62 Falcon - $5k challenge, how will it rise from the ranger's ashes?

[milner351]

Yup I'm putting buckets in it - mark 8 buckets console and rear seat if all goes to plan.

Here's the progress pics for today.

I did the Stiney method of achieving ride height - several sand bags in strategic places, then threaded rod in place of the rear shocks to lock in the ride height and make pinion angle setting on the hoist feasible.

I was able to move things around to get the car level, then the carb flanges on the intake level.... which is the best I can do as far as I can tell, then I set about building the trans mount in as compact a fashion as I could.

[pintoboy77]

Is that Lee's new sandbox.

[milner351]

All the playground sand is now in Lee's sandbox! The fine and medium I'm going to eventually use the blasting cabinet.

At this estimated ride height - I don't like the bind that the rear shackles are in - I'm going to have to come up with some kind of off set hangar similar to the crites unit but beefier - or go back to my original idea of making a small frame stub at the back of the car to hang OEM style shackles from.

The old air products Hurricane HVAC system showed up and will be the first thing that goes onto the firewall after the peal and seal from lowes (thanks MrRocketscience).

[STINEY]

Play sand for Lee, ride heigth for Dad, and one off the honey-do list? (meaning play sand in box)

Whoohoo!! Keep on rolling man, you are knocking the gremlins out one-by-one!

Nice trans mount fab work. I'm just curious, is that factory piece between the tailshaft and the mount functional or is it just a factory spacer piece? Looks like a spacer from here, but I am not familiar with AODs at all.

[milner351]

That is the $11 factory rubber trans mount. I've been told numerous times by my transmission rebuilding friend NOT to use solid or even poly mounts there, so - I'm sticking with the rubber factory style mount.

I'm going to use 3/8" grade 8 bolts for the final assembly - those should do pretty well in shear.

[STINEY]

I agree on NO SOLID trans tailshaft mounts. Even poly scares me.

I see it now, the whole thing is part of the mount. I've never seen one so "tall", the actual rubber part looks a lot like a TH400 mount. To my eye/brain that upper pyramid part looked like an extra part.

You might want to check out the shear ratings on different grade of bolts. My memory is telling me that the lower grades are actually stronger in shear (or at least they will deform rather than snap) Grade 8 is super strong in tension, but shear is sudden and violent.

[Bob Holmes]

I believe you're correct. 8s are great in tension, lower grades bend and don't break.

Stiney 2

[SuperBuickGuy]

That is the $11 factory rubber trans mount. I've been told numerous times by my transmission rebuilding friend NOT to use solid or even poly mounts there, so - I'm sticking with the rubber factory style mount.

I'm going to use 3/8" grade 8 bolts for the final assembly - those should do pretty well in shear.

as stiney 2 said - don't you mean tension, not shear? if your transmission is moving in any of the compass directions (shear), bad things are afoot.

[BBR]

Holy crap guys, a plain ole Grade 2 bolt has a single shear strength of nearly 5000 pounds. It's a transmission mount for crying out loud, not a mounting bolt for the landing gear of a carrier based F-18. haha

[mlcraven]

Just got caught up on latest developments...this Fearless Falcon is coming together nicely. Great work and lots of good build/tech info coming out.