Page 10

May 18, 2003 -  It was time to make the motor mounts!!! I needed to cut the rubber bumper I bought for 25 bucks into 3x4x1.25 inch blocks on my band saw. The rubber brick already had two 3/4 inch holes molded into it so I cut the blocks around the pre-made holes to save time. I placed the rubber onto wax paper to allow the block to slide on the table while cutting. The smoke was thick but I made it through it it alive at least for now. The original mount had 3 parts to it, a top plate, rubber block and a bottom plate. The curves on the bottom plate called for cutting a notch into the block so that the ends of the lower  plate. which are shorter than the length of the block, would seat correctly with out bending them flat. for the bottom mount I found some late 40's Ford truck motor mounts that look like the original that I bought on ebay for 6 bucks.....worked out great!!!! The picture on the right shows the dry fitting before bolting them down... The upper plate is crooked.

Finally!!! I was to the point where I could bolt up the suspension. I purchased some upper bumpers for the control arms since I didn't have any on the arms when I removed them. The spring perch cushions were also worn so I was able to get the Ford ones to fit with a little prying. The problem I came across was when I started to bolt up the lower control arms..This is the part where the accident comes into play...The drivers side bolted in with no problems and did not need any spacers. The passenger side was another issue. The front cross member was welded in about 1/4 of an inch toward the rear. This would not allows the arm to bolt in. I had to cut an 1/8 of an inch off the front and rear bushing to get it to slide in. If I didn't do that I would have to tear down the front end of the car and start learning how to cut and weld.  I ordered 2 new inner tie rods and  2 shocks from Kanter for 358 dollars. My original tie rods looked like spaghetti. I took apart the steering system and cleaned and painted it all up, and bolted it back in..something wasn't right...I found out later after thinking about for a couple of weeks that I had the pitman arm upside down... switched it and bolted it back in..looks great!!!!.  To make sure that everything is in tight I did a nut and bolt on the suspension and added all the cotter pins back in.

Im in the process now of working on the ignition system, replacing the cap, rotor, points and condenser. Also I purchased a set of ford spark plug wires and brackets..this should rid me of the no spark gremlins I have encountered trying to fire it up. After that its onto the brakes and Man.. im not in a hurry to make those steel lines...The ones I have made so far  look like hell!!!