How To Replace a Ford Model A Rear Quarter Panel

01 Natalie Bolea’s Highboy coupe was seen as a finished feature in the Mar. ’22 issue — Natalie Bolea’s Highboy coupe was seen as a finished feature in the Mar. ’22 issue, now let’s look at the masterful metalwork that brought it to this point while under the eye of E.J. Talik of Craftworks Fabrication.

Raising the Bar, Reshaping the Wheel Wells on a Model A

By Ron Covell – Photography By E.J. Talik

When building a hot rod, selecting the right wheels and tires and achieving the proper stance are crucial. Most often these cars are lowered considerably over stock, and larger-than-stock tires are usually fitted. This often leads to a mismatch between the tire and the fender recess in the body. Many builders simply live with this, but a few take on the considerable task of reshaping the fender recess.

02 With the final ride height established and the correct wheels and tires fitted, masking tape is used — With the final ride height established and the correct wheels and tires fitted, masking tape is used to lay out a line consistent with the curvature of the tire.

When Craftworks Fabrication took on Natalie Bolea’s Model A coupe (Modern Rodding, Mar. ’22) project, they agreed that this would be a no-holds-barred effort. One of the earliest tasks was to establish the ride height, then do whatever it took to get the rear fender recess to match the curvature of the tire.

03 A beading machine is used to shape the new reveal and Clecos are used to hold the panel in place — Using the tape layout as a guide, new metal is cut to the desired contour. A beading machine is used to shape the new reveal and Clecos are used to hold the panel in place.

As it turns out, it took a lot. The desired location of the reveal was laid out with tape, then new metal was shaped on a bead roller to match the contour. The old reveal was cut out and the new metal was fitted in place. Of course, the recessed area below the reveal had to be made from scratch, and there was rust damage in the quarter-panels that required repair, too.

04 It’s crucial that the new panel look good from all angles — It’s crucial that the new panel look good from all angles, so it’s important to inspect the placement from all viewpoints before the panel location is finalized.

In the end, nearly half of the quarter-panel was remade in new metal, and the bottom edge of the quarter-panel just behind the door was given a subtle curve to match the Deuce-style frame rails.

05 Once everything seems correct, the quarter-panel is cut away in preparation for butt-welding the new panel into place — Once everything seems correct, the quarter-panel is cut away in preparation for butt-welding the new panel into place. TIG welding was used exclusively for this job.

All of this took a huge amount of work, but looking at the finished car, you can see that all the elements fit together perfectly–so much so that many people may not realize that major modifications were made in this area.