missing treasure

The other day we were driving up the alley,
and I spied something nobody else would have cared about.

PL alley wall

There on the wall was a piece of the past.
About a year ago,
someone had found it and placed it in this safe spot.

re-enactment of the find

I had driven, walked, biked and skated by this place countless times,
all the while the piece was patiently waiting to be found.


#5 for Oldies Month
The Chi-lites - "have you seen her"
Thanks again Soul Train!

broken

This piece has a special history.
It had broke long ago,
and instead of buying another one,
I decided to braze it up,
even though part of it was missing.

brazed

Brazing is a great way to join cast iron.
A good reason to pull out the oxy-acetylene.

fixed ball housing

A little grinding and it was just like new.
Way too much work for a $15 part!

ford part NO 42

This is why this piece wass so important.
The rear end was located using the front pivot ball system,
used from a 1934 ford wishbone.

front to rear pivot ball locater

This system had worked for many years,
but needed to be fiddled with constantly.
During the rebuild I cleaned up the alignment,
and hoped this would take care of things.

custom crossmember

There is a rubber cushion ball that fits over the steel ball,

and it would wear out way too fast.

I even tried using leather which actually worked the longest.

abnormal use of 3M 4200

This last time I chose to use a polyurethane sealant,

which typically is some really strong stuff.

The ball was carefully formed.

custom ball cushion

It seemed to last great until that dang piece fell off!

I had heard a couple things drop out of the car on the early trial runs,

hoping usually a screwdriver or wrench.

That part fell not even a block from the house!

I ended up installing a sheetmetal version that was made for the 1940 models,

what should have been put on there to begin with.

So really that little part is just a trigger to remember all the hassles over the years!

Ultimately the whole system was changed to the vertical ball joint...

perich brothers (and sister): how to - $13 suspension upgrade

vertical ball joint rear end setup

After 10 months but only a couple hundred miles,
it's seems more solid than that worn ball system.
Not as cool looking but at least it's doesn't chatter.

****************************************************



Last but not least,
here's the same song version with a cool little interview.
Red, Squirrel, Marshall & Gene had it goin on back then!

TP