car rebuild

Hi folks, it’s Pop here. Janet did an excellent job explaining basically the what’s and why’s of rebuilding her little 200ci six banger. More air, more fuel, bigger spark, bigger explosion and more power. Carl’s Machine Shop was fantastic, and now we have to assemble the parts. This indeed trips my trigger and I will explain the procedure much to the boredom of some of you. But, perhaps we can convert a few into budding “gearheads”.

We’ll begin with the bare engine block which was cleaned up, magna fluxed (a process to detect cracks…it passed), over bored 60 thousands of an inch (this is the maximum and was necessary because of scoring in cylinder #4, the result of a broken ring), and new freeze plugs installed.

The crankshaft went in first with .010” over bearing inserts. This requires clearance checks using plastigauge. Plastigauge is thin plastic thread which when compressed, spreads out and its width is then measured to determine clearance. The top bearing shells are placed in the block, then the crankshaft, then strips of plastigauge across the bearing journals, then the bottom bearings and caps. The bearing caps are then torqued to specs. The caps are then removed and the width of the plastigauge measured. I won’t further torture you with the measurements acceptable throughout the assembly procedure except to say, “everything checked out”. (Janet: “Except to say we had to do math…math sucks.”) The crank is then removed and turned over 180 degrees and the process repeated, assuring a straight bore and shaft. Everything checking in specs, the bearing surfaces are lubricated, assembled and torqued to specs. One final step, the crankshaft is then moved forward and backward to check end play.

The camshaft (which opens and closes the valves) was original and installed by Carl’s with new bearings, as this requires special tools. (Janet: “Some of the only tools Pop apparently does NOT have in his garage. It’s just a matter of time.”)

Next, the pistons with new rings (which snap into piston grooves, hold compression and control oil on the cylinder walls), three rings per piston. Before the rings are installed in the piston grooves they must be placed in the proper cylinder bore and the gap between the ends measured. Too close a gap and the ring will break when it expands with heat, spelling disaster. (Janet: “Apparently I got my dramatic nature from my father.”)

Each piston is fitted to numbered connecting rods then placed in the proper cylinder and attached to the crankshaft, plastigauged, lubed and torqued to specs. With the installation of a new oil pump, the “bottom end” is now complete.

New timing chain (which goes on gears at the front end of the crankshaft and camshaft) is installed and the front cover and oil pan installed. We’re now ready for our new and improved cylinder head.

One final and most important measurement is needed, valve clearance. We now have oversized valves and increased openings with our new 1.6 to 1 rocker arms. Heaven forbid the valves hit the pistons at top dead center! That would again lead to disaster. (Janet: “Need I say more?”)

With #1 piston at the top dead center, we fill the space between the block surface and the piston with clay (in our case, Playdough). We also filled #6, then install the head gasket and head. The head bolts are torqued, the valve train assembled and adjusted and the engine turned over 720 degrees or two revolutions of the crankshaft (one revolution of the camshaft). With fingers crossed, we disassemble the valve train, remove the head and measure the distance from the bottom of the valve indentations to the piston surface. Yes! We have clearance!

The top end is now reassembled and the oil pump driven by an electric drill (the bottom of the distributor shaft will do this). Checking for oil flow from the rocker arms aaaaaaaand – success!

Finally, valve cover on and new Ford blue paint job.

During Janet’s next visit we’ll install our Autolite two barrel carburetor with automatic choke onto the beautiful adaptor plate on the intake manifold. Add our new 50,000 volt ignition and big exhaust headers and we’re ready to kick some ass.

(Janet: “Pop and I have very different ways of showing overwhelming excitement.”)

Pop and I had to replace one of Mavis’s rocker panels because it was totally rusted out. This was a BIG deal and new even to Pop, but we both think the results are of rock star quality. The rocker panel is the length of metal that runs from the back of the front wheel well to the front of the back wheel well just underneath the door. It’s what you step over to get into any vehicle. I’ve recently discovered that its name originates from back in the day when they were building horse drawn carriages. Here’s a fascinating bit of info for ya from “A Practical Treatise on Coach-building” by James W Burgess, published in London in 1881.

“Proportion in carriages applies to both form and colour; as regards form, it regulates the sizes of the various parts so that the whole may harmonise, and dictates the adoption of contrivances for lessening the apparent size of those parts which would otherwise be unseemly. Thus, the total height which is necessary in the body for the comfort of the passengers is too great for the length which it is convenient to give it ; therefore the total height is reduced, and to give sufficient leg room a false bottom is affixed by means of convex rockers, and which, being thrown back and painted black, cease to form a portion of the elevation ; they are, -like a foundation, out of sight, and thus the proportion of the front view (the side is called the front in coach-builder’s parlance) is preserved.”

Well thank God! I felt my original explanation to friends who were trying very kindly to understand (and stay interested) in my rocker panel story was much more understandable. I told them to imagine driving their car over a very steep bump in the road. It would surely get stuck at the top, rocking back and forth with the wheels above the ground on either side. What it would be rocking on would be…you guessed it, the rocker panels!

Regardless, they do tend to rust out faster than any part of a car or truck and Mavis’s passengers side had seen better days.

Skills required to replace a rocker panel: Metal cutting, accurate measuring, plug welding, tack welding, grinding, body filler work, sanding, more sanding, patience and a good attitude. It is really really stressful because neither Pop nor I are psyched about making our first real cut into Mavis’s body and fucking it up isn’t really an option. There are only so many YouTube videos you can watch before you gotta get in there and make it happen.

I think this part may mark the first fight Pop and I have gotten into during this project. Ok, not a full out fight, but he was clearly irritated with me. We were up under the back wheel well where I was showing him the inner patch for the back of the panel I had been working for like, 3 hours on, and felt I had messed up. So both our heads are crammed into this 2×1 foot space, 2 inches from each others faces and I’m whining about this shitty patch and he’s telling me it’s “just fine” and I’m saying it’s unacceptable and I’m pissed and now he’s getting pissed. We keep grabbing this patch out of each others hands tryting to show the other how it’s working or not working and dropping it and hitting our heads trying to pick it up and in the stress of this whole fucking thing Pop says, VERY sternly, “God Dammit Janet, stop being such a perfectionist!” I mean, he’s not happy with me, which hasn’t happened often, or ever, in my adult life.

Years ago I would have immediately felt that stinging feeling in my nose just before the tears come. Now, I was just so blown away with being called a perfectionist tears were beyond me. A perfectionist? I think the only other person who has ever called me that was my best friend Beth of forty years who is a trained psychologist and knows me better than almost anyone. So really, what does she know?

Fuck. I may be. Never thought of myself as a perfectionist, but I do have to admit that there isn’t much space between, “we’re going to do this thing right to the best of our ability” and, “if I can’t do this thing right I have no abilities.” I’ve been known to never start something because it may not turn out how I envisioned it. After years of doing this to myself on a creative level, I now decide to rebuild a car? Not sit and doodle out a sketch, not try some slab work with clay…no, rebuild a whole fucking car. It was the black and white of it I was attracted to at first. Either the car starts and runs or it doesn’t. You’ve either succeeded or failed. But like anything, there are so many levels of what is acceptable or what is ‘right’. High-end, high gloss, big money Foos paint jobs or flat black spray paint applied in the hot sun in the backyard. I’m cool with both for others, why not me? Pop and I, we are not high end, we are ‘do the best you can do with what you’ve got’ because that is what he, and Momma, taught me.

This is a lesson. Not one I planned on. But as I write I’m realizing that I must stay true to my mission…which I didn’t have for this project until now.

Have fun, damn it. Do your best, learn, be in the moment and enjoy the loving relationship you and Pop deserve to have with the added appreciation of being comforted by Momma with long warm hugs, morning chats and dinners from my childhood. Love them both back deeply, be grateful and keep on rockin’ the rocker panels!

Here are shots throughout the rocker panel replacement process. Please enjoy, Pop and I are very proud.

Pre-surgery. Ensuring we’re working on Mavis’s correct side and the ‘implant’ is ready to go. It will need to be cut to size and drilled for plug welds. Note the very accurate Sharpie lines marking where we will cut the old panel out.

Cutting out the ‘cancer’ as they call it. Back end.

Front end.

Cancer sucks.

First fitting after the way too stressful first cuts.

Inside of the panel cleaned up and rust treated.

The front of the back wheel well area that was so bad we had to cut out most of it out and create patches. Always trying to save as much good metal as possible.

Replacement panel after we drilled the plug weld holes.

Woody on the torch!

Welding in the ‘shitty’ patch, having learned my lesson.

Plug welds done…not too bad!

Front pre-fit a little scary.

Back pre-fit looking good.

Plug welds ground down and filler applied, dried and sanded.

Front looking much better.

This was tough as we needed to keep that horizontal seam but ‘hide’ the vertical one.

Skim coat is the darker red. Trying to use as little as possible.

Front sanded, pre-paint.

Back sanded, pre-paint.

Prepped for paint.

Done!

Final back. Don’t even try to tell me you can see that vertical seam!!

Final front.

Full on final shot!!

Oh shit! I forgot to tell you about the outcome of the brake situation and Mustang Marty Miller! It didn’t end well in terms of the brakes, but Marty’s cool. Skip to the end of my last post to read about it.

Pop my Ride

Gearing Up for the Second Half

Pop – Putting it Back Together

Keep on Rockin’ in the Wheel World