Well hello again!
Time for another little update and some news….I guess.
It’s springtime here in central Ontario and things are turning green again and there I no end of stuff to do here and at work, but more on that later.
Since last time I updated I did get my clutch master cylinder and installed it. Still no diff mounts yet
I ordered a replacement for the standard Girling type however the threaded shaft was a bit on the short side but I followed the lead of one of our other members here and turned up a nice extension for it.
Everything seems to fit and function correctly for now so I am happy with that. I got out the TIG to make some “pretty” welds on the pedal box seams. I figure folks might see it as it seems to be hanging down in every low angle shot I see of these cars. Besides I had not used it in a long while so good for practice too.
I fit it back in the chassis and after double checking my measurements I went ahead and put some welds to it. With all the bits back in the box it looks good to me and another part I can check off that big to do list!
I then added the lower tubes to the front bumper mounts and the cross piece / rad support for now. This will give me a good idea how things are lining up next time I test fit the body shell.
So then....
As I mentioned before I know there is going to be a bit of cosmetic surgery required on the body around the cockpit area. I think the overall shape is good but some alterations seem to have been made in the cockpit area.
To be more specific it looks like the door openings have been lengthened by moving the forward part of the opening and therefore the cowl / dash area forward a bit, at least that’s what some comparison measurements indicate.
This also leads me back to believing the body is from Johnex and originally taken from an 80's Aurora. None of this would be a problem as it looks fine until you fit up one of the side curtains for the top or want to have the dashboard in the correct relationship to the cowl hoop. It also impacts the door hinge brackets.
So having to consider that I have made some decisions again…. I am just going to scrap the whole thing
Na, just kidding around
I have known about this issue for a while now but was contemplating how to proceed. I had already decided that I would fit the body to the chassis and correct this issue best as I can.
I think it can be accomplished with one long cut and move the whole section back but until I have the appropriate structures in place like the door hinge mounts and dash mounts I won’t know for sure, it might be a couple of adjustments.
What I really decided is I am going to move forward with the metal parts and build what I have heard others refer to as the “go kart” stage and then worry about the body.
So I want to build this up to working suspension, rear axles, differential, driveshaft, transmission and engine. The brake and clutch systems, the fuel tank and lines, The cooling and exhaust system, and some of the basic interior layout like seats and mounts and the foot boxes and trunk pan.
I think in the end this will be much easier and should deal with all the brackets, clips and tabs that hold all this stuff and far easier to access these areas without the body in the way. Then that stuff can all come apart again and I will move onto the body issues.
To be honest a big part of me wanted to get on with the body part as it always feels like you have accomplished more when big pieces start going together but I believe all the little tabs and brackets will really frustrate me in the end.
This way I will be fairly confident that it will all go back together smoothly
……Famous last words………
Also I have also taken some time off from the build
, don’t panic I am not stopping for any longer than I need to. I just need to get some other around the home projects out of the way that have been backing up and I am quite frankly feeling guilty about.
I am however still actively acquiring parts for this new plan, I already have a bunch but there is still a bunch to go. Some big Like a windshield , seats and bumpers and some smaller like the rad, gauges and lights but it all adds up and I need it all in the end. What it really means is I might not have any real progress updates for a month or so other than “ hey look at what I found” posts.
Speaking of "hey look what I found", it is really something that I recently found out about Ford or at least my engine.
If you have noticed in some of my pictures with the engine in place the block is rusty brown….I always wondered about this off and on as it never really added up.
The fellow I bought it from had it stored indoors, apparently it has low miles, the compression is good, the
oil pressure is good. Everything I have taken apart is easy enough, there seem to be few
oil seepages but how did it get so rusty?
I thought perhaps the previous owner power washed it clean or something but upon closer inspection no, there is still
oil and dirt from valve cover seepages and oil filter spills, the original oil pan is still mostly black too.
I had at one point suspected that it had sat in a field and corroded over time but the oil pan should be really bad in that case.
I got curious recently and cleaned some of the oil and dirt from below the valve cover and there is nothing under it other than cast iron, hmmmmm
A quick Google search gave me some answers on a couple of Mustang forums where fellows are asking about original engine block colours. It seems in the later 80’s and in to the early 90’s the correct factory V8 engine paint color is NONE!
For some unknown reason Ford did not paint the engine block assemblies in most Mustangs then, the oil pan and valve covers would be black but nothing on the block, and yes within a couple of seasons they just rusted.
If you bought a new or reconditioned engine they would be painted black or grey but not on the production line, so mystery solved I guess.
I suspect this was something dreamed up by the accounting department but who knows, what know is mine will be painted black after I clean it and put it back together with a bunch of new stuff, no rusty block for this kid!
So, on that bombshell,
That’s it for now, I will report back as soon as I can. Till then the parts hunt continues and I hope I can get this chassis rolling on the floor sooner rather than later.
Stay happy my friends,
Hudson
.