[Greg Reid]

Sounds like a pretty sharp guy, assuming you've had positive experiences with him in the past. That exhaust leak can sound a lot like a lifter tap too...

[goatman65]

If it has the stock valvetrain then there really is no adjustment. The rocker nuts are torqued. Make sure he knows that and doesn't try to adjust them like a Chevy.
The nuts will loosen very quickly and can lead to some bent pushrods,among other things. As they say,'ask me how i know'.

[fyrffytr1]

He knows. He has already installed new nuts. He also fixed two small exhaust leaks and found the advance plate in the distributor was stuck and fixed that as well.

[fyrffytr1]

Well, the saga continues! The rear end had to be rebuilt! I was lucky that the passenger side axle did not come out while I was driving the car. The bearing race had spun on the axle and gouged it badly.Also, someone before me had tightened the pinion nut down so hard that the pinion could not be turned by hand! Again, I was fortunate that the ring and pinion gears didn't overheat. Both the inner and outer pinion bearings were galled.
I bought all new bearings and seals and am getting an axle from a fellow PYer. Hopefully the rear end will be buttoned back up by Thursday or Friday.
If I have learned nothing else during this restoration it is this; if something can be taken apart, do it and fix it. Don't leave anything to chance!
I will update totals next week.

[fyrffytr1]

What can I say. The car is still sitting on the lift waiting for an axle. The others didn't pan out so I ordered a new one from Rock Auto and sprung for the additional shipping to get it here by Thursday.
I will update totals next week if the car is done! I hope there are no more problems.

[Greg Reid]

I had a guy from Jasper engines come into my business one day. I never realized until talking to him that they also sell recondition rear ends. Same deal as the engine. Buy theirs and trade in your core.

[fyrffytr1]

The rear end is fixed as well as the stuck advance plate and the lifters have been adjusted. But, I killed my calculator adding up all the costs!!
I took it for a short drive today and it ran great. I still have some more stuff to do but I can drive the car. I spent $243.44 on parts and $575.00 on labor.
Here are the updated totals:

My labor @ 491 hrs.............$9,820.00
Parts..............................$16,603.50
Outside labor....................$18,185.00
Gifts.................................$3,024.25

Total..............................$47,632.75

[fyrffytr1]

Hey Y'all, just a short note to keep my weekly update up to date. About the only thing I did this week was crawl under the car and adjust the transmission modulator so the car would shift a little sooner and softer. That took about 3 minutes.
Oh yeah, I did spend another 20 minutes taking the choke stove off, removing a piece of wire that was used to hold the throttle plate open and replacing the stove.
I have to replace the battery and get a new negative cable but I will post some questions in a separate thread.
Y'all have a good one.

[fyrffytr1]

Well, this has been an interesting few days. A good friend and fellow car enthusiast passed away unexpectedly last Thursday and will be buried tomorrow. The family has requested that anyone with a classic car drive it in the procession and while my car is not completely done I have agreed to do so.
I posted a separate thread with a steering wheel question but I have a radio question Y'all can help me with.
How does the small brace attach to the radio and where does it attach behind the dash? I would like to stick the non working radio in the hole just to fill it but don't know if the two bezel nuts are enough to hold it for a few hours. Thanks, in advance for any help.

[65Mark]

I used to put my radios in without the brace all the time. Most of the time I didn't have the brace. Never had a problem just using the two nuts. It'll hold.

[Old Goat 67]

It went from to back to a hole in the bottom of the dash.

[fyrffytr1]

I did not work on the car last week but I did drive it! Took it out yesterday with the top down for the first time! I still have work to do and a few bugs to exterminate but it's getting there. Y'all have a good one.

[67gtojones]

This is a great thread. Encouraging to see the work. I haven't started mine, but I hope I can be as thorough.

[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by 67gtojones

Encouraging to see the work.

Just don't look at the totals. I always skip the totals.

[fyrffytr1]

Originally Posted by Greg Reid

Just don't look at the totals. I always skip the totals.

It does hurt!

[fyrffytr1]

I put a new battery in as well as a new negative cable and the car cranks quickly even when hot. I also got the radio installed temporarily. It will have to come back out to do some under dash work on the A/C. But, the hole in the dash is filled for now.
I went to my first cruise-in yesterday afternoon and got a lot of compliments on the car.
I finally got my steering wheel boxed up and will send it off tomorrow to be restored. I also started laying out the under dash ducting for the A/C and am missing two pieces. On the passenger side there is a piece of flexible duct that runs to the outside vent. Is it available anywhere? And, on the driver's side I am missing a piece that runs from the flared duct to the outside vent. I will post pics in a separate thread.
It's getting down to the details now. Maybe, one day this thread will come to an end.

[RedDirtRoad]

Phil
PM me your address
I have the hose for the Pass. vent.

-Dominic

[6 Grrrs]

Phil,

I may have the other piece. If someone posts a photo of it, I will look in my A/C parts. I have a bunch of original ductwork. I don't believe I have the flexible piece though, but I have multiples of the hard plastic stuff.

[fyrffytr1]

Thanks to Dominic for providing the flex duct and thanks to GT182 for helping me find the other piece!
I was looking for an old gasket for him when I found the driver's side duct under some other stuff.
Tod, thanks for the offer.

[fyrffytr1]

Boy, I got a big scare the other night! I decided to put the alternator brackets on the back side of the alternator like there supposed to be and got the job done in a few minutes.
Then, I started the car to make sure everything was OK. When I walked back to the front of the car I could hear a knocking that sounded like it was coming from the bottom end around the number 1 cylinder! I checked the oil pressure and it was good so I slowly revved the motor and the knock got faster! And, the car seemed to be down on power. It just didn't idle right and when I gave it the gas it hesitated slightly.
As Y'all know the motor is an unknown. It was supposedly rebuilt before I bought the car but, it had been done back in the late 80s and never driven. I just knew the bottom end was coming apart so I asked some locals for any tips or things to check out.
Almost all of them said to pull the number one plug wire and see if the knock quieted down any. If so, then the bottom end was probably the problem. Well, I did that and the knock did not quiet down any. I pulled other wires and the sound didn't change.
The other thing they told me to check was the fuel pump as it could be causing all the symptoms I told them about.
Since I didn't have any real way to check the pump I decided to replace it. After doing so I crossed my fingers and cranked the car. Man, did it ever sound good! No knock and it idled great. When I gave it the gas it responded.
So, I ended up spending about $20.00 for a new pump (one of the perks of working for a parts place) and it took about an hour to replace.
I am going out to the shop in a few minutes to see if the car will start easier since it sat overnight. Before the pump replacement the car was very hard to start after sitting for several hours. I will update totals next week.
Wish me luck!