This Service Message Brought To You By....

Tonight I am working in the garage and I have been looking for the drivers side stainless window trim (fastback). To be honest, it's hard for me to remember where I picked up this part. I think it was an auction when Unique Performance went under. Anyway, it made me reflect on all the people that have helped me along the way on this restoration. You see I have been collecting replacement parts for the past nine years in preparation for  this rebuild. Back in the day, when my lovely bride first came over, she laughed when she opened a few closets and found it full of car parts! So if you have sold me a part, traded a part or even paid me to clean parts out of your garage (don't laugh, it happened) I want to say thank you! It's hard for me to imagine what this rebuild would be like without some spare parts. Probably too expensive to get to where I am now in this process. So as I try to keep it all organized, rest assured that your hand me down part may eventually end up on my fastback. In a way, your mustang will continue to live on as I rip off the made overseas junk and go back with some restored original FoMoCo parts. Thank you again!

Coleman To The Rescue!

Meet my friend Coleman, he has over thirty years of experience working with stainless steel as a welder and fabricator.  He also happens to be an MCA gold card judge for early mustangs.  With some sweat equity, he polished the trim around the door glass to better than new finish! Initially there were some scraps where a previous owner used pliers of some sort to hold the window up, all of that came out!  Thank you Ray! 

Can You Hear Me Now?

The fastback sounds louder than a drum, especially when there's not a thing in it! This week in the body shop, they are applying an auto bond coating to the floorpans, wheel wells and inside the roof in order to help reduce noise and vibration.  These are areas that will be covered up with carpet, etc so no one can tell that the coating is there, but will make a huge improvement when driving on the road. It may be slow going, but the work is solid and progressing well.

I’ve Got Blisters On My Fingers!

Lately I've been working in the garage and listening to the left end of the dial on the radio. This week's task was the door window assemblies, in particular the window crank mechanism.  I’ve discovered that over forty plus years, the Texas heat has not been kind. All the old axle grease has dried and is caked hard as a rock.  No wonder it was difficult to roll the windows up and down!  Copious amounts of steel wool and goof off degreaser has worked wonders on the galvanized metal.  I was able to clear all the tracks and semi polish the metal for smoother operation.  One thing I needed was a mini grease gun to add some fresh lubricant to the gears inside the window crank.  I accomplished this task by using an old syringe from a cooking marinade kit. Laugh if you will, but it worked great to really packed the grease in there! The passenger side turned out to be a cheap reproduction, but fortunately for me, my friend Paul had an original FoMoCo unit!  If you look closely at the photos, you can make out the Ford logo, part numbers and date stamps on the lever arm. Thank you Paul, this is fantastic! Also adding to the difficulty of operating the window crank, one of the scissor mechanisms was thoroughly rusted.  The plastic rollers were frozen stiff. Not only did they not roll - the plastic rollers had to be cut off as the studs had swelled and were spalling (flaking).  Since there was little meat left on the studs after removing all the rust, I found a replacement. To insure that the studs did not rust again - I used metal bluing to  help protect against oxidation.  (I know, I’m little OCD).

Does This Panel Make My Mustang Look Fat?

Seriously, check out the new tail light panel!  When we set the right rear quarter of the mustang, it was obvious that the rear panel was tilted up by about a half an inch.  Removing it intact proved to be a challenge as it was a cheap aftermarket. Speaking of panels, I learned that there are now two different gauges of sheet metal on the market.  There is light gauge which is similar to tissue paper and now there is heavy gauge (thicker mill).  Companies like Dynacorn have the heavy gauge and this is in response to all the other stuff.  The price is probably another twenty bucks, but it's worth it, my painter is happier and the car doesn't have that hollow drum anymore.

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait....

In between all the Holidays, the paint and body has been steadily moving along.  All the welds have been smoothed out and the first coat of primer is going down.  I realize that it's not red oxide, instead we are going back with a stronger and workable epoxy primer to better protect the metal from rust.  Notice too that the driver's side seat platform looks a little off, it has been lowered an inch to help my 6'-1"plus frame see out the windshield! Next seam the sealer and then a coat of sound deadening spray will be added to the floors, underside of the cowl, wheel wells and underside of the roof. Doing what I can now to better insulate the cabin from the elements! After all that, the first coat of paint will begin!

Meet My Friend, Mr. Turtlewax

Lately with the colder weather and the days getting shorter, I have been able to spend some more time in the garage working on the vent windows.  My original chrome was in sad shape with some rust, tarnish and heavy pitting.  A good friend turned me on to Turtle Wax.  I know it's old school, but it really does work and you can't beat the price!  There may be bigger names and more expensive stuff out there, but it doesn't compare.  Armed with several bags of 0000 steel wool, many microfiber cloths and Mr. Turtlewax, you can see the results above.  Yes, there was a lot of elbow grease, but I think the results are worth it!  While I was at it, I replaced all the rubber seals.  If you go to a local old fashioned hardware store, you can find the original hollow tail rivets.  There is also a punch that has a rounded tip that is used to split and curl the ends.  Not only are there rivets to hold the assembly together, but the rear gasket has rivets.  Patiently and very slowly drill the old rivets out making sure not to dig into the chrome frame.  A small block of metal, hammer, new rivets and the punch is all you need to rebuild the vent window assembly. I am also replacing all of the glass in the car using PS Auto Glass in Wisconsin.  The web link is: http://psautoglass.com/  PS Auto Glass has the correct thickness of glass, correct tint for Sun-X and can etch the correct Carlite logo with proper date codes to your car.  It really is great stuff!  My old glass has deep grinder marks and burn marks from the welder from the previous repairs.  Purchasing the kit will make all the glass uniform and clear again!  To insert the vent window glass into the stainless frame, purchase some glass tape.  It's a thick tar like strip that is about an inch wide.  Simply fold the tape over the end of the glass, tightly shape into place folding and cutting pie shape pieces out to go around the curves.  The glass tape stays pliable and is easy to work.  I used blue painters tape on the just edges to hold the glass tape in place.  The frame must be extremely clean (use lots of steel wool) before assembly.  I also mixed up some soapy water using dawn dish soap. Use a brush to coat the inside of the frame and the outer edge of the glass tape.  Simply press into frame and let dry.  If needed, you can tap the glass gently in the frame using a rubber mallet.  When the soapy water dries out, the glass tape will stick to the frame.  I did confirm that this was how it was done at the factory and the glass tape is wide enough to go around the vent handle.  Simply trim off the excess and it's as good as new!  I am in the process of doing the door glass now.  On the fastback, you have to install the stainless trim piece first as it is used to set the glass properly into the frame below. More details to follow!