Beck TD, Part 7: Custom Stuff

Some days, you just don't feel like getting dirty. And some days, you just want to play with your home shop machinist stuff - the milling machine and lathe. I know you all have felt that from time to time.

Today was that day, and I had something specific in mind. In Part 6, I was grumbling about inaccessible nuts and bolts while digging my way down to the steering rack. I decided to do something about it.


First, I made six special nuts for the front body pan that I removed. In 1952, there were actually captured square nuts held in sheet metal brackets that made it easy. All that remains of that is partial brackets that make it tough to get a wrench on the standard hex nuts that were added some time in the last 65 years. I started with 1/4" thick bar stock, cut it to size on the band saw, milled it square, and drilled and tapped 5/16 - 18. They look real official, which they should since it took over two hours to make them! I only need four, but once you get started making stuff, it's hard to stop.

I'll have to clean up the remainder of those sheet metal brackets that held the original square nuts, and then I can bond these to the underside of the fenders and just screw it together from the top. I've ordered some stainless steel truss head screws that should look really nice holding that panel in place.

The other custom bit is for remounting the steering rack. The bracket for that has a "bump" on the inside that, 65 years ago, provided a stop for a square nut. Those nuts are long gone, and the bump has degraded into a lump that won't stop anything from turning. However, it does a great job of interfering with a wrench trying to hold a standard nut!

I made some custom steel washers that have a shoulder to avoid the bump, and enough thickness to clear. It took both lathe and milling machine work to make these. The hole is 5/16". I'll use four of the six for that task, and have a couple of spares of these also.

I'm using grade 8 socket head cap screws to hold the steering rack in place, because those will ease access from the top. The washers will allow a standard nut on the bottom with clearance for a wrench, without the muttering and grumbling that accompanied the removal.

So, a pleasant few hours in the shop, and I didn't even get dirty!

Continue on to Part 8...