensively in the coachbuilding trade. Replacements can be found at a few specialist suppliers.

In most cases the hinges available at your local hardware store just wont work on a vehicle. They wont be made strong enough to stand the wear and tear they will get on a vehicle, and the quality of metal used wont take the punishment of harsh weather conditions. On the other hand, heavy duty hinges can be sourced from specialists, but you may have to cut them to length, as seen in this trial fitting.

Even rusty brackets can be sand-blasted or used as templates for new parts, but trying to make such parts with no template could be time-consuming.

Piano hinges are popular for fitting tailgates, but it is essential to source a heavy duty steel version from a specialist. Aluminium or brass versions available at hardware stores are for household furniture only.

If mounting tailgate hardware in a non-original position it is essential to ensure that the upper tailgate can be raised high enough to avoid contact with your head when it is raised.

Tailgate hardware is available from specialist suppliers. The tailgate on my 1936 Ford uses a combination of reproduction swing-arm brackets from C & G in conjunction with notched lift arms sourced from a marine parts store.

Some of the hardest-to-find hardware for wooden-bodied vehicles is that associated with opening windows. Many vehicles were built either without opening windows, or with fairly rudimentary glazing, because of the complications in designing opening windows in basic wooden frames.

Many wood-framed vehicles were built with fairly basic window-opening mechanisms. However, those from other period vehicles can be re-engineered to fit, and give the driver the benefit of fully opening windows.