Call me crazy - Ranchero's (again)

[Tom P]

It was like reading War and Peace so I managed to only skim through the 52 pages and might have missed something.
Some really great solutions to the many problems and some clever ideas here.

I have a 62 Ranchero that i'm working on and finding a lot of the same problems. I had to do way more cutting for the T5 than others say they did. I hate hydraulics with a passion so since my modified Maverick Hooker headers preclude use of the normal clutch linkage i'm using a cable. Easier to think about than to do. Had to cut two tubes off the headers and move them and then the length of the cable from firewall to pedal is too long and needs something 3" long to space it out and allow adjustment. Still working on that.

I also want to have a hard tonneau cover, perhaps one that folds in half. Maybe i can modify one meant for some other pickup. Not sure how that fits in the area below the back window.

Then there is the bed access panel that i'd like to make hinges and latches for to open easily to access the battery which is mounted there. Seems to be no way to keep that area dry and an opening panel will only make that more futile.
I used to have a 67 Ranchero and they have the area under the front of the bed accessible from the interior like you did.

Hinges and latches that don't space the panel up higher are something i could use ideas for. I know i've seen many Rancheros with the panel hinged but didn't take good pictures of the way that was done.

[Luva65wagon]

Well, I suppose now that it's done I could probably reduce the thread down to 50 pages by removing superfluous posts from it. LOL.

The battery being back there would also preclude you from wanting to open the area to the cabin - though I know old Volkwagons had their battery under the back seat and off-gassing battery juices didn't kill off those owners... or did they? Anyway, the Ford design was an afterthought from using the wagon floor pan. They left it open and punched holes in the floor to let water drain, but it doesn't take much to make holes in floors stop draining. Surface tension with water is the main problem. The tonneau cover would help, but as you indicated the recess behind the window is a hard issue to address.

I'm not so much a fan of hydraulics either - certainly not a fan of what they want to charge for them! $500 was just out of my (logic) budget. My setup took more time, but cost $50 in parts. And I enjoyed the engineering part of it. I have Doug's headers and there was no easy way to run a cable. Other than hacking $600 headers.

Feel free to host a thread here on yours and we'll do the best we can to rack up a few pages of comments, and advice, on it too!

[Tom P]

Thank you Roger. I made the whole floorpan in my car, mostly because the one piece looked impossible to install because of the rear cab wall on top and the frame rails extending underneath it. Buying the panels individually was $600 then when i put in the Point Roberts shipping address it gave me a total over $1100 ! I cancelled the order then called Dearborn Classics (this was after they moved from Oregon to the east) and talked to a human (I think?) who told me there was an oversized package charge on each piece and the shipping on each. My comparison of ordering six pizzas and having them send six drivers and giving six tips seemed to go over her head and the total didn't change.

Floorpan pieces were not that tough to make with hand tools. The double ribs were done with two beads rolled side by side and then hammering a socket to form the ends. The big indentation for the seat belt was done by hammering over a pipe. Even the 90 degree flanges were done with the vice and angle iron, i don't have a brake.

But i didn't put enough drain holes and need to fix that, it fills up with water and clogs the two small holes easily. I think we've had our year's allotment of rain already the past couple weeks. And the car is outside. I am actually working on it out there today.
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[Luva65wagon]

LOL. Loved the pizza analogy.

Try oblong holes. Same diameter, just oblong. Will tend to allow debris to flow out and minimize the potential for clogs.

Re: Rain... I know it feels like the year has been going on forever, but it's only been 12 days.

[Tom P]

Yes, I think i'll be screaming "IS IT APRIL YET?" for quite a while. I notice there are no spring swap meets any more. Doesn't look like a Puyallup or Monroe one. Not that i'm assuming the border will be open by then anyways.

[Luva65wagon]

Wow guys. I'm really sorry for abandoning this forum. It's been a rough couple years and I've been posting more on the Facebook groups for their simplicity - though I hate its ability to maintain a build thread. Anyway. lot has been done and I plan to update this thread about it all and to finally, I feel, work with interest at moving this club one way or another!

Since my last post the Ranchero got electric power steering, disc brakes, new mounts and headers (for clearance issues), Sniper fuel injection, new wheels and tires (and modifications to the rear-wheel wells because I cut a corner building them in 2008) and some further interior work. Lots I can update here, and will, to make this build thread complete.

Again, sorry, as the club president (of sorts) I hope the issues I've had focusing on the club (many caused by world-wide calamity, my physical limitations, and a car in constant limbo) are now shelved and the club can rise like the Phoenix from the ashes. LOL

[IFly12]

Thank you for your invaluable contribution to the Falcon community. It’s much appreciated.

[Obie 250]

Great to see this message and sorry to hear you been having a rough go. I have been checking in here occasionally but really stopped posting because I thought nobody was here anymore, sorry about that, I don't do Facebook. In the spirit of trying to get things moving again I will try to do some catch up posts on my build this weekend.

Thanks Roger you really are the driving force behind this forum and glad to hear you are back.