1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

T

Theduke23

Junior Member
1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

I’ve know about the location of this car for the last 10 years I’ve reached out to the owner of the property for the last six years and I finally got a call back asking if I was interested in the Merc. We made a deal and I bought it from the original owners who got it in 1939. it technically wasn’t in a barn. It was next to it so I don’t know if that counts.
 

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Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Theduke23 said:
I’ve know about the location of this car for the last 10 years I’ve reached out to the owner of the property for the last six years and I finally got a call back asking if I was interested in the Merc. We made a deal and I bought it from the original owners who got it in 1939. it technically wasn’t in a barn. It was next to it so I don’t know if that counts.
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591095
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Merc looks like a good project; hopefully the weather was kind to it in it's long outdoor sleep.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Floors are typical. But everywhere else is amazing. CA treats cars pretty well…
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Clues that hint of low mileage:
Door handles don't sag.
No side mirrors, yet only one rear fender bump.
Original coke bottle H-10s.
Original radio noise suppressor still on the coil.
Underhood looks untouched but for the heater hose and battery cable.
Driver side ignition bale off may indicate a simple ignition problem.
 
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Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Incredible find, The convertible Mercs were a far more appealing design. Keep us up to date, hope to see it running one day.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Just an FYI "IF" this is your first go with "early" Mercury's......I have two 39's and a 40 4 door Convertible Sedan......"IF" you see ANY Mercury specific part you "think" you may need....you best buy it....You're fixing to find out just how many parts will NOT inter-change from the 40 Ford's. SO....when removing your old parts/pieces be very very careful and just don't toss it thinking you find a replacement. Us Mercury guys are few and far between. Glad you have the drive to save the ole' girl and good luck with your endeavor. Lots of good help here on the "Barn" and look forward to hearing and seeing your post along your journey with her!!!! Keep Us in the loop!!
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

throw it on a trailer and haul it to the next car show and leave it on the trailer. enter it in the "originality" class and it may win chrome plated plastic trophy. these days you never know. start a new trend. it wasn't all that long ago that some big shots in the car show world couldn't get their car painted in time and showed it in primer. ...apparently, it was a big hit! :)
 
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Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

ford38v8 said:
Clues that hint of low mileage:
Door handles don't sag.
No side mirrors, yet only one rear fender bump.
Original coke bottle H-10s.
Original radio noise suppressor still on the coil.
Underhood looks untouched but for the heater hose and battery cable.
Driver side ignition bale off may indicate a simple ignition problem.
Click to expand...

Plugs are not original.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

I hope to see more of it in the future. Were you lucky enough to get paper on it as well?
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

What a shame it was left to suffer out in the weather. Best of luck getting it up and running. Then restoring it to decent driving shape.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

rockfla said:
Just an FYI "IF" this is your first go with "early" Mercury's......I have two 39's and a 40 4 door Convertible Sedan......"IF" you see ANY Mercury specific part you "think" you may need....you best buy it....You're fixing to find out just how many parts will NOT inter-change from the 40 Ford's. SO....when removing your old parts/pieces be very very careful and just don't toss it thinking you find a replacement. Us Mercury guys are few and far between. Glad you have the drive to save the ole' girl and good luck with your endeavor. Lots of good help here on the "Barn" and look forward to hearing and seeing your post along your journey with her!!!! Keep Us in the loop!!
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As a '39 Merc owner,.....the above statement is WORDS OF WISDOM.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

rockfla said:
Just an FYI "IF" this is your first go with "early" Mercury's......I have two 39's and a 40 4 door Convertible Sedan......"IF" you see ANY Mercury specific part you "think" you may need....you best buy it....You're fixing to find out just how many parts will NOT inter-change from the 40 Ford's. SO....when removing your old parts/pieces be very very careful and just don't toss it thinking you find a replacement. Us Mercury guys are few and far between. Glad you have the drive to save the ole' girl and good luck with your endeavor. Lots of good help here on the "Barn" and look forward to hearing and seeing your post along your journey with her!!!! Keep Us in the loop!!
Click to expand...

Yup. Finding that out for sure. Fortunately, It’s complete. Some stuff is rough but I am gonna run it as is.
With a stance upgrade. I’ll do floors myself with a bead roller and some help, it won’t look factory but that’s alright by me.
 
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Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

Theduke23 said:
Yup. Finding that out for sure. Fortunately, It’s complete. Some stuff is rough but I am gonna run it as is.
With a stance upgrade. I’ll do floors myself with a bead roller and some help, it won’t look factory but that’s alright by me.
Click to expand...

This will be a cool project, and it sounds as if you are going in an intelligent direction with it.
I can clearly envision this appearing pretty much as it is now but road worthy.
Please keep us updated during your project.
 
Re: 1940 Merc rescued “barn find”

This is an incredibly cool find. Please continue to post as you make progress.
 
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