Started another build...meet the ‘71 Spider

[Maggi]

Some trim levels had body color dashes, others came Wimbledon White.
Get a Marti report, that will tell you what trim level it was built as.

Awesome, thanks!

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Things are rolling along this week. Grill was stripped and repaired. Overall better shape than what I started with Flick. Should be ready to prime within a day or two. I’m getting better at this bodywork stuff.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

So it has been months since the last update...oops! Things are slowly trucking along. Grill was finished. Bent a radius arm like a twisty tie taking it off. All cotter pins needed drilled. Every. Single. One. Frame ended up being rotted beyond repair, which saddens me because it was numbers matching. I have a donor frame to use and the old rotted one will go with as a package to whoever buys it.

Needled and cleaned some wheels and rear axle and misc parts. Started ordering seals, bearings, brakes, ball joints, etc. and it’s ready to slowly start coming together into a rolling chassis again. I’m shooting for mostly stock. Now I have to soon decide...new stock height suspension or new 2.5” lift?

Oh and the spiders continue coming out even though we are almost in January. I had two working with me today. I’m almost disappointed at this point if I don’t find a spider.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Coming down to the wire to hit my goal of a rolling chassis before the end of January. Rear axle is freshened up with new seals and replaced the bad bearing. All new drum brakes. Front axle is completely disassembled and getting painted. It will have all new seals and bearings and I decided after talking to Nick, the Bronco guru at Northeast Classic Ford Parts, it will be getting some upgrades. Power disc brakes, power steering, and all new suspension were part of my order this month. It was absolutely the best birthday gift to visit Nick, ask him 5 hours worth of questions, and crawl all over his builds and shelves. It’s a time warp in there. 5 hours could have been 5 min.

Stupid ball joints took a chunk out of my finger when they let loose under the 4 foot breaker bar pressure. I left a trail the whole way through the garage and house to get the bandages. Spindles took a long time to pound out. I really don’t mind doing just about anything with vehicles, but I told my friend that spindles are a man’s job. He laughed and said what does being a man have anything to do with it? I said my husband is 65 lbs more than me and I swear its all in his arms to swing a hammer and snap bolts off with ease, lol.

A few minor frame repairs were done including one new rear spring hanger. The rear frame horns were a bit bent around from a crappy rear bumper weld, but some time with a sledge and an anvil brought them back.

Also invested in a gas 220 mig. Dang. Should have done it years ago. My goal is to drive Spider to the roundup in June. Let’s see how this goes...

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Getting pretty. It’s the end of January and I still have my little eight legged helpers. He didn’t like the final frame welding repairs.

 

[sprdv1]

So you met that deadline or what?

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Unfortunately no. I had 3 wrong orders of Dana 44 inner axle seals!! So the correct set is in the mail. Cold weather is also limiting how much I can paint in a day. I can’t assemble much of anything until those inner seals arrive. Frustrating, but it allowed for a heavy garage cleanup. There’s currently 5 projects going on at once.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

There’s half a rolling chassis now. Waiting on a radius arm from Northeast before the front axle can go in. Nick and his parts collection to the rescue again.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

A week behind my goal, but Spider is rolling now!

 

[jerrybromley]

Nice job on the rolling chassis. Don't forget , All goals are artificial we just use them to motivate our selves . Getting it done right is the important part. Time is negotiable

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Thanks Jerry, I agree. A broken goal is better than a broken project.

All the brake lines and hoses went on today. Went to look at the body I’m trading services for yesterday and I have my work cut out for me to make it pretty. It will hopefully be at my place within the next couple weeks to start. That’s going to be the last big hurdle to overcome in the next months. I’ve decided on buying a new engine and professionally rebuilt trans/transfer case, so the drivetrain will be a breeze in comparison.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

For those interested, I started an instagram to follow the build as well. It’s under broncobuildingmom

Steering components were put on and the stabilizer shock. It’s a whole new power steering set up. I got another set of nice fenders from Nick. I was not happy with the amount of bondo and repairs needed to restore the other ones. I will save them for another project.

These new fenders are in great shape. Both only needed the slightest amount of skim coating in a couple small areas to hide dimpling.

I started in the tailgate and it’s looking just as nice so far. By tomorrow the body tub should be in the garage so I can fully assess it. Then cry a little. Then suck it up and just do it. The major repairs are in the outer panels and this is the first I’ve had that. I’ll rebuild the entire inside floor and sides, but the fact the outer metal needs to be so perfect and lined up flawlessly is a little intimidating. But you don’t get better at something you don’t try, right?

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Perfect PA weather today so I got outside and sanded down the hood. No prior patching. It needs a little skim coating in a couple areas, 2-3 dings repaired, and a little repairing along the front. Overall a good piece of original steel. The tailgate is absolutely beautiful. Best one I’ve had yet.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Spider is really coming along. I have been updating daily on instagram since it’s so easy to upload and post. Follow all the updates @broncobuildingmom.

Passenger door post was repaired and set. Measurements and test door fit look good. The drivers side has a lot more issues and I hit a point of no return last night. It’s going to be fixed and solid, but it’s going to be a much bigger chore. Step by step.

Other repairs are happening at the same time. I shoot for something to happen daily.

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Ran out of room for pictures. Ebrake lever was rusted fast. Needling broke it loose and now it’s working great and painted. Also I got some patches bent and back in the drivers side. Called it quits at 11pm last night. Covered a bunch of unneeded holes in the firewall. I debated a long time on the firewall patch as it will probably have some residual line no matter how nicely I weld in, but then decided it needed to happen and will be mostly covered by the brake booster and hidden under the dash. Spider is going to have hidden wires in the engine compartment so it was a good way to cover holes and replace bent and rusted metal all at once.

 

[svastano]

Great Progress!

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

Fender skirts cut and bent. Heater box cleaned and painted. Just received the drivers kickpanel in the mail so I can finish working on the cowl. It was just too far gone to save and too complicated for me to feel comfortable making at home.

Everyday I try to accomplish something. I want to have it painted by April and on the road by May so I have a month to work out any issues before the Roundup. I’d really like it to be available for sale by then. Part of me says I’m doing good. Part of me is screaming “you want to do WHAT by WHEN???”

Let’s see which part wins, lol

 

[Muddy1966Bronco]

It has been forever since I updated this thread. I’m active on IG Pretty much daily @broncobuildingmom

Spider is running and getting the last of the bugs worked out before going on the market. It turned out phenomenal, especially considering this body was in a wreck where it flipped nine times end-over-end in a snowstorm in 1981. It was an incredible ordeal to get it looking like it is. Some gaps are a little off. It can’t take doors. The passenger fender needed some minor adjustment to fit the body lines. But my husband did an incredible paint job, tall the hard work paid off, and this thing is turning heads everywhere.

Exhaust is going on this Wednesday and I’m going to be getting a quote to redo all the stitching on the soft top I have. Everything is in great shape except the stitching is brittle and pulling through. I may be looking for another Rampage skin to replace it if the quote is high.

Blueprint 302, rebuilt C4 and J shift, new seals in axles. Drives great. All new everything in the brake system. New power steering. Hidden wire setup in engine bay. Petronix ignition. New Centech harness. Custom cup holder/speaker box. Beautiful heated, power black leather seats. New chrome steering column. Cable driven wiper upgrade. So much had been done that I don’t know where to start on pictures.

Enjoy!