1967 500 - Buster - Main Restoration Thread

Thanks for the good vibes. Hopefully I can make some progress this weekend.

Laters,
Jeff

 

I was asked for the cam specifications for my "custom" Lunati cam so here ya go:



It was spec'd for when I had the motor in my Mustang and was running nitrous. It still works fine without that though

Laters,
Jeff

 

Yea! Finally some progress. The cabin floor is totally repaired. This is what it looks like before the POR15 was put on. I will try and get a picture of the post POR15 floor as well. I am very impressed with the replacement floor pans. As you can see by the stamped channels the match is pretty damm perfect.

Enjoy







Laters,
Jeff

 

Got some pictures of the floor after the POR15. Night and day difference. I am glad this part is all done!

Here are the pictures:





Laters,
Jeff

 

looking great...I know from cleaning and painting mine it just makes the whole interior feel cleaner.

 

Nice to actually see someone use those floor panels. I was seriously on the fence about getting some when I redid mine but couldn't find anyone that had used them so I just made my own panels. Really regret it in the end. Those look great. I'll probably redo them in a couple of years and will get those panels.

 

Thanks guys! I am also impressed with the panels. They will be the first people I call if/when I need to replace the rear quarters during painting prep (I already know there is a ton of bondo in them due the cracks in the paint I can see).

So when do I get to drive it around again you might ask...soon! Lets see I still need to figure out where to mount my gauges that were displaced by the A/C unit I installed, put the door panels and doors back together, install the carpet, seat belts, and seat. Everything else is ready to go. The new radiator, sealed overflow, hoses, thermostat neck, thermostat, head, and intake gaskets have already been done.

Phew this was just supposed to be a quick oil/fluid change with new rims and tires lol, oh well all of this had to been done eventually. I am just glad it happened when I had the resources to make it happen.

Laters,
Jeff

 

I am planning on moving my gauges (or the new ones I buy) where the original radio was. Previous owner already chopped the area up so I figure I'll move them there and build a console over the hump to house the hidden tablet I'll be using for a radio.

 

I don't know how many jobs I've done that were supposed to be "simple" but turned into many many months. Wife's car was like that. Went to do a simple brake spring rebuild and now I've pretty much replaced the entire brake system. Drums and pads were toast, cylinders were shot, soft lines rotted. Glad nothing crapped out when I was driving it. Thought one of the cylinders was ok so I didn't replace it. Now I am waiting for a new one because it is shot and sucking air. Even my Ranchero was supposed to take only a month or so to do and here we are 2-3 years later.

 

I have seen pictures with the radio replace with gauges. That looks good. I may end up going that route especially since there are so many hidden radio/music options these days. I have a bench seat, floor shifter, and an aftermarket A/C unit so I don't really have any space on the hump. Right now I am playing with doing something along the lines of the Mustang Rally Pac gauge options.

Laters,
Jeff

 

if you go Rally Pac, check this out.
http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/classic-talk/651569-3d-printer-rally-pac-finally-done.html
he's printing from 3D printer, custom fit for more common sized gauges.
pretty cool and less money.

i dont know him personally or have purchased this item, just a cool alternative

 

I have an old CNC machine that I've used twice that I've been debating on converting to a large format 3D printer. We have some of the smaller, MakerBot types here at work. Since there are so many hard to find parts for our cars it'd be nice to make some custom reproduction parts. Too many other projects going on right now though. Those Rally Pacs look nice though. Will be better once they're finished.

 

Thanks for the heads up on the 3d printed pod. I think I saw those on eBay as well. One is listed here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181409133275

Is the steering wheel shaft on the Ranchero 2 1/4"? I wanted to measure mine before I bid but haven't had a chance yet.

Laters,
Jeff

 

Ok here is what I am doing with the gauges. A big ass hose clamp is cheaper than the other options . Tach location is not 100% yet but that looks like it is the best choice out of all the other places to put it. I just need to figure out how to mount it to the dash. I know that is where the factory put it (at least it looks that way from the pictures I have seen and the electrical assembly manual). The only downside is that I can't fit in the voltage meter anywhere. I may just end up putting it under the hood or just stuck somewhere. I figure out of all of them that is the least critical.





Laters,
Jeff

 

Thank you for linking that tachometer with the multiple gauges. That is a neat solution. I am trying to do this as cheaply as possible so I am reusing the gauges I already had. However that is a good idea to keep on the back burner. My dash is already cracked so a couple of extra holes at this point won't really matter. It is not super bad but bad enough that I will eventually get it re-padded or get a dash cap for it. I have seen pictures from Just Dashes where they will add gauge pods or even integrate a tachometer mount in the finished dash for you but I will cross that bridge when I get there. The other thing that softens the blow about drilling some holes in the dashpad for the tachometer is that is where the factory put them as well. Here is a picture from the Electrical Assembly Manual:

I agree with you. I just love the front profile on the '67's. After that the '68's and then the '70's do it for me.

Laters,
Jeff

 

The front end is what always did it for me. As soon as I got into Rancheros with my old 78 I longed for a 67. One of the best looking years for me. When it was time to sell off the 78 and buy a new old car I knew that getting a 67 would be impossible, then my friend found the one I bought down in San Diego. Picked it up the next day. I would have gone with a 68 if it had been road worthy at the time. It had a Ford Racing big block, disc brakes, manual trans, and a few other things that I can't remember now, but the windshield needed to be replaces, the speedometer cable was bad, the e-brake cable was bad, there were no hood hinges, and the steering linkage was snapped. It could have been a great car, but just was too far from where I needed it to be. Then we went to look at the 67 and that was the end of the story. In reality the 68 might have been a better choice as it wasn't as cancer ridden as the 67, but I kind of had blinders on when I was looking at the 67. Annoyingly the next week I saw like 3-4 other 67's pop up on craigslist in better condition for the same price. Oh well.

I've seen a few 67 fairlanes with the tach on the dash and it looks pretty good. Not my preferred location, but it works. I am kind of thankful that a previous owner cut up my cluster so that I have some freedom in doing other things. If it was still original I'd probably keep it that way. I might try to find a new dash later on to put it back to stock, but for now it is an experiment.

 

Wow that is a great story. For Buster I was pretty lucky. I had a Mustang that was getting harder and harder to get inspected "legally" plus I had just purchased a house and decided that I needed a truck of some sort. I was looking for a couple of weeks when the Ranchero popped up. I went to look at it and put a down payment on it to hold it (the purchase price was $2500) and the rest is history as they say. It is hard to believe that I have had it for 10 years now. Damm the time flies. When I first got it there is no way I would have thought that it would take this long to get some of this stuff done. Oh well better late than never as they say.

In some ways having a previous owner that has done lots of hacking and mods frees you up to play around with stuff. You don't feel so bad hacking something apart then. I am going to have to think about a radio solution and whether I want to cut the dash even more to fit in a single DIN radio or stay with the more classic dual knob.

Laters,
Jeff