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Happy to report that good progress has been made in the past 5 weeks or so. The car is now been painted Acapulco Blue, The hood and rocker bottoms were done in Semi Gloss Black. Both bumpers were replaced because the other ones had obvious scratches etc.., and a dent or two. A new Mach 1 style honeycomb panel was added under the trunk, along with a flip down gas cap. New window channel molding and drip rail molding also. The front chin spoiler was installed. The Mach 1 grill & sport lamps were added, but not wired in yet. New wheels and tires are a couple of weeks away. And the interior is a couple of months away.

I still need to get the black hockey stick decal installed along each side, and need both the windshield and the large back window installed. I’m working on finding the right glass person with the experience on older classic car windshields. And I really, really need to clean up and replace some (or all) of the wiring going to the tail lights. It’s currently kind of a nasty looking mess.

So…I’m currently looking for some new tail light and backup light sockets. I believe some are 2 wire and some are 3 wire. If anyone has any info to share on this…a current part # etc… (or anything else on this project), I’d be eager to hear it. Thanks.
 

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wow looks great! I love the color, I am a big blue fan. I am jealous, I can't wait to get to spraying color and assembling. Enjoy!
Thanks.

Picking a color took my wife and I a little while. We wanted either red or blue. My painter did some small spray-outs for us in several different reds and blues. We then eliminated red, and narrowed the blue colors down to 3 different blue colors from the 1969 - 1971 Ford color charts. I also looked at a ton of blue Mustang photos on the internet. My painter then took an old hood from his body shop, and painted all 3 different blue colors (in 1/3 sections) on it (Medium Blue, Grabber Blue, & Bright Silver Mettalic). We took the hood home, stood it against the garage and looked at it for a few days, in both the sunshine and shade. I even put some black tape over the colors to see how the black trim would look on that particular shade of blue. I was really glad that he sprayed out a large hood for us. It was so much easier than trying to pick out an exterior color from a small paint chip.

Bright Silver Blue won out. I learned that this same color (Ditzler / PPG 13357) is also called Acapulco Blue on the 1969 Mustang, and Medium Bright Blue on the 1970 Mustang.
'
https://paintref.com/cgi-bin/colorc...=Bright Silver Blue&name=1971_00045_01&scomm=

When you get time, I’d love to see pictures of your 71 Mach 1 and your restoration progress.
 
Thanks.

Picking a color took my wife and I a little while. We wanted either red or blue. My painter did some small spray-outs for us in several different reds and blues. We then eliminated red, and narrowed the blue colors down to 3 different blue colors from the 1969 - 1971 Ford color charts. I also looked at a ton of blue Mustang photos on the internet. My painter then took an old hood from his body shop, and painted all 3 different blue colors (in 1/3 sections) on it (Medium Blue, Grabber Blue, & Bright Silver Mettalic). We took the hood home, stood it against the garage and looked at it for a few days, in both the sunshine and shade. I even put some black tape over the colors to see how the black trim would look on that particular shade of blue. I was really glad that he sprayed out a large hood for us. It was so much easier than trying to pick out an exterior color from a small paint chip.

Bright Silver Blue won out. I learned that this same color (Ditzler / PPG 13357) is also called Acapulco Blue on the 1969 Mustang, and Medium Bright Blue on the 1970 Mustang.
'
https://paintref.com/cgi-bin/colorcodedisplay.cgi?type=sample&ditzler=13357&syear=1971&smanuf=Ford&smake=Ford&smodel=Mustang&sname=Bright Silver Blue&name=1971_00045_01&scomm=

When you get time, I’d love to see pictures of your 71 Mach 1 and your restoration progress.
That is a really pretty blue! I like your idea, it slipped my mind that I painted a deck lid when I was restoring my Camaro. Once I confirmed the color was going to be Lemans Blue, I painted a white strip on one side and a black on the other to look at in the sunlight and shade etc. It was amazing how the different color stripes made the color appear lighter or darker. My wife though I faded into a different color at the opposite end but it was the stripes. As far as pictures of my progress, I have a build thread going under the name 71 Mach 1 resto project. I add a lot of pictures, probably too many, but I like to detail every step as I go. It's coming along but I need to find a higher gear if it is going to be done by next spring as planned. the original timeline was supposed to be 18 months which will be May next year.🤞
 
Very nice color choice! What year are those mustang wheels you chose (2005 to 2008’s?) they look well back-spaced.
Hi,
Thanks for the compliments on the color. So, the wheels in the pictures were on the car when I bought it. And I'm not sure what year they are from...but you are probably in the right ballpark with 2005 - 2008. They are nice looking wheels, however, at the end of the restoration, I'm going to change them and considering installing 15 (or 16) inch magnum 500 wheels. So I'll be getting ried of both wheels and tires in the near future, just in case you know anyone interested.
The picture of your convertible looks pretty sweet.
It's nice to hear from another Michigander.
 
That is a really pretty blue! I like your idea, it slipped my mind that I painted a deck lid when I was restoring my Camaro. Once I confirmed the color was going to be Lemans Blue, I painted a white strip on one side and a black on the other to look at in the sunlight and shade etc. It was amazing how the different color stripes made the color appear lighter or darker. My wife though I faded into a different color at the opposite end but it was the stripes. As far as pictures of my progress, I have a build thread going under the name 71 Mach 1 resto project. I add a lot of pictures, probably too many, but I like to detail every step as I go. It's coming along but I need to find a higher gear if it is going to be done by next spring as planned. the original timeline was supposed to be 18 months which will be May next year.🤞
Wow,
I looked at the postings on your build thread. Very impressive.
I enjoyed reading everything, and the work you're doing looks immaculate.
Best of luck on the completion of your car.
 
Happy to report that good progress has been made in the past 5 weeks or so. The car is now been painted Acapulco Blue, The hood and rocker bottoms were done in Semi Gloss Black. Both bumpers were replaced because the other ones had obvious scratches etc.., and a dent or two. A new Mach 1 style honeycomb panel was added under the trunk, along with a flip down gas cap. New window channel molding and drip rail molding also. The front chin spoiler was installed. The Mach 1 grill & sport lamps were added, but not wired in yet. New wheels and tires are a couple of weeks away. And the interior is a couple of months away.

I still need to get the black hockey stick decal installed along each side, and need both the windshield and the large back window installed. I’m working on finding the right glass person with the experience on older classic car windshields. And I really, really need to clean up and replace some (or all) of the wiring going to the tail lights. It’s currently kind of a nasty looking mess.

So…I’m currently looking for some new tail light and backup light sockets. I believe some are 2 wire and some are 3 wire. If anyone has any info to share on this…a current part # etc… (or anything else on this project), I’d be eager to hear it. Thanks.
When it comes to lighting, I went all LED's. I bought all the bulbs ( except headlights) from Bill at HiPo Parts in Gaylord Mi. Bill is very knowledgeable and has excellent product, not those cheapo Chines things you buy on FleaBay. He is also very helpful with all issues you might have. For headlights, I went with Hella head light globes and 6k LED bulbs. I don't have the exact info in front of me, but I can add that info if interested.
www.hipoparts.com
 
Welcome from Southeast Michigan. The color you picked is very nice. When we decided to get a Mustang, my wife said ok, a blue convertible. How could I argue? This site is the best place to learn. Looking forward to seeing your car completed.
 
Hi,
Thanks for the compliments on the color. So, the wheels in the pictures were on the car when I bought it. And I'm not sure what year they are from...but you are probably in the right ballpark with 2005 - 2008. They are nice looking wheels, however, at the end of the restoration, I'm going to change them and considering installing 15 (or 16) inch magnum 500 wheels. So I'll be getting ried of both wheels and tires in the near future, just in case you know anyone interested.
The picture of your convertible looks pretty sweet.
It's nice to hear from another Michigander.
What area in Michigan are you? I’m Clinton Township
 
When it comes to lighting, I went all LED's. I bought all the bulbs ( except headlights) from Bill at HiPo Parts in Gaylord Mi. Bill is very knowledgeable and has excellent product, not those cheapo Chines things you buy on FleaBay. He is also very helpful with all issues you might have. For headlights, I went with Hella head light globes and 6k LED bulbs. I don't have the exact info in front of me, but I can add that info if interested.
www.hipoparts.com
Thanks for that bit of into on the lighting.
Right now my lighting is stock, however, I may look into LED's in the future. When I do, I'll give you a shout.
 
Welcome from Southeast Michigan. The color you picked is very nice. When we decided to get a Mustang, my wife said ok, a blue convertible. How could I argue? This site is the best place to learn. Looking forward to seeing your car completed.
Thank You.
Yes, this has been an amazing site to gather and share information.
Your convertible looks pretty sweet.
 
I think it’s a really nice looking car as is, paint looks good. I can understand wanting to ditch the 17’s.
Since it doesn’t need paint or interior, I wouldn‘t spend the money or time it will take to do a good job making it look like a blue Mach 1 with black interior. I would fix the mechanical issues and enjoy your nice looking Mustang that isn’t as common to see as a Mach 1.
Edit: I didn’t read the whole post, new blue looks awesome.
 
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