1970 F100 CV/Thunderbird

[elgemcdlf]

4.10s w/o overdrive? I bet its screaming on the highway. So do you plan on upgrading the axles?

Yes she is at about 3000 rpm & doesn't feel like it's going anywhere. I usually drive it in town so I was looking for a stop light warrior. I am pretty sure I went too far. The 3.08s actually weren't that bad but felt I could get a bit more in the acceleration department. I did manage to find a set of 3.55s at the local Pull A Part that I will probably try next. I also found plenty of 3.73s & 1 or 2 sets of 3.27s. I do plan on going with heavier axle shafts down the road along with additional bracing for the third member. I plan on swapping to Cobra discs as well along with a heavier anti-sway bar.

[milkman27]

how did you manage to do a cv swap without removing the engine or front clip?

[milkman27]

sorry wrong forum

[elgemcdlf]

I have pics. I did it in the plant I worked at & used a forklift from the side to hold the engine up.

[elgemcdlf]

Well the 4.10s are gone. Swapped them & the 31 spline Limited Slip for a 28 spline (for the IRS) Limited Slip & 3.55 gears. Got the Limited Slip tore down & spyders out. Took them & 1 from the open diff to the machine shop to have the groove machined into the Limited Slip gears that I need for the IRS. They told me a week so my little truck sits for a week while we wait impatiently. Bobby is running 3.50s with his 466/C6 so I figure I should be ok with the 3.55s although I really didn't mind the 3.08s.

[elgemcdlf]

Just when is the point when you decide this may not have been 1 of your better ideas?





Just kidding. It really isn't that bad. It's the wait on the machine shop that has me stalled.

[elgemcdlf]

Picked up the spyder gears from the machine shop yesterday. They were good to me. Said take them & we will worry about cost later. I had read so much about how difficult it was putting the S Clip back in but it was no big deal. Line it up & give it a good wrap with a decent size hammer & in it went.





Need to get the pinion bearing finished & then put it all back into the truck.

[BobbyFord]

You may like that ratio. I didn't like the 3.50's at first but they grew on me once I got some rubber under it.

[elgemcdlf]

I'm hoping so on the gears although I am getting good at pulling the center section Picked up a 750 cfm Holley with vac secondaries & elec choke today. Looking forward to the addition it makes.

[elgemcdlf]

Well it's official the 3.55s are in along with Limited Slip & the Holley 4bbl. All I can say is I love it. I don't even have the carb totally dialed in. I will get my wife to take some video. The carb made a big difference. You could hear it in the exhaust as soon as I started it. I think the 3.55s are perfect. My little truck will definitely plant you firmly in the seat.

[BobbyFord]

The carb is a good choice. The gears are a decent combo for street/hwy. The only thing that I would like is a little less RPM on the highway but I wouldn't want to sacrifice the strong pull that I get on the street.

[elgemcdlf]

Thought I would post a few pics of the progress on the '57 Fairlane dash modification & swap process. The glove box, ash tray, radio opening, clock opening, heater control opening & factory speaker opening all welded shut & smoothing process started. Building the lower slit that will be used as the vent now.







The original speaker hole (rectangular shape) was closed & 2 circular speaker holes created using the original grate as a cover.

[BobbyFord]

Nice job. Looks like a lot of work, but it will be worth it.

[JG F100]

cool, you may may have mentioned this but what steering wheel are you going to use? One thing I'd like to do with mine is use a big ol' skinny, horn ring'd steering wheel.

[elgemcdlf]

cool, you may may have mentioned this but what steering wheel are you going to use? One thing I'd like to do with mine is use a big ol' skinny, horn ring'd steering wheel.

I am searching for a factory wheel from a '66 Oldsmobile Toronado & will use it as a pattern. I will modify the diameter to match the arc of the dash & then scale all the other pieces to match. Here is a modified version of the wheel I plan on using.