So 3 weeks after those pics my wife split with me. Took a bit to get over that but I moved home and started licking my wounds. The story picks up in June after I'd gone and picked the car up. It had been sitting next to the beach in open salt air since March
The patching and general struggling continues. I spent a bit of time with the big girl on Saturday in between beer, being crook and seeing people. Having to work at Retro Speedfest all Sunday killSo i have to fix this to drive a 2000 mile round trip in late June. Best i do *something* about the cancer, lack of tunes, ****ty wiring and lack of rego....
My Mooneyes steering wheel is on
Aaaaaaand then i took a grinder to my car. (I puckered right up cutting into it). Have to trim it up more but I hit it with KBS Rust Blast to stave off the cancer.
More to come next week...
More work...
I tidied up the cuts, did more rust proofing and started forming up the patch panels (i also bought a sheet of metal to patch them).
I cut the patch panels and then got into the inner sections. I cleaned the cavities up more and laid down some Rust Seal.
Got the stereo working. Only slightly failed by getting a head unit with only 1 preout not the 3 i needed. Whatever. Itll do to get past the road trip I'm doing and i'll add subs later.
I have been struggling with some wiring maladies. Jeez such a mystery... not
More tins required...
ed my vibe a bit too
I started with the big patch and cut the bottom of the c pillar to get at the cancer. Theres more in the side rails but ill get to that some other time.
I then had to put a bend in it so i made cardboard templates and bend it using a bessa block, timber and a hammer. Somehow i didnt cock it up much.
I migged it all up, had to mess around with second fill piece but it all went ok. Also welded in the other side and got it ground back. No pics as i cbf using a camera today.
Its not pretty but it will do for now. I Will bog it up and paint it thursdayAlmost done bar a lick of filler, hifill, and paint. Im also having bad thoughts about Orbit Orange body and pearl white roof...
We have Aussie rego! For nearly $900USD i get to drive my car on local roads for 12months. The plates are $100aud/yr alone on top of that amount too.
Given the full CARB-spec roadworthiness test (that i was meant to do) it isnt just paying lots of money and drive any old car on our roads. Thankfully my inspector didnt go over the car as hard as he is kinda meant to as no old car would pass the dreaded "blue slip".
All that aside, we have tags and i have it starting! Dash lights are next...
Ok so this thing never got to go on the road trip as the gearbox comprehensively shat the bed on only the 3rd drive.
Boo. Urns.
After having a massive tantrum I pushed it inside the garage and considered my options. There's basically no support for the stock Super-Hydramatic 4-speed auto in Australia (and very hard to find anyone who works on them or Jetaways) so after I blew all the sand out of my vagina I manned up and bought a long-output TH400 from a '70 Catalina that a wrecking yard near me happened to have had sitting around for about 10 years. Snapey has a collection of cool rare Pontiacs (Ram Air GTOs etc) and it was only after a mate mentioned in passing he might have a box that I called him up and, low and behold, he had a perfect rebuilder sitting outside his office.
Because I can't just do simple and easy I've ordered a new flex plate, convertor, rebuild kit from Summit Racing. And then things got silly. The mate who put me onto Snapey sold me a set of ported #92 cylinder heads he used to run which have been set up for our modern unleaded fuel we get down here in Straya. Plus a set of flycut 400cui pistons and rods. And a Super Duty-style oil filter relocation block. I then bought a mini starter motor conversion kit as I couldn't use the original bellhousing-mounted one, and then I also picked up a new Comp Cams flat tappet bumpstick (with lifters), some 1.65 ratio rockers, a full engine gasket kit, Edelbrock Performer intake, finned Edelbrock valve covers and a pair of Ram Air Restorations long branch exhaust manifolds.
I've also got new hoodlining and carpet coming for the barge, and once I've got all the rust patched up I'm going to give her a lick of paint in the same hue. Then it's on to customising the 15in steelies from my '62 Bonneville. 15x8s and 15x10s sounds about right to me
Doesn't look too bad (a little pov-spec without a cap or bullets)
Bits have been arriving. Still need a ****load more before this stupid old pissskank will run again.
Pulled the heads off, then ripped short motor out. Thinking given the condition I'll just to rings, bearings and cam as it all looks good in the bores. Potato cam pics = 974 words each.
Next step involves flicking $50s at the gearbox and engine shop while I whore myself to pay for it all.
DISCLAIMER: this post doesn't have any beer in the pics. I know, I know. You're not mad, you're disappointed. Truth be told, I'm disappointed in myself. I've let the team down and will work hard on ensuring I capture the alcohol consumed during my trips to the shed in future posts. Once I get onto the bodywork you bet your sweet (collective) arse I'll be drinking heavily. Because I hate bodywork and paint. Mechanicals are easy; this is leisure drinking. Bodywork is power-chugging beers to dull the stinging acidic hatred coursing through my veins at doing that job. I'll do better next time, I promise, guys.
Had an hour to pull some more bits off this last night. Given I've now got 6 jobs I have precious little time to dick around with working on my own car, so I won't be able to do a proper inspection (in daylight where I can actually see things) and clean up the motor for another fortnight.
I don't think this is a stock timing chain...
I'm still tossing up whether or not to do a full rebuild at this point as it all seems to be in really really good nick and I'm hesitant to mess with something that doesn't need to be pulled apart any further.
I used oven cleaner to clean this thing up last night. Just chipping away at little jobs before I can handball it off to someone to build...
An update covering October, Nov and half of December...
TH400 trans dropped at Central Coast Automatics for the rebuild and should be done in around a fortnight (they cant start for another week and a half).
Organised to drop block, crank, heads, pistons and rods off too.
...
So 6 weeks later and my TH400 was rebuilt. Those blokes went above and beyond on it, couldnt be happier with the job or price. I painted the trans and have all new bolts for the Aeromotive deep pan. I also got fresh lines and fittings for the Davies Craig cooler.
I want to make a new trans mount, but that all has to wait til the motor is built. Ive got a dipstick, torque convertor and shift linkages sorted.
The motor needs a 60-thou bore which means i can use off the shelf 400cui pistons,which will work better with the #92 late '60s heads ill be running. The Armasteel crank has been machined and needs 20/20 undersize bearings too.
My new block mounted starter and con rod bolts showed up from Summit 2months overdue, and i have a spare Isky Racing Cam for sale as its too small for my build
I did reorganise the garage today with dad too. Felt good to tidy **** up and be in here for the first time in 5.5 weeks!
...
Mounted trans cooler.
Started cutting rust out of the roof.
Welded up the aerial hole.
Oh yeah, bought a MIG and TIG.
And a half decent compressor/air sander/spray guns/etc. Picked a colour. Will get onto fixing the bodywork over Xmas and the New Year... that means a new colour is coming, too. Was thinking Spruce Mica with white roof. Or BMW Kingfisher Blue on the body.
....
Go my Keith Black 400cui pistons in the mail yesterday. Just waiting on my ARP con rod bolts I ordered back in Sept. Pro tip - never ship ANYTHING with iParcel. They're f**king useless.
Found a couple of pics from 2010. Damn she looked good back then
