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Hello again;

I will start by thanking Ed and Craig for commenting. I haven’t resolved the issue yet, but I will let you all know what I figure out.

Things have been really chaotic for us since the beginning of December, my hope is that we are done and life can return to some semblance of normal. That said, I have been working on the truck even if it has been a slog. I want this blog to be a true representation of what a normal person can expect to go through on a build such as this. There are the highs and lows as with all things and I think it is more valuable/interesting to be honest with my experiences.I am also trying to maintain a positive outlook as it I don’t imagine people would be interested in a depressing train wreck. These last few trips to the shop I have said to myself more than a few times, “ this is your dream, this is supposed to be fun”

The suspension, front and rear was really eating my lunch… the front I have left alone until I get the engine and Trans installed. The rear suspension was puzzling me ( and giving me a minor panic attack that something was installed wrong ) things were just not going back together the way they were before the tear down. To sort it out, I started over. I removed all the bolts, measured this out to get the diff where it needed to be and it went back together with out an issue and is looking good. The differential assembly has not been smooth. Think of the hokey-pokey song from childhood “ you put the disc brakes on, you take the disc brakes off. You put the disc brakes on and you shake all about!” Oh, then you take them off again… long story short, before I took everything apart, I should have taken some measurements and pictures too. It never crossed my mind until someone from the shop suggested to notch the frame to make room for the calipers. By then though I had taken it all apart, so I had to reinstall the kit to confirm and measure if notching the frame is an option. It depended on how deep the notch would need to be and how close to the rear suspension cross member I would be. As you can see from the pictures the notch would have to be way too deep to maintain the structural integrity and it is right where the cross member is so I have abandoned the disc brakes…again.
So, here is a fun little story. My differential, as I was told from the seller, came from a 1966 Mustang. The Ford 9” has had 3 or 4 axle flange bolt patterns over it’s run. Mine appears to be the “early Ford” which seems to be an odd ball. When I bought the diff it came with the drum brakes installed and even rebuilt. I sold them as I was upgrading to the discs and man, do I regret that decision.
So, if anyone has a set of Ford 9” drum brakes they are looking to sell…

All of that aside, today was a really productive day. As I mentioned above I have been working to get the engine/tranny installed and today I was successful. I was a little nervous as I was relying on the expertise of others regarding the torque converter and flex plate selection. Everything went together good, I had a minor hiccup because I did not get the torque converter fully installed my 1st try. Once I did though everything went together quick. It was very satisfying to see big pieces go together and I needed a win to get my spirits back up.

Last thing is the picture of the spray paint. I really like it. It covers really nice, spreads evenly and is forgiving on runs.

That is all I have for now, stay safe.

Steve