datsunfreak Posted October 18, 2019 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2019 (edited) I made a thing! And so can you! Edited October 19, 2019 by datsunfreak 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted October 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2019 (edited) Finally got down to square one with the right side, and you can definitely see what's wrong with that lower control arm... And the T/C rod took some of the hit too. That bit between the red lines is supposed to be straight... 😄 Good news is the crossmember took no damage. 👍 Trying to decide between heat and straighten the T/C rod, or just see if I can make something like this... Edited October 19, 2019 by datsunfreak 3 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted October 28, 2019 Report Share Posted October 28, 2019 Each time I open this thread and see that picture, I think, "Damn, that is one bitchin' car." I'm excited to be a part of this project. 2 Quote Link to comment
Chopper Jim Posted October 28, 2019 Report Share Posted October 28, 2019 I would search for another one, or make one. Chopper Jim Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted October 29, 2019 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2019 23 hours ago, Chopper Jim said: I would search for another one, or make one. Leaning hard towards option 2... 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted November 2, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2019 (edited) The previous owner bought new inner and outer tie rods, but after seeing the state of them I knew the center bits won't be reusable due to rust. Hence why I was looking at using heim joint steering links. Well, after taking a peek around online, I was able to find the center bits new for about $10 the pair. It helps that every Ford full size car used the same part from 1960-1972... 😄 I ordered some replacement urethane bushings for the T/C rods, but will go forward with making new rods using heim joints. . Heims for the steering may happen at some future point, but I don't think the return on investment is worthwhile there, as stock tie rods are plenty stiff when new. I think stiffening the T/C rods will yield much bigger gains in stability... In fact, on two of my Datsuns, the best bang for the buck on steering stiffness was just using urethane boots on stock tire rods. If I can find some for this, they will definitely be going on... Edited November 2, 2019 by datsunfreak 1 Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted November 2, 2019 Report Share Posted November 2, 2019 (edited) On 10/28/2019 at 1:15 PM, dimlight65 said: Each time I open this thread and see that picture, I think, "Damn, that is one bitchin' car." I'm excited to be a part of this project. That car has a great body style. I like the fastback roof line and the forward-slant shark nose. 🙌 Surprisingly enough, it has somewhat similar styling as the '67 Nova, which was also a 1-year only body style.. Edited November 2, 2019 by Duncan 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted January 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 So the trunk would not close, and has probably been unlatched for 30+ years. I figured it was time to fix that... The previous owner bought a new complete lock set for the car since the keys were lost long ago. I got the lock cylinder swapped out and the latch assembly all lubed up, but then she still wouldn't close. 😐 As it turns out, at some point it took a light hit in the back that caused the body panel below the trunk to be bent 1/2" out, and the trunk lip to be bent about 1/2" in, so nothing lined up correctly. I was able to bend the body lip back where it belongs and now it closes. 😁 I still need to bend the trunk lip out a bit more for easier closing, though. And now I can see just how bent my rear bumper brackets are... 😂 3 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted February 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2020 So I was bored and decided to see how tough it would be to remove the front seat since it was stuck all the way forward, and I had no plans to use it anyway. Four bolts on either side, removed from under the car, and it was out. Rear seat comes out basically the same as a 510, bottom raises up and out, back needs two screws pulled out at the bottom, then it goes up and out. Of course after I was lifting up on the seat back, I noticed in my peripheral vision what looked like a piece of rope. Followed it up with me eyes only to realize I was face to face with a sleepy-eyed opossum. 🤨 So after freaking the fuck out for a few seconds, and then evicting him with a broomstick from as far away as possible, I began to notice once the seats were out that he had been ripping the stuffing out of the seat for a few weeks now to make some comfy bedding for himself. 😁 Didn't think to snap a pick of the opossum, but here's his aftermath... So spent about an hour getting all of that out, pulling the carpet out, and vacuuming up what was left over. You might think I'm crazy but the floors actually look better than I thought they would... As is common with '60s Fords, the front floors look great, but the rear footwells look a bit rough. They are the lowest part of the floor, so they are the first to go when rust takes over. Lots of surface rust to be dealt with but not too many holes thankfully. I am planning to just remove and replace the big rectangle from the front seat rails to the rear seat rail. 👍 6 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted February 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2020 (edited) Also, I picked up some sporty-ish seats from a 2020 Corolla for it so I couldn't resist a test fit/sit in the car. Apparently my friend Pat took a photo of me sitting in the car making race car noises, but I doubt you will see it. I sure ain't posting it, and I doubt Tim knows how, so... 😁 Edited February 16, 2020 by datsunfreak Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted February 16, 2020 Report Share Posted February 16, 2020 13 hours ago, datsunfreak said: Also, I picked up some sporty-ish seats from a 2020 Corolla for it so I couldn't resist a test fit/sit in the car. Apparently my friend Pat took a photo of me sitting in the car making race car noises, but I doubt you will see it. I sure ain't posting it, and I doubt Tim knows how, so... 😁 Ooh! Curse my Luddite upbringing! Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted February 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2020 (edited) Found an online decoder for the build tag... So that means... 7D - Built in Dallas, Texas in 1967 55 - Galaxie 500, 2 door hardtop body C - 289 2bbl carb 159108 - This car was number 59,108 off the assembly line that year 63B - Frost Turquoise paint 5K - Aqua cloth/vinyl interior 21U - Car was built on July 21st, 1967 62 - Car was destined for Houston, Texas 6 - 2.80:1 rear gear ratio, open diff (bummer on both counts) X - Cruise-O-Matic FX transmission (not a C4 like I thought) Well, at least now I know for sure I need to be planning a gear (or whole diff) swap in the near future. With rear gears that tall, and an OD 5 speed trans, it would be at about 1500rpm at 70-75mph as is... 😃 Edited February 27, 2020 by datsunfreak 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted February 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2020 So, ever since the car showed up, the passenger door would not stay closed, and the windows would not roll down. Decided to tackle that today... The previous owner purchased an NOS door latch assembly from ebay, but there's just one problem. It was actually for a 1968 Galaxie, and had one major difference... In the red circle, you can see that the arm that operates the door latch from inside the car is a different design. And no, I didn't realize this until after I installed it. 🤨 At this point I realized that the only thing actually wrong with my original latch was that the spring that operates the latch mechanism to make it close was broken (yellow circle). So I decided to just swap the spring from the new latch on to the old latch, lubed everything, and reinstalled the old latch. Now it latches perfectly. 👍 Also it appears the only real problem with the windows was just that everything was just dry and dirty. I greased all the tracks, and hosed down the regulator with WD40, and now they roll up and down super easy. 👍 I had a new lock set that came with the car so I went ahead and installed both new door locks. So now everything opens and closes as it should, and I can lock up the car. 😁 Next step is to get the rear door panels off so I can clean and lube those regulators too and get the rear windows rolling up and down smoothly. Then it's on to fixing the last non-functional door, the big one that covers the engine... 😄 4 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 1, 2020 Report Share Posted March 1, 2020 I know us, it is a good thing this car doesn't drive right now or NONE of those things you just fixed would have gotten done. Bravo my friend. Well done. 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 On 2/15/2020 at 6:50 PM, datsunfreak said: Also, I picked up some sporty-ish seats from a 2020 Corolla for it so I couldn't resist a test fit/sit in the car. Well, as it often happens, right after I "settled" for the Corolla seats because I couldn't find anything cooler... I happened to run across some suede Recaros from a 2015 Lancer Evo GSR. Right side needs to be stitched up from where the air bag popped, but that should be minimal fuss... 4 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2020 We needed to do some cleaning and organizing, so I finally got my engine up on a stand so I can clean/paint/swap out parts... Pretty grungy right now, but it'll be nice and clean before it goes in the car... 3 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 22, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2020 Well, with all the unpleasantness going on, and boredom setting in, I decided to start tackling a job I have wanted to try for awhile... I have always wanted to have some cool LED tail lights on something eventually, so I started looking around at different options available in the aftermarket. Judging lumens and other factors correctly had me paranoid of it being way too much trial and error (mostly error), so I started thinking about how I could adapt some OEM options... I was behind a Dodge Journey in traffic the other day and noticed that not only were the lights very bright, but round and what looked like a good size for the Galaxie lights. So I went by the junkyard and bought all the broken ones I could find. Why broken? Well, buying broken lights has made this project cost me about $10 total... Thankfully the Journey tail light has screws holding it together. So if you bust off the lens first, you can easily disassemble it and get down to this... The side bit functions as a side marker light on the Journey. Not sure if it will get used (or just removed) yet... In order to make life easier, I cut up the back half of the tail light to remove the bit that the car's harness plugs into and I am planning to epoxy them into the Galaxie light housings for a "plug and play" operation... Now once I figured out what wires do what, it was time for a test. Park light... Brake light... Testing all 4 at once... Since the front end has four stacked headlights of 5.75" each, and since these are 5.5" each, I want to try and stack two vertically inside each light to mimic the front end. I think there is enough space to do it, but we shall see... And yes, they are much brighter than they look in the photos. They should be way brighter than the stock 1157s anyway... 4 Quote Link to comment
MikeRL411 Posted March 23, 2020 Report Share Posted March 23, 2020 Yes! It takes ingenuity and a little luck to keep a 53 year car on the road. 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 26, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2020 Right side lower control arm off, and a comparison of new versus old for the lols... New control arm, new ball joints, new spring, and new shock in. Also slopped a bunch of wheel bearing grease on the spindle and wrapped it in a paper towel/tape so it wouldn't get rusty... Upper control arm is in pretty good shape, as is the bushing, so left it alone for now. Will get cleaned and painted at some point... Also got the left side taken apart. And yes, it was just as big an asswhip as the right side to disassemble... Left side lower control arm is straight-ish , but it is in pretty sad shape. Will start looking for a replacement now... 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 26, 2020 Report Share Posted March 26, 2020 This project is making me want a '73-ish Gran Torino* Wagon to do the same engine/transmission swap! *Or just about any '70s Ford station wagon, to be perfectly honest. Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2020 20 hours ago, dimlight65 said: This project is making me want a '73-ish Gran Torino* Wagon 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted March 27, 2020 Report Share Posted March 27, 2020 YOU'RE THE DEVIL!!!!!!! 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted March 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2020 52 minutes ago, dimlight65 said: YOU'RE THE DEVIL!!!!!!! It cuts both ways... That last pic sent me down a hole, and at the bottom of that hole, I found out that a 295/50-15 tire is a thing, it's common, it often comes in RWL, and in theory should fit the Galaxie on all four corners. The boss-ness of this look is undeniable... We may be kicking this bitch a little more old school after all... 2 Quote Link to comment
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