67 GT 390 Fastback

[GTchris]

Here's the 67 S Code Mustang Fastback I just bought January 1st of 2009 that I am restoring.

This is the pic from the original ad on Craig's List. It had been parked in the barn behind the boat since '82. It was a stock 390, manual 4 speed, 9" 3.25 Equa-lok, dark moss green w/ black interior car.

Unfortunately the engine was long gone but the original rear end and tranny were there.

The guy I bought it from swore it was rust free and was VERY firm on the price....

3 Days later, it's home.

Extra holes in the valance are from the back panel grill option. It was in the trunk and in great shape!

The 70's were not very kind to my car. Brown diamond tuck everywhere.

Here are the interior pics.

Sam wasn't too happy about the diamond tuck.

During disassembly

There were some issues with the passenger side fender aprons.

I had originally been set on blasting the entire car to bare metal but, after it got into the body shop and they started working on it. There was in fact 0 rust in the entire car save for a small spot in the lower front of the passenger door.

 

[Fast68back]

Welcome Chris, great looking project! Keep the pictures coming.

 

[lethal289]

Nice talking to you yesterday Chris. Thats an awesome project, im glad your posting this thread here. Whens it scheduled for paint? :lol

 

[GTchris]

Welcome Chris, great looking project! Keep the pictures coming.

Thanks! I got more, just updating here.

 

[GTchris]

The hood that was on the car was really hammered and had hood pins installed.

So, after crawling through a few barns and browsing the Craigslist ads I found a decent replacement original for $200.00

Progress pics in the body shop, not necessarily in order.

I know, not the "classiest" looking shop but, the price and quality of work was right.

New front and rear passenger fender aprons installed.

The front valance was pretty hammered, and the rear was missing altogether (a lot of the GT option specific parts were missing). I bought my sheet metal from a local Scott Drake dealer. I have not bought anything from mail order suppliers. There are 2 really good classic mustang supply houses with VERY knowledgeable staff and lots of original parts that are really close to where I live.

I heard that it is pretty common for the rear aftermarket valances to be a little short. The body shop said that they have seen valances that were a lot worse than this one. Aside from the right inner fender aprons this was the only sheet metal that had to be replaced!

Since the car did not come with an engine I had to get one. I searched around and talked to a lot of people and ended up finding a guy that only generally works by referrals. I found out about the guy through the local Mustang club. http://www.mustangsunlimitedclub.com

One of the members manages a local machine shop and said this is the guy to talk to. He is supposed to be a FE guru and builds engines as a hobby.

He told me to come by the other night since all the parts were back from the machine shop so it would be a good photo op.

He put together the short block while I watched

I brought the Mustang home 7-25-09

This is the first full restoration that I have done. Actually I am pretty new to just about everything I have done here. Lots of time has been spent reading and doing some things twice. I have talked the ears off lots of people and decided since this was my first go at this that I would paint the car after it was partially reassembled.

Front end restoration progress pics.

After I got the front suspension off I noticed

I ended up going to a wrecking yard and having a passenger shock tower cut out of a donor car. I took it to a friend that is a mobile welder. He came out and removed the lower portion of the old shock tower and welded the replacement part in.

You might notice that there is a weld on the left part of the shock tower even with the upper control arm mount holes. There was a hairline crack that was revealed when the paint was burnt off from the welding. I heard that this was pretty common in these big block cars.

If you are also observant, you might also notice the top factory hole was welded up by my friend too while I was on the phone....

During clean up.

After pics

Here is another after pic and what I noticed when I went to start installing my suspension.

I was thinking about doing the upper arm relocation anyways.

I think I got the shock tower / upper control arm issue taken care of, that is at least until I get the engine in.

After much thought and talking to probably more people than I needed to, I decided to go with the upper control arm relocation. I figure that with the 390 in there, it's going to be hard to see the extra holes anyways.

I made a template out of 1/8" steel and bolted it into the factory location and then drilled the pilot holes using the template I made as a guide. The arms slid in and everything bolted in no problems at all.

These are original spindles, strut rods and reconditioned original upper control arms. I replaced the springs, spring seats, lower control arms and updated the steering with newer Moog parts.

Everything cleaned up pretty nice.

 

[GTchris]

Nice talking to you yesterday Chris. Thats an awesome project, im glad your posting this thread here. Whens it scheduled for paint? :lol

Thanks!

I'm not sure if it was you that I was chatting with but, I was on my (old 850mhz pIII 256MRAM) laptop and I had too many windows open and it crashed. So, I ended up leaving abruptly, sorry.

I don't really have a schedule for paint, or schedule for that matter.. The plan we came up with is to get the engine, transmission, and windows back in the doors then take it in for paint to lessen the chance of me damaging new paint and then back home for finally assembly.

As with most builds I'm sure, money is starting to become an issue. I got the car but, the wife wants to go to Hawaii so, we are going to Hawaii in May: so, that along with Christmas (I have 3 kids) has cut into the car fund a bit.

 

[GTchris]

I ordered my power disc brakes parts from http://stores.ebay.com/CHOCKOSTANG-CLASSIC-MUSTANG

I would have no problems personally recommending using them. Big thanks to Carol and Dan for all the help and time answering all my questions.

The parts were packaged very well, everything was there, and it was all labeled real nice.

If you need help with the installation there was a CD that was included with the order that had tons of pics and written directions as well.

As with most of my car days it's usually during the weekend. I had a question so, I figured I'd try and call maybe leave a message. Dan answered the phone on a Saturday and helped me out.

Brakes installed

I was going to install a new firewall pad, then proceed with a few items under the dash.

I opted not to go with the $120.00 fire wall pad (that I heard fits really well) and go with the $50.00 version, that I had not heard anything about.

Well it ended up not fitting very well.

I'm pretty sure they must have put the wrong pad in the box. If you look straight up from my father in-law's little finger in the photo you can see the rubber fastener for the pad that was included. I bought the pad from a local Scott Drake dealer. I asked him about these rubber push plug things and told him that they were definitely too big for the holes. He told me to drill the holes out, so I did.

So, I returned the pad and went to another shop and talked to them about what happened to me with the pad. They informed me that there is a smaller fastener for a '67, the plugs in the box that were included were for a '68. So, apparently I have drilled out a couple holes in my firewall for no reason.

Now I am waiting for a replacement pad to show up. In the mean time I have been cleaning up parts and got a few more parts hung on the front end.

New 1" sway bar installed.

Updated engine bay pic

 

[Fast68back]

Good to see you ditched the Speer o matic!!!

 

[GTchris]

Engine dropped in for a test fit.

Not much room in there at all.

Engine parts pics.

It's not totally date correct but, close and I figured $2600.00 for pretty much turn key engine is a heck of a deal.

Intake

Heads

Block

Rear end cosmetic restoration

Cleaned

Blasted

Painted

I went with stainless steel brake lines. I hear that they are difficult to get to stop leaking, of course as with most things that I get involved in; I heard that after I bought them.

I have heard that the stainless steel lines should be tightened down, then backed off, then re-tightened to help seat the flared ends. I also put a dab of never cease on them too.

If anyone has any input / experience / tips / tricks with the stainless lines it would be appreciated. Actually, feel free to chime in on anything that I am doing here. As I have said before, this is my first restoration so there is a lot of learning on my part going on here.

Well anyways, I got the rear end in and here's some pics. I decided after looking at a few other car's stances to go with the 1" drop springs.

I went with the aftermarket proportioning valve after talking with several people. The original are not supposed to be all that great.

That's where it's at as of 11-30-09

I sent my brake pedal assembly off to http://www.mustangsteve.com/clutchbearings.html for the bearing mod. My clutch pedal shaft's hole was only very slightly oval but, I decided to go this way after reading a lot of positive feedback about it. I got the pedal assembly and it looks great, I'll post pics soon.

I decided go go a different way with the firewall insulation pad. I am going to use a sound / heat insulation material. I bought the fatmat 25' kit http://stores.ebay.com/Noise-Killers-Sound-Control

I intend on using this inside the doors as well before I put the windows back in.

 

[GTchris]

Good to see you ditched the Speer o matic!!!

I was in a T Bone collision going 50 mph with a guy that pulled out in front of me in a '67 coupe that I had. I walked away fine. I didn't even eat the horn pad or steering wheel. The skid marks were no more than 30' long. I had 0 time to do anything so. The car was totaled. I just had lap belts installed too. I don't know if I walked away unhurt because I tend to sit back far from the wheel or not.

I have not considered doing anything other than stock steering column.

The guy I bought my hood from has a '67 fastback he just got done restoring and he looked at me and asked, "Does your car have a tilt column?" He told me to hop in his and check it out, his car is a restomod with an Ididit aftermarket column. The point he was trying to make is, "big" guys like him and I almost need a tilt column to get in and out easily.

So, I found a reasonably priced original tilt column that I am putting in it. I just haven't had a chance to put it back in yet.

 

[tarafied1]

Welcome, sweet build. Love the pics!!!

 

[daveSanborn]

Very nice find on a nice condition, nicely optioned car.

A couple of observations.....

Was the rearend cleanup/detail work (blasting) done with the axles installed? Since the car sat so long and then you blasted it with sand, it would be wise to pull the axles, flush the entire housing, inspect the axle bearings for wear and replace the axle seals.

You're making some modest adjustments to the originality of the car, all of which seem great. You should have no problems then performing one of the most beneficial front suspension changes by installing rollerized spring perches. Opentracker (John) sells them on this site and offers members a substantial discount. The amount of money spent on the rollerized spring perches is minimal compared to the benefit they provide. OEM spring perches, even when new bind horribly. Read up on it on this site within either the suspension forum or on the OpenTracker forum. There are not any unsatisfied customers with this simple bolt-on modification.

Diamond tuck...... yuck. Let's not have to look at that anymore okay?

 

[lethal289]

I put a complete stainless steel brake kit on my 67 from Laurel Mountain Mustang. They fit well, and when i tightened the ends down, i made sure they were real tight because of the problems i was hearing using the stainless. Knock on wood, but not one leak. They've been on for about 6 months, but only about 60 miles of traveling. There was lots of driveway driving for me for a while. :craz

 

[GTchris]

Very nice find on a nice condition, nicely optioned car.

Thanks!

A couple of observations.....

Was the rearend cleanup/detail work (blasting) done with the axles installed?

Yes, the axles and backing plates were still installed when I blasted it.

Since the car sat so long and then you blasted it with sand, it would be wise to pull the axles, flush the entire housing, inspect the axle bearings for wear and replace the axle seals.

After I blasted the rear end I pulled out the axles and blasted the backing plates in the cabinet. Then I replaced the gaskets there. I did look at the axles and bearings when I did. Would it be obvious if there was something wrong with them? I have never looked at any before but, there was nothing that appeared worn or wrong.

You're making some modest adjustments to the originality of the car, all of which seem great. You should have no problems then performing one of the most beneficial front suspension changes by installing rollerized spring perches. Opentracker (John) sells them on this site and offers members a substantial discount. The amount of money spent on the rollerized spring perches is minimal compared to the benefit they provide. OEM spring perches, even when new bind horribly. Read up on it on this site within either the suspension forum or on the OpenTracker forum. There are not any unsatisfied customers with this simple bolt-on modification.

I did install new spring perches already, thanks for pointing that out. Really. I might look into that though. Thanks.

Diamond tuck...... yuck. Let's not have to look at that anymore okay?

Hater

I really appreciate the feedback, thanks for the post!

 

[daveSanborn]

Would it be obvious if there was something wrong with them? I have never looked at any before but, there was nothing that appeared worn or wrong.

Unless the axle bearing falls apart in your hand upon removal, no, not really. Since you're doing a ground up re-furbishment of the car I just thought it would be wise to take a look at the axles/bearings. Did any sand get past the axle backing plates? If sand did get onto the bearings..... and when sand blasting it seems to get EVERYWHERE...... you'll likely find out in due time.

I did install new spring perches already.....

Yep, usually everyone does. After driving the car for a couple years with it's OEM perches installed, you'll likely want to continue improving areas of the "finished" car. The rollerized spring perches should be at the top of your "what can I do to make the car drive/handle better?" list.

 

[GTchris]

I'm moving ahead and working towards getting the engine back in the car now.

I need some exhaust manifolds. I have heard the stock 390 manifolds are crap so, the engine builder suggested having the heads drill to accommodate CJ manifolds. Which I had done.

I was thinking this was going to be the way to go as I was not too hip to the idea of replacing header gaskets or seeing them hang down underneath my car. Then like clockwork someone else points out something. http://www.fordpowertrain.com/FPAindex/Mustang1.htm

These guys make custom headers and they were actually just featured last issue in Mustang Monthly. They are not too far from my house (about 2 hours or so) so, I could go pick them up. They end up costing about as much as the re pop CJ manifolds from what I have been seeing at a price of $550.00.

So, I guess I'm on the fence at the moment what to do here. It kinda goes away from the whole original, non-restomod, moderate upgrades look that I am going for; I don't plan on racing it so, I suppose the extra few HP really don't matter but, lets face it... It's more HP!

 

[tarafied1]

I have FPA headers and love them. I also replaced my new spring perches with ORP's roller perches and love those too!
I think you should keep the interior, that retro stuff is really in right now :sur

 

[vamustang]

Looks like your doing a great job restoring an awesome car ! Nice detail work. Tempting to keep that retro interior though...

Keep the pics coming. Best wishes, Chris

 

[Tony R]

You are making some good progress. I see you are in the same neck of the woods as me. I am in orchards. if you need a hand with something let me know.

 

[GTchris]

I had the clutch bearing mod done to my pedal assembly courtesy of Mustang Steve.

All brake lines, master cylinder, brake booster installed. I got the fluid in the system and bled them pretty good. I'm sure I'll bleed them again here soon.

After over a week and no leaks anywhere so far though.

I gave up on the firewall pad idea and went with Fat Mat insulation instead. I am just doing the firewall and doors for now. I'l do the rest of the car when it comes back from paint.