The heat is on!

It is 22 degrees outside and dropping but it's 70 degrees in the garage!

I bought these outdoor heaters from Costco a while back(the bright red glowing  things on the wall).  But nothing warms up the room like the propane heater.  I also got a couple of kerosene heaters but right now the propane was the cheapest for the amount of heat. Even though the garage is insulated, it is very drafty.  I even have a hole in the ceiling with a box fan to help flow the fumes out of the garage when I paint or weld.  But I still have to open the door from time to time or go out for fresh air.  But for working in the garage this is good heat.  During the summer I got stand up fans and AC!  That metal duct work in the back is for the AC.  (AC not shown).  Back to work.  I just primed a part and need to do some more sanding.

I really need a bigger garage!  :-)

2009 Blizzard

Another pic of the garage heaters in 2009.

I use the propane heater when it is really cold out. The wall heaters usually work fine until we get a long cold spell like we had this season. 

  This one has a ceramic back and is very quite. So quite I have to do a double check just to make sure I turned it off at night.  When I change the tanks I check all the fittings with 409 or Windex to make sure there is no leaks.  Tonight things didn't smell right and I did a soap test (409) and one of the hoses was leaking.  Shut it all down and fixed the leak with a new clamp.  Checked again and all is good!  The heat is on!    

Spotty we need more power! I'm giving her all she's got Captain!

I wanted to re-create the spot welding of the assembly line welding and weld marks to keep it as close to the factory setup as possible.  But spot welders are very expensive.  Then one day I found this spot welder on the internet and bought through Amazon.  It was made in China.  Very cheap and heavy compared to the name brand models.  Most were about $700.  This one was $150.

When I first got it I wanted to try it out.  So I got some scrap metal and tried it.  Nothing but a buzzing noise.  took the tongs out and cleaned them.  I figured out where the tongs clamp down via Allen screws were not fitting right and some of the screws were not even tight. I ended up shaving the brass blocks the tongs fit into because they kept moving and the screws were cheap so I found some new screws at Homer Depot and replaced most of them.  Tried it again and it was working!

The bad thing is the tongs are only 7 inches deep and it is heavy.  Holding it with two hands and trying to get it in the right spot to weld is a challenge.  I can start to weld the edges and some panels.  I will have to figure out how to get longer tongs to reach inside the large panels.

But here is a sample.  The rear quarters were hung too high in the back and I had to cut the welds and realign them to fit the end caps at the right height.

I'll post some new pics soon.

Here you go.  010409 10pm and yes it is cold in the garage at 27 degrees outside.  But I got some heaters.  I'll fill you in later on the heat.

Front Apron by the shock tower.

Here is a test on scrap metal.  This is thick metal, it came from the old front torque box.  10 gauge.  It is giving me the type of spot welding I was looking for.

Here is some new pics from Jan 15.

Going to make some longer tongs!

I looked around for the longer tongs but the cost was more than the welder so I found this place that sells all kinds of metal.  http://www.speedymetals.com/

I ordered these 24 inch solid copper rods and had to bend them and shape the end for the contact point.

I first tried using a propane torch to heat it up but that took forever so I placed the rod in the heater for a good 10 minutes.  Brought it to the bench vise and it was a lot easier to bend.

Cool it down with some water.

Ready for some test welds!

Smokin'!

Looks almost like a factory weld.  Need to practice more.

Power to the Booster!

When I got the Mustang it had drum brakes all around.  Stopping was not easy.  During my restoration I added in disc brakes for the front.  The kit was a refinished parts from a Ford Granada.  They fit fine and the only draw back was that I had to get larger wheels to clear the brake caliper.  Then I found a Power Booster for the brakes.  That should definitely improve the stopping power!  Well here are some pics.

The clearance from the firewall to the shock tower didn't allow room for a cast iron type of fluid reservoir.  Well I could make it fit but the support running from the shock tower to the firewall would cover the top and not allow you to open the top to add fluid so they shipped it with this plastic one.

My decision to add this non-stock setup with disc brakes and booster is about the only thing that bothers me about trying to keep it factory.  But I really wanted improved stopping power.

More Wheel pics

The rear axle is in. Used a pump jack to align the springs and get the U-bolts aligned up.  Put the wheels on and put the car on the ground.  Checked and measured fender to ground to make sure the car sits level. Replacing the rear torque boxes required a lot of measuring to make sure the springs align properly and the car is level. All good.

I installed stainless steel brake lines and the distribution block is for cars with dual exhaust.  With the single exhaust set up, the rubber hose for the brake line would run too close to the exhaust pipes if you were to add dual exhaust later.   Thus, the rubber would get too hot and possibly burst.

Inside the rear wheel well.

Bought 15 inch steel styled rims.  I added disc brakes in the front and since the 14 inch rims didn't have enough clearance I had to go larger.  Better looking than the 14 inch rims with hub caps.

Wheels on the Stang go round and round...

Here I am moving the axle toward the rear to set in place.  I rebuilt the rear axle a while back and from a Mustang Monthly article and I was able to reproduce most of the factory assembly markings.  While the axle sat on jack-stands I routinely turned the hub to keep the gear oil  moving around so the seals don't harden up and from blowing a seal later down the road.

I got the exact replacement U-bolts and nuts for the install.

Axle installed

Detail of the rear drum brakes

Junk in the trunk!

I removed the undercoating from the trunk. I used a putty knife, screw driver and a hammer and wire wheel on a drill to clean off the undercoating.  They used it to cover up the rust.  A lot and very often.  The whole under-carriage was covered in undercoating to hide the poor work done and the rust. 

Got down to the rust and repaired the sections.  The metal was paper thin and had holes.  I had to replace parts of the inner wheel-well due to rust and repaired small sections as needed.

Wire wheel brush on a drill cleans the whole area very well. 

I spent a very long time working in this area.  It will be covered with a mat, but I try to make sure everything was cleaned up like new metal.   You can't see it but I can!

Primer paint

This area above saw a lot of rust.  I rebuilt parts of this area using scrap metal and forming to fit.  Welding and cleaning it up.  Yes I know it's in the trunk an no one would see it.  I did, so I fixed it.

I will shoot another coat of paint when I paint the whole car.

The belly of the beast!

A lot of fun cleaning and fixing the under carriage. Having a rotisserie would have been wonderful! But laying on my back, welding, grinding and cleaning is so much more fun!