1965 Mustang Coupe Build...

[digitalsolo]

Front end bracing on passenger side:






MII suspension in. I added a bunch of gussets to it.



I'm going to get some square box tubing to gusset the torque box/pillar/cowl/rocker together with an x-brace. That should give a good load path into everything. That's my theory anywho.

The tabs will connect heim joint ended rods. They angle is pretty shallow and there isn't going to be much load path, but the main goal is to have a spot to brace the master cylinders (brake/clutch) to, to help mitigate flexy-firewall syndrome.

[digitalsolo]

Little bit more progress on the front end. Built some internal aprons to cover up the fender wells. The bottom area of these may get a little trim/tweak once the arms get in and I can check clearances. I also want to add a brace on the rear of the MII upper arm mount that will have a bolt that can be used to set pressure against the upper arm pivot to prevent "walk" under load. I'll build a mockup of it once the arms are installed so that I can see if it will work like I want it to.



And restoration of the hubs. Here is a shot of before/after..



And both completed...



I'm not sure why the studs look goofy in the pictures, it's just the camera, they are nice and straight. Big fan of my 20 ton press for... persuading... 50 year old parts to play nice. ;)

Not much progress beyond this right now. Finishing up a mil-spec harness for a guy with a 1994 RX7 right now, then I have a conversion harness for an LS1 in a Crown Vic, THEN I should be able to get back to the Mustang. That reminds me, after body work is chassis electrical. :D

[stangreen]

looks good so far with the progress I like it I love when people build the coupes I have one myself

[andrewb70]

Nice progress Blake. Sent you a PM.

Andrew

[bikefreak600]

like your project. i am doing a 65 fastback, take a look at my thread i have done a ton of chassy strengthening that is not very invasive, everything is subtle & effective

[digitalsolo]

Been super busy at work and out and about (PRI in Indy and elsewhere) so I haven't had a lot of time to work on the car.

I did get the TCI torque arm rear suspension kit ordered up, looking forward to getting that setup!

[digitalsolo]

PROGRESS !!! !!!

Body work on the driver's side inner fender panels is done:





And got a start on filling/cleaning up the firewall:



Took a break from body work (sort of) to play with fender alignment at the door. These fenders/doors fit like total garbage. No clue what brand they are (PO bought them) but wow, they suck. Anywho, here's about 5 hours of work tightening this tiny little area up:



Subframe connectors are in, as well as x-brace:





Outrigger/jacking plates are built...



So what is the little cylinder you ask? That will get a delrin insert (who wants to machine some delrin for me?) to function as a jack point without tearing up my undercoating.

My welding is improving steadily:



Front installed:



Rear installed:



Up top:





Those are welded to the subframe/connectors and the rockers, as well as the floor. Unlike the RX7, I decided to use "through floor" style as my research says it helps to increase stiffness, which on this thing, well, every bit helps.

Rear panhard mount, coilover mounts and swaybar mounts:



Rear end with brackets and cleanup. This was 2.5 hours of misery grinding all of the last 50 years of crap off of it. Ugh, not fun. Not bad for a 50 year old axle:



And with the torque arm mocked up:



I need to cut the ends off to center the pinion up properly. I ordered a set of big bearing ends and will have a friend of a friend with a jig weld them on straight.

[andrewb70]

Good progress Blake!

Andrew

[manOwar]

You've been busy... looks great!

[digitalsolo]

Thanks guys!

I just ordered up some durablock sanding boards as I only have some small hand sized sanding pads and those no-workie on the big panels/curves, so I'm hoping the big blocks help get everything nice and straight. I'm no expert body man, but I figure it can end up better than average with enough sweat equity.

I'm really looking forward to setting it on the ground at ride height right now. Can't wait to see how it'll look!

[Crestronwizard]

I like seeing other people making progress. Inspiring . Looks great!

[digitalsolo]

Okay, been SLAMMED at work, traveling all over, plus my son's birthday and some mil-spec harness work for some other people, but, I present to you... progress!

Since I improved load path into the cowl area, I though it prudent to improve load path from the cowl area into the hinge pillar and rocker:



Axle housing done. My buddy welded it for me with a jig he has setup. TIG'd it. Makes my welds on the brackets look pretty ****ty, haha! He does great work and charges me much less than he should because he's a cool guy.





The fender gaps. Oh lord the fender gaps. Good news: I'm getting better at this stuff. Bad news: There is a lot to do and "better" does not equal good. By the time I get all the way around the car I ought to be a pro though. Here is the method I used to tighten up the 1/4" gap to my "just under an 1/8" gap" that I'm trying for everywhere:

Step 1: Weld some 1/8" mild steel TIG rod into the area you need. Just tack it and work it with a body hammer (work it baby!):



Step 2: Weld it, more:



Step 3: Grind it till it looks sorta right:



Step 4: Mock the two panels together and, using a cut-off wheel in a grinder, work the gap until it is much closer. I don't have a picture of this since I can't grind and take pictures at the same time without dismembering myself.

Step 5: Skim coat with mud. I skim over the gap then use a razor blade to slice out the mud in the gap once it starts to go off, but before it fully hardens. This looks sorta thick but it's not:



Step 6: Remove the fender, backfill with a little more mud and dial it in, then prime it to seal:



Step 7-25: Repeat steps 5-6 until you're tired/angry/swearing. I don't drink, but alcohol may help soothe these steps, though excessive application may cause further repeating of steps.

Step 26: Voila!



While I was at it, I decided I didn't like the flexy fender behind the front wheel, so I added a small brace:



Still need to fix the door/fender gap the rest of the way down, but that's easier than the whole door/cowl/fender/pillar combo area at least. Then I need to fix the door/rocker gap, fix the door cowl line (OMG that's going to suck) and then blend the 1/4 to rocker and 1/4 to rear cowl areas... then I get to do it all over on the other side! Ugh.

[andrewb70]

Nicely done Blake. Way more work than I want to do on the Cougar! Lol

Andrew

[rickpaw]

Nice work Blake.

Hope you don't mind but I'd like to copy your idea on the frame rail bracing. I'm working on a 65 Mustang fastback right now with DSE front suspension, and the owner/I were both thinking about ways to brace the front frame rails.

[digitalsolo]

By all means! 90% of my ideas are stolen from or inspired by the work of others. That's what these forums are for! :-)

[Jetfixr320]

Awesome work. Thanks for the how to on the panel Gaps!

[Dave B]

Nice Work!

[Munssey]

The flexy heim joints are the only part that i'm iffy on (I like solid, no moving connection points which is up for debate but preference mostly)

With that one item mentioned... Excellent build and eight thumbs up! Cant wait to see how this one progresses.

[digitalsolo]

You mean the braces on the top of the engine bay? I doubt they'll do a ton anyway, but yeah, heim joints can definitely move some. I can pre-load them as well though.

And, thanks!

[xsboost90]

looks good! Working on my 64 coupe, trying to get the drivetrain squared away so i can start doing the body work. Im used to doing body work and paint on the side but this car is freaking me out alittle. Good to see someone else being picky.