Spring Cleaning - Engine Bay

Step 1: remove obstructions

Idle hands, and all that

The machinist hasn't gotten our parts back yet, but it's not like there isn't a crap ton of other stuff to do on the Mustang. I figured it was high time to start thinking about the engine's nest, since we're actually not that far away from finishing the motor. Since the bay still looks a bit ratty, I put on some music, got out some cleaning gear, some tools, and went at it.

Scrub a dub dub

Before: Not horrible, but still too dirty to move forward

If we are going to repaint the bay, deconstructing and decluttering was the first order of business. I started by removing the hood hinges, hood latch, horns, heater hoses, and wire harness. Interspersed in all that, I put the penetrating oil and/or 409 and elbow grease to everything I could reach. It's looking pretty good, good enough to take a wire wheel to anyway. Feeling pretty good that I was able to save the wire harness. Hopefully it can be reused.

More mud wasp nests in the right headlight cup!?!

I was briefly toying with the idea of removing the whole right fender, but got hung up on the rocker panel trim (couldn't quite see how I'd remove it without damaging, so left it for later). I did remove the antenna though.

Strange things found:
1) the previous resto included an attempt to repair rust holes behind the headlights with sheet metal screws and bondo. It's the kind of repair where I would bet real money on this exact phrase being uttered: 'nobody is ever going to see this ever again'.

Closeup- I'm just glad they were not alive

2) More mud wasp nests! These things got into everything. Just glad they are not alive.

Not much excitement this week I guess, just more cleaning and exploring (and singing. If you were within earshot, I apologize).

Removing the fascia

Hey, it's bondo jammed in the hole and painted! Heh.

Uhm, what's that?

Minor Disaster

Yeah, I Can Read

Big difference between 45 foot-pounds and 25.

In the postscript of our last posting I mentioned that upon the final torque of the rod bolts, a comedy of errors led to me breaking the first one I attempted. To complicate things, I couldn't replace the hardware and reinstall the piston without getting the machinist to recheck the big end of the rod for absolute round-ness (otherwise, it might be off a couple thousandths, which doesn't sound like a big deal, but it could actually destroy our newly machined crank, and possibly grenade the entire engine while it's running). So I pulled the piston, gathered up some of the other things slated to go to the shop anyway for cleaning (timing cover, oil pan, pulleys, balancer) and headed out to G&G in Rantoul.

Good News

Our machinist cracked a smirk but did not have too much fun at my expense when I told him my story of mischance. He was happy that I had the forethought to bring him a brand new pack of new rod bolts, and after taking a cursory look, told me he could just give it an install and hone, and we'd be good to go (*whew*).

Here's a take-away: I will probably never for the rest of my life forget the torque spec for the bottom end of a Ford smallblock Windsor. I'm pretty relieved that I won't have to pull apart everything to replace all the rods, a possibility for which I was preparing mentally.

More to come, when we get our parts back from G&G.