nice e-bay score today

[RICH MUISE]

   won the bidding on a part I'd been looking for for at least 2 years... n.o.s.(still in the box)drivers side door latch assembly. I put in 1 st bid a week ago and no other bids until 10 minutes before expiration. Anyways, ended up cheap in my opinion $66. I had paid $85. 2 years ago for a right side nos door latch and they're easy to find.

[JPotter57]

good score Rich...

[RICH MUISE]

not so nice score as it turns out...part is perfect, still in box, shipped quick, but won't fit without mods. The latch was listed as ford/mercury 1957-1958 with the mercury part number and box. the one photo on ebay was a view that looked identical to the ford latch i was holding in my hand to compare, so I took the chance since the ford ones are almost imposible to find. As it turns out ford and mercury are different.The main outer bracket is the same as ford, some of the levers are different but I think usable, the main difference is the star wheel protrudes out further than ford by about a 1/4". I'm going to see if I can make it work by making a plate/spacer to put inside the door that will make the merc. latch protrude out the correct distance.The other mod I'll have to do is switch the lever that is actuated by the outside door button with my old ford one.
Not the bolt in I had hoped for but I think I can still get there from here. I'll take photos of the mods and post them if it works...maybe merc latches are easier to find.