Just picked up a 62 Falcon. (sorry, couldn't edit subject title. But it is a 62) The gal I got it from said someone said they could turn it into a hotrod for her in a month. Well............. 6 years later, a few thousand dollars, multiple tows and impounds, she couldn't wait to get rid of it. And then along comes me The first guy shoehorned a 351C 2v into it, then disapeared. 2nd guy hooked up a 4 speed and a 9" rear, then disapeared. 3rd guy got it running and drove it a couple miles before it died. He seemed to think it was the carb. Told her it ran good, but the front end was shaky. I tried to turn it over in her driveway, but figured a better deal would be at hand if it wasn't running. Sooooo, offered her $500 to take it off her hands. The plans are to turn it into a gasser style drag car. Straight axle the front, tub the back, and give it that cool stance ready for fight. If any of you have ideas, tips, or spare parts you'd like to donate, please feel free. here are couple pic's. BTW, no I'm not that fat guy.....
Looks like you got a deal there. Specially with the motor and the 9 inch ....... Keep them dam hub caps though Dave
Looks like a great project. Gassser sounds really cool, I would think about the tubing part, those old falcons look pretty good with the wheel openings radiused with a little bit of the tire sticking out. Just something to think about. Can't wait to see progress pictures!
I'll bet the front was a little shakey. I don't imagine six cylinder stuff would support a 351 that well. Don't tub it, and if you do, don't call it a gasser. It would look much more period correct with radiused wheel wells, and piecrust slicks sticking out. Cool car though, and you can't beat that price. I'm a sucker for Falcons anyway.
They do too have that roof line in `63 I`ve got one I`m building into a gasser . It`s a very early `63 build date. Gasserman
You guys are right, it is a 62. I think cutting out the wheel wells instead of tubbing does look more period correct. Which is the look we are going for.
What I`m doing is use a spare set of front fenders to use the wheel openings in the rear, to then match the front wheel openings. And then do a mini tub in the rear and move the rear springs inboard. Gasserman
Sounds a little too "clean"... The front wheel wells are also kinda small for a "Gassersize (TM)" rear tire... plus it's a funny shaped wheel well... Decide what size wheel and tire you want... and then make the opening to that size. I have a 8.5 American on mine... with a M/T street slick... and it's the perfect size wheel / tire combo... (I'll try to dig up a pic) Get the front suspension done FIRST. That will determine the height of the back. The front is what it is... with drag link and tie rod clearences (if it's not too high) and limitations imposed upon you by the drop of the axle and the springs and so forth... Then get the back at the right ride height... and establish how high the rear end needs to be to get the car at that height with the tire you have. Build the rear suspension... Then take a string and a Sharpie and mark the rear fender... you'll need to project out from the center of the hub... Once marked at the radius you want it to end up... mark and cut it about 5/8" on the inside (smaller radius) of that line... Cut it out... and then hammer the lip at a 90 degree angle AGAINST A DOLLY with a radius on it. It's pretty simple if you work slowly... and it'll look like a gasser when you're done... Sam.
Thanks Sam, that's some good info. The M/T slicks I use on my truck are 27" tall, and I'll be throwing those on the Falcon when we run it.
Slick Mo Fo, Check this link out. This 66 Falcon is a bad mo fo and built on the cheap. http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2005/05/66Falcon/
Why give it a straight axle? Aside from the wicked good looks. For simplicity sake you may want to go to critesrestoration.com and look at their stuff. They make kits that allow a 428 to fit between some modified shock towers. They also make a bunch of fiberglass parts incase it needs a little weight reduction to run even faster. I agree with the dont tub it idea. Tubbing is cool for prostreet and mullet machines (and cars that need it), but you could probably get away with radiused fenders, 3" wider than stock slicks in the rear, and a mean set of traction bars. That way you could roast them when you wanted to or you could ease up on the go pedal and make that thing haul ass. I guess your going to have to change around the front suspension anyway due to the added weight and power. Probably is a smart idea to go with a straight axle. Are disk brakes in the equation somewhere?
I guess you didn`t understand on the wheel openings. I can run a 30" slick in the rear . You use the top of the front wheel opening at the body line to match up and make it round. Plus with the mini tubs I can run 15 x14 wheels with about 3 1/2 " to 4" outside of the car. I`m running a 351C with 12.5 compression,Hilborn stack injectors and a Doug Nash 5 speed into a narrowed 9" with 4.86 gears on 35 spline Strange axles & spool It`s my play car Gasserman
Oh yea... my '60 Falcon gasser that I used to own had a Econoline or Dodge front axle under it that was narrowed...
look at the VIN number, the first digit is the year.If its a 1=61, 2=62, Yada yada. go with the tires stickin out the sides in Back & a straight axle, with about 2 ft. of ground clearance, nothin badder then that!! JimV
serch for the "falcons done right" thread for a few falcon gassers and other pics if ya havent all ready i got some pics to if ya like?
Took the battery out of the 56 to crank it over, decided to add some gas from a plastic cup, fired up on the first crank. No exhaust pipes, just the manifolds. The carb is a POS 2 bbl. I have a Holly 650 and might just get an addapter spacer plate to run that 4 bbl. Don't really want to waist time on that motorcraft.
What have you guys done to strengthin the frame? I have a feeling that thing is going to "twist & shout". And and what level of power should I be worried about this happening?
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