1946 Ford Woodie - Major Build

M

Matlack

Junior Member
Well, I broke down and bought a 1946 Ford Woodie. It needs everything! This will be a fun ride! I will be asking lots of questions.

Matlack
 

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Good for you. When it comes time to purchase the wood working tools that you'll need to complete this project, buy the best that you can afford.
Good luck, I envy your undertaking.
 
Good luck to you. My brother had one in the 60's. It turned out pretty nice. It was a little better off to start with, tho. Ha ha

Al Hook
 
Great project. I remember when I had an intact 1946 woodie. In 1963 I joined the Navy and went off to Viet Nam telling my Dad to just sell it and keep the cash... He sold it for $50...lol One of those wish I had a place to have stored it all of these years cars. Chap
 
Yes, that's what we'd call a major project. If you strive to replicate an original '46 Ford woodie as Henry built it you will need some serious cash and equally serious skills in all phases of mechanics , bodywork and woodworking. But I'm sure you know that. If you just want to turn it into a wood wagon that you can bomb around town in and have some fun, that will save time and money. We do not know your skill set or your expectations so it's hard to offer advice. I CAN however suggest that if your goal is to have fun owning and driving an old ford woodie, you would be miles, ok MILES ahead by buying one that is at least running and complete. The price on these cars has dropped considerably in the last ten years, to the point you can buy one for what many folks are paying for a used mini-van. If , like me you have a woodworking background and decent mechanical skills,and want the unique experience of putting one of these together, then it could be a worthy endeavor. Lastly, you will need a heaping helping of what my dad referred to as 'stick-to-it-iv-ness' . Tell us of your goals, expectations and experience. And welcome to the perculiar madness that is woodie wagons.
 
Another V8 club member and I rebuilt both our 40 woodies as between us we had a complete set of original wood parts for patterns. Each of our cars was missing one whole side and half the top. Fortunately, I had a Left side, he had the Right side. I hope you at least have one side of each piece that is missing from the picture, including the plywood.
We traded work, I did all the mechanical, body/fender, paint, glass, top and varnish work on both cars, my buddy being a high end (I call a wood artist) cut out all the wood for both cars and we even made our own plywood starting with 1/8" aircraft grade maple and veneering it up to the right thickness. Tom apprenticed with a very high-end furniture maker in L.A. before moving up here to the PNW.
I also hope you have all the hardware and latches needed for that project. It cost us $7500 each for all the raw clear maple needed to reproduce the 40 body. And that was in the early years of 2000. The finger joint cutter alone cost us $750 made by Seattle Tool. You probably are lucky in that 42-48 hardware is mostly the same if you are missing some.
I wish you luck, I know how much time and work it is. There is a photo album of the finished car in my Album area.
 
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Thanks for the advice everyone. I just got my VIN verification completed for a title so I will now start on it. I am trying to find used wood for now. I know there has to be some out there from old restorations with new wood out there.
 
Was at the Canfield, Ohio swap meet today. Ran into a guy that has a 1942 Ford station wagon. Chassis and front clip was there but the wood was gone. He found someone that took all the wood from another station wagon and stored it inside. They left the chassis outside until it wasn't savable. Anyway, he was able to buy the wood from them. Lucky break. Reminded me of your project.
 
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