July 4th, Been bustin' butt trying to get the project done in time for the Nationals. Got bad news the other day. My rear axle order didn't get placed so the axle won't be here till after the Nats. So, my next target completion date is Aug. 18th for the Woodward Dream Cruise. That will give me time to slow down and work on some of the finer points that I was going to skip. I finished the left rear quarter, replaced the bottom of the driver's door, installed the wiring to the rear and mounted the fuse panel. All will have to come out before painting. D&G Finishes in Pontiac is doing the paint and it should be done by the 20th. Here are some pics of the wiring and the door. I ran the wiring up the "A" pillar and along the roof line instead of under the body like it was originaly. I used a 7 wire trailer harness, which allows me to run the high mount stop light, running lights, turn signals, fuel pump, fuel gauge and a ground.
I pulled the front brake drums so I could install the 1/2 X 20 grade 8 bolts for my wheels. I used red lock tite and ran the bolts in frome the inside.I was worried that the bolt heads would hit the shoes or springs but I have tons of clearance. I had the drums turned because they were really rusty and were hard to remove. I'm going to have to check and see what the shoe thickness is and might have to replace them while I have the drums off.
Todd the welder from Rowe Portable Welding came over on the 3rd. The guy knows his stuff. The finest beads I have ever seen!!! We aligned the engine mounting plates, tacked them together, cut them apart, rewelded them, checked again... I had to make some adjustments and the engine is 2" lower that I had wanted. The drop was due to the drive belt length, and the starter clearance. I now find that the exhaust will have to be cut, realigned and welded to fit. I plan on wrapping the exhaust with heat cloth so the welds won't show. I also find that the engine mounted oil filter will not work so I'll have to mount it on the fenderwell. I painted the mounting plates in stead of the powdercoating to save some cash for more important things.
July 9th, Had a HOT weekend in the garage but got a lot done. Finished the doors, fabricated the top engine mount, made choke linkage, finished the center caps and fixed the lower hinge on the right door. I stripped the drivers door first and ended up having to replace the bottom 7" due to rust. I expected the same on the pass. door but was pleased th see it was in good shape, except for the lower hinge. The door on either side of the hinge mount was cracked so I welded two pieces of angle iron and bolted it into the lower corner of the door to reinforce it. Solid again!
The choke linkage was due to changing the air cleaner and bracket. The stock S&S super "E" carb uses a teardrop air cleaner housing but the size of it would cause an air flow problem to the air cooled engine so I went to an aftermarket 5.5" assmy. I had to use a mount from another style carb so I had to rebend & redrill the bracket. Fits now! Here are a few pictures of the engine, air cleaner, and the body with the doors installed, and the wheels for effect.
I removed the transmission and took it to Dale at Pontiac Transmission to have it rebuilt. Can't trust the "recycle center" (junkyard) for quality... I also took the glass to Henderson Glass to have all new, light green tinted, glass cut. They should be done this week. Still waiting for word from Currie Ent. about my rear axle. The last piece of the puzzle.
July 25th, the rear axle came Friday!!! I was worried that the Ford 10" brake drums would be too big to fit in the 12" wheels, they fit. Here's a few pictures of the axle.
The body went to the paint shop Saturday. He said it will be about 2 weeks so I have that long to mount the axle and finish the belt drive setup. I ordered the idler pulley and it should be here soon. Ron Finch, the custom bike builder, is making the oil tank for me. He is going to use the left half of a Jesse James gas tank. It fits into the right fender behind the headlight bucket. It needs a little triming and the fittings welded on but it looks good. 24 days to the Woodward Dream Cruise... It should be done. Here are some pictures of the body move to the paint shop and the oil tank fitting.
July 30th, Had another good weekend of work but also got some bad news today. First the good news... I setup and welded in the rear axle springs, spring pads and moved the shock locations. I also started boxing the frame for support. I'm taking the driveshaft to Clyde's Wheel & Frame tomorrow to be shortened to fit. Now the bad news... The company that I ordered the idler pulley from for my drive system had a "computer glitch" and my order on the 20th didn't get placed. They told me it would be here on the 25th, but it wasn't. After 2 phone calls and much pleading, they said next Monday, August 6th. BUMMER!!! I cried some more and they said they would next day air it and I"ll have it this Thursay. One thing that I didn't take into account is the thickness of the axle. I might have to move the fuel tank back 3" to clear, but it should fit ok. There is still clearance to carry the spare tire in it's original place. I just have to modify the fuel fill tube a bit. After all the mods that I have made at this point,it shouldn't be a problem. Axle pictures...
Well, August 13th and still no body... No Dream Cruise this year. The good news is the idler pulley showed up, but not from the first vendor. They canceled my order because their vendor didn't have it in stock. I went to another source, paid to have it next day aired to me and got it Friday. Had the idler bracket that I made welded on Saturday and now have the drive assmy. complete. I also heat wrapped the exhaust, stripped and repainted the bumper brackets, repainted the brake pedal and the parking brake handle cause I got a lot of green epoxy primer on them. I have the brake lines all in and have the electric fuel pump, the fule filter and fuel line mounted. We went to the paint shop last Wednesday and the body is 2/3 done, as far as the prep for the paint so I'm guessing another week and it will be back. Here are some pictures of the drive belt and pulley's and the exhaust wrap, and the bumper brackets. OOPS!! Forgot that I also finished boxing in the frame. Damn thing is like a Sherman Tank now!!! Solid as a rock to handle the extra torque from the HD engine.
Sept. 10th... Just a quick note to let you know what's NOT going on... The paint shop has had the body now for 8 weeks. I stopped there Friday and he assused me it will be back in my garage in 2 weeks, Sept. 21st. He is doing a great job! He has the doors both closing with the touch of one finger, which is rare on a Crosley and the body is as smooth as a baby's bottom!!! I can't wait to install the gauges and trim and wires and and and.... More to come as it pops up! OH!!! I decided to not use the Ron Finch oil tank as the scale of it is not right. I bought a chrome oil tank for a 1990 FXR low rider that will work just fine, and the scale is right.
Sept. 29th, Went to the paint shop this AM and there is COLOR!!! I would of taken more pictures but the batt. died in the camera... He is going to shoot the brown on the roof next week and finish the main color on the body. During the week, I fabricated a trailer hitch for the car. I don't plan on pulling anything with it but ya never know...
