New Battery

When I went over to my parents house on Father's Day, my dad showed me that he picked up a battery for the Mustang. There's no way I was going to turn down a battery that I didn't have to buy myeslf so I mounted it in the Mustang and will get all the cables hooked up later.

I'm not sure what the brand is, but free is good for me! I should be starting up the car sometime in the near future so this battery will prove very useful. When that day comes, I'm sure I'll have a video to upload.

Body Work (day 2)

For the second day in a row (on a weekend) Lauren had to work which left me to work on the Mustang. After speaking at Pipeline, I headed over to my parents house, changed and got back to work on the front fenders. As the day before, most of my work was concentrated on the passenger fender since it had the most damage and required the most attention. After making another pass with Bondo on the fender and doing some sanding, I used a can of spray primer to get a good look at the fender. I loosely hung it on the car to get a good look at it and I mist say that it is looking pretty good. There are a couple of spots that I want to spend a little more time on, but overall it is ready for a coat of epoxy primer and block sanding.

Passenger Fender on Mustang

The rear Passenger's side extension had a small dimple dent in it and I attempted to hammer it back out, but I wasn't able to get it entirely out. I used a skim coat of Bondo to bring it flush. I stripped down the paint on the rest of it using a scour pad on an air tool and put a coat of primer on it to check it and it passed the test.

Passenger's Side Rear Quarter Extension

My dad graciously helped me out again today and spent his time working on the roof and the driver's side door area. After sanding down the roof, he used another coat of Bondo for a few low spots.

Roof with Second Coat of Bondo

I have decided to buy a gallon of epoxy primer in order to get a more even finish and a better paint job. Epoxy primer will fill small scratches and level the surface. I haven't decided which brand to go with yet, but that will be my next purchase as we get ready for paint in the upcoming couple of months.

Body Work

Lauren had work today so I went over to my parents house to do some more body work on the Mustang. The last time I worked on the Mustang I only had a chance to start body work on the front fenders. Today I continued to work on the same fenders. The driver's side fender doesn't appear to have too much damage whereas the passenger's side fender does have more body damage. I spent most of my time today working on the more heavily damaged fender since I want to see it done.

Passenger Front Fender

As you can see from the picture above, I've had to use a few coats of Bondo in order to obtain a smooth finish. I did my best to hammer out the portion of the fender that was crushed in by some previous owner, but wasn't able to get the fender flat. I used a coat of paint to see how close the fender was since it would help reveal low spots or ripples. I found a couple of low spots which is why you see a second coat of Bondo on top of the first coat. The third small coat on the top front of the fender was because there were some low spots that I didn't see before applying the second coat.

Bottom of Front Passenger Fender

If you remember from my previous post about the fenders, there was some rust in the bottom of the panel which I treated and filled with the mig welder. The fender still required a skim coat of Bondo in that area as well as the area where I filled the holes for the mustang emblem. I haven't finished working these areas yet, but will resume that possible tomorrow.

Mustang Roof with Bondo

If you also recall from my previous post regarding body work, the roof had multiple dents from the previous owner (or his ex-wife) that had to be addressed. While I worked on the fenders, my dad took the liberty to help me out. Using a body hammer, he did his best to pull out the dents, but they still required a flush coat of Bondo. The picture above shows the Bondo before it was sanded. We still have a long way to go before paint...

Rear Quarter Windows & Pass. Fender

While I was working on the passenger side fender last Saturday, my brother and dad worked together to get the rear quarter windows out of the car. The passenger side fender had a couple of areas that were rusted through and other areas that had holes drilled, there were the holes for the emblems, not to mention the antenna hole all which I wanted to fill. 

Driver's Side Fender with Emblem Holes

Passenger side Fender with Flap Holes

Passenger side Fender with Antenna Hole

Using the mig welder I filled all the holes above and used an air grinder to smooth them over to prep them for a skim coat of Bondo. 

I took pictures of only one quarter window before and after to get a sense of how bad the glass was. It was pretty fogged, but with a little elbow grease and some polishing compound I was able to work out the haze and get a crystal clear finish.

Passenger Side Quarter Window Before

Passenger Side Quarter Window After

Unfortunately the chrome still isn't in great shape, but it'll have to do for now. It did polish and looks shiny, but the bad parts are still bad...all the polishing in the world wouldn't put chrome back where chrome is gone.

Passenger Side Quarter Window Before

Passenger Side Quarter Window After

Sanding the Body

I started off the day by rolling both of the rear quarter panels to help accommodate the wider rear differential. I simply used my hand and a heavy hammer to get the job done. I made multiple passes in order to work the lip a little bit at a time. I think they turned out pretty good considering I have never rolled a fender before and I was only using a hammer. I still need to make a few more adjustments before all is said and done, but for now I think they look much better and my tires (once I buy them) will appreciate the rolling.

Rear Passenger Quarter Panel with Rolled Lip

The rest of the day was spent sanding the panels on the car in order to find out which areas are in need of body work and which are not. By the time I was done sanding with a belt sander, I found that every panel needs some sort of body work; The trunk, both quarter panels, both doors, both fenders and yes, even the roof. The roof looks like someone beat it with a baseball bat. In the picture below, the dark spots on the roof are low spots compared to the rest of the roof. On the driver's side I counted six and I didn't even bother to count the passenger's side.

Driver's Side Roof

The driver's side door appears to have been hit (even if only slightly) as evidenced by the door handle panel not sitting flush with the quarter panel. Using a body hammer, I straightened out the edge of the door so that it now sits flush with the quarter panel. The area around the door handle will still need a little more body work and eventually a flush coat of Bondo.

Driver's Side Door

I was hoping for a body that didn't require much work, but it looks like it is going to take quite a few hours to get this car up to par before primer and paint ensue. I want to make sure the car is right before I paint it so no matter how long it takes, we'll get it done.

Correct Rim Size (Backspacing/Offset)

Description showing Negative Offset

Offset and backspace are two words that essentially describe the same concept although they describe different aspects of that concept. Think of it like this: when offset increases (0 to +12.7 for example) backspace increases (4.0" to 4.5") and when offset decreases (0 to -12.7 for example) backspace also decreases (4.0" to 3.5".) The two are directly related; more specifically they share a direct correlation.

Offset  describes the distance (often measured in millimeters) the mounting point is away from the "centerline" of the rim (the exact middle of the rim.) Offset can either be positive (+) or negative (-); positive meaning further from the back edge of the rim and negative meaning closer to the back edge of the rim. Backspace is the amount of space (usually measured in inches) between the location the rim mounts to the car and the back edge of the rim. Backspace can never be negative.

Measurements for rims aren't entirely accurate for the purpose of calculating offset and backspace. An additional 1" needs to be added to the width of the rim to derive a correct calculation. For example, a 15x8 rim is really 9" wide from outer edge to outer edge. Once the actual tire is mounted, the overall width will likely be even wider (after adding in the bulge of the tire over the rim.) Once you've taken the factory rim size (8" for this example) and added 1" (8+1=9), divide the number by 2 in order to find the cenerline of the wheel; 9/2= 4.5. If the offset for your car is 0 (center of the rim) then the backspace is 4.5. If the offset is +25.4 (or 1") then backspace is 4.5" + 1" or 5.5". Inversely, if the offset is -25.4, then your backspace is 4.5"-1" or 3.5".

In order to figure out offset, you'll first need to know what the measurement for backspace is by using a straightedge and a ruler. Lay the straight edge across the back of the rim (without a tire mounted) and using a ruler or tape measure, measure the distance from where the rim mounts to the brake drum or caliper to the bottom edge of the ruler. This distance is the backspace. Next you'll take the measurement from the previous calculation for the center of the rim and subtract it from the backspace you just measured. If the number is negative, you have what are commonly referred to as "deep dish" rims.  In the case of a 15x8 rim for a 1965-70 Mustang, this measurement should be 4.5". Since 4.5 is exactly half of the overall 9" of the rim, offset is 0 meaning that the mounting point sits in the exact middle of the rim (middle option in the picture below.)

Positive, Zero and Negative Offset

In the case of my 1966 Mustang, I have a rear differential from a later model mustang which means that it is an extra 2" wider than the stock 65-66 differential. This causes the axles to sit out 1" further on each side of the car. I cannot use stock rims because the backspace= 4.5" and with the added 1" in the differential, I need rims with backspace of 5.5". Adding an inch to the backspace will push the offset out towards the fender making it 1" or +25.4mm. Finding 15x8 rims with those measurements hasn't been easy.

I would really like to use Torq Thrust II rims on the car, but I need to see if they manufacture them. I found a website that shows them in 15x8 with 5.25" backspace so I need to measure the space in the rear wheel well to see if that will work.

Torq Thrust II Rim

I set a straight edge from the edge of the fender to the ground in order to see how much room I had before the tires were actually sticking out of wheel well. I do realize that there is a "lip" that takes up about 1" of the inside of the wheel well, but I will be tucking the lip under the fender for added room.

Space between Brake Drum and Quarter Edge

The space between the face of the brake drum and the outside edge of the quarter panel is 4.5" which is cutting things very close with the rims I will be putting on. The distance between the face of the brake drum and the outer edge of the quarter panel on a stock 1965-66 mustang is 5.5". The rims I will likely purchase have an extra 0.75" of backspace (increasing stock backspace from 4.5" to 5.25".) The total rim width of an 8" rim is 9" so when subtracting the backspace of 5.25" from 9", the amount of rim that extends past the face of the drum is 3.75" (well within the 4.5".) However another factor to take into account is the distance the actual tire sits beyond the rim. When measuring my brothers 235 60R14 tires using the straight edge, the tire bubbled 0.75" beyond the rim. Now the total amount of rim and tire that sits past the face of the brake drum is 4.5". Like I said, its cutting it close, but I don't have much of an option with rims and its only cutting it close. The part of the tire that is closest to the quarter panel (the top) is shaped much like a parenthesis; it starts small at the top, balloons out and then tapers back down to the size of the rim.

I called my buddy who works for a national tire chain and he said that the Torq Thrust II rims in 15x8 with 5.25" backspace have to be custom made from two pieces and run $230 with his discount. The two front rims in 15x6 with 3.5" backspace he can get for $150 each. With tax I'm looking at spending around $860 on rims alone. It's time to start saving again.

UPDATE 07/16/11: I bought Torq Thrust 2.1 rims from wheelsforless.com since they were on sale from $224 down to $190 each and I paid no shipping or sales tax! In total I paid $769.91 for four 17x8 rims. The backspacing on the rear rims are 5.48" (close enough the the 5.5" needed) and the fronts are 4.81" (most go 4.75"-5.00" with 17" rims.) They should arrive sometime in the next few weeks at which time I'll see if my friend Shawn can hook me up with some tires. The difference between Torq Thrust II's and 2.1's is that the 2.1's are one piece rims while the others are two piece rims. They look nearly identical to each other.

Torq Thrust 2.1 Rim

Grounded

I wasn't really in the mood to work on the car today so I did some small things that needed to get done. The dash need to have a good ground from the block in order for the gauges and other electronics inside the car to work well. I decided to run the ground wire off of the main ground post that I had created a few weeks ago instead of running a new ground off of the block. The rest of the grounds on the other side of the fender apron include the alternator, fan relay and motor. I still need to buy new front shocks...I know.

Ground Running to the Dash/Trunk

The wire goes in through the firewall and then runs along the bottom of the dash where I ran a bolt, washer and nut that the ground wire connects to. With a well grounded dash, I shouldn't have any problems with decently working gauges. The ground from the dash then runs under the scuff plate and into the trunk which will also be used to ensure a better ground for the brake/reverse lights.

Engine-to-Dash Ground

I also took the time to use the loom wrap to clean up the wires around the starter solenoid as well as the wires running to the starter. I painted the oil pressure extension which allows the pressure sending unit to mount further away from the block (otherwise it wouldn't have fit.)

Oil Pressure Sending Unit

I also mounted the hood latch since I'll be mounting the hinges, hood and fenders in the near future to begin body work and painting. I'll need to line up the hood and then adjust the location of the hood latch to ensure it closes tightly.

1966 Mustang hood latch