39 Ford Project

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  • Custer55
    Registered Member
    • Feb 2015
    • 712
    • 2442
    • Custer, WI

    Originally posted by Belair-o
    Hi Brian,
    Thanks for providing the explanations on your logic for taking the steps you do in your build. You mentioned instructions for installing the hanger brackets. Are there guides out there somewhere that document assembly on the 40 Fords, like there are for trifive Chevys? The websites and how-to books have been a great help for me in building my 57 Chevy.
    Thanks, Doug
    There is info for 35 to 40 fords on the internet. I have done a few searches when I get stumped on things I took apart 25 years ago and can't remember how they go back together.
    The hood spring support and the parking brake inside handle are good examples of that. LOL
    Brian
    Brian,

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    • Custer55
      Registered Member
      • Feb 2015
      • 712
      • 2442
      • Custer, WI

      It has been a while since my last post. Hope everyone had a good holiday season. I have been mostly working on getting some parts painted so I can start putting things back together for good.
      image.pngOne project was the rear springs. These were new at one time that came with the Chassis Engineering kit but had accumulated some surface rust over the years.
      image.png​I ended up taking them apart to clean off all the rust and paint them with semi-gloss black.
      image.png​Here is the pair painted and put back together. Looking much better than they were with the rust.
      image.png​The next project was to clean up the frame and bottom side of the car for paint. I am not taking the body off the frame so it will just be a quickie job for now. Just wire brushing off the loose rust and dirt then using a rust convertor paint then semi gloss black.
      image.png​And the front stub ready for paint. This end had been sandblasted when the Mustang II crossmember was installed so It is much cleaner than the frame under the body.
      image.png​After the rust convertor and a couple of coats of paint. Not a great paint job but it looks much better than it did and good enough for a driver car. Quite a PIA working underneath on jack stands though.
      image.png​And a view from the front.
      image.png​And a few more part cleaned up and painted. Eventually this thing will be a complete car again but still a ton of work to do and lots of parts to get ordered for that to happen.​
      Brian
      Brian,

      Comment

      • Belair-o
        Registered Member
        • Jun 2013
        • 686
        • 1723
        • Franktown, CO

        Hey Brian,
        Continued great progress, and that last pic with the smooth, sound body, shows how far you have come!
        Thanks, Doug

        Comment

        • Custer55
          Registered Member
          • Feb 2015
          • 712
          • 2442
          • Custer, WI

          Originally posted by Belair-o
          Hey Brian,
          Continued great progress, and that last pic with the smooth, sound body, shows how far you have come!
          Thanks, Doug
          Thanks Doug, Slow but sure making progress.
          Brian,

          Comment

          • Custer55
            Registered Member
            • Feb 2015
            • 712
            • 2442
            • Custer, WI

            Slow but sure I have been making progress on the 39 Ford Project.
            image.pngI got the spindles, caliper brackets, calipers and rotors cleaned up and painted and re assembled. Still need new tie rod ends, springs, shocks, brake hoses but looking better all the time.
            image.png​Another view. I still need to install the brake pads and figure out what to do for a front sway bar as well.
            image.png​Then I got some rubberized undercoating on the rear inner fenders. It is a paintable type but looks good enough for me this way. One thing you may notice in this shot is the rear shackle appears to be angled towards the front of the car (it is). more on this later.
            image.png​The next saga was with the rear end I had planned to use which was a 9 inch ford from a 57 Ford I had purchased at a swap meet some years back. At 57 1/4" hub to hub it was a bit narrow as the tires barely cleared the springs but not a big deal as wheel spacers would take care of that. The ratio was a 3.56 so I would need an overdrive trans to have reasonable rpm on the highway.
            I have a rebuildable Turbo 350, or could be good for a core exchange on a rebuilt trans which would be much cheaper than a 700R4. I also have ring and pinion gears from a 59 Ford with a 3.0 ratio that would work better without the overdrive but that would mean rebuilding the 3rd member vs maybe just a new pinion seal in the 3.56 3rd member. I also need brake drums etc. for the 9" rear. So when searching for parts to 57 to 59 9" Ford rears it turns out since it was only used for this configuration parts for it are not cheap. Basically you can get disc brake kits for these rear ends for not much more than all the parts for the drum brakes. I didn't want to do that though since I already have a master cylinder for a disc / drum combo.
            That is when I remembered I had an 8" Mustang rear end that my dad had given me about 20 years ago so I dragged that out to see if that one would be easier to set up as I knew it was complete with all the brakes etc. and what the ratio was. The 8" rear should be plenty strong enough for the 305 that I have so it came down to what the ratio was and if the hub to hub width would work. Turns out the ratio on the tag indicated it was a 2.79 ratio out of a 67 Mustang which will be good with no overdrive. The hub to hub width is 59 1/4" so 1" wider per side than the 57 Ford rear end. But when searched for replacement parts they are much cheaper probably due to how popular early Mustangs are so finally to the point here I have the Mustang rear bolted in place to check tire clearance in this picture. It is a bit tight but I can gain enough clearance by massaging the outer fender lip a bit as the clearance is good at the tire tread it is just tight a the section width area. I will be using a smaller dia. tire than what I have here as well so that will help too.
            image.png​Another view of the tire clearance with the 8" rear end. Tight but doable so this is the rear end I will be using. The other advantage of this rear is that it is in pretty good shape, the gear oil I drained out was fairly clean considering it is probably over 50 years old. Will need a new pinion seal, one new axle bearing as one of them was not original and looks to be in good shape. I will also put in new axle seals and gaskets while I have it apart. I will also put in all new brake parts and drums as well as they are less than half the cost of the replacement parts for the 57 Ford rear end.
            20250111_154559.jpgSince I knew this rear end will work I started on cleaning it up to repaint it. Typical rust for a part this old but it cleaned up nicely. I bought a needle scaler from Harbor Freight since I don't have a good place to sandblast something this big this time of year. About half done here, the combination of the needle scaler and a wire wheel does a pretty good job cleaning it up for paint.
            Takes longer the sand blasting but it works good getting rid of the rust.
            20250116_130553.jpgAll cleaned up and ready for paint.
            20250117_161953.jpgAnd with a couple of coats of semi gloss black it almost looks new again.
            20250123_121451.jpgAnd finally I ended up moving the rear spring brackets forward about the same amount as I moved the front brackets so the shackles would be angled to the rear. I had to slightly re bend the brackets to fit the frame better and re-drill 2 holes in the frame and weld up 3 holes in the brackets and re-drill them to line up with the frame holes again which was a pain in the rear but worthwhile in the end to make it all right. The tires are centered much better in the wheel openings now as well. Once I get the car completely put back together I will see if I need lowering blocks in the rear to get the ride height where I want it (Thinking it will need them) so I can slightly adjust the wheel base with custom blocks if needed as well.​
            Brian
            Brian,

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