1952-59 Ford So whats new with everyone?

Sounds like a great trip there. Glad to here you had a great time

 

The important part of the trip was that my buddy has been with cancer for the past year and really needed a great day. Sunday was the first day in months that he has left his home to go do something. It gave his wife a break as well. I hope that this little token has woken up his friends there and spend more time with him. Friends are more precious than our cars.

 

genosslk if you have any problems on the way up from oregon, you've got a Tacoma, WA. hamber that will lend a helping hand.

 

Glad to hear you made it back in good spirits Geno! And you're right on, cars are great, but even better when you have friends to share them with!!!

 

I put some new pictures on this album check it out.http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/album.php?albumid=8412
sorry it wasn't quite tomarrow!

 

My pop died from cancer 3 years ago (don't mean to be a downer)- you find that just getting them out of the house for a few hours makes a huge difference; helps them feel like a part life again. Best to your friend- I'm sure your visit made a huge difference!

 

I must tell you guys.... Tonight when I got home from work, I had 5 phone messages from Dan's buddies down in California. Our little "voyage" woke them up. They have plans to get him a car that is done to drive him to anything that is going on down there. That really choked me up. I'm taking off Friday through Monday this week to go back and help them find something. They are paying my airfare as to not waste two day drive! Now that's friends that deliver! I bet all of us on here have stories to tell about someone that makes a difference in their lives or someone elses. I'm very proud of those guys down there!

 

Man, that just about made my week. What an amazing thing! I swear that the people I have met on the HAMB have renewed my faith in mankind- not trying to be a sap here, I have seen it over and over. Start a new thread about your trip here in the group and take pictures.
Safe travels and good luck with your hunt!

 

I'm sorry guys I'm such a ***** for not going to the last page I always do that! genosslk I hate to hear that kind of stuff! Thats awsome that you guys are doing that for your buddy. Best wishes and good luck.

 

I've been working on the front crossmember mounts on my 1954 ford. they were at a slight angle and i made them flat. Im going to be putting in a 1966 289 and it's all going too be done right.

 

Hey Gearhed... get some build pictures for us!

 

I'll make some time for a story and get a few pics. This should be a great epic!

 

So I decided to waste a little time this morning. Wanted to see what this color looked like before I put it on my car. Give me some feedback on what you guys think. Some friends say they like the color, but I'm not sure about it. Just some rattle can and a few hours of work.













Oh! I put on the new seat covers too...

 

Hey Drag... That looks great! It's amazing what a few hours getting dirty can do, isn't it? And howdja' know about my favorite seat covers? I've got 'em on everything! Even the ones with good seats. I'm famous for jumping into my car after working on it...without changing my clothes! Blankies are cheap and I'm forgetful. Good choice!

Keep up the good work!

Eric

PS: There seems to be something missing from your engine compartment...?

 

Oh you must mean this little guy here....



Yeah, he's gettin cleaned up and taken care of too. Gonna post some pics this weekend of him all dressed up. Then hopefully some of it actually mounted in the car. Colors are a secret, but I bet you can guess what they will be.

 

Getting some progress done. I posted it in my original thread, but thought I'd share it here as well.
Well, I got some more pics of the job that is being done on my front end. We are pretty much ****oned up with the front half. Alot more work than anyone thought, and is looking really nice. I looked everywhere and couldn't come up with a single person that had a 52 with a Mustang II clip running a flathead and bags. Lots of 53-54's, lots of 350's, 302's and the like, lots of S-10 clips, etc.

We solved the oil pan problem by sectioning the original oil pan to clear the cross member. This car is going to lay frame and then some. Everything looks very tidy, and I am very happy with the way things are turning out. Fully custom and I'm into it! I'll keep posting some pics as they come.

 

Wifey & I left Friday to North Carolina for a wedding. Came back Monday. Since HAMBing it I notice old cars more than I used to. Saw some great old stuff around sourthern Ohio & northern WVa. Lots of cruisers out around High Point on Sunday. My brother took me over to a friend's place & in his barn were his first cars, a '30 Model A sedan & his very first - a '26 Model T coupe... both still stock as Henry made 'em. The guy keeps 'em covered but in the barn, they both run but haven't been restored so have some condition issues. I like seeing vintage stock stuff that's still being driven.

Today I've been cleaning, blasting & painting front suspension & bumper parts to put back on the '56. Wednesday is headliner day along with positioning the bucket frames so we can do seatbelt mounts (new floors, didn't have holes) & hoping to install the windshield & backlite if time allows. I'll try & post some progress pics Wednesday evening.

 

Good luck on the headliner, I heard they're a bear. Love to see those pics.

 

cool! I like to see progress!

 

Finally got some cooler weather in Phoenix! so got out and put the hammer and dolly,grinder,DA to work and layed some filler on the roof.Tomorrow will hit it again,with 70's in the mornings can work till around noon by then no shade.

 

Just got my drums back from a buddy that sand-blasted and painted them for me. Man they sure look nice. Some sort of direct-to-steel epxoy paint (black). He's run a local sand blasting company for YEARS, so he does me some favors like that once in a while. "Thanks Corky!!!" Just have to throw them on and then bleed those brakes.

 

So, the headliner was installed on the 23d September by an upholstery guy I found in Lansing - highly recommended. Here's a pic of it right after installation, not heat shrunk yet so there are a few wrinkles (more pics in my album):

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I'm trying to keep the engine compartment low key and original-looking as possible for a '56 that might've been a kid's car in the early 60's. My goal is to have it look like it did, had I owned it in '62 but with some updates (pb, radials). I'm open to suggestions from anyone older than me (58) or with a better memory, who might remember something I missed? Not wanting any flashy stuff & trying to keep it as "back in the day" as possible. Installed power brakes but the booster and m/cylinder cap came cad plated so they're repainted satin black. IMO looks much nicer:

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Valve covers are removed for finishing. The original 312 was toast (3 split cylinders) so I found a 17Kmiles '55 Merc 292 down near Cleveland OH, had it cleaned up bored .030" rebuilt, put on ECZ-C heads, balanced & repainted as close to the original gold/green as I could find. The original embossed Mercury covers will go back on, they've been painted the as-original beige and I'm stenciling the red embossed MERCURY letters in red, again as original. 4bbl intake is a ECZ-B from a '57 so it's as-stock red. Ford carb is from a '63 390/406, snagged off ebay. Got a '56 Olds "batwing" air cleaner to install. Trying to keep it "true Blue Oval". . .Will post more pics as progress continues. ​

Ron​

 

Ron...looks very nice. I really like how sanitary and orderly everything is in the engine bay. Attention to detail always makes a huge difference, and typically doesn't cost much more.

 

Looks like you're doing about the same with your '54 engine compartment. Do you plan to keep it simple/low profile too? I bet a lot of people with think that 302 came in your car when they see the way it's retro-painted. What you've done with yours kinda contradicts those who say SBFs are ugly. You proved it's not always so.

 

Yes, I do plan to keep it very low profile. IMHO, you can't beat simple, quality work on a car. Plus...I plan to drive the snot out of mine (which you probably do too) and a busy engine bay with a ton of chrome would just be something that would turn into a chore after a while.

 

If anyone's interested, there's a '52 Ford 4dr on Milwaukee Craigslist for $300- $450 if you want the flattie (which is apart). Just in case anyone could use it...

 

raceron1120: Here's what you need to be truly authentic. Take it from a 62-year old who was there! These are in the HAMB Cl***ifieds. Jump on 'em! They're for a 292, complete with linkage, and any two-year-old can rebuild a Stromberg/Holley. Get a set of acorn-style air cleaners and you're stylin' the late '50s - early '60s.

Eric

 

Raceron, where did you get the Power Brake set up from?

I finally got a 302/AOD and have some friends freshening up them both. Got the front end stripped down and cleaning and blasting now and almost to the point of rebuilding the front end. Still trying to find the disc brake swap from someone reasonable since I cannot seem to find a Granada with the front brakes still on it.

 

I got it last January off ebay, $200 + s&h. The guy's name is Tom Flaherty, his ebay handle is tomscl***ics. I also got a new gas tank & sending unit from him. Here's a link to his current sales:
http://shop.ebay.com/tomscl***ic/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=25

It came with replacement parts list and I think it said it is a newer 'vette master cylinder and Nissan booster setup. I saw one like it mounted on a '56 Chevy just a few weeks ago. The owner told me it was an easy conversion and works fine. He also kept drum brakes.

I decided to stay with the drum brakes. I figure they should be okay especially after having driven my car back in the 60s when it just had the single cup manual brakes and they worked unless they go wet. . . Power boost should help. I was gonna go with the Jamco setup but was able to save & turn my drums so all I needed to get was new shoes and wheel cylinders & some hardware. I also replaced the wheel bearings just to be safe. Jamco is a bit pricey but if all else fails I've heard their setup is pretty good. Ron

 

[missysdad1 09-28-2009 12:49 PM ron: Here's what you need to be truly authentic. Take it from a 62-year old who was there! These are in the HAMB Cl***ifieds. Jump on 'em! They're for a 292, complete with linkage, and any two-year-old can rebuild a Stromberg/Holley. Get a set of acorn-style air cleaners and you're stylin' the late '50s - early '60s. Eric]


Eric, so now I'm wondering about that Edelbrock 3x2 setup you said is in the cl***ifieds? It's a 553 (would that mean '55, 3 carbs?). Now, me not being quite so long of tooth so all this happened while I was still riding my Huffy . . . I'm hearing that one is a good setup for 239s, 272s & early 292s with small port heads. But another one is the 573, supposedly it has larger ports to accomodate later 292 (ECZ-C) and 312 (ECZ-G) heads. I don't recollect seeing a 573 or if I did, I didn't notice the difference. I have C heads on my 292 which aren't as big as G's but still bigger than the 239/272s. And not that I'm gonna run out and get one but was just wondering about them, maybe for a future project. Have you heard this?

Here's a 553:​

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And here's a 573: ​

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From now on when out at swaps I'll keep an eye out for either of these gems, just to get some first hand knowledge of 'em.
Ron