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54 Ford Mainline Build

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by rustyfords, Sep 4, 2011.

  1. Will do Jeff. This build has been an education (half of it came from you) and I'm happy to share.

    It's coming right along....the old 302 is pulled and firewall is getting prepped for paint.

    Got 'em Austin...thanks. You are one cool kat for such a young guy.

    It's good to see the youngsters into old stuff like this. My daughter loves my cars and even designs and sews her own retro clothes.
     
    Last edited: Dec 14, 2012
  2. I don't know that I would have posted a photo of such a beautiful daughter on the Hamb,,you might have some of these Hoodlums show up unannounced,,load up your shotgun! :D HRP
     
  3. :). Yeah Danny, but mine isn't the only shotgun that they'd have to get past. She has her own guns and knows how to use them.
     
  4. Atwater Mike
    Joined: May 31, 2002
    Posts: 11,625

    Atwater Mike
    Member

    Finally on the downgrade here, Don. Read this with interest, great job reporting all the operations... Many great tips here, such as the voltage reducer at the dash for gauges. Thanks!
    Love the speedo face, did you say 'Police option'?

    Working on my own '54 Ford Mainline Coupe as we speak. (390 Merc Marauder going in there for now, but my 406 is bored, honed, balanced, and ready to assemble.
    I used a '68 Merc 'RAT' 3 speed heavy duty toploader tranny, with a Jeep tower and big 'cane' floorshift. (Hey, it's a Mainline; they had the 'standard floorshift', right? LOL)

    My front clip is off, too...I have a '37 Plymouth tube front axle I was going to install, but at this time I've found Pep Boys has Rancho suspension pieces in stock...Many different sizes in poly and carbonite bushings. (I'll be replacing the control arm bushings with these)
    Can you tell me what you used (spindle wise) for your front disc conversion?
    (I seem to recall 'Torino', but can't recall)

    Great job!
     
  5. Mike,the Granada seems to have the right spindle. HRP
     
  6. austinhunt
    Joined: Nov 26, 2011
    Posts: 533

    austinhunt
    Member

    Haha that was my first thought!

    Oh and I forgot to say about the voltage regulator, it will draw one twentieth of the current used by the horn when not in use. For one that draws none when not in use- buying one will be the only way. I'll start on a write up now that im out of school.
     
  7. Thanks for the kind words Mike.

    Yeah...the speedo face is an NOS item for a police interceptor car. I thought it was neat, especially since my car was a sheriff's car when it was new.

    I have a list of all the part numbers used for my disc brake conversion. I'll post the list tomorrow.
     
  8. I've been having the same troubles.
    Bathtub drain last weekend which lead to replacing the branch line.
    Rain gutter downspouts clogged yesterday.
    Dishwasher replacement duty this weekend.
    Furnace making a intermittent funny rattle noise....

    Merry Xmas!
     
  9. Back at it on the 54.

    I've been tackling some of the details associated with the front clip....tedious stuff....but it was pounded in my head as a youngster that the details separate the good rods from the rest.

    On the agenda for today was installing the rest of the rubber mud-flap type thingies that surround the bottom of the front clip that keep water, debris, etc out of the engine bay. I installed some of them initially, but am now installing all of the rest of them.
     
  10. Don,Did Santa bring you that new crate engine? HRP
     
  11. Yes and No Danny.

    Santa, in the form of my wife and her two sisters, gave me enough $$ to get a freshly built long block from Thunderbird Motors in Houston.

    I'm totally pysched about it. While it's not a crate motor....Thunderbird does first class work and has been doing this in Houston for 70 years.

    So....no big horsepower, but a really solid, freshly built stocker that I can bolt all my current stuff on. I'll be going to get it sometime in January.
     
  12. austinhunt
    Joined: Nov 26, 2011
    Posts: 533

    austinhunt
    Member

    Hey that's good news! Now you can pick what you want and dont want in it!
     
  13. sounds like you have enough parts to keep you busy for a while
     
  14. Been finishing my brakes....I'll be all done with them by Saturday.

    I found an old Blue Point flaring set at a pawn shop for $40 the other day and man oh man it was soooo much easier to make good flares with a decent tool, than it was with the chinese junk that I had before.

    I think Blue Point is another brand name that Snap On used to use.
     

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    Last edited: Jan 2, 2013
  15. They still make blue point tools, its considered snapon's budget line these days. Older blue point stuff is really really good though!
     
  16. Finished my brakes re-do today. Everything is first class now and working as it should.

    Didn't take any photos....brakes are boring.
     
  17. For anyone doing a disc brake swap on a 52-56 Ford car....here's the parts list, minus the spindles.

    54 Ford Disc Brake Conversion Parts List

    - Brake Pads……………Bendix Roadtuff PD91
    - Rotors………………….. Bendix Roadtuff PRT1086
    - Calipers
    Left Side……. A-1 Cardon 18-4070
    Right Side….. A-1 Cardon 18-4069
    - Master Cylinder……. Raybestos MC 36398
    - Caliper Hoses………... Raybestos BH 36649
    - Dust Caps……………… STOP 13975
    - Bearings
    Inner…………... TIMKEN L68149
    Outer…………... TIMKEN LM12749
    - Seals……………………… CR 19221
     
  18. Great information Don,,you should post this on the '54 F.C.O.A. site. HRP
     
  19. Bigcheese327
    Joined: Sep 16, 2001
    Posts: 6,694

    Bigcheese327
    Member

    I don't suppose you have the original applications for those parts? These days it's a lot easier to walk in and say "I need brake pads for an '85 Ranger" instead of "I need a set of Bendix Roadtuff PD91 brake pads."
     
  20. What can be easier than give a parts house a part number?:confused:

    Most all the parts houses have computers and they have ti use them to look up parts,,if you tell them you want brake pads for a '85 Ranger it's going to give the the parts numbers or a cross reference to that part.

    I haven't seen any boxes that have 1985 Ranger brake pad on the box! HRP
     
  21. Bigcheese327
    Joined: Sep 16, 2001
    Posts: 6,694

    Bigcheese327
    Member

    It depends on the parts house. If you've got good, local guys you can give them the number. But have you ever tried to give the teenager at AutoZone anything other than the year, make, and model?

    Come to think of it, the last time I tried to give the local good guys a part number, they asked if I could just come up with year, make, and model to make it easier to find the part.
     
  22. Yeah,I don't make a practice to deal with the fledglings at autozone,especially the ones with a cell phone in there hand.

    I seek out the older seasoned veterans at the parts counter,,,it works most of the time.:D HRP
     
  23. That's why I try to deal with my locally owned NAPA if at all possible.

    Half of their counter guys are old school....real parts guys. The other half are young and are doing a great job learning.

    I can save 10% by going to Autozone, but I'd rather support old style service. I use my local Ace Hardware for the same reason.

    Not to make too much of this but....I was in the local NAPA last week to buy a single little fitting for the brake job re-do on my 54. The counter guy was looking in the book to get a price on it, and was having some trouble locating the price, so he just said, "to hell with it Don, just take it".

    I balked at that...wanting to pay even if it only was less than a dollar and he said, "you've been coming in here for years and have spent countless dollars...we'll be ok".

    That way of doing business is almost extinct. I try to keep it alive wherever I can.
     
  24. JeffB2
    Joined: Dec 18, 2006
    Posts: 9,484

    JeffB2
    Member
    from Phoenix,AZ

    Please add good info like this to the 1952-59 Ford Group "sticky file" things get lost here on the main board due to volume of posts,stop by there too.We miss Ya!
     
  25. Good idea,,glad we can share information and be members of each others sites and absolutely no politics involved. HRP
     
  26. JeffB2
    Joined: Dec 18, 2006
    Posts: 9,484

    JeffB2
    Member
    from Phoenix,AZ

    Minus the spindles? Does that mean your are retaining the '54 Spindles?
     
  27. I'm using spindles that I bought from Gearheads Cruiser Products.

    They told me that they were custom spindles, but I suspect that they were Granada.
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2013
  28. As far as the car goes, I had the neighbor come over and help me with a brake check.

    I pushed the 54 out to the street and then got behind the wheel and allowed the car to roll down the hill from my house. The brakes had good feel, and stopped the car nicely.

    The neighbor used my trusty John Deere 318 to pull it back up the hill with a tow line.

    So...I can put the brakes to rest. BRAKES ARE DONE!!! Re-routing and re-doing brake lines and proportioning valve was a big part of why I pulled the front clip off.
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2013
  29. Brakes are a big plus! :D HRP
     
  30. Lately progress on the 54 is coming in short spurts.

    Tonight I had just a few minutes in the garage so I installed my sway bar with all new bushings.
     

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