My FC Rebuild

[my8thholden]

Hey Jim ..I am pleased to read your up date ,sounds like you are powering up again ,that is great,there is nothing like that final top coat , I water tested my car the other day ,a little leak at the air vent ,now fixed ,but your screen seals are fine ..I hope to be visiting inspection station by end of May ..keep well Vern .

[fcwrangler]

Thanks Vern, I’d love to be at your stage now but I’ll keep plodding along and get there one day.
Jim

[fcwrangler]

Have had a couple of good days on the car, the rh sill is all but finished. Had to do a little massaging to get it to fit well, the top is welded in and I’ll do the bottom next week as I ran out of time. At least the the doors now have a gap and don’t overlap. The combination of the new sills and a little rectification on the new door skins has done the trick, once the right side is done it’s time to start again and tackle the left side.
The joys of NOS parts that I have learnt are rejects from the factory lines, if they don’t fit put it aside and get another one. Then the rejected ones were sold off as spare parts.

[fcwrangler]

After 18 months of on again off again work on the car, I’ve finally got the outer sills replaced. The problems with the right sill were nothing compared with the left side. After trying a few times to match up the sill with the body I found it to be 1/4” long???. In the end I trimmed the “B” pillar section and sat the sill back on the car, this showed the rear of the sill matched up with the rear wheel well and the front was 1/4” forward of the lower”A” pillar. So began the task of cutting down and reshaping. Only then to find the shape from the top to bottom of the inner sill was also out.
After more than a few adjectives and a ratchet strap and vies grips, the sill finally capitulated to a point where it could be welded into place. With a bit more manipulation I got it to a point were I could fit the doors and guard with a reasonable gap. Now to do the fine tuning the fitment and gaps, and then do the same on the other side, thankfully the sill has been done so hopefully it won’t be as bad. Having problems getting into imgur so photo to follow.

[Pokitren]

After 18 months of on again off again work on the car, I’ve finally got the outer sills replaced. The problems with the right sill were nothing compared with the left side. After trying a few times to match up the sill with the body I found it to be 1/4” long???. In the end I trimmed the “B” pillar section and sat the sill back on the car, this showed the rear of the sill matched up with the rear wheel well and the front was 1/4” forward of the lower”A” pillar. So began the task of cutting down and reshaping. Only then to find the shape from the top to bottom of the inner sill was also out.
After more than a few adjectives and a ratchet strap and vies grips, the sill finally capitulated to a point where it could be welded into place. With a bit more manipulation I got it to a point were I could fit the doors and guard with a reasonable gap. Now to do the fine tuning the fitment and gaps, and then do the same on the other side, thankfully the sill has been done so hopefully it won’t be as bad. Having problems getting into imgur so photo to follow.

Wow, you really decided to do it! I read the amount of work, and I can't imagine how much time it would have taken me...

[Harv]

Good to see you back into the project Jim.

Cheers,
Harv

[Old_Mt_Isa_Boy]

We have both had a hiatus. Good to see your car being finished Jim.

Regards

Wayne b

[my8thholden]

Hey Jim ..good to read your progress , well done , good time to do it while things are quiet on the social front ..Vern .

[fcwrangler]

Thanks guy’s, I’m just plodding along when the back let’s me, no time frame anymore, it’ll be finished when it’s finished. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting bigger though, once the bodywork is completed I can finish doing the external bits on the engine, headers, exhaust etc. and get it running as well as replacing so called “good” diff with an actual good diff.
The one thing I’m glad I didn’t do was have tires fitted to the new rims when I purchased them as they would be no good by the time the car’s back on the road.

[fcwrangler]

I’m still chipping away trying to whittle down the list of things to be done. If anyone knows where I can get a set of dual header pipes could you let me know otherwise it’ll be extractors instead. Been spending my time lately cleaning, painting and fitting the pedal box and the new inner firewall cover as well as the vent lever assembly. The idea is test fitting as much as possible to make sure it all fits properly and I have still got everything I took off. Next job is to fit the master cylinders and power booster so I can bend up the new lines. As usual my back doesn’t want to play ball, so it’s a matter of doing what I can when I can. I’ve come this far so I won’t stop til it’s done, luckily I’ve got a good mate with a large shed and it’s not in his way and I help him out when he needs a hand on his projects.

[Maco]

Keep chipping away at it Jim your effort will be rewarding, I am looking forward to see the finished product.
Cheers John

[DJ]

Do you have any recent photos Jim?