Rob's Austin 427 Build

[bldr.rob]

Here we go....

My 18 yr old and I are going to be working on this together before he heads off to college in a few weeks and then while he's home on his breaks. Very excited! Due to Covid my work load has been drastically reduced so it has allowed me time to get the garage ready for the new project. Here are a few before and after pix. My first time posting pictures so we'll see if formats correctly. and we received our complete kit on 7/7/20. Next post I'll add a few pix of our progress...

IMG_5199.jpgIMG_5261.jpg

[bldr.rob]

We finally got through our inventory last Friday 7/17. Wasn't bad but we are missing all of box #6 which is the rivet pattern and more aluminum panels. Other parts and pieces are supposed to be here in 2 more weeks, per FFR.
So this weekend we were able to actually start working on the car. Got the body off, all the aluminum traced to the frame and then removed. Also got to build a new work bench, early birthday present, so that was cool. Saturday afternoon we started on the Front Upper Control arms and Front Lower Control arms. Everything went together pretty well for the most part but the build manual does leave a little to be desired. Thank goodness for the build threads from EdwardB, BasdAsp, Al Pacino, Yama-Bro and others that provide incredible detail!! We also got the frame buck done but apparently I didn't pay attention when ordering the casters online and only ordered 1, DOH! The other 3 should be here today so we can get the frame off the jack stands and on to the dolly. IMO, the jack stands will work for this project but I feel the frame buck will keep it a lot more sturdy.

Sunday, we worked on the front shocks and the spindles. Shocks were easy to get together but we did have a head scratching moment trying to figure out how to get the hat on. Then it dawned on both of us that the gap in the hat is meant to slide in around the shock strut. Put the shocks on and started on the spindles.

The spindles were a little more challenging trying to get the kastle nuts tightened to not only the correct torque spec but then adding a little more oomph to turn them to align the holes for the cotter pins. Thanks again to the FF Facebook page and the feedback from folks there. We got them on and buttoned up. Here are a few pics of our progress. If anyone sees anything that doesn't look quite right PLEASE don't hesitate to let me know. I have some mechanical knowledge but am by no means a mechanic. Thanks.

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[JB in NOVA]

Welcome aboard, Rob! Looks like you're making good progress.

[RoadRacer]

Welcome Rob! James here.. following along!

[bldr.rob]

Thx JB. We're enjoying following your build thread and all the helpful tips too.

[bldr.rob]

Hey James! Thx, were enjoying following your build too. Need to make it up there and check it out still

[Straversi]

Congratulations and welcome. You and your son are in for a good time and great memories. Unfortunately, many of us have extra time on our hands these days. Thanks for posting so we can follow along. Don’t feel bad about asking questions. We have plenty of time to help.
-Steve

[TMartinLVNV]

Excellent start Rob! Welcome aboard, enjoy the madness, and I look forward to watching your build.

[mosh1999]

Check your steering arms.

[Kmcallahan]

Welcome to the family Rob. I could not think of a better project to do with your son. Also great job on the garage.

[bldr.rob]

It's been a little while since we've posted but we've been making some good progress before we took our son off to college last week. Many lessons learned! First off, the build book is really more of a suggestion and thank goodness for this amazing forum and the builders who came before us and documented their builds so well! At times it feel like we've spent more time researching a question on the forum than actually working on the car. Thanks to Yamabro, GoDadGo, Meindle, BadAsp, Pat427, Al Pacino and many others. We've been able to complete the front and rear axles and gas tank. Most of the aluminum has been drilled and set in place but I am going to take the pieces that will be seen over to a powder coater to have them coated the same color, or as close as we can get, to the Guardsman Blue we are going to paint the car. I'm still working on how to get pictures to post correctly on the forum but here are a few of our progress....

2020-07-19 15.04.14.jpg

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2020-07-22 16.47.09.jpg

This was a brilliant idea we found, I believe from YamaBro, about using zip ties to hold the rear brake pad clips in place. Geez that made it much easier and reduced the frustration!
2020-07-23 17.56.16.jpg

Rear axle installed
2020-07-30 17.43.20.jpg

Power steering rack installed. The PS side tie rod is father out than the DS side and the boots(?) are just barely touching the frame. Does this look ok?
2020-07-31 18.13.14.jpg

Gas tank installed. Same as others have experienced, the bolts sent with the kit aren't long enough so I installed these temporarily until I can get the longer ones. I straightened out the flange around the tank that had been bent up and it looks like at 3 of the 4 locations where the strap secures the tank it will work but the PS front side flange looks like I'll have to bend that area back up so the bolt and strap will align more vertically.
2020-08-11 17.48.52.jpg

Aluminum installed temporarily....
2020-08-04 17.34.14.jpg

[GTBradley]

Looking good. I've found that if you email the pictures to yourself before uploading to My Albums in Gallery it will fix the rotation issue. I did a video on this and other issue a while ago, it's long-winded and some steps are unnecessary, but it might help you:

https://youtu.be/vQ2jbt0FGNY

Bradley

[bldr.rob]

Looking good. I've found that if you email the pictures to yourself before uploading to My Albums in Gallery it will fix the rotation issue. I did a video on this and other issue a while ago, it's long-winded and some steps are unnecessary, but it might help you:

https://youtu.be/vQ2jbt0FGNY

Bradley

Bradley - thanks for the link! I’ll check it out and get the pictures better next time. Hopefully then I can post more frequently too.

Rob

[GTBradley]

Sure thing. It's still not easy, this site is stuck in the early 2000s, technologically speaking, but at least you can get the things done that you want.

PS. Mess around with the little buttons above the text window too. They are handy for posting videos and other functions. (I didn't do it on my post to keep it short in your build thread)

[bldr.rob]

Sure thing. It's still not easy, this site is stuck in the early 2000s, technologically speaking, but at least you can get the things done that you want.

PS. Mess around with the little buttons above the text window too. They are handy for posting videos and other functions. (I didn't do it on my post to keep it short in your build thread)

Ok, thanks. I've read through the thread and for some reason I just can't get my laptop to upload more than one picture at a time to my Photo Album on the forum. I've tried Shift+select and Ctrl+select and neither seem to select more than one picture. It just picks the one that was selected. Any thoughts on how to change this? It doesn't appear that my flash player is blocked, I don't see the icon on the page. Sorry for the need for remedial help on this. Thanks!

Test pic of garage upgrades from Gallery. See if this shows up as a thumbnail or full size.

2020-08-10 17.32.06.jpg

Test bend on a wire hanger before using the real fuel lines...
Test pic from folder on computer
IMG_5598.jpg

[GTBradley]

I still need help on that one. I've never been able to upload more than one at a time. Maybe someone else can chime in and help us both...

[JohnK]

Hey Rob! Welcome to the forum. Your build is looking great so far. I love the Shelby neon sign in the garage - nice touch!

[RoadRacer]

I still need help on that one. I've never been able to upload more than one at a time. Maybe someone else can chime in and help us both...

That's how it works.. one at a time. I always go through this process (but everyone has their own!)> Take pictures > which get synced with my mac automatically via dropbox > which I then resize all to 900 width using Preview > which I then upload one at a time using the Advanced editor. Without the resizing, you can hit a size limit.

[bldr.rob]

Thanks all for the picture upload advice!! I think I've finally got it figured out.

Here are a few pics from our work this weekend.

Flexible fuel lines to hard line connection



First bend in the supply and return line on PS headed down the 4" tube frame



To the end of the first 5' section of the fuel line. We don't have the engine yet so I'm going to leave these here until we get that in and we can get an exact length to the next connection.

[bldr.rob]

We were also able to start drilling and setting in aluminum for part of the trunk.


First set of aluminum to go get powder coated. Dropped off yesterday and should be ready to for pick up next week. Once we get these back we'll start the final assembly to rivet and caulk them in place. We settled on going with a matte black finish on the panels rather than trying to match the body color. Thanks to all for your great advice on helping us make that decision. I think we would have been greatly disappointed if we kept trying to match the body color.


My buddy Steve came over to help with some of thetrunk aluminum. Ha! He didn't realize there would be 55 holes to drill! We drilled the panels first, then de-burred them using @EdwardB's trick of taking a large drill bit and, by hand, turning it a few times back and forth on each side of the hole. Works like a champ! We then placed the drilled panel on the frame and drilled every hole into the frame. Same process for the trunk side panels as well.


Passenger side trunk panel drilled and set in place.


Drivers side trunk panel drilled and set in place.


For all of the aluminum that will be covered by carpet or not be able to be seen easily we are going to clean and seal them with Shardhide http://https://sharkhidestore.com/co...num-protectant. Hope to get that process started this weekend.

[Pat427]

Looking good!

I'm not too far from you in New Braunfels. If you make down this way, be sure to give me a shout.

Here we go....

My 18 yr old and I are going to be working on this together before he heads off to college in a few weeks and then while he's home on his breaks. Very excited! Due to Covid my work load has been drastically reduced so it has allowed me time to get the garage ready for the new project. Here are a few before and after pix. My first time posting pictures so we'll see if formats correctly. and we received our complete kit on 7/7/20. Next post I'll add a few pix of our progress...

IMG_5199.jpgIMG_5261.jpg

[bldr.rob]

Looking good!

I'm not too far from you in New Braunfels. If you make down this way, be sure to give me a shout.

Thanks Pat. Sent you a PM.

[BadAsp427]

Your build is looking good. Depending on the look you want, on the aluminum panels that your going to sharkhyde, I used a green scotch bright pad / 320 grit sand paper and went back and forth in one direction to create a very clean smooth look, then the sharkhyde worked great. after 10,000 miles, my bare panels still look really good.


A simple fix on the photos that may make your posting photos a little easier. When I click the add photo icon, it open up the folder where the photos on my computer are at, or I navigate to that folder that I want. Then, I "Right Click" on the photo and the select "Edit" (Not Edit with...) This open the photo in paint and then just hit "save" If you want to do any editing, now is the time, but just hitting save will save the orientation codes needed to post the photo correctly to the forum. After saving, close paint and attach photo as you normally would.

[GoDadGo]

Remember to layout and install the rear wiring harness before you permanently attach the trunk floor pans.

Good Luck & Hap-Hap-Happy Rivetting!

[bldr.rob]

Your build is looking good. Depending on the look you want, on the aluminum panels that your going to sharkhyde, I used a green scotch bright pad / 320 grit sand paper and went back and forth in one direction to create a very clean smooth look, then the sharkhyde worked great. after 10,000 miles, my bare panels still look really good.


A simple fix on the photos that may make your posting photos a little easier. When I click the add photo icon, it open up the folder where the photos on my computer are at, or I navigate to that folder that I want. Then, I "Right Click" on the photo and the select "Edit" (Not Edit with...) This open the photo in paint and then just hit "save" If you want to do any editing, now is the time, but just hitting save will save the orientation codes needed to post the photo correctly to the forum. After saving, close paint and attach photo as you normally would.

Thanks for the tip on the scotch bright pad! That's exactly what we were thinking we'd try to do. I bought some 0000 steel wool to try as well. I actually have an extra aluminum panel from the DS front footbox so I was going to do samples on each side to see how it looks. Was going to do that this weekend but threw my back out last week so hopefully I'll be able to get to it soon and I'll post up some pictures.

Thanks for the tip on the pictures as well!

[bldr.rob]

Remember to layout and install the rear wiring harness before you permanently attach the trunk floor pans.

Good Luck & Hap-Hap-Happy Rivetting!

Thank you for the tip! I greatly appreciate it.

Definitely nervous about making anything permanent. Would like to try to keep the re-do's to a minimum! But, we live and we learn and hopefully don't make the same mistake twice.

[bldr.rob]

Got a few things done today. Mostly wrapped up a few loose ends I was keeping track of but didn't want to forget while my son is off at college.

1) Greased the rear lower control arms fittings.
2) Tightened down the alan bolts on all the shock collars.
3) Decided to back track a little and make a popular mod to the front upper control arms. When we installed them I noticed how the adjusting sleeve bottomed out/ couldn't be adjusted any further once we hit the appropriate dimension shown in the build manual. After a little research it seems to be necessary to cut about 1/4" off of each end of the adjusting sleeve to ensure the front end can be properly aligned. So, I pulled apart both UCA's and cut them down using a sawzall. It got the job done but it wasn't the best way to do it. May have to go invest in a Dremel tool. I then filed down the edges to ensure all was nice and smooth and tested them on the bolts to ensure no threads were damaged from the cutting. All is good to go. Time to paint them!


You can see the adjusting sleeve, on the bottom one in the picture, is tight against each of the nuts and there is no thread showing like the one on the top side in the picture. This is on the drivers side but passenger's side is exactly the same.


This is the adjusting sleeves cut down and ready for POR-15


Next - the sleeves are painted and drying


We also got the first batch of panels back from the powder coater yesterday. Had to install the first F panel while waiting for the POR-15 to dry. Yep. That's a big 'ol scratch from the river gun. Damn. Guess we'll see if POR-15 can touch that up with a small artists brush.

[BadAsp427]

Looking really good... On the UCA sleeves that you cut off, did you also cut off some of the threaded ends that go into those sleeves? You may want to check to be sure that they are not going to bottom out inside the sleeve. Remember also, the threads in each end of the sleeve is going opposite of the other end. So in other words, they can only go on so far before the threads change direction.

[bldr.rob]

Looking really good... On the UCA sleeves that you cut off, did you also cut off some of the threaded ends that go into those sleeves? You may want to check to be sure that they are not going to bottom out inside the sleeve. Remember also, the threads in each end of the sleeve is going opposite of the other end. So in other words, they can only go on so far before the threads change direction.

Thanks for the heads up on that! I'll definitely check that before putting it all back together. Hoping to get back out to the garage this weekend.

[mosh1999]

Your steering arms are backwards.

[bldr.rob]

Your steering arms are backwards.

Well.....shoot. Thanks for double checking my work! We'll get those switched around.

[bldr.rob]

Another save by the forum (and another question).... In my previous pictures, it was discovered by a couple of forum folks that I had inadvertently installed the steering arms upside down and on the wrong sides. So, back to AutoZone to rent the giant torque wrench and re-do them. Got that all squared away.



However...... once that was done the steering was WAY off. One wheel would be straight and the other was pointing in pretty far. So, I completely removed the tie rods, measured and set the power steering rack length to the 53-1/16" as shown in the assembly manual from grease fitting to grease fitting and reinstalled. Here's the picture from the manual



Still no change. One side straight and the other side pointing way in. I've pulled the tie rods off again, threaded them 1" on to the steering rack inner tie rod and locked in with the nut. I then squared up the rotors to the frame as best I could. They are within 1/16" of being square to the 4" round tube frame rails measured at the front and back of the rotor to the frame rail.

With this done the PS outer tie rod will go into the steering arm but the DS still looks like it needs to be extended about 1". This would have hardly any threads holding it on. I'm already nervous about only having 1" of the outer tie rod threaded on as it is. This just doesn't seem right. Below are pictures of the PS and DS as it sits now.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as to what I am doing wrong or not seeing. Thank you!

[mosh1999]

The racks are not centered in the chassis. I suggest you follow this procedure.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...etup-Procedure

[bldr.rob]

The racks are not centered in the chassis. I suggest you follow this procedure.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...etup-Procedure

Mosh - Thank you for the quick replay and great link! I'll check it out and get things straightened out. Have a great weekend.

[bldr.rob]

It's been awhile since I've been able to work on the car and update with a post but I was finally able to get a little time in the garage last week. Got the clutch and brake pedal assembly installed. Had a little bit of a slow start with this as the mounting brackets were not powder coated or painted. I had all the engines compartment panels powder coated but missed getting these done. So, I prepped and painted them with POR-15. I think they turned out ok. A few tiny bubbles which I'll have to figure out how to prevent next time, but over all not bad. Hoping to get more time on the car over the next month or so since my son is home from college. He's pretty excited to get through finals and start working on it again too. I haven't had a chance to adjust the pedals yet since the brake pedal is hitting the frame member but we'll work on that soon. As always, please let me know if you see anything that doesn't look right. Thanks and have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!









My apologies for the multiple pictures but thought these may help someone else in the future.

Here they are installed:

View from top down


View from drivers seat


View from passengers side

[bldr.rob]

We were finally able to order our engine and transmission today! I think I'm almost as excited as the day we ordered the car and the day it showed up! I appreciate all of the discussions on here about what the "best" set up is for these cars as well as the engine builders who are a great part of this community. After much research, we decided to go with a carbureted 427c.i. from Blueprint Engines paired with a TKO 600 (.64 OD). Johnny over there was a HUGE help with answering all of my questions. Thank you to all on the forum willing to share their experiences and knowledge as well!

Here's a few more details on what we have coming:

PSF427_Classic_med.jpg

Engine:
427c.i. carbureted
485hp / 475ft lbs torque
Holley 870cfm with vacuum secondaries and electric choke
Power steering

Transmission
TKO 600 with .64 OD

Manifold: Weiand dual-plane satin finish

Ignition/Distributor: Ready to run distributor with ignition coil

Block:
NEW! DART SHP small block
Cleveland mains
Square and parallel decked
Align honed main bearing bore
Cylinders honed on computer controlled machine to within .0002 straightness and roundness

Rotating Assembly:
H-Beam 6-200" rods
4032 forged pistons
ARP 8740 rod bolts
Hastings moly rings
Internally balanced rotating assembly
High volume oil pump
Hydraulic roller camshaft
Heavy-duty roller timing set

Heads:
BluePrint Performance aluminum
60cc chamber
Roller 1.6 ratio rockers
Hardened retainers & springs
2.02 swirl polished intake valves
1.60 swirl polished exhaust valves

Cam Specs:
Roller cam
.608 intake .608 exhaust
248 intake / 258 exhaust @ .050
114 degree lobe seperation

Also Includes:
Ford Racing 427 Cobra aluminum valve covers
Aluminum oval air cleaner with Cobra script (may change this to the turkey pan I've read that others feel works better)
Harmonic balancer
Aluminum water pump w/driver side inlet
Spark plugs & wires
Timing cover
Powder coated oil pan
180 degree thermoset & housing
Oil filter
Plug wire seperators
Fel-Pro molded silicone steel core gaskets
Fel-Pro performance wire ring head gaskets
Brass freeze plugs

[bldr.rob]

Tinkered with the pedals a bit more yesterday. Got the hydraulic clutch master cylinder installed and got the pedals aligned. Accelerator cable is not connected yet. I'm thinking we will go with the a better set up that Johnny over at Blueprint Engines recommend for us. Lokar hi-tech stainless steel cable and ss bracket. (we ordered our engine through Johnny and should helpfully have it here by mid February)

[bldr.rob]

We were also able to get the steering shaft installed this week. You may notice in these pictures that we had to install the steering column bearing on the inside of the firewall vs the outside/ engine side. We tinkered with this for quite awhile with it on the outside and I wasn't happy with how close the knuckle on the upper steering shaft was to the bearing. It looked as though the nut that secures the shaft in the knuckle would rub on the bearing. We also had some of the steering shaft into the knuckles on both the top and bottom and the directions noted that is should be flush to the inside and not stick through. After some research on the forum, (thanks guys!), it sounds like some would have made this change if they were to do it all over again. So, we moved the bearing to the inside of the firewall and I'm much happier with all of the connection points. It also looks like mounting our pillow block on the bracket without using any spacers may work. The steering shaft does not hit the frame but there is very little clearance. I may add the spacers after we set the seats in place to adjust for height if needed.


Bearing on the inside of the firewall. Had to grind off a small part of the top of the mounting brackets in order to clear the master cylinder mounting bracket.


outside/ engine side of firewall view


Steering to power steering rack connection


Steering shaft at pillow block


Unfortunately we don't have the steering boss so we couldn't put the steering wheel on but we did use a wrench and turned the front end side to side and that was pretty cool. Bob at FF is sending the steering boos out FedEx for us. Thanks Bob!

As always, please let me know if you see anything that may not be correct. We appreciate any feedback!

[bldr.rob]

While we are waiting on the second batch of aluminum to be powder coated as well as waiting on delivery of several others parts to wrap up the brake lines we decided to get started on what, to me and as many others have admitted, the most intimidating part of the build - the wiring. Started laying everything out and got the first piece done before we had to call it a day. I'll call this a win. :-) Unfortunately we are under quarantine until Monday due to my son getting Covid a couple of weeks ago so I'll have to wait until then to get over to the hardware store to get the 1-1/4" bit to drill the 2 holes in the firewall. After that we'll get the wiring fed through the firewall.

Lots of connections to make!


Inertia switch mounted

[bldr.rob]

Had a few quick minutes to get out to the car today. I have the wiring harness located above the DS footbox but I'm taking the support bracket out to be powder coated tomorrow. I did have to cut a corner off of the mounting bracket that secures the fuse panel to the frame. The bolt that holds the master cylinder assembly in place was in the way. Not a problem. Quick snip and file and it's ready to go to the powder coater. Hopefully we'll get that back next week along with the 2nd batch of panels. In the meantime, I wanted to see what else we could move forward with and I got the ground wire connected to the frame as well as connected the brake safety switch and the clutch safety switch. I've decided to go ahead and use both of these since the Jeeps we have use both I thought it would be nice to keep things consistent.

Notch out of the lower corner


Ground wire attached to frame after removing powder coating. I attached the it using one of the self tapping screws from the the aluminum panels.


Brake safety switch connected


Clutch safety switch connected