Tech day part 3

[Gina K]

Just couldn't wait, could ya Steve! You probably knew what all your Christmas presents were as a kid before you opened them.
Well here is the update....it does not "cold start" like Marv said it would. Well that's not true, it did once. He wanted perfection which is 2 pumps, turn it over, it starts and runs at high idle then you romp on the gas a bit and it kicks down. I have to give it more gas than 2 pumps and crank it over more than a couple turns. I tried to tell him it wouldn't ever be perfect like that but he wouldn't listen to me because well he knows best, right? Anyways I have had discussions with lots of you in the past about automatic chokes and mentioned my Bronco working perfect and the comments back were" was it fuel injected?" That's why it worked correctly.
I am totally happy with it so far, it's good enough for me. Has good get up and go and runs smooth.Tomorrow I am going on about a 70 drive with it so I will see how it does🚙 Stay Tuned

[Gina K]

She ran great on her first long journey! I also did 3 pumps on the cold start instead of 2 and it worked the way it suppose to!
Now to fix something else...has anyone converted vacuum wipers to electric? I know nothing about what it takes to do it.

[redfalken]

I'm pretty sure you will need an electric Falcon/Comet wiper assembly that will replace the vacuum units up under the dash. Probably a switch as well so they will park properly.

Best bet would be eBay unless someone here has a spare. Look for the 2-speed option if you can find it.

Or better yet, intermittent wipers are nice in the typical drizzle we get around here. Here's a nice write-up on using a Bronco setup:

http://www.cometeastcarclub.org/PDFs...ELD_WIPERS.pdf

[doghows]

Gina, Gina, Gina. Guess what I have sitting on my shelf. I believe I have a two speed unit that I kept from that last Ranchero I sold off. I kept a few key pieces off it and the wiper assembly was part of it. This was when I was having issues putting mine together. I'll double check it.
Congrats on the first long trip I'm glad she's finally running for you. I could tell by the smile you had that you were pleased when you picked it up last week. Now keep it running and do the things needed but not the stuff to take her off the road.

[ew1usnr]

I also did 3 pumps on the cold start instead of 2 and it worked the way it suppose to!

Hello, Gina.

I think that 3 pumps may actually be correct. The owner's manual for my 63 Falcon says that for an automatic choke and a cold engine "press the accelerator pedal three times all the way to the floor" (see attached photo). If the engine is warm, press the throttle 1/4 down and turn the key.

We want to see day trip pictures of the Comet toodeling around Washington state!

1-DCP_4963.jpg

[Gina K]

Ok, I will take some pictures for you. I always enjoy yours so I will return some joy back.Wow that's amazing you found that in your literature. I love stuff like that.
Good deal Steve. I will be at you're shop on Wednesday to drop off the carb for Roger. It will be around 9:00, gotta vet appt. for my dog that's going downhill so be by after it.

[doghows]

Cool, I'll try to round up that wiper stuff and make sure it works. I never tested it in the car but I can bench test it pretty easy.

[Luva65wagon]

I've added 2-speed wipers to both Falcons so far, but in different ways.

The wagon got a stock 2-speed setup from another 65 Falcon. The motor is slightly different and uses the other set of "3 holes" in the bracket. But I had all the bits and used none of the single-speed parts for it.

The Ranchero received one made from the brackets and transmission arms of a single-speed wiper setup (probably the ones I pulled from the wagon so long ago) and the motor and intermittent switch from a 72 F100 and a 80 Bronco respectively.

The F100 2-speed motor is an easy find and I've had no issues installing them as long as I have the Falcon rotating parts and arms. But the 2-speed and intermittent switches are yanked and often gone long before I ever see them. I have found 3 of them so far though at the local bone yards. I have one in the Ranchero and added one to my 67 F100 and have the 3rd awaiting entry under the wagon dash to replace the stock 2-speed switch. Someday. Never been a big priority, as I don't intend to drive it in the rain.

In all, the stock brackets and transmission/arms for the electric wiper Falcon are must to convert from vacuum to electric (single-speed or dual-speed). Going to the dual speed - if you're going to swap at all - is a no-brainer. Your vacuum wipers are already intermittent (in a way) and you'll be driven crazy with the single-speed wiper that is just a little too fast most of the time and not fast enough some of the time. Adding the intermittent switch almost makes the Falcon seem like a new car when you're caught in the rain. Almost.

Just so you know.

[Gina K]

Well, the Comet didn't run good for very long so it's back to the shop again in the morning. It's hard for me to describe the symptoms but it has hesitation at all speeds now, started out just a chug once in a while and has progressed. The mechanic is sure it's not the carb so we will see😟 I will keep you posted.

[Luva65wagon]

Driving a 50 year old car as a daily driver is not the same as it might have been 50 years ago. Most of us have taken steps to make cars we don't even drive daily run more reliably, and I suspect you should be seriously considering this as well.

50 years ago the parts were all new and made in the USA. Now, they are either 50 years old or made in China.

You should consider eliminating the points and condenser and going to a Pertronix Igniter system (about the only system you can add to a 170 without doing deeper work). On a car that was running well at the time I did this upgrade. The improvement was dramatic. Plus, no adjustments, wear, tear - ever - make it a pain-free upgrade for the long-term. There is probably still the wire we installed to hook it up under the dash and in the engine bay.

On a side note, a story in this regard: I went to a regional meet in Oregon a few years ago and decided to continue south towards Grants Pass to visit my mother. Not long into the southern mountain passes my wagon started behaving badly. Bucking bronco on any hill. I barely made it to Grants Pass and instead of visiting my mom, I worked on the car. I replaced just about everything I could get my hands on locally. Nothing I replaced fixed it. One thing I put back in was points and condenser. I couldn't get a carb, nor did I have the means to rebuild it there, so I decided to nurse it back to Seattle. Not far out of town I said to myself "this is worse than it was coming down" - I mean I could barely get to 30 miles an hour on the freeway, whereas coming down it only ran bad trying to pull the hills. So, at a rest stop on the side of the freeway, I pulled the points and condenser and reinstalled the Pertronix. The change was noticeable and I was able to resume with the same condition I had coming down, but was able to at least pull the car to freeway speeds (except on the passes). The issue turned out to be the carburetor, but the moral of the story is that the Pertronix kit made even a bad carburetor less of an issue.

Now onto your stuff...

You have a 50 year old coil. You should replace it. The coil may be fine, now, but this is a daily driver and coils of this era were oil filled and their life isn't infinite. It may fail at any moment and the cost of a new one is cheaper than a tow.

You have a carburetor that, as you know, is as finicky as they can be - designed to run on 100% gas and not 90% gas/10% ethanol (AKA water). Though your options are limited here, as I've labored over before (both physically and verbally) they should be considered, at best, a concern for those wanting to drive the car daily. I'm hoping it hasn't failed this soon though.

Having put some miles on the car now, you may want him to verify the valves are still adjusted. New valves "seat themselves" and clearances tighten when they do so.

To recap, I would:

1) Upgrade to a Pertronix ignition system: http://tinyurl.com/ku5sqjs

2) Upgrade to a new coil. You can get the yellow-top coil to keep it period correct:
http://www.npdlink.com/store/product...1831-2871.html

3) Check the valves again.

4) Hope the carburetor is good, but consider it may be needed to have a carb shop (one who has a flow-bench available) rebuild it - and put a guarantee on it. Steve has a shop he uses specifically for this - and I think they send them out to have the work done. There are also ads on ebay for restoration services of the 1100 Autolite.