I finally got back to Tarija to spend a couple of weeks on the car in my spare time.  I’m still missing some parts necessary to put the engine together, so I’m concentrating on the assembly of the rest of the suspension and brakes, getting started again on the body.  It is now the rainy season, so rust takes over quickly.

Here we can see the comparison of the front brake drums before and after sand blasting, painting and turning. 

The original 4 shock absorbers and the 2 that came on the used suspension were all very different and no two had the same resistance.  I was able to get shock absorbers locally that are the right size double action, “Made in Japan”.  I would rather have holes in the base “T” to put the bolts in and reduce the chance of them pulling out, but if necessary I will weld a piece across the end.  One of the original shocks had pulled out of the top and wedged itself in the suspension.   I’m not sure if the base “T” support  is really a weak spot, as the original equipment shocks on my 4Runner broke at the joint rather than pulling out.

The brake parts all fit together nicely after blasting and painting.  The brake linings on the original car were practically new, but I bought a set of new hoses.  The brake lines look like I can clean them.

The front wheel bearings (one shown) were very bad.  I installed a complete new set.

The rear axle bearings were both in very bad shape.  Here we see one of the original rear axle bearings disassembled and whole, as well as the replacement bearings.  I used the hydraulic press to install the new bearings with about 6 tons of pressure to slide on the axle.  

Here is one wheel mounted on the suspension to measure the clearance.  Nothing touches or rubs, but I will make a 5 mm spacer to move the front tires out a little.  I want chrome lug nuts, but will have to buy them in the U.S. as they do not sell the 7/16-20 thread size here in chrome.  I am usint Pirelli P400 P195/70R14 radials with a 24.75 inch rolling diameter instead of the original 6.50 x 13 bias ply tires with a 24.44 inch rolling diameter.. 

Here you can see the difference in the front suspension between February and November.  It is all assembled and waiting for the body.

I tested the valve springs and found that they are extremely weak, showing only between 12 kg and 14 kg at installed height instead of 26.3 to 29 kg and  50 to 60 kg at compressed height instead of 64 to 67.5 kg.  I will order a set and bring them with me in January.

I decided to inspect the heads for flashing or what I originally thought was casting that was supposed to be there.  Surprisingly I found a lot of extra aluminum to cut out as well as a lot of carbon that I missed by not having taken off the exhaust manifolds when I cleaned them.  Now you can see light through the fins and the comparasion between the original condition and the final, ready to install.

Here is the semi-assembled engine and most of the parts waiting for January for their final assembly.

I’ve sandblasted the edges and interior of the doors, hood and trunk lid, painting those parts with a red paint that is supposed to convert rust to an inert substance.  The outside it is ready for standard finishing.  The black I’m painting in the doors over the red anti-rust is a sound absorbing and waterproofing product that is flowing into all the corners.  I decided to sandblast the vents on the hood to get rid of the rust and protect it with the anti-rust paint.  In restrospect, this was not a good idea.  This paint is not what I thought it was and it cannot hold an automotive topcoat.

I’ve now disassembed the headlights to sand blast them and paint them.  I’ll have to weld small sections where they have rusted through.  I have new sealed beam halogen bulbs and parking light sockets to put in when they are finished.

To make sure the rust-stopping got as far as possible I dug out the impact screwdriver I bought in 1962 when I was working on my 54 Studebaker.  That got the hinges off.  I had to repair one hinge since the pin was broken off.  After sandblasting them I painted them with the anti-rust base paint.

I’ve also chosen the final paint color.  The original, although probably faded from 47 years of weathering is on the left.  This Metallic Pearl Turquoise Glamour was used by General Motors in the 90’s.  I will use a polyurethane base with a clearcoat.  I’ll find a matching pearl or metallic pearl white for the roof.

The tunnel and a few other underbelly parts still needed straightening and painting so I sandblasted them and went back over the shrouds and other parts that I had sandblasted and given to the body shop to straighten and paint.  Their straightening left a lot to be desired so I went over each piece and corrected it, sanded lightly and repainted. At the same time I retouched the assembly scratches on the suspension.  That is a piece of half inch angle iron welded to a piece of pipe for a handle.  An excellent base to hammer against in the channel on the edge. 

The gas sending unit has a lot of rust inside.  I will combine what is decent of the original 1960 unit with one from a 61 or later, maintaining the float and tubes of the 60.

It is finally time to fabricate the gas tank.  We cut the damaged bottom section from the tank and put it back to it’s apparent original form.  From there it is used as a mold for the new lower half, forming the chanels and welding the ends, then welding the new lower half to the upper.  The upper half required a little sandblasting.  In the last picture the new lower half is tacked in place on the top for trial fitting to the car.  Now I’ll look for epoxy paint for the inside.