67 B'cuda Formula S - in my spare, spare time :)

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HMC710

HMC710

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Posted a few pics already in the newb section but I figured I would try and start a Build Board and hopefully keep me motivated to get some work done and keep allyall busy with more stuff to read.

Picked this up from the son of the original owner. Checked the VIN, block, and heads and its a true Formula S with 273 10.5:1 motor, 904 trans, and 7-1/4" rear end. I haven't verified the 3.91 ratio yet.

The son (in his late 70s) was in the process of restoring the car for his wife and had some health issues and couldn't work on it any more and put it up for sale. And that's where our story begins.......

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Parts waiting for pickup.......
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Sure wish there was some air in those front (remnants of) tires......



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Parts and parts....

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More parts......
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and more parts.....
 
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Got everything to the (full) shop and started to see what I had gotten myself into.....
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Forged crank and 273 block with stock bores


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Owner worked part time at an engine shop and went through the heads a while back. We'll double check and see if everything is OK.
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Said his mom told the dealer it was too fast so they put a 2bbl on it. Still had the solid lifters and adj rockers.

I was hoping it was the Blue color like my old one, but no such luck. Black with a white top and interior. I'll think about that for a bit as I think this just needs to be a stock resto... if it wasn't a true Formula S, it would be a different build.... Maybe the next one :)

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Been travelling for work a lot but got after things a bit today.

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Pulled things out for access and will send them over to the body shop 2 doors down.
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Getting tires that hold air... and pulled shocks and the sway bar. Will do the std front end suspension once I find out from body shop if they have a dolly to set body on. If not I'll do the suspension first and then roll it over to the body shop.

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Used Tires back on and will pull the trans for a rebuild when I get my next wind.. Working in the trailer is a bit tight, but better than laying in the dirt or the rain! Did I mention the shop is already full.....
 
Hey All, quick update to the project. The PO basically had in the car completely stripped down and was doing repairs. Dropped off the front fenders, doors, front header and hood to body shop 2 doors down so they can start reviewing and prep for paint. (and give me more room)

I got all the interior parts out of the trailer and lined up.

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With the help of the FABO tutorial on seat covers I've got all but 1 bucket seat fabric off. Can I assume the 10 66 is a date code? Some of the covers looked in good shape and looked like some extra hog rings so I don't know if its been recovered at some point or not.

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Thats about all the progress I've made as I search for some rear quarters.......

I've got a lot of questions on this build and will continue to search the forum and faq's.
Now to start 2nd shift......
 
Nice catch! Looks like a notch back! Plan your windshield trim and gaskets in near future, may as well as you or the body shop may need to install clips for ss trim.
:thumbsup:
 
This is great, you will see many, many 383 Fastbacks, but 273 S Hardtops are hard to find.
Good luck with your project, really liking the 273!
 
Thanks, plan is to keep it and the 273 as stock as possible along with the 904 and 7-1/4". The part I haven't fully bought into yet is the factory black paint, white vinyl top and white interior...... not my first choice, but... its the factory original. Would that include black or white carpet? I'll wait for the next one to resto mod......
 
Got a few things done today. Goal was to get the smelly gas tank out....

I finished pulling all the old seat covers off and got the frames out where I can get them cleaned up and painted.

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The door panels are almost in good shape, almost.... Any good tips to recondition these? they are dry as a bone and shrunk on a few..

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And I was a bit shocked when the seat backs and side panels are all metal!

And an update on the Black/White color scheme. Visors and what is left of the headliner are black. I'm guessing the carpeting was black as well. That leaves the seats and door panels White..... along with the vinyl top...Its going to be a while until I get to those parts, so I've got time to ponder on it. My 68 was the blue metallic / black and I was thinking Hemi Orange / black, but it would be my luck there were only two black / white formula S ever made. Any advice on the door panels would be appreciated.

Back to my goal today, get the gas tank out. Started with my cut off wheel and pulled the exhaust system out.
Then on to the tank and filler next....
Who designed the 3 screws holding the gas cap on :mad:! My first thought was to slot them with the dremel but a quick twist from inside the trunk with long nose vise grips backed them right out!:icon_fU: Then I hit the strap bolt with some PB and my new favorite tool, the battery powered impact! A few back and forths with impact, PB and wire brush and we worked the nut off. Disconnected the pick up tube and Viola! one tank out!.

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Yes, those are/were Monroe Max Air shocks under the there! With matching Monroes in the front! I can hear the son now," Mom, your car needs new shocks! I'll take it to the shop for you."
Dumped some mineral spirits in the tank and sloshed it around. No holes and fairly good shape. Clean and Paint or replace?

Next is to get the trans and drive shaft out then go after rebuilding the front and rear suspension. The car is/was undercoated so I've been reading up on others experiences with that is so I can decide what I want to do with that. Without a lift or rotary it would be a pita cleaning it off.

Haven't talked much about the motor........ cam looks scuffed, bores are stock, picked up a factory 4bbl intake from FABO member. Will get it on the stand and cleaned up in one of these segments. Looking for cam / engine / exhaust and trans rebuild recommendations. This is another point of contention between factory stock and updating some things like ignition and carb/fuel injection, ect. Knowing the 273 is good for 235 - 250 HP, Its not like it will ever see 400 hp so I'm keeping the motor in this one, just contemplating factory stock vs some minor updates. We'll get things cleaned up and see how it goes.
 
Happy Easter!

Got off the road late Thursday night and enjoyed the long weekend. Had some shop work to catch up on and painted some parts for the bike and wanted to get the trans pulled out of the car, but didn't make it..... Did manage to wash my door panels with soap and water to get the major crud off of them and hopefully get some moisture into the vinyl.
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As you can see, some of the vinyl is shrinking and pulling away from the edge of the backing.

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Overall , they aren't in terrible condition but....

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You can see where this big panel has shrunk a lot. So, after the soap and water wash and dry, what are my options to try and save these? I've heard good and bad about armor all so looking for some advice on my next step.

Then comes my next dilemma, I'm still not feeling the white interior....... or the black exterior to be honest. Maybe if it was triple black. If I can save the door panels I'll probably keep it white, but if I can't then all bets are off.

Now to get that trans out.......
 
The vinyl will soften up a lot with repeated slathering of baby oil over a couple few days. Probably enough to heat, stretch and re glue to the door cards. Cant recommend any ArmorAll products.
Also, the baby oil method may wreck any paint or dye efforts.
 
Thanks, I'll give the baby oil a try on one of the panels and see what happens.

After prepping the truck to get its motor back in I wanted to get the trans out of the car..... after procrastinating for about 20 minutes looking things over I grabbed a 7/16 and dropped the rear drive shaft. Grabbed the cherry picker and moved it back into position.

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Well, at least I'm getting good use out of the car hauler! :lol:

Got the trans jack under the pan and pulled the 4 cross member bolts. I also noticed I have a small rust hole in my drivers floor pan...:mad:

Put some pressure on the cherry picker and pulled the trans forward a bit.

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Got it pulled forward enough to get another rig with the chain further back to try and balance things out....... but couldn't get my center far enough back.....:popcorn:

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and I didn't have my "keeper" in the hook to lock the chain so it slipped a few links on the way up, did manage to catch some of the fluid tho, getting lazy in my old age, I'ld rather put down oil dry than pull a pan laying on my back..... and the pan gasket leaked like a sieve...

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Now, do I get the cart or horse it into the garage on the picker.....

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Viola! one baby trans for a baby motor!!!!!

Anyone know the stock stall on the factory torque converter? Any recommended units for the 273? Reading lots of post about the 904 rebuilds and "kits" vs parts, etc. I'll get it cleaned up and start the tear down and gather info on a good solid "baby motor" build :rofl:

Spent way too much time reading UCA and LCA rebuild info and rubber vs poly last night....:drama:

One of the posts listed the Moog rubber with the offset center to adjust camber. or was it caster?, one those anyway...... How important is that? My next move is to block up the body and get the front and rear suspension off so we can rebuild those. (I just need to decide if I want to do that in the trailer or pull it out.... and leave it outside.....)

Any recommendation on shock absorbers? Like everything there's the Good, Better, Best, Plaid.... etc... My goal for the car is to be better on the street/road than dragstrip. (FYI my remote work location is North GA and they don't call Hwy 19 the North Georgia Raceway for nothing!) And rear suspension as well. It doesn't have a rear sway bar.

Its got the factory disc brakes up front with sway bar so I'll be leaning on FABO members for brake recommendations front and rear. Its got the 7.25" rear.

Thanks everyone! appreciate the comments and wealth of info on this site. Keep up the good work!
 
Hey All, been swamped with work but did manage to get the trans cleaned up, pulled off all the external parts for cleanup and paint. Been trying to get the truck finished up so I can spend that time on the car....
 
Looks like a fun project. I too have tried to keep mine as stock as possible since it is a low mileage, 36K original. Outside of going from power brakes to manual dual Master cyl. And 14" wheels, it is stock as can be. good luck on your project!

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