Ford lover, saves a 94' Z28

[grasshopperglock]

Heres the rotors after a couple days in vinegar. Painted with 500degree paint.

Calibers got painted with the 500 degree stuff. No, not with official 'caliber paint'. When they print 'caliber paint' on the can...The price go's up $3 bucks. It's all the same high temp rattle can crap. The stuff I used was rustolium' high temp, black engine paint from Lowe's.

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[robertc1024]

Damn man - you are going to town on that. Thanks for the pics. I also bleed blue-oval blue, but seeing that crapero come to life again has to make you smile.

 

[grasshopperglock]

Update. FedEX lost my hubs. After calling them they explained it would be traced. Called Monday, they tell me the delivery driver said he delivered it right. FedEx then says call RockAuto.

I see where this might have went. Driver says he left on porch, I'm Bullshitting to get more parts. Like a camaro takes 4 hubs....

Anyway, the day FedEx said 'fucccck Yew'. I emailed Rock Auto....I ordered a second set. This time $20 more in price. Letting Rock Auto know why I'm doing what. Rock says they'll talk to FedEx.

The very next day. Rock says FedEx informed them the package was lost....after they told me it wasn't. Yep.

I'm sure insurance on Rock's side covered the lost parts.

I got a full refund on the 'lost properly' parts. My replacement hubs are due Friday. By the same purple helmet, tonsil bouncers....FedEx.

What a world. I'm tempted to install the distributor cap and replace all three seals. (Front main...) Block, radiator, and heater core flush. Belt and pulleys....spark plugs and wires. Which I wanted to do last. On a rolling car...

But then Ill have hubs waiting on me.

 

[grasshopperglock]

I don't know who that Jerry guy is, but he's worked on every older car I've bought. He gets around!

It took me days to get this. Lol

Jerry does a good job...sometimes. Unless he works for a shop. That gets old cars running just well enough. To drive off a car lot.

That's when Jerry gets real inventive.

I've learned long ago that engine wiring is a closed sealed system of pig tails and wires. If this 'seal' gets jacked up. It leads to electric issues that mimic bad sensors. I'm going to pick and pull and getting factory GM pig tails.

If there's enough wire coming off the coil. Ill crimp on GM pins. If not. Ill solder the pig tail wires to it. Double Heat shrink the wire. I want it look and function just If you cant tell if GM themselves did it. After all, this is still a cherry 94 z28. Gently as she go's...

Side Ford car story....a time when Jerry stopped by.

One time I bought a 79 Capri. Base hatchback coupe. Carb 2.3 4cylinder, standard (aka Bolt action transmission). Then bought a wrecked 92 injected mustang. 60k miles. Also standard.

Installed the 92 2.3 engine, transmission...all the way the back to the gas tank in the Capri.

This was a college car. I wanted to drive a modern mustang. But had a mercury Capri sitting in the driveway. I compromised. I made a 79-92. After all, both were the same Damn car. From tittle to butt. Same f-body Ford. One just had more fancy gimicks. I'm the type that sees the Chevy Tahoe as it really is. A four door Blazer. An Expedition is a 4 door truck with a non removable camper.

The engine harness had ABS and air bags. This is the point in life where I learned wiring schematics....and also learned there close. Damn sure not right on. Even from Ford. I had 4 schematics. Same car, all different. Always 1 or.... 5 freaking.... mystery wires. Don't know where the hell their for. Or WhereTF they go. Figuring out later they were for options, the 92 didn't have. This epiphany didn't come easy either. I had wires every freaking where.

I unwrapped the entire harness. It's at this point, it official becomes a bird's nest.

Removed what the Capri didn't have. Repaired any break. Wrapped it back up. Having the joy of finding out the O2 sensor wire was taped in the wrong place of the harness...making nothing fit....

Car started on first turn of the key. Later ran through a barbed wire fence with 6" cedar post and still tracked straight....really tough car.

It's why I'm a Ford fan. But Damn what a bunch of wires.

After that episode of life. I lost the fear of engine gizmos.

 

[grasshopperglock]

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[Koinonia]

Looking Great!

 

[J. Fred]

Fine lookin' dog you have there. Is he waiting on Santa Dawg ?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[grasshopperglock]

His name is Gunner. The big black wiener. He's inspecting my chevy. GM had hired him on the assembly line a while back. But got fired for saying everything looked like it was being built by drunk monkeys. Not up to 'Gunner' standards.

Bought brake lines for the front. The only things not new on the front end are brake rotors and the gears in the rack.


More parts ordered.

BMR weld in convertible sub frame connectors. (My quarter panel has the infamous f-body buckle. Plus these f-body convertibles have lots of cowl shake.)

Unbalanced engineering rag joint eliminater. Like all rag joints on planet earth....mines junk. I'm not doing Pong driving. I want it factory tight. Just like I paid $22,100 for it in 1994.

View attachment 31544

After some digging. She has either a rebuilt Optispark or a new one. Ill get a better look when I replace all the front seals.

Monster Transmissions is still building my glorified 700-R4.


Researching the car. It's a garden variety convertible Z28. The only rare option it has is a single CD radio.

If you look close at the front end pics...you'll notice I ran out of cotter pins. I had to use horse shoe nails. Ill name them, "Texas Cotter Keys".

 

[35Remington]

Caliper, man. Caliper. Calibers are for bullets.

Nice upgrade work so far.

 

[grasshopperglock]

Caliper, man. Caliper. Calibers are for bullets.

Nice upgrade work so far.

Lol, Ill try better, 35'.

 

[grasshopperglock]

Her belly got a bath. With my own mix of degreaser. Zep industrial dg, Simple green, Dawn Platinum dish soap. Itll clean the ugly off a horses asshole.

Heres the turd with no third gear. That grinds like a blender full of rocks and tin foil. Whines like a fat belly dog under the dinner table. Ill take it apart in the future. See what happened. The case is a two piece unit.

Heres the coil rigging. Im going to pull the engine harness. Rewrap it. Sleeve here and there. Pull the intake and clean it up. Maybe flush the oil pan?

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[grasshopperglock]

Got an email this morning. Transmission is in the "testing stage".

 

[grasshopperglock]

Pics of the progress. Transmission is on the way...

Drive shaft is getting a vinegar soak. Painted, rebuilt


"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[grasshopperglock]

From this

To this (1 hour in heated 5% vinegar)

Polished up

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[Brains]

You're giving that old LT1 more love than she's likely EVER seen

 

[grasshopperglock]

You're giving that old LT1 more love than she's likely EVER seen

Thank You B'

Her name is 'Shealmae'.

One of the first true loves in life I have. Is working on a sexy V8 car.

The warmth coming off an engine. In a cold shop. The smell of brake fluid, gas, Transmission fluid, Antifreeze. **** gear oil, that shits nasty. I can identify fluids by taste. And it wasn't on purpose

The busted hands. Cuts, grease, smashed fingers.

The jingle of the inside of a Snap-On truck.

Driving down the road. By a vehicle of your own hands. It's heaven on earth.

Labor of Love.

 

[grasshopperglock]

Paint the body green and it'll be a John Deere

Hey Mitch, do you know what factory radios fit these cars? Come to find out. The CD radio in this car is a hard to come by Delco BOSE cd player. I need a factory radio. Ill send this one off to get fixed. It's a freaking $175 repair to the volume...

Here's a pic of the kind I have,

View attachment 31628

 

[grasshopperglock]

Drive shaft in a redneck bath tub. 2x6's hobbled together. $4, lowes 2mil plastic (double layer, cuz the dry grass poked a hole in the first layer). Vinegar and since it's cold, table salt added.

I used the box in an attempt to keep the vinegar warm...

Fresh out from 7pm last night. Scrubbed down with soap and baking soda.

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[grasshopperglock]

This is it after polished up,

After rust treatment, ready for paint,

Front yoke

Next pic.....drive shaft got painted black. Ujoints installed on both ends. Ill install the yoke after the yellow drys a bit. Lubed cups and yoke with vasoline ( cuz I did it in the living room) Pressed cups in with visegrip c clamp pliers. Cups then were seated with a brass drift. C clips snapped in then seated with 3/16 round punch. Im gonna have to seal the holes in the yoke sides. GM used to inject the nylon that held the factory cups. I can see water using the holes to rust weld the cups to the yokes.

"Sent from a puff of smoke"

 

[TheDan]

I love the ole vinegar and salt trick. Looking great!