Fender well spare tires............

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Brent would you happen to know where I could find a print like that for the left and right front fenders of a 28-29 Tudor?

I've been wanting to trade my fenders with wheel wells for a set without, but no luck. I am planning on filling the wheel wells prior to painting them and put my spare in the rear like it was originally. Someone put these on many years ago, don't have any knowledge of why.

Thanks,

JR

Yes, they are at the Benson Research Center (Archives). I think there is 7 different versions (drawings) of the 1928-29 fender including Service Replacement.

You really do not need the print to make the filler panel, you just need to have the ability to fabricate a reverse curved panel. He is basically how we do it...
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(The 2nd picture shows the panel already made and the fender is bolted into position as the panel is TIG welded into position and then planished.)

(The numbers on the 4th & 5th picture are the corresponding radii that the panel is stretched to.)

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[700rpm]

What dimensions do you have because my experience has been a 19" Firestone will fit without deflating in an original well. For those that do not believe me, think about what size the Station Wagon tire originally was!!

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I have twins on my 30 peekup, and the Firestones (6 years old) are tight, but I can put them in and remove them without deflating them.

 

[Smog Tech]

Brent, I do believe you are correct! My Firestone tires measure 5 3/ 4” at the widest point when inflated. The wheel wells on my car measure 6 1/ 4” wide at the fender, but are bowed in where the widest part of the tire sets in the well to 5 5/ 8”. Any ideas on how to remove the bow without breaking the well loose from the fender?

 

[rogerkb1936]

my experience was not the same as mr. terry's. i had some 19" firestones that would not fit in an original wheel well when inflated. i called coker tire and asked whoever answered the fone, that if these tires were made in original molds, as i had been led to believe they were, why they wouldn't fit. his answer was "i dunno".

 

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

my experience was not the same as mr. terry's. i had some 19" firestones that would not fit in an original wheel well when inflated. i called coker tire and asked whoever answered the fone, that if these tires were made in original molds, as i had been led to believe they were, why they wouldn't fit. his answer was "i dunno".

While I definitely understand your frustration, my explanation will likely not agree with you but I feel it is what it is. I honestly believe your issue is that you likely do not have an original factory-installed wheel well as you are led to believe. Just like today, there were other manufacturers of aftermarket sheetmetal back in the day, --and often folks mistakenly call these fenders NOS sheetmetal when in reality they were NORS. This also is why folks complain about some NOS sheetmetal not fitting well. Again, it really was not NOS.

Now what the Coker representative did not tell you. Coker is making their Firestone 4.50/5.00-19" tires with original moulds however it is to an original 5.00-19 size, ...and the original Model-A passenger vehicle originally used 4.75-19. While this might seem like a simple answer to the fitting issue, the truth is Ford used that same size (5.00-19") tire on their Station Wagons, ...which also used the side-mounted spare. Therefore the fender tire well was engineered to be used unilaterally between both size tires. That is why the Coker manufactured 19" Firestone will indeed fit the original fender well without deflating it.

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[BlueSunoco]

I always hated the idea of boogering up a freshly painted fender taking a spare tire in-and-out

 

[bikejunk]

I have a new old stock 2 piece rear tire cover that will not fit a new Firestone tire deflated or even off the rim, but fits like a glove on a 40 year old Goodyear with air in it.

 

[jr-41ford]

Thank you Brent, for the information. That's going to be a lot of work, have two fenders to work.