The Rickster - a 73 Mach 1 work in progress

[92GTS-R 34]

Great, thanks for the detailed instructions 

[73MustangCoupe 41]

I got the torque box covers in, and they seem to be a decent fit.  I ground down the spot welds on the upper torque box cover to thin them out and weaken them so I could remove the cover.  The inside wasn't to bad, just some surface rust.  

I cleaned up the frame rails and fitted the new cover.  It did take a bit of massaging to get it to fit as well as it was going to.  It was just a bit short, not wanting to cover the frame rail when tight against the rocker, but there was enough bearing on the frame rail to be a sound installation.  I also cleaned the inside of the torque box and then welded up a few cuts and thin areas in the flanges.

I drilled the plug weld holes in the cover and and cleaned it up nicely, and then put it in place and clamped it in. 

 

I put a small sharpie dot at each plug weld location.  Then I removed the cover, once again, and placed a 3/4" round removable label (Avery 5471) at each weld location.

I did the same on the bottom of the cover, covering the holes. 

I sprayed rust encapsulator in the lower portion, as removal of all the rust just wasn't possible.  On the cover, I used self etch primer.  After the primer dried, I peeled the dots to reveal nice round spots of clean metal, just right for welding.  

For the final time, I clamped the cover onto the torque box and started welding it up.  I started with the least mobile sections, the aft rocker plug weld, the making sure the front rocker and rear frame rail were tight, started welding those corners.  Some persuasion with the body hammer and clamps was necessary to achieve a tight fit, but it welded in really nice, I thought. 

Overall, it came out pretty good, I thought.  Now to patch up the small rust hole in the inner wheel house, and the portion of the floor that butts up to the rear floor pan extension.  I hope to have that all done in the next day or so. 

Moving forward, slowly, but surely.

 

Edited November 11, 2020 by 73MustangCoupe

[Fabrice 116]

Using stickers for welding points is an awesome tip!

Keep up the good work and thx for documenting!

[73MustangCoupe 41]

With the torque box repaired, I got to work on the driver side rear floor pan extension.  I removed the rest of the rear floor pan extension and the flange that folds downward around the inner wheelhouse.  

With the excess floor pan out of the way, I started making a patch for the rusted out area on the panel just behind it.  I cut out cardboard templates, dividing the repair into two pieces to make it easier to fabricate.  

I cut out some sheet metal to fit, and got the first and largest piece in place.  I cleaned the new metal, and also cleaned both sides, top and bottom, of the floor along the edges where I'd be welding.  

 

I tacked the new piece in place and then stitched it place.  There were a couple thin spots and I wound up burning a couple of holes, but overall, the welds went in pretty nicely.  I ground them down and touched a couple pinholes and moved on to the next piece.  

The second piece was a little more complex with some concavity along the bottom.  I used my beater bag and hammer and dolly to create the curve, and then used some pliers to make a slight round over to ease the transition where needed.  Again, some spot welds and then stitch welding it in place.  

Then it was on to creating the patch for the inner wheel house.  I cut out the rust hole and adjacent messed up spot welds. 

Again, I made up a cardboard template, copied it onto some metal, and cut it out.  Trimming it down, I got a nice fit, and later drilled it for the spot welds that will connect to the inner structures.  

So far, it's not welded in place yet, because I have to wait until the rear floor extension has been secured in place.

Lastly, I created a small patch for the rusted out corner adjacent to the inner wheel house.  

Again, I used a cardboard template and made my patch.

Again, spot welds to secure it in place and then stitch welding and grind them down, completed the patch.

So making some progress.  Time to start working on the rear floor pan extension.  More to follow.

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs 380]

Great to see your progress. There will be light at the end of the tunnel soon.

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Over the last few days, I got the rear floor pan extension modified and welded in place.  It was a major pain in the backside.  Since the rear floor pan extension isn't made for the 73, I started out with the 66-70 pan and modified it.  The first problem is the arch around the inner wheel house and the second was the elevated area just in front of the wheel house.  

First, I started with the arch around the inner wheel house.  I made a cut about 1 inch from the flange that fits along the wheel house.  Then I made some cuts around the edges, so that it could be formed to match the curve that I needed.  

After that, I cut a patch to fit between the modified flange and the floor pan.  MISTAKE!  I got it welded in, and discovered that it didn't fit.  As I was fitting it, I realized that the floor dropped in two directions and it wouldn't lay flat.  

Sooo, I got to cutting and bending it so it would lay flat, and then piece it back together with cardboard templates, and then steel tacked to fit it together.  After, finally getting it welded together, I drilled it for plug welding to the rear floor support, frame rails, and the ledge along the rear of the extension.  I double checked my fit and applied the "dots" where the welds would be, and over the holes and hit it with rust encapsulator primer on the lower part and self etch on the upper.

After getting it in place, I started welding it in place.  Things weren't going great, and I thought maybe I had some primer in the weld area, so tried one spot that I knew was clean, but it was still popping.  A quick check of the argon/CO2 tank revealed that I had forgotten to turn on the gas.  Turning on the welding gas made a huge difference, and the welds burned in nicely.  

The next day, I got to work on the edge along the transmission tunnel.  I decided to butt weld it.  I drilled several 1/8" holes used clecos to hold the floor pan extension to the trans tunnel.  Then I used by body saw to slice the two layers at the same time making for a really nice match.  As I cut along, I was able to peel the waste away and put a few spot welds along the edge as I went to keep things lined up.  After getting to the rearmost part overlapping the ledge, I used the cutoff wheel to keep the cut above the ledge.  A bunch of stitch welding later the floor and trans tunnel were one.  

After getting the floor pan extension welded in, the welds were ground down and cleaned up. 

Then I moved onto the inner wheel house patch.   I placed a few edge welds along the edge of the floor pan flange tying it to the underlying structure.  I placed the "dots" where the three plug welds would go, and hit it with self etch primer.  I removed the dots, and secured the patch in place and got it tacked in. At that point, I welded the plug welds and finished stitching the patch into place.  The welds were then ground down and cleaned up.  

Now, onto the front, driver side floor pan.  Slowly, but surely.

[73MustangCoupe 41]

It's been a week since my last post, so I guess it's time for an update.  I had most of the driver side floor pan cut out already.  I trimmed it some more and test fit it, trimmed some more, and kept at it, until it fit nicely against the rocker and had about 1/2 to 1 inch overlap along the trans tunnel, drivers toeboard, and along the back between the trans tunnel and torque box.  I also used the portion of the floorboard to mark where the parking brake cable goes through the floorboard.  Once I had it fitting okay, I painted the inside of the frame rail with POR15.  

I used a hammer and dolly to square up the frame rail flanges, again.  Clamping the floor in place and using a few clecos to hold it down, and then traced the outline of the frame rail on the underside of the floor.  Removing the floor, I was able to mark where I needed to drill to put my plug welds in about the same location as the original spot welds had been.  

I cleaned up the holes and then put the floor back in place so that I could put a put a small dot to locate each hole.  That done, I put a removable label over each hole and also on the flanges where the plug welds would go.  

Once the "dots" were in place I used some self etch primer to treat the bear metal.  I also used some tape to cover where the lap weld would occur so that I could also spray some self etch on the metal that was overlapped.  

I had removed the seat belt reinforcement from the old floor pan after making careful measurements.  After media blasting it, I marked exactly where it needed to go, drilled out the center hole, and then the two smaller plug weld holes, and got it welded in place.  I should have primed behind it, but forgot.  Oh well, I gave it a good coat of self etch on the exposed surfaces.  I also made sure that I had about 1/4" of clean metal along the inside and outside edges where the lap welds would be placed.  

I put the floor pan in place, again, and secured it with some more clecos and a few self tapping screws to hold it in place and started welding.  

I put a few plug welds in, and then started tacking around the perimeter every 2 inches or so.  There were a few spots that needed a couple relief cuts allow the new floor pan to lay flat against the trans tunnel.    

 

After getting all the plug welds and perimeter tacks completed, I spent some quality time with the welder doing a complete perimeter weld, about an inch or so at a time, bouncing around to spread out the heat input and minimize distortion.  

And then, the grinding.  Lots of fun, grinding the welds down so that they won't be felt under the carpet and pad.  

 

So now, I just need to replace the seat bracket and quarter trim bracket and it will be on the passenger side.  

[rio1856 31]

GREAT JOB!!!

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Thanks, Rio.  I hope I'm not getting to crazy with the pictures, but I figure my experience might help someone else trying to do this.  More to come, 

 

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Exciting time for the Rickster this week.  The newly rebuilt AOD transmission came back from Monster Transmissions.  One more big piece of the puzzle is ready for installation, when I get to that point.  

Yes, all those boxes in the background are parts, new and refurbed, to install when I get to that point.  Stay tuned, more to come.

 

[Kilgon 189]

Great job.  You have come a long ways over the past years in getting your dream car done.  The fun part is about to begin when you start putting all of it back together.  I can still recall that moment with mine when I made the turning point from disassembling, repairing process to starting to reassemble.  What a great day! 

[JimB73 6]

On 11/24/2020 at 6:09 PM, 73MustangCoupe said:

I hope I'm not getting to crazy with the pictures, but I figure my experience might help someone else trying to do this.

Never too many pictures! the detail is great. Your doing an amazing job on this and the effort when done will show.

[73MustangCoupe 41]

My daughter and her husband and kids have been visiting for Thanksgiving.  While they were here, we dropped the headliner in her minivan and recovered it and reinstalled it.  My son-in-law is a mechanic who specializes is Mercedes and BMW's, but can work on pretty much anything.  He started bugging me about the 351 Cleveland for the Rickster.  I had been planning to get it to the machine shop once I got the body panels replaced, but one thing led to another, and...  well...  the block is now sitting in the back of Truck Norris (F250 Superduty), ready to go to the machine shop Monday morning.  

When we pulled the valve covers all the schmutz that I had noted shortly after I got the motor was still there.  The valley had about 1/4" of oily schmutz that pretty much obscured the lifters.  Pulling the lifters was very difficult.  It probably took us over an hour just to get the lifters out from under all that oil.  I'm not sure, but I wonder if it was the factory motor oil because looking at the mess inside this motor, I don't know if this thing ever had an oil change.  

On the bright side, the cylinders looked okay.  I won't be using the old cylinder heads or intake, so I don't have to worry about them.  The rod bearings definitely showed some wear and scoring.  I I don't have any idea how many miles this motor had on it, but it some of that wear may be due to poor maintenance.  The machine shop will get it all sorted, though.  

Here are some pictures of the mess that was inside the motor when we stripped it down.  

So, Monday morning, it'll be a trip to the machine shop for me, and then back to working on the passenger side floor pan.  Making progress, slowly but surely. 

 

[midlife 282]

Now that's plain yummy!  Not.

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs 380]

That looks like a typical Quaker state oil engine. Their oil use to be made with high paraffin crude which causes engine sludge really fast.
My sister had an AMC, bought new, that she brought over to put a valve cover gasket on. She changed the oil pretty regular. When I lifted the valve cover off it looked like it was still there. Solid clump of sludge. Car was only driven short runs never long distance so never got really dried out and heated up. So the paraffin built up layer after layer.
Instructor at local tech college bought a new Ranger Ford and never changed oil in over 160,000 miles just added and changed the filter. Never had an issue. Most military ships never have their oil changed ever just filtered.
Good to have some help on the project for sure. How does he stay sane working on BMW and Mercedes, lol. My son is head inspector on the X-6 line at BMW the factory actually crushes cars that they cannot figure out what is wrong with at the factory. They only have $14,000 in one so they cannot spent too many hours trying to fix or the loose. One time couple years ago they had to shut the plant down no place to park cars that had to be fixed over 5,000 in the lot. The wiring is a huge issue on them and some of the electronic controls on traction and roll over.

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Well, it's been a week so I guess it's time for an update.  I've been working on the passenger side rear floor pans.  I had cut out the floor pans and rear floor pan extension.  Cleaning out all the body filler and nasty welds was quite a chore.  Two floor pans or parts of them were present, with some roof flashing pop riveted to cover a hole in the floor and covered with a thick layer of body filler. 

  I started with the rear bulkhead that had rusted out and needed to be patched. 

I used some pieces of an old floor pan to make patches.  The two corners and part of the trans tunnel were kind of tricky.  I made the patch out of several pieces starting with cardboard to get a good starting point.  I got what I thought was a pretty good template, traced it on the metal and cut it out.  I started piecing it together, working left to right.  

As I progressed, I discovered that the rust had compromised the support of the rear seat belt reinforcement, so the patch was extended upward to take care of it.  I modified the patch to mate up to the trans tunnel with the trans tunnel overlapping the patch.  I got it tacked together, and after checking the fit, stitched welded it out. 

 

After cleaning up the welds, I laid it in place, traced around it, and cut out the old rusty, crappy metal, getting back to good solid metal.  A little trimming got fitting pretty good, so I tacked it into place, and welded it into place.  After grinding the welds down, I measured, and drilled the hole for the seat belt reinforcement and drilled 4 holes in nice clean metal for the plug welds that will hold it securely.  

 

 

 

Now, on to the rear floor pan extension, but wait...  The floor pan extension covers part of the torque box cover, and the torque box cover has some major pitting and rust holes, so I planned to replace it.  

After drillilng/grinding out the welds, I was able to remove the cover.  The bottom looked pretty good and the top had only minor surface rust, except at the bottom where it was rusted out.  I had the new one already, since I got the pair when I did the other side.  A little massaging and I got it fitting pretty decent.  I drilled it for plug welds, cleaned them up, and set it back in place to mark where the spot welds would go.  Then I put dots (3/4" Avery removable labels) where the plug welds be, as well as on the underside of the cover.  I sprayed the inside of the torque box with primer and paint, and also sprayed the underside of the cover with self etch primer to protect it.  After removing the dots, I put it back in place, clamped it in place and welded it out.

And with that, I am ready to put in the rear floor pan extension.  That will be coming very soon.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 6, 2020 by 73MustangCoupe

[73MustangCoupe 41]

With the torque box repaired, I got to work on the rear floor pan extension.  They are not made for the 71-73 models, so we have to make due with the ones for the earlier models, but the wheel wells are different and the older models were flat, while our 71-73's have a small raised platform nearer the wheel well.  

The inner wheel house was solid, so I decided not to remove those spot welds, but to cut the old rusted pan about 1/2 inch from that edge.  After drilling/grinding out the spot welds, I was able to remove the remnants of the rear floor pan extension.  I made a cardboard template of the upper level. 

I cut a rectangular piece to match up with the lower level to include covering the frame rail.  I cut a square corner out, and then a diagonal cut allowed the edges to be bent upward to match the floor profile.  Once I got it pretty much like I wanted, I transferred the larger template to the rear floor pan extension,  and made the cuts.  I bent the edges upward to match up to the floor and checked the fit.  Once I was satisfied with the fit, I transferred the smaller template to metal and checked the fit.  I drilled the hole for the seat belt bolt and used that to hold that template in place.

I trimmed a few edges and drilled for plug welds. 

Since I left a 1/2 inch band of metal around the inner wheel house, I cleaned that up for welding, too.  Once back in place, I tacked it all together, checked the fit, and welded it out.

I also cleaned the inside of the frame rails and the platforms and sanded down to clean metal where the plug welds would go.  I put the floor pan back in place so I could mark where the dots would go, and then removed it, placed the dots, and then hit the underlying structures and frame rail with rust encapsulator and the bottom of the rear floor pan extension got a quick coat of self etch in the areas that wouldn't be reachable later. 

I clamped it back in place, and started making plug welds.  It's amazing how much better they go in, when it's clean metal to clean metal.  I tacked along the inner wheel house as well, and as things progressed, did a complete weld of that flange to the rear floor pan extension.  I did have to make a relief cut in the back to get the pan to lay in correctly, and after completing all of the plug welds welded up the relief cut, too.

I butt welded the floor pan to the trans tunnel. I started by tacking the floor pan to the trans tunnel,.  Then  I used a body saw to make a thin cut in both pieces at the same time, allowing them match very nicely.  I nicked the spot welds and removed the edge of the floor pan and ground down the spot welds.  Now the real fun began, stitch welding the floor pan extension to the trans tunnel.  So after some quality time with the welder, the floor pan extension is in place. 

A bunch of grinding later, and the floor pan extension was done.  

So now, its time to get the floor pan installed, finally.  Stay tuned. 

 

 

Edited December 7, 2020 by 73MustangCoupe

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Wow!  It's been a few weeks since I updated this thread.  I have made some progress, though.  I had previously cut out the passenger side floor pan. 

I got busy with the cutoff wheel and was able to get the C-channel subframe connectors removed and the residual weld cleaned off the front and rear frame.  

I set the floor pan in place and marked the edges. 

I was able to cut out the rusty metal leaving about 3/4" overlap to weld the floor pan to the trans tunnel and toe kick.  A few relief cuts were made so that the floor laid in nicely, and along the curve at the rear where it meets the trans tunnel, a couple relief cuts with small V shaped patches were needed to make it lay down and fit well.  

I measured for the location of the seat belt reinforcement bracket, drilled the hole for the bolt, and two smaller holes for plug welds. I placed the bracket in location and marked where the plug welds would hit it.  I placed "dots" over them, and also over the holes that would be welded, and sprayed each with primer.  After priming, I bolted the seatbelt reinforcement bracket to the floor pan, and welded it in place.  

Once the fit was verified, I outlined the frame rails, marked and then drilled the plug welds.  I sanded the plug welds to remove burrs and clean the edges on both sides of the panel.  On the edges, I removed the EDP coating where I would be welding to the trans tunnel.  

As I did on the driver side, I taped off the edges of the frame rail, and painted the inside of the frame rails with POR15, and after it was dry, I removed the tape, reset the floor pan, and then marked where each plug weld would be.  I applied the "dots" and then sprayed primer on the flanges. 

I also covered the underside of the plug welds with "dots" and then sprayed the the area covered by the frame rails with primer as well. 

I also marked the location of the parking brake cable bracket, drilled for plug welds, primed it, and welded it to the bottom of the floor pan

With all the prep completed, it was time to weld the floor pan in place.  A few hours of quality time with the welder, and the floor was one with the rest of the car, again. 

A bit of grinding, and it was all good to go. Time to move on to the trunk floor.    

[Kilgon 189]

Great progress.  Nice to see that you are doing it right and not taking any short cuts.  The time and effort you are putting in it now will guarantee  that when you are done you will have a good solid car that will last another 50 years.

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs 380]

Looking great. I bet you got some snow Christmas eve and it got cold. You might have to open a weld shop soon..

[73MustangCoupe 41]

With the floor pans in - well, except for the seat risers - it's time to move on to the trunk.  The tail light panel as very rusted along the bottom and the trunk floor was pretty much completely rusted out.  

I drilled out, cut, and ground out the plug welds, and finally got the entire floor removed.  The spot welds along the inner wheel house were also drilled out, and the trunk floor flange separated from the wheel house.  On the passenger side, the wheel house metal was pretty thin and in some areas tore out.  I made a patch to repair the area, and welded it in.  

Along the back edge of the rear crossmember, there were a few areas where it had rusted out under the tail light panel.  I cut out some 18g sheet steel and made a patch that I welded in.  

With the trunk floor laid in place, I outlined the frame rails so I could drill for the spot welds.  I discovered that the rear crossmember was slightly bowed toward the front, by about 3/8".  I used some 1" square tube, with a 1" angle welded to it for stiffening, and clamped it to the rear crossmember, and it pulled it straight, but it wouldn't stay straight.  It was suggested that I use some metal to stand it off, and pull it farther so that it would be straight after rebounding.  That got it really close to straight, so I went with it.  I removed the standoff's, and clamped the straightedge tube to the rear flange to pull it the last 1/8" to be nice and straight. 

 

After cleaning up the frame rails, I taped off the flanges and coated the inside of each frame rail with POR-15.   I attached the exhaust hanger brackets, once I had removed from what was left of the floor, and the other I had to fabricate from some sheet steel.  I also welded in the spare tire hold down.  I measured and marked for spot welds and drilled them out.  I put the floor back in place and marked the flanges where the spot welds would go.  I applied the paper "dots" to those spots and then sprayed the flanges with primer.   With primer applied and dots removed, I dropped in the trunk floor and started welding it in.  About half way through, I realized I hadn't sprayed primer around the inner wheelhouse and the apposing trunk floor flange.  I decided that I will flood that joint with POR-15 before seam sealing to protect it.  

I had to make a few relief cuts along the front edge to allow it to set down nicely along that edge.  After all the plug welds were placed and the relief cuts were welded close, I ground the welds down and removed the straightening brace along the rear crossmember.  

I had cleaned up the trunk lid hinges and primed them.  I bolted them into place, but they seemed really sloppy with lots of side to side motion.  I attached the trunk lid, though, and things tightened up nicely. I removed the trunk lid, and finally was able to hit each of the 2 spot welds on each hinge.  (It's so weird with them having one bolt and 2 spot welds.  Crazy Ford engineers.)  I attached the torsion springs and bolted on the trunk lid.  It fit pretty nicely.  

Now it was time for the tail light panel.  The trunk latch bracket had rusted off along the bottom of one leg, so I cut a small patch and welded it to the bracket.  The spot welds were drilled and after priming, was attached to the center of the tail light panel. 

 

There was a bit of rust along one end of the rails where the tail light panel connects to the edge of the trunk.  From the rail along the top of tail light panel over the fuel filler cap, I found about an inch of  decent rail.  I was able to cut it out, fit it in place, and welded it in, replacing the rusted out piece.  I drilled the tail light panel for the plug welds and got things primed, and after making sure it was centered, I got it welded into place.  With the rear crossmember straightened, the tail light panel replacement was actually pretty straightforward.  

Finally, a couple more pieces of the puzzle are in place.  Now, on to quarter panels.

 

 

 

Edited January 3 by 73MustangCoupe

[timachone 73]

Wow, you really wrestled that body work! Hats off of that much work and how you manage it! Very impressive! Keep up the good work and keep us posted 

[73MustangCoupe 41]

Well, it's been a couple weeks since I posted an update, but I have been working on the Rickster.  With the trunk floor and taillight panel installed, I moved on to the left quarter panel.  

I used an angle grinder to cut away most of it, leaving a thin rim around the edges, making sure not to dig into the structure underneath.  At that point, I could find the spot welds around the perimeter and started drilling/grinding out the spot welds and peeling the remainder of the quarter panel flanges.  

The edge of the B-pillar was kind f bent up, and but I was able to kind of pull it into some kind of close to where I thought it should go.  I got the new quarter panel and got it maneuvered into place and it seemed like it would fit okay, but it was really tight along the B-pillar and was about 3/4-1" inboard of where it needed to be to match up with the door.  

I removed the new quarter panel and got the hammer and dolly out, to start cleaning up the edges.  I was pulling on the B-pillar and trying to massage it back into place, when the rusted tabs on the bottom broke.  I discovered some body filler on the front side that, when removed, revealed more rust along the bottom. I broke out the angle grinder with the wire brush to clean off the loose paint and body filler and as I did, several paint chips with attached metal came off, revealing a bunch of small holes along the front edge running the length of the B-pillar. 

Is that rust damage repairable?  Probably, but it would be a major pain in the gluteal region, so I made a call to Don at OMS, and he was able to get me a B-pillar from a donor car.  It came in a few days ago, and is in really nice condition.  A little surface rust on the inside, but in really nice shape. 

Today, I removed the rocker from the donor B-pillar, and also ground out the spot welds so I could remove the attached quarter panel flange and the interior structure that remained.  A quick touch with the sanding disc on the die grinder, cleaned up the welds so that no sharp metal bits to slice my fingers remained.  

Then, a trip to the blasting cabinet cleaned it up really, really nice.  Now, I have a nice clean B-pillar to work on.  There is a small, 1" long, nondisplaced crack to repair, as well as a small slice from the removal process, and the two tabs on the bottom edge to replace.  Overall, it shouldn't take long to fix and then it will be good as new and ready to install.  I'll post a picture of the B-pillar and repairs tomorrow.  

 

 

Edited 19 hours ago by 73MustangCoupe

[baz70 1]

some serious progress happening there, appreciate all the hard effort and progress you're making, one step at a time....