Saving Granddad's Falcon

[Luva65wagon]

Don, OK, since you said please. I probably have your address somewhere, but if you could PM it to me again I'll throw that in the mail to you - stat. Wish I would have remembered it today.

I am pretty impressed with how much is already on the car. Who did all the glass and door handles, etc.?

[dhbfaster]

Thanks Roger!
Phil did the glass, rebuilt the doors, and the installed door handles. (Left me the rear locks ) Actually he took care of everything inside of the doors, and rebuilt the doors...and there was quite a bit to it. Rusted channels that had to be replaced, etc. Some parts he bought where we bought the fender, and I think some he had, some I bought. There was some other nice work on the door trim too...more later. Relatives visiting!

[Jeff W]

Having those details done by Phil was a great idea. You would be surprised how long and finicky that stuff is. That really set you up to get it done in time for the mini. It is looking just super and I am proud of you.

[dhbfaster]

Thanks Jeff...and I would NOT be surprised how finicky that stuff is. It seems like everything has been finicky.
I got a chance to get it out in the sun today...here's a better picture.
My friend also finished the carb...I hope it works as good as it looks.

[PhilC]

Car looks nice sitting in YOUR driveway Don.

[Luva65wagon]

Don - that carb looks nice. Good to see one of those not all warped to heck.

Hopefully the adapter I sent arrived already. Would hate to see that go missing in the USPS black hole.

[dhbfaster]

The adapter showed up in yesterday's mail Roger - Big thanks -

Almost all the family is gone this week and weekend- looks like a short honey-do list and then... a falcon weekend for me. That should mean at least one full day.

[dhbfaster]

Started to reassemble the heater tonight. Bought the heater seal kit with all the little foam seals...but no adhesive? Any recommendation as to what kind of adhesive to use?

Ok, one more carb pic just for fun.

[Luva65wagon]

3M black weatherstrip adhesive. You'll use it other places too.

Carb looks pristine inside. Very nice.

[SmithKid]

A slightly different way.... I used another 3M product: the same spray adhesive that I used on my carpet underlay. Got it at Freddies.

[PhilC]

A slightly different way.... I used another 3M product: the same spray adhesive that I used on my carpet underlay. Got it at Freddies.

What I used when I rebuilt mine and what I'd use to do again. Would have to go to the shop for the exact product number. I recommend it for the door panel moisture shields too, much better than the more commonly used strip caulk which functions rather poorly as an adhesive IMO.

[Luva65wagon]

All well and good, but keep in mind you have far greater potential for over-spray using the spray adhesive. Be careful with it!

And if you doing small parts the squeeze tube 3M adhesive (in black) can be applied in a small-tight location. The function is identical to spray adhesive as well as something like Wellwood contact cement, which is also an option.

All have their benefits, of course.

Strip-caulk was used on water shields to (technically) allow the shield to be pulled back without ruining the shield. Doesn't always work, but you'll want it to. I find old strip caulk on cars/trucks that has dried to stone, but the black 3M stuff I use now I'll have to wait 50 years to see what it looks like then.

[PhilC]

Can be Roger. The spray adhesive I use (3M 8088) has an adjustable width fan I find easy to control, but maybe I just have that part down.

Not to be contrary, but Ford did not use strip caulk for the moisture shields, they used a continuous bead adhesive material they called "cement" - Ford p/n M-2G17-A. For parts that penetrated the moisture seal (door release mechanism, regulator, armrest screws, etc.) they specified a sealant (very similar to strip caulk) - Ford p/n M-5397-B. This sealer was heavy bodied to fill the large cavities vs attaching the shield. You can find this info in the 60 - 63 shop manual on pg 12-23, section 2, para 5. I believe both were dispensed from a type of caulking gun.

If you find an intact original door you'll see what I'm referring to and can tell the difference between the "cement" used by the factory for retaining the moisture shield and the caulking used on the other parts.

Though strip caulk is somewhat similar, and commonly used, there are, IMO, better products. In my experience, the 3M spray adhesive is much more forgiving should you need to remove the moisture shield in the future and far less permanent than 3M 8001/8008 weatherstrip glue.

My 2 pennies FWIW.

[dhbfaster]

So, interesting enough, I originally figured that the spray adhesive is what was used, but I didn't want to be spraying anything near the car...and since I have been working mostly between 8:30pm and 10pm this week and I don't that have room to lay things out on a big piece of cardboard...that means I didn't want to be spraying anything in the garage at all.

So, I jumped on Rogers advice and bought the weatherstrip adhesive the same day at lunch (Autozone) and I am finding it easy to use as far as adhesives go.

The heater is almost done...it seems best to glue a few pieces every night. (There are a lot of those little foam pieces!) Meanwhile, I have completely de-rusted, painted, or powdercoated all the parts of the heater and vents inside and out except the fan assembly which was fine. I'm still not happy with my 2nd (rattle can) try on the doors...but I've decided they'll do for now. It seems I'm short on the clips...I only have five of them for some reason and need (I think) 10 - the one spot I broke on the housing before Jeff thoughtfully and proactively gave me advice on how to take them off without breaking! It's a good thing he did, because I didn't break any more after that- thanks Jeff!

For the door shield...are you guys talking about the plastic sheet that goes on the inside-of-the-car side of the doors which gets hidden by the interior panels? So my first question on that is on the plastic...it seems like the original stuff was somewhat stiff (maybe just "old" stiff?") Any reason I can just go to home depot and use some heavy plastic sheet?

Meanwhile, I think after the heater is done, I'm going to start at the back of the car and work forward this weekend. A question on the door and truck lock covers. (btw Phil, the only one I polished up must have been the one for the trunk...I must have just forgotten to do the ones for the doors.) Anyway, my question- If I just buff these up, will they hold the shine pretty well? or are these plated and is it possible to replate these since the moving cover is attached? I hope my question makes sense.

Thanks all....

[Luva65wagon]

Hey, no problem Phil. I guess I was more talking what might be stuff you can use today - or I have used. Always willing to learner myself.

Don, I've used heavy mil plastic with good results. You want to peel it away if ever it's necessary, so it Phil has a recommended product, it's his masterpiece so defer to his recommendation. I use 3M 08578 strip caulk for this, but its because I may not know of something better and easily available.

I think most lock caps are stainless and hold a shine for a long time.