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New guy with project car

Welcome! We're here to help spend your money on your project!
 
RapidRabbit said:
Welcome.

We need more details and pictures.

Sent from my motorola one 5G using Tapatalk
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Currently traveling but will snap a few picks this week. It's a little scary to see where it is currently at and knowing what needs to be done.

Standard Mustang rust issues: Cowl vent corners which led to floor pan on both sides and battery fender apron along with lower part of radiator support. I've got the passenger floor pan 50% welded in for the first sheetmetal project.

Front spindles, caliper brackets and brake shields have been bead blasted and painted along with a few other smaller parts. The power steering cylinder and control valve are on the bench for disassembly, cleaning and seal kits. The car is originally manual steering but I have donor car parts to do the power conversion.

Current new parts pile:
floor pans and battery fender apron
22 gallon fuel tank kit
4.5 mid eye leaf springs and shackle kits
KYB shocks
coil springs, spring seats and insulators
upper and lower control arms with camber hardware
1" sway bar kit
strut bushing kit
idler arm, inner and outer tie rods with adjusting sleeves
kits for power steering pump, control valve and power cylinder along with boots and hoses
brake disc, drums, calipers, hoses, wheel cylinders, pads, shoes, parking brake cables and all hardware (still shopping options for the power brake conversion kit and lines)
Shelby drop template

There are still numerous undecided things to research and plan but I have enough to keep me occupied for the time being.
 
A lot depends on just how "stock" you plan on keeping it. The guys here have built everything from concours stock to modern restomods and even vintage race cars.

I'm sure more than one of us cringed a bit reading about rebuilding plans for the stock power steering set-up. If stock is the path though, it's part of the journey. It also makes your other parts options more limited. Chockostangclassicmustang.com is a great place to look for stock style brake and steering needs.
 
I fit's not perfect now I'd suggest Resto Mod. Stock looking but with updated parts. The pure stock way would be more of a challenge.
Like we said...we'll help you spend your money.

What part of the country are you in?
 
Horseplay said:
A lot depends on just how "stock" you plan on keeping it. The guys here have built everything from concours stock to modern restomods and even vintage race cars.

I'm sure more than one of us cringed a bit reading about rebuilding plans for the stock power steering set-up. If stock is the path though, it's part of the journey. It also makes your other parts options more limited. Chockostangclassicmustang.com is a great place to look for stock style brake and steering needs.
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I hear you on the stock power steering and have read quite a bit on the issues. It could very well end up as my #1 regret but the donor components were free and the rebuild kits, boots and hoses are cheap enough. I figure operational factory power steering has to be better than the current manual setup so I'm going to give it a shot.

The must do items plus my want to do items will be a small fortune in the end so there a coupe things I will live with to get it on the road as long as the treasury department head doesn't audit me. She occasionally pops in the shop looking for a tool and so far the only comment I get is "nice shiny parts".
 
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KBMWRS said:
I fit's not perfect now I'd suggest Resto Mod. Stock looking but with updated parts. The pure stock way would be more of a challenge.
Like we said...we'll help you spend your money.

What part of the country are you in?
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Home is the northwest corner of Alabama in the Muscle Shoals area.
 
HeliGuy said:
I hear you on the stock power steering and have read quite a bit on the issues. It could very well end up as my #1 regret but the donor components were free and the rebuild kits, boots and hoses are cheap enough. I figure operational factory power steering has to be better than the current manual setup so I'm going to give it a shot.

The must do items plus my want to do items will be a small fortune in the end so there a coupe things I will live with to get it on the road as long as the treasury department head doesn't audit me. She occasionally pops in the shop looking for a tool and so far the only comment I get is "nice shiny parts".
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Seems we all have a financial warden we must deal with in these things. Some learned advice.

1. This is going to take longer (much?) than expected. Unless you are Craig (tarafied1)
2. This is going to cost way more than expected
3. You CAN do just about any task involved given time, a willingness to learn (fail) and the right tools. Still cheaper than paying someone else and it gets done.
4. DON'T SETTLE or take shortcuts. For example, the brake set-up you want costs $500 more than a basic which could do the job. You will regret it later and it will $$$
5. Make a plan. Make lists. Set attainable goals. You will get discouraged. You will lose interest. Having reasonable targets you can hit from time to time make it work.
6. It's your car do it your way. Just make sure its safe for you , your passengers and fellow drivers
 
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Welcome!

Sad to see kyb shocks on that list. Koni or Bilstein are leap years better.
John at Opentracker Racing and Shaun at Street or Track can supply quality parts that go from stock to way better than stock.
NPD is a great source for a lot of parts and sheet metal.
 
msell66 said:
Welcome!

Sad to see kyb shocks on that list. Koni or Bilstein are leap years better.
John at Opentracker Racing and Shaun at Street or Track can supply quality parts that go from stock to way better than stock.
NPD is a great source for a lot of parts and sheet metal.
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There are going to be a few things along the way that long term I would probably be better off opting for the higher quality/performing part vs stock equivalent parts. I am really focused more along the line of a daily driver with some modern comforts like T5 trans, A/C, power windows and better seats/interior.
 
Here are a couple of pics of the project. Passenger floor pan is mostly welded in and shouldn't take long to finish up. The battery apron in the engine bay, for those eagle eye folks is textured because it is fiberglass courtesy of my dad back in 1976 and I already have a replacement panel for it.
 

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So now that we know your dad did a little work on this car way back in '76 you MUST share the backstory/history on the car. Wagering there is some long family heritage involved. These are the best kind of story.
 
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