Got my second 57 recently so figured I should learn to post.
I traded for a 57 Country Sedan years ago and worked on it as $$ and time permitted.
I recently purchased a 57 Courier from Craigslist, sight unseen. PO's abandoned project.
Came with lots of extra parts.
Gonna take awhile. Lots of serious rust.
Welcome to the forum. Looks like you've got a good start on it. That should keep you out of trouble for a while, lol. I miss doing where you're at now........very rewarding, feel-good project.., And, you've got the posting, even with pics, figured out! Lots of good help/advcise on this forum. What part of the world do you live? Does that Courier have glass on both sides? I understand they were available no glass, one side or two.
Rich
Thanks Rich.
Glad to be a member. Been way busy trying to make room in my garage. Going to need a lot more bodywork than I'm qualified to do.
The Courier has glass on both sides. I really don't know the story about that. The previous owner thinks it was a Weyerhauser fleet vehicle and the glass was a Weyerhauser modification. One of my neighbors swears he watched a video indicating the glass was a very rare option. He's trying to run down where he got that impression/information.
I was planning in the distant future to weld in sheet metal. However, if it was an option I may replace the glass instead. It appears to be safety glass in a rubber "grommet".
I live in Ryderwood, Washington.
Since you're here, where's the info on setting up an avatar?
Quote from: xonewm on 2023-03-20 19:59I was planning in the distant future to weld in sheet metal. However, if it was an option I may replace the glass instead. It appears to be safety glass in a rubber "grommet".
I live in Ryderwood, Washington.
We need to talk. I have a Courier parts car with solid panels. I'm in MO now, (was in WA for 48 years). I was trying to decide if keeping the panels was worth taking them out or not. Guess I know the answer. You can have them for the same price I paid for the car...ZIP! (Thanks Gary!)
Let me know if you are interested and we'll go from there.
Later...Hugh
xonewm, just curious which version of the rear tailgate lift support you have. I have owned 2 57 Sedan Deliveries, and both mine had the passenger side "track and roller" style, that mounts to the side of the body,but I have also seen some that had a drivers side overcenter pivot bar that mounts to to floor. No idea if the variation was based on which assembly plant the vehicle was built in, or a running change. I THINK the track and roller was the earlier style, as I have seen a couple of 58 SDs with the over center style.
Mine has the drivers side over-center pivot bar mounted to the floor. As noted on the photo, the hook on one end of the "retention" spring broke off.
I was impressed that the mechanism was still functional and supports the hatch.
mustang6984(Hugh),
I'm interested but not sure it's practical. Missouri is more than 2000 miles away from Washington. Long way round trip!
Quote from: xonewm on 2023-04-01 19:42mustang6984(Hugh),
I'm interested but not sure it's practical. Missouri is more than 2000 miles away from Washington. Long way round trip!
LOL!!! Trust me (as others will verify) NO ONE knows more than I about the trip from WA state to Missouri...all 2100 miles of it.
Somewhere in here is the history of my move from Port Angeles WA to Carr Lane MO.
Where in WA are you? We might be able to shop the panels. Finding a pair will be nigh impossible. I have two Couriers of my own plus this parts car.
I see where you already said you were in Ryderwood. Been there more than a few times. I worked out of Olympia for 44 years. Part of that time doing contract work for the courts and prosecutors in Thurston.
You are 2098 miles from my driveway. We might be able to get Fed-Ex to ship them. As I stated, your price for them is free...so your cost would be the shipping.
I'll send you a P/M with my phone number.
I picked up a 3 speed shifter at PIR swapmeet. Pretty sure it's an Autolite for an early Mustang.
Rebuild parts are available for it, however it appears something is missing.
Looking at pictures on the internet I see what appears to be a retaining spring in two lower holes. Anybody know what this is for?
Also, there don't appear to be any shift stops which appears wrong.
My Shifter.jpgInternet Shifter.jpg
Sorry about the double pix. Still learning to use the Forum. :sign4:
On a 4-speed those springs keep it out of the rail for reverse...forcing you to really WANT to go into reverse. Maybe the same then for the three speed?
Since it's the same "rail" as first, I don't see how it would work. Not sayin' I know anything about shifter construcltion.
Big spring on the other side differentiates 1st/reverse from 2nd/3rd.
Oh heck...yea. I remember now...(been 52 years since I had the T-85 w/floor shifter in mine). The spring jumps the shifter from 1st over to the rail for 2nd & 3rd. Keeps you from hitting reverse by accident. DUH! I should have remembered right off. Sorry!
It should have nylon/what ever?? things that go into that hole, it may be the same on the other side, I can't remember :001:My Shifter.jpg
Correct. There s/b a rubber grommet and metal button on each side. Only one button remained in mine. The rubber had deteriorated to black goo.
Repair parts are available on NPD! I will be ordering today.
Thats it, thanks it helps me refresh my old memory..
Quote from: hiball3985 on 2023-04-07 09:52It should have nylon/what ever?? things that go into that hole, it may be the same on the other side, I can't remember :001:[url="https://57fordsforever.com/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;attach=130037;type=preview;file"]My Shifter.jpg[/url]
They were little metal cup shaped buttons with springs underneath. Ford called them trunions. They keep the shifter tight so it doesn't rattle. Scott Drake sells a rebuild kit that includes the trunions, springs, shoulder bolts, and insulators, which are the rubber bushings around the two shoulder bolts that attach the shift handle. They list it for a four speed shifter but its the same parts for three speed.
Today I learned the double threaded(inside & outside) nuts holding the body mounts to the frame can only be hand tight. Learned that after running one all the way through when "snugging" it up.
The cup washer on the right is the example of why not to tighten them down.
Welded the driver side toe board; started on the passenger side after getting all the mounts in for the passenger cabin.
It looks as if the best sequence of repair is to get both toe boards in, install the full width donor floor panel(runs from toe boards to rear foot wells) with the body mounts, then weld the toe boards to the floor patch panel.
All in the hope of keeping the firewall in position. The rocker panels are completely rusted out as is part of the roof behind the windshield.
I plan to patch the kick panels before attacking the rocker panels.
FYI Concours Parts sell the individual body mount parts.
In looking the photo in your last post, it appears to me that your '57, has a '58 dash, or '58 dash parts. Just an observation, not a criticism.
John
I might be wrong in my remembering...If I remember correctly the toe boards lap over the floor boards and the door jamb inner structure laps over both....again, been a couple of days since I was at that stage and don't have a good photo to help my brain...
Found a picture, look very carefully at the little red circle and you can see the toe over lapping the floor.....
John, what's the difference with a '58 dash. The fascia on the instrument panel, and radio/clock delete were more basic than my Country Sedan. I thought it was because this was a Courier.
But you are right; this was a complete extra padded dash. The one matching the Courier was gutted so I used this one.
The heater box is much simpler/smaller too.
Willie
Interesting. It does look as if your toe boards overlap the floor.
However, on mine and the donor floor, the floor overlaps the toe boards.
I have no idea what model the donor floor is from. All the body mount holes are in the right place and it fit properly when test fit over the cancer ridden toe boards.
Willie
Quote from: xonewm on 2023-04-12 10:34John, what's the difference with a '58 dash. The fascia on the instrument panel, and radio/clock delete were more basic than my Country Sedan. I thought it was because this was a Courier.
But you are right; this was a complete extra padded dash. The one matching the Courier was gutted so I used this one.
The heater box is much simpler/smaller too.
Willie
What caught my eye in the photo is the two chrome bezels on either side of the steering column. The one on the left holds the ignition switch etc.
At the top of that left bezel there is a plastic insert that says Ignition, Lights Vent. On '57's the plastic is Black with white letters. On '58's it is White with black letters.
Can't see the speedometer, but if it has a White background, I believe it is from a '58 as a '57 has a black speedometer background.
If you decide to change it to the '57 style, you need to know that it is not as simple as changing the plastic inserts. The chrome bezel and the backing plate for the chrome bezel must be changed, as they are different from the'57s.
If you decide to make the swap,I believe I have the '57 pieces you would need, as well as a speedometer......And I would be interested in the'58 bezels etc., that you have.
John
Quote from: Ford Blue blood on 2023-04-12 08:34Found a picture, look very carefully at the little red circle and you can see the toe over lapping the floor.....
I lapped the floor over the toe board. My thinking was that in the rain, water might be forced into the seam. I believe that's how my sedan was built.
The comparison of the donor to what my Ranchero had is really interesting? The donor is clearly floor over the toe and my Ranchero is clearly (some what) toe over floor. Given there were a butt load of factories with their own stamping and assembly lines might be just a difference in which shop....doubt it makes any difference though.
X2.......I'm with Bill......doubt it makes a difference. The panels to be concerned with are ones that affect outside panel fitment.
With that said, one place to pay particular attention is the outer rockers. They need to be slightly angled down to the outside. This is due to the design of the doors is to pass water through and out on top of the rockers. On my car, my left rocker apparently is too far forward by 1/8". I would like to move my fender back a tad, but I can't because the lower part of the fender is already up against the rocker. I can fix this when I feel like removing the front fender.....not sure I will.
Bill,
I found it interesting that the assembly lines weren't more standardized for such a major component. Ease/time for construction seems important.
But I do agree it doesn't matter either way. I'm not capable or interested in concours construction, I just want to drive it.
Willie
I think the same way Terry does. I lean toward overlapping from top to bottom to prevent water build up in the seams if they leak.
And based on Rich's comment, I better hang the doors before doing the rocker panels.
John,
I have no preference on the 57/58 dash. If you want them, PM me and I'll get some pix to you.
I'll be out of town until next week though.
Willie
Willie......I sent you a Private Message (PM)
John
Quote from: xonewm on 2023-04-13 11:52I think the same way Terry does. I lean toward overlapping from top to bottom to prevent water build up in the seams if they leak.
And based on Rich's comment, I better hang the doors before doing the rocker panels.
Not necessarily. If your old rockers are still attached, just get some good reference measurements. If not, maybe some good pics/ref. dimensions from somebody else's.
Pictures - 58(?) dash components. First batch.
Pictures - 58(?) dash components. Second batch.
58 dash for sure, I think only six cylinder models had manual chokes.
Jim, you are correct. V8's had "Lighters"
John
That's a sweet factory looking mod ! I really like the white 58 gauges/knobs and the different checker style chrome trim parts !
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Quote from: mustang6984 on 2023-04-01 22:08I see where you already said you were in Ryderwood. Been there more than a few times. I worked out of Olympia for 44 years. Part of that time doing contract work for the courts and prosecutors in Thurston.
You are 2098 miles from my driveway. We might be able to get Fed-Ex to ship them. As I stated, your price for them is free...so your cost would be the shipping.
I'll send you a P/M with my phone number.
Just trying to help but you guys should check with Fastenal shipping (blue line freight) they ship between fastenal stores and haul general freight for a LOT less. The catch is you have to deliver & pickup at the nearest store to you.
Hope this helps 👌
I'll check that out! Thanks!
Finally installed fenders and hood on the Courier. Had the same gap at the front of the hood as my wagon.
How do I get rid of the excessive gap? It's probably something simple but it escapes me. Including pix of the wagon since it's outside with better light.
No simple answer. Has the skin on the hood been totally replaced with the T-Bird, or just the scoop added? You can see where I'm going with this. The gaps on the side look really tight. How are the gaps between the fender and cowl area/doors? Can the fenders be pushed back?
Your gap does seem beyond the norm, Your nose piece looks a bit low. Maybe loosening all those end and middle bolts and rotating a little will help some, but not enough by itself. I would think you should have some play on the hood hinge bolts that may allow the hood to be slid forward a bit??? As I said, no easy fix, I've got to realign the front sheetmetal on mine, and I've been avoiding it like the plague.
Thanks for the input. The gaps at the back of the hood and fenders is close to normal. I'll try shifting the "nose" piece tomorrow and see how that goes.
Both of my cars ended up this way when I re-assembled them. The only thing I've learned is the hinges do not adjust up/down.
Willie, I just went though this same issue. I have the advantage that my parts are in primer and the grill is not installed, nor the gravel pan or bumper.
I fixed it by slotting the holes on the hinge, where the hinge mounts to the core support.
I placed tape below the bottom of the hinge, and along the sides, to mark its current position, and made an educated WAG (wild ass guess) as to how much it needed to come down, and marked that spot.
I did it with the hood on.There are 4 bolts that secure the hinge to the core support. I made sure the top 2 were tight and removed the 2 bottom bolts, and wedged a small shim in behind the bottom of the hinge to get it away from the core support. With a carbide bit in a Dremel tool, I slotted both lower holes on the hinge,so the hinge could come down.
When it came time to loosen the upper bolts I made sure the hood was in the full up position. When I loosened the upper bolts it moved down. In fact it moved past my line, so with a bottle jack and piece of wood 2X2 I jacked it back up, tightened the lower bolts and got it where it needs to be.
I'll do the upper holes when I remove the "chin" piece between the fenders.
I can post some photos if you need them.
John
John that would be a SWAG....scientific wild ass guess.....
Bill, I like that!
BTW, I mailed you the sample today that we recently discussed. Go stand by your mailbox.
John
Well, John, that's what I considered doing but I know that wasn't done on the assembly line.
I may end up doing it that way, but I've got to try to figure it out first.
If I can figure this out, next I'll figure out how the Egyptians built the pyramids!
What I realized on my car is that there is a gap between the hinge and the hood itself. that gap can be adjusted. i found if the gap went from a lot in the rear and zero in the front that would "tilt" the hood and close the gap. I didn't see that at first and now I can adjust the gap to where the hood scrapes the nose piece. My gaps are OK front and sides and a little wide at the cowl. My car was in a fender bender at some point in its life and I did make a couple of mods to add to the adjust-ability.
Lynn, I found the same thing on the passenger side hinge. With a friend holding the hood up, we closed that gap, so the the hinge is tight to the hood. That helped, but I still had to slot the hinges where they mount to the core support, to get the hood down across the chin panel
My car was also in some fender bender in its past, which I believe has contributed to the hood, passenger fender,and chin panel not going together easily. The passenger fender replacement has required some massaging to make it fit correctly. I'm glad that the fender is in primer, and not painted!
John
Thanks to "lalessi1"!
After loosening the hinge-to-hood bolts I yarded back on the top of the hood while pushing in on the bottom(front) then tightened the bolts. The hood shifted significantly.
Spent all afternoon getting this done on the Courier since the bumper, grill, et cetera are not on it.
Tomorrow I'll the wagon.
I noted that even though the hood hinges have some vertical adjustment on the core support, without Lynn's info it was not enough. :deadhorse:
You may already know this but once you get your hood fitting right I highly recommend you find a 59-hood latch and install it, you can then shut your hood with one finger instead of having to slam it shut.
Can I ask what the difference is with the 59 hood latch that makes them desirable? And how you identify one vs. a 57 latch?
Thanks,
Andy
One moving part rather than two. A much simpler but superior design. Easier to pull. Latches without slamming the hood.
I have found that if I press down with the palm of my hand lat the latch location to close it I don't have to slam it.