My "shop find" Bullitt Stang!

[Xplantdad]

Looking awesome!

[big gear head]

Dang that's some fine work you are doing there! That 390 is beautiful!

[A12pilot]

Thanks guys! Now, Mike. Yes, a 390 Ford actually was designed originally for the marine industry. But a boat Anchor? Pffflllppp..... actually, I think it breaks down like this and it clearly shows its nautical roots:

390 Ford Parts Weight Conversion Chart:

1. Cylinder Heads: Turrets from the Merrimack
2. Intake Manifold: 16" Shell slug from the Missouri
3. Water Pump: Anchor chain from the Mauritania
4. Crankshaft: Recycled propeller from the Bismarck

I think that sums it up.......

Cheers
Dave

[A12pilot]

It's the detail time! Not a whole lot to show in pics, but the big thing will be the engine being reunited with the transmission today and hopefully installed in the car early next month. In preps for the major lift, I created Jigasaurus II. Now, you guys may remember me from Jigasaurus I which held the fenders and other parts while painting them. But what you may not realize I had a series of instructional videos entitled "How to mothball your battleship" and "Dig your own grave, and SAVE!"

So, I created a nice bracket to bolt to the engine that keeps chains and other parts away from the fresh paint and shiney things. Being a math major, I triangulate the hypotenuse from the third side which told me the fulcrum I needed topwise to get an equalarium balance on the motor Err.... something like that. Anyway, this sturdy bracket will make installation a breeze!

G70 Bias Plys are mounted up, and the front disks are loaded and installed. Brake and fuel lines are in too. Next up is undercoating on the wheel wells. I'm waiting on my gears for the rear. I'm going with 3.90 Super Positrack. What's that? Well... instead of being more oompf off the line, it actually puts out a tractor beam pulling the car in front of you backwards making you that much more faster! I know.... cool huh?

More later... pics of the engine matted up to come!

Cheers
Dave

[markinnaples]

Your projects are amazingly well done and the attention to detail is awesome.

[GearheadSS]

Killer. You're a freaking hoot, man. Your threads are always fun to read through.

[SS427]

If ever there was a Ford I would like to own the Bullitt replica would be it. Looking great, enjoy the ride!

[A12pilot]

Thanks guys! Some more details....I couldn't get the trans to mate up with the engine, so I just used those old bolts that hold the transmission on to cinch it on up! Just a few weird noises, but overall, seemed to go in ok. I think the new clutch disk may have caused the issue. This car isn't use to new stuff, so maybe like someone receiving a new spleen, it's the body rejecting the new parts?

Pedals detailed up....I even kept the factory date stamp on it. Will anyone see it? Sure they will after I jamb their head up there! And according to my Buildsheet, my rear springs were marked white and orange, so I replicated that. Much like my front coils which were yellow/gold. Neat stuff! More to come.....

Cheers
Dave

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Love the thread!!!

Ryan

[A12pilot]

Alrighty....3.90 Auburn Posi installed, and all the factory markings applied. That goopy-runny teal blop is pretty much spot on to what the original marking looked like. I had a new driveshaft made up since the original was so pitted. Good part? No pitting. Bad part? They painted it black even after I told them specifically to not paint it. Oh well. What can you do? Well.. you do what you usually do in situations like this and that's spray Aircraft Paint Stripper on it! Works way better on paint than it does people.

After getting the shaft down to bare steel, I applied RPM to it so it remains nice and natural-metally. After that, I applied the stripes that designate 390-4spd. Yes, they are 3/4" wide with about 2" in between and hand applied. So it's slopcity down there! See, at Ford, quality is Job-None. So no need for all those neat lines like GMs have.

Engine and trans go in the first week or March! Woo-hoo!

Cheers