28-29 Closed Cab pick-up

BRENT in 10-uh-C

BRENT in 10-uh-C

Well-known member
Just as a heads-up, I just returned from Louisville and saw RoadsterUtes debuted their new reproduction 28-29 Closed Cab pick-up body. While the one they had on display was a street rod with plenty of mods, they are offering a "restorer" version complete with stock firewall, wood roof bows, stock length and all. While some might feel the price of $8,500 is a tad high, the quality I saw really looked good. I suppose the two biggest plusses is now there are repro doors & panels available for original trucks in need, ...and it will possibly preserve a few more original bodies from being hot rodded.
 

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That does look good, new doors sure will help save more pickups as well as 26-27 T Coupes and Tudors. Are the cab corners stock dimentions, the photo makes them look somewhat longer.
 
Thats cool and looks really good, but jeez, you can buy a whole model A for 8500. I got my RPU restored except the paint needed redone for 7200. It's a really good resto, completely gone thru. Who spends 8500 on a body?
 
Didn't know they were made Down Under, transportation would add a bit to that total. Are the panels stamped out or rolled one at a time? I can see a lot of work going into making the doors.
 
Looks nice, but a freind had a hard time getting half that out of a nicely restored and proffessionally painted cab that was ready to bolt on. Rod
 
29RPU said:
Thats cool and looks really good, but jeez, you can buy a whole model A for 8500. Who spends 8500 on a body?
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People with no welder, and/or little welding/metal work skill. People with limited time to search out doors for that model. Those that don't want to sell off the unsed parts as they make their hot rod or wait for wood kits to arrive and rework the wood. Those that don't want to straighten out the twisted body of a work truck.

Yea, a few would pay that money.
 
It is all about "perspective" and "value". As Mike stated, people that do not have the time and/or skill to fix 80 years of abuse will look at this as a value. The $8,500 price is the retail price from the distributors here in the states. With regard to who spends that kind of money on a body, the answer is "more than you think." Since I am a dealer for Brookville, I know what their production numbers are on the bodies they manufacture, ...and for those who were at Hershey a few years ago know what a 400A body I had there sold for that we had restored which had new wood installed and all the sheetmetal properly repaired.

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Gosh, I guess. I'd think with a little lookin, you can find something that doesn't need all that. My cab is great, almost looks new and I got the rest of a restored A with it.

Additionally, you could pick up a $6500 A, and welder, and body equipment for that.

I know there are some that buy them or they wouldn't make them. Just seems like there are much better options for those willing to look around with $ in their hands. Probably the biggest selling point, would be time, as you've both stated. I think you could pay for the skill and still be ahead.
 
29RPU said:
I think you could pay for the skill and still be ahead.
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And what does "skill" cost in your area?

While I am NOT going to tell you that you are wrong in your perspective, what I will tell you is from years of experience in this business, there is a valid reason why street rodders are buying older restorations and parting them out to have the better sheetmetal. Most 20-30 year old Model A "restorations" are not really restorations but more about a car that was 'repaired & repainted' where a hobbyist back then found a nice car to start with, disassembled it and repaired the worn items, --and used a lot of "it'll do" mindset as he re-assembled it. Afterwards these typical cars never stopped all that well, the steering was much akin to a tractor, the body squeaked and rattled, carburetors filled with sediment, lights didn't work well, on & on, ...and because of that, they were never driven all that much and became garage art. These type of cars sell for less than $10k because that is all they are worth! We all know of cars that are still like that in our clubs. Now enter the person who has the perception that a Model A is dangerous and unreliable in 'stock mode', so he decides he wants to modify it to make it safer and reliable where he can go places.

THAT brings me to the point that if a person wants a 28-29 pick up, --or a roadster, he can buy one that needs subrails, patch panels, door latches rebuilt, dents removed, etc., etc. PLUS all of the rust removed (even in the areas where a mediablaster cannot reach) for about $2,500 - $3,500 ...and then factor in an additional 100-150 hours to get all of the above work performed to make it equal to what the new body offers. In most areas it is difficult to find a reliable quality craftsman for less than $40 an hour, but if you look at what you are getting for $8k (doors that fit, latches that work properly, windshield frame, no dents or rust ever, ...) it is a value. Just like going out and buying a brand new vehicle from the dealership. It is a value for those in life who want quality and the nicer things that work as they were intended to.

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We have a LOT of those old restorations around here.And,a lot of them do go to the rodders,as most of them understand what you are saying about shop time.They are not paying $10,000 for a Model A body,they are NOT paying for the $12,000 worth of shop time that needs to be done on a $6500.car.I built a 28 RPU cab from a cowl and repro parts.I could have worked in the garage and bought 2-1/2 NEW cabs for the time I put into it.I used to maintain a 29 pickup for an old fellow,he started with a rust-free truck,took it to a small local shop that seemed to do nice work.The owner told him he would work on it by the hour,and he could decide where to draw the line himself on how far he wanted to go.He also told the owner he could sit in the office and watch every hour the truck was worked on if he liked.He wound up spending $15000.on the truck,about $4000.was for parts,new bed,fenders,etc.Every bit of work they did was very nice.He watched most of it being done,and he felt the guy working on it was very competent,and made every move count.That truck started out as,'all restored except for paint'.It had over 40 little dingles in the cab and hood,all time eaters.The rate in that shop then was $65.per hour,it is a lot more now.After he started driving it I replaced the rear end,all brakes and drums,every moving part in the front end,the transmission,ring gear,all shocks,every thing except the engine,and I did have to replace the head gasket on that so we went with a HC head while it was off.I have heard the term,'all restored'hundreds of times,and I think it is shorthand for,;all the bolts have been loosened up so it will be easier to take it apart and fix it.The man that did the paint on this truck seems to be following the progress of the new body,he feels he can buy one,prep,prime,block and shoot at least some colors for $10,000.It does sound like a lot,but he put close to that into a solid original.If you advertise a solid original cab around here for $2500-$3000.you won't have it for long.It will become a hot rod.
 
Guys, the manufacturer has several options on how the vehicle can be built. Since this was a street rod event, they were displaying it with the solid metal roof (in lieu of wood) and showed it with the extended length and recessed firewall. As I was trying to say above, they are offering this in a "restorer" version too that come equipped with a stock firewall, stock overall length, stock type doors & latches, stock type roof, etc.

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Lee said:
I need doors for my 28 Closed Cab Pickup, do they sell the doors only?
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Yes, the way I understand it is they will be selling individual pieces too. Kenny at Antique Auto Sheetmetal (Brookville Rdstr) is going to be a distributer and he told me he is working with them pretty closely. I would guess that initially they will be using all parts they are manufacturing trying to fill complete body orders they already have, but maybe you can go ahead and place an order for doors only and get in line?? My guess is that if you order them now and decide not to use them, there will be plenty of folks waiting in line that would re-purchase them from you.

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Are they really going to be making new gas tanks? Just flipped through the Street Rodder article at the grocery store and if I read it correctly it said they are in the works???
 
I understand what the proponents are saying, I just can't see it myself. I mean, are you guys really putting $8500 paint jobs on your A's??? Seems high for an entire body restore and paint (of the body only), much less just the cab and 8500 doesn't buy you paint in this case. This would...maybe make sense for the fine point judging cars and trucks, but then again, it is a RP, so it wouldn't fly right? The guy who had 10k in it wasn't just for the cab.

I just believe that one can buy a decent cab, have it professionally restored, the right way and have original Henry steel for way less than $8500, but I won't say I know everything. If you can't obtain a very nicely restoryed cab for less, then body and paint work has gone WAY up since I worked in the bodyshop.

I also believe that the '150' hours (mentioned above) to restore isn't a liability, but rather, part of the joy and satisfaction one gets by doing their own work, no matter how long the learning curve is or, the number of times it takes to be right, but.... I KNOW that is a whole 'nuther' can of worms.

I can read attitude into my own post, and believe me there isn't any. It just seems like a LOT of money to me that could be used elsewhere...thats all i'm thinking.
 
If you can't find good steel or have the where with all to do it yourself, THIS is an alternative. Be glad someone is producing them, and without all the wood in it. JMO S/rodder article gives a lot of info.
Paul in CT
 
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