Projects 1954 Ford Customline Resurrection/Build

solid looking car as to using a hacksaw DO NOT try it a tubing cutter is the proper tool use it.if you try the saw you will see why people use the proper tool.

 

I plan to re work the flares on the lines I have cut so far, and then work on the long line from splitter up front to the rear end rubber hose (I got a replacement for it); front brakes work well but I will inspect everything once a get the rear done.

Thanks everyone for all the advice.

I seem to recall that the H.A.M.B. Used to have a thread for finding local H.A.M.B. Members but I can't seem to find that now, is it still around? I am in Nashville and would be glad to find a helping hand


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Exactly why it is so nice to see the location in the avatars. You can look at where the individual is that is giving you the intelligent information and request they come over to look at and give suggestions not necessarily do the work for you. Most would show you the proper way to do something or tell you if you were doing it wrong and endangering yourself and others. Here is a member that is trying to resurrect his old car and does not really not sure of what he is doing and is apparently thankful that someone saw what he was doing wrong and told him. Here I go preaching to the choir again about locations in avatars but they are more informative than some people think. If you want to be secretive about where you are then who is looking for you? What have you done? To not be proud of where you live is not patriotic. I commend you tylerbrasher from Nashville Tn. for your commitment.

 

Small update.

My battery died a few days ago after sitting overnight (some kind of draw that I have yet to track down).

At any rate, I jumped the car off today and got it running. I let it run a bit and then turned it off to try it again. Battery was immediately dead. I pulled out my multimeter and sure enough the alternator was not putting out any juice.

I pulled that out and it turned out to be an '81 Datsun unit, connected by a single wire. I went ahead and ordered a new one just like it as it fits well on the engine. Not sure if the brackets are original or if they were modified to fit said '81 Datsun alternator but why mess with what works.

During this process I noticed that I have some rust in the front crossmember..

Anyone know what this is actually called and if there is a reproduction out there somewhere? I cannot find anything in the parts sites I have been surfing.



Seems a bit unsafe, no?

I also struggled and strived for far too long on pulling out the crusty old brakeline which runs from the splitter up front to the rear hose. I bent it up pretty good and have no idea how I'm going to shape the new one or how to even install it, but will give it the college try as soon as I feel like getting under there again.

One more thing, what is this thing which is connected to the coil?






Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

The rusty part is the frame front crossmember , google 54 ford front crossmember . The white piece attached to the coil is a ballast resistor . Jim

 

You are learning. Yes that is definitely unsafe but can be repaired. Either look for a replacement front cross member from an online junkyard dealing in old parts or patch what is there. Is just the one side rusted out like that?

 

I went back through this and are you using Nicop brake line? Can you bend it easily by hand and not use a tubing bender? I am not positive but believe it requires a special flaring tool, not one off the shelf. Someone please correct this if I am mistaken.

 

that is a common problem with the cross member without reading back that white part is a resistor when using 12 volts.a word of warning on it do no touch when running or with key on(bad idea on leaving key in on position) for a while as it gets very hot.as to cross member there used to be a guy on the bay that sold ones he built.it is not something you should attempt to replace yourself.it is not a simple cut and replace thing as to rear brakes you need to pull wheels and drums and make sure wheel cylinders are not seized after sitting or bleeder hole rusted closed.and your brake line to rear had special clips that held it to frame tricky part will be where flex hose attaches to cross member if you have not worked on brakes at rear before there is clip that holds flex hose to it then steel line fits into it.easiest way to remove steel lines is to break the steel line and remove the clip then you can remove flex line form splitter on rear end.one more thing if you search the bay for cross member also look for a manual there is a member on the social group 52-59 ford on here.that sells a CD or thumb drive manual that you will need for today and in the future the price is not to be beaten.

 

I specifically asked for steel lines. Here is what I am using




Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Thanks, I was able to get the clips out pretty easily and plan to order new ones. The tough part was weaving the old brake line out from around the steering box, frame, and firewall. I ended up cutting it up and bending its way out of there. I got the hose off as well after fighting with it for a minute. Couldn't see what I was doing, but it came out easily enough.

I rebuilt the passenger side rear wheel cylinder. Haven't messed with driver side as I wanted to get the lines done first. I did glance at it. It seems that the passenger side had been replaced in the recent past but maybe not the driver side.

I also ordered a pdf manual but havent gotten around to getting it downloaded. It seemed sketchy honestly. Yall ever get pdf manuals through Forel?

 

OK not Nicop but steel. You will be OK with the double flares. I saw the roll in an earlier post and it looked like a roll of Nicop. Nicop is a lot easier to work with as far as bending and routing and will never rust as it is some alloy of Steel, Nickle, and Copper but is DOT acceptable for brake lines

 

as far as the manual do as I suggested and order the one from reverend.also when and if you find a cross member bear in mind it is not a cut and paste thing.you really should have someone who is capable of clipping a car etc.as it needs to have a jig set up to hold everything true or you will end up with a real mess that may be beyond repair.as to ordering a manual from ford no such thing from them only repo through aftermarket.

 

Here's a factory shop manual...…………..

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1952-1953-...toria-Wagon-/361194388169?hash=item5418dcfac9

160 pages of info. Details every last nut and bolt. I never start a project without one. I'm old school and like to have a manual in my hands that I can reference. Accessing it on a computer just doesn't seem right to me.

 

Dennis Carpenter also sells manuals:

http://dennis-carpenter.com/m/product.aspx?p=CA-5200

Rune Waltoft

 

I know on some later Fords the lines go in when the body is off, so you may have to get creative with some of the rear routing. I use steel lines from NAPA, they flare really nicely. You should join the '52 to '59 sub forum here. Lots of guys with cars like yours.

 

Stepping away from brakes for a while until the work week is over and I can get some daylight to work in.

Finally tracked down an alternator but it still isn't charging.

I think the culprit is likely this spray painted mess of an open-to-the-elements voltage regulator. Pulled it off and cleaned the contact points. I will test all again tomorrow...

If it works I guess I will add a new regulator to the to-buy list.

Also, I did purchase a repair manual as I mentioned in an earlier post. When I had my '59 F100 I used a PDF repair manual and agree that they are very handy.




Unrelated, here is a before and after on a '53 chevy 210 I had for a while since I don't have anything interesting to post on the Ford today... nothing fancy, just an attitude change

 

I like the Ford better and think that when you get it sorted you will too.

 

Here is the company that makes the replacement crossmember:https://www.ebay.com/itm/1954-FORD-...h=item235937bf14:g:KHgAAOSw37tV-xyo:rk:1:pf:0 While you are doing the brakes you may want to do an upgrade,1952-54 Fords use the same shoes as 1967-68 Mustangs by using the self adjuster kits and hardware kits you can convert to self adjusting brakes instead of playing around with that 60+ year old single pot master cylinder you can upgrade to the Mustangs dual port master cylinder. https://www.ebay.com/itm/For-Ford-M...h=item41f2d4abab:g:9VcAAOSw~G9b4Y5l:rk:1:pf:0 About $80 in parts all total.

 

You should join the 1952-59 Ford Social Group here too there is a HUGE information file to help you with your project. Here's how https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...insufficient-privileges-to-post-here.1096485/ See Posts # 3 &4

 

that is not a voltage regulator you will find the bottom 4 wires 2 each are attached to circuit breakers the top one you show with wire undone is for interior lights.as long as the connections were clean the paint over them would not have been a problem. when the hood was closed that would have been protected.if your alternator is a one wire they require that you rev up motor to get it to self excite.as Jeff suggested and I also join the group

 

Oh, whoops. was going off this wiring diagram, but must have read it incorrectly.

At any rate, the fuse terminals were dirty so it was basically like the fuse was blown and now the fuse can do its thing.



Will join the group now.



Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Turns out I was already in the group after all, from when I had my f100

 

Does that dual master cylinder fit as a bolt on? Or do one have to make an adapter plate, as the original master cylinder is fastened with 4 screws? Is the bore equal?

Rune Waltoft Norway

 

Rune if you join the group you will be welcome I am sure you will find your answer in the FAQ section.merc and ford are cousins so a lot of similar parts.there are a few with mercs on it also

 

Alright, need some help with wiring on the alternator. I currently have the below wiring setup which I thought would work based on what people do with him 3 wire units.

I misdrew the wire which leads to the coil, I have it going to the positive terminal, not the terminal on the top. Oh yeah and the alternator is the round thing in the top right.

I am not seeing that the alternator is putting out any power when I check wth multimeter (reading while car is running is about 12.5v). The car also dies when I pull off the positive battery terminal.


I am using an ultima r111294b alternator.

I tried switching the two wires on the back of the alternator and still nothing.

What am I doing wrong?





Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

You need to replace that crossmember before you actually have a major problem, or look aroundfor a replacement frame.

the 52/53 Ford frames are not the same. they use a pin and like suspension, the 54 is a conventional suspension much like the cars today. HRP

 

The 4 bolts on the old master cylinder also are the support bolts for the interior pedal assembly the new master is bolted up with the bottom two bolts and the top two are then re-inserted into the pedal bracket assembly.

 

Minimal update: it's been cold and rainy here quite a bit and I haven't been motivated to work on the ol ford in the dark, so I haven't.

I think I got my alternator charging now, the voltage at the battery, when the car is running, is around 15-16v.

I finally found a wiring diagram for the alternator and figured out which of the two connectors (other than "Batt") in the back was the "sense" wire and which was not.

I currently have the sense wire running to the starter solenoid next to where the positive terminal of the battery connects, and I have the other wire running to the positive terminal of the coil.

The Batt wire is running to the Ammeter, and the ammeter's other terminal runs back to the same terminal on the starter solenoid that I mentioned above.

My question is though, should the car stay running when I pull the positive battery cable off?


Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.

 

Yes it will run IF the alternator is working. But 15-16 Volts is good FOR AWHILE if you have a low battery. Once the battery is charged the volts should drop into the 13-14 range. If it stays constantly at 16 volts you will eventually fry the battery.

 

My local Napa store had a surprising amount of brake parts, etc for my '54 TRanchwagon in stock. Check in if you have a local one.