Hot Rods '63 Rambler Classic 550

Pull the pumpkin and carry it into the shop and you take a big part of the time factor out of the job or if you feel adventurous read up on the process and do it yourself on the bench.

 

I had 3.50's put in an 8 inch about a year or so ago. 500 bucks parts and labor by an experienced guy with a great rep. And that's in SoCal where everything is expensive.

 

It would be worth trying to find a core carrier and you could work on it and when done switch it out and leave the other unit useable. Save some money , buy a few tools and learn something new. Setting up a rearend correctly can be a time consuming process.

 

This weekend I'll be taking the Rambler 200 miles down to scottsbluff for a car show. I'm hoping the Rambler is up for the trip.
Me and dad got it up on the lift yesterday and shortened up the torque converter bolts that were ever so slightly digging into the torque converter. Was hoping that'd be the cause of noise cure but I wasn't. But while we were down there we also checked for loose bolts(wasn't any) and moved around the exhaust pipe in places that were suspect to rubbing/bumping against stuff. We took a short ride after that to see if the noise went away, and for the first mile, it mostly was gone! Or very quiet. Slowly but surely mile after mile the noise came back to its original loudness.
So, after this trip to scottsbluff, back up on the lift it'll go, we'll get the new 3.40 gears in and see what can be done about altering the exhaust pipe. May have to take off body and flatten some bits out for extra clearance.
I feels so close to figuring this out.

Here's some pics I took yesterday.
Same spot many years apart

 

First day at the scottsbluff carshow. Heres some pics. found a 62 rambler! And took a pic of a 39 fordor sedan to show that guy building one here on the hamb (but I forgot his name)

 

More pics

 

More show pics


here's some more pics of our group winner winner!

 

Great coverage …. Love that green olds ? torpedo back ‼️. Good to see all the family cruising together ‼️. Surprised that blue deuce Tudor actually made it ‼️‼️. … you know I’m just bustin his balls

 

Last little trip here at the Scott's bluff now we're headed home!

 

This was the first out of town trip for the rambler. Roughly five hundred miles with out a problem. In fact Brooks helped a gentleman who’s car wouldn’t start by giving him a jump.

 

BIG CHANGE UPDATE!!!
Changed gear and pinion from 2.79s to 3.40.
Took it for a calm low speed test drive and I'm happy with how it performed. And the best thing yet, the knocking noise has gone away!!! Crossing my fingers that it's gone for good. I'm guessing the gear bearings were bad in that 2.79.
These new gears are alot zippy-er and there's a bit of a high whine (not nearly as annoying as the old knocking)
Another thing is the speedometer is now reading 10mph over actual speed so I need to change transmission speed cable gear, higher or lower gear? I don't know which.
Next thing on the list is to figure out why my taillights are funky and start saving up for a 700R4 transmission.

Great day!

 

IMO, the 1963 Rambler Cl***ic was the best looking car to ever come from AMC., The 1964 grill changed the entire look of the car, and not for the better IMO. In 1963, the West Hartford Connecticut police department had Rambler cl***ic's for police cars, but they were 4 door models. I like your car, keep up the good times with it,

 

Took it out for the first highway drive with the new gears, drove fine but the speedometer was reading 100 on a 75mph road and everyone was p***ing me. earlier when me and dad were testing the gears on 30-50mph roads it was only reading 10 over. so it seems to get more inaccurate the faster I go.

so obviously I need a new speedometer cable gear, is there a way I can tell what's in it now without pulling it out or should I just pull it?
and when I do figure out what gear is in it, would I get a higher or lower gear to get a more accurate readout?

 

Yes, the inaccuracy is in percentage, not just 10 MPH. I think you can probably search on google to figure out what speedo gear you willl need to get it right

 

That much of an error won’t be able to be corrected by a driven gear change. It’s going to take a speedometer gear ratio adapter.
I have information on the calibration page of my website on the best way to figure the amount the speedometer is off if you want me to build you a ratio adapter. Just hit the link in my signature.
Let my know if you’d like me to help you out with this. www.speedoservice.com
Rusty

 

@Greenblade good advice from @e1956v plus Rusty is an Alliance Vendor and offers a discount to Alliance members. Something worth considering but that's JMO.

 

I'll do a mile test sometime here soon. But sounds like from the website, the speedometer itself is messed up besides the gear ratio? Guess I'll see with the test. Now to find a quiet road to measure a mile

 

Nice Rambler! What year and model is the orange and white pickup in your group? I am drawing a blank.

 

That is a KB series International, that body style ran from 41 to 49.

 

Wow. Thanks. I have never see one in the wild.

 

That rear end styling is really well done. The way the trailing edge of the trunk flows, then bends back down and flows into the bumper...love it. Flowing' like @Greenblade 's mullet.

Love where the exhaust dumps out, too.

Hope you don't mind me adding this image of a '63(?) I saw at the Kenosha Homecoming Show last July. Obviously, I was mezmerized by it

 

You can use highway mile markers, just run multiple tests, maybe 3 so you can get a good average. The speed that you run the measured mile isn’t important, a mile is a mile at 30 mph or 60mph. Getting the mile correct may put the speed reading in the ballpark that you’re comfortable with without having to work on the speedometer itself, it’s a personal preference not a mandatory thing.

 

Made a graph. I'm hoping this will help figure out what needs to be done to get the speedometer and mile counter back to an acceptable readout.
Thanks Dad for helping me with writing the numbers down

 

nice bumper! i wish mine was as straight as that one

 

More info in addition to the graph above.
Driving 1 measured mile, the Rambler says I went 1.2 rolling 1.3 of a mile

 

Exactly what I said earlier, it is off by approximately 30%, so if you multiply the speed you want to be driving at you by 1.3, will know what speed the speedometer needs to read!

 

Thanks to @e1956v and the speedometer gear adapter he made, my rambler is now reading proper speed and mileage. This is a huge relief for me, especially since right now is sturgis rally time and the cops will pull you over for anything. Now I can be ***ured I'm going a legal speed. I better watch out on that finicky taillight of mine though! Seriously though, if you need a speedometer adjustment, get in touch with @e1956v . (I sent you a private dm too e1956v)
And thank you @rusty rocket for the help installing the gear adapter. I can always count on you for help. Love ya Dad!
Its been a good day. Have a good one - BVP

 

Glad it went well and it’s accurate, just remember now you have no excuses if you get nailed for speeding.