Well there has been some progress at the paint shop….. Some of the front end panels are in primer and the guys have started the welding work on the body. I’m still trying to get some floor, trunk and rocker panels to an exporter in New Jersey, so that they can come over to the UK in a container, but so far I’ve had no response to my emails to CW Moss nor Dennis Carpenter. That could halt the project for a little while.
I have got the upper front shock mounts completed. I simply reused the F1 mounts, but heated them to suit the position that I wanted the tube shock to sit in.
I think they will own me by the time this is all over! They first looked at the car back in October and I waited a while for a slot to get the car in to them, which happened over Christmas. Since then they have been working away at it pretty regular.
Shell is in primer, but still trying to get some floor panels delivered, so work still to be done there.
maybe the numbers are so in assembly they know its a deluxe rather than a standard or a pickup or even a convertible, if they nail the cowl section together as one first - as the side panels differ and the scuttles, plus left or rhd, lots of differences
I have been making a set of lower rear shock mounts from some Chevy steering arms. They still need a few tweaks to get the mount and the bolt holes into the right position, but not far off. These use the brake backing plate bolts to mount them to the axle hubs.
I got the rear shock brackets done and the old lower brackets cut off the axle bells, ground down and painted. The shocks are Gabriel units that feel and look a lot nicer than the Gaz ones that were previously fitted. I also finished off the frame repair next to the exhaust where it had been hacked out. I put a set of new wheel cylinders on the back end while i had it apart as the old ones were weeping. Only a few more little jobs left on the running gear for me now. The replacement floor panels are on the water and should land here in the UK later this week, which will allow the bodyshop boys to get cracking again.
Gear lever done. It looks a bit better than the T5 tubular unit and I will put a nice ball on the top when the body is back on. I used a Model A lever and trimmed the bottom to match the quick shift unit.…..
Nice conversion on the Mustang shifter for the S10 T5. I am planning on doing the same thing. Very nice work on all the things going on with this car. Have fun and keep it up!
I'm pretty much done with the rolling frame now. Suspension mods all seem to have worked as I had hoped and all 4 corners move up and down much nicer than they did. It also looks a lot neater overall. It's been easier for me working with the body off than the previous guy(s) doing their stuff from underneath. I might not be able to leave the gearbox mount as it is - it's the only bit bugging me now. I will see if i can lift the gearbox out without dropping the rear end out. That will give me access to the underside of the crossmember and I can remake the mounts a bit nicer. I will have to hurry, though because the floor panels finally landed from United PAcific after a long wait for the container ferry. I dropped them off at the body shop so they are moving forwards again. Here is how the frame sits right now.... Here is a quick review of how the front end has changed. Those Gabriel shocks are much softer than the gas-filled Gaz ones as well, so it should drive like a different car.
I had a go at making some new gearbox mounts. The chassis pads are ok, so I left the gearbox in place and decided to just re-make the top halves. Here is what I took off: I used some old F1 shock mounts and welded them to a piece of plate. Had to turn some 7/16” bolts down to take a 10mm thread…. Just waiting for some new rubber donuts then I can get them bolted down. Paint in the meantime.
No one will ever see them, but you will know they are there. I'm sure the old ones worked just fine, but the new ones are WAY better. -Abone.
Here we go folks, we're back in business...... The welding on the floor has begun. The quality of the UP panels seems great on the whole. The trans tunnel is a bit taller than stock, but the guys are going to pie cut it to get it to blend in. So the next stage was to get the frame back from my place and take it back to the body shop. And later that day they managed to get the body re-united with the frame for a trial fit. That's it so far. I will call by the body shop in the next few days to have a look at the floor and then they will proceed with fully welding it in. Happy days!
The Jalopy Journal
