I thought I would introduce myself since I just joined. I am a 50 year old over weight guy who loves Fords.My love for them goes back to when I was 4-years old and my grandfather bought a new 1957 Fairlane.I loved to stand next to him on the front seat ( no car seats then ) and watch him drive and shift gears. He worked for a Ford Tractor Dealership as a mechanic but his true love was anything with a V-8. We were not exactly in the Mecca for hot rods (like southern California ) but he would always seem to find out where someone lived that had a customized Ford and we would drop by on Saturdays to check out their car.My father also worked for a Ford Dealership as a mechanic,but he was of the mindset that if it didn't come from the factory ,then don't change it. I listened as they would discuss modifying cars and how they differed.Thank God for giving me such a wonderful grandfather who passed on the passion of tinkering and as he would say,souping up,our cars. I am fortunate to have passed on to my three sons the same love of mechanics and never being satisfied with the status quo. Right now my pssion has been focused on a 1970 Maverick that I was lucky enough to buy from one of my fellow workers.It has 39,387 original miles and is just a gorgeous automobile.My original intent was to leave the 6 cylinder engine in the car and just improve on its braking.(That was a true thrill when I brought it home and came across a traffic jam on the expressway and had to haul her down to a stop from 60 miles per hour) After I cleaned out my pants when I got home,I stood there and she was just begging me to start dreaming of improvements that she so desperately needed. So here is where I stand 6 months later. Installed power disc brakes on the front (1978 Lincoln Versaille) Upgraded the rear to an 8 inch-5 lug with larger rear drums 3:55 gears Rebuilt the front suspension-ball joints,tie rod ends,upper and lower bushings. Increased the front sway bar size with upgraded bushings Pulled the 6 cyl. out and bought a 302. Warmed over the 302-Schneider cam,Crane roller tip rockers-windage tray-ARP bolts and nuts-double roller timing gear-Pertronix ignition-Tri Y headers-Flow Kooler water pump-Ford Racing billet aluminum pulleys-95 Amp. alt.- Road Demon carb.-Ford factory dual plane intake(aluminum). New T-5 WC 5-speed with a modified 1970 vintage Hurst shifter. American Racing wheels 15"X8" with Goodyear raised white letter. Griffen custom cross flow radiator. Added rear spoiler from Grabber. Added 1975 Mercury Bobcat tail-lights Installed 1972 Tilt column from Mustang 1975 Grand Torino steering wheel (leather w/stainless 3-spoke) Ford Motorsport gauge set ( black face -oil,volt-temp) fits nice in package shelf area. Needed to finish-cable clutch conversion-drive shaft -electric fan w/ sensor-custom exhaust fabbed(dual w/turn downs just in front of rear valance)-maybe change front and rear spring rates after complete so I can get the right stance (low but not to low) upgrade the electric so all accesories will use relays. Change steering box to 16:1 ratio. Plus many small wish list items I hope to have it done so I can take it to Carlisle in June,my sons talked me into sending in my money an incentive to get my butt in gear and getting it finished.Although from my experience they are never finished.The way I look at it is if they are then you've stopped dreaming.I never want to stop dreaming. Graybeard
Welcome aboard...sounds like a great project! Post pics if you can. Everyone on here loves to drool over the other guy's cars. Good luck on the rest of the things that you want to get done. And no...I've never "finished" one yet. It looks like we've picked up yet another fine asset for this board. Later,
Howdy and Lots of good information and people here who share your enthusiasm. Will definately look foward to meeting you in Carlisle.
Thanks for the quick welcome.I will post some pictures as soon as I figure out how it is done.Give me a wrench and I'll take anything apart,set me in front of a computer and I'm totally lost and intimidated.This is my first experience at being a part of a forum and I am kind of feeling my way around.I'm always willing to learn new things though.
Welcome Greybeard Glad to have you onboard ,you cannot believe the info that comes out of the mouths of this forum Im new myself and these guys and I guess some girls really know their sh-- ron
Welcome to the board. It great to have you here. I'm sure you will find a vast amount of advice and information from the Maverick folks here. Hope to see you at Carlisle this year.
It is funny how when you start writing all of the things that you've accomplished down in print it looks like a lot.But the urge to get something running and out on the road makes you feel like you're not getting anywhere.I had originally set a completion date for Christmas because I was going to give this car to my son when he came home on leave from the Marines.He was then going to drive back to San Diego with it.I figured the nice weather in southern California would be ok for a 35 year old car.I miss the dead line and he saw that I was really starting to fall in love with this car.So he said for me to keep it,just get it done for Carlisle.So thats were I'm at now. You guys have made me feel special today with all of the welcomes.I hope that I can contribute something of value to this forum and maybe some encouraging words to anyone who feels like giving up sometime on a project.Life is so short and the joy of sweating and bleeding over a project is something few people understand. Thanks again
