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My '65 Mustang project. (lots of pics)

116K views 375 replies 84 participants last post by  tbrooks 
#1 · (Edited)
It was a I6 with a auto.
We got her for $2000 and that included a mildly built '95 5'0 motor with cam and Cobra intake.
It also came with all the following new metal. A complete cowl, two full rear qtr's NOS front fender, new outer wheels wells, new LT rocker, new front floors, toe panels, new gas tank.
All documentation so far points to the car only having 28K on it and it came from southern PA.
We gotta long haul ahead of us for this thing, but I think it will be worth it.




























The floor boards underneath have light surface rust only in a few spots, all the frame rails seam solid a rock.




Lynn
 
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#3 ·
After about 6 hrs on between both sides of the scrapping by hand and using a wire brush on the engine bay it is all cleaned up and ready to be covered in the Chassis Saver paint. I have gotten the all the rails underneath the front and most of the of the other side all cleaned as well.
I got my Holbart 140 handler welder the other night, so once I get some training and practice on using it, I'll tackle the rust holes.


Here is the frame cleaned up and the Chassis Saver applied to it.




I started cleaning up the radiator support and engine bay. I cleaned, sanded down, and sprayed on the Rustolium rust converter paint, then I'll hit hit with epoxy Chassis black.

Hood latch before and after


A pile of parts all cleaned up painted ready to go for reassembly at sometime.

The rear of the car has been cleaned, painted with Chassis Savor product and RustOleum rust convert paint. It will be painted Chassis black and the under coat in the spring.



Rear frame rails and floor.


Core support is now painted front and back as well as strut rod frames and lower rails. It has been painted with VHT Epoxy paint satin Chassis black.


Lynn
 
#5 ·
You've got a great starting point! Aside from the driver's side trunk drop off and the driver's side floor pan, She looks pretty clean.. You've got a much better starting point than most around here. Put her back to original!!! Or put her back to original with the exception of a V8 302/289 drive train.. Vintage Burgundy rules!!
 
#6 ·
Looks like a very solid one to start with. Very cool. And yes, Vintage Burgundy is a great color!!! LOL

Have fun,
Kevin
 
#7 ·
Thanks, we got it as a basket case and it was nice seeing what as wrong with it with no question as far as rust.She'll go back to original for the most part with the exception of a carbed '95 5.0 motor, C4 tranny, all new suspension, brakes, and some Magnums.
Lynn
 
#8 ·
Welcome to the VMF Lynn, thanks for sharing all the pics. Looks like your already making good progress, good luck and enjoy it.
 
#9 ·
I'll try and post this as a progress thread liked I'm doing on The Mustang Forums site.
I cut and posted all this from the site and I see it is out of whack a bit. Oh well.

Lynn
 
#13 ·
It came from the Stroudsburge air port a guy that used to work there owned it and let his 6-7 year old grand kids drive it around the air port all the time back in the day and smashed the whole front end up and bunged up the rear end as well.
Thank god nothing happened with the main frame rails.
Lynn
 
#11 ·
Thanks!!
I'm in NE PA about 45 miles north of Scranton PA up rt 81.

Lynn
 
#14 ·
Thanks! I got pretty far since taking owner ship on Nov 1st '09 until 12/5 or so until I couldn't work on it anymore because of the cold.

The '99 GT is mine that I have had for going on 3 years now that I bought bone stock and done several mods as seen in my sig and the '65 will be the wife's when it is done.
The goal is to have it done in 4-5 years from now in time for the Mustangs 50th anniversary, my wife's 50th B-day, and it will also be our 20th wedding anniversary so there is three good reasons to get her done.
Lynn
 
#15 ·
Update..
I haven't done much to the actual car it self because it has been too cold in the garage to do anything, but I have gotten a bunch of little stuff cleaned up and restored in the basement and on shelves waiting for reassembly at some point.

I just got my second shipment of parts today that I have ordered.

I got a full Grab a Trac suspension that in includes the following parts..

1" lowering front springs
Mid eye rear 4 leaf rear springs
KYB GR2's
1" front and 3/4" rear sway bars.

FREE '65 V8 spindles off a guy that comes into my work place!
New complete UCA's, LCAs, and spring perches.
All new V8 M/S steering components including the Shelby quick steering kit.
Full SFC's and torque boxes.
Some more assorted needed sheet metal parts.
Black curved Scott Drake MC bar.

I hope to order my full front disk brake kit in the next several weeks.
As soon as the weather brakes I want to rip into this bad boy!!
My welder is now all set and ready to go.
Come on spring!!!
Lynn
 
#16 · (Edited)
It has been a while since I updated this...
I got the floor rust cut out.



I just got back from a little training practice with my welder from one of the best welders around this part, he gave me a bunch of thin scrap metal to practice on and said have fun.

He didn't think I did too bad a job on welding the really thin stuff. The stuff I trained on was like 28 gauge sheet metal and it is thinner then anything I would do on a Mustang.

He told me if I could weld that thin a gauge good, I'd have no problem doing it on the Mustang.
So I'll start to practice a little more and start to tackle the trunk, and then the floors.
The welding practice was pretty fun and I guess I did surprisingly good for a newbe.

I've gotten all the front end parts I need for the V8 swap and a full Mustang disk brake conversion kit from CSRP.
I have gotten a rear end located and I hope to get my welding done and this puppy rolling by fall.
I also have gotten torque boxes and sub frames that i will be putting in as well.

Lynn
 
#17 · (Edited)
Update..

1)Floor pans are now done.
2)Seam sealed inside of floor pans and getting ready to under coat the inside.
3)Installing torque boxes, we just cut the fire wall slots tonight and I have to trim them some more to get them in.
4)Cutting out taillight panel, drilled out most of the spot welds using a spot weld cutter and started to pull it apart.
5)sub frame connectors are bolted in, I will weld up later.
I will try to get pics up.
Lynn
 
#19 ·
Thanks!
Tail light panel start

Seam seal done in rear and on front floors also. I used roof leak sealer for this, I have used it on my roof and it has held for a long time, I figured it will work here.

Sub frame connecters in stalled and whole underneath coated with truck bed coating.



Floors done, just needs to be under coated when the rest is ready.



Torque box start install.


That about get's me up to date.
Lynn
 
#21 ·
Success! After much messing around and fitting I got the torque box finally in! Too bad I ran out of welding wire 1/3rd way through welding it up. LOL!!

I can't find a store open around here that has welding wire and the ones that were didn't have .24 wire, oh well I started fitting the other side. The whole key is to separate them as others have stated, it saves a lot of headaches.


Lynn
 
#23 ·
Thanks!
We'll have had her a year this November 1st, I was hoping to have her all welded up and rolling before it got too cold to work in the garage, but that was not to happen.
Lynn
 
#24 ·
Started back to work on the old girl.



I got the tail light panel off and I started to look at how the trunk brace comes off.
I haven't cleaned or straightened anything up after I just got it off, but I tried test fitting the "Ford tooling" new tail light panel on and it looks like it needs some good work to make it fit.
I got more of the right side torque box welded up.
Lynn
 
#25 ·
Got a little more done...
Trunk brace is now out...

A couple holes to fix and repair rear frame rails.


I've got to flatten out the rear trunk floor edges where I buggered them up getting the damn trunk brace out.

Tail light panel test fit.


Lynn
 
#27 ·
Yes, they are the original floor boards, the tops are painted body color and the bottoms are all fully a blackish color. The whole inside of the car is painted body color.
DSO is 23 if that helps with the plant code.
Lynn
 
#29 ·
Thanks!
I'm giving ourselves 4 more years to finish it. I want a '69 or '70 fastback in the worst way to do, but we don't have the cash for one if one came up for sale now.
Lynn
 
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