1936 Ford Humpback Rat Rod Roadster Build

This is what was delivered: chassis, straight axle, wishbone, spring, and a 1936 Ford Four Door Humpback body that was at some point cut down to a two-door roadster.

The first thing we noticed was that while there is in fact a chassis, the body is welded to in almost unibody fashion. This is a dirt cheap build for a friend, we’ll have to make this rat rod work without removing the body. Here we go…

Project: 1936 Ford Humpback Rat Rod Roadster

It should be noted that this is a super budget build actually being done as a trade (some small cash for miscellaneous parts) for a friend.

We’ll be using what we’ve got on hand to get this rod on the road with as little cash outlay as possible. We’ve collected up a steering column, brake master cylinder, and pedal hangar and the owner brought us a dashboard to work with.

The wishbone was split and bungs welded on the ends.

We did not like the width of the initial setup and opted to relief-cut the split-wishbone radius rods and give them a bend. For now, just a simple plate to affix the spring during mock-up and fitting.

We like what we see so we make the spring perch a permanent part of the car and fully weld the radius rod bends. Now we need to steer this thing.

The steering column was mounted with an under-dash style clamp mount we had around the shop.

Steering box, linkage and pitman arm and drag-link in place.

In the interest of budget, this rat rod gets what was available: a Buick V-6 and a THM350 3-speed automatic transmission. The engine runs, here we go…

Not so fast! Fitting the body would be wise before we went too much further…

The body panels fit, so lets sling an engine in this ride…