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TampaRiv

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Posts posted by TampaRiv

  1. Thank you gentlemen for your input.   I'm not a novice to the classic car milieu, BUT, I have made some ill-advised purchases in the past!   The car appears to be a decent car, and , as with my Riviera, I would improve the car and make it a reliable driver, but not necessarily look to "restore" it.   Of course, if I were to find that box of money, I could go all-in with a resto.

     

    I have 3 nice driver-quality cars, and I don't really "show" them for trophies, which I feel is a waste of time and resources. I love the time spent in the shop making things work again, wrenching with my car buddies, and driving them on the street and seeing peoples' positive reaction to the cars.   My wife has asked: "How many cars can you have??".    I tell her:  "I checked, and there isn't  a limit!".  

     

     

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  2. Hello all,  I am hoping to buy a 1958 Mercury Montclair Turnpike Cruiser project car in the very near future.  

     

    Does anyone know of any forums or other resources related to these 58 Mercs?   When I search "vintage Mercury", boat motors show up in the search results. I can't quite seem to find a website/forum dedicated to the late 1950s Mercury automobiles.   Any help would be appreciated.   Thanks!

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    • Like 1
  3. I was just assuming that, as Edsel experts, you might be able to offer some generalized information regarding the weak points of the model to be aware of.    I have no photos until I get to the site and hook my peepers on the car in person.   I'm mostly worried about the frame rust that the Ford cars seem to have in general from that 60s era.

  4. Greetings all.  I am considering the purchase of a '58 Edsel Citation project car.  I am curious if there are certain things that I should be wary of.  It has a V8 (exactly which one, not sure at this point), and automatic transmission.

     

    I will get a look at the car tomorrow, so I am wondering if there are certain trouble spots to look out for.  Frame rust?  Hard to find parts?  Etc.    the car has sat for about 10 years, and is reported to have run back then. 

     

    Any info would be helpful.  Thanks,

     

    Rich

  5. Hi MrMajstyk, 

       My experience with the Dynaflow in my '63 has been great, so I would'nt necessarily dismiss a '63.  It works fine, the car is a rocket ship. 

     

       My power seat was inop when I got the car, so I simply removed the seat and re-set the front mounting hooks to suit my position, and drilled new holes in the floor pan.  I used some 1/16" steel re-inforcing plates underneath,  and voila!, a custom seat position.

     

       There is a nice 64 on FB Marketplace right now in Winter Park, FL.  I realize that's a long way from Cali.  I also have a buddy here in Tampa (a member of this forum), who is putting together a nice 65, burgundy with black interior.  Rebuilt engine/trans, mostly new interior, it's going to be a really nice car when he's done.  He'll probably sell it....he likes to work on the cars, but moves them along and goes on to the next project. He's not a flipper, he does nice work.   Finally, I did have a carrier bearing failure in my car, but it sat 30 years in one position in the Florida heat. A local old-school mechanic replaced it for around $700 if I recall, and the car runs great. A couple of years later, I bought a 4-post lift, so if I'd had that in the shop I'd have replaced the bearing myself. 

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    • Like 4
  6. Hello Apperson fans.  I found this delightful photo at a flea market in the Chelsea neighborhood in New York City.  The tiny photo is only about 2X3 inches.   I had it enlarged, and I display it in my house because it's so charming. 

     

    I did some looking on the interwebs, and I was thinking that the car might be an Apperson Chummy.  Maybe someone on this forum knows.   Thanks!

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  7. Thanks Jim.  You are correct, WV is not the crossroad for car hauler transport.   The big issue was that nobody I contacted (or contracted with) would shoot me straight about this fact.   SO.....days went by with no activity.  And I could not get ANY of these jokers on the phone.

     

    As it turned out.....I was able to get in touch with a carrier through uShip last night.  Not a broker, but an actual carrier coming out of Cleveland, and running down 77 today.   His price was 1000, and uShip added just $75, which I felt was pretty reasonable. 

     

    The communication with the guy was good;  the seller says the guy has the car loaded and  is enroute;  and the carrier tells me that the car will arrive tomorrow afternoon around 5.   If that happens, I will re-post with some photos and the carrier's name and contact info.    If something goes wrong, I will re-post with the carrier's name and contact information.

     

    Cheer from Tampa,

     

    Rich

    • Like 3
  8. It appears that this uSHIP  thing is simply a website that attracts brokers.  It's simply adds another layer to the whole convoluted scheme.   All the brokers do is post your car listing on a board for the actual carriers to look at and decide if they want to pick up your car for the posted price, if they are driving in the general area.  It does not seem to be possible for the guy wanting the service to be in touch with the actual guy driving the truck.  It seems that there always needs to be a middleman, usually calling themselves a transport company.   But they don't have trucks or drivers, they are just brokers that post your car on a board.

     

    In my estimation, the broker is taking about $300 to post your car on the board for pickup.  When the car arrives, you pay the guy in the truck in cash, whatever the balance of the contract is.  Say the broker sets a price of 1200 to ship your car....the broker takes the first 300, and when the carrier gets to your house with the car, you pay that carrier the balance in cash. 

  9. Thanks Pearle,   This USHIP looks like an alternative to the transport brokers out there, who skim off at least a few hundred bucks for doing (in my estimation) precious little.

     

    And thanks to all who replied with suggestions, they are much appreciated.   Rich in Tampa

  10. Hello friends,

     

       I have purchased a new project car out of WV, and I need it transported to Tampa.  BUT, I am getting so many flaky jokers on the internet, I just feel like all these companies are some kind of scam.

     

       If anyone can recommend a transporter that thy have worked with, please let me know.

     

    Kind regards from Tampa,

     

    Rich

  11. Thanks Tom,  

     

       At this point , I just figure that having a working speedometer just isn't worth the effort.  I  can't see going to the effort of removing the tailhousing to recover the gear, and then....where do I get the gear??  Nobody seems to know where to get the gears, even Charlie isn't sure.    I give up.  Even with the luxury of working with a lift, it still is just too much hassle.  Kinda like the window fuzzie debacle.

     

       And I know you guys are gonna bust my balls like I'm some kinda amateur who doesn't know what he's doing, but rest assured that is not the case.  I just know when to cut my losses and start driving the cars.

  12. Thanks Telriv.  This whole speedo thing is a nightmare. 

     

         The gear broke off inside the transmission.  Psychostang's guy Charlie is telling me that I need to retrieve the broken gear out of the tranny, so the teeth can be counted.  SO.....assuming that the broken-off gear wheel thingy is intact in one piece and isn't shredded to bits, then I have to drop the pan and hope that the thing is in there and can actually be found. 

     

         The place where the gear inserts into the transmission is not really in good proximity to the pan itself, so if it broke off and wasn't ground up, what are the odds that it ended up in the pan??  I guess I'll find out........

  13. Hello gents,

     

         I am enjoying my new 4-post lift.  I bought it gently used off FB or CL, and with the help of my lovely wife, we got it re-assembled last Saturday, and now I am having fun underneath working on the '67 Newport.

     

       Next up I will get the '63 Riv up there and remove the speedo gear so I can get a replacement, and hopefully restore the speedometer.  SO, once again, where do I get the new speedo gear and new speedo cable??  I have visited this problem a couple of times, but now that I don't need to depend on a disinterested mechanic shop to do the job,  I can actually get the job done.    Thanks for any recommendations for vendors for the speedo gear and cable.

     

    Cheers from Tampa,

     

    Rich

     

       

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    • Like 1
  14. Thanks Paul.  I am quite happy with the result.  I believe it took a total of 11 new bulbs, I think 7 of which were 194 bulbs, and the rest were 57 bulbs (not 1157).   But don't quote me on the count.  The bulbs are cheap enough, so if you buy a 10-pack of 194s, you'll have enough, and likewise with a 6-pack of 57 led bulbs.

     

    Here's a link to the 194s I bought.   Cheers from Tampa,   Rich.

     

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08C5997M7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

  15. Point taken Chasander, I did not know that Joe had his share of deferments, like Cheney.  I do know that Joe never proclaimed with joy how he "fell in love" with Kim Jong Un,  and I never saw a Biden T-shirt which stated "I'd rather be Russian than a Republican".   Back in the day where I come from, that kind of talk would have gotten your ass kicked at best.

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    • Like 1
  16. Hey Robert,   The needles DO NOT come off the speedo.  Once the chrome bezel is removed (One allen screw at the bottom), you will see six 1/4" hex screws.   ONLY 3 of these hold the speedo in place.   BUT...It really isn't completely necessary to remove the speedo in order to replace the 3 bulbs behind it.  Once the bezel is off you will see the 3 bulbs;  one at 12 o'clock, one at 5 o'clock, and one at 7 o'clock.   The one at 7 is easy to do, reach in and twist out the socket and swap the bulb, re-insert.  The one at 12 isn't too bad either, reach over the top to get it.  The one at 5 is a bitch. If you can get in there with needle-nosed pliers and pluck out the bulb, then install the new one the same way, try that. 

     

    If the speedo has to come out, you will un-screw the speedo cable and then the 3 hex screws, and take loose the trip odometer cable. The speedo will pull straight out, but there is a wire attached to the back of it, so detatch that too. You'll need to reach in and guide the trip cable as you pull the speedo out.  Be careful not to bend those needles!

     

    As an edit to this post, I should add that removing the speedometer will not appreciably facilitate the swap of the 5-o'clock bulb from the back. 

    • Like 1
  17. Yes, they are dimmable.  Oddly, for me, having some ambient light helps me see at night.  This is the same reason I don't like to watch TV in the dark.  

    But, I have yet to take the car out and drive it at night.   I'll post the results when I do.   Thanks Ed.

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