Pulled the backseat and rear side panels today. Made my templates for covering, as old panels were warped and fugly.


Got the naugahyde marked out, and contact cement applied to panel and vinyl.


Slapped it together and installed them back on the car. Lots easier than the door panels, other than removing the seat bottom.




Just carpet left to do now, and the interior will be pretty close to done.

 

looks good nice job

 

Thanks! Wish I had a industrial sewing machine, I'd try doing seats too!

 

Tweaked the straight axle a little yesterday. It seemed to drive nice enough, but noticed it was a little "loose" feeling when turning or changing lanes. Checked the toe in and found it actually had 1/4" toe out on the front! Not sure how it drove so well, but I adjusted it to have 1/8" toe in, and I can't believe how much difference it made!
The steering is so much more positive, and responsive. Felt good before, but feels great now!

 

It appears the Moroso wheels studs I put in the rear wheels might have pressed in too easy. I snapped a stud off one rear wheel while driving, and found most the others were loose. Pulled both wheels today, and most the studs were loose enough to push out by hand, or lightly tap out.
I gathered up new studs, new ET unilug washers, and new lugnuts today. Pulled everything off and replaced it all. I used the ET conical type washers and lugnuts, so less chance for movement with their lugnuts vs. regular conical nuts. It appears this all was the result of the ET conical washers being bad on the used wheels. Didn't notice they were too large in the conical taper until I got the new ones and saw how small the taper was! Hopefully that will make things better.
Gotta start tuning things as good as possible for next month's Eruption Drags near Mt St Helens at Riverdale race park. The old pre '64 drags will be the end of August, and I want to make my first passes with the Falcon there!

 

Waiting on parts from Summit. The stinking cheap alcohol mix gas has my diaphragms messed up already! I am changing to the blue BG alcohol correct pieces to avoid having a recurrence of the same issues.
Wish the local performance shop had a better selection of Holley tuning parts, so I could get what I want faster.

 

Yeah I hate the ethanol in the gas. It's messed with the edelbrock in my 68.

 

It's only going to get worse! With government subsidies there's a real push for higher ethanol content in gas, so what we have now is only the beginning. I'm afraid there will be a point where we'll be spending huge money to convert our old cars to run better on ethanol, or park them.

 

There actually was a bill in the Oregon senate that was trying to get rid of ethanol completely but the session ended before any action. That seems like a start though for somekind of change. Out my way in Cornelius and forest grove there are stations that have ethanol free gas at a couple pumps.

 

We've got ethanol free gas around here too, plus leaded gas too! Very spendy though! And you have to have either SP plates, or AQ plates to get it pumped into a car. Otherwise it has to go in a gas can to be pumped. All my cars have SP plates, so I can get it pumped right into the tank, but about $1 a gal. more than regular fuel.