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OLD Car wooden parts?

larry merlau

larry merlau

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Delton, Michigan
i was just asked if i could make some bows for a old car called a margette, i told them that i would need to see what they are after,, so now has anyone done anything like this and how did you do it? is this a bent lamination or a steamed process? and how much does this kind of work go for she said she needs 2 pair of these bows..
 
i think that the bows she is talking about are the bows under the roof covering. on most cars of that vintage, like our dad's model a, the roof was not sheet steel, but a framework with a top covering of some sort of weather proof material (vinyl or some such), with bowed supports to form a shallow arc, then fitted out with batting, then the interior material.
 
bill i think you have it,,i thought she said it was four door though?? and am not sure how many doors the whippet has? and i used steel wool and water mix for the coloring, the gray was making me look to old:)
 
Larry,
Many (most?) old - like pre 1935 - cars had wooden body frames with metal hammered over them. In fact, the 2012 British Morgan still has wooden framework.

The most used woods were Ash or White Oak, although Birch, Beech, Maple and Red Oak were also sometimes used. Bending was either steam, or glue-lammed, depending on the wood, the degree of bend, and where on the car it was used. Some curved pieces were even just cut from thick stock. There was virtually no lathe work involved (good thing, eh? :D )

I forget who it was, but somebody here posted some really nice pix of the woodwork he did on some car or truck restorations - maybe a year ago?. You might wanta check the archives and contact that person for advice.
 
You can make the bowl with some gluing. I don't remember the angle, but tilting your bandsaw table, you can cut a bowl out of a single board and stack the rings, glue and sand. Yes I know it is narrow strips, but they can be glued into a board of proportion.
 
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