See anything different?
On Friday I had scraped up enough cash to pick up the driveshaft.
A local shop had shortened the Lincoln one and installed new u-joints.
The rear needed special 1-1/8" adapter caps to fit the 8" rear end.
Luckily the new shaft slid right in place.
It better as I measured it at least 6 times.
You'd think after all this I'd be able to start it up and go.
Nah.
It took the last part of Saturday to button up a bunch of stuff -
swap new tie rods, tighten nuts, loctite and cotter pins...
Here's a tip to install shocks.
Instead of muscling it in,
a piece of rope with a slip knot is way easier.
My patience had ran out and it was time to get it moving.
Did I tell you about the tranny fluid?
It took 4 quarts to finally get the AOD to the proper level,
which equalled 3 trips to the car parts store.
Thanks to Jaxon for riding his bike and getting the right stuff!
Finally there was enough pressure to get it rolling.
A year and five months later,
the coupe could move under it's own power.
Jaxon and I drove around the block a couple times,
no drips or explosions,
and most importantly we didn't run out of gas,
or get stuck down the street.
It was funny a couple different neighbors saw us driving,
and did a double take and cheered.
That first drive is always exciting even just putting about.
There were so many changes - steering, axle sectioning, rear end,
brakes, engine/AOD tranny that it'll take some time to gain confidence.
The past couple evenings have been fun venturing around the neighborhood,
basically tightening up any rattles.
I really need to get a shifter rigged up,
as it's not too convenient reaching down every time,
especially for 3-point turns.
A tranny hump would be nice too,
as the radiator heat warms up the cab pretty quick.
For now the automatic transmission shifts fine,
a little slow off the line with the low rear end gears but not too bad.
There's a bit of vibration flowing to the frame from the engine and transmission,
mainly cause I used small rubber pucks not the fat Lincoln mounts.
The steering is super smooth thanks to the new steering box and smaller radial tires,
and the disc brakes are way better even with the non-powered master cylinder.
Looks like I'll be out of town for a couple days,
but it's good to know that for now it doesn't need a major teardown when I get back!
TP
 |
| green 1940 ford deluxe coupe |
On Friday I had scraped up enough cash to pick up the driveshaft.
A local shop had shortened the Lincoln one and installed new u-joints.
The rear needed special 1-1/8" adapter caps to fit the 8" rear end.
 |
| stick |
Luckily the new shaft slid right in place.
It better as I measured it at least 6 times.
You'd think after all this I'd be able to start it up and go.
 |
| tubular |
Nah.
It took the last part of Saturday to button up a bunch of stuff -
swap new tie rods, tighten nuts, loctite and cotter pins...
 |
| shock installation trick |
Here's a tip to install shocks.
Instead of muscling it in,
a piece of rope with a slip knot is way easier.
 |
| 1940 ford coupe - street rod |
My patience had ran out and it was time to get it moving.
Did I tell you about the tranny fluid?
It took 4 quarts to finally get the AOD to the proper level,
which equalled 3 trips to the car parts store.
Thanks to Jaxon for riding his bike and getting the right stuff!
Finally there was enough pressure to get it rolling.
 |
| warsh |
A year and five months later,
the coupe could move under it's own power.
Jaxon and I drove around the block a couple times,
no drips or explosions,
and most importantly we didn't run out of gas,
or get stuck down the street.
It was funny a couple different neighbors saw us driving,
and did a double take and cheered.
That first drive is always exciting even just putting about.
 |
| chevrons |
There were so many changes - steering, axle sectioning, rear end,
brakes, engine/AOD tranny that it'll take some time to gain confidence.
The past couple evenings have been fun venturing around the neighborhood,
basically tightening up any rattles.
I really need to get a shifter rigged up,
as it's not too convenient reaching down every time,
especially for 3-point turns.
A tranny hump would be nice too,
as the radiator heat warms up the cab pretty quick.
For now the automatic transmission shifts fine,
a little slow off the line with the low rear end gears but not too bad.
There's a bit of vibration flowing to the frame from the engine and transmission,
mainly cause I used small rubber pucks not the fat Lincoln mounts.
The steering is super smooth thanks to the new steering box and smaller radial tires,
and the disc brakes are way better even with the non-powered master cylinder.
Looks like I'll be out of town for a couple days,
but it's good to know that for now it doesn't need a major teardown when I get back!
TP
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