1952 F-6 Build

[Torchie]

Onward and upward.....

Now that the rear is back on wheels I will turn my attention to the front axle.
As I posted earlier I finally got the seized kingpins out. Also received all the new parts need to reassemble the front axle and spindles.
King pin kit. New shackle kits etc.
Pic 1. Shows the current state of the axle and wishbones. If it was a little warmer I would take it outside and sandblast it. But our temps have dropped here so it's a little cold for that.[S Clean up will have to be wire brush and flapper wheel.

Pic 2. Hard to believe that this was once a rubber ball on the end of the wishbones.

Pic 3. You can see the remnants of the lower shock studs that were welded onto the top of the axle. Not an uncommon thing back in the day but in this case the shocks were angled backwards. Outboard at the top and inboard at the bottom. Don't know how well the worked as they were all seized up a well. But the look of them annoyed me. so that will be changed as well.
The big hang up may be getting my spindle bushing honed and the new kingpins fitted as my go to guy for machine work is taking a 2 week long Vacation. What nerve.
Thanks for looking in on me....
Torchie.

 

[christcrusader13]

Keep at it my friend!

 

[Torchie]

And now for something a little different...

When I started to plan this build I thought about all of the things that I wanted to do.....
Chopped. Channeled.Lead work.Vintage engine. Tuck and roll interior. Great paint job,Blah,blah,blah.....
Well. Just like many things this build has changed. Did the chop and the channel. Didn't use lead for the body work. Still have plans for the Tuck and roll and paint. That brings us to the vintage engine.
Thanks to a little help from my friends I picked this up over the weekend.
1953,324 Olds Rocket. Came from a running - driving project that got side tracked.
Looks a little rough on the outside but the internals look good. Turns over with good compression and oil pressure.
Ordered some tune up parts and am going to change out the fluids and fire it up.
The flathead that I have will either get mothballed for the time when I can afford a rebuild or sold to further fund the project.
If done correctly this engine is a drop in swap with no frame mods needed.
Stay tuned for further developments.......
Torchie.

 

[I-R-POPS]

Rocket propelled!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's a great engine.
Stay after it brother.

 

[Old Iron]

I like the way you think.
Olds mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm [cl [P

 

[soltz]

Great choice of motors. I ran a 57 371 for a long time [cl

 

[Torchie]

Rocket propelled!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's a great engine.
Stay after it brother.

I like the way you think.
Olds mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm [cl [P

Great choice of motors. I ran a 57 371 for a long time [cl

This is the 3rd Olds that I have owned. First one was in a 56 Wagon back in the 70's.That had a 324. Then I had a 394 in a 64 Olds Starfire Convert.
I found a set of "Hurst" style mounts and Wilcap still makes the engine to Ford trans adapter. More importantly I scored a NOS Olds 176 tooth flywheel.[cl
These flywheels are scarce and a new one is $$$$$$$. So at this point all system are go towards Rocket power.[ddd
Have a safe and Happy New Years Eve.(or as I called it for the 35 plus years that I had to work on it. Amateur Night).
Torchie.

 

[sgtpontiac]

Good deal Torchie....but ya gotta do me a favor...

steady yourself before you take those pics....me thinks me eyes are crossed...LOL....

Seriously...that olds should scoot that right along...good score on the motor...so the guy won't let you borrow his tools eh?? Used to have a full set of tools and reamers for kingpins but sold them off when I hadn't used them in 20 years.....now I could kick myself....no other shops close by that can handle that?...
I've got a small machine shop by me that handles any of my machining stuff...like lathe or mill work...pretty reasonable...and close...about a mile away...he had a big contract with Detroit diesel machining injector parts but that dried up so he takes in piece work now....sorry I ramble....

 

[MercuryMac]

Nice SCORE, Torchie. Every hotrod deserves a vintage engine, and you certainly found one. Keep on tinkering.

 

[Torchie]

Oh, didn't he ramble...

steady yourself before you take those pics....me thinks me eyes are crossed...LOL....

Seriously...that olds should scoot that right along...good score on the motor...so the guy won't let you borrow his tools eh?? Used to have a full set of tools and reamers for kingpins but sold them off when I hadn't used them in 20 years.....now I could kick myself....no other shops close by that can handle that?...
I've got a small machine shop by me that handles any of my machining stuff...like lathe or mill work...pretty reasonable...and close...about a mile away...he had a big contract with Detroit diesel machining injector parts but that dried up so he takes in piece work now....sorry I ramble....

Sorry about the pics Sgt. That is me being steady....
I looked at the price of reamers and said......
I will mess around with other stuff until he gets back. There used to be quite a few shop like that in my area as well. But they have gone the way of the Dodo bird as well.

Off to the Drs for an Unschedueled appt.
See you all later.
Torchie.

 

[smallfoot]

They say the only thing constant is change! I know the old flatheads are cool but you should be able to produce a little power with the olds for a little less. Keep it up buddy! Looks like we both won't get that first drive till 2-0-1-5...

 

[Torchie]

They say the only thing constant is change! I know the old flatheads are cool but you should be able to produce a little power with the olds for a little less. Keep it up buddy! Looks like we both won't get that first drive till 2-0-1-5...

Seems like smallfoot.
I am planning on running the Olds in stock form so we are talking maybe 200hp since it is the 4 barrel. The flatty in stock form is maybe 110hp. So there will be some increase there. I am going for a "cruiser not a bruiser"anyway. Just as planned with the flathead I will add some bling to the Rocket if and when the budget allows.
Hard to believe in this day and age of a 500hp sbc being considered a mild build that both these engine were "hot" for their time.
Torchie.

 

[Torchie]

Bittersweet start to the new year as I watched my oldest pack her car and head off on her latest adventure this morning. Safe travels.......

In project news I swapped an old spare starter for a rebuild on my Rocket starter.[cl And also got the tune up parts that I ordered. Flywheel may be here today as well.
Keep on keeping on......
Torchie.

 

[Torchie]

Too darn Coooold.....

No progress to report as it was around 0% in the shop this morning.

Had to cancel 2 Drs appointments this morning due to White out conditions.
Starter is off to the rebuilders and having checked UPS tracking the fly wheel arrives tomorrow.[cl

Torchie.

 

[gold03]

Hey Torchie, the local deep freeze has put a halt on my project.

Damn cold here. we hit 32C degrees below

 

[christcrusader13]

Keep Warm Torchie!

Stay warm up there.... good time to go over your plans for the next phases!

 

[Torchie]

Stay warm up there.... good time to go over your plans for the next phases!

Thanks cc I will.
Only progress is sending out the NOS Olds flywheel for a quick cleanup and the front spindles off to the shop to get the kingpins fitted. Supposed to warm up but I have 5 Drs appts over the next 4 days so I don't know about shop time.
Still haven't got things under control health wise so we will see.
Thanks for checking up on me.......
Torchie.

 

[I-R-POPS]

Still praying for you brother.
Hope you get straightened out soon.

 

[smallfoot]

Yessir, take care of your health first buddy. The truck will be patiently waiting on your next move.

 

[Old Iron]

Get straightened out Bud