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Reply #510 – June 20, 2010, 03:18:23 AM

Quote from: ProTouring442;325787

I think the wheel you have, wrapped in leather, should work very well. As for the horn button, I would think that, with a bit of work, you could make the center cap on that wheel into a horn button.

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

Man I took your advice and made it work! On that vinyl Crown Vic hornpad I had laying around I took the vinyl cover off and glued the Tbird trim right onto the plastic horn pad base. I had to trim away some of the vinyl inside of the rectangular opening inside of the steering wheel center so it would sit flush and what do you know??? It works!

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Reply #511 – June 20, 2010, 09:13:21 AM

Quote from: Watchdevil;325992

Man I took your advice and made it work! On that vinyl Crown Vic hornpad I had laying around I took the vinyl cover off and glued the Tbird trim right onto the plastic horn pad base. I had to trim away some of the vinyl inside of the rectagular opening inside of the steering wheel center so it would sit flush and what do you know??? It works!

Sweet! Now where are the pictures??? :D

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

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Reply #512 – June 21, 2010, 12:31:17 AM

Quote from: ProTouring442;325995

Sweet! Now where are the pictures??? :D

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

It looks the same! :rollin:

It's just now you can press on the trim and it blows the horn! The trick was figuring out how to make the Tbird trim float and push inwards just enough to switch the horn while sitting flush and secure.

One thing I did have to do was break off the two locator pins on the back of the Tbird trim. This was to allow the trim to sit flush on the front of the Crown Vic horn pad base. I used clear silicone to bond the Tbird trim to the large copper contact plate on the face of the CV horn pad base. The silicone dried well overnight and I had to do some extra securing because the outer copper contact plate floats on top of a "swiss cheese" slice of foam to seperate the inner contact plate which has raised nubs. This foam does not make the Tbird trim secure as it is floppy without taking extra securing measures. I simply took a couple of strips of foil tape and secured part of it to the back of the Tbird trim on both top and bottom and carefully wrapped it around to the back of the CV horn pad base without compressing it too much as to avoid closing the contacts with pressure. This way the Tbird trim is not floppy and does not float or pull away from the center of the wheel.

Why do I go to so much trouble when there are a number of wheels I could choose from that I do not have to modify at all to make it fully functional???

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Reply #513 – June 21, 2010, 07:36:36 AM

Quote from: Watchdevil;326101

I know why do I go to so much trouble when there are a number of wheels I could choose from that I do not have to modify at all to make it fully functional???

You do it because you want to build the car in a certain way, yet have it look factory. Believe me, I know haw difficult this can be! Here are a few pictures of a car my father and I built with that same goal in mind. It took us 4 years, but I think it turned out very well!

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

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Reply #514 – June 21, 2010, 09:54:38 AM

Quote from: ProTouring442;326112

You do it because you want to build the car in a certain way, yet have it look factory. Believe me, I know haw difficult this can be! Here are a few pictures of a car my father and I built with that same goal in mind. It took us 4 years, but I think it turned out very well!

Shiny Side Up!
Bill

Oh yes very nice!

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Reply #515 – June 23, 2010, 03:12:15 AM

Today I redid the passenger airbag cover using the flat one I had before. Hopefully this will hold up without the vinyl bubbling. If this fails then eventually I will shell out major bucks for a factory-style airbag delete cover from CJ Pony Parts which is void of Mustang nomenclature.

I removed the passenger side power seat track and reinstalled the manual one. I did this mainly because I wanted the seat belt buckle to be in the correct placement on the frame of the set. I also don't have to fuss with locating the power seat switch. Niether my Mustang or the Fusion has a power passenger seat and I have never missed it.

I worked on switch relocation today. I reverted back to the early Ford joystick for the mirror switch and mounted it where the cigarette lighter goes under the flip up ashtray lid in the console. I always sucessfully installed my original power window switch where the Mustang fog lamp switch normally goes. I used silicone to bond the switch to the underside. I had a couple of those little coin holder inserts that are used to fill the switch holes when the Mustang was not equipped with fog lights or a convertible top switch. I simply trimmed the top edge ring from the coin holder insert and it made a nice finished looking bezel around the power window switches.

I am looking forward to carpeting and headliner installation. I have to recover the door panels in black vinyl, paint the armrests black so they will match and also paint all the remaining interior trim black.

Remember I said I wanted to do white contrasting seat and door panel inserts... I think I have changed my mind on that and I am just going to do all black. However I am going to do the white stitching like my Mustang has when I get the seats recovered.

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Reply #516 – June 27, 2010, 11:36:48 PM

More updates...

I got chrome rings for the gauge cluster and to my dismay they were a pain in the ass to install. They are simply supposed to "snap" into place. With the cluster face and lens being one unit, these rings are inserted diagonally through each hole from the back and manipulated to press into each gauge opening. However, the quality of manufacture is so poor that none of the tabs in the back of the rings would stay snapped in nor were the rings deep enough to clear the back of the gauge openings sufficiently. After stuggling a bit I gave up... Then I did some research and found feedback from others stating what a PIA they were to install. I ended up having to shave some depth off the plastic back of the cluster bezel in all the places where the tabs come through. Still wasn't enough to hold them in place without unsnapping and falling back into the cluster lens. So I made the mistake of using super glue as others have done and just as I was trying to set the last ring in place, the one next to it fell out, dropped down and got super glue on the black cluster face and the clear lens. You can see some of the big F-up on the lower left of the cluster face. Live and learn, even when you think you have mastered a lot of things.

So I ended up ordering a brand new gauge cluster lens assembly from Late Model Restoration for only $29 which is cheaper than buying a used one off ebay, plus it will be in new condition without scratches. I am thinking twice about putting rings in this new one, but if I decide to try again, no super glue, and I will simply cut the tabs off and adhere them on the edges that sit flush on the back of the cluster face with a clear arts and crafts type contact adhesive instead. At least that way the adhesive will elegantly roll like booger and come off if it accidentally gets on the wrong place.

Moving on to the switch reloction work, you can see how I took the original style Tbird window switches and bonded them from underneath the Mustang switch opening using clear silicone. Then I took one of the coin inserts, cut away the top edge to make a bezel to finish around the switches. A simple thin spread of clear silicone on the bottom edge of the bezel all around secures it flush into place for a finished look.

Looking over into the ashtray comparment under the flip door, I reused a mirror joystick with a chrome and installed it in place of the cigarette lighter. No mods were needed as the hole was a perfect size to do this. I do need to take the metal retaining nut back off and refinish it.

Next up: affixing a vinyl mask to go over the retainer trim that holds the rubber insert for the e-brake slot.

Also, the pair of 1987-88 door panels I got are now stripped of the original vinyl and carpet. I am going to get new black vinyl to finish it off and paint black the door panel armrest, exposed armrest support, mappocket surround and door pull strap. What if i door the armrest pull strap in the silver finish like I did for the dash trim?... It might be an interesting constrast, especially since this one runs the length of the door.

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Reply #517 – June 28, 2010, 06:59:58 PM

Have you considered white gauge faces like the '05? With the right typeface they might look good, but you might have to have custom ones made that don't look "ricer".

The typeface on the '05 gauges looks like Eras Bold or Eras Heavy. I'm not sure they're the best choice, but they don't look rice, at least.

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Reply #518 – June 28, 2010, 09:14:19 PM

Even though I don't own a Cougar anymore, I still check in here from time to time and this is one of the threads I enjoy reading the most. Excellent work as always. This is the sort of project I like, the average person will have no idea it isn't stock and everything works together very well. Keep up the great work.

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Reply #519 – June 30, 2010, 02:45:03 AM

Quote from: Quietleaf;326732

Have you considered white gauge faces like the '05? With the right typeface they might look good, but you might have to have custom ones made that don't look "ricer".

The typeface on the '05 gauges looks like Eras Bold or Eras Heavy. I'm not sure they're the best choice, but they don't look rice, at least.

I have thought about white face gauges before and I used to love the look on most any car but the novelty has worn off for me and I really do embrace the retro style of the black gauge face with the classic style typeface like my Mustang has. The Tbirds in the 1960's also used this typeface.

The late model SN-95 Mach 1 and Bullitt also adpated the classic typeface and I would love to have someone make me a set of inlays with that typeface, but for the 120mph speedo that I am using. It's a low priority detail right now with all the other things I need to get done, but ya know a project is never really finished even when it is finished. There always seems to be something you can do different.

With the 62 Tbird dash below I notice how much more the dashtop is rounded than the earlier 1959-60 dash design. This sort of relates to the more rounded look I have using the Mustang dash. And of course it is really obvious where the design of the classic Mustang and my 08 Mustang dash comes from. Those Tbirds were first to use the chrome barrel gauges and the familiar typeface...

I just now noticed where the steering wheel spoke design came from on my 08 Mustang. Classic Mustangs always had the multiple round holes in the spokes. The 1962 Tbird with it's slot spoke design has the related theme as my 08 Mustang. Ford must have decided to go with the Tbird-like spoke design to better accommodate the cruise control buttons.

My 08 Mustang came with the factory premium interior upgrade package with the silver aluminum trim. The only thing that was not silver originally was the centerstack trim bezel which was black. I found a silver paint to match and it completed the look of the Mustang interior much better. This is the same exact silver paint color I used for the Tbird dash trim.

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Reply #520 – July 02, 2010, 10:24:06 PM

I got my brand new cluster lens assembly today. I feel better now.

I also cut off the small inner sections of the sun visors today so they will fold up with the roof console installed.

I also bought a 2-din radio centerstack bezel that is used on the last few years of the SN-97 Mustang. I am not sure what my exact plans are for the audio system yet but it does leave for the future possibility of a large LED touch screen. Gone is the virtually useless dash mounted cup holder and coin tray. It looked neat to use with the single din radio bezel but I am not going to miss it since I have a slide out cupholder that extendes from the console armrest. If I want to bad enough I can find a newer Mustang console that incorporated dual cupholders where the ashtray location used to be. However, I hate to waste the console that was graciously given to me.

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Reply #521 – July 06, 2010, 09:39:11 PM

I did a few more things today...

I bought a steering wheel cover a while back which was black and gray with chrome strips sewn in. Today I took the silver paint and painted the gray to silver. Turned out nice and gives the wheel character more like a classic car.

I also got a later model Mustang centerstack bezel with the double-din radio opening. This also has extra switch plugs in case I ever need them. I painted the bezel silver today and the finish turned out better than the first one I used. This bezel will give me the potential at some point one day to install one of those large LCD sceen audio systems. Meanwhile I will procure a later model Ford double din audio unit.

I had been having problems with my right power window motor. I took it apart today and of course it has corrosion inside where moisture had been getting inside. I cleaned it out and a saved it and now it is working properly. I sealed the motor's ends with foil tape to keep moisture and water from getting inside again. I do recommend to anyone to try to take the motor apart and clean it if it fails instead of just going right out and buying another one. Now I have to get some grease and relube the window regulator mechanism.

The roof console is installed and you can see where I cut my plastic sunvisors so that it will fit in between with the visors down.

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Reply #522 – July 06, 2010, 10:12:34 PM

One more...

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Reply #523 – July 06, 2010, 10:39:27 PM

Looking great!!

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Reply #524 – July 06, 2010, 10:48:26 PM

Quote from: 1Bad88tbird;327535

Looking great!!

Thanks!

I gotta sew on the steering wheel cover permanently then it will look properly done.

I am not happy with the passenger airbag delete insert. I have some tpuppies to do to make it fit better on the right side and I am going to use some better quality vinyl. I noticed some annoying irregularities in the gray vinyl I had used. I have to buy black vinyl anyway to recover my door panels.

So the door panels are next and expect somewhat of an unexpected visual surprise. Next is matching the rear seat compartment trim by spraying it all black. After that, headliner, package tray and carpeting. Then all the black trim will go in place. I will also need to switch to black seatbelts. The interior will then be done until I can afford to recover the seats.

Meanwhile... I gotta get my butt in gear and start working on the mechanical restoration!