Projects Flashback50 front end redesign and implementation

Sorry guys. I noted that I had finished the pre-lube of the engine and I had previously posted the construction of the pre-lube 'rig' but I intended to post the rest of the story and it got away from me in all the frustrations of last week. Here is an image of an 'adapter' like the one that I found on-line.

I plugged off the input port (from the pump) in case there was any oil to be backed up to that port. I installed a 1/2 NPT to 1/4 NPT reducer in the output port (what would have been output from the filter) of this remote filter adapter (sometimes called filter bypass adapter). That allowed me to lube the engine with oil going in where it would naturally have been going into the lube channels. I had originally thought that I would have to pull the oil pressure sensor (behind and below the distributor) but this saved a lot of knuckle busting and cuss words. I hoked up the rig with the in-line filter that I had bought from a motorcycle shop, used a drip pan to try and keep things neat, and worked with two 5 quart jugs of oil, alternating the empty jug under the removed oil plug to catch the oil each time I refilled the reservoir with the catch from the last cycle. Here is an image that I took of the setup.

I had tested the 'rig' at 50+PSI but ran the lube operation at 40PSI as the articles that I found on this site commonly used that pressure. Each refill lasted about 40° (barring the engine about 10° at a time and waiting a bit over one minute at each position) and I worked the engine around a bit over 3 revolutions of the crank. I used a paint filter when refilling the reservoir so that any crud flushed out of the engine or picked up from the area (dropping into the funnel from the oil pan area around the plug) would be taken out seperately and not load up the small in-line filter. After the barring was over, I put the plug in the pan, filled the reservoir and used the starter in 2 to 3 second bursts (ignition and fuel are still not connected) to run the final 4+ quarts into the engine and have it ready for the startup sequence.
Hope you all have a great week. Bob

 

Well, as I shut down today in preparation for a 'break' this fathers day weekend, I was thinking that in spite of the frustrations of the past few weeks,,, I have made some progress. The vintage car specialist from Rockford Auto Glass came back to the car because he was not happy about one of the windshield corner tucks and wanted to 'make it right',,,,, and he did! While there he also helped me work out a suitable arrangement for sealing the roughly 1/4 inch gap between the outside center trim post and the rubber landing between the windshield sections. With that done, I was able to finish up assembly and work out the wiring details for the map lights in the rear view mirror. Then I was able to finish up the assembly of the custom hub, modified telescoping lock lever arrangement, and steering wheel. With that complete I was able to install the drivers side bucket (needed for safety when starting up the engine and conditioning the headers), and get a look at how all is really going to fit. I will not put the console or passenger side bucket in place till all the rest of the startup procedures are done. Here are some pictures that I took as I closed up the work this afternoon. Hope you all have a great weekend, especially all the dads and granddads out there. bob

 

Was expecting to get the engine started up yesterday but ran into a few more 'surprises' and may not get that done till weekend. Earlier in week, I borrowed the son-in-law's fuel pressure test gauge and got the air out of the fuel lines while checking the pump pressure.

and I was happy to see that the tank bleeding and flushing paid off as the fuel came through nice and clean.

The crap that I flushed out of the tank smelled a lot like turpentine and in the course flushing (several gallons in pour cycles of about a gallon at a time) there was about a teaspoon full of black crud and metal sediment (probably rusted pieces of the gas station storage tanks).
By the end of air purge cycling of the fuel pump, the pressure was 'in the ballpark' at about 43 PSI.

I hope to get that engine cranked by the end of the weekend, and anxious to hear the new 'Hushtone' exhaust sound. Best regards to all of you and good luck with and your projects, Bob

 

Undoubtedly one of the sweetest sounds that I have heard in a very long time,,, this afternoon,,,, finally got the engine fired up! Hope this link works. The system has Hooker headers and HushPower mufflers. I am happy with the results which I have been waiting over two years to hear. Bob

 

Trying the link again. I can't seem to get the video of the startup linked. you can see it on my facebook page or get it from the PhotoBucket site where all the pictures are located. Sorry for that. bob

 

Had issues with the new receiver location (for the key remotes - doors and trunk) as in the center of the dash there was so much good old time soft metal (lots of iron in the sheet stock) so I worked out the issue by stringing the antenna wire out of the lower windshield center clip and up to the rear view mirror, with a short piece of 2mm elastic cord to keep it taunt but allow it to be unhooked easily.

Finally got the car off the blocks, and the tires back on the ground Tuesday and after some mop up work and final adjustments I was able to take it out of the garage, yesterday, and around a few blocks to test drivetrain, brakes, and check for rattles/clunks. It was very rewarding to see it almost done,,,, but seriously I did not remember it seeming so low to the ground.

Need to test the brakes some today as they seem weak but that could be crud on the discs, air in lines, or ???
Hope you all have a great 4th. if in the US and a great weekend if you are not celebrating the 4th. bob

 

Just a quick update as we got the car "on the road' yesterday and I had the opportunity to take a few pictures from more than 3 feet away. Here are a few shots in the open.




Brakes did turn out to need some work (leaky cylinder in one and bad adjuster/parking brake brackets in both. Will work on that over the weekend. Hope you all have a great weekend. Bob

 

I particularly like the rear 3/4 view. Nice job!

 

Finished repairs of brakes, took car back to Andy (Suicide Axle in Sycamore, IL) for final paint touch ups and scuff plate mountings and got into a discussion about wife's concerns that front end 'needs something' to brake up the monotony. One of the guys on Andy's team is a freehand pinstripe artist and he is working on some ideas for hood and possible over headlights to add a little color and 'break up the monotony' (turned out to be a lot of gray on the upper half when looking front on).

Car drove well on the way down to Andy's shop, and I had a chance to check out overdrive and it worked fine (engage, disengage and override when slowing to stop) so I am finished with all the electrical connection checks and most of the mechanical checks.
I may not have mentioned this before, but the decision to take the car to Andy for primary restoration and custom body work was based on his reputation in this area. Sometimes we have the opportunity to work with someone that seems as caring about your car as you are. When we talked about the use of pinstriping to separate the gray and white colors, I mentioned that i would prefer that no where on the car could you see the white touch the gray. How you can tell you are working with a professional is when you realize that there were no corners cut. He literally put silver pinstripe boundary between gray and white everywhere (door cavities, under side trim, around rear quarter scallops all the way down to the end of paint lines at the bottom of the gravel pan). I am still in awe of this guy.


This may be my last post for a while as I would like to get the car out and into some shows/cruising nights for a while before putting it up for winter. Hope you all have a great summer and good luck with your projects. bob

 

working out a few issues with the brakes and AC, now all is running and I am putting things back together to get ready for some road time. Here are a few shots of the engine compartment post corrective action on PCV/Brakes/AC.








Hoping to get the car entered into it's first show early September. Best wishes for all your projects. bob

 

cleaning up a few minor things and documenting parts of the build. I realized that I had not posted shots of the interior in it's finished condition so here are a couple of those




Did some follow up on sketch to implementation for various parts and am quite happy with the results. Here is one of them in visual reference.


Have entered the car in it's first show on September 10th. and getting stuff ready for the show and some cruising night activities locally. Hopefully we can have some fun before the snow flies and car goes back to garage for the winter. I am thinking of switching the injection control system over to Holley HP series this winter so I can access and modify/tune via laptop.
Regards, and best wishes for all your projects. bob

 

well, well, well,, finally got the car far enough along to put it in a show. The show organizers probably wish someone had dropped a bomb on me. I guess I might have been bad luck for them as they said it was the first time in 12 years it had rained (comment forthcoming because I had inquired about their policies if rain or other issues came up). So, after a soggy morning (most of which i had a cover over the car) we finally got it all dried off and had a reasonable showing for the afternoon. I had a chance to look around and figure out how some of the others stage their cars and how many don't worry about that and just enjoy the show and the company. This was a fun day and an opportunity to meet some really interesting car buffs. Hope you all are having a good time with your projects. bob

 

Well, we have had some great weather and we had a chance to take the car for a ride a few times before it was apparent that I needed to get it tucked away and start the 'rest of the work' that had been put aside to get the car on the road and into a show or two. A couple weeks ago I decided to go to one of the local parks and try and get a few more scenic images before taking the car back to the shop. Here are a few of the shots that I took that day




Got quite a list of little things and one great big project/question. Wondering if any of you have any experience with Holley HD ECU as in the Terminator kits? I am not comfortable with the inability to connect and 'tweak' the injection/ignition system (ACCEL gen6 no longer supported and no interface software available) and need to decide if the cost of upgrade is worth it. Appreciate any input that you would care to provide. thanks to all for the help you have given this project, and we hope you have a great Thanksgiving and Holiday season. Bob

 

GORGEOUS ! ! ! ! Congrats !... A show winner, I'd have to say !....

 

I can't help with the Holley stuff but I can drool on my screen. The car has turned out phenomenal!

 

Thanks Eric. We are all still waiting for you to post some more on your projects. On our project we did stray a bit from the original 50, built in 1954-56, but was impossible to find 53 Chevrolet grille and a few other pieces, so we are happy with the change up,,,,, especially the bucket seats NO MORE SLIDING ACROSS! Take care and hope you have a great holiday season. Regards, Bob

 

Thanks Paul. We are hoping to test that 'show winner' concept next spring. If we win some that's great, but it is more important to me that this four year project is finally at a point where we can enjoy the car 'on the road'. Wish I had your mechanical skills as there are still a few 'hard' items that I would like to understand and fix but don't even know how to approach. For example, the car rides much better than we expected, but has a slight 'lisp' when going down the road which I believe is due to the Camaro front stub weld alignment but don't know how to work that through. Take care, good luck with your projects, and hope you have a great Holiday season. bob

 

Not sure what you mean by lisp . .

 

Fantastic job !!!!

in the background I spotted a shortened Model A tudor? Can we have a picture of it? Is it yours? thanks !

 

Perhaps he meant "list", as in leaning to one side?

 

Paul and Peanut,,,, I probably used the wrong term to define the problem. If I follow the car the rear wheels are not tracking in the path of the front wheels. The front wheels are 2 or 3 inches to the left of the rear wheel tracks when the car is going straight down the road. The car does not lean, or basically, does not appear to have any 'lean' to it. I have measured floor to headlight rim, bumper, wheel opening and side to side those measurements are within 1/4 inch. I have seen this effect on wrecked cars that had frame straightened, but in this case the frame is Ford up to about the door hinge area and then converts to Camaro front stub. Hope that helps clarify the issue I am trying to understand. bob

 

I would be happy to get a picture of that car for you if you can tell me what page you were on when you saw it. The car has spent appreciable time at Suicide Axle (Andy Didio did most of the custom body work) and some time at Hopperstads Rod and Custom (Kerry Hopperstad formed the custom grille surround and sectioned and fit the the 56 Chevrolet headlight hoods. Both of those guys have all kinds of early cars, especially in the 30's, and i believe that both had chopped A's in the process. Regards, bob

 

Have you taken her by your local wheel alignment place?.. It could be that both the front wheels are out of whack and perhaps could be corrected with realigning BOTH front wheels. You surely don't want to think about cutting that front clip out and rewelding it........holy crap....

 

Just did a little googleing.... it's called "crabbing" or "dog tracking"

https://community.cartalk.com/t/looks-like-you-are-driving-sideways-down-the-road/18778/13

this looks like a good thing to do
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/ctrp-1204-determining-wheel-alignment-string-your-car/

 

Thanks a lot. The stringing article looks like the right place to start. bob

 

This is the only thing I have that's currently making progress. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/index.php?threads/734383/

 

Hi All. Sorry i have been absent for several months. Got distracted with a rebuild of a rental home - - - not nearly as fun as working on the car project! Finally got back to the car last week and have been taking care of some cosmetic stuff and getting car ready for our first full show season. I had noted above that i was not happy with the backup lights as they looked a bit crude, and i had ordered some alternate versions to try. The test went well and we have now changed the backup lights, under hood, and trunk lighting to the new style strips. Here is a shot of the backup lights showing that the new lower profile strips have tucked all inside the surface envelope and put a little more respectable appearance to the license plate assembly.

Here is a view from side angle.

Trunk and under hood lights look better to my eye also.


New result is more uniform and brighter lighting over all areas.


While working on items i found a coolant leak inside the passenger compartment (heater hose to builkhead fitting hose clamp not fully tightened or hose squished down over time) that has put a stain in the upper lip of the carpet front of the passenger seat. I bought some fabric coloring (like paste dye) from Hobby Lobby and will try my hand at spot treating the stain (about 1/2 inch wide and 4 inches long vertically) with this product after I try on a test piece. Finally figured out how to adjust the coverage of the backup switch and have eliminated the need to hold the shift lever up a bit to keep the backup lights on. I also found and fitted a better brake pedal return spring so the brake lights do not 'flicker' on when going over rr tracks or surface bumps. Car should be ready for the Classics and Chrome car show (2 day indoor show - one of the best venues in this area) May 6 and May 7. Have a few details left on drivers door (fuzzy strips that came loose and window lift bar that slid out of place) but don't see that as major challenge. Looking forward to getting some time on the injection system (that was my goal for past winter months) but that may wait till fall since the show offerings are starting to increase and I don't want to take a chance of putting the car out of commission with harness changes and fuel tank modifications. Best regards to all. Bob

 

Made it! Been a busy couple of weeks but took the car over to Classics and Chrome car show (indoor in old mall store) this morning and it is reasonably all together. We have replaced the LED stuff as indicated previously. I had found a stain in the carpeting due to the coolant leak at the bulkhead to heater hose connection

My wife led the way to Hobby Lobby fabric dye department and i found the perfect stuff for touching up spots in carpeting. The following picture was taken while i was waiting for the coloring dye to dry (it darkens ever so slightly and then dulls off a bit) but wanted to get this picture before i put the baffle back in place.

Did get everything put back together, got a good coat of Mequires Show glaze on the car, and tried the Mothers chrome shine / polish for the first time.
When i got to the show, there was some confustion that ended up being a bit of luck for me as the car ended up getting a corner spot on one of the main aisles.


The show opens tomorrow at 9AM, and i am looking forward to this event as it is the first show of the season in this area, a two day indoor event, and already a ton of vintage and exotic cars in the building. This makes the last four years all worth while. Hope all your projects continue toward a path of completion prior to depletion of all other things. Best regards, bob

 

We got through Classics and Chrome car show and decided to get the alignment checked on a 4 point system rack. Barely got started when Ray (Ray's alignment) said come on over here and take a look at this.

OK... so now the sequence of events makes some sense. We did not notice any crabbing last fall but just before we put the car up for the winter, we took it to Andy for paint and panel touch ups from final assembly goofs. and then had the brakes checked and went through the issues with vacuum levels and modified arrangement for higher gain master cylinder. By the time it came back to the garage, winter was knocking on the door and we put it away without a lot of checks. Apparently all the brake lock checks and other stresses either finally broke off the cracked lowering block or cracked the block and spit it out. After Ray showed that to me i agreed to take the car back to the garage and work on replacements. There are no 1" lowering blocks for 2" springs and Ford keying available on line so talked to Larry and he agreed that if i could get the good one out, he would make a couple replacements for me. The replacements will be solid aluminum so we won't have to worry about this kind of non-sense in the future.
The extraction process was far simpler than i had imagined. Talked to Andy and he suggested that i jack the car up to the point where there was just a little spring give left and then break the nuts loose and see if the axle would pull away from the blocks,,,, I did, and IT did!

Once the axle was free, i just kept wreenching on the nuts till there was enough space to wiggle the blocks out over the pegs (and under the dimples)

Had noticed that the block on the drivers side was cracked also and was wondering if it would fall apart when i started wiggling the block to get it out of the nest.

The block cleared the peg and dimple without further issue, and came out all in one piece.


These blocks were really made from some crap material. Don't think it was pot metal, but if it is aluminum, it was the part of the aluminum billet that they normally scalp off and use for abrasive. The blocks that Larry will make will be solid and quality aluminum bar stock source with pins inserted for the pegs. Hopefully will have this all done in a week or so and be able to get to the Belvidere Heritage days car show on the 24th. Regards to all. bob

 

OK.... so i got distracted with some domestic chores and decided to talk to Larry Alex about the blocks and when i would like them. Larry informs me that he is working on them today due to a hold up with one of his customer's jobs. This afternoon, he calls and says,,,, your blocks are ready,,, are you at the shop??? my answer was no but i can be there rather quickly and i made a dash for the shop to meet up with him. We checked the block fit to the side that i had opened up and all was well. I picked up a can of self-etching primer and brought my can of Tough Stuff black semi gloss paint home to work on the prep of the blocks.
Here is a shot before any work done.

I knocked the corners down so there would be no chance of sharp edge against the leaf spring face

and scuffed all surfaces for better adhesion of the primer. Note the second block has offset hole for spring nib. That is a fall-back in case the crabbing is not resolved with realignment. Probably will not need to go that route.

Got a good coat of self etching primer on the blocks and let them dry in the sun.

after they dried put a good coat of Tough stuff satin black on them so they will match the rest of the rear axle components paint as closely as possible. They are now setup for drying (should be dry enough sometime tomorrow and then i will get them installed and get the car back to Ray's for completion of the alignment.
Hope you all have a great weekend. I had thought about getting the car into the Rokford First car show this weekend but will not have it back together yet,,, and probably that's a good thing because the temperature and humidity are both supposed to be in the mid 90's. Regards, bob