Vintage Thunderbird Club International

Just the same type of buyer/custodian I’ll need to find when I finally get too old to perform my ‘55’s required maintenance (don’t trust anyone else).

Since regulator adjustment is rather a lost art, and they aren’t very expensive, you COULD just buy several and use the one that works best (nice to have spares anyway). An Optima battery & matched/sophisticated ‘smart’ charger likely makes an aftermarket ammeter superfluous if you always plug t...

cscolastico wrote: ↑Fri May 05, 2023 8:52 pm Another advantage to buying a buffer and DIY is that you have the equipment and some experience to repair/polish the rest of the brightwork on the Bird.

I would warn against using compound on the flash-chromed trim pieces (windshield frame especially), since that finish is easily damaged/dulled.

MarkR wrote: ↑Fri May 05, 2023 6:54 pm Leaving the grooves natural is enough contrast and the way they were done originally.
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First time I’ve ever seen rubber bumpers applied to the fenders (!?).

Most discussions I read about STP (regular or high mileage) is that by itself STP is not a great lubricant. I always wondered: What is the definition of ‘lubricant’? Was the bear grease they put on wagon axles there merely to prevent wear? I still remember the gag that circulated when STP first cam...

I filled mine with STP 25 yrs. ago, and it hasn’t leaked yet. But, I HAVE heard doubts re: the wear reduction aspect of straight STP. While my steering DOES seem slightly more loose now when the box adjustment is fully tightened, there is, after all, 100K more miles on the tie rods, so who knows?

The P&G people must have thought setting lash with the motor running was worth while, or they wouldn’t have included a camera-type cable switch in their gapper kits. But, back then, it likely wasn’t so easy to gain a few extra H.P.

Sorry, have to admit subject is still a mystery to me. It’s just that I had read that caster was limited/fixed by the position the of lower arm, which could only be shifted by juggling washers.

55blacktie wrote: ↑Mon Mar 27, 2023 12:30 pm "Spring loaded A-arm bolts"?

Don’t the springs have to be compressed/restrained in order to juggle the lower bolts/washers?

Correct me if I’m wrong: My impression is, camber adj. is largely a matter of merely loosening bolts & juggling shims of various thicknesses, and toe simply involves adj. the rod lengths. BUT caster can only (?) be changed by inserting/removing washers on the (spring loaded) A-arm bolts, which s...

I was also surprised at how hard it was to find a shop willing and able to do the alignment on my ‘57. Even though I told them I had the specs (from the Shop Manual and/or from folks’ input), I had to call *many* places before I found one that would do it. None of the chains (Goodyear, Midas, etc.)...

Wow. Flipped shackles. Brings back memories (very common in the early 60s when ‘rake’ was in fashion). I alway did wonder how that was done (?). I suspect the Ford dealer that used to own my ‘55 replaced the front springs, but used taller pass. car parts, since the front seemed higher compared to al...

I buy only premium 93 fuel in order to keep ethanol to a minimum, but still have accel. pump issues. Lazy, so have just learned to accept reduced throttle response. Luckily, I drive mostly only on my remote rural area roads, so squirrelly panic stops (deer) not a big problem. Night owl though, so di...

An aftermarket collapsible electric antenna that looks like the orig. FoMoCo part sure would be handy. When I had my ‘55 towed recently, they drove the truck under some low tree branches and bent the stock one badly. Would also make installing a car cover easier. Likely those who favored the driver-...

Rusty57 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 23, 2023 12:34 pm Manual seats travel further to the rear than power seats.

Especially if no soft top stowed behind the seat.