Hey all, just wanted to stop by and introduce myself. Steve in Ellicott, CO. I am a proud owner of a 1956 Ford Customline. Cool car. I just don't know squat about it. All I do know is it needs a few little things to get it going. It currently has a 302 with a floor mounted automatic shifter. I think it is a C4. None of the gauges work and the wiring is a mess. Looks like it has had a recent cheap paint job, and I used a pretty weak magnet to search for bondo. Found some areas that has some but not thick enough to keep the magnet from holding. So on with the show. Right now I am working on the vent windows. There was no weather stripping when I got the car so I ordered some from Steele Rubber Products. Now the questions start. I took out the vent window and the previous owner(s) used a piece of rubber hose and electricians tape on the bottom post to keep the vent window in place. After looking at Dennis Carpenter's web site it looks like there are 4 washers, a spring and a nut that should be there. In what order should they be attached? There are also no handles on the vent windows, so I order them also. Where can I find some information on how this car is put together, hopefully with a lot of pictures? Anyway, I hope to become an active member of this forum to gather and share information. This is going to be fun. Have a Great Day Steve
Hi Steve and welcome! Nice to see another '56er. Is your Customline a hardtop or sedan? Sounds like you got yerself a project to keep you outta trouble for a day or so. . . One thing you might want to do is to get a Service Manual for your Ford - it's got invaluable info and quite a few illustrations that'll help you put things back the way they should be. I picked one up on ebay a couple years ago but there's likely some folks in this group that have one on CD or hardcopy too. Ron
Welcome to the group. I agree with Ron about the manual. I don't know squat about cars and I've had a great deal of questions answered and help in general from looking things up in the manual. I picked mine up at C&G Early Fords for about $25.00. I'm a hard copy kind of guy so I didn't even worry about the CD version. The other great option is htat you can just ask any of the guys here and they can point you in the right direction.
Send our member Retro Jim a pm,for around $10 He can hook you up with the Ford Parts Manual CD which lists all the part numbers from end to end also there are exploded views which show how things go together,it is a must have!
Just for everyones information, I always carry a fridge magnet( the ones that hold notes on the door) in my wallet. Cheap, easy, and always handy for checking for bondo on vehicles.
Thanks for the replies. I did order the CD version of the manual off ebay yeaterday. I also stopped over and looked at the window of a 1946 Ford and saw how it was put together. A small light came on and now I user stand that part of the vent window. Do any of you have any information on the 56 Ford gauge clusters that are being sold on ebay for $230.00 or $270.00? I think they are Auto Meter.
The only gauge clusters I found on ebay were Dolphin, not AutoMeter unless they're related. I've not heard of them before. Except the speedo head (had my original one rebuilt), all of my gauges were replaced with Stewart Warner cl***ic Wings, inserted in the original gauge housing.
Welcome to the group, I just recently moved to Lakewood CO, I think I'm about an hour north of ya. I should have my 55' out here next year. Hopefully.
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