57fordsforever.com

Well Everyone:

57 AGIN is back home, actually a couple of blocks from home in Rick's driveway.  Some of the pieces are still at Santini's: front fenders, hood, deck lid, etc.  But, we finally have the car where the reassembly process can begin.  The first things done was to clean up the frame and inside the cowl.  We bagged the car up and started the job.  Rick took a couple of looks at the front suspension and thought it might be a good idea to disassemble that to see what might need replacing (as well as to get it out of the way so the frame could be cleaned up better before adding the Black Satin Rustoleum treatment).  After looking things over I decided to just go ahead and replace everything that showed wear including my sagging front springs.  Sure hope we guessed right on the replacement springs.  Here are a couple of photos of what's going on at this time.

Bob
57 AGIN

Lookin good, that car should really gleam in the sun when its all together, Mark

Cant wait to see it back together, Bob, looks awesome.  I love the blue.

Really looks good Bob.
The fun begins :002:

Guys:

Here is a little update on my 57 project.  57 AGIN is going back together slowly, but steadily.  Rick is doing just about all the fine assembly work at this time, while I'm under the car removing the exhaust system and transmission cross member, in preparation for further degreasing, cleaning & repainting the frame & suspension.  Rick's had a wealth of experience in refurbishing 1957 Ford parts and reinstalling them properly and better than they came from the factory.  I'm learning so much, but also realizing that my respect is growing for all the guys on this site who have been taking their 57's apart and restoring them on their own, without benefit of a master mechanic like Rick Crawford to show them how and why things are done in a certain way. 

Santini is working on the front splash pan, fender wells and other miscellaneous pieces, while we are working on the 57 at home.

Anyway, here are a couple of photos of the reassembly of the rear quarter window felt trim.  I think you'll find these interesting, I know I did.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are a couple of more photos of the rear quarter window felt replacement being done at this time.

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob,
   Looks like you're staying busy. The window whiskers is one of the things I didn't like but the slower you go and more thought you put into it says alot for the finish work you'll have to look at once the windows are in. One of the tricks I used was dimpling the holes and using countersunk pop rivits. You'll never see a pop rivit that way. My Galaxie is pretty well finished on the outside. I'm laying Hushmat in it now. My fingers are cut up from pushing it into the indentions of the floorboards. When you stretch it the aluminum breaks and the foil cuts up your fingers ( I never could use gloves and do a good job at anything). Have fun and don't forget to have a good holiday season. Jim

Couple of jobs that make me glad I have a business coupe and stationary side glass.

Zap- :unitedstates:

57 AGIN is going back together steadily.  The door windows, wind wings & rear quarter windows are installed with all the felt and mechanisms looking better than a factory installation.  While Rick has been busy reworking and cleaning up my 2004 Painless wiring installation, I've been busy cleaning and painting suspension and frame parts getting them ready for reassembly.  During the process of reassembling the suspension we found some of the  parts I had ordered from Concours did not fit (they'll go back).  Fortunately, I was able to get NOS upper control arm bushings from a local Ford parts business (C.W. Moss) and Tuesday I'll go back to them to see if I can get a couple of upper ball joints that fit the 57 upper control arms.  This is one of the very few problems I've encountered with either Concours or Dennis Carpenter.  I'm optimistic at this time.

Here are a couple of shots of the frame before, during and after being painted with Red Oxide Rustoleum and Satin Black Rustoleum.  Happy New year.

Bob
57 AGIN

Nice work Bob!  Looking really good, this is the fun part!

Here are the latest photos of the work on 57 AGIN:

The front fsuspension has been reinstalled, upper & lower control arms, tie rods, springs, etc. The new front disc brakes, 2 piston instead of single piston, drilled & slotted rotors.  But the most exciting part was the fitment of the 351W with the new Canton road racing oil pan.  We were concerned with clearance issues on both the lower control arms, the motor mount cross member and the oil pan drain plug.  We thought we'd be having to do some clearancing with the grinder. NOT!!!  It all fit by reversing the Butch's Rod shop motor mounts around to move the motor slightly forward.  This also solved a problem we discovered when disassembling the car, the Z-bar for the clutch was angled due to the motor being slightly to far back, now that alignment is perfect..  WooHoo.  Here are the engine fitment photos.

Bob57 AGIN

Snug as a bug in a rug!!..looking great Bob. Hoping to get back to mine on a regular basis soon. You'll be tooling around the beach areas before you know it.
Rich

Here are a few photos of the brake system, as modified.  New spindles (full size Ford), which helped straighten out some rubbing issues I used to have with the 15" Cragar S/S rims and to upper control arms (ultimately I had to get some 3/8" spacers to get clearance). These will also raise the front a bit, as I was having ground clearance issues (seems like in going over a speed bump a little too fast caused me to hit the passenger side exhaust cutout hard enough to bend the moving knife blade rack system so much it no longer would open or close, Bummer).  New Kelsey-Hayes calipers & drilled/slotted rotors (Yes, the 4 piston calipers actually fit in the 15" Cragar S/S rims, so I don't have to go with the larger rim sizes, which I really don't like on vintage vehicles).  Also, seen in the two brake photos are new springs and there, although hidden, new ball joints, bushings, etc. through out.  Rick suggested that now might be a good time to install a "anti-roll control" system (in the good ole days it was known as a line-lock), so that is a new addition.  When I went to the drag strip I used to just stand on the brakes and try to light up the tires, this was OK on the front brakes, but played heck with the rears. Finally, a photo of the location of the ABS electric-hydraulic pump mounted to the frame under the driver (this really helped with braking the 57, as the vacuum produced by the engine, even with a vacuum accumulator, just wasn't enough to ensure good braking every time).

And the re-assembly goes on, and on, and on...

Bob
57 AGIN

Just my ignorance,I'm not sure what you're talking about here:
"Rick suggested that now might be a good time to install a "anti-roll control" system (in the good ole days it was known as a line-lock), so that is a new addition. "
At first I thought you were talking hd sway bar, but can't see one in pics

I thought they were just "Roll Control"......anti roll is what I used to kick Camero a$$ in B sedan road racing! :003:

Line Lock, or Roll Control locks the front brakes so you don't roll the light when Drag Racing. Needed only
with stick shift cars. :burnout:

Thanks Ron...learn something new everyday here.
Rich

We also use them to hold the car in place so we can do a great big fat smoky burnout too, Ron..Saves a ton of wear on the rear brakes.

Rich:

Here is a closeup of the roll control, AKA "Line Lock."  The first photo shows the Master Cylinder, the Steering Box, and the Line Lock.  The second is the line lock closeup. 

From what Rick tells me, you step on your brakes, then push the button on your stick or shift control (automatics) to engage the line lock which keeps full brake pressure on the front brakes.  Then remove your foot from the brake pedal, the front brakes stay engaged and the rear brakes release, you can then spin up your rear tires to heat'em up.  Then release the line lock button and roll up to the starting line.  Then repeating the procedure for the launch you can run the engine up to your desired launch RPM, with your finger still on the line lock button the car will not roll over the starting line, whether you are slipping the clutch or pre-loading the automatic up to stall speed.  At least I think that is the way it works, as when I have been at the drags, I never had the luxury of a line lock.

Bob
57 AGIN

Hi Again:

It's been a very productive day.  The engine, clutch, pressure plate, bellhousing and TKO 600 are now installed into the 57.  At least hooked up to the motor mounts and ready for whatever has to be done to the transmission cross member to make it work.  The next series of photos show pieces of what was done today, in between scattered showers and clear almost cloudless skys.

Photo #1 shows the bellhousing being dialed in, even though this was a reinstall and the same bellhousing that came off the engine before, with a new flywheel it was found to be out of tollerance.  With a little tweaking the bellhousing was centered up and ready for installing the clutch & pressure plate.

Photo #2 Shows the clutch being centered under the pressure plate using the too long TKO 600 input shaft as the centering tool.  To make the TKO 600 setup work with the front bench seat we had to use the rear shifter position turned around to place the shifter 4" closer to the front of the car.  I had purchased the TKO mid shift kit, but we found that it didn't need to be used.  The only thing necessary to install the TKO 600 into my Custom 300 was a shorter input shaft, as I'm using my old Lakewood SFI approved bellhousing used with the Borg Warner T-10.

Bob
57 AGIN

The next set of photos show the cutting of the tunnel and how the new shifter locates at nearly the same place as the old Hurst 4-speed shifter, the only difference is the shifter is now centered on the tunnel and not offset to the driver side.  We cut a 3 1/4" hole in the tunnel and then had to do some additional tin snipping to get some additional clearance in order to get the TKO centered up in the throughout bearing before pushing the trans forward into the clutch & pilot shaft.  We really handicapped ourselves by not having the car jacked up higher to allow more room beneath for the transmission to be mounted onto the transmission jack before being raised into mounting position.  There's aq whole lot to be said for having a car hoist when doing this kind of stuff.

Bob
57 AGIN

These two final photos show the transmission installed from a ground view and the engine as it now sits waiting for the next installment.  lol

Bob
57 AGIN

Looking great Bob...Line Lock is fun.

Looking awesome Bob..gonna be a shame to cover all that pretty stuff with fenders! I think we could all use a friend like Rick.
Rich

Bob,
   It's looking great. I don't know if you're using the hydraulic clutch or the Z-Bar but when you first start using the transmission it'll be be sort of stiff between gears. The big thing with mine was I could not get it into 1st or reverse without first going to another gear. It was driving me crazy. I found out that the clutch adjustment needed just a hair more throw. It was shifting fine except being able to go from neutral to 1st or reverse. I would have thought that if the clutch wasn't right 2nd thru 5th would have been affected also, but it wasn't. Jim

Bob,
Looking good. Be glad you have Rick doing this. I don't know any average Guy who center his bellhousing. (except racers).
Very nice.Looks like lots a $$$$$$ to me.

Ron:

Yes, plenty of $ going into the project.  Probably my last Hurrah, as in the near future I won't be supplementing my retirement by working part-time.  Once the extra $ dry up so will my projects, at least those involving $.  Meanwhile, I'm still on a quest to make 57 AGIN into everything my original 57 couldn't be due to lack of $ and really having a good time doing it.

Jim:

I'll be using a Z-bar setup.  A few years ago my original Z-bar failed.  The metal had crystallized and when I pushed in the clutch absolutely nothing happened.  This occurred while Rick was still working and he surprised me with a better than new one, complete with a zirc fitting to grease the ends whenever the car was being lubed.  Thanks for the info on the TKO I'm anxious to give it a try and see what surprises are in store for me when back on the road.  I'm wondering what effect the slightly wider gear ratio separation in the TKO over the close ratio T-10 will have on my quarter mile times.  But I really won't have anything to compare them against, as the blower was installed just last year and I haven't had the car on the strip since.  I know that with the blower the car really pulls strongly at any RPM above 3000, so I probably won't lose anything in the mid range.  The lower first gear will certainly help launch the car off the line better.

Rich:

You're quite right, Rick is numero ono (#1) and I'm blesses to have a friend like him.

Jeff:

I sure hope to get some use out of the Line Lock.  The way Rick has described it to me, it should make things at the starting line go smoother.  I just hope I can remember the correct sequence to do what supposed to be done, or my starting line activities will really be fun to watch.  LOL

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob,
   I forgot to tell you. I had to add about a three inch section to my Z-bar, where the rod to the throwout yoke fastens on. I wasn't getting enough throw to completely disengage the clutch. You might not have that problem. I used the original 57 Z-bar with the engine ball dropped down a little for the FE block. Jim

Jim:

Thanks for that info, too.  It won't be a problem for my 57's engine setup.  The Z-bar Rick made for me worked perfectly in conjunction with my 351W and the Lakewood (SFI) bellhousing for the past 7 years. 

Bob
57 AGIN

All I can say is wow! What a awesome car!

Some of you may have had experience with a failing Z-bar.  Here is what Rick fabricated for me before he retired and had access to a lathe.  There are two photos:

Photo #1 shows an overall shot of the Z-bar with an emphasis on the added strengthening to the arm that connects to the clutch pedal (an angled gusset that is welded to both the barrel of the Z-bar and the pedal arm).  On the other end of the Z-bar (the side that is mounted on the engine block) is the clutch actuating arm, it is also strengthened with a gusset welded to the arm and the barrel of the Z-bar (this was harder to photograph, but you can see it is thicker than just the arm itself).

Photo #2  shows the barrel of the Z-bar that is hollowed out on each end to the diameter of the ball that is mounted on the driver side frame and that bolts to the rear of the engine block.  The barrel is gun drilled from end to end and with another hold in the middle that the zirc fitting is attached to for greasing the internals of the Z-bar.  Note how thick the barrel of the Z-bar is compared to that of an original.

just to add my 2 cents,   i had the same problem back in 1959 with my first 57,    at first i didn't know what u guys were talking about when u said Z bar,  anyway,   what i use to do when i had a problem with the Z bar,  1st i boughjt a new one,  and made and welded a brace that wrapped all around the pipe and arm, like a horse shoe,   maybe 3/4's wide or so,   that always worked for me.      now that i know what you swere talking about i rremember it well and all the problems i had with the clutch etc,      jerry

[attachment deleted by admin]

Jerry,
   The correct name for a Z-bar is an Equilizer Bar. But, equilizer bar sounds like something you'd hit a bigger guy over the head with. Jim

Well Guys Things Were Going Just Too Good:

Rick and I finally found a problem in reassemblig my 57..  Seems like when we shifted the motor mount around and straightened the Z-bar hook-up vis-a-vie the frame and the engine block, has caused an unanticipated problem, the Doug's Headers don't quite clear the steering box now.  Apparently when I took the car to have the headers fabicated and installed in 2004, The engine was in a slightly different relationship to the steering box and they made them to fit that configuration.  Tomorrow I'll get some photos of the problem and what we do to fix it.  The thought right now is dimpling one of the header tubes will correct the problem.  So much for the new powder coating on the headers.  Oh well, best laid plans, etc...

I ordered a new drive shaft today, as apparently the TREMEC

Continued:

I'm using a lap top for this post and apparently I touched something I shouldn't have and it posted an incomplete reply.  As I was saying, the TREMEC is a bit shorter than the old T-10 I had before.  I need a drive shaft about 4 inches longer than my old one.

Bob
57 AGIN

You must have had a Galaxie T-10, as the Mustang-Fairlane trans is roughly the same length as the Tremec....

James:

I surely don't know, as the T-10 was in the car when I  bought the car in 1998, along with a very tired 302.

Bob
57 AGIN

Well Everyone:

As I indicated last night, we hit a slight snag in the reassembly, a Doug's Tri-Y header tube hits the steering gear box.  Seems like when we readjusted the motor mounts to better line up the Z-bar, we also shifter the position of the headers in relation to the steering gear box.  2 steps forward, 1 step back.  lol  Here are a couple of shots showing the problem.

Steering box & header tube fix:

Rick got out the trusty hammer and a bar of rolled steel and went to work on the offending header tube.  After about 4 or 5 attempts to dimple the tube, fitting everything back in the car and taking it all apart again.  We got sufficient clearance.  So one tube may run a little hot & the engine may lose a few horses.  We'll see.  See the photos & results.

What kind of master cylinder is that? It's great looking.

The next issue we had to deal with was the height of the TREMEC.  It bolted onto the engine without problem but it was way too far down in the rear and had to be raised a bunch for the headers to go over the top of the Transmission X-member like it did before we started all this non-sense about changing transmissions.  Note: We had referred to the January 2008 Newsletter re the TREMEC install in Jim Nolan's Fairlane before we started.  He had not mentioned any transmission & tunnel clearance problems, other than having to cut a hole in the proper place for the shifter to come out.  The only thing we can figure out is that he was mating the TREMEC to an FE and I'm doing it to a 351W small block.  Rick believes that the FE's sit lower on their motor mounts than does my 351W, at least using the Butch's Rod Shop tri-angular motor mounts.  We solved this issue by getting out the trusty cut-ofrf wheel and making a hole for the TREMEC to sit where it has to in order to retain the proper relationships with all the other parts. Photos attached.

Bob,
   My transmission where you cut yours is right up against the floor. But, if I'd have brought it up as high as you did my driveshaft would be eating a hole in the rear tunnel. When I got through with the installation my fan blade was about a 1/4" closer at the bottom of the radiator than at the top. I considered that negligable for a 20" fan blade span. Your engine must surely sit higher than mine. Jim

Custom300Madman:

Both Rick and I have the ABS Electric Hydraulic Master Cylinders for our 57's.  Primarily due to a lack of vacuum in both our engines.  The master cylinder is polishe aluminum and sits in plain view, while the electric hydraulic booster pump & its accumulator are mounted out of site (Rick's under his fenderwell headers on the frame, mine on the frame under the driver seat.  

We saw the ABS people in their booth at a car show in 2007 and they did look great.  With no big vacuum booster and a vacuum accumulator required.  They make for a very nice installation, but cost is a consideration (Mine was $700 for the system and Rick and I installed it).  Here are a couple of photos.

Bob
57 AGIN

Jim:

My engine still slants downward toward the rear of the car and Rick & I are wondering about hood clearance issues.  I didn't have any problems before doing this and haven't changed the height of the engine motor mounts, but we're still concerned.  Without the fenders mounted yet it's a little too soon to tell.  Tomorrow we're planning to reinstall the carburetor blower enclosure box and that may tell us something. 

Here is a shot of my old Hurst shifter installed onto the TREMEC, there's plenty of clearance from the dash and I believe it will clear the bench seat, too.  It looks like it will stick up higher than it did when mounted on my old    T-10.

Every day we're getting closer and it's pretty exciting.  Rick is already planning on how he's going to fabricate a new rounded tunnel plug and hole for the shifter mechanism to protrude.  We've checked out the rear transmission mount and he's going to do mine the same way he did with the C-6 he's got mounted behind his 427 FE.

Bob
57 AGIN

This car is beautiful.  I hope mine turns out half this nice.

Bob, I apologize for removing one of your pictures.  I had a strange error come up in the SQL, and tried to resolve it, didnt work so I removed one of your photos of the Z bar...still didnt work, so I have some more work to do on my Photo Auto-esize mod....drat.

Bob,
   Bear in mind that whatever modifications you have to make to put that transmission in your car it's well worth it. Without doubt it's added years of life to my engine, a higher comfort level to my long trips and security in knowing shifts won't be missed when I beat it. As long as you stay under 6K rpm and make forceful power shifts when racing it'll make you proud to have it.  Jim 

James:

I was really mystified about the picture and reply losses last night.  Although I did notice it occurred just about the same time you were working on another thread about picture resizing.  No apologies necessary, we all know you are doing great things to keep this site as viable and informative as it is.

Bob

My 57 project has tunnel clearance issues, 351W, fox mustang motor mounts, bellhousing, t-5. We cooked up a dumb idea to shim the body up at the body mounts, looks dumb as hell. Now I have to go back and fix it, and alter the tunnel. I was wondering why no one else ran into this.  Mark :005:

Jim:

Yes, and I'm looking forward to the first run through the gears.  I probably will set my shift points a little below 6000 RPM.  Although, my dyno runs may have been done with a slight handicapping condition.  Rick's keen eye found that at full throttle (gas pedal on the floor and the actuating lever in the engine compartment butted up against the firewall) did not allow the secondaries to fully open.  That has now been adjusted and corrected, along with having installed a slightly larger jet size to richen up the leaning out at high RPM.  I wonder if it will still top out at 475 HP or go higher???  I do know the car really pulled strongly through the gears after installing the blower, it will be amazing if it will pull even harder now.

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob,
   The reason I said hold it under 6000rpm is the information I got from the UTMR bunch that I raced with. They look at a Tremec TKO 600 like it was a transmission that came out of a Geo. I usually don't wind my engine to 8000 rpm so I haven't had the problems with Tremec like they have. I'm taking a long hard look at beating my car next year. When I first started thinking about drag racing my car I thought I'd see people with hopped up classic cars from the 50's and 60's meeting at the local track to see who could win a trophy and have bragging rights. From what I've seen it's not a hobby to these guys anymore. It's a full blown obsession and all the cars are trailered. I think I'm going to stick to car shows and cruises next year. Jim

Jim:

If I race my 57 it will strictly be bracket racing.  That way I'll primarily be racing against myself.  With my reaction times racing heads up is out of the question.  I'll just allow for my slow reaction times and dial in what I think the car can do and see if I guess correctly. LOL

Bob
57 AGIN

Drag racing was always an obsession with me no matter what yr the car was.
I went to win :burnout:

Hi:

Tried posting a 2.97 MB photo labled P1220007.JPG  all I got was the following:

The website cannot display the page

Most likely causes:
  o  The website is under maintenance.
  o  The website has a programming error

What you can try:
  o  Refresh the page.
  o  Go back to the previous page.
  v  More information

Bob

Trying once again:

This time using a photo that has been resized to 260 KB and titled as follows: Engine1-20-2012adj.JPG

Bob

Hey:

It finally worked, just like James said it would, but I did have to  reduce the size.  That was a photo taken at the end of a productive weekend working on the car.  The alternator, carburator enclosure & carburator and blower have been reinstalled.  Also, we ran a variety of steel braided hoses shortened to fit properly and adjusted the throttle linkage.  Seems like when the blower was installed, not enough attention was paid to the throttle linkage, the secondaries were never opening fully.  Rick noticed this and we spent several hours figuring, fitting, disassembling and reassembling the carburator enclosure and linkage.  I wonder what the dyno results will be now,that we'll have full throttle feeding fuel to the engine?  475 HP to ???

Bob
57 AGIN

Well we've been making more progress on reassembling 57 AGIN:

Transmission, rear end seals buttoned up tight, the clutch & brake pedals are reinstalled, the heater & vent system back in place.  Today we reinstalled the steering column, instrument cluster, tach & boost gauge.  This coming week I think the plan is to haul the 57 back to Santini's for painting the Custom 300 trim area where the original gold anodized metal was.  Pete's going to do a fade paint job inside the trim area, if I don't like it that way it will probably end up a metal flake silver.

Meanwhile,  here are a couple of shots of where it is today.

Bob
57 AGIN

Well Guys Here's the latest:

The drive train is back together and the car rests on it's own wheels again.  Rick has fabricated a new tunnel cover that can be removed to have access to the transmission (photo attached).  Last night we installed the rear bumper brackets, the rubber gravel shield and bumper (no pictures yet).  I've made arrangements with Santini to transport the 57 back to his shop for the painting of the side trim.  Once that is done the car will be transported back to Rick's garage and we'll install the fender wells, the front fenders, stainless side trim, cooling system, front grill, deck lid, hood, etc.  Then the car is off to the upholstery shop and Rick can finally bring his 57 home from my garage to get it ready for the 2012 car show season starting with the Knott's Fabulous Fords Forever show in April.

Bob
57 AGIN 

Bob,
   That looks real good. I would like to tell you what I did to my gas pedal though. The first carpet I had in my 57 ( sewn ) I used a gas pedal like yours. The second carpet I used ( molded ) I used a 66 Mustang pedal with the metal trim ( went well with the swift sure brake pedal ) With a minumum of effort it fits the 57 pedal rod and hinges perfectly. That way you don't have to use a pedal fastened to the floor. I've had mine on for three years and never had a problem, plus it looks good. And, when you vacum the carpet you'll really like it. Jim

Quote from: JimNolan on 2012-02-15 19:37
Bob,
   That looks real good. I would like to tell you what I did to my gas pedal though. The first carpet I had in my 57 ( sewn ) I used a gas pedal like yours. The second carpet I used ( molded ) I used a 66 Mustang pedal with the metal trim ( went well with the swift sure brake pedal ) With a minumum of effort it fits the 57 pedal rod and hinges perfectly. That way you don't have to use a pedal fastened to the floor. I've had mine on for three years and never had a problem, plus it looks good. And, when you vacum the carpet you'll really like it. Jim

:ttiwwp:

OK

Jim:

I see what you mean, but is there an advatage one way or the other?  Or is it purely a cosmetic type of option/preference?

There is something that I'm worried about though.  The stick shifter I'm using with the TKO is my old stick from the T-10 and as you cann see from the picture the TKO mount is right inthe center of the tunnel, not offset to the driver side like on a T-10 or an original T-85.  Will using this shifter place the shift lever too far to the passenger side?  Rick and I have discussed this and think we're going to have to wait until the seat is actually reinstalled to tell.  Are there any Hurst shift levers that offset to the driver side (left) instead of the ones that offset to the right (passenger side), as I really like the Hurst shifter look and would like to stay with it.  2 Photos of shifter on TKO, 1 of shifter mounted on T-10 before starting on the refurbishment.

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob,
   It's 60% cosmetic and with new floor pans I didn't want holes in them and I had trouble laying the carpet with the old style. I saw one done like that at a car show and the guy said he liked it.
Shifter: James swore straight up and down to me Hurst made a two inch layed over stick but I'll be d _ _ _ _ _ if I could find one in their catalogs. I looked at the Tremec adapter and it looked like it would distort the boot and appearence means something to me. The only shifters I liked were the Dodge and Plymouth shifters so I decided to make one like theirs. You had a four speed and I had a three speed shifter on the side of the hump and you know as well as me it was too close to our legs, mine anyway. So, I took a NOS Fenton three speed shifter that had the pull back I needed and a little too tall. I cut it off at the bottom of the shaft. Drilled bottom hole in it to match the Tremec stub. Attached it with one bolt at the bottom and checked my distance from first gear to the dash ( I had an under dash AC unit at the time) and second gear to the seat. Marked the position of the second hole in the shaft and drilled it. Took my hand grinder and made lines on the side of the shifter at the bolt holes to match the lines on the Tremec stub so it would bite into the stub when bolted and wouldn't move on me. I then clamped it in a vice about 1/2" up from the top bolt hole and heated it and bent it over to the left at about a 70 degree angle. After it cooled I used the vice again ( make sure you use soft metal between your shifter and vice to keep from scaring shifter finish ) about two inches over from the previous bend to take it back up straight. To my amazement it polished out like it was made that way ( good chrome back then ). I really like where it turned out and how it turned out. I wish I could have found one to suit me and have kept me from cutting up a NOS Fenton shifter but I couldn't. The main thing is it works and feels comfortable going through gears. I don't have to overreach and it's not as close to my leg as the three speed shifter was. Cosmetically the shifter boot looks good and slides on the shaft gracefully. Jim PS  I dont' have a picture.

Might be best to wait until you have seats in to identify the comfortable spot for your shifter.  There are numerous choices for Tremec shifter handles.  I have even cut them off and drilled new holes or bent them to tweak them into the right fit.

Piston grip on a TKO600 in the mock up interior...new interior will have a counsel.
(http://i1146.photobucket.com/albums/o531/gasman826/57Dash.jpg)

Jim & Gasman826:

Thank you for your input.  I'd pretty much made up my mind that I'll have to wait for final decisions until the seat is back in and I'm OK with that.  Jim, in my original 57 I had a Hurst 3-speed shifter mounted on the left side of the tunnel and I didn't have a problem with it interfering or being too close.  The same thing with the Hurst 4-speed shifter in my current 57, but that's just me.  Rick and I have already discussed the concern about the shifter boot with an offset Tremech shifter mechanism.  Since I don't plan on having a console, which would help cover up the offset, I'll just have to wait.  Also, maybe either my upholstery guy or Santini will have some ideas on dealing with this. 

Right now much of Rick's and my thoughts revolve around effectively hiding the engine compartment wiring. My old engine compartment was kind of full of miscellaneous wiring running here and there, it looked kind of busy.  One thing I can't get away from is the many vacuum lines required for the Paxton-Novi blower, they are all in braided stainless and have been shortened to the extent possible.  We've successfully hidden most of the other engine compartment wiring except for the spark plug and coil wiring, some of it running underneath the Air-Gap intake manifold and carb blower enclosure.

Starting last night we started dealing with the stance of the car, which was just a little too low front and rear and kept bumping into speed bumps and etc. (beer cans, small animals & big bugs, LOL)  One of my Doug's exhaust cutouts had to be replaced, the transmission cross member had numerous scrapes and my Cal-Tracs have beaten into the pavement more than once or twice.  The front end has been raised some and we're thinking that the addition of another leaf to the rear springs may help.  I want the car to have a slight front end rake, the original height and stance wasn't bad, IMO.  But, I am making this car to be driven as well as being shown and raced occasionally.

Bob
57 AGIN

Hey gasman, what's the column from?  Looks like a 70's LTD or something.  Mark

'74 Lincoln Continental...needs a dab of paint and the shifter cut off.  Works great!

The latest on reassembling 57 AGIN is that we've gotten it ready to transport back to Santini's for painting the side trim section.  Then we'll transport it back home, along with the fender wells and fenders.  The deck lid is back on along with the lock and license plate cover.  Rick reversed the rear shackles to raise it up about 2 and a quarter inches, the results without the front fenders & etc. and the new front suspension have the car in a pretty good Gasser stance.  I think what I'm going to wind up doing is wait until the rest of the hardware is on and then put the shackles back and have another leaf added to the rear.  I'd like the rear to come up about an inch from what it was before, the front will have to come down quite a bit from where it is now, the final height I'm looking for is about 1 inch higher than it was  before we started.  That should retain a good stance and allow for sufficient clearance to not bump into things in the night (lol). Attached are a few photos of where we are right now.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here's a few more photos.  The next photos I take will probably be after Santini has done some of his magic.  I can hardly wait.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are a couple of shots of the engine & firewall following Rick's efforts to shorten and hide, to the extent possible, the wiring.  There isn't much we could do to hide the braided stainless vacuum lines for the blower, fuel pump, boost timing master, etc.

Bob
57 AGIN

Don't want to seem redundant...but i'm gonna be anyways...awesome!!! have you deceided on an interior color yet?
Rich

Bob, that baby is gonna be almost too nice to drive....almost.  You guys do great work.

Bob, what is that chrome box on the firewall above what must be the heater fan?

Rich & James:

Rich, the interior color is going to be almost a match for the pewter in a material called Ultra Leather.  It is very supple and it will probably have some very unobtrusive highlights in a blue vinyl that will go well with the blue on the car.  I do know it will not be a tuck & roll setup like I had before, but more of a resto-mod modern look.  The back seat will still fold down for surfboard storage and the bench seats in front and back will have sculptured foam added to make the seats appear almost like bucket seats.  The upholstery shop and I are discussing options now.

James, thanks for the compliment, but credit for the work definitely goes to Rick.  I'm just the wallet and heck of a parts chaser and cleaner.  I'm also reasonably good at holding shop lights and getting tools (when my stiff joints allow me to get out from under or inside the car before Rick can, lol).

Zapato, the chrome plate is just a cover plate (I chromed my cover plate)that came with the 57's that didn't have the factory installed Select-Air heating and ventilation system.  If you look at the photos a few replies earlier you can see my cheapie dealer installed heater, it used to be painted turquoise in my former paint scheme, it's now pewter.
Bob
57 AGIN

Well, I was almost correct in stating that the next photos will be taken after Santini's done some more of his paint magic.  One of the things that the car being too low probably resulted in (as well as a poor job of welding by the shop installing my CalTracs) is a broken lower shock mount.  My 57 has a set of adjustable rear shocks recommended by John Calvert when using his traction bars.  These shocks are not available in the Ford style of bayonet mounts on both ends, they use the GM type of one end being bayonet and the other being a bold through type on the lower end.  When the shop (not Calvert Racing) installed my bars they had to fabricate a lower shock mount attached to the plate that holds the rear leaf springs onto the axle.  The weld on the left side didn't penetrate into the metal properly and all that is holding my rear shock to the lower plate is a small blob of weld on the top, the entire vertical gusset weld has broken free leaving a 1/4" gap between the shock mount and the gusset.  Until the 57 was on the towing rig I wasn't able to get a clear shot of the break (it is right in the center of the attached photo near the tow rigs hold down strap).  Just for grins, I also included a shot of the 57 in a wheel's up mode (wheelee, lol) being loaded onto the tow rig and a shot as it arrives at Santini's.  Hopefully, the next photos of 57 AGIN will be following the painting of the Custom 300 side trim in between the polished stainless trim.

Bob
57 AGIN 

I'd be checking and probably re-welding the other side and any other welding they did for you. At the very least there is a need for a calm but blunt conversation with that shop.

Zap- :unitedstates:

Zapato:

That goes withour saying.  However, I may take it to another welding shop I know of that has really done some good work for me in the past.  I really want to be able to trust the welds done on my suspension.  I'll have my other shop  verify that all the welds done on my CalTrac installation were decent.  The only reason I trusted the other shop was they had come recommended by Calvert Racing.  I will be talking to Calvert about the problem with his remote installer.

Bob
57 AGIN

I'm stoked all over again.  I was able to be there today as Pete Santini worked his magic on my 57.  The side trim space in between the Custom 300 stainless running on the front fender through the door and back to the front of the rear quarter panel finally has color on it and it looks really great (IMO).  He started by spraying some glue for the really small (very fine) silver metal flake to adhere to.  His next step was to spray a coat of very light candy blue over the entire stripe area.  He then mixed some darker candy blue metal flake and began a fade (lightest toward the front), followed by another addition of darker blue to the mixture and more paint added further back.  He repeated this process until he was satisfied with the overall effect.  I've attached in the next couple of replies some shots of what was done today.  He told me he was very pleased that this was what was decided to be done and when the stainless trim is added it should really "pop."  He said that the final touch will be to add just a bit of pin striping to finish it all off.I'm really pleased with how it has turned out and can hardly wait until we get it back to Rick's garage for the final assembly steps.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are the rest of the shots from today.

My 57's back from Santini's and we test fit the door and body stainless trim onto the car to see how it looks.  Both Rick and I were impressed with how well the painted side trim looks with the stainless trim installed.  We did note a problem with how the "hockey stick" doesn't cover the lower portion of the painted side trim.  So there will have to be some additional work done by Pete.  Just goes to show that the best laid plans (in this case masking off the area to be painted) can end up still needing changes (lol).  The problem caught both Rick and me by complete surprise.

I'm picking up the front fenders tomorrow and then we can see how they look with the stainless installed and if any changes are required.  Then we can really get to work on getting the car ready to go to the upholstery shop and ultimately back on the road.

Bob
57 AGIN

Nice!!!!!!!!

That's totally awesome Bob..Santini's talent is impressive. I noticed your wheels you were worried about cleaned up real well. I'm anxious to see it all put together.

Looks great Bob & Rick :002: Rich, Bob will have to have new wheels I'm sure :003:

If I can get the Cragar's really cleaned up, they will stay.  However, the tires are going to go as soon as I can get the car back on the road.

I picked up the fenders today and we put on the stainless side trim.  It looks pretty decent and we should have them on the car very soon.

Bob
57 AGIN

Soon turned out to be Saturday.  After Rick and I represented 57 Fords International at the Knott's Fabulous Fords Forever Ford Car Club Council, we came home and sppent a few hours reinstalling the front fenders onto 57 AGIN.  The pictures I took show the car still in the "classic 60's gasser stance."  I remember just before I sold my original 57, I had taken off my front bumper and had 57 Ford station wagon springs to give it nearly the same stance.  No it isn't going to stay with the nose in the air.  I like a slight rake to the front and that is how it will wind up.  I sure like the way the painted tirm has turned out and the car will be going back to Santini's for the redo on the rear part of the painted trim.  Then off to the upholstery shop.

Bob
57 AGIN

I do like that "normally gold" trim painted that blue!

Not a fan of Cragers...would love to see traditional American 5-spoke with gray spokes...just my 2 cents...your mileage may vary!

Gorgeous car.

Rob

Here is the latest on the reassembly.  The cowl drains are a trouble spot on our 57's.  When the original rubber gives up in the interior of the car rain and wash water drips onto the carpet and eventually causes our floor pans to rot away.  I replaced all my floor pans, kick panels and tunnel back in the original rehabilitation of my 57 when it was done in 2001-04.  This time, not only the cowl drain tube was replaced, but Rick constructed cowl drain tubes to drain the water to the outside of the fenderwells instead of the water just collecting at the bottom of the fenderwell, between the outer body panel and the fenderwell.  Hopefully eliminating a traditional rusting spot on the 57.  See photo #1.

Photo #2 shows the installation of the radiator core, radiator and the two horns (nothing really remarkable in this shot)  Photo #3 shows the clearances we now have with the engine moved forward about 1.5" from it's previous location (by properly installing the motor mounts and aligning the equalizer bar (Z-bar).  Because the original radiator was for a 6 cyl, I believe my 57 had more forward clearance than the V-8 cars did.  The after market (Matson Radiator) with it's two electric fans still has over an inch clearance from the blower belt (which added substantial length to the front of the engine).  Rick moved the radiator as far forward as it would go in the core support to ensure as much clearance as possible.

Photo #4 shows Rick's garage which is well laid out for a single car work space, both doors can be opened wide and still clear the work bench and storage cabinets on the other side of the garage.  We do envy those with a real workshop/aircraft hanger/etc. for working on their cars.  Laying on the floor beside the passenger front fender is the copper tubing that is connecting the cowl drain to the fenderwell and having to go around the electric antennae in the process.  Rick's 57 didn't need to drain out this way and he has no fenderwells, due to having fenderwell headers.  Instead he ran an extended tube from the cowl drain down to the inside of his frame where the water just drips below the car without collecting in the usual trouble spot.

We are getting real close to turning the car over to the upholstery shop, probably next week.

Bob
57 AGIN

Great photos...they'll come in handy as reference photos when I start putting mine back together. Do you do the final aligning of fenders after all the components (weight) are on the car? The reason I ask is the way the radiator core spring mounts seems like it would cause the nose to drop alittle after weight is added. In fact, I was remembering the spring mounted on top of the core, so I would have done it wrong.
you guys are getting close, and it's looking awesome. How long is the upholsterer going to have the car? Is he already working on the seats and panels?
Rich

VERY NICE GUYS!. Don't open those electric cutouts and get it all dirty :003:

Rich:

I'll have to let Rick answer your question about the final aligning of the fenders, as I've never had any experience with that.  The gaps are all very good at this time, but as you say that could change.  I'm still picking out the color of the blue highlights for the interior, going over different color samples.  The deep blue is somewhat difficult to work with.  I believe the upholstery shop will have the car for about a month, hopefully a little less.  It is a small shop and he'll want to get it done reasonably fast so he can bring in other work (at least that is my theory,lol).  Meanwhile Santini is currently painting the front bumper splash shield (blue on top, undercoat on bottom), the two panels that go behind the grill outboard from the radiator (blue) the steering wheel (pewter), and later this week he'll be redoing the blue fade side trim to the rear of the doors where the hockey stick trim goes.  All that will be left to paint are the interior window mouldings front & rear (pewter) and the side window frames (pewter with blue highlights in the frame grooves on the lower portion of the frames).  He will do those while the car is in upholstery jail.

Ron:

The electronic cutouts won't be opened for a while yet, the motor isn't quite ready to run yet (still haven't got all the coolant and heater fittings hooked up yet).  After all of the above is done. I still have to make a final decision on tires and rims (if I don't stick with the Cragars) and adjusting the cars stance/ride height.

We'll keep posting photos of the progress as the car moves to completion.

Bob
57 AGIN

Nice job on the drain hose routing, btw. I was studying the pic trying to decide if I wanted to reroute mine in a similar fashion. Instead, I think I'm going to seal off the cowl under the grille (with a removable cover so I can access my wiper arm assy's.). I'm thinking for those of us with dealer installed heaters, or aftermarket heat/air, that don't draw air from the cowl,there's not any reason to keep it open, letting water in in the first place. I've already eliminated my fresh air vents.

Closing off the cowl...super idea!!!  I have an extra cowl panel.  I think I will keep it removable for wiper service but smooth the louvers.  Its unfortunate to close off these fresh air vents.  They worked so well.  Remember going down the road in the spring.  Opening the vents for the first time...blowing the dust off the floors...blowing girls skirts over their heads...ya' being a kid again!!!!!!

Gasman:

Nice to know that there are others that remember some of the better things from our youth.  If my body could only bend and twist the way it did back then and Drive-In Movies were still around, the back seat would get more attention than it will in the world of today. lol

Bob
57 AGIN

Hi Again:

The 57 didn't make it to Santini's yet for the final touch up on the side trim paint.  I picked up the front nose piece from Pete and when we started to mount it on the front of the 57, to tie together the fenders, core support, & grill, we found that the paint along the top of the piece where the hood rotates needed some more painting attention.  The wiring is just about finished, except for the final mounting of the headlights and parking lights.  Rick has put good ground straps all over the car, to ensure really good connections throughout.  The cowl drain tubing on the passenger side was installed after being routed around the power antennae.  Finally, the MSD box and an upper fender cover plate I had made to mount the MSD box and hide wiring was installed, finishing up the engine wiring.  The only wiring left to make up is the battery cabling (2.0 gauge) and routing it out of sight.  (see photo) While I had the camera out I took a shot of the air intake opening cut in the upper part of the front cover mounted below the headlight on the driver side.  I'd had some questions asked from people who looked at the blower setup and asked about where the system got it's air from.  (see photo #2)   

Other than that the car is just about ready for the upholstery shop.  We've tried to get a close match to the the blue, but haven't had any success. I think instead of trying to get a match with both the pewter and the blue, I'll settle for matching the pewter and having a darker grey used as an accent on the seats and door panels.  Lots easier to use neutral colors.

Bob
57 AGIN   

I love this car! I wish I was this close to having mine done.

LOL ditto!

Well Guys:

No pictures this time, just an update.  Santini finished the side trim fade and IMO it came out perfect.  He still has the hood, front piece above the grill where the FORD letters go on the Customs and all of the interior window trim pieces.  These will be finished while the car is in the Upholstery Shop jail.  It went into that jail today.  Silver Gray leather hides are being used for the seats.  Hopefully I'll have some photos to share in a few days.  We are making a still to be done list so we can plan our time remaining before the Knott's Fabulous Fords Forever Car Show where I'm hoping to debut the car with it's new look.  I ran into a small snag yesterday when trying to hook up the heater hose connections (CoolFlex); seems like moving the engine forward about 1" didn't help the fit of one of the heater hose connections.  Ordered a new piece today.  Fix one thing and now we are fixing another. lol

Bob
57 AGIN

Here is the latest resting place for 57 AGIN.  And the beat goes on, and on,& on...

Bob
57 AGIN

Sure looks good Bob. Is it a Tito's?

Ron:

No, this time it is more local to me.  Wahl's Upholstery in Los Alamitos.  Since I know I'll be over there nearly every day and the family has had both house furniture and my God son's 94 Caprice done there and he does good work, it made sense to me.  He's done a number of cars, that have shown with great success.  He did the recently completed nostalgia Shirley Muldowney Top Fuel Dragster, too.  Also, he says he can meet my time frame to get the car to Knott's, which would be a problem for Tito's very busy shop. Nothing against Tito's work, just a whole lot more convenient for me.  I'm sure hoping I didn't mess this up.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here's the latest on 57 AGIN:

The wind lace and headliner are in and again from MHO looking pretty darn good.  The trunk is ready for carpet and the package tray's basic design is done (there may be some stitching on the package tray to coordinate with the rear seat).  The design of the seats upholstery is pretty well in place, and should be completed during next week.  The upholstery shop is really moving on my project, they have two or three working on it full time.

On another front (LOL).  I picked up the front panel and the valance behind the bumper from Santini's and we will probably go over the the upholstery shop  and install them on Tuesday after I get off work.

This weekend I went over to the tire and rim dealer that has supplied my tires and rims for years to check into a possible change in rims.  Santini has just about convinced me that the Carger SS rims aren't the ones to go onto the car in it's new Resto-Mod configuration.  Black walls, mounted on a rim with kidney bean shaped holes (the old Halibrand mag look).  I'm still not 100% convinced.that blackwalls mounted on the Cragar SS's wouldn't be a good combination with the Car and it's new look.

Bob
57 AGIN

Quote from: 57AGIN on 2012-03-25 01:39
Here's the latest on 57 AGIN:

  I'm still not 100% convinced.that blackwalls mounted on the Cragar SS's wouldn't be a good combination with the Car and it's new look.

Bob,
   Your roots are tugging on your heartstrings. LOL.  As long as you don't have the car dragging the ground and you've not altered it's sheet metal I see no reason why anything wouldn't look good on that car. Until someone sticks his head inside the window it's a 57 Custom with a nice paint job. Jim  PS  That's a nice car.

Don't start second quessing yourself now!  The car is coming together because you have made it happen.  Satisfy yourself.  Screw everybody else.  It's your car.  Make yourself happy.


PS -- always liked the Cragar SS wheel and kidney beans are for drag cars

Bob....everything is looking great. I agree with Gary...I'm having a hard time visualizing the wheels you're talking about..but who knows? I'm kinda in the same boat you are with the resto-mod look. I originally was thinking torqu thrusters until I changed my color to the tarnished silver from the original red idea. Mine is probably a little more emphasis on the "mod" as far as interior and body modifications, but I'm still not oposed to my original torqthruster/crager look. There are so many options it really makes it dificult. Bottom line is your Cragers at the very least "work" with the new scheme.
Wouldn't it be great to have a "wheel seller" site to go to where you could insert a photo of your car and just click on different wheel options. We're probably not to far from someone doing that. last week I was trying to pick a color for my kitchen remodelling job (my latest distraction). I went to the Behr site and downloaded a picture of my kitchen and was able to fill in any selected areas with any of their paint colors.

Rich and Bob, try the Jegs site. They have a wheel selector that lets you enter your car, color and wheel. Not sure if 57 Fords are in there though.

Wahl's Upholstery is really cranking on getting my interior done.  Today they were working on both the trunk and on the fold down back seat.  The trunk is being redone to hide a lot of the unfinished wheel area on both sides of the car.  I'll lose a little trunk space, but there will still be plenty left.  LOL  Rene was working on a mock up of the back seat, he's going to trim the outer wings (see photo) off and build up the area above the wheelwells with foam and bracing.  I really like what he's showing me so far and think it will look much better than the previous back seat treatment.

It's hard for me to believe, but he thinks the majority of the interior will be completed by late Friday or next Monday.  He's really working with me to get it turned around in time for Knott's this year.  He knows I still have some suspension work to be done and all the other little, oh-bye-the-ways.

Bob
57 AGIN

That's really coming along nicely. I'm anxious to see his buildup over the wheelwells and how he handles it as it comes down to the seat bench. When I did my buildup, I had the built out side panels to come down to. Keep the photos coming...

Bob,I like everything your going with on your build it's first class .Thanks for the car report too!

Mike b:

Rick and I both enjoyed going over that 70D and thanks for the nice words about my 57, too. 

Rick and I went over to the upholstery shop at 4:30 today and installed the front header panel, grill and the front valance.  Tonight I'm cleaning up the front bumper from it's garage storage for the last 8 months.  Tomorrow it gets installed, too.

Rene has come up with a design for the trunk to cover up the hinges & springs, as well as hide my CD changer.  It should look pretty trick when its done.

Here are a few photos from today.

Bob
57 AGIN

Today, the front bumper and headlights were reinstalled.  The entire exterior of the car, except for the hood have now  been painted and are reinstalled.  Both Rick and I were worried about how the chrome headlight bezels would look with the Pewter and Blue.  The chrome bezels looked really good with the Turquoise & White.It was period correct, just like the colors.  We were worried about how it would look with the Resto-Mod colors.  Well, as it turned out, we are both happy with how it turned out.  What do you think?

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are the latest photos of the interior.  The carpet and side kickpanels are now pretty well done.  The one photo shows the interior wiring hookups, where a lot of what used to be exposed in the engine compartment is now placed.  The boost retard control that used to be under the dash near the center of the dash is now out of reach (and possible unintentional inadvertent change by my grand kids) near the fuse panel.  As I have said before, it is coming together rapidly and well.

Rene, the upholsterer guru working on my car has changed his mind on the rear panel trim I posted yesterday and has gone back to his drawing board.  I can hardly wait to see what he comes up with.

Bob
57 AGIN

 :003:     Bob, it looks great !  I like what you did with the dash too. That blue really pops . Keep up the good job,I look forward to the finished product.  :burnout:

Bob,
   Thanks for making us part of your rebuild. That is an awesome car. We've got to watch the entire process. Thanks, Jim

Jim:

Thanks for the kind words.  Sometimes I've wondered if I wasn't being boring and repetitive with my posts.  I'm really excited now that it's almost finished.

Here is the latest from the upholstery shop.  The front seat is in the final stages of being reupholstered (check out the before and almost after, LOL, photos).  The trunk has gotten more of an update than I had imagined, I thought it was pretty good before, but now the whole space is upholstered (I lost a little trunk space, but I doubt if I'll ever miss it).  I had never thought to put a cover over the spare tire well, I'd always kept a spare under an upholstered tire cover.  But, since it is a major undertaking to change the rear tires and the front & rear tires are different sizes, I figure if I have a flat I'll call AAA and tow the car home.  Now I have a spot to store all my detailing supplies for touch-ups at car shows.  My CD changer used to be located under an upholstered cover in the right rear of the trunk, now it will be on it's side behind the upholstered right side hinge & spring cover, accessible via a hinged door (not installed yet).  Also the gas tank fuel gauge sending unit will be accessible before the carpeting is finished.  At the very back of the car Rene has place an upholstered cover from the gas tank filler area to the side covers (hides some wiring and I think just a nice touch).  Lastly in the trunk, the deck lid will have the spaces between the ribbing upholstered, too.  This will hide the cracked factory sound deadener that Santini was fearful of trying to remove without wrinkling the outer metal skin on the deck lid (he did a small area, but then decided to let that alone).  The rear seat is probably the trickiest part of the job. I never really liked the former look of the fold down portion of the rear seat before.  I loved the accessibility and convenience it provided, but it just looked a little odd.  Rene has designed side bolsters, built up the bottom seat and removed a lower lower section of the upper fold down seat which should allow the seat to bold down and not look odd when not folded down.  That is the latest and will be posted in this reply and the next.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are the remaining trund space photos.

Bob...This thread  has been read almost 2800 times, I think that should give you an idea of the interest it's had...far from "boring or repetative"! We all appreciate the great posting you've done on it..kinda like a personal, extended, believable version of 'Overhaulin'.
The heavy insulation that Santini left on your trunk lid is the only area on my entire car that wasn't stripped to bare metal for the same reason he had.
They're doing an awesome stitching job on that car..I'll bet you're concerns with not going with Tito's has long since disapeared.
I got to finally meet Pat Fleishman yesterday and got to show him my car. In a few hours my wife and I are off to Phoenix for a week, but I'll be checking in.
Keep writin' those checks Bob...it's awesome!

Quote from: RICH MUISE on 2012-03-31 05:53
Bob...This thread  has been read almost 2800 times, I think that should give you an idea of the interest it's had...far from "boring or repetative"! We all appreciate the great posting you've done on it..kinda like a personal, extended, believable version of 'Overhaulin'.

Rich said exactly what I was thinking Bob! Great job!

Rich & Bossguy:

Thanks.

I went over to the upholstery shop this morning and found the rear fold down seat completed and installed (I'm not sure if the hinge setup is installed yet).  I took a couple of photos and then showed Rene our 57 Fords Forever web site.  He was stoked at the nice comments being made about the upholstery work on the 57.  Just for a good comparison, I've attached a shot of the former fold down rear seat to show what a nice job his shop is doing (nothing against the former shop, as they had nothing to work with in the beginning but my weird thoughts about a fold down seat).

Bob
57 AGIN

The front seat is now finished and all that is left to do is install the larger stainless cup holder I just picked up from a marine supply store (the old cup holder was plastic and didn't hold my oversize thermal coffee cup, an absolute necessity for the early morning car show set ups.  LOL)  Rene has only a couple of things left to do on the car.  1. Obtain and upholster the arm rests for the doors.  2.  Design and upholster the side panels for the doors and back seat.  3.  Attach the front seat to the floor.  4.  Install an access door for the CD changer in the right side of the hinge & spring enclosure.  5.  Provide an access in the trunk carpet to the gas tank sending unit.  He seems to think it will be ready for pick up tomorrow.  I think he's about 1 day optimistic.

Santini is painting the window moldings, they should be ready by Friday.

Bob
57 AGIN   

Well enough of how the upholstery looks on a bench or is gonna look.  Here it is all installed.  What do you think? 

It's come a long way from the nice period correct vinyl tuck & roll to the look today.  The back seat doesn't fold down nearly flat like it did before, but I should still be able to get my surf board in.  The doors didn't have arm rests before and this changes the ease of being able to close the door and also it is nice having a place to actually rest an arm.  The seats feel more supportive than they did before, but I'll reserve judgement until I actually drive the car.  The rear seat is more comfortable than before, as there has been additional foam installed.  I'm not sure about the small arm rests in the back seat, but I'll reserve judgement on those, too.

It wouldn't be as comfortable in the back seat in a "Drive-in" any more.  Of course they don't have those any more and I'm way beyond crawling into the back seat anyway. LOL

57 AGIN is coming home tomorrow, after Rick and I are home from the Ford Car Club Council meeting at Knott's in the morning.  There is still about two pages on the "Things to do list"  before it's ready to be driven.  And just over two weeks to get them all done.  I think we'll make it, I hope we make it.  I don't want the first show to be a work in progress one.

The two photos attached are of the front seat, area still missing the center arm rest.  The photos of the rear seat are on the next reply.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are three photos of the reat seat installed.

Bob
57 AGIN

Looks nice and cushy.Great job !

It's beyond the words or my limited vocabulary. I REALLY like it. Jim

Man that is looking nice.  Have I mentioned how much I love this car?

Bob...that car is in a class by itself. Outstanding job. Just a great contemporary look. I'm really jealous... Can you tell?
Rich

Rich:

There is still a two page list of things to do, before the car gets on the road.  Most of them are just small items, and during this next week will be taken care of.  Yesterday, I thought my 57 was coming home today, it turns out that won't happen until Monday.  Needless to say, I'm chomping at the bit.  My wife will be gone to Washington DC to chaperon students about to receive Horatio Alger Foundation Scholarships.  I will be on "Spring Break," as the school district I work for until I fully retire in June, is off for the week.  Guess what I'll be doing...

I've also been following the thread on your car and I've been jealous, too.  You have done some really nice work on your car.  I envy both you and Rick, your mechanical, fabrication and common sense automotive skills.  I'm learning all the time and enjoying the process.  I'm looking forward to seeing you get your 57 on the road and someday maybe I can travel East, or you West, to do some crusin' together with our 57's.  Meanwhile, Rick and I will continue to represent our Club with our 57's and try to recruit some more 57 owners out here to join us.

Bob
57 AGIN

is this going to be solo show car?,   or are you going to let people sit in it?   very nice, jerry

Jerry:

Before the refurbishment was started the car was a frequent driver, cruiser, go to the beach to go surfing, go to shows and whenever possible (but very seldom) to the drags.  I really don't anticipate any big changes once I get it back on the street.  I will be much more selective about where I park, but I didn't do all this stuff just to wind up with a "garage queen."  I may not take it surfing as often as before, that depends largely on how well the rear fold down seat works.  The bottom rear seat and the upper fold down part of the seat both have substantially more foam in the center of the seat than before, but I still think it is going to work.  The biggest change in the car is in the paint and from what I've seen of Santini's ability to do repairs to dings, chips, or even major body work if the car gets a hurt bump it can and will be repaired.

Bob
57 AGIN

 :iamwithstupid:

Quote from: JimNolan on 2012-04-06 20:57
It's beyond the words or my limited vocabulary. I REALLY like it. Jim

Well Guys:

No new photos, but lots has been happening with reassembling 57 AGIN.  We brought the car home from the upholstery shop on Monday and started reducing our 2 page list of things to do.  Monday afternoon I was scrounging brake parts from the local NAPA store.  I picked them up Tuesday morning and while Rick was doing the "Mechanic" things on the list, I went out to get the new tires for the car.  I was trying to get some upscale tires like Nittos, but found that the only big enough rear tires that I can get to fit the 15" X 8" Cargar S/S rims were the same BF Goodrich T/A Radial P255 X60R15 and I got the same P225 X 60R 15's for the front.  I had them mounted blackwall out and spent a good deal of time today blacking out the raised white lettering (even though it is mounted on the inside and mostly out of sight).  This morning we bled the brakes and cleared a bunch of the "To Do's" off the list.  Tomorrow, I'll be getting the upper radiator hose mounted and trying to do something with closing off the too short heater hose (I'm still waiting for Cool Flex to send me a longer piece needed to complete that part of the project.  Supposedly the hoses for the heater are all in stock, except for the chrome ones which they have been waiting for over two weeks for the chrome shop to get them done.  Rick got out the welding rig and fixed the lower left rear shock mount that had almost been ripped apart (poor weld from when the CalTrac Traction bars were installed).  The right sides welds are still solid.  We may fire up the engine tomorrow depending on how the finalizing the cooling system hookups goes.  I think we are going to make our Knott's show deadline with a few days to spare.  WHOO HA!!!

Bob
57 AGIN
 

Still no new photos:

But here's an update.  We fired the engine yesterday, sounds great after a year of silence.  Got most of the "To Do" list knocked out.  Went by Santini's & picked up the hood today and checked out some spring places.  Tomorrow Rick and I will remove the new front springs and cut a coil or two to adjust the height up front.  There is a place not too far from where we live that can re-arc springs, so that will be on my list for next week.  Only one more week until the first show and the car still needs to be detailed.  Final buffing and polishing at Santini's, a quick trip back to the Upholstery shop, and lots of Bob's elbow grease & Carnuba Wax.

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob can't wait to see it done for the show.Did you get the package I sent you and Rick?
---mike

Mike b:

Yes, I received the package yesterday and shortly after we got the 57 started we opened the package.  Both of us were blown away by the Tee Shirts, Rick chose White and I took the black one.  The gift was very nice, but unnecessary.  We were happy just to help a fellow 57 owner or want to be owner out if we could.  Both of us were glad to hear the you had located and obtained a more suitable 57 Custom.

Both of us, like you, are waiting to see how the car looks and is received at the upcoming shows.  I just hope that April 22 and April 28 aren't full of California's "liquid sunshine," like we are having this weekend.   I know that very soon a bunch of 57 owners in the Midwest will be on the receiving end of the storms that are passing through the West Coast at this time.  Out here we are experiencing a rather severe drought and can really use the water, even though it interferes with getting my 57 ready for next weekend. I hope that these Spring storms leave only pleasant memories and needed or appreciated water.

Tomorrow Rick and I will be removing and cutting a couple of coils off the front suspension.  Later next week I'll be looking into redoing the rear suspension.

Bob
57 AGIN

I AM GLAD YOU GUYS LIKE THE SHIRTS. It was the least I could do. The work you and Rick are doing is first class and the membership is eagerly waiting the finished product. I will send pics of the custom when I get it home on Tuesday .     :burnout:

57 AGIN is back on the road.  Today we finished the "To do" list.  First thing we did today was to cut a coil out of the new springs, to bring the front end down some.  It has a pretty good stance with the shackles reversed, but I'm not a fan of the reversed shackles on other than a drag car.  Sometime next week I hope to get the rear springs re-arced up 1".  Then with the shackles in the normal position the car will be 1.25" lower, but 1" above what it was before.  This may require another slice out of the front coils to give the car the alight nose down attitude I like.  Today was just a whole lot of minor things to wrap it up.  The hood went on last and my fears about having moved the engine 1" forward didn't turn out to be a problem afterall.  Some "Silly Putty" on the carburetor blower enclosure revealed about half an inch clearance and Rick says the Butch's Rod Shop motor mounts won't let the engine torque that much. 

The test drive was uneventful, other than me trying to down shift after going into 5th gear and not being able to find any other gear.  It will take a bit of getting used to the TKO 600.  Rick's car is back in his garage and 57 AGIN is back tome, too.  If I can't get the height adjusted this week , I'll just show it the way it stands.  It is drivable and Knott's Berry Farm is about 5 miles from where I live.  I want to get the stance adjusted before getting the car aligned and the alignment is definitely in the ball park.

Here are a couple of shots of the 57's stance and after these are a few shots of the finalized engine compartment, with the wiring hidden.  Also one shot of a striker plate Rick fabricated to keep the hood retention hook from gouging the paint and catching on the fender sheet metal.

Bob
57 AGIN

Here are a few shots of the engine compartment after the wiring has been finalized, etc.  Also, Rick's fabricated strike plate at the hood retention hook.

Bob
57 AGIN

Bob / Rick...like the other guys have said, we're just running out of words to describe what you guys have done with this car. Everything came together on it just fantastic. The Craegers look great on it, and the stance is what I'm gonna be looking for on my car. Well done guys. I see a car like this and it renews my faith in good old American craftmanship.
Rich

Beautifully done Bob, The only suggestion I could make is change the vanity plate to "SWEEET" or "Flawless". Enjoy!

Bob,
   Where I'm from there's an old saying that a man is only allowed one good woman and one good coon dog in his lifetime. If cars had been included in that old saying, I think this one would be yours. Job very well done. Jim

You guys have done an outstanding job on the transformation of the `57, Bob...You should be proud, taken a great looking `57 and turned it into a rolling work of art...very nice!

Need video with sound of that motor!

Gorgeous.

Rob

Thanks Guys:

It sure is nice to get behind the wheel again, now for the suspension adjustments.  And as Rick says, taking care of the paint, chrome and polished everything else.

Rob, I'm not that technnology oriented to get sound & video.  However, So. Cal. guy, come on out to Knott's next Sunday and I'll be happy to fire it up for you.

Bob
57 AGIN

Very,Very, Nice.Beautiful car ! Tarheel57 :burnout:

Very nice Guys. First class work too!