12/14/10

Had some requests to post some more pictures. When I get the car out early next year, I'll get some more.

Here are some from the MCA show in Asheville:

9/5/10

Sorry for the tardiness in new posts. It was a hectic 2 weeks since the last post, but I actually completed the K convertible in time to make the MCA National Show this weekend in Asheville, NC. We did not leave Raleigh until around 11am on Friday morning. I was still attaching a few parts then! Arrived in Asheville about 3pm and got the car parked. The weekend was mostly spent performing my judging duties with MCA. Not much time to clean the car, but being so freshly restored, it presented very well. I entered the car in MCA Thoroughbred class (THBA) and was one of 4 total in that class. There were 2 Boss 429's and a 64 1/2 convertible. The K convertible was judged by 2 very well known judges in the U.S. and received a Gold award. It also received an MCA Authenticity Award, which is typically only given at the Grand National every year. It was decided a while back by MCA that we would give those awards at the Asheville show instead of Bellevue. The Authenticity Award is quite prestigious. It requires 98% of the authenticity points on the judging sheets and there are no additions for bonus points. That means that out of a total of 700 points where half are authenticity, only up to 7 points can be deducted to receive the Authenticity Award. Of course, I was very pleased that the car received this and it was very rewarding for the countless hours spent researching all the details and getting things as right as possible. As far as I know, the K convertible is the only '65 to ever receive this award at MCA.

There are a lot of details that I would have liked to blog on, but did not get a chance to snap pics. I do plan to share some of these moving forward and will post from time to time. The car will be taken to MCA shows next year, so folks interested in seeing it in person will have an opportunity to view it.

8/22/10

I've been very busy with the K convertible, lots more progress than I can share right now. Here are a couple items of interest. Date stamps applied to horns and installed.



Brakes were challenging and something that most would have no idea how difficult it is to get right. For a Thoroughbred level car, it could possible be displayed with a drum taken off the rear. The rears are absolutely 100% correct, with FoMoCo shoes and all the proper bits and pieces. The rear brakes were originally Kelsey Hayes backing plates, so the parking brake lever and equalizer bracket are also KH stamped. The rear drum is also KH, date coded correct. Colors of the springs were matched using originals, hardware re-plated as necessary. Front brakes are exact except for the brake shoe liners are "Ford" instead of FoMoCo. Everything else is exact.

8/9/10

Restored and detailed the hi-po engine mounts. These were fun parts to restore and came out really nice. The upper brackets were blasted and tumbled. Lower bracket with the stud was a little more challenging. Blasted and tumbled them and then detailed the pressed in studs to a darker appearance than the bracket. After that, used a torch to heat the original welds so they looked like they were just done. Followed by a rubbing with steel wool and oil. Original long shafts were re-finished in phosphate and correct locking nuts used. NOS large insulators with C4ZA numbers molded in and original FoMoCo upper donut insulators used. To finish off, replicated yellow markings as found.

8/8/10

Passed a big milestone today, the engine is painted! Seems like it has taken forever to get to this point, but it was well worth the wait. The black turned out perfect in my opinion, not too shiny, not too dull. Once the paint had cured, I started putting parts on. These parts have been waiting a long time! A 12/64 (4MA) hi-po distributor was installed and looks great. Yes, it has NOS FoMoCo points, condensor, rotor and cap! Correct olive-drab style oil sender unit installed. Original, rebuilt 3939S hi-po fuel pump installed with correct white gasket and re-plated original bolts. NOS PCV valve used with proper valve cover grommet and original hose/clamps. Original valve covers were re-chromed. Rebuilt original alternator with restored original brackets. Yes, that is an NOS upper radiator hose, I have the matching lower. Have a few more pieces to go before it's ready to drop in the engine bay. The transmission has been rebuilt and is ready to go, will post pics of it soon. Here's some nice engine pics:













In between parts drying, restored a super nice glove box door. Absolutely no blems in the chrome, really nice piece. Went ahead and attached it to just about finish out the dash. The only thing left is buttoning up the wiring along the bottom edge and installing the convertible support brace.

8/7/10

I suppose that folks have been wondering about the engine and the eye candy they were promised! Well, here is the first look at the original K engine, ready for paint. Some detail marks were applied, such as the orange marks, which were typical of the time period in identifying high performance parts. The water pump is like it was out of the box, I did not apply the orange mark. It is indeed a hi-po water pump, dated 12/64. It is not rebuilt, it is an NOS, never used pump that was acquired new, still in the old FoMoCo box. Original hi-po manifolds, date proper, were re-finished in a dark heat-treated appearance. All other components are date and period correct. As you see the engine is how they were assembled (to the best of my knowledge), before they were painted. I chose not to install an oil filter at this point as I hope to use one of the 1,000 mile hi-performance break-in filters. Here's a few pics, enjoy!

8/1/10

Rear leaf springs are completed. NOS bushings used on the front along with NOS, early style, rear shackles. Green/yellow spray dots replicated. Original style leaf clamps used with round holes, supplied by Jim Cowles at Shelby Parts & Restoration.



Took a break from heavy parts restoration and assembled the vent window assemblies. These are original frames that were re-chromed and look fantastic. NOS weather-strip installed, correct tubular rivets used to install the vertical pieces. Rivets facing out as original. Original glass, professionally buffed. Not shown in pic are the correct slider tracks with plastic inserts. The RH is NOS and the LH is nice used original. Have one original corner seal and an NOS one. All original attaching hardware restored/re-plated. Will get a few more detail pics later.

7/29/10

More suspension progress. This picture shows the front sway bar. I had several original ones of these and when stripping in the blast cabinet, I could not find any trace of black paint. I chose to go with a dark heat-treated appearance. The flash makes the part look a little more lighter than it actually is. Correct end links used with NOS bushings and combination of NOS/original restored hardware. Have to get the car on the ground before I can get the top bushing on.

7/25/10

Made some progress on the suspension today. Coated the coil springs and applied the brown paint stripes. I have pictures of the location of the original stripes, which I duplicated. One spring will end up with the stripe showing, the other won't. Based on what I found when cleaning the originals, there was no sign of black paint. I went with a dark heat-treated appearance, which I think turned out great. Used an NOS spindle on the LH side. Had to do some detailing and then replicate paint marks found on the originals. I thought they also turned out great, with all the proper natural machine finishes.






The original rear center section has been completely rebuilt. Acquired an NOS Ford 3.50:1 ring and pinion and all new bearings. Proper natural machine surfaces detailed properly. The original snubber plate was restored, need to clean/detail the rubber bumper. Paint/inspector marks were duplicated as found.

7/2/10

Got the engine back finally! Have already started to put parts on it, but here are some pictures when I got it back from the machine shop. This is the original matching numbers K engine from the convertible. When received with the car, the engine had been bored .060, which is probably a little more than typical. Decided to have the cylinders sleeved back to standard bore. Acquired an NOS set of hi-po pistons and had everything balanced. The block is balanced to 1.5g, which I thought was great. I'll be posting progress of the engine assembly as I go.

6/29/10

Clicking along on trim installation... As mentioned, all original stainless was buffed professionally by Qual Krom in Erie, PA (www.qualkrom.com). Windshield stainless is all installed now, fits like a glove. NOS visor brackets and original re-chromed center trim installed. Rear view mirror and bracket installed. Steering column had to be re-painted, which is done and installed. NOS steering wheel and horn ring installed. NOS 8k rally-pac installed. Rear boot trim chrome and stainless trim installed, NOS snaps used, yes they can be found! Quarter glass assemblies installed, rear quarter metal trim painted. Not much left to the dash, just some buttoning up of the wiring underneath, install the brace and glove box door.

Engine shop is still working on the motor, was hoping to have it by now. Still more work to do on the suspension. Brakes are going to be a challenge. Slowly getting all the parts culled together for that.

Here's some pics taken this evening:

6/19/10

Well, things are actually starting to move forward now. All of the stainless has been received and it is absolutely beautiful. The rear quarter glass pieces were assembled and look great. Will move on to the windshield and related trim soon.

The engine machine work has been completed. It was sleeved back to standard bore and an NOS set of FoMoCo pistons/rings were acquired. The engine is now at a different shop getting the rotating assembly balanced. They will also assemble the short block for me. I have an NOS gasket kit with the correct head gaskets and other misc. pieces, so I will install the heads and assemble the rest of the block. I can't wait to actually clear some parts off the shelves!

The same shop doing the engine is also going to setup the NOS ring/pinion I have, so should be getting that back soon also. Trans is also in the works to be rebuilt. If all goes as planned, should be getting a drive train back in the car soon.

Drive train won't be much good without a suspension. I've actually made considerable progress on that front. After some experimentation with floating paint on water, I threw in the towel and ordered several gallons of black acrylic enamel. Did proper dipping and the upper and lower control arms came out fantastic. I had to go ahead and install them in the car along with the strut rods, so here's some pics of that. The upper and lower control arms are original parts that have been disassembled and restored. Not a job for the faint of heart! Hope to have more frequent updates in the coming weeks.

5/31/10

Making progress little by little. Steering column has been painted and steering wheel installed. Will have pics soon. Pic to share today is of the rear pumpkin pieces that have been refinished. Thought they came out real nice. Original machined surfaces were not pitted, just needed to be cleaned and polished. Have an NOS ring and pinion set that will be installed, along with all NOS bearings.