Colorado Belvedere Convertible progressing

[Dick Koch]

John - Looking good, I've got nothing on you man, exceptional work, love the color, black is for herses anyway. Even though I'll have two fours I'm sure that 413 would clean my clock in a drag contest.
Dick.

[Fins59]

POR 15 on the floor pans - good move. Been using that stuff for years on anything I can. I found the best way to reseal can is put a piece of the usual plastic (baggy) between lid and can, but more importantly, use a quick clamp to secure lid to can tightly to keep it air tight, otherwise the remainder hardens pretty fast and that stuff is too $$$$$ for that to happen. (I got a son named Jack too, looks about same age as your Jack). Nice work btw.

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

Dick, I pale in comparison to your efforts but thanks for comments. I bet you will come out a head at the gas pump myself, but with two fours.... Maybe it will be similar in cost on fill-ups with the same fuel being consumed. (To Heck with my carbon footprint) It is actually bored out to a 426 but will still say Golden Lion 413 on valve covers, I know not correct but since Tom Fox created the car Chrysler should have built, I am in good company! Just running a 4 BBL instead of Long Rams.

Fins59, my Jack turns 21 next month (10-17) and he can't wait to do so. He is a John also, but my grandfather was a John who went by Jack, so in honor of him, I named my son Jack.

Gotta get my car done before Dick gets his done!

John Q.

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

POR 15 on the floor pans - good move. Been using that stuff for years on anything I can. I found the best way to reseal can is put a piece of the usual plastic (baggy) between lid and can, but more importantly, use a quick clamp to secure lid to can tightly to keep it air tight, otherwise the remainder hardens pretty fast and that stuff is too $$$$$ for that to happen. (I got a son named Jack too, looks about same age as your Jack). Nice work btw.

Thanks for tip on the plastic baggie trick. At $47 a quart at my local auto paint store it does get pricey, I am on my third can but hopefully will be done with this quart.

John Q.

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

Since it is a slow Sunday morning, I thought I would post some pictures of the work I had done on the convert before it had been painted.
I am not a good welder but anyone can start with a wire-fed Mig welder, a good grinder to clean up bumpy welds and a litlle metal impregnated body fill like Metal-Fill, you can do a decent job.

John Q.

[Matthew Keij]

Is it done?

If not, go to the garage!!!!

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

Matthew, Good evening to you and morning to me. No not in garage but was waiting at Airport for your arrival! Sadly, I came home and am working on the wiring part this AM.

Gas tank is in. Welded on front sway bar brackets this week. Need to grind welds then paint them.
Getting there. Life keeps getting in the way. I will start terminating the engine wires today and will put the dash frame in today and pull then dash panel lights thru the opening to connect to Instrument panel with the newer modern fuse protected harness.

I forgot to pull the rear harness thru the cowl structure and run inside the upper rocker area and back to the rear. So last night I did that and all is well there. Which reminds me to take a picture of that area too!
With your new purchase, we are drop top buddies!

John Q.

[Ron Keij]

John,

I bet you already knew that your post with the pictures today was #10000 on this forum Congrats to you and our IT geek webmaster

Your welding looks very good and I couldn't have done it better myself! Keep posting pictures as your project is reaching the final stage, next year you can start cruising, top down and the wind in your hair And I don't have to say that your drop top looks drop dead gorgeous

Ron

[Faulkner]

I bet you already knew that your post with the pictures today was #10000 on this forum Congrats to you and our IT geek webmaster

Well, it was post #10000 - but there are fewer posts than that (because of deletes, etc.). But we are closing in on Ten Thousand total posts.

I wonder who will get to post topic #1959?

Dan

[Ron Keij]

We are also counting deleted posts And I have been waiting for years to open topic 1959, guess I'll have to wait a few months.....

Ron

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

What did I win for the #10000?, I also had my 500 post milestone today too, it went to Matthew! Time flies when you are rambling in these posts.

Had a good day in the garage. Re-routed the rear wiring harness down the area where the sill plate goes. I had no Idea that is where it went since my harness was chewed up and not in its normal place when I took it down to bare steel.

Luckily, a buddy came by last night who has a 58 Dodge and looked at where I had routed it (just inside the sill on the main floor) he said that would work for my 70 Cuda but not what they did in the late 50's. Opps! I had not terminated anything to the rear brakes light area yet,so it was easy to pulll it back forward and using an old heater cable, I attached the beginning of the wiring harness to it and fished it thru from the kick panel cowl area rearward along the channel in the upper sill area and then back thru the lower quarter window area. The extra heater temp cable. I had used it kinda like an electrician's Fish Tape would be used. Pulled it thru in less then 5 mins. Saved by procastination yet again!

Also installed the Rebuilt Heater Control Valve, so there should be no reason to go back under the dash again. Barring that I installed the HCV in the correct Orientation. Dick Koch will let me know if I need to rotate 180 degrees the HCV or leave it. Looks right but.....I will defer to wizer men.

The replacement valve was only 10 bucks at Napa and with a PDF instructions from one of the Forward Look guys (who got it from a Packard guy....) all looks well. Tested out good at least.

John Q.

[Dick Koch]

Looking good John - Man I wish I had recruited you to do my welding, my guy Larry is good but not as good as you. The heater control valve is entirely different for a AC car. There was a NOS AC control valve on ebay last week and I fell asleep in my recliner and missed it, dammit. Don't do like I did and put the glove box in too early. Leave it out until you are sure everthing is working right.
Dick

[rogerh]

Yes, the wiring to the truck goes thru the sill space.
$10 for a water valve at Napa? Wow! That's news to me.
Not sure what Dick means about water valve being entirely different for a/c, but you John don't have to worry about that!

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

Dick is right, the AC version is different the the non-ac valve. And requires an even harder part to find. The part number for this little Non-AC valve (that when old, leaks a lot, Not talking about Dick Koch..). Now this is not the entire HCV but the little rubber valve that makes it all work is for 10 bucks. My radiator shop guy said there was not rebuild kit available but I thought I had heard there was and did some digging on the Forward Look site and found it.

The part number at Napa is 660-1000 and it went for $9.90 plus tax. My NAPA had it for me the same day. Read about this in the Heating, Cooling section of the Forward Look when I put out a call to how to get his valve. I need to stock up on this part.

A FL member then gave me the Link to the Packard Club where they use the same Ranco H-16 HCV on an early 50's Packard. The PDG the Packard guy then went thru it step by step.

Let me see if I can find it and post it here the PDF on the HCV rebuild. I did not do the copper gasket spray part of this how, to since it seemed like overkill and I did not have any on hand anyhow!

On the wiring, I thought I was doing the routing right since that is how it is done on E bodies and B bodies I have done over the years. Did not even think it was wrong to even asked you seasoned 59 guys!

It would have worked OK but then it is under the carpet and subject to abrasions etc. The way the 59 is wired is cool since all wires are protected in the sill.

John Q.

[rogerh]

The Ranco repair PDF is great. Restoring these cars is maybe getting easier?
I see that in the Parts Book, cars with types 903 or 904 A/C used Valve 1187 019 .
Regular cars with 706, 707, 708 heaters used Valve 2084 273.
How do they differ?