Paul Masson's 71 Grabber

Send it to me and you'll never go back to vinyl.

PM me and we'll talk.

 

Thanks Rusty! I'll PM later tonight when I'm not on this tiny iPhone screen...

 

Got the front seats installed. They aren't perfect, but pretty darn close considering they'll be 46 years-old in September. This marks the official end of my interior work...

 

Scraped the undercoating off my front bumper brackets. Then media blasted them and painted them.

 

Bumper reassembled, grille disassembled and the pieces are almost all detailed. Waiting on a set of gaskets for the sportlamps so I can put them back together. I have been polishing my trim in preparation for vinyl top and glass installation on Saturday. I chickened-out and am trailering the car an hour away to have somebody else install the top and glass. I'm trying to make a National car show here in New Brunswick which is on July 7th. It's gonna be close!

 

A successful Saturday. Trailered the car an hour each way to a guy who my uncle knows. My uncle and I were the 'helpers' so there wasn't much time to sit and take pictures. I got an awesome deal for the hours and hours worth of work the guy put into the top and glass installation. Now it's up to me to finish the chrome trim and put the rest of the car back together...

 

That top looks great Paul! You have knocked that restoration "Out of the Park". I think you did the right thing letting someone w/ lots of knowledge/experience and attention to detail, install the roof/glass. I feel you have done to much nice work on the car to experiment w/ a vinyl roof. You will make that July deadline, I have confidence --- been following this thread since post 1.

 

Thanks Everett! Even after years of watching videos, asking questions and trying to find someone local to install the roof, I am glad I had Greg install it. I learned a lot from watching and helping him do it. There were so many little tricks and things he had to make life easier. I was also glad that I was there to help him with placement and trimming. I had brought the old top with me so I could show him how the ends and certain areas were trimmed. That was invaluable!

If I had to do another one, I'd try it myself, for sure!

I got some chrome trim on last night, but had to crawl in the trunnk to install the nuts on the boomerangs, since I had already put my interior together...

 

I was going to call you Sunday to see how you made out with the install but forgot, glad to see everything turned out well.

 

My wife went to Maine and picked-up my latest parts orders. It's like Christmas in June!











Among the parts, was my Sport Wheel that @mercgt73 recovered in leather. All I can say is WOW!! Any pictures I post simply DO NOT do this wheel any justice. The leather is beautiful and the stitching and fit is second to none! Rusty did an amazing job and turned the work around in short order. The most impressive thing (but cannot be conveyed here in pictures) is the feel of the wheel. It's hard to describe without sounding inappropriate, but it's nice!! Looking forward to getting many years of service out of this wheel. As you can see, it looks just like new, and feels even better!

Anyone looking to use Rusty's services should look HERE:
http://mmb.maverick.to/resources/ford-sport-steering-wheel-leather-new.232/

In the pictures:

• Sport Wheel recovered in leather by @mercgt73
• Dash Cap from Mustangs Unlimited ($89 + FREE shipping)
• Reproduction Kick Panels from Rhino Fabrication www.usamadeparts.com
• Sportlamp Lens Gaskets from Mustangs Unlimited (same as 1970 Mach 1)
• NOS Ford Muffler off of e-Bay

 

That looks awesome, may I ask how the dash cap fit?

 

The dash cap fit great. It just basically 'snapped' over the existing dash pad. I don't think I'll be gluing it. I have read many threads on here about people just leaving them on the dash as-is and having no need for gluing. For all I'll be doing with the car, it shouldn't be an issue. It is a hard plastic, not vinyl like the OEM pad and the grain is a tad deeper than the OEM pad, but the average person would never realize it's even there. It looks a heck of a lot better than nasty cracks...

 

The top job is fabulous, looks great, I know you are now glad to have reinstalled it... Isn't that the last of the major hurdles???


I remember when I could crawl in the trunk, if I made it now, you'd need a cherry picker to pluck me out...

 

Thanks Tom! Yes, that's the last of the "out-of-my-hands" hurdles. I'm waiting on some windshield molding clips that should show up in the mail today, then I'll be sealing the windows, installing fenders, hood, bumper and grille. I am wrestling with the idea of possibly cleaning-up the underside of the hood and repainting it. I'd say I will be driving it in a week or two. I'd like to get a few hundred clicks on it before I take the hour and a half drive to the Atlantic Nationals car show July 7-10...

LOL @ Cherry Picker. I didn't need a cherry picker, but getting out of there wasn't pretty either...

 

how do the kick panels fit?