Back again.

[ubbermotor]

Although I visit this site regularly I haven't logged in for 3 years and it seems that has caused a problem. The password was no longer valid and when I reset it the new one was sent to an E-mail that no longer exists. My apologies to the admin but I just created a new log in.

Though it was time for an update as I have made a tad bit of progress during that 3 years.


My hopes that the blow back through the carb was a timing issue was wishful thinking. Turned out to be burned/sticking valves. Being the cheapskate that I am my first thought was to just find a 383 on craigslist and swap the engine out. I even went so far as to find a '62 Imperial transmission so I could keep the push buttons and brake on the transmission. Somewhere along the way however I convinced myself that a factory 4bbl 318 was worth saving. Probably not the smart choice. The odo showed just 54,000 miles but the scaring inside the engine suggests its at least the second time that has come around. Keeping this engine meant a turned crank and a .040 overbore. Its still original right?

It didn't take long after getting it to notice the pool of brake fluid. The master cylinder was leaking very badly out the plunger. I replaced it with a dual reservoir unit for a '67 Fury with 4-wheel power drums. Naturally I had to replace the T with a couple of elbows and did it backwards the first time but it seemed to work out well and add pedal feel. I also had to move the switch to be "in line" after picking up a replacement at the vintage auto salvage in mountain home. He has "new" ones although who knows how long they have been on the self as the box looked older then me. The wheel cylinders were rusted up and had to be rebuilt as they were causing the wheels to randomly lock up. The pedal linkages were also very rusty and sticking and had to be cleaned up. The shaft ended up jammed in the master cylinder plunger and caused it to bind up. I don't know if this is because it was do to the rust or if the shaft was to big for the '67 master cylinder but I had the end of the shaft turned a bit it shouldn't happen again.

Call me lazy but I have always find that point ignition always knows when the worst time slip is. Heavy traffic, hail storm, when you don't happen to have a screw driver or pocket knife. After finding that electronic conversion kits only go back to 1962 for the 318 I changed my distributor to a '62 model and put the kit in anyway. Not doing so well with the keeping it original thing.

I found a fender to replace the one on the passenger side. It looked like it had caught a curb or something on the back side of the wheel opening and it wasn't something that was going to be straightened out. I have the new one on the car and it has some minor dents in the top but they should be easy to repair. Besides, it was only $100 and unlike the one I pulled off, all metal. My drivers side one has also been patched above the headlights, but unless I just happen to come across a good deal on one I'm not concerned about it for the moment.

I suspected the fuel gauge not working was a float issue, but I have picked up a replacement anyway. The car didn't have a gas cap on in when I got it and I suspect that it was that way for at least the two years it sat in the scrap yard. The yard I got it from said they had just drained the tank and put new gas in it, and I did it again when the rebuilt engine was put in. My first fuel filter got me 8 miles, the second twice that far. I burned through several at this point. The tank is out now. The sending unit is partly melted from someones "repair" job and the float has gaps in it bigger then some of the remaining patches of metal. There is a place here that will clean and seal the inside of a tank but I found a replacement with sending unit for less. Should be here this week.


If it ain't broke don't fix it, but a shiny silver engine bolted to a grimy transmission don't look right. Besides, now that it is actually getting some miles on it those dried up old seals are starting to have a hard time keeping fluids on the right side. Time to pull it, clean it, replace the seals, and paint it. Looks like the pinion seal is doing the same thing so might as well take care of that at the same time. Should be back together some time next month.

[Dick Koch]

Glad to see you are back and making progress. When you change the pinion seal and if the yoke has severe wear grooves you can buy a replacement sleeve to cover the grooves at a NAPA store. I did it on my car and it's worked out well.
Dick.

[Denver 59 Fin Convert]

Looking forward to seeing some current photo's of your 59. Interesting stories about your resto plights that many of us have felt at one point...

You mention, Mountain Home, and the only Mountain Home I know of is in Idaho,east of Boise, am I close?

John Q.

[ubbermotor]

I posted two of my old pictures and two more current ones under "show your ride".

You are right on the money John, Mountain Home south east of Boise. Its less then an hour from here, here being Boise.

Thanks for the tip on sleeve Dick. Having a Napa 4 blocks away makes parts like that convenient. Not that I've looked to see if I need it yet, I've been distracted with daily drivers trying to avoid the whole driving aspect. Didn't even know about the pinion seal until I started pulling the tank and noticed it was "wet".