My '66 Hardtop Town Build

[scumdog]

How long did it take to do that section of rim?

[Cwcb08]

I dono 40 min? I did the inside and as far around as you see there. I'll finish the remainder and may take Dave's suggestion via PM to dip it after that as well

[simplyconnected]

Yes, I suggest he use Muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid) outside, with proper eye and hand protection and a garden hose near by.

The whole wheel doesn't need to be submerged if you keep the steel 'wet' with a junk paint brush. Acid works better in warm temps but even in cold, it's fast. - Dave

[Cwcb08]

Picked up a regulator and another filter (5$ea on clearance) when I went to get more sand today and a few fittings (6$)





And picked up some speaker wire to put the old radio ( from a previous car ) and new speakers my FIL gave us into the car. I think I'm going to hid the radio in the console/glove box ad use the cars stock antenna

[Cwcb08]

havent worked on the bird in a little while but i had some time while kiddo had a nap yesterday. i pulled both front seats and removed the carpet.







i was happy to find only surface rust, i also thought i was done repairing/replacing vacuum lines

Now is the time to decide on a replacement carpet colour, I want to use the original Ivy green, or black, the boss wants tan/beige. What do you guys think?

We also haven't decided on what colour to redo the seats yet, or if we are going to keep the original rear covers & just replace the front foam&covers, or replace them all at once so they match, this is also why we haven't settled on a carpet colour.

Decisions, decisions $$$

[Cwcb08]

Got some literature from my neibour her brother had a '64

[OUR5T8BIRD]

Got some literature from my neibour her brother had a '64

Thunderbird Illustrated was a great quarterly magazine that I believe was sold by subscription only . Too bad it stopped after only two years . Have all of them as well and can be a good reference at times . Nice collectible, and , by the way, good luck with your restoration on the '66 .

[YellowRose]

My '66 Hardtop Town Build

There is a set of Thunderbird Illustrated magazines that were donated to us some time ago. Thanks to Dave~simplyconnected, they are now a part of the Technical Resource Library! You can go to the TRL, hit the Ctrl and F button on your keyboard, type in Thunderbird Illustrated and it will take you right to the link. Then you can open or download the .pdf file and peruse through it and enjoy the articles there!

[Cwcb08]

There is a set of Thunderbird Illustrated magazines that were donated to us some time ago. Thanks to Dave~simplyconnected, they are now a part of the Technical Resource Library! You can go to the TRL, hit the Ctrl and F button on your keyboard, type in Thunderbird Illustrated and it will take you right to the link. Then you can open or download the .pdf file and peruse through it and enjoy the articles there!

I'm in a the process of sending the two factory manuals you see there to Dave as .PDF for the TRL

[YellowRose]

My '66 Hardtop Town Build

Thanks, Cody! We do have the electrical schematic for the 1964 Tbird in the Wiring Diagrams of the TRL along with all the other early Tbirds. But this booklet looks like it might contain a lot more information for the 1964, as we have for the 1966 Tbird. I cannot make out what the other booklet covers, but I am sure we can put it to use! Thanks again!

[Cwcb08]

drove it to work today.


have to figure out why the flashers Indicator is always on faint and flashes with turn signals ( something is back feeding)


hi beam, i need to make sure the bulb for the hi's is installed properly so I have an indicator, it must have fallen out when reinstalling the cluster


low's really need adjusting


admiring it when i got home before putting it back into the garage


also need to address this transmission ( i think ) drip



i need to trace the vacuum lines to the heater valve, when i turn it on i dont get any warm air (i know the valve works i put a vacuum directly to it previously and got heat from the vents)


strangely the fuel gauge works when i first start the car, but after the temp gauge goes up the fuel gauge stops reading, not sire where to start on this one.



not sure how much love the bird will get in the next month, we get the keys to a new house on the 21st and have 5 weeks to renovate and move in, once we move she will get a nice epoxy floor to park on tho, rustoleum epoxysheild - grey with neon green ( also react to black light), glow in the dark & black colour flecks!

[simplyconnected]

...have to figure out why the flashers Indicator is always on faint and flashes with turn signals ( something is back feeding)...

...hi beam, i need to make sure the bulb for the hi's is installed properly so I have an indicator, it must have fallen out when reinstalling the cluster

...strangely the fuel gauge works when i first start the car, but after the temp gauge goes up the fuel gauge stops reading, not sire where to start on this one...

Cody, these are classic symptoms of a loose or bad body ground. Your dash bulb is on faintly because voltage is trying to return to ground but the only path it can find is through your lamp.

Start at the battery. Just like modern cars have, install a short #10 wire from negative to the body. If you have a rather heavy metal part, that would be ideal. We use the structure around the radiator (called a 'horse collar' or radiator support) but frame members work as well.

Use a separate #6 stranded wire for your engine ground. Ford used a short copper length that stopped at the water pump. I would rather you terminate your ground at the bell housing or somewhere close to the starter motor because that draws the most current. Leave 'extra' wire between the body and engine for vibration. Also, support the wire before it crosses over so that the connectors don't eventually fail from vibration.

Every bulb socket that is exposed to the weather should be closely inspected for rust and corrosion, like the license plate lamp holders and signal sockets. You want solid connections but no short circuits from water, mud, salt, etc.

Next, check plugs that are exposed. Disconnect them and look at the pins in both halves. - Dave

[scumdog]

On my '66 the ground strap/cable runs from the negative battery post to part of the frame(?) (roughly under the front exhaust port) where the insulation has been stripped from the cable for an inch or so and a soldered tab wrapped around the bared cable and is secured to the frame by a bolt through the tab into the frame.
The cable then continue on and from memory bolts the the engine block.
It's not as big a cable as I would have used myself but I have had no starting issues.
(And I cleaned the area where the strap bolts to the frame and cleaned the bolt with the wire brush wheel on my bench grinder before reinserting the bolt through the tab)

[scumdog]

drove it to work today.




!

It always amazes me how low these big birds sit compared to modern vehicles!

[Cwcb08]

Cody, these are classic symptoms of a loose or bad body ground. Your dash bulb is on faintly because voltage is trying to return to ground but the only path it can find is through your lamp.

Start at the battery. Just like modern cars have, install a short #10 wire from negative to the body. If you have a rather heavy metal part, that would be ideal. We use the structure around the radiator (called a 'horse collar' or radiator support) but frame members work as well.

Use a separate #6 stranded wire for your engine ground. Ford used a short copper length that stopped at the water pump. I would rather you terminate your ground at the bell housing or somewhere close to the starter motor because that draws the most current. Leave 'extra' wire between the body and engine for vibration. Also, support the wire before it crosses over so that the connectors don't eventually fail from vibration.

i remember the stranded braided ground cable from the block to the chassi looking rough, i guess ill replace that as one of the first things

It always amazes me how low these big birds sit compared to modern vehicles!

i know eh, she's a boat but looks small next to the truck and suv