[ Galaxie Forum Full-size Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury ]

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Jay wants to know what kind of restoration mistakes we have made so lets here them. Posted by Daze on October 5, 2008, 1:51 pm 69.145.221.22 I have made a few mistakes with my Galaxie but most of mine were on my Mustang because it was the first car I restored. Galaxie: I welded closed the trim mounting holes on the D-side which was fine but I didn't protect the glass from weld splatter so now my windows have little pock marks. I bought my welder part way through the work on the Galaxie so the trim holes on the P-side were filled with filler rather then weld and I did not brake the filler out and re do them with welds before I painted the car so at some point I may have issues with the filler comeing loose. Sense the molded carpet was about $150.00 and I could get 6 yards of unmolded carpet for about $50.00 I decided to make my own. I was able to cut a hand stitch together part of the carpet and it was looking really good, BUT after putting 20 hours in to it and only having one section done I decided that it was worth the $150.00 to buy some Mustang: Now on my Mustang I made lots of mistakes I put really stiff front and rear springs on the car because I wanted supper handling but at the time didn't realize how bad that would make the ride quality. When I first installed the 4-speed in my car I put in the used throw out bearing rather than replacing it, and had to replace it 1 month later. used an original bellhousing with adapter when I upgraded to a T5. Had to replace it later with T5 bell Put in a high volume oil pump when I rebuilt the 289 invested in overpriced accessories like embroidered floor mats when I didn't even have the car on the road or all the other parts I needed to get it there. These are just a few mistakes I have made. There are many more. and I here about other mistakes from other all the time. The best idea is to have a really good understanding of what you want to use the car for. I have seen so many times where a person wants a good streetable car, but then they put on supper stiff suspension and then in the pursuit of tones of HP and torque they over cam the motor and install a really low geared rear end which makes the car a screamer off the line but on the highway it would be horrible to drive. Also don't take every ones word for it. Just because I like my cars one way doesn't make it the right choice for every one else, and a lot of people forget that.  Post a Response

No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't??????????? Posted by Daze on October 8, 2008, 8:19 am, in reply to "Jay wants to know what kind of restoration mistakes we have made so lets here them." 69.145.221.22 By sharing mistakes we have made we can maybe help those new to the hobby avoid the same errors. So lets here them  Post a Response

Re: No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't??????????? Posted by roger Schroeder on October 8, 2008, 9:08 am, in reply to "No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't???????????" 76.250.186.137 I put the FMX transmission back in my car without overhauling it, knowing it had a weak seal. Now it leaks when it sits for a while, which is most of the time. I should have fixed it while it was out, now I have to pull it and that is a lot of work, trans, cooling lines, driveshaft, mounts, ehaust pipes, etc. I'm not looking forward to it. A LOT easier when the body was off the frame! I also didn't replace the old rubber bushings in the rear control arms so the car drifts and rolls a bit in turns so that needs to be done (Again). I'll probably replace the Diff and bearings on the axle when I get to it, I'm not pulling it again! Needs it anyhow, after all it is 40+ years old! SO, take your time and fix it right! What's that old adage, 'There's always time to redo it but never time to do it right the first time'? Maybe next time...... On the body work I used the 12 inch block to sand but now I wish I had gotten the blocks that are 2' too. There is too much real estate on these old cars to use only the smaller blocks. no matter how much you try, there is always a wave in the panels. Prep, prep, prep. No matter what, you must get ALL the oxidation off the body before painting or it will come back to haunt you.  Post a Response

Re: No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't??????????? Posted by BattlestarGalactic on October 8, 2008, 10:47 am, in reply to "Re: No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't???????????" 76.211.16.32 I suppose I had wished I'd gone ahead and pulled the body off the frame on my black car. Spent the money on new front/rear glass. Cha-ching..........all it takes is money. Didn't have it, still don't. LarryK  Post a Response

I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them! Posted by Jay on October 9, 2008, 10:59 am, in reply to "Re: No one else here has done something to their car that they wish they hadn't???????????" 167.171.195.39 Wow guys! That is some list of confessions. I will try to learn from your experiences. Right now, the 289ci and AT are pulled from the car and in the shop. My mechanic will return the motor to stock, including painting the motor. AT is being rebuilt. I am not doing a frame off restoration, just getting it onto the road in mostly stock condition with newer "THIS and THAT" such as front disc brakes, newer exhaust, new carpet and upholstery work. As far as I know, I will need new bushings, shocks, and radiator. Do you recommend that I have the rear end looked at? The jury is still out on my decision to replace the original trim or not. The windshield still scares me most of all and if I can get the trim off and seal up any leaking areas, the windshield will stay in place. Keep talking 'cause I'm still listening. From my end, I will try to post a few photos of my progress along the way for you to laugh at. Jay  Post a Response

Re: I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them! Posted by dmac on October 9, 2008, 11:46 am, in reply to "I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them!" 207.102.52.187 i wished i had done the brakes first!then steering and suspension.  Post a Response

Re: I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them! Posted by roger Schroeder on October 12, 2008, 6:10 am, in reply to "Re: I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them!" 76.250.189.209 When taking on a project the best advice I can give is to take your time! What I usually do is determine what I would like to accomplish, then read up on it, usually by studying the shop manual to understand what is involved. Does it fall within my capabilities? Do I have the tools needed, will I die if I do it wrong? What are the costs, you get the idea. The next part of that advice is to just do one step at a time. Don't think about everything you need to do to get the job done, just what you do next. So on the windshield, i just remove the side trim. then I remove the other side trim. Then the upper, the lower etc. Each step is easy if that is all you do! When your done you'll think how easy it was then tell everyone in detail what you did and they'll think your a real pro and marvel at the difficult projects you do with such aplomb.  Post a Response

One thing that will keep me from making too many mistakes Posted by Jay on October 12, 2008, 8:37 am, in reply to "Re: I appreciate the humble confessions! I am sure to add to them!" 204.52.167.22 One thing that will keep me from making too many mistakes - I don't have a lot of money, so I will only stick to the basics. Motor and trans. interior, body prep and paint. Modifications will come later or I will run out of money. I hope to bring the body of the car (minus motor and trans) home this week and get started. I'll post pictures. Thanks guys!  Post a Response

Re: One thing that will keep me from making too many mistakes Posted by Tom V on October 16, 2008, 10:34 am, in reply to "One thing that will keep me from making too many mistakes" 20.142.112.36 however much money you think something will cost; at least double it. however much time you think something will take; at least double it. It is easy to start a restoration, as you are all enthused about it. After a year or so, you notice the progress is not very visual and it is easy to get discouraged. Also, you look at all the parts you've disassembled, and you can feel overwhelmed. A vehicle disassembled takes up about 5 times as much space as an assembled car. Whenever you start a restoration, you cannot take enough photos, make enough notes, draw enough pictures. bag, tag, identify all pieces. Keep a diary of what you do, where you get stuff, how you did it. Make sure pieces/parts fit your car. There are interchangeable parts between models, but you cant assume which ones. You cant have too many tools. If you must contract others to do work, find out who is the best by contacting others. Body shops can be horrendous in timing. They dont make money on restos, so your car will sit in the back until they get a slow period before it gets attention. Now, for my mistakes... -Make sure to wait the specified time indicated on paint P-sheets before recoating. Solvent pop doesnt look good and it requires removal of your coating to eliminate. -If your basecoat paint doesnt look right, it isnt. My very first paint job i got tiger stripes in the metallic paint. Thought clear coat would help it..it didnt. Had to repaint all over again. -Its easy to forget the sequence of assembly. Putting something almost together and finding spare parts isnt fun. -body filler will cure faster in warm temps. having a glob of curing filler on your palate doesnt work very well. -trying to spray catalyzed paints after their shelf life doesnt work. PPG DBU will only be sprayable some 8 hours or so after reduced. It might look ok to spray after that, but it isnt. -installing a new hot cam in a 352 is cool, until you found out you should have checked piston to valve clearance. Pistons can bend valves. Probably have dozens more episodes...sometimes you have to learn things the hard way. Tom  Post a Response

too many projects at once...... Posted by jeff hann on October 26, 2008, 3:41 am, in reply to "Re: One thing that will keep me from making too many mistakes" 199.64.0.252 I have several old cars, and one day I realized that I had 3 fresh shortblocks on engine stands, a 302, 351, and 390, and no money to finish any of them. That's when I said, " I've gotta finish one thing at a time !!". And then there was the time I trimmed my new carpet at the door sills in my Galaxie. Then when I put in the seats, it pulled the now too short carpet out from under them. I could go on for days.........  Post a Response

Your carpet story . . . . Posted by Jay on October 26, 2008, 6:24 am, in reply to "too many projects at once......" 24.40.213.188 probably just saved me $150. Thanks. I can see myself doing the same thing. I had a really hard time deciding which motor to use. I have a 289 with AT that runs, and a 390 with a 4 on the floor that doesn't run. We all know that the MT would be more fun, especially with a Z code 390. I may regret the decision but finances dictated that I go for the easier and cheaper motor and trans for my first project car. If this one is a success, then future projects will have more "fun" options.  Post a Response

Jeff, I did the same thing! Posted by roger Schroeder on October 26, 2008, 7:32 am, in reply to "too many projects at once......" 76.235.53.174 I got the carpet, put it all in place to be sure of the fit, pushing it down into the wells and all, then trimmed the edges. BUT, when the seats went in they pulled the edges away! AAAARGGGGJHHHHH!!!  Post a Response

you know it would not take much to have the imput shaft on the MT... Posted by Daze on October 26, 2008, 3:55 pm, in reply to "Your carpet story . . . . " 69.145.221.22 swapped out for a longer one and then you could put it behind the 289  Post a Response

AT vs MT Posted by Jay on October 26, 2008, 4:40 pm, in reply to "you know it would not take much to have the imput shaft on the MT..." 24.40.213.188 Yes, I toyed with the idea of doing that, not that I knew it could be done, but I thought it could be. The guy I bought the car from had put the MT on the 289 but it had a "shimmy" and he never was happy or satisfied that it would be OK. Alas, I decided to return the AT to the car since I do not believe the AT I have would be able to handle the 390 motor. The AT has been rebuilt now and ready to put back on the 289. I will sell the MT and shifter linkage on eBay and use the money to fund my project car.  Post a Response

it probably had a shimmy... Posted by Daze on October 26, 2008, 8:01 pm, in reply to "AT vs MT" 69.145.221.22 because the big block input shaft is 5/8" shorter than the small block input shaft and with a small block bell housing the snout of the input shaft was not up in the pilot bearing like it needs to be. When you go to sell the transmission let me know and I will help you get all your info together to make the listing if you want.  Post a Response

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