Got all the gauges retro'd. The newer units are almost identical in size to the '50 pieces. All that was required was a little trimming of the gauge aprons so that the apron did not interfere with the face of the cluster. Here are side by side shots. The newer unit is on the left. I removed the bracket and it fit perfectly over the new gauge. Hardware is all the same. A little rimming around the housing hole and they dropped right in. First one was the fuel. Here is what it looks like installed compared to the old 50 units. And with all three installed. When it warms up a bit I am going back to the yard and rob the senders off of that truck. The speedometer was a bit of a challenge. The newer odometers are made so that you cannot easily take them apart to roll the mileage back. I pulled it out of the unit but determined that it was a bit risky trying to remove the pressed-on ferrule that retains all of the cylinders. Didn't want to break it and then have to look for a replacement so it is what it is and we will leave it alone. Put it all back together and tested it with my drill. All appears to be working now.
i took an old cable, cut off about 4", put it in my fastest drill and ran the odometer forward to 000 000 held it wide open watching tv...
Smitty I don't think I could watch that much tv! My speedo is at 14000 something. Might be easier to go in reverse LOL
ask an old used car dealer, if it works backwards they would have jacked up the rear of a car and let it run in reverse all afternoon to drop the mileage...
Good news! My paint is in the Brattleboro, VT distribution center so there is a good chance we will see it Friday.
Body is ready for paint. May get that done today. Fingers crossed. We sprayed the bottom yesterday but it has been in the single digits here so we are waiting for the temps to move up a bit. Easier to keep the shop warm when we are in the 30's. 32 at the moment so it is looking promising.
Thank you BigO! Glad to see you hanging in there. Yesterday we started the process of cutting the clear coat. We also sprayed out the doors and trunk. 4 hours of sanding on the clear coat has reminded me of how bad my shoulder is. HA! Will continue some more today.
Couldn't save the right rear quarter even after sanding it out. The solvent pop we experienced with the clear was just horrific, so I removed most of it and reshot it with a coat of base followed by 2 coats of clear. Just as we were almost done spraying the clear the gun spit out a blob of clear about 2 inches in length and then the solvent pop reappeared after drying over night. Started all over again, sanding all that off. Then we shot it with a different clear from Sherwin Williams (their Acme line). It laid down perfect and shows no sign of popping, finally. And here we are mounted back on the frame and waiting for transport back to my shop. Maybe now I can make some progress.
Great build. Gotta love a good 'ol Oldsmobile engine. I built one, back in '90, and loved it. It sounded better by far, than any mill I had before or after. I tortured that bugger for 10 years at vintage road races, and never had a lick of trouble with it. I got my first Model A a few years back, but it is not nearly as slick as this one. Where I live is not conducive to smooth. People always ask when I'm going to paint my ride. I reply, it already is painted, kinda a dull grey. Then they ask when I'm gonna get a set of fancy wheels. Again, I already did, and they are "skinny steer and fatter rear"........ I look forward to seeing your A on the road !!!
My Model A already had a 289 Ford on board when I got it, but had never been hooked up, even though it went in in 1968. It used 289 to flat head adaptors, since it was built in the early 50's with a flattie. But, I live Oldsmobile mills, but have hot rodded only one. The long block was done by Larry Spengler and the balance was handled by Al Blazic, who, unknown to me, was an icon in the racing field. When completed, I competed in Vintage road racing for ten years with that bugger. I tortured it unmercifully, and it never missed a lick. It now resides in the NHRA Museum.
Loved reading the entire build lots of determination to stay on track. I feel your pain with paint issues. I started working and painting old car over 40 years ago I’ve had bad reactions with lacquer for lots of reasons. But have had best results with a good 1 to 1 mix of epoxy on bare metal and a reduced mix of epoxy for a sealer before paint. Anyway painting can be a crapshoot it all ways makes me nervous. It’s kinda like when the cement truck pulls up with a full load of cement for a project if you ever been in that situation. Can’t wait to see your car to come together great job.
Thanks, fellas, for the input. Got the A home yesterday afternoon and staged in the shop. Painted the master cylinder white and it is holding this time around. Had issues with contamination first time around but I soaked it in Windex and it seemed to clean it to the point that it would hold paint. Next on the list is hooking up the brake and clutch slave and routing the lines. That will make room for putting the hoop in that the steering attaches to. Lots to do now. Feel like I just got out of (paint)jail and am free to get moving on.
Installed the master cylinder and here we are tonight: HA! Seems I grabbed the wrong white paint. Go figure. When attached it looked like appliance white so I ordered some more white and repainted it today. Might get it back on tomorrow in between snow storms. Got the hoop reinstalled and tied down, mounted the brake/clutch assembly and moved the Mallory coil to its mount on the hoop. Anxious to see how the clutch is going to work with the hydraulic slave cylinder. I rechecked the ratio on the clutch pedal, and it appeared to be a bit short, so I moved the yoke closer to the fulcrum and if my math is correct, I am now close to 7:1. Ran the battery cable to the trunk where it will terminate in a master switch. Need to make a bracket for that which is on the list tomorrow along with fabbing up a couple 3 inch brake/clutch pedals. Pulled the gas tank out of storage. Need to order a sending unit for that. More to come, stay tuned.
If you have any of that white paint left now is a good time to paint the insides of the under dash it helps later when you need to work on something under there.
Smitty had mentioned that earlier. I would not have thought of that probably but that is the plan. I have a rattle can of white waiting in the wings for the right moment. The first to get the treatment is the back of the dash which I have on the bench at the moment. Still working on the instrument panel voltmeter conversion which is resisting change
Despite a short day yesterday, I did manage to get a few more small items off the list. I needed to fab up a plate to mount the battery cut off switch in the trunk. I drilled a 2 1/8 hole in some plate, welded a couple tabs on the rear for the bolts and then tacked it in place at the end of my "too short" battery cable. Now I just need to make up the feed end which will necessitate buying a little bit more cable. Guess it was time to fill in the hole over that cross member so I stitched in a new plate with a small relief for the spring bolt head. Ordered a sender for my tank from Tanks, Inc so it will be here when the time arises for that install. Now I need to source some battery cable ends. I have previously used Belden pieces but can't seem to find them in town since the merging of parts stores. Bet i can get them on line which appears to be the case with almost everything these days.
The Molex connectors came today so I finished the rewire of the gauges and finished the upgrade to a voltmeter. Tested all the gauges with a 9 volt battery and they all seem to work. These were the gauges I removed from a low mileage '68 F500 truck over in the local yard. Happy that it all worked out and it was not very expensive even with new sending units. Worked on the battery cables but ordered the wrong compression battery end so I will return to this tomorrow. Started looking over the choices I have for installing the electric fuel pump. Appears it will go on the frame just below the tank. I had ordered a Facet pump a few months back and actually remembered where I put it unlike most things that seem to disappear in the shop. We sprayed that master cylinder last Thursday afternoon with single stage Crossfire like before. As of this morning it still wasn't dry! Can't seem to get ahead of this paint stuff! Maybe tomorrow it will be ready..??? It is holding up the brake/clutch process.
Walt... You've padded thru the steps like a champ, and opened some doors to all of us for sources...especially the Ford F500 gauges and senders. Good thinking! Very anxious to see the coupe outfitted with finished paint, fitted radiator, shell, and hood... Oh, and the hopefully dried and cured master cylinder! Merry Christmas, and thanks for a great thread!
different app. i know, but might help someone... when using a "gauges around the speedo" 2 of them must be sort of upside down i used a 3/4" long piece of 1.75" ish exhaust pipe, cut it so i could spread it slightly, tacked it where it holds the gauge in the right place... let it pinch tight enough to hold the gauge ... this will hold about any 2 1/16" or 2 1/8" gauge so you can rotate it to match the angle you need... .
Smitty, that upside down voltmeter was the one I had the most difficult time locating. In an effort to stay on track I ordered an inexpensive piece thru Amazon. Pulled the small movement out and put it in the old ammeter can. Made some small wing brackets to attach the can to the cluster. Adjusted the angle and tightened it down. had to paint the needle red to match the others and amazingly the paint dried, not something I am used to lately Thanks to all for comments. Keeps this old guy moving forward.
Managed to get the fuel pump installed down on the rail under the tank. The sender came also so I adjusted it for the tank depth and installed that in the tank. The tank has a vent fitting and comes with a nice vent/roll over valve. However, the instructions clearly state that it needs to be above the filler height which in a Model A coupe with trunk mounted 18-gallon tank is nearly impossible. Wonder what others have done to remedy this situation? Here is the pic of that pump. Small unit, saves space, hope it works out. And that tank. Takes up most of the room in the trunk but at least it gives me 18 gallons of petro which that Olds may need. It bolts to a 1x1 frame that it sets on It has been cold this week with a lot of wind. Time to pull the screen across the shop. Makes a world of difference in keeping warm as the furnace is on the work side of the plastic.
Snuck in a little time during the holiday. Been massaging the fuel delivery system, particularly the fuel delivery to the tri-power. Tried all the set ups with fuel blocks etc and in the end was not enthused with all the fuel lines crowding the engine space. Have a nice Moon old fuel block I wanted to use but it just did not look right on the firewall where space is getting limited. I mounted the voltage regulator and positioned the fuel pressure regulator, installed the 3/8 fuel line and have pretty much decided to use Stromberg's banjo fittings which solve several issues. Pricey little suckers but it is what it is. Today I am going to pick up a bypass filter (Napa 3040) that will give me a 1/4 inch return line to the tank. That will be mounted on the frame and plumbed from there back. The return line is recommended by Stromberg to alleviate back pressure when this new fuel we use expands due to heat soak and tries to puke out of the 97's. Additionally I am told that the return line keeps cooler fuel in the delivery system since it is recirculating all the time. Sounds good anyway.
those ford 2 bar. carb filters only work one way... couldn't tell which way the pump was pushing... i mounted my electric fuel pump beside the tank on the floor... works... my fuel pick ups are mounted 1" and 2" above the floor... gravity works for me... 2" = regular... 1" = reserve... buys me about 1 gallon of reserve...
The Jalopy Journal
