62 Falcon - $5k challenge, how will it rise from the ranger's ashes?

[TheSilverBuick]

Definitely bummer about Lee, fortunately kids heal up quick.

Always looking forward to project progress. While the under $5k board may be slow I'm finding my Skylark and Firebird threads on the main project board don't take too long to get to page three, which I find encouraging!

[mike343sharpstick]

Real life causes delays for all of us, this car thing is only a fun diversion. To this day, I'm not sure how I ever got my Javelin done! I think it was an odd anomaly where the kids were both young enough where they didn't have much going on each weekend. Work responsibilities have gone up and now with two active kids, one in 5th grade and another in High school, not much spare time to pretend to be a hot rod builder/race car driver/motorcycle punk.

[milner351]

You said it MIKE!

Randal - you'll soon be wondering how the heck you built all that cool stuff you haven't been able to touch for months!
LOL

This foster thing is a real trip - it's frightening how little you know about this little person that's delivered to your door in need of a good home.
Only time will tell if we will be able to adopt her.
We can't share pictures - but safe to say she's a cute little peanut that appears to be of Eastern European decent with big blue eyes and a fiery temper.
She eats well, sleeps well, and when not asleep NEVER STOPS MOVING.

I have the adjustable dowel pins in hand from Rob McK - .007 and .014 just in case
(both sets were $29 each - cheaper by a long shot than a single set of the summit brand off-set pins which appear to steal his design and charge $99 per pair!)

I have the McLeod flywheel/clutch/pressure plate/throw out bearing.
I have the lakewood bell housing, TKO trans, shifter (no handle) and suggested "synchromesh" fluid.

We'll see if my fabricated aod mount will work with the TKO, and if the AOD driveshaft will work or if I'll have to get the length adjusted.
Then we'll see about a shift handle.

The plan is to make all this happen the first week of July which is our shut down time period at work - then sew up the loose ends prior to melt down which starts Friday July 15....

[milner351]

So Lee really likes the Kilduff shifter - and I was trying to help the kid feel better with his broken leg, 2nd cast, and still not a walking cast. So I put him in the falcon for a ride and stopped at a friends house. I got out of the car (engine off, in park) and walked up to the house to see if they were home. Lee figured that was a good time to experiment with the shifter - which of course has no lock out feature, and of course I don't have an emergency brake hooked up..... you can guess where this is going.

[milner351]

To try to keep things positive - I'm not going to let that messed up fender (and leading edge of driver's door) dampen my spirits too much.
It's summer.
It's cruising and racing season.
Body work and paint has never been my strong suit, and Matt is busier than a one legged cowboy in a goat roping contest... looks can wait!

I broke down and spent the money I swore I never would on an AN dual inlet kit for the carb to make tuning parts changes easier, and hopefully prevent leaks.
One of these days I'll swap in the new after market accelerator pedal, cable, and bracket, and when the AOD goes, the TV cable will go - and then I might finally put on a full fan shroud too, for now - the top only shroud from the ranger keeps the skin on my hands.

[Russell]

Good job keeping your cool. I have already tried to convince myself it will be ok when (not if) Elliott scratches /dents my car. A few scratches and dents are worth if she likes spending time in the shop, at shows and the track.

[TheSilverBuick]

D'oh! My brother rolled my Mom's car into the back of my Dad's boat the same way. Only it was a stock column shifter on her car.

[squirrel]

bummer! at least no one got hurt.... of course my oldest son did something like that when he was about 3, fortunately the car rolled into a dip in the driveway and stopped.

[pintoboy77]

Glad to hear everyone is OK bummer about the car though.

[Beagle]

I may or may not have been beaten and then hugged for pulling a running car into gear when I was about 3. Stuff happens, glad only the car got hurt!

[Deaf Bob]

Caught my 4 yr old daughter hanging on the passenger side rear view mirror on my 57 Chev Sedan Delivery...

[milner351]

I'm working around it - but given the flames and the fade - I'm not sure even Matt can repaint the fender and make it match - maybe now is a good time to put the body back to the original MING green and leave the top white? heck I don't know.

With some help, I Made some progress over the weekend - the aftermarket billet (I'll probably end up painting it black - billet isn't my thing) adjustable throttle pedal is in place and works much better than the cobbled POS junkyard pedal and cable I had tried to make work and lived with since the first thrash to get this thing on drag week.

Another nagging pain in the butt that I had been avoiding was making the horn work! We finally got that figured out - the column is an aftermarket GM-like tilt with a single horn contact button. I'm using a superior 500 wheel I bought from JC Whitney in probably 1985. I had two or three different steering wheel kits - and it took parts from all of them to make the proper combination of things to make it fit and the horn works!

Now I can return the overpriced IDIDIT wheel adaptor I'd purchased but never used and thankfully never took out of the packaging... hopefully they'll take it back with out a receipt.... I always manage to loose receipts.

Yes - I need to tidy up the wiring, and do something about the bare steel floors, and, and and.... but I can drive it as is!

[Crank]

That shifter looks interesting, can you tell us about it. Enjoy following this thread.

[milner351]

That shifter is a "KILDUFF" shifter -

http://www.kilduffmachine.com/

it's on loan from Carl (black and orange 55) I'll return it to him when I put in the TKO 5 speed

I think Randall has their lightning rod set up in his firebird with the EFI OHC six.

I have to say it's a serious piece of hardware - but for the AOD - (you have to go to first, then shift to "D" for second, then shift back to first position to hold 2nd, then to "DD again to get third) it's a bit cumbersome....

BUT IT LOOKS REALLY COOL!


I drove the car about 50 miles round trip to a friends party this weekend.
Of course there's more to do - the list of clean up items is long - but my goodness does it put a smile on my face to drive it.

I took my friend around the block (out in the country - probably 1/2 mile long blocks) I did a few burn outs - holy smokes this thing likes to rev.... it gets to 6000 - 65000 RIGHT NOW, I guess those MAHLE pistons really do make a difference, it's stock rods and crank and oil pump - so I tried not to go too nuts.
I probably need to adjust the roller rockers and change the oil and filter now. LOL

I would like to try taller rear tires (215 - 65 - 15 left over from my wife's old daily driver accord are on all four corners now)
it's roughly 2600rpm at 72mph. (GPS speed)

I still plan on doing the 5 speed, but now that meltdown has passed, I'll take my time and do it when I can get to it.

Lessons learned on the latest updates:

• LOKAR stuff is worth it - I'm a cheap SOB - but the directions they include, the build quality, their stuff is very well thought out - the cheap imitations are just that.
• Making my own accelerator pedal from junkyard parts was a horrendous waste of time - I should have gotten a lokar pedal initially - or - searched the yards for something with a similar foot well and cable situation. (I've heard Pinto's work well for these early falcons that originally came with a floor hinged / carb linkage set up)
• Don't rush the wiring job - I did - and I'm going to end up re-doing most of it - I thought it was smart to leave extra wire near the fuse panel - not a good idea... I may end up moving the fuse panel from the near stock location above the bright switch on the firewall to the center of the dash - there's probably enough wire left to do that, if not - I'll start at the ends and work back. Also - I think American Autowire kits are worth it - THEY COME WITH SWITCHES - I went to their seminar at IDIDIT and wish I would have bought from them. (nothing against Painless or Ron Francis - I've never used either - my wiring is from Rebel wire - it's a good kit- I just rushed the install)
• Pertronix billet ready to run distributors are nice - on Fords especially where the mechanical advance is buried under the point plate - it's a great upgrade - simple 2 wire installation - no big box with many wires to hook up - and if you get the Ignitor 3 - built in rev limiter adjustable under the cap. I may never get another MSD.
• Summit house brand stuff quality is slipping - the AN dual inlet T with gauge hook up was not well made - the plug leaked and when tightened, locked into the back of the passage still leaked and nearly sealed off the passages the fuel was supposed to go through. EVEN WORSE - Matt's summit pushrods for his 383 weren't heat treated properly and the balls came off the ends with only hours on the engine.

ENJOY IT!

- DO NOT LET PERFECT GET IN THE WAY OF DONE
(within reason of course - LOL)

[RAIV70Judge]

• Summit house brand stuff quality is slipping - the AN dual inlet T with gauge hook up was not well made - the plug leaked and when tightened, locked into the back of the passage still leaked and nearly sealed off the passages the fuel was supposed to go through. EVEN WORSE - Matt's summit pushrods for his 383 weren't heat treated properly and the balls came off the ends with only hours on the engine.

That quality cost me alot-but not near as much as a 3 cent lock washer........
thank you for making the trip and helping...