Lavron's '64 Build Thread

[lavron]

Cool pics for sure, I did not realize at the time how much of a hotrodder my dad was, but that was mostly from need I guess because they were poor. hard to believe that by th4 time my dad was 22 he was married with 3 kids, running his own business (body shop) so kind put a stop to his extracurricular building cars for anything but transportation and to sell for money, that happened a lot, my mom said she always had to drive cars with mismatched and faded paint, then my dad would fix them, paint them and sell them, mom would go to the next project car, she drove a Toyota for a long time that was built from two cars, one had been hit in the rear and one in the front, finally he sold that car and my mom got the 4 dr Maverick, that was the car she had when I turned 16 and I got my drivers license in that car, it was that terrible avocado green metallic from the early 70's that was all faded, my dad painted that car and it looked pretty good (body wise it was a straight car) he naturally sold it as soon as he painted it. My mom wanted to keep it after he painted it, it was a good car I think a 250 six but can't remember for sure, it was an inline 6 so it could have been a 200 or even a 170, probably good he sold it before I started stealing parts off of it for the Comet. Right around 1980 he bought a new Fairmont SW that was beige also with a 200 six in it, it was the worse finished new car he ever bought, I can remember there were paint touch-ups on the car new, I don't think they kept that car very long and traded it on white Ford Tempobecause we bought the Tempo off of them in 1988 and my wife drove it until the computer failed one day as she was leaving for work, it just shut off, I replaced the computer but she would not drive it anymore because she did not trust it, I sold it to a guy in Springfield who worked at 3M, and commuted a distance, I drove by 3M everyday going to work and he kept that car for several years because I would see it in the parking lot, I seem to remember hearing he put 300,000 miles on that Tempo, but I had bought my wife a little Ford Escort hatchback from the Repo place across from the paper.

I guess that is enough about my car history to date, I guess the only thing Comet related is my '64 bought it in '79, kept it did/doing some work to it that's it on Comet related, of course, everyone knows the history on the Comet and the work happening on it

See Ya,
Mike

[Joe Travers]

My uncles' A and my dad - Brooklyn and Niagara Falls NY 1942

.

Grandpa Bob owned a T model when he was a young man, as the family had money before the Great Depression. His spit-shined '55 was his last Ford. After the thaw, I'll run up to sis's house (2 hour drive) and grab all the old pics I can find. I know there are a few of him in his dapper get-up with his T, showing off for the young ladies.

JT

[lavron]

My wife and I were having a Comet conversation a day or two ago, I told her she would be amazed at how it drives now, she said she had driven the Comet before and it was hard for her to steer, this is in addition to the clutch being hard for her to push, I let her know both of those had been addressed with the rebuild, rack and pinion steering and a hydraulic clutch (probably didn't mean much to her but she is used to it being married to me forever (33 years) I told her she would have to be careful and not spin the tires when taking off. the gas pedal should be less stiff by then, I hope she doesn't take the Comet away from me when she discovers how fun it is to drive might be inspiration to build the second Comet, eventhough I have the parts(except a car) I lean towards finding an old Ranger PU snd using its running gear in an early Comet FI, Automatic, etc. all the modern car stuff, doing a 4cyl Comet just to be different (I believe I have had this conversation with Pops at PF before) so if someone will build one and document it here it might be the motivation I need to try it as well Certainly nothing until the '64 is doneThe second Comet would have to be purple BTW

Grandpa Bob owned a T model when he was a young man, as the family had money before the Great Depression. His spit-shined '55 was his last Ford. After the thaw, I'll run up to sis's house (2 hour drive) and grab all the old pics I can find. I know there are a few of him in his dapper get-up with his T, showing off for the young ladies

Both of those Fords are Iconic IMO, the 55 Ford was built on the 50th anniversary of the T, if I could pick another car it would be a 55 Ford Crown Vic or a '57 Fairlane because my dad had one when he met my mom



After my dad passed away I was spending a lot of time with my uncle before he passed (my uncle was my dad's cousin married to my mom's sister)

They were very close and like all of the boys living down here where I live now, they worked in KC and spent the week up there living with an aunt and uncle on Friday after work they would all come home for the weekend, one of the other cousins with a lesser car was doing the same ( I can't remember what he said it was, like a Rambler or something, an old man car, they would come up behind him on the highway and blow his doors off with the Fairlane, then get far enough ahead of him they would pull off onto a side road, hide and wait for him to pass and then do it all over again I heard how they would drive the Fairlane down the back roads so fast they would roll the old 14" bias-plys off the front wheels turning hard, wonder why I never heard these stories when I was a teenager? but how expensive tires etc were my dad and uncles came from poverty but by 1957, he was able to buy a new car (they never wanted to go back to how it was when they were growing up, he and mom got married and my sister was born in 1959 then my brother in 1960, followed by me in '62, they were still able to buy a new house in Independence and in 1968 he bought the F350 and then a new Galaxie around the same time, my mom did not work at the time dad was a machinist, when I was in first grade the company he worked for moved to Kansas and he did not want to go there so, thank God, they moved back down here where I live now just a couple of miles, as the crow flies North of my house now(no plumbing or running water, way back in the sticks, I cant say I was ever a fan of using an outhouse but I am grateful now for the whole experience, sorry to ramble on. But while I am at it and off topic anyway this is a picture of my dad's parents, supposedly on their wedding day, thought some would enjoy it, I showed it to a printer tech at work one day years ago, and he said I wish you still had that motorcycle, I guess it is a super rare bike now worth a lot of money



He told me what it was but I can't remember, I had always thought it was a Harley or an Indian but it isn't this would have been sometime in the 30's BTW

OK enough on that, back to Comet stuff

Just a random Comet picture from the mid '80s to close this post on a Comet note



See Ya,
Mike

[Joe Travers]

Grandpa Bob owned a T model when he was a young man, as the family had money before the Great Depression. His spit-shined '55 was his last Ford. After the thaw, I'll run up to sis's house (2 hour drive) and grab all the old pics I can find. I know there are a few of him in his dapper get-up with his T, showing off for the young ladies

Both of those Fords are Iconic IMO, the 55 Ford was built on the 50th anniversary of the T, if I could pick another car it would be a 55 Ford Crown Vic or a '57 Fairlane because my dad had one when he met my mom

Cool pic of your Pop and his '57, Mike I could kick myself for not buying Gramp's '55 when my uncle put it up for sale. At the time I was driving my Cyclone and working on a FE '66 Fairlane project (which I never finished).

Sorry, I don't have a pic of the Cyclone to finish my post I highly doubt Mom shot a pic of it. She couldn't stand it, called it a piece of junk. I couldn't understand her logic at the time. It was such a lovable piece of junk

JT

[popscomet]

WE had mentioned finding a round body falcon and installing a 4cyl 5spd awhile back,,,,as we have dirt tracked those engines for yrs,,we have engines on stands,cams so forth so on,,,and son can flat build one that will turn up some RPM's.But we just ain't found the right one yet,,and time is also hard to find,,,,,and we need to finish a couple of projects already started,,,we are so burnt out on work,,,,for now it's BREAK TIME !!......there use to be a young man on here that took an early comet ,installed a 4cyl 5spd,,,,think he sold it and left us,,,don't recall his name...pop

[SASSY]

Side show,, I think.
Ya, found this
,,, can't seem to copy link
In showing off
My 62 Comet, from early 2009

[lavron]

,as we have dirt tracked those engines for yrs,,we have engines on stands,cams so forth so on,,,and son can flat build one that will turn up some RPM's.But we just ain't found the right one yet,,and time is also hard to find,,,,,and we need to finish a couple of projects already started,,,we are so burnt out on work,,,,for now it's BREAK TIME !!......there use to be a young man on here that took an early comet ,installed a 4cyl 5spd,,,,think he sold it and left us,,,don't recall his name...pop

So if I ever undertake such a project, I know where to get sdvice

That early Comet with the 4 cyl, was it the one that was sold snd then the new owner joined as well? One of those early Comets had gears for pedals IIRC

See Ya,
Mike

[lavron]

Ok rtake this partially due to much time to think and look at old pictures and videos of my Cometplus lookin to pick a paint scheme, I will talk some about it in an upcoming video I think but snyway I was talking about the silver and champsgne met.


seeing them together like this I am not so found of the champagne but I was looking through pictures and really like the stealth look of the satin black, many who have seen the car in perdson have commented on leaving it flat black, I always kinda ignored them but I have been thinking, that I could paint it with the single stage Rat rod Black and later if I grew tired of it scuff and paint it with a met , it would give me a good even colored base to put the other paint over on down the road, the ratrod black is not flat but satin and has a slight sheen.



I had been avoiding black because it requires near perfect bodywork, but think in satin black it ewould hide any imperfections, the body looks pretty good now in a sorta satin black, the only issue I have is my accents I was doing in black wont be there, but I might be able to do a different sheen they have a color called Dead Rat Flat Black I could do the hood in, and the 404 side spears I could finish clening them up and doing in sain silver(natural aluminum, I would also leave the wheels alone if I did the sain black body (or maybe red ).
As the stealth Comet, I could sneak up on you V8 guys and surprise you You guys like the satin black and will I be ok with pretty good bodywork instead of perfect bodywork (mine will be near perfect, of course ) Shouldn't it look as good as the picture I posted above?

Is it all illness-induced madness?

See Ya,
Mike

Updated this pos with the foloeing pictured comparing the two different Eastwwod Satin and Flat black

[SASSY]

With all the white you carry around on your face I think the
Rat rod satin would work great!

[Joe Travers]

As a greybeard myself, I approve of Fred's comment

JT

[popscomet]

I have seen some 6cyls smoke V8's on the street and on the track,,,,,,in fact 300ci 6's use to have thier own class at the dirt track,,,they would fly and flat twist up,,,of course they were built for it,,,,,,,I have a 88 pu with a 300 6,,on the road you get ready to pass all you have to do is crack that gas pedal and that thing will go...but you won't pass many gas stations,,,it has 2 tanks and needs 2 more and it EFI,,it is a gas hog,,,but very very dependable transportion...

[lavron]

I had a visitor yesterday telling me I needed to put a smallblock in there, he just doesnt get it, I dont like him all that well anyway he also told me I should consider selling the Comet it was probably worth some money. I I just looked him in the eye and said I have had that car 40 years I had NO INTENTION OF SELLING IT NOW OR EVER!
A COUPLE OF COMET related things. Currently it wont start, I think that little battery shot it's wad in the 3 months I was gone, I think if they get under a certain voltage you cant charge them, I have had a charger on there about a week and still dead as a doornail. Going to look for a replacement but a full sized sealed AGM , not hearing good things about Optima now days so looking for something else

Also I am thinking about a roll cage, mostly to attach seatbelts to. So if anyone knows of a sedan cage cheap premade, I might be interested ( I want some grab bars too eenthough I am getting in and out of my wife's car better than I used too I am a pretty dapper fellow now walking with a cane

Trying right now to get a young fellow here to put my right rear tire back on the Comet, it is sitting up under there my wife wanted to put it back on but she lacks the steam to lift it up, and I don't think
I can get down there and I only have one fully functioning arm right now
Thinking of ordering sme cheap rubbers for the windshield and rear glass and try to put them in temporarly for now, I don't know if you can get the windows back out without destroying the seals?
one last thing has to do with seat covers, as you all know I can't find any premade 68 T bird covers so they will have to be custom made, I havent checked a price yet but was wondering if a pair of Procar seats would be cheaper? they have a sub $400 seat
See Ya,
Mike

[power band]

am thinking about a roll cage, mostly to attach seatbelts to. So if anyone knows of a sedan cage cheap premade,

sounds like you're thinking about a lot of Comet related things ...

As far as a cage, I used a similar Kit approach , Kit has plates to weld to floors for unibody and handy to drill for seat belt anchors

https://swracecars.com/product/falcon-f ... -roll-bar/

https://swracecars.com/product/1-3-4-ew ... 70-falcon/

In the '61 Comet I ordered the rear 'pro-street bars' which curve into rear shelf instead of through seat area. Still no way to use OEM rear seat or climb over roll bars easily anyway. I did not use the 'door bars' after trying to climb in and out of drivers seat with them in place.

. .

.. . .

.

attached 'modern' 3 pT seat belts to OH bar with welded brackets.


.

[Joe Travers]

one last thing has to do with seat covers, as you all know I can't find any premade 68 T bird covers so they will have to be custom made, I havent checked a price yet but was wondering if a pair of Procar seats would be cheaper? they have a sub $400 seat

Hitting the salvage yards for a deal still possible these days? T-Bird was the thing back in the day (or Econoline).
May be able to find a more comfortable pair of modern buckets that may fit? IDK, just throwing it out there.


Joe

[lavron]

am thinking about a roll cage, mostly to attach seatbelts to. So if anyone knows of a sedan cage cheap premade,

sounds like you're thinking about a lot of Comet related things ...

As far as a cage, I used a similar Kit approach , Kit has plates to weld to floors for unibody and handy to drill for seat belt anchors

https://swracecars.com/product/falcon-f ... -roll-bar/

https://swracecars.com/product/1-3-4-ew ... 70-falcon/

In the '61 Comet I ordered the rear 'pro-street bars' which curve into rear shelf instead of through seat area. Still no way to use OEM rear seat or climb over roll bars easily anyway. I did not use the 'door bars' after trying to climb in and out of drivers seat with them in place.

. .

.. . .

.

attached 'modern' 3 pT seat belts to OH bar with welded brackets.


.

I am not putting a rear seat in anyway I will check those out mostly looking for seatbelt attachment points hopefully I can buy without the door bars