Building A Hood Latch For The 1938 Ford Convertible From VW Parts!!

[@jerrylong381]

I think putting the slam panel under the hood sides would look better. I love rivet nuts. They are an elegant solution in so many applications. I was happy to see Moon looking away from the welding arc. I had a friend who's pooch got cataracts that he thinks came from him watching him weld. It's something that many of us never really think about when we're fabricating with our furry family members in the shop.

[@Ecosse57]

good point about pet's eyes. i'm with ya on the placement of the panel too.

[@alseidel5622]

Glad you were able to sort the latch out. One comment, so if you have to remove the hood side panels you have to remove the “slam panel”. That being the case I assume you might think about making that process as easy as possible. The slam panel mounted under the hood side would look best. Good luck.

[@logansellers2747]

I always have to put the dog out when I'm welding. It freaks him out but yet he stares straight at the arc...

[@judgedread-q4t]

Neat solution. I would put the slam panel under the edges, it will be lower. 38's coming along nicely.

[@robertrissmiller6916]

Put the slam panel under the grille panels, will look much better.

[@davegettemy9679]

I really enjoyed watching you modify the hood latch. I was never a fan of 38 Fords but watching you modify your car I would definitely own one.

[@IronTrapGarage]

I appreciate that!

[@DooDeeDew]

Sweet modification, great work. 👍👍👍

[@johnkelly6942]

Glad to see the Ford trim returning.

[@Ecosse57]

if seeing moon doesn't put a smile on your face i'd say you're not livin right.

[@2duser2]

The look on your face when you saw how big the gap was between the hood and the side panels was priceless. I have experienced that same felling many - many - many times and know just how you felt. The best laid plans---. Another great video. Thanks for the education and my morning chuckle.

[@danontherun5685]

I'm sure I could hear the wheels turning in his mind considering the solution.

[@camaroboy1968ss]

Those latches are great to use, great idea for the 38. We have one on our 56 Chevy custom "Miss Taboo" due to pancaking the good and removing all the stock latch mechanism. The cable pull feature is nice to route and hide the handle for a custom.

[@fredacosta7219]

Great video showing some of the different snags you need to overcome building these beasts. Love your channel breh. Hate you for causing an insatiable addiction to looking for old cars.

[@KristineSteele-pr8kx]

My favorite car to watch you bring back to life. Just something about the style, character and history of the car. Learning a lot. And of course I was happy to see Moon make a cameo appearance ♥️

[@DuckReach432]

Great to see Moon in the shop. I miss 'mail call with Kate and Moon.' People used to send them so much food from around the world, there could have been an Iron Trap food store for the leftovers.

[@charlesbecker9617]

Fascinating, as usual. With my '41 Ford sedan, I am working on additional tail lights/ turn signal lighting. I've got the basic arrangements worked out. Set it up, and see what adjustments/changes might be necessary to have everything looking good.

[@johnthiel7422]

I have to give you a lot of credit...... I would have given up . Your vision of metal work is amazing .

[@--jefferson1555]

Nice fabrication job. The VW part was the perfect solution and your custom work really added some strength to a weak area. Great seeing Moon "quality inspector" back on the job.

[@TheodoreCross-d7b]

I used a 66 VW hood latch on the trunk of my 29 Ford roadster. Worked great!!

[@simonevans343]

Love this car, Love all your cars. Love the content and your vibe

[@rolandtb3]

Measured persistence and determination. Plans to improve and hide gaps with trim. Safety and functionality are much better.

[@willymccoy3427]

Looking good and I like the VW latch set up. Just a thought. Unless you just like that stick hood prop, the old Willys Jeep trucks from the late '40s to about 1962 used a prop rod that attached to one of the radiator support rods and slid back and forth on it as the hood opened and shut. The other end of the rod attached under the front of the hood near center. Open the hood and rod would slide up in place pretty much automatically and when open would be near vertical. As you go to shut the hood, just give the prop rod a little push to the rear to get it started and it would slide down the radiator support rod towards the firewall. No more "Where's that darn prop stick?"

[@IronTrapGarage]

Good idea. I’ll look into one of those or making a version. Thanks!

[@patmccarthy5069]

Matt - your a master of fabrication!!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Still learning!

[@garycamara9955]

There used to be early Cadillac taillight kits. You could put Cadillac tailfins on most cars. There was a,40 ford that ran around with Caddy taillights and fins. That was in the 60s . I think JC Whitney sold the kits. There was a kit at the local NAPA parts store for years.

[@Mopar46]

Presumably that "slam panel" would channel a bit more incoming air, straight into the radiator? Bonus!!

[@matthewschneider2089]

Dude!! Great video!!! The small things are always major problems!!! But someone will use your grief to fix their problem!!!great job!!!✌️

[@stephensmith3018]

Thats cool! I have been using those VW pieces for years. They are harder to get now but also look at the more modern VW/Audi as their mounts are similar. Thanks Matt for the video!

[@shotsrodder]

That piece should help with cooling , forcing the air through the radiator 👍

[@johnfowler6600]

Looking good benefit of your slam panel forces more air thru radiator to keep the caddy motor cooler. Not much a fan of VW parts but as the saying go "Necessity is the mother of invention "👍

[@JohnRHealy-d7f]

Patience, and like you said, inspiration (and a whole lot of experience) wins the day. She's beginning to look really nice. Thanks for sharing your passion !

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@mikedavis3841]

Piece of bailing wire for a hood latch that's some of that shade tree mechanical stuff. 👍

[@atruefreethinker1944]

my vote... slam panel under bay sides. sorry, it looks patch together. that being said, love this project.

[@WilliamNast-v1g]

VERY, VERY INTERESTING AND IT WAS GOOD TO SEE MOON AGAIN!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@dombutler7685]

Nice work Matt, a big gap is way better than getting the hood latch stuck!, glad it all worked out well!

[@JONMEREDITH]

Done well! A good challenge indeed. It was fantastic to watch you achieve yet another fabulous success on this GREAT car!! Excellent video and music! Thanks guys!

[@keithkrause3386]

I sure like what you're doing with this car! I also hope that you repaint it the same blue that most of the car is. A grey convertible top would go great with it.😊

[@murdoc6501]

Oh man, know this frustration! I have almost 20 hours of cursing and fitting tied up in getting my hood to latch and line up on my '46 Business Coupe! Admire your patience, perseverance and skill! Nice solution and it looks great! Go Iron Trap, keep moving forward!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@terry3665]

The VW latch is perfect since the slam panel is the same shape as a bug trunk lid!

[@bengone3349]

Very nice work Matt. True hot rodding as a hot rodder would do.

[@TOMRostock]

The Hood needs to stay up w/o the Broom Handle, slam panel could look better, but you're an artist Matt.

[@johnkranz4004]

Very nice work Matt

[@willardway3037]

I have a crazy idea ! n your OEM headlights how about installing LED headlights in place of the old headlights, and electroplating the head light buckets your self ? It's not hard to do. The Hardest thing is finding the sacrificial material. A heigh out put battery charger would be nice. 1st step would be copper plating polishing and then the chrome. Another way is to sand and polish the steal bucket and painting a clear coat on the bucket. I'm not sure as to which one would be better?

[@bernielowe3709]

Move the slam panel under grille

[@mitchelpinion1852]

Appreciate the real world view. Expecting everything to go smoothly the first time is nowhere near realistic. Persistence is required.

[@patjohnson3100]

Very nice clean job of putting in the improved latch. Safety and reliability have to come first. As you correctly note, a hood flying open could be a real disaster. Your installation also looks cool. I'm glad you are putting the original hood trim back on.

[@thomasst.martin3308]

Congratulations on an important job well done. There is nothing more disheartening than finishing up a really cherry '40 Deluxe coupe and having the hood open at 60 mph wrapping over the windshield!!!

[@steveclark4291]

Thank you Matt for the update on the '38 Ford ! It's coming along nicely !

[@IronTrapGarage]

More to come!

[@danontherun5685]

Belt drive fans do least when you need them the most. A 4 blade eats a lot of hp and wears out water pumps a lot faster. Electric fans use minimal hp and only work when needed. They use much less room, fit either side of the radiator and much safer. My high compression engines rarely start the fans even on hot days and I've never had one get hotter than 185 while my fixed blade pals dread over heat. Even my two prewars are electric fanned and generators keep up with them. I use TESTED 165 thermostats.

[@kevinharms5558]

Electric fans and traditional cars don't mix. Think 1960 bud.

[@danontherun5685]

Naw, last belt drive fan I had tossed a blade at idle and wrecked inner fender, hood and water pump and I checked it before I had it coated. I drive all my cars a lot so dependable is kinda important to me.@@kevinharms5558

[@randyham6172]

The 38 Ford convertible is my fav, keep up the great work on it.

[@TheodoreCross-d7b]

Sooo much better job than Bad Chad did when he hacked up the pristine 37 Sedan. Class act at Iron Trap.

[@blackgtx]

I retrofit the same latch onto my ‘58 Apache, it’s simple and effective 👍

[@IronTrapGarage]

Right on!

[@TrashcanGarage]

That slam panel really does the job of making it look clean. Nice! 🔥👍

[@IronTrapGarage]

I think so too!

[@TrendsbySterling]

A lot of work for such a little part! Good job Matt!

[@IronTrapGarage]

Yes it was!

[@akumushikyo]

I think the slam panel would look good with a little bead around the outside so it recessed it down into the void a little, but that is just me.

[@garysoykin2783]

Aren’t you? The one who told me the Volkswagen bug hood latch are really awesome to use their adjustable. They’re easy to install and they got a cable that works well?

[@stevenkarnisky411]

When you need to get at the motor are you going to be able to get those hood side wings off easily? The "slam panel" seems like it would bend and warp if not removed carefully first.

[@chrisburzenski2317]

looking good

[@richardphelan8414]

This is why I don't do Body work. mechanical work all day long no problem, fitment of body parts can't handle it ,You on the other hand do one hall of a bang up job of it ,awesome stuff can't wait for spring to see the first around the block run

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks for watching!

[@edwardberwind8544]

Matt a real tough one but you got it. Great job.

[@IronTrapGarage]

Thanks 👍

[@barryhickman6911]

LOOKS good, excellent job!

[@GreggGonzalez-ei1gu]

That’s a great idea

[@barneypierce6811]

Good job, Thank you.

[@5798Mike]

Big job -well done

[@neilgarrad4931]

Thanks

[@shanewright6958]

Looking good 👍👍

[@RoDen-p5q]

still a nice car Matt!

[@Fordman7575]

Wouldn't it have been easier to cut out and drop the center of the "slam panel"?

[@chuckb9867]

I knew it would come out o k when I saw a moon Helping Mike's car needs some work too.❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😂😂😂😂

[@Formulabruce]

Awesome!

[@kenpecora7526]

You didn't show us how you mounted the part under the hood.

[@xozindustries7451]

I would have to do the hood latch before the motor because there’s no way it would have worked for me and I’d have to crawl in there to get it apart 😂

[@pappete9988]

👊

[@sergueiothonucci1638]

😃😃

[@dennisschickling2249]

Nice Work. #STAYSAFE #PHILLYPHILLY 🇺🇸

[@rayvernon3534]

To bad you couldn't lower the bottom receiver on the slam panel

[@RichieCat4223]

6:08 That will help with cooling also. The biggest part of the job was the part on the hood and you did show pictures before, during or after. Poor.

[@airheadvw4479]

No car is complete until vw parts are added

[@yobop6072]

....put it underneath....that looks like you just threw something on.... That's what my dad would have said....cut the shapes at the radiator....

[@venkatanarasimhamkadambari242]

Excessive Talking and Very Less of Work

[@dalehall2993]

What's you're youtube channel??

[@jerrylong381]

It looks like you stumbled into the wrong channel. I think you were looking for "Rate My Hack".

[@venkatanarasimhamkadambari242]

Very Bad use of Tools

[@JayBird-xi2ws]

Very bad use of comment. Stop stealing oxygen

[@chuckb9867]

Best comment on youtube today​@@JayBird-xi2ws

[@billywird]

Interesting and clean installation. Do you think that it will be better to put that piece you made under the fender edge as opposed to it just sitting on top. I believe that it would look more like it came from the factory that way. It is getting closer to the first drive though.🥸👍