Wow, you weren't kidding about it needing a bath, that's a lot of years worth of dust! Looks like a very solid car. You must have a very tight schedule to take 6 months for 3 days worth of work. Lol
Priorities. California has snow. California has water at the lakes. One must recreate with skis on both venues. I know the engine is free. When I drug is out of the garage it was in gear, I could feel the engine rotate. That was one worry.... It needs a carb. Which is in a box in the front bedroom --somewhere--- It was a great car. Served me well. From High School thru College and beyond. Now it's readying itself (with my help) as a daily driver again. The little bois down the street with the Fox body 5.0's aint seen nothing yet....this old man will teach them a lesson, AND it will tow the ski boat to the lake....
IT RUNS! Took about 3 hours....we put a battery to the car. It would not crank on the key. We had to jump the solenoid. I kept the key off and let it crank until the pliers was too hot to hold. Let it rest and cranked again. 2-3 minutes at a time. No funny sounds. So I turned the key to on....nada. Still cranked. No spark. Off came the cap. I swapped in new points, and a new O'Riley condenser. And a new solenoid. Now it cranked at the key but no spark again. Frustration. I went to NAPA and spent $5.00 (wasted since Pertronix is being installed anyway), bought a new condenser. Set the points and put the cap back on. I hit the starter button and WHAM! It's alive! High Idle. I ran to the front seat to turn it off. Dust--debris--from sitting for so long flying everywhere. BUT---no knocks, no smoke, and the 30 yr old twin mufflers at the axle (I knew they were rotting) made a nice rumble. So I called my pilot son in Chicago--he was getting ready to take off from Chicago to LAX in a CRJ200, I started the Comet again so he could hear this over the phone. It now has run about 30 seconds at fast idle. I'm running around trying to get the carb to back down. One of my boys jet mechanics had rebuilt this 2100 a few years back, He had the high idle way to high. I finally got the cold motor down to a decent idle, it rumbled, it rattle, it even set the car alarms off on my Jeep which was sitting 75 feet away in the street! No leaks....lifters were quiet, no knocks. I let it run at a 1200 RPM idle for about an hour. Then began to idle it down, I needed to adjust the idle screws out, they were too lean. It was getting dark and cold outside but the heat from the motor was building. I turned the heat on inside the car. Probably first time the heat has been on inside that car in 30 years. (Big long scar on my palm of my hand from me putting a heater core in the car in 1979---I ripped my hand open on the underside of the dash). Battle scars. I continued to let it sit and idle. I was waiting for water pump to let loose. Or the front main, or rear main, or anything that has sat dry for years. Nothing---(yet). Temp came up to 190 and it sat. I turned it off for the evening. WITH foot prints from the border collie all over the top of the car--after I washed it--she is a climber. I catch her she knows she will get caged. She waits until I leave then uses the cars in the driveway to see over the gates....that dog is smarter than my ex wife. Today we drive it....I had forgotten how this SBF with 2.5 pipes dropped at the axle rattled the windows at an idle.
$500 bucks. Plus the shifter is about 200 more. Going with a toploader. This specific trans came from a 67 Fairlane but has the adapter plate attached. I am waiting for the shifter and handle to arrive. Then it goes to the shop. I am not sure I have the health or strength to swap this myself. I do like the idea that the seller gave me. Put long head bolts that are shaved in the bellhousing--which guides the trans in place...I thought that was a great idea. I remember having to work the old toploader in using only a floor jack.
Nice! I'm not sure you will need the shifter adapter. Here is a picture of my toploader when I removed it from my Comet (cleared a bench seat just fine). Make sure it has the correct input shaft.
I see that--where it mounts towards the middle of the tail housing. This one came from a 67 Fairlane. I need to measure. I remember when I had the previous toploader in it, (from a 66 Ranchero) the gear shift always sat on the bench seat. Maybe the adapter is not needed. I will have to get new shift rods. Stay tuned!
