66 Formula S project

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I put the car up on jackstands and removed the torsion bars for this modification, it seems the T-bars would put a lot of stress on the frame cross piece which also needed to be cut, plus I still need to grind some of the welds from the floor install and having them out of the way is nice. I made a pattern off of the driver side and transfered it to the passenger side. Once I got it cut out and mocked up I realized there was room for more clearance, so I deviated from the pattern and cut a little more out. A little more finish grinding with a flap disc will have it all looking good.

stock crossmember.jpg


modified crossmember 1.jpg


crossmember cut.jpg


reinforcement plate.jpg


pattern 1.jpg


pattern 2.jpg


stock frame to be cut.jpg


frame rail cut.jpg


frame rail reinforcement clamped in.jpg


frame reinforcement welded in.jpg
 
dude, you are the fabricator I've always dreamed of being. I am inspired to try some of this on my own.

If you stay with the commando 273, I will have a set of valve covers soon that will look brand new when Leanna (cudachick) gets done with them.
 
bamacuda said:
dude, you are the fabricator I've always dreamed of being. I am inspired to try some of this on my own.

If you stay with the commando 273, I will have a set of valve covers soon that will look brand new when Leanna (cudachick) gets done with them.
Click to expand...

How much is she doin those for? I kinda need mine done too!
 
bamacuda said:
dude, you are the fabricator I've always dreamed of being. I am inspired to try some of this on my own.

If you stay with the commando 273, I will have a set of valve covers soon that will look brand new when Leanna (cudachick) gets done with them.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the kind words!! As for the covers, I have a good set but thanks for the offer. I did mine at home with Krylon wrinkle finish paint and they look pretty good. SSSHHH, don't tell Leanna!!

hi po valve covers sm.jpg
 
nice job on the cross member,,,thats what ya have to do to put duals on and early A,,,,
 
fab is my favorite part. anyone can swap parts, but it takes fortitude and perserverance to make them first.
 
CudaChick1968 said:
A full resto on a pair of Commandos usually runs $140-$150 before the FABO discount depending on the work to be done.
Click to expand...

thank you! Very fair price. They're in great condition - just dirty. when i take them off i'll evaluate and maybe send them your way

(sorry for the thread jack!)
 
a68postcar said:
fab is my favorite part. anyone can swap parts, but it takes fortitude and perserverance to make them first.
Click to expand...
I agree, fabrication is the fun part, although I was a little nervous cutting into the frame's cross brace. That was a first for me. Got plenty of clearance for the tubes now!!
 
Why this was patched with a damaged piece of metal I'll never know. Here it is cut out and replaced with a nice straight new piece of metal. I sprayed weld through primer on the back side of the new patch and inside the rocker itself.(not pictured) Note how clean the inside of the rocker is. There is still a little finish grinding to do yet and a few trim holes that are in the wrong place that need filled and ground. The trim holes need to be on the new patch, I guess since the previous owner used a scrap piece of metal, the holes couldn't go where they're supposed to. Oh well, Ill fix it.

rocker old patch in primer.jpg


old patch exposed.jpg


rocker cut.jpg


new patch mocked up.jpg


patch welded in.jpg


old and new patches.jpg
 
I ran into a snag with the rear seat back and bench. The new covers I got from Legendary were 2-1/2 inches too short top to bottom and three inches too narrow side to side. They had Fed Ex pick them up about a month ago and made them right, I just got them back and installed the seat back upholsery and carpet. I think it turned out pretty good. As you can see, the carpet on the back was trashed. Will get the bench done when I get the time. The last photo is the old cover, it looks o.k. in the photo but was pretty crusty and brittle.

old seat back carpet.jpg


new seat back carpet installed.jpg


new seat back upholstery.jpg


old seat back upholstery.jpg
 
A while back, I made some sway bar mounts but did not like the result. The after market bar I got was intended for a car not originally equipped with one, so it fit differently because my LCA's have provisions for the end links, where as they intended to have it mounted with a bracket at the shock absorber. Anyway, here it is tacked up. I have repairs to make on the K-frame, so I needed to get these in place.

sway bar mount tacked 1.jpg


sway bar mount tacked 2.jpg
 
Here are a couple shots of the K-frame. There are a few repairs that need done and it will be easier to do with the K-frame removed. The sway bar mounts still need a little work and final welding done and a couple other minor repairs. The strut rod perches were coming away from their tack welds, so I welded them in solid all the way around.

k frame before.jpg


k frame during repairs.jpg


k frame repair.jpg
 
I started getting the inner fenders stripped of undercoating and paint. Still a little more work to do, but they are getting closer. Nasty job with that chemical stripper!!

lh inner fender before.jpg


lh inner fender partly stripped.jpg


rh inner fender before.jpg


rh inner fender stripped.jpg
 
Nice progress, seems to be alot of the same repairs i had to make body wise, pans,battery innerfender,quaters. Its a good feeling to do your self, a feeling of accomplishment.

Hows the fresh air/cowl vent area?
 
65BCODA said:
Nice progress, seems to be alot of the same repairs i had to make body wise, pans,battery innerfender,quaters. Its a good feeling to do your self, a feeling of accomplishment.

Hows the fresh air/cowl vent area?
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Cowl/vent area is in excellent shape. I still have a couple of small patches to make, then lots and lots of body work. I'll have to go through the wire harness too, some of the wiring looks a little suspect. Looks like your car is coming along nicely, like that blue.8)
 
The metal work on that 66 looks great! My wife says all the best welders are from the Quad Cities, but she may be biased (her father teaches welding at Muscatine Comm College).

So what color is it gonna be?
 
Thanks for the compliments Mopardude and Chief. I got started welding at Scott Comm. Coll. The Cuda will be red when all is said and done, possibly with black "S" stripes. The fender tag says PP1 with no stripes, but I'm leaning towards the stripes.
 
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