New owner

[1930artdeco]

Hi All,

Well i pulled the trigger and am now the proud owner of a a 58 Ford Fairlane 500 Town Sedan! Did Ok on the deal for a really solid relatively rust free California car. I will get her in a week or so and will post more pics. She will need a thorough cleaning first and formost. Then it will be onto catalogue what needs to be done and slowly ordering the parts. So be prepared for a barrage of questions (some will be stupid I guarantee it ). So I might as well start now:

-She needs new tires so what size am I looking for in radials?-
-Best engine degreaser? i need to degrease/sludge the valve chamber. It has been pointed out to pop the freeze plugs and pressure wash the passages out, how do I get them out?
-Who makes the best brake parts? I am thinking of going with Kantor's for a complete kit to do everything. I will also need to get lines as I am sure the originals are rusted by now.


Thanks,

Mike

[abe_lugo]

Congrats, but you do mean a 1957 Ford?

Are you just refreshing the original brake system?
It looks like all the original style brake parts can be bought through rockauto.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/ford,1957,victoria,5.1l+312cid+v8,1488587
you might as well get new inner and outer bearings for the drums.
Send your drums to get shaved locally


Maybe sure to cover al the orifices prior to jet blasting water everywhere. work on one thing at time, either the oil or crud in the engine, then do the cooling system.

I would run some a cup of water down each corner of the vent intake and have someone what for water, just to test.  have someone watch on the inside for water coming in.

here you go with the radial chart.
http://www.vintagecarconnection.com/vintage_tire_size_conversion_chart.htm

I some people say to pop the freeze plugs, they are on the of the engine very under the exhaust. If you are doing that, your taking out the engine IMO.  I would just pressurize the engine from the top and run it down the bottom.

flush the radiator. take it to a radiator shop to have it boiled and cleaned.

[RICH MUISE]

Compared to a lengthy build, tires have a relatively short safe life, so tires should be the last thing you buy. Aside from that, you may change your mind down the road as far as upgrading to disc brakes, which will change your wheel sizes. 

[1930artdeco]

Thanks for the replies.

To start with I will clean her up and then either replace the brake system totally-stock is fine for right now. As I am just trying to get her roadworthy.

Then I will pull the engine so I can replace the motor mounts and check over the tranny as well. Is there a way to tell if the O/D needs work/servicing? I just bought the manual so I hope that is in there. While it is out it will be degunked, lubed and cleaned. Then it all goes back in.

Next will fuel and rad.

This is my plan right now and which should cover everything to get her back on the road. Unless there are some other small things I have missed.

[Ford Blue blood]

Congratulations!  Rich is spot on with respect to tires.  I can tell you from personal experience that tire are the last thing you will need.  Those were perfect in appearance, stored indoors, low miles but a little over ten years old.

Keep in mind what you need to make the engine run, then how to get the power to the rear wheels, then how to stop it once it is rolling.  Then there are all the little things, electrical, window regulators, lights and the other "stuff" to make it a car vs yard art.  I personally like to have all that stuff sorted before the "pretties" are decided on.

[djfordmanjack]

Do not take the engine and trans out at this point! If you don't plan on a full rebuild. or you will end up with rebuilding it anyways and spending years and thousands. Most all overhaul and cleaning work can be done with engine in car for now. as you mention you just want to get it running and roadworthy. It will be much easier to trouble shoot everything ( esp the trans) with a running car. Then you know if its working or what problems you are shooting for. rebuilding something that old  'just for fun', for an amateur will be very difficult to find a needle in the haystack problem and you might end pulling the trans another or several more times.
I did a lot of engine cleaning in car, including removing sludge build up and removing the freeze plugs and pressure washing the water channels. it is a dirty job though, but can be well worth it, especially on a southern car, that might have had very little to non anti freeze in the water.
I also agree with Rich. just get some cheap, used but air tight tires for now and decide on the real tires when you get to driving it more. a set of neat Radial or bias ply whitewall tires will cost quite some money and it would be shame to just have the car sitting on them for years ( which can happen when something goes wrong during the build).
I recommend just looking and feeling to the car, collecting ideas as long as you can and hesitate pulling it apart quickly.  Rebuild one thing after another, which you would have to do anyways. like the brakes. the distributor. carb. fuel pump. change plugs and wires, check the wire loom and electrical functions, clean the light switch terminals. That stuff. Can easily be done step by step in a day or two and will get you closer into checking the real important stuff like drivetrain. jmho.

I asked for opinion on here, and all the guys warned me to not take it apart. I did it anyways. my bad. It is still apart in a million pieces 6 years later....oh well....

[1930artdeco]

Thanks guys, for now I can put her dollies while she is the garage so I can move her around. But she will need tires when I get her on the road eventually. But like you said that can be last-fine by me.

The reason I was going to pull the engine was so that I could clean all of the gunk out of the engine and replace the motor mounts. If that can be done in car then fine by me-whatever is easier. Two questions though:

1) Besides scraping what is the best way to get the sludge out? What chemical should I use? I know the pan will have to come off as well so I can clean that out.

2) how do you change out motor mounts? Just hoist the engine a little bit, unbolt, swap and lower? Guess as long as they are working I can put up with some vibration.

Thanks for the encouragement I will have to force myself to go slooooowwwwwwww.


Mike

[djfordmanjack]

I used the brutal way to get the sludge out. mix 1 or 2 parts Diesel with 2 parts engine oil. let it sit overnight. let it run 15 minutes. drain. repeat. cut open oil filter and inspect. repeat with new cheap oil/Diesel. or add transmission fluid in about that ratio. you can inspect the oil pickup screen through the oil drain plug. a lift would help tremendously. remove both rocker assemblies from the heads. be sure to keep records so each pushrod and rocker will go back in the same position. a wooden rack or simple cardboard helps to organize the parts. remove bottom caps of (hollow) rocker shafts, use everything you can find to push, wash, scrape the sludge off. cheap wire, long screwdrivers, extralong drills, gun cleaner....any good cleaning solvent. when you prepare to flush the oil pan, before that. wash all the grime and sludge down of the head valve train area. it will drain down in the pan , where you will drain it now. warm, thin oil will help a lot in removing stuff. Be prepared for a real mess ! 

[djfordmanjack]

there are a hundred more tricks that you can do to the old engine and you must be aware off. but it's best not to worry about everything from the beginning. A lot of members on here have many decades of experience, and I know they will chime in with further ideas and tricks.
When you have the car, maybe you could start a new topic in the project section, wher you collect all of your questions, and especially photos. we all like photos and it is often much easier to discuss a problem seeing things. Many of our members will be happy to help out !

This is where I cleaned the rocker assemblies.

http://57fordsforever.com/smf/index.php?topic=6705.msg59235#msg59235

this is cleaning out the water channels

http://57fordsforever.com/smf/index.php?topic=6705.msg59856#msg59856

[mustang6984]

Just a little note here...to help you out, but also to make Gunther (djfordmanjack) blush a bit...he is being modest...but when it comes to a driver restoration/repair project...he is probably one of the most accomplished on the site. Pick his brain...he LOVES to share!   

[1930artdeco]

Ok, I have started the list of things to do when I get the car-and have time to do this stuff.

1) Clean the inside of the car and put up on stands, inventory all extra parts
2) Check over all rubber (brake and steering) pull drums to check the condition of brakes.
3) Check underside of the car for any broken lines, cracked tranny, u-joints, rust, leaks etc.

Now I will have an idea as to how to proceed. But I am thinking I will hit the engine first (includes fuel, cooling), brakes second, steering/suspension third if needed.

4) Get supplies like carboard, paper towels etc.
5) Degunk the engine: clean and degrease everything, pan, oil pump, galley
6) Work fuel system over: reinstall tank, new lines, new pump, and rebuild carb
7) Install rad and clean out water passages
Clean up Dizzy and give a tune up: valves, plugs and points
9) Lube the snot out of the rest of the car
10) start?

Does this sound like a good rough road map? I have time to do this and the budget (although I would like to keep the costs down). She is in no condition to start right now as everything is so gunked up and out of adjustment. I may have to send the heads out for a clean up and thorough going through while I clean the rest of the engine. I like Gunter's idea of the brute force method of cleaning sludge out. But I don't know if that is a good idea right away. She is coming with a brand new aluminum rad and will most likely do the citric acid method. I also have a GANO filter from my Model A that I may be able to use to catch any rust junk. When I get the car here and start on her I will create new thread in the build section with lots and lots of pics.


Thanks,

Mike

[Ecode70D]

Just a little note here...to help you out, but also to make Gunther (djfordmanjack) blush a bit...he is being modest...but when it comes to a driver restoration/repair project...he is probably one of the most accomplished on the site. Pick his brain...he LOVES to share!   

    X2.  Günter really knows his stuff and he likes Fords

[1930artdeco]

Update: car fell through due to title issues. So off to the next one. Thank you all for your advice in the matter.

Mike

[abe_lugo]

Glad you check before closing the deal.  If the user has a NON-OP in CA paperwork.  And the title   Then you goood.  But sound like they didn't.

Just an FYI
For future buyers in CA only.
I first hand knowledge.  You can get a title with a bill of sale only.  But it will cost you in the range of 150-200 for the services, registration and tax fees and a VIN verification on old cars it usually as regular VIN verifier not a CHP one.   You must  have a statement of fact form and bill of sale. From the seller.   And it take some time for the paperwork to get through the system.

This is going through a registration service. 
I would only go through this if you had to have that particular car. 

That said a lot of the cheat complete deals being seen have this same issue.  So you can factor that into your cost. 

Also are you sticking to a '57? I was just looking a couple online last night. I'll pm you some some links. 

[djfordmanjack]

Mike, sad to hear about the failed deal.
I would say pretty much everthing that you put in your to do list, will work with another 57 project car, that might come up.
some reasoning behind my tips are caused by the fact that I live overseas and do not have quick access to spare parts. so I often have to make do with what I have. G.