Category Archives: Mechanical Work
A Little noise leads to a 5 speed and Engine Rebuild :)
Well, a little noise that I could not diagnose leads to a 5 speed and Engine Rebuild 🙂 While the new 5 speed is on it’s way I decided to drop the oil pan and put a new rear seal in. When I got the oil pan off I found the bottom of one of the pistons was varnished so I figured it was time for a rebuild.
Debby and I got the engine torn down last night and I dropped it off at the machine shop today and it looks like it will be out for 3 to 4 weeks 🙁
Project 63 – Vintage Air update
First we removed everything form the engine bay accept the engine and we repainted the engine and engine bay then we re-installed the new brake booster, master and radiator.
We are making good progress on the Vintage Air Gen IV installation. I completed moving the Alt to the driver side using Alan Grove adapters and a wiring harness. We installed the under dash set up, the electronic dash controls, under dash vents, duct work and compressor. We also completed routing and terminating the heater hoses.
There were several recommendations to not route the hoses through the fresh air vent but I decided to go ahead to make the look a little cleaner. I am not sure I am happy with the drivers side vent placement so at some point I may end up getting the later model vent.
Unfortunately 3 of my 4 condenser mounting brackets were missing so I have not been able to complete the condenser install yet. We still have the electric hook ups to complete but it is getting close now.
We also completed installing the clock and new (old look) am/fm radio. Now to insulate the floor and start the carpet and interior installation 🙂
Project 63 – 4/28 Progress
I made a good amount of progress on project 63 this weekend. After weeks of tear down and cleaning finally I am to the point of re-assembly 🙂
The engine bay paint and engine paint is complete, finally got the repainted valve covers back on with new decals. I re-installed the batter mount and I started putting the wiring back in place. I also had to paint the new A/C compressor and Alt brackets so they will been to dry overnight.
I ean into a small issue when installing the lower pulley I found out one of the 3 holes in the harmonic balancer was stripped. Fortunately I had an extra balancer so all is good now.
I re-installed the freshly repainted exhaust manifolds and I installed a new fuel pump, water pump and repainted thermostat housing.
I completed installing new brake shoes, wheel cylinders and rubber brake lines all the way around. Now I am just waiting on the master cylinder to come back form being re-sleeved.
Lastly I started final shaping of the fiberglass tunnel replacement. I just have a little more glass work then I can start installing the heat treatment for the floor.
Project 63 Engine Bay Refresh
I am making progress on the engine bay refresh. It is getting close to the point I can start putting things back together 🙂 Don’t mind the modern 350 valve covers, those are temporary to keep the dirt out while I refinish the originals.
Before!
And Now!
Project 63 – 4/21 Progress
We made some progress this week on Project 63. I was able to get the new rear pinion seal installed along with a new front diff mount, new U-Joints, rear transmission seal and a freshly painted drive shaft.
Once I got all of that installed I was able to graft in the new floor section and reconstruct some of the missing tunnel section. I still need to do some sanding, shaping and finishing to that repair.
I also scraped 35 years of grease from much of the suspension and I treated it with POR 15 and will top coat that with a semi flat back.
I removed the brake master to paint the firewall so I decided to do a rebuild on the master just to find it had bad scoring so I sent the master off to be re-sleeved. I also have a new power brake booster to install.
I remove the steering column to do the firewall repaint and to replace the shaft bearings to find the bearings were so far gone the shaft was grooved, now a new shaft is on order but the column and attachments have been blasted and repainted.
I also decided to replace the exhaust so I cut out the old system which made room for me to scrape and paint much of the underside.
Lots of new parts arrive this week including the new A/C so now I have to finish repainting the engine and engine bay so I can get started on the putting stuff back together part of the plan 🙂
Initial Engine Start Up
Here are a couple of clips of the initial engine start up.
1st Attempt to Start Disaster, starter stuck engaged 🙂
2nd Attempt at Engine Start Up
LOOK, it’s an engine! Pink Floyd now has an Engine and 5 speed
Pink Floyd finally got an engine and 5 speed installed today. It will not belong before it gets a body!
Pink Floyd – Week 17 progress
Week 17 has been busy. We started putting the frame back together. The new front suspension is now complete, the brake lines are plumbed and we are close to installing the engine and transmission. Waiting on parking brake parts right now.
Note I got my mom-in-law to man the blasting cabinet on her vacation!
Frame Work Continues
We ran into another small snag this week. After we got the frame back form blasting I noticed a few areas where rust holes had begun. I went ahead and spayed POR15 semi-gloss black on the parts of the chassis that will not need repair work. I also sprayed a bunch of chassis brackets.
I have welder Dave scheduled to knock out the work on Saturday, he will fix up the frame to make it good for another 50 years 🙂
Chassis Work Begins (Week 13)
Week 13 was productive. The first round of block sanding is complete and the car is now in the second round of primer.
We also finished removing the rest of the parts from the chassis and gave it a good pressure wash before sending it in for media blasting. Once the chassis is back we will put a good coat of semigloss POR15 on it.
Debby spent a lot of time with the blast cabinet this weekend on the smaller parts so now I have some POR15 work to do.
We also got most of the chrome back so we can use it for final fitting. Most of it turned out great but I do need to take a few parts back for better polishing.
