Summershandy

Thanks for those stories gang and the moral! I spoke with the old gentlemen last night at a car meet. He was there with his '69 Mustang. He owns couple antiques too. I forgot to mention he worked for many years as a mechanic at the Ford dealership in the 50's up. He knows his stuff. He doesn't really drive the truck much anymore along with a couple other of his cars. I had questioned in my mind about how he went about certifying it to be road worthy. The cab/roof/floorboards were badly rotted. He used another truck to cut out the needed body parts and brazed them in place. Apparently that's a big no-no to be certified in our neck of the woods. He said much work would have to be done to replace all that. He knows a lot of people and probably with cash and a handshake got a road certification. When I asked what kind of number he was thinking of, he paused and said, "you know how rare that truck is?" That to me say's a lot of dollar signs. On another note, I never really liked the way he put things back together. I love close to original at least the look. His seats, steering wheel, shifter and lots of other parts are from other vehicles. He's selling it "as is" and recommended saving my money for something else.....at 60, I still respect my elders and my bank account. I did snap this pic at his place while he was working on it. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend everyone! Mark

TAKerry....is that fur on the door panel? I had a '67 mustang fastback when I was 18. I covered the interior with that fur and still cringe to this day when I think about it! LOL

Just sharing a story. Back in the early 90's, I picked up this 1966 Ford truck in hopes to restore it one day. It was the short box step side that caught my eye. I had been living in an apartment back then and the poor thing had to be stored outside. The body was rough, the tranny had no reverse but the engine was a rebuilt 289 and I actually drove it a couple times. In 2000 we finally purchased our home and there it sat in the garage collecting dust. 7 years ago I finally came to realize I wasn't going to restore it and also didn't have faith in myself. I sold it to a family friend for my yellow Lab...cheap. I kind of regret it now after working on the old Pontiac and regaining that faith. The buyer had been a retired mechanic and an avid ford collector. He needed a work truck and got it on the road. I went to visit him once or twice and said, "if you EVER think of selling this, please let me know." My sister in law saw him yesterday and he told her to tell me, "tell Mark I'm thinking of selling the truck." My heart started pounding. I will contact him soon but I'm tight on cash and space for another vehicle. I'll let ya know what the outcome is.......

Gave the motor a power wash today. An air gun is handy to get the water out of those plug recesses. A bucket over the air cleaner keeps water out of the carb too. The Hirsh enamel paint is lifting in a spot but that's for winter touch ups. Restrictions are slowly lifting and I heard the car club is having a meeting tomorrow night. It's been 2 years without a car show and I've seen a few new classics running around town this summer. Time to check it out!

Hey y'all! Guess I haven't been around cuz this site has a new look to it. For about 3 cruising summers I have always had a hesitation from start. I've learned how to drive the car by a little "pump" of the pedal at take off. I've replaced the entire fuel system, rebuilt the pump/carb and replaced the accelerator pump. Fuel/air mixtures screw set and filter's clean also. I was thinking about it so I looked up that symptom again and advance came up. I remember doing the points and timing years ago but that was about it. I notice at the distributor cap a tab marked advance on the left side and retard on the right. I loosened the cap bolt and gave it a 1/8" turn clockwise. Actually, there isn't much movement left or right so I cranked it as far as it could go clockwise. Well, I went to a big parking lot and tried to stall it out by stop/go, stop/go. Nope. Took it for a cruise and tried to hit every red light. It took off perfectly each time except maybe one little hiccup. Boy what a difference! I feel like I'm driving a different car. Maybe now the wife can take it for a spin!! LOL

Did you ever end up greasing your leaf springs?

Well said Phil. Feeling your drive more than just going through the motions. I shake my head when ever I see car commercials where the car can stop itself to avoid an accident or parallel park itself. A driver needs little experience for this. Ever Canadian winter I have to bare with advertising and near preaching for special winter tires for driving in cold, snowy conditions. Made of softer compounds to aid in stopping and control. One needs to purchase tires and rims just for that season's driving. I believe in the province of Quebec it's the law. If you need them and can afford them, by all means. But don't tell me I need them. I was raised on driving with bias ply's and the last I remember....our winters haven't changed but apparently the drivers have. Cheers!

Glad you were able to get home safe and sound. Reminds me of a suggestion a fellow enthusiast gave me at a show. He asked if I had a single or dual chamber master brake cylinder. I of course replied, "the single original one." He said, "good luck if you ever blow a line! At least if your front goes, you've got back brakes and vice versa. If I were you, I'd change that cylinder out!" Told the wife and she asked, "what are you going to do?" I replied, "be very, very fast on the emergency brake!" One of the many reasons I replaced the entire system.

Haha you're probably right. The engine smokes on start up and does burn a little oil. No doubt could use a rebuild. I recall checking the plugs more often when I first started driving and they ranged from greyish white to blacker in some cylinders....but not sooty. The choke works good along with the heat riser that I rebuilt and lubed up. I used to go for a highway ride to a town 15 minutes away for an ice cream but I don't that often anymore. I always felt like running the old girl at those speeds may just shorten it's life more and if it broke down I'd be farther from home! It does perform well at highway speeds and the engine sounds good to me with no knocks or noticeable ticks. The fan belt and timing chain are new so maybe I should let her run loose from time to time! It's quite the smooth cruising ride. Thanks for the nudge....

I remember the first time I got caught in the rain. It was an early end to a day long car show. I had never used vacuum wipers and with the down pour and traffic lights, I found myself adjusting them like crazy to keep the windshield clear on the drive home. Like you, when I would take my foot off the gas they'd go full bore or hit the gas they slow right down. I like driving on clear sunny days.....

I was surprised today was sunny and 60 degrees. It's been a warmer than usual spring and people start getting the bug. It's hit or miss this time of the year and we could still get a snow storm. This week's forecast is wet and cold so I thought maybe I could wax up the car inside the garage. Trouble is it's covered in 6 months of dust and could use a wash. After much paused cranking it fired up. Ran it for a bit, put it in reverse and blah quit. Wouldn't start again. Pulled the plugs and ya they were pretty black. Sandblasted them and threw them back in then fired right up. Think I'll order a another set for this summer. Washed the dust and debris off it then took it for a spin to the local grocery store, you know, to dry it off. Passed the usual thumbs up and rubber neckers along the way. I love the way these cars pop out from today's models. It ran like it did when I parked it last fall. It's back in the garage again for probably another month or two. The only reason I took it out is we had a heavy rainstorm last night and it washed most of the road salt off the roads from winter. I...hate.....road salt!

Looking back I might have still used the 3M double sided tape but I already had contact on the shelf. Lining up the trunk probably took just as long and I had forgotten how fun matching body lines were. After much frustration, the lid seemed to have to be moved sideways for proper fitment. I finally closed it with the bolts loose and moved it in it's best place. I cracked the lid open enough to be able to reach inside and tighten the bolts. The trunk wouldn't move from it's spot that way. I don't know if other trunks will hold open itself that way but if you'res does I highly recommend it. One shot and it's done. The old gasket on the lid doesn't quite reach the new corners to seal. I can always replace the lid side this summer with it attached. It's the rust that was bugging me the most. The car doesn't see rain so that's not an issue. My wife came in the garage to tell me she's heading to the store. I showed her some of my work along with my usual displeasure. "I'm never happy with any of my work" I grumbled. "I know" she said, with a reassuring voice. The curse of perfection continues!

Demo video's show 3M adhesive seem easy and even fun to apply. They're doing it on bare metal and a flat surface. Didn't work the way I wanted it. I also found it seemed to melt away some of the paint and lifted in some spots. I never really enjoyed working with contact adhesives but I gave it my best. I key I understand is a thin layer. Putting the coat on the 4 foot gasket side was also challenging. I wasn't overly impressed with the match up with the corners and straight piece. I ended up gluing those together to try to make it match and look better. It ended up sticking quite well and being under the trunk it isn't flying off or really seen much.

Started tackling the trunk weatherstripping body side. Pulled of the old and used a wire wheel on a drill to get the old stuck on rubber off. Laid down a drop sheet as I knew this wasn't going to be pretty. Glad I did. Sanded down the entire perimeter and slapped on a coat of rust and match paint. I sure wish the painter could have gotten closer to the Biloxi Beige. The inside of the trunk showed a lot of original colour and man do I like it!

I had one of those in my '74 Olds cutlass.....it had a lot of snot and seemed bullet proof. I was young, single and drove the heck out of that car! lol

I don't know how many times I went back to those nuts after replacing the gasket. Every time I could get a little more squeeze out of them. I usually check them beginning of cruising season for fun. Same went for hose clamps which incidentally, when I was greasing the front end I noticed the fuel connection under the rad where the rubber meets the steel a little wet....squee-e-eze!

Thanks! Initially I replaced all the fittings for fun and to make the job easier. Looks like the idler arm has it's fitting built in and can't be removed. That's the one that gave me the most trouble. I wanted to get more grease in there than I did but my arms petered out! I ended up shooting some behind the boot with a needle adapter, in case that helped.

21 greased and accounted for sir! Idler arm was stubborn as it's built in and couldn't be replaced with a new fitting, but I got it moving. Thanks for making me count....even if I needed my toes!

I cleaned up the front wheel wells and slapped some paint in there to give it a cleaner look from the outside. I just did the sheet metal and not the frame or suspension cuz that doesn't seem right. Thought I'd grease up the front end while the wheels were off....forgot how many points there were again! cuz t

I do some of my best thinking during my daily dog walks with my yellow lab. Even though it's freezing out, Lab's love the cold and I'm thankful my 7 year old girl gets me out everyday. Her name is Summer by the way. Came back and found this in my box of adhesives. I remember trying to fix another vehicle who's PO did a rather terrible job with yellow cement to some hanging door gasket. Went to my favourite auto body supplier and they suggested this. Works darn good too! Thanks for the suggestion Gary...just in case I had totally forgotten! You sure can accumulate over the years.

We had a record breaking warm January where temps sat just below freezing, with snow of course. This week we are being visited by a Polar Vortex up north and if memory serves me right -40 is -40 regardless of fahrenheit or celcius. My company has been shut down since December 26th for a Provincial wide lock down because of you know what. Sounds like we may slowly open again next week but at this point I'm starting to go a little stir crazy! Luckily my oil stove warms up the garage enough to get out and do something. I'm also cleaning up and slapping some paint the inner front wheel wells. I could always see behind the front tire and it looks unfinished.

I've still got a spray can of 3M Super 77 left over from the headliner job. I found it works great but I'm worried about overspray so I'm thinking 3M double sided stuff could work. I've got to clean and paint up the surfaces first and think about it. Did you have those clips that hold the end of the curved portion to the deck on the original? Guess those are redundant now as the new curved sections are shorter.

Even though I don't enter shows or most people don't see the inside of the trunk area, I never liked the rust that developed under the weatherstrippng. Not a fan of over sprayed, cracked stripping either. I got my new stripping and started to tear the old stuff out. I finally realized to do a proper clean up and install on the deck side, the lid's gotta go. I still amazes me how creative one has to be when their only helper is a furry four legged one! Probably going to regret lining it up again come time but should make the job easier. Hey John, what did you use for an adhesive? Not sure if I should go with contact or maybe a 3M tape?

I find the same thing too and actually have to drive accordingly because of it. I also notice that some drivers DO keep a distance maybe because how different the car looks compared to the rest on the road....I also like to believe that other drivers THINK the car is worth big bucks and wouldn't dare collide with it! "Oh, it's only a cracked tail light"....that could cost you $300!

Trouble is MY depth! I'm somewhat of a chatterbox especially if it's something I'm passionate about or the other person has the same interest....drives the wife nuts! I'm just...too....nice. Maybe it's a Canadian thing! Sorry...lol