falconvan Posted August 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2011 Yeah, that sucks. The engine even had an older rebuilt tag on it. I wonder if what would happen if I called in for a warranty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2011 I dug into my scrap steel pile and found some 3/16" plate that's pretty stout. I think that will work well to patch the crossmember. I got most of one side done tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilJohnson Posted August 29, 2011 Report Share Posted August 29, 2011 Awesome score, it looks like you have more ambition than I do. My poor 50 Coronet has been sitting in the front yard all summer waiting for me to work on it. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2011 That sounds like a really cool car, Phil. Just set aside a few hours a week and plan one small job at a time; you'll have that baby on the road before you know it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 31, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2011 I've got six days off; three I get to spend in the garage, the other three mama has me doing chores but that's OK. I got out there early this morning and finished repairing the crossover, building some shock relocation mounts, wire brushing off the front of the frame, and hitting it with a coat of paint. I've got both side of the suspension tore apart for cleanup and reassembly, and I pulled the dashboard out to sort through the mess of chopped wiring. Taking a road trip tonight to pick up a better steering box and back on it early tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted August 31, 2011 Report Share Posted August 31, 2011 That's looking good. You've got a lot of ambition. This is going to be a fun project to watch. Keep going! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2011 Thanks, Joe. I'm going to try and make this as quick and simple as the budget allows. I was going to lower it but decided to hold off on that until sometime in the future; right now I just want to get it on the road. Got all the suspension and steering back together today and got it back on it's feet. After looking at the mess of 60 year old wiring I grabbed my side cutters and chopped it all out. The insulation was crumbling off when you touched it so I figured I better just start over rather than burning the thing to the ground. I also glued the headliner back up. That crap brown dash had to go; the puke green is bad enough. I like this color better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted September 1, 2011 Report Share Posted September 1, 2011 My wiring was in the same condition. What kind of paint did you put on that dash? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 My wiring was in the same condition. What kind of paint did you put on that dash? Just plain old Rustoleum spray bomb, Joe. I did primer and wet sand it first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 I pulled out the seats to see what I have to deal with for a floor. It's pretty rough with some really bad repairs. Some previous owner laid sheet metal right over the rusted out metal and fiberglassed it in with fiberglass cloth and resin. Plus they put on new outer rockers but left the rusted out inner rockers in place. But in keeping with the cheap driver theme, I'm not tackling all that at this point. For now I'm just going to cut away whats completely gone,put some patches in, and hit the rest with rust inhibitor to stop the progression. I just need a solid place to put my feet and something solid to hold the seat in. Also painted up some of the trim and power washed the engine. I was just going to put in in as is but I think I'll set it on a stand, pull the pan, and make sure the bottom end looks OK. I probably need to see what the clutch looks like before I bolt it in, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldodge41 Posted September 5, 2011 Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 Nice work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted September 5, 2011 Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 I'm having flashbacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Coatney Posted September 5, 2011 Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 I'm having flashbacks. Call your doctor if it lasts over 4 hours:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted September 5, 2011 Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 Two seconds, max. Then I get that wonderful, "Man, am I glad that's overwith" feeling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2011 Maybe we should change your name to "Quickdraw":D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted September 6, 2011 Report Share Posted September 6, 2011 No one who watched me plug away on that floor project would ever call me Quickdraw, believe me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2011 (edited) Well, what do you do when you keep cutting and there's nothing solid to weld onto? I went to the steel supply and got a 4 x 10 sheet of 16 gauge and an extra spool of MIG wire. Looks like it's getting more floor repairs than I thought. Also I never did trust those old single reservoir master cylinders. This one is for a 67 Fairlane; I've got a plan for a bracket to make it work. ORielys still carried the factory wheel cylinders; only $21 a piece. Edited September 9, 2011 by falconvan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Flanagan Posted September 9, 2011 Report Share Posted September 9, 2011 What are you going to do with those cross braces? Mine were in similar condition. I sandblasted them. Not fun at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2011 They feel pretty solid on the passenger side; I'll probably wire brush them and hit them with POR-15. The drivers side is bad; I'll have to cut them off and splice on some repair pieces. Luckily there were a couple replacement sections in the parts that came with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Elder Posted September 9, 2011 Report Share Posted September 9, 2011 At this rate you will be done with this one before your original build:eek: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2011 For sure; that's pretty much why i bought this. My 48 is realistically about 2 years and several thousand dollars away from being done. I can wrap this car up in a few months and probably have less than $1500 in the whole car. I wanted a cheap old cruiser to putt around town in; driving the minivan to the car shows can be pretty depressing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2011 Wow, this was worse than I thought once I started cutting. The drivers side was worse so I'm knocking it out first. The bottom 4 inches of the B pillar was gone as was 1/2 of one of the braces and the inner rocker. It looks like someone had put a new outer rocker on right over the old rusted out one at one point. So I didnt have to remove the old rocker, it just fell out on its own once I started cutting. I'm not fixing it all right now; just building a structure that will support the floor and give me something solid to build from if I decide to go back later and go further with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2011 Got most of the drivers side cut and tacked in tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilJohnson Posted September 14, 2011 Report Share Posted September 14, 2011 Looks like you're making good progress Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted September 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2011 Thanks, Phil. It's rolling along good; once the floors are done the rest should start coming together pretty quick. I think I have just about everything I need sitting here ready to go. I'm looking forward to driving it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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