Michael's AMC Javelin Build

[Javelin]

March 2011:

Grounded



Whilst chasing down the still no-start issue it was pointed out that grounds could be an issue. The Javelin’s starting circuit has the negative battery cable going straight to the engine (which has been replaced) and a ground strap going from the engine to the frame (which hasn’t, due to a seized bolt). So I added this ground strap from the terminal to the frame for now. (I will find a better spot for it later). I also made a permanent ground strap for the starter solenoid’s 5th post, as the original neutral safety switch no longer works, which is what was preventing the solenoid from engaging.

Electrical round 7...



Yes, that is another new solenoid. I’m 99% sure the other two are actually fine now that I’ve found the grounding problem. Still, they are cheap and everything in this car is old and has been sitting.

The big news is that the big 360 finally churns over! Granted it’s with a remote switch and not the key, but hey still progress!

Fuel!



For the first time (supposedly) in 28 years, there is fuel in the carb! Of course it then started to leak, but what did you expect? The motor has now successfully spun over enough to establish oil pressure and get everything re-lubed. The beast slowly awakens…

But no spark



After all of that diagnosing and churning it was time to lay fire into the engine and hear the roar! Unfortunately I had no spark from the coil according to ye old timing light. According to the factory service manual, it’s either the coil has gone bust or the distributor isn’t telling it to. I have a new coil on order.

New spark!



So after an off weekend to start autocrossing, it’s back to the Javelin! First up is replacing that bad coil. With an MSD Blaster unit of course. ;)

I’m not sure if that will stay or an HEI goes in, but for now it will do the job, and better than a stock one, for about $5 more.

But still no spark...



Hmmm, coil didn’t do it (even though the old one tested bad). Only one thing left then, the pickup in the distributor. For some reason I thought this car (and all 73/74 AMC’s) had electronic ignition. Surprise! It doesn’t. My AMC-fu is rusty as all get-out as that’s the 3rd thing I’ve gotten wrong on this car…

Anyways, out came the points (GM style) and in went a new setup, complete with condenser and all. It has a “bridge” instead of a wire for reliability. This definitely won’t stay long-term, but it was needed today!

(Total is now around $975, I need to total up the actual receipts).

[Scott Liggett]

It's a lot work posting all those pictures and writing all that stuff, ain't it? Great job. Very cool car.

[SuperBuickGuy]

still, it's progress...

snow - ug

[Javelin]

It's a lot work posting all those pictures and writing all that stuff, ain't it? Great job. Very cool car.

Yes, yes it is! Thanks, I've read both of your threads end-to-end which is what inspired me to get mine up on here.

[Javelin]

Fire in the hole!



So after months of trying, buying and swapping parts, testing things, and generally working my way up to it, it all came down to this very moment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl9CkYMBCVA

IT RUNS!!!!



The smoke in the pipe lets you know the old girl is running! The engine actually fires right up and idles nicely. Revs pretty well (initial tip-in stumble though). It comes up to temperature, no leaks (oil or coolant), and has great oil pressure. Awesome! I’m sooooo happy! I can’t believe this poor motor actually runs, and runs this well!

RTFM



When in doubt, read the f-ing manual! This is an original 1974 AMC TSM (the 73’s should be identical) that I have used for this project. It also has original wiring diagrams, which are invaluable!

I also have to thank my Father and Grandfather both for helping out, with parts, encouragement, and advice, not to mention the initial AMC-headedness anyways.

Future plans...



So now that the 360 runs, where to go from here? Well, here’s the plan:

• First I need to get the engine up to temp again and change the oil and filter.
• The coil had a broken stud and needs to be swapped out.
• The ground strap needs to be fixed or rerouted.
• The ignition switch needs to be checked so the key will work.
• The front brakes need to be gone through.

Then it’s off to the rear of the car, where once in the air I will check the trans to see if it turns the wheels, fix the rear brakes, get the gas tank refurbished, and change the diff oil. Once that’s done, it’s test drive time!

What about the pic Michael? Well that’s the 401 I’ve owned for 7 years that will eventually go into the Javelin (maybe). It’s kind of the impetus behind this whole project.

[Javelin]

April 2011:

Fire in the hole: Part 2



The Javelin got started again, she fired right up. The engine was run for a good 15-20 minutes and came up to operating temperature. The carb idled down, the throttle is nicely responsive, and the gauges all seem to work.

It's a gas, gas, gas!



This is how it’s fueled for now. Basically, I have no idea what kind of shape the tank and lines are in so this fuel hose goes directly to the fuel pump. No leaks (yet) in the fuel system with the E10 gas we have now. Obviously this has to be addressed before driving…

Fresh oil



After running up to temp again the old oil was drained. It actually looked pretty good! Minimal sludge, no metallic pieces, and the right consistency. It was slightly gassed down and there was obviously penetrating oil in there. A fresh Wix filter was installed, along with 5 quarts of Valvoline Racing oil (higher ZDDP for the flat-tappet cam).

Less smoke



Now that the engine has been run up to temp a few times and has clean oil there is noticeably less smoke out of the tailpipes. The 360 seems to be in very healthy shape!

Next step: brakes



The next step to getting the Javelin totally operational is to change the brakes. The system is totally dry and drums to boot, so it’s all going away. I am working on getting the correct 71-74 Kelsey-Hayes front disc setup (a 360 SST with power brakes is supposed to have them already) for the front to replace these useless drums. A new master cylinder and booster will also be included.

Suspension?



While the suspension is no doubt tired, it should be OK for the inspection to get her road-worthy again. The shocks are actually recent (ish) Monroe Sens-A-Tracs and the springs are solid. The bushings all need to be replaced, but the ball joints are tight. The front suspension is a unique design with a lower arm and strut bar, spindle, upper A-arm, and a shock w/spring. There are a few bolt-on packages to upgrade things. Also, mine does already have a front sway bar.

[milner351]

That front end looks allot like 65-73 Mustang. Interesting combination of parts AMC had, GM distributor, Ford carburetor, Ford starter and solenoid, GM steering column, etc.

Great to see another great old car is coming back to life, well done.

[ls7gto]

Mopar Trans LOL

[Javelin]

Interesting combination of parts AMC had.
Great to see another great old car is coming back to life, well done.

It makes it easier to source parts! I've been amazed at how little everything has been, actually. And thanks for the support, it's tough to work on it all alone, my family is all across the country in Florida so their help comes in boxes.

[Javelin]

Mopar Trans LOL

I *love* 727 Torque-Flites! It's a much better unit than the BW the 71's were stuck with. I'd love to manual swap the car one day, but the TF is such a good trans that I may just stick an OD unit off the tail and run a manual valvebody.

[Javelin]

April/May 2011:

New tiller



I picked this up at the swap meet at PIR a few weeks ago, an original 71-74 AMX steering wheel (in maroon!) to replace my horrific Javelin unit. I think this is one of the coolest factory wheels ever. I will dye it black and install it sooner or later.

Engine work continues



Now that the Javelin is a confirmed runner I need to start focusing on other tasks, but I still have some minor details to attend to in the engine bay. Namely it doesn’t have an air filter, the hoses are all ready to burst, the battery needs a hold down, the ground strap needs to be re-located, and the fuel lines need to get hooked up. The first step though was taking a small pressure washer to the grunge and grime! I can’t stand a dirty engine, and once driving this motor will receive fresh paint, some shiny bits, and some general TLC.

De-molding



Well yes, the actual trim molding will come off too, but right now I’m talking about the stuff that grows in the shade and causes health problems. We had a gloriously sunny day on Saturday so I took a pressure washer to the car to get all of the mold, leaves, dirt, and grime off of it. Unfortunately, the interior seems to have developed a nasty case of it and will need to be tossed. It’s okay though, as the dash was really the only thing I was planning on keeping anyways.

Ewwww, greasy!



The Javelin is actually pretty clean underneath, but every car could use a good scrubbing and the engine was on the slimy side. I know I should be concentrating on other stuff, but dirty cars bother me and I am on a parts shortage at the moment.

Also, my wife said that if I cleaned the Javelin up, she’d help me work on it!

Cleaning from the bottom up



So I did! I hand-scraped the majority of the gunk off, took a wire brush to the metal, and then spent some time masking and painting a little. It was one of those nice “change of pace” projects that actually looks like something was accomplished for once. The blue on the engine is EN66 AMC Blue, and is the original (and correct) color for the motor.

Interesting fact, every motor I’ve ever rebuilt I painted this color, even the non-AMC’s. I just like the way it looks in an engine bay.

Gobbily-gook!



What manner of sorcery is this contraption! Oh, it’s a drum brake in need of a total rebuild. I’ll have to do something about that…

MUCH better!



Ah! That should fix it! Yes, I realize there is nothing left but a spindle, and even that I won’t be using. I am having the family send me a factory front disc brake setup for the Javelin. Since it all needed to be replaced anyways, and no track car deserves front drums. I got the other side kind of to this point as well. The drum was welded to one of the shoes, so it’s soaking in some penetrating oil…

Proof of concept



Well work on the Javelin ground to a halt. Between Mother’s Day activities, making family time, and rain, there just hasn’t been any good outside time available to me.

Not a big deal, as that allowed me some time to play with little cars again. I’ve been dying to see what the Javelin would look like in the classic AMC Red/White/Blue racing scheme (pre-71 Donohue), so I painted up a spare Hot Wheels real quick just to get an idea.

Thoughts?

Old School



I actually got this months ago, but am just now getting around to posting about it. This is a 1973 AMC Javelin 1/24 scale Promotional model by JoHan. Promos were updated each model year and given to dealers to give to kids, customers, etc. They were based on model kits but had 1-piece bodies and chassis and were molded in color.

Somebody long ago had taken this Forest Green promo and painted it Trans Am Red and installed Cragar big & littles. It has aged since then and just looks the business! The similarity to my real car was too much, so I payed through the nose to win it on eBay. Part of me wants to restore it, but the patina is too cool. It went on my shelf as-is.

[A/Fuel]

That front end looks allot like 65-73 Mustang. Interesting combination of parts AMC had, GM distributor, Ford carburetor, Ford starter and solenoid, GM steering column, etc.

AMC= All Makes Combined....

[SuperBuickGuy]

with the rain we've been having, you should be building an ark.

[Javelin]

May 2011:

Driver's side is apart



After much cursing and hammer beating I did finally manage to get the drum of the driver’s side. That allowed me to take off the brake assembly and spindle as well. The brake line fitting are frozen solid though, I may need to just replace those.

Passenger side cleaned up



I also took the spindle off of the passenger front. You can see there’s a simple 4-hole “pad” that accepts the spindles and brakes. AMC utilized this same part for decades meaning you can essentially bolt nearly any AMC front brake to any other AMC, say Matador Coupe front discs to my Javelin, or Spirit AMX discs to a Marlin.

I totally sanded and painted all of the wheelwell area with engine paint. After I swap the fenders over to fiberglass I might add some additional undercoating. The metal in here is extremely solid, no rust holes at all. The suspension itself is even in good shape. The shocks are replacement Monroe’s, the springs are solid, and the ball joints look new. There’s a few tired bushings, but it will do for now. This side is now ready for the new brakes (except for that hose…).

The first box has arrived!



The first shipment of goodies has arrived! This is one of the many cool parts going onto the car thanks to my family’s help. These probably would have been useful before I started the motor, but whatever. Mechanical to boot.

More engine clean-up



I can’t help it. Old American V8’s are probably the only truly pretty motors out there, so I want it to be pretty. More cleaning and painting in the original EN66 AMC Blue color. There will be some special parts added to the still-running-sweetly motor as well, stay tuned!

Roof rust



This is my biggest worry on the body of the car. The roof and sail panels were welded together at the factory and seems that the joint has reacted with the vinyl top the car used to have and has corroded. I love the smoothed 1-piece look of the top (I hate new cars with their cheap roof rails) so I will be getting this fixed ASAP.

Temporary solution



So for now all I could do was sand it down with some 80-grit and a wire brush and throw a coat of primer on it. Eventually the whole roof will be primer where the vinyl top used to be.

I think I have decided that I am buying a welder and taking classes until I can use it though. This car needs WAY too much welding work for me not to learn and do it on my own!

Paint booth



Okay, so I get a little crazy with the spray paint when the ice thaws, the rain stops, and that giant ball of fire shows up in the sky, sue me. Once you sand the surface crud away, this car is hiding some excellent condition sheetmetal. So I am doing what I can to make it nicer and protect it. Primer, primer, and more primer!

[SuperBuickGuy]

buy a Miller 140, follow the instructions on the side, and when all else fails watch a video or two from either the Miller site or on Youtube.

Avoid the chinese welders at all costs.

btw - that seam doesn't look like rust (rust rarely happens in a straight line), it looks like the lead cracked from chassis flex. When you grind it off - do wear a dust mask unless you want to go for the "hunchback of notre dame" look