Kyle242GT's 1959 5.044

nel621 · Jan 24, 2016

The key is as much hammer work as possible to minimize filler then a LONG sanding block. Have fun!

cwdodson88 · Jan 25, 2016

spray them in a different color of primer, then block them out with a 12-18" block, it'll show you all your lows and highs, then hammer away, then do it again until all your stuff is one color after a round of blocking. When your happy with your hammering, I feel that its easiest to "skim" the entire panel with filler, just a thin layer, then another round or two of blocking.

Looks really good from here though!

kyle242gt · Feb 28, 2016

Put the fenders on, took it for a few short drives. Almost a civilized vehicle if I keep my foot out of it.

Found it leaking water... lo and behold, broken head bolt. Amazement of amazements, the easy out worked! Thank god, did not want to pull the top end apart.

Idle hangs a lot, I think it's the TPS, since thumping it makes the idle drop back down. Going to see about getting the hood on next.

NO_SPRK · Feb 28, 2016

baby got back! nice! ;-)

nel621 · Feb 28, 2016

Liking the brake lights!

kyle242gt · May 14, 2016

Brake lights!

Yes, I know they're a little wonky, will adjust the fit later.

On to the hood hinges, or maybe the front end wiring.

kyle242gt · May 18, 2016

Have been pondering the hood for a long time. Original thought was the Mustang hinges through the firewall, but that was complicated by the shape of the sheetmetal and the presence of various EFI bits on the inside.

Then I thought about making my own hinges, but have learned enough to know my fab work would not be something I wanted to see front and center every time I open the hood.

So, back the the Mustang hinges. And I think this is going to work! 1/8" steel plate, bolted to the fender flange (three layers thick at the top) and the inner fender. No springs in the hinges, so no load to speak of.

Have to find some hardware, then modify the arms (need to point up vs to the side) then make an attachment inside the hood.

Benjam83 · May 19, 2016

YEEEESSSSS, I didn't read the whole post, but before I scrolled down to the pics, I was like, "have it open like a grand piano" (couldn't remember the actual terminology).

Love this build.

Magnum TE · May 21, 2016

I can affirm that the PV5.044 runs and drives and is a beast!

Kyle took me for a joy ride yesterday, it put a smile on my face.

kyle242gt · May 22, 2016

Cut the hinges, angled up 90*, used a 2x4 to be sure they were aligned okay, and wouldn't hit the fender when open.

I then made an inner frame out of my ever-favorite EMT.

Screwed the lower piece of the frame to the hood long enough to see how it fit together - kind of a puzzle doing it with the front end installed, but it's a big enough pain to remove that I just worked around it. The mufflers have to be removed in order to get to the inner fender bolts, and the radiator has to be disconnected. Not really a big deal, but kind of a pain.

Once I had it eyeballed and tacked, I pulled the frame back out to finish welding (about 3/4 done) before welding it to the hood.

I'm still vaguely planning on some old-school Jeep latches to hold the hood closed, but my bro (a jeep guy) cautioned me that I need a safety latch as well. So I may go to PnP and just get a real double-action latch.

kyle242gt · May 22, 2016

And yes, I opened and closed it many times, giggling with accomplishment and a continuing sort of disbelief in my ability to keep this thing coming together in spite of my ignorance.

Magnum TE · May 24, 2016

nice work buddy

kyle242gt · May 25, 2016

Thanks homie!

Took it on a ~10mi drive, got up north of 70mph a few times, hood stayed shut, so I think we're good to go.

Clearance when open is very tight, so I'll probably limit the hinges or figure out a way to use some old hood shocks as openers and limiters.

Pretty cool driving it around all in one piece again!!

pat244ti · May 26, 2016

It lives! I remember test driving it for you out in Cool or wherever the hell it was.

NO_SPRK · May 26, 2016

dat ass

Coupid · May 26, 2016

I love this thing. Nice work!

Råda · May 26, 2016

This thing is mean! Love that side open hood

kyle242gt · May 26, 2016

Thanks gang. Drove it to work today. Funny showing up in shirt and slacks abuzz with adrenaline. Nutso car for sure.

Not sure what I'm going to do next. Might get the lights/blinkers/horn/wipers sorted.... and the steering needs some investigation. I think the steering arms are too long, makes for very very slow on-center steering, and a lot of feed- (aka kick-) back to the wheel. At a pretty decent stopping point for now though.

NO_SPRK · May 26, 2016

thats just the car showing it wants to go sideways :oogle:

kyle242gt said:
I think the steering arms are too long, makes for very very slow on-center steering, and a lot of feed- (aka kick-) back to the wheel. At a pretty decent stopping point for now though.

didenpx · May 26, 2016

This thread is insane! Major fabrication envy here.

Kyle242GT's 1959 5.044

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