1955 Ranch Wagon Cruiser

[DJ3100]

Oh how did I miss this build! I'm right at home here...very rusty sheet metal, 5.3L LSX motors stuck in everything, Trailer fender tubs! I love it! And a wagon to boot...[cl[P

I forgot that you had a 5.3 in the GMC. Looked back at a little of that - did it ever get finished?

I saw one of my replies that I was intimidated by the LS engine harness. I have done enough research and had enough hands-on that I'm at peace with it. I just don't know what to do if it doesn't work when I get to that point.

 

[jfg455]

Not done yet. Life has gotten in the way this year. I'll get back to it here in a couple of weeks.

Easiest way to do the harness is place the PCM where you want it. Attach the harness to the motor and lay it bare (pull all the covering off) Then remove all of the wires you don't need (a good 1/3 of the harness) then start running all the wires to the PCM. Then you can lengthen or shorten them as you go. Also give me a shout if you need the GM schematics. they help a ton! [P

 

[DJ3100]

Not done yet. Life has gotten in the way this year. I'll get back to it here in a couple of weeks.

Easiest way to do the harness is place the PCM where you want it. Attach the harness to the motor and lay it bare (pull all the covering off) Then remove all of the wires you don't need (a good 1/3 of the harness) then start running all the wires to the PCM. Then you can lengthen or shorten them as you go. Also give me a shout if you need the GM schematics. they help a ton! [P

Thanks, hadn't thought of doing it while it was on the engine. I have a couple sources on the schematics. I still haven't decided where the PCM will go. I think it would be easiest to put it where it was on the truck it came out of - driver's inner fender at the front of the engine. But I would like it to be somewhere not quite so prominent. Don't know yet is there is room under the dash or even if I want to go to the trouble of mounting it there.

Looking forward to seeing more on the GMC.

 

[zzrodder]

Love this build! These Ford longroofs hold a special place in my "cars I like best" mental file having grown up riding in the back of my Dads 56 Sedan Delivery (who needs seatbelts, the kids will just bounce around back there...) - my brother still has it, going through its third resto/rod rebirth with a tripower 312 Y block.
Keep the good stuff coming [cl[P

 

[DJ3100]

Love this build! These Ford longroofs hold a special place in my "cars I like best" mental file having grown up riding in the back of my Dads 56 Sedan Delivery (who needs seatbelts, the kids will just bounce around back there...) - my brother still has it, going through its third resto/rod rebirth with a tripower 312 Y block.
Keep the good stuff coming [cl[P

I like those Y blocks. If this one still had the Y block I would have figured out how to keep it.

 

[DJ3100]

Master Brake and Clutch

I got a Speedway 8" dual diaphragm booster and Corvette master cylinder. I had a 3/4" Willwood cylinder for the clutch master left over from the F2stang..

I tried out the Ford original master cylinder location, but it was a little close to the engine, but finally figured out that if I moved it 1" to the outside I'd be able to use the original pedal set up.

(This post sort of goes backwards -starts at the end. Hope it doesn't confuse everyone.)

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The original has a stepped bolt going through clutch pivot and then the brake. The Clutch has two 3/4 ID x 1/2" long Thorsson needle bearings. Never seen that before. Grainger had the exact same bearings.The pivot bolt is hardened and shows no wear.

I added a threaded boss to the brake pedal and a longer one to the clutch pedal. Also, in you can see the finished filler plate/lower column mount.

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I thought it might be possible for the extensions to cause the bracket to bend, so I welded a gusset plate to the head of the pivot bolt, and some threaded bosses to the bracket. I don't have all the bolts in place in these photos. The hydraulic press and a torch was used to hot shape the clutch and brake pedal so they would clear the column and someone's size 12 clod hoppers.

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I had to mod the bracket with a few cuts.

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I cut a little at a time this is about 1/2 of the total cut.
The raised portions of the firewall allow my 1/4" plate to fit flush on the inside and still be the same height on the outside. I tried to match the factory radii on the finished plate. Can't really see it from anywhere.

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[DJ3100]

Throttle by wire

The engine came with the throttle by wire gas pedal. I have since learned there are several different versions of the gas pedal and mine looks like the hardest of all of the to work with.

Mine is made of some kind of composite - I think glass filled. The shape was impossible. The mount had to be at the column and even then the pedal was hitting the tunnel.

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Like everything else, this all sounds obvious and easy, but at the time -not so much. I finally tried drilling and tapping the plastic and found it to be very machinable. So I made this cut.

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Then I was able to mount the device and figure out how to make the pedal. There are three tapped holes in the top and 2 around on the side. I'll add some JB weld when I'm sure everything is right. The actual oversize pedal is just bolted and can easily change shape and size.

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[DJ3100]

Heater plate

I talked with the Vintage Air tech and told him about the long roof in Arizona.
He strongly recommend the Gen IV evaporator - puts out about 20% more than the Gen II. The evaporator is huge! I got it mounted and then worked on the heater block off plate. It will be nice to be able to remove it when I'm installing the unit. The 2 holes are for the AC bulkhead connectors

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The heater hoses run parallel with the dash and 3/4" behind the firewall. By running them out of the abandoned fresh air vent they will be one piece all the way to the water pump. They should lay nicely on the inner fender.

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[forbigpicture]

dj3100, really nice work......
i'm excited about a wagon build, 'cause i'm a wagon guy too
have a 69 kingswood hope to start on after the first of the year
if health improves(probably to new to post here, we'll see)
see i told you i was excited i'm rambling on

 

[jfg455]

What are you using for the clutch slave? You had said you had a Ford T5 in it. Do you still have the Ford pull style slave or are you using a push style chevy set up? Reason I ask is in the 59 F100 I did a 351W / T5 swap in I had terrible luck with A: the Wilwood clutch master and a McLeod pull style slave for the Ford T5. The actuation was rough, sticks 1/2 way through engagement, then the Master started leaking. THis is when I found out Wilwood has a zero warranty policy on their parts. They said they are all racing parts so there for no warranty. I used a spare I had but it wasn't much better. I adapted the cable bell crank from a mustang to it and now it works awesome with a light pedal. I still have the McLeod pull style slave if you are going that route. Only was actuated about 350 times since last august.

 

[DJ3100]

What are you using for the clutch slave? You had said you had a Ford T5 in it. Do you still have the Ford pull style slave or are you using a push style chevy set up? Reason I ask is in the 59 F100 I did a 351W / T5 swap in I had terrible luck with A: the Wilwood clutch master and a McLeod pull style slave for the Ford T5. The actuation was rough, sticks 1/2 way through engagement, then the Master started leaking. THis is when I found out Wilwood has a zero warranty policy on their parts. They said they are all racing parts so there for no warranty. I used a spare I had but it wasn't much better. I adapted the cable bell crank from a mustang to it and now it works awesome with a light pedal. I still have the McLeod pull style slave if you are going that route. Only was actuated about 350 times since last august.

I'm using a Ram hydraulic throwout bearing. They suggest using the 3/4" master. I didn't have the clutch fork or a throwout bearing and the hydraulic throwout seemed easier and less expensive. They are fairly common on a lot of modern applications, but I have zero experience with them. I actually never thought about using the Mustang cable and bell crank.

 

[DJ3100]

wheel tubs

I have working on the wheel tubs forever. Filling in the inside has been a real challenge.

I don't really fit in this hole. Can barely get my welding hood in there and can't see what I'm doing when I get there.

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I have been using this Weld Through Primer ( miss-named) on the filler pieces. After I get one made, I shoot the primer and wait for it to dry; then attempt to get it welded in place.

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Basically I declared it finished until I get that axle out of the way.

So, I'm ready to move to the next project.

 

[DJ3100]

Rear Seat

When I got the car the backseat was fowl smelling, the foam was hard and breaking up, so was the upholstery. Probably pack rats had been building nests in it. So I wrapped it in plastic and put it on the shelf without really looking at it.

Now I'd like to complete the tunnel, but I'm not sure how much room the seat needs. So out came the seats.

They are a bigger disaster than I thought. I don't have anything to hold the back in place and I don't know what I need or what I don't have. The bottom edge of the seat bottom is broken.

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I figured out I did have the base for the bottom of the seat. There's the part of the tunnel I'm wanting to finish.

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It looks like the change of wheel tubs hasn't hurt too bad. but I can't tell without the mount.

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[DJ3100]

Desert Valley Auto Parts

I gave some consideration to a Mustang rear seat and to Mustang buckets like the fronts.

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I decided it would be cooler to have an original seat that folds down, so I made a trip to Desert Valley Auto Parts (they were the Desert Car Kings show).

I was missing the tailgate latch and got one

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The hole for the ash tray is missing something because the ash tray just falls out, so I got that piece

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For some reason there were several types of folding rear seats in the 55 and 56 Ford wagons they had. I picked one that looked most like mine.

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On the way home, I realized the seat was never going to fold up because of the increased tunnel height.

 

[DJ3100]

The seats were covered with 1/2" of dirt. These photos are after I took a hose to them. The foam and upholstery is still pliable.

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They have a 3/4" plywood base trimmed with stainless. I got the brackets and the latches that hold the back up.

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Not quite sure where this goes from here, but at least it's a start.

 

[skull]

stuff

how are the guy at the yard to deal with and what kind of prices?[S they looked kinda of like a bunch of duffas's on the show.

Later

 

[DJ3100]

how are the guy at the yard to deal with and what kind of prices?[S they looked kinda of like a bunch of duffas's on the show.

Later

I thought they were good to work with. They pull any parts you want. The latch was $45 which I thought was a deal - no one repops them and the surviving wagons are rare. They had several wagons but only one latch that I saw.

The seat was pricey, ($375) but there are a lot of parts and it took the guy about 45 minutes to get it out. They weren't too interested in dealing on it.

They have a lot of inventory mostly from the '50's - some later and some earlier. I need a rear bumper, but I didn't see any that were decent.

I would go back - but I will try to go when the temperature drops into the '70's. I spent way too much time in the sun at 95 degrees.

 

[DJ3100]

Rear Seat

The point of this seat diversion was to get the rest of the tunnel and floor built.

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In order to get the car lowered and have a little better stance I moved the engine and trans up in the car, and made the tunnel bigger. The part of the tunnel under the rear seat seems like it will need to be made larger as well.
Here's a shot of the tunnel from the rear toward the trans.

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The box tube needs to tied into the rear of the floor pan.

 

[DJ3100]

I mentioned before that that I saw several styles of rear seat brackets. The cushions were the same but the brackets and supports were different.

Here's the bottom seat support pivot. The one bolted in looks like the improved version - dimensions are the same but the extra length and third bolt were added.

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Mid year change? The pivot on the seat is different and the seat pan is all metal on my original. The "new" (or is it older) one is plywood.

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I didn't have the brackets that support the seat back. The new one has no hope of working. The contour is different and the holes don't match. Did they change the floor pan? I am guessing the "improved" version used the 4 holes.

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Anyone have any ideas on where to look to at least see a drawing of the pivot bracket that will fit my floor pan?

I did sit in the seat and decide that it could move up without any negative impact to the sitter.

Also, when I look at the seat bottom the cushion looks backwards. The front of the seat is where the pivot is. What do you think?

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[Torchie]

There are 2 1955 Ranch wagons on e-bay right now. The green one shows a good shot of the rear area but you cant really tell what the seat pan is made of. The light blue one shows a shot of the back seat and it would appear that the thick edge of the seat bottom is at the front of the seat

For years Ford would change things with no rhyme or reason and most restorers would jokingly say that the reason for the change was that Ford ran out of the old style part. So who knows.
Were the different style back seats all from 2 dr wagons? As the 4 dr might have a different configuration and brackets.
Torchie.