The original Buicks came with steel ones but there like hens teeth !
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The original Buicks came with steel ones but there like hens teeth !
most of the gauges arrived for the cresta. in dash gps speedo, oil pressure/water temp'/volts set and an on dash pod rev counter with shift light. the washer bag/pump/jets/button set and the fuel gauge with adjustable sender are still to come. oh and i've made an offer on a 90ltr lpg tank to adapt for use as the petrol tank too.
neil.
he wants it to look more ford ish in his angria.Quote:
Originally Posted by jsf55
neil.
got the tank, £30 so a bargain. with it's cylindrical shape i may measure it and use it for my nash instead. i've got an eagle rv (jeep kit car) tank i can use for the cresta so. the cylinder shape may suit the nash better and at 90ltr's it'll be a nice long range tank too.
neil.
today i had a call from fibreglass alan (who's not made of fibreglass and ''that wasn't funny the first time'', lol) who makes the fibreglass (funnily enough) lowback bucket seats for me. he's moving to a smaller workshop and wondered what i wanted doing with my seat moulds. strangely the other day i was thinking about calling him about collecting them and making them here, mainly as i could do with a pair for the cresta. him calling saved the possibility of an awkward conversation about wanting to take the moulds from him, result. my daughter terri who's a bit arty farty craftsy says she's happy to make them, doing my pair as a practice run. she can do them in the garage over the road so as not to stink the main one out, lol.
neil.
forgot to say i'll be having a good look round his 'shop to see what moulds he's chucking out, you never know......
i was given a good condition pair of highback bucket seats today. they'll probably go in the cresta then i won't need to 'fix' the bench seat from my nash for it, lol. i love freebies.
neil.
i've just agreed a price on a hurst pro-matic ratchet shifter for the cresta. i'll have to make cable and shift lever brackets for the fmx gearbox as it was on a c4 but that's easy enough. :thumbs_up_smiley:
neil.
i've just joined the cresta owners club to see if anyone has a rear screen, fingers crossed.
neil.
ps also bought 2 battery cut off switches (cresta and nash) 3 ford type starter solenoids (cresta, nash and asley's zephyr), a set of seat runners (one of the free bucket seats didn't have any), a couple of cresta interior handles (one door has none) and a chrome bbc dipstick and tube (longest i could find) that i can cut to length.
i hate waiting for parts when i need them 'now', lol.
i've bid on an olds v8/th350 on the bay. guy says it's a 383 but no such thing. it's cheeeaap so worth the gamble whatever size it is. if i get it it'll probably go in the cresta, maybe, perhaps.......
neil.
soo..... i bought the olds engine/box and it was a bargain. 99p! looks like the cresta will be olds powered then, lol. :lol:
neil.
Winner !!
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i asked dawn if she wanted me to get any proper pork pies when i collect the engine, it's at melton mowbray :thumbs_up_smiley:
neil.
Funny you should say that .... daughter was down that way monday ..Attachment 64086
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nice :D
99p...Really!!
Cheers Tim W
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Think you missed the £4....
Sent from my SM-G770F using NSRA mobile app
i have proof, lol.
neil.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/286291665874
99p for an engine and trans, or £4.99 for a pie. Makes the pie look expensive, or just maybe the engine rather inexpensive! Bargain of the century? Worst case, what does it weigh!?
Reminds me of a trailer I won locally for £122.22. That's £122 in my mind. Handed the somewhat disinterested gal at the door £122. Where's the 22p she exclaimed! My bad. Apologised, paid up and left. Great trailer!
Chris
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99p. Result!
If I build a V8 project next I bet I don't find a bargain like that!!!
collected it yesterday and unloaded it over the road this morning. got to check the casting numbers to find out what size it is next. looks to be a low deck 'small' block' olds which can be anything from a 330 to a 403. it has a factory 4 barrel so hoping it's a 403 or at least an ho 350, we'll see.
neil.
Nice one Neil, that's a quid well spent mate.
Cheers Tim W
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so it's a 77-80 350 so that's fine. at least it's not the 307, although at 99p that'd still be cheap for a 5.0 litre v8 and box, lol.
neil.
Probably pretty smogtastic I guess, but the spend thus far should leave something in the budget to fix that? Cam? Inlet? Heads will certainly be unleaded, but probably small valves? Hey, it'll be torquey so if if just runs it'd be an amazing £ result! Actually pennies, not pounds!!
Chris
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i've got a starter on the way for the olds engine now. we'll see if it'll fire up on the floor, fingers crossed. :)
neil.
How many multiples of the engine and trans price is the starter? 120? [emoji23]
Chris
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£48, brand new second hand from evilbay ;)
neil.
the olds starter arrived but we've got to switch back to a previous thread/build as ashley's mk3 zephyr needs doing, lol.
neil.
ps see the other thread for updates on the zephyr.
lol, it's just occurred to me that if any confirmation were needed that gassers were my thing then at the moment there's (in age order) a 38 nash lafayette, a 58 nash rambler, a 63 vauxhall cresta and a 66 ford zephyr 'in build' here. all 4 are gasser builds and all except the cresta will get big blocks too.
neil.
so far we dropped the exploder axle off of the zephyr, removed the discs, calipers and halfshafts followed by the seals and bearings from the casing. next we marked and cut the needed 2 7/8" from the long side allowing a second short side halfshaft to be used. this is a common swap for mopar a bodies in the usa (i did it for my valiant) as with 2 short shafts it ends up almost exactly the same width as a very expensive a body 8 3/4 axle. plus you get 31 spline 'shafts, lsd and disc brakes as stock, what's not to like. while we wait for the new bearings and seals we'll get the flip front off and stored so we can get on with mocking up the engine and box.
neil.
...and, just like those hot rod programs on the telly, I understand there is a deadline with this:)
yes mate, 12th april :eek:Quote:
Originally Posted by taxirod
today we looked over ashley's engine and box to see what he needs to get it up and running. then we went over the road to 'check stock' and got some of the bits. then onto the rockauto website and order a dizzy, water pump (his looks to have been weeping), engine mounts and some gaskets. we still need some other bits but that's the main ones and we'll sort the rest here in the uk.
neil.
we did some more today, the engine and box are bolted together after sorting bellhousing bolts (sbc head bolts, lol). the flip front is off and over the road and lastly the engine and box are sat in place levelled up waiting for the new mounts to arrive. the gearbox crossmember will need altering (for the 3rd time) but that's par for the course so not a problem.
neil.
https://apis.mail.yahoo.com/ws/v3/ma...ils=true&pid=2
Nice work Neil ...whats the hub to hub measurement now on the rear axle ?
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from memory, wheel mounting face to wheel mounting face is 56 1/2" with 2 short shafts so nice and narrow. :thumbs_up_smiley:Quote:
Originally Posted by jsf55
neil.
i forgot to say the starter we have here that bolts to the bellhousing, doesn't clear the block/head. the cover over the 'shoe' is the issue. so i checked on rockauto and the same starter for a thunderbird, galaxie or f100 with an fe big block is the same so i've just ordered one. only £78 including shipping and uk duties/taxes so worth a looksee. if it's right i'll order another for mine, lol. oh, and it'll be here thursday at that price too.
neil.
Cheers Neil, can't fault Rockauto and the pounds going up against the dollar :thumbs_up_smiley:
about time it did :yes:Quote:
Originally Posted by jsf55
about all that could be done while waiting for bits from the states is the gearbox crossmember. so a new centre section made from 2mm sheet with a tube welded in the middle was spliced into the ends of the old/original zephyr crossmember to marry up to the c6 mounting. nothing exciting really, that crossmember has had a zephyr 4 speed box, an fmx, a c6, a th350 and now another c6 but a different mounting. poor old thing's had a hard life, lol.
neil.
Hey Neil, that's an unusual colour choice for the diff!
All the best with the deadline.
i know mate, there's some odd people out there for sure :whistle::lol:Quote:
Originally Posted by taxirod
so 4 days from order the boxes from rockauto arrived today, there's service for you :thumbs_up_smiley:
the starter is correct too which is a bonus and that's bolted in place now. the water pump's the short one so bonus number 2, lol. oh and did i say the gearbox crossmembers fitted now.
neil.
the new engine mounts are bolted to the block ready to make the chassis brackets now. we couldn't find any 7/16" unc bolts so cut that thread on some 7/16" unf seat belt bolts. you'd think that wouldn't give a decent thread but because unc has bigger and more importantly deeper threads it gives a good result. the water pump pulley from the parts engine was way too 'deep' for the short pump so it got altered. we cut the front 3/4" off, flipped it and welded it back to the rear section giving a 'new short pulley. couldn't get the pic to upload, i'll try again later.
neil.
we made the chassis side of the mounts for the engine today. 3/16" plate so nice and sturdy and we even remembered to cut/slot the mount holes for any engine removal later on. we offered up some stock cast exhaust manifolds as we don't think we'll have time to make headers. luckily we have 2 sets and it looks like the 2 centre-ish outlet ones fitted upside down will work just fine. the down pipes needed will be sort of fenderwell-ish so they'll be ok. still can't pics to load, i need someone much younger than me to show me how. problem is the pc did an update recently and pics won't load to the pc now, or if they do they're hidden and i can't find them, lol.
neil.
Bloody modern technology ...or rather lack of it ..wheres that all new singing and dancing forum we were promised [emoji3525]
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most of the 'updates' seem to be change for changes sake, probably only made to justify someone's job. bl00dy ridiculous if you ask me.
neil.
i forgot to say.... earlier i suggested to ash' that as my 352 is now going into the cresta which will be sold that we should swap some bits. the weiand inlet and chrome edelbrock rocker covers will go onto his 352 and put his stock 4 barrel inlet and some stock rocker covers onto mine that'll go with the cresta. when we later fit the 440 to the new chassis for his zephyr i'm having his 352 so the 'good' bits will come back to me anyway.
neil.
today's job was to sort/make a combi shift lever from the ford bit on the box and the b&m lever from the th350. we've sussed how it'll be cut n shut and welded to make it work but in doing so another problem arose. the box won't engage park internally. so with the pan dropped and nice clean bright red oil everywhere (doh!) we found the park rod hanging down as the end that engages the park pawl has broken off. so i've ordered a gasket kit from rock auto (17th today and delivery date 20th!) as the tail housing needs to come off to retrieve the bit of rod before it destroys the box/casing later in use. so tomorrow the valve body and tail housing will come off to get the rod out and almost certainly we'll weld the broken bit back on. it only presses on the pawl to engage it with the park gear when stationary so no load on it, it'll be fine.
neil.
we had a good day today, the park rod is welded and refitted which is good. then we moved back to the shifter bracket at the box end after some more trimming and trimming and trimming of the ford shift lever, each time clamping the b&m lever to it and checking the travel matched the shifter itself. finally we had a match and welded the two parts together, that's that done. now once the gaskets arrive we can refit the tail housing (with a new seal of course) and sump pan followed by the 'new' crossmember.... again.
the new wheel bearings and seals arrived for the exploder axle so we can that reassembled and fitted too and measure up for the propshaft. that'll need a slider in it as the c6 box is from a truck so had a fixed yoke output to clamp a uj in place.
neil.
A good day was had [emoji1303]
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today's looking good too. just had 3 rockauto boxes and an ebay jiffy bag with exhaust manifold bolts by the feel of it.
neil.
the gearbox is back together and sat on it's crossmember....... again. you could say ''2 steps forward and one step back'', my dad would've said ''just when everything seems to be going well you get the obligatory kick in the bo11ocks!''. either works, lol. we also refitted the oil filter housing (came loose with the engine) as we now have a new gasket. we now have exhaust gaskets and 2 sets of rocker cover and inlet gaskets for the inlet swap. next job though is to fit the rear axle bearings and seals and hang the axle so the pinion angle can be set. that'll allow us to make the propshaft.
neil.
today we cleaned the mating faces of the exhaust manifolds and the heads, removed a snapped bolt from the n/s head and the 2 rusted studs from one of the manifolds. couldn't find any 7/16" unc bolts or studding so drilled and tapped the downpipe (up in this case) holes to m12. then we trimmed the new bolts to length, sorted washers and bolted the manifolds to the heads with new gaskets coated both sides with silicone for a good seal. we took the old water pump off, cleaned the threads in the block and painted the new pump ready to fit. i got terri my daughter to work out how the updated pc will allow me to find and post pics so i'll throw the last few days pics on here.
neil.
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/attachme...75-jpg.647863/
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/attachme...40-jpg.647865/
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/attachme...56-jpg.647864/
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/attachme...42-jpg.647866/
just ordered some forgotten parts, doh! a carter mechanical fuel pump and ngk plug leads and coil, all for under £80 inc' uk duties. :thumbs_up_smiley:
neil.
Good progress, glad you got your photos showing again
thanks ian. it seems the updates that 'supposedly' improve things made the pc forget how to get pics from the camera to the pc 'memory bank' :thumbsdown: now they go somewhere else and i have to move them to my pictures file before removing the camera from it's connection to the pc. some improvement..... i don't think. it took the 2 of us about 3/4 of an hour to suss the work around :rolleyes:Quote:
Originally Posted by taxirod
neil.
today we made spring perches for the exploder axle. we knew the axle needed to sit slightly rearwards from stock with bigger wheels on a mk3 so we drilled 3 holes 3/4" apart in each perch for the spring centre bolt to go in. we lifted the axle upon my trans' jack with the perches in place choosing the centre hole 3/4" back from stock as a starting point. then ash' knocked the wheel studs out of the old long halfshaft and fitted them to the new 2nd short shaft. we fitted both shafts, c clips and pin in the diff' and resealed the (once was) chrome cover back in place. after measuring side to side to locate the axle between the arches i dug out my digital inclinometer (angle finder) to set the pinion angle to match the engine/box, which are now both at 3 degrees. lastly we welded the spring perches in place, sat the wheels back on it and stood back to admire our work, lol. the one other thing done today was to straighten the gearbox dipstick tube, bend the bracket to suit and weld it to the tube. a new o ring with a smear or silicone (belt and braces) and that's done. we have to dig out all the bits of propshaft from over the road so we can make a new one up next.
neil.
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/cdn-cgi/...10-jpg.647888/
https://www.rodsnsods.co.uk/cdn-cgi/...76-jpg.647889/
the parts ordered from rockauto friday evening arrived this morning!!! they are so fast delivering parts it's unreal. :thumbs_up_smiley:
anyway, we're chipping away at the jobs to do..... the new fuel pump's fitted, the rear axle's u'bolt plates (from an exploder) are trimmed and fitted so the axle's secure, rear discs and calipers are on and the n/s/f brake hardline (that both of us 'buzzed' with the grinder while cutting the old engine mounts off :whistle:) is replaced. nothing really picture worthy.
neil.
little update for my pb cresta project. i joined the owners club to see if i could get a rear screen and both screen rubbers from a member there. looking through the classified ads in the club mag' there's a guy breaking a couple (actually 3 when i spoke to him) of pb's. he has both rubbers and the rear screen, he was worried about saving the rubbers as they're old and hard but he's going to try. i have a front screen so told him if he has to break his to save the rubber i'll pay for the glass too. he's really good on his prices and asked if i needed anything else, a rear seat? i said. yes no problem. i said i'll go through the boxes of bits that came with my car and let him know by the weekend if i need anything else. he asked where i was, i'm in kent. unfortunately he's in aberystwyth in wales but..... he's delivering a car to a family member in luton in 2-3 weeks and can take the parts with him, woohoo!
neil.
"today we made spring perches for the exploder axle"
I do hope it doesn't, for your sake!:whistle:
Neil, apart from your mechanical skills, you have sn incredible ability to find a bargain.
lol, no. the yanks call them that as their ohc v6 4.0 snaps the front off of the crank' so the timing chains let go and carnage ensues :lol:Quote:
Originally Posted by MisteR Tee
neil.
I thought the exploder moniker came from the positioning of the fuel tank which did the bangy thing if violated from a particular trajectory? Could be bollix / urban myth?
Chris
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that was the ford pinto.Quote:
Originally Posted by Happydaze
yes mate. now my back limits any garage time i need to save whenever possible so time on the laptop can be worthwhile.Quote:
Originally Posted by taxirod
neil.
the new rear tyres are fitted to the 10x15 rear slot mags and the front tyres now have leak free beads for a pump free future. we worked out where the chrome gm type alternator will go and how the brackets will be made. the new braided stainless rear brake flexi is fitted meaning once the 3 way arrives and is fitted along with tabs for the caliper flexis and hard line p clips we can bleed the brakes. while waiting for bits we can swap the inlet manifold and rocker covers (the bling) and prime the oil pressure before plopping in the new distributor. we have the ngk coil and plug leads to go on too. wiring will be soon, we have an american ford type solenoid ready to fit and we'll have to work out what wires do what as it was over 2 years ago we took it apart and of course labelled all the wires..... not. ash' said they're breaking one of the works transits so he'll nab the propshaft for it's sliding section and we still have to sort a front bit with uj to fit the truck c6 rear flange, although we did sort a pair of the 'flat' u bolts the right size.
neil.
ps we have 2 weeks left this coming saturday :eek:
Cue that sort of music that plays in the background when a film is getting to a tense cut off time....
Good progress!
and then it comes up on screen..... 'to be continued' :lol:Quote:
Originally Posted by taxirod
i ordered 2 sets of ngk spark plugs today, one for ash's and one for mine. we then had another prop' finding expedition with this one much more fruitful. among my bits and bobs i had a prop' marked 'pop prop' and the ends were marked 'rover' and jaguar with both having a bolt on flat flange. the rover end had a sliding joint and when that end's uj was measured against a uj that did fit the c6 yoke it was clear a 'conversion' joint (2 different sizes) would be needed. back to the computer after some measuring with my digital verynear gauge and i ordered a 1310/1330 joint which will be here next week. the tube at the other end of the slider is roughly 1/4" smaller than the inside of the exploder prop' so a couple of 'rings' will be turned up to make up the difference as i've done many times before. the other job done today was dig out a lump of 8mm steel sheet and cut out the 4 rear coilover to axle brackets.
neil.
today we welded the coilover brackets to the axle as well as tabs for the rear brake pipe and flexi's. the across the axle hardline was made and fitted, we just have to bleed the brakes now and that's another job finished. we also sorted the setup for the alternator which will be almost the same as when i fitted the first ford v8 in this car, a 351 cleveland. we drilled the lug nut holes to 19mm/3/4" to match the fronts and the existing wheel nuts ash' has. we're pretty much at the point of making 'the list' of jobs left to do. we must be getting there, lol.
neil.
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165787
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165788
Good days progress [emoji1303]
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thanks, it was only 2 1/2 hours though ;)
neil.
the exhaust 'u' bends arrived today so getting the exhaust started was first on the list. the flanges needed the slotted holes slotting some more inwards to line up with the manifolds. then the 'u' bends are 2 1/2" and the manifolds/flanges are 2" so after cutting the angles for each side they needed reducing by 1/2". some thin pie cuts and welding later they were welded to the flanges. we retieved the exhaust system we took off 2 1/2 years ago (it pays to be a hoarder) and ash' hung it back in place. ash' filled the rear axle with lsd additive and gear oil. after finding a long bolt the alternator was hung on the side of the engine and slid back til the pulleys all lined up and a measurement could be taken for the spacer it needs. the adjuster bracket we found here will bolt straight to a threaded boss on the water pump as if it was made for it and a short bit of flat bar will provide support for the long bolt so it's doesn't bend.
we then made 'the list' which surprisingly was only about a dozen items left to do.
neil.
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165808
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165809
we got the downpipes made today, well almost. we're waiting for a pair of 2 1/2" flanges for the driver's side, one for the downpipe and one for the system. they come as a pair with a gasket and nuts and bolts for under £11 so not bad. also the alternator brackets are made so we can measure up for a fanbelt now. 11 jobs left on the list.
neil.
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165818
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165819
the last 2 flanges arrived today so the exhaust is now done, tick. we sorted through my 'pile' of fanbelts and found a new one that fits, tick. the rocker covers, rockers, pushrods and inlets are stripped off of both engines and all the gasket faces are cleaned up on ashley's ready for new gaskets and the weiand inlet to go back on, 1/2 a tick lol.
neil.
after flipping the weiand inlet over today we realised it's one of those small runner inlets for 'economy'. except it's not really as the small ports only go about 2 1/2" in then there's a rounded step up to the full runner size. so we cleaned the gasket faces and drew the gasket port size on it. bl00dy hell, the head/gasket ports are just over 1/2" taller and 1/4" wider. also the ports squeeze in about 3/4" in where the pushrods go through the inlet casting. after checking there's loads of 'meat' there so 2 hours later the ports are full size which must increase power by about 30hp without the extra it being a 'performance' inlet to start with. definately worth the effort. here's some pics today including ports before (showing the sharpie line where the gasket is) and after porting. oh, and a few coats of silver wheels and it'll be easier to keep 'nice'.
neil.
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165844
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165845
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165846
Hope you left it rufffish [emoji1303]
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yes mate and there's me waiting for criticism for leaving it rough, lol.Quote:
Originally Posted by jsf55
neil.
today we took the exhaust downpipes off and wedged them up ready for paint. from experience the method we use is to get it vertical-ish, jam my heat gun in the bottom then start spraying the heat proof paint after 30 seconds or so. it get's baked as it's applied, and seems to last a lot longer. the white painted headers on my anglia stayed nice and bright white the whole time i had it.
also ash' set to on the edelbrock chrome rocker covers with some autosol so they're nice and shiny now along with a test go on one of the back wheels. the new conversion uj arrived but when the large side was offered up it seems the cups are 1350 size, doh! so the plan is use 2 cups from a 1330 joint i have but swap in all the new needles from the wrong size cups. what a palava.
neil.
edit.... we spun the oil pump shaft and got oil up to the top end within 5 seconds so that's good.
lots of reassembly this afternoon. it's looking much better, we now have to decide if we use the ready made fe plug leads as is or cut them to proper ocd lengths and recrimp them, lol.
neil.
https://www.moparuk.com/forums/downl....php?id=165853