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Restoration Advice

252 messages,  Last post on Mar 28, 2013 at 10:52 AM

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What is this discussion about? Performance Mods, Auto Body, Auto Repair, Classic Cars, Coupe, Convertible, Truck, Sedan, Wagon

Messages Page 21 of 26

#200 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [tbird8] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

May 29, 2009 (7:54 am)

Replying to: tbird8 (May 29, 2009 12:53 am)
I wouldn't pay extra for the 428, no, but I would pay extra for factory AC.
 
Yes you are correct, the 67-69 Birds will never be worth very much.
 
RE: Hagerty --- Hagerty will insure ANYTHING that is remotely old, so I think the criteria for whether you "modify or don't modify" an old car has to rest on something else---probably market value is the most sober approach.
 
Modify a $15,000 car? Sure, why not. After 45-50 years if it's only worth $15,000 nearly restored, you are not sitting on a gold mine there.
 
Modify a $50,000 car? Probably not a smart idea, but people do it all the time, and if the mods are tasteful and reversible, the marketplace doesn't seem to mind too much. Just don't mess with vin and data tags, don't cut the car, and don't throw away what you took off.
 
The idea of "purist" coupled with mass production American cars made in the 100s of thousands makes me chuckle a bit. There comes a point where a heated debate on the fender bolt markings and lengths on a Model A Ford becomes Theater of the Absurd.
 
I can see big changes in people's attitudes about restoration. It seems we went from the "careless restoration" period of the 60s and 70s, to the fanatical authenticity and pampering of the 90s to the "get it in and drive it" attitude of 2009.
 
A balanced middle ground if you will.

#201 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [Mr_Shiftright] by euphonium

May 29, 2009 (9:49 am)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (May 29, 2009 7:54 am)
There comes a point where a heated debate on the fender bolt markings and lengths on a Model A Ford becomes Theater of the Absurd.
 
Saturday, July 18, Bellevue College, Bellevue, WA is when judged Mustangs undergo a very meticulus and exacting discernment of authenticity.
 
Your attending the judging process would be educational, informative, & inspiring.
 
Hose clamps, bumper bolts, & fender bolts are just a few items that can cost points. Striving for perfection is to be admired.

#202 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [euphonium] by andre1969

May 29, 2009 (10:08 am)

Replying to: euphonium (May 29, 2009 9:49 am)
I heard a story once about how a woman took her Mustang in to get new tires, and then had a fit because when they gave the car back to her, the little ponies on the hubcaps weren't lined up!

#203 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [euphonium] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

May 29, 2009 (1:25 pm)

Replying to: euphonium (May 29, 2009 9:49 am)
I used to judge actually. As you can tell, I didn't much care for it.
 
When you have a LOT of a certain car still around, like a Mustang, and when you have a LOT of people restoring them, the competition is fierce and so the focus becomes more and more intense, and revolves around those little details.
 
But all that can blow up in your face. I've seen judges take points off on a car I know for certain was never touched. The problem of course, is that the factory didn't always do things one particular way, so questions always remain.
 
Striving for perfection can be admirable, and it can become a parody of itself. It depends.
 
In my humble opinion, finding the correct air cleaner on a rare shaker hood or rare intake manifold is indeed striving for perfection and should be rewarded. Insisting on the correct markings on a fender bolt from a car slammed together on an assembly line in Detroit in numbers bordering 1/2 million,---this to me is a waste of good people's good time.
 

#204 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [Mr_Shiftright] by euphonium

May 29, 2009 (9:36 pm)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (May 29, 2009 1:25 pm)
Did you judge Mustangs, if so which generation? Still have your active card?
 
They are not easy to attain these days.

#205 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [euphonium] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

May 30, 2009 (9:10 am)

Replying to: euphonium (May 29, 2009 9:36 pm)
No I did more like charity events, 50s cars and British cars. I really don't have any interest in Mustangs per se. In the charity events you can ask for certain marques or eras but sometimes they stick you with cars that you aren't much interested in. I really wouldn't feel qualified to judge but a few types of cars. I'd be good on MGs and Porsches I think and Packards. I was asked to judge at the recent Marin-Sonoma Classics show but declined and went into the Car Corral instead, where cars were for display only. I like talking to owners, especially those that have done modifications such as Pro Tourers or Retro-Rods. Their ingenuity is quite amazing sometimes.

#206 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [isellhondas] by tbird8

May 30, 2009 (12:46 pm)

Replying to: isellhondas (May 29, 2009 6:27 am)
Are the 390 and 428 the same motor? Excuse the stupidity here but I've always thought the 428 was a 390 with different heads. Shows what I know. Oh what about the 1963 birds? any better? Or same problems?">

#207 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [euphonium] by fintail

May 30, 2009 (3:24 pm)

Replying to: euphonium (May 29, 2009 9:49 am)
Maybe this year I will attend that and not stumble into some back entrance where a guy tries to charge me $20 admission...
 
Personally, I value preserved unrestored cars more than overblown restorations.

#208 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [tbird8] by andre1969

May 30, 2009 (5:20 pm)

Replying to: tbird8 (May 30, 2009 12:46 pm)
The 390 and 428 are from the same engine family, the "FE" engine, which started in 1958 as the 332 and 352 in Fords and the 361 in Edsels. The 428 had a larger bore than the 390, and probably took the block to its limits, with either too thin of a cylinder wall, too narrow of a water jacket, etc.
 
The 428 was as big as they were able to take that engine block, so it was replaced around 1968. A new big-block came out, initially displacing 429 CID, but in the 70's it bumped up to 460.
 
I know a guy who has one of those "7-Litre" Galaxies, which was the 428. He blew it up somehow, but I forget exactly what happened. Either threw a rod, spun a bearing, or whatever, but it pretty much destroyed the engine.

#209 of 252 Re: A few more questions... [andre1969] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

May 30, 2009 (6:12 pm)

Replying to: andre1969 (May 30, 2009 5:20 pm)
I think those engines are kinda dogs, aren't they?

Messages Page 21 of 26

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