IT REALLY IS A CAR

I spent tonight trying to put the Capri back together. It only took five hours, but I think it was worth it. I also included a picture of the drivers door, as well as the inner fender. I think its looking pretty good. I need to do some panel adjustment, but I'll worry about that at a much later date. LATER...

MORE PREP...MORE SANDING...MORE PREP

The warm nights are upon us and the midnight oil is burning. I find that with my back injury I move much slower and can only do about a third of what I used to get done in the same amount of time. I have to take breaks (drink more beverages) to rest, so that I do not overdo it. As you can see by the pics, I have been working on the driver's door so I can get it back on the car. It would be nice to be able to take it out for a run or two, but I'm afraid they would frown upon a car without a door running at the track. LATER...

CRANKED UP

Another part to add to the collection. What we have here is 2M casting crankshaft to hold the bottom end of the motor together. It has been radiused, chamfered, indexed, and shot peened. It even came with the bearings. You have to love the small mom & pop machine shops that are out there. Guess what else? NO CORE CHARGE. It seems that your "big" parts stores want anywhere from $25-$95 for your old crank. This place didn't. It was also super cheap. LATER...

JUST A BIG AIR PUMP

That's all an engine is. It's one big air pump. How efficient it is will dictate how much power you can produce. Can I produce this power that I am seeking? I have no clue, but I am giving it a try. The picture shows my latest score on Ebay. $22.00 for the pistons and rods. The connecting rods are some Ford pieces, but look at Carroll Shelby and his ability to wind-up those small blocks of old. He did it with stock rods. The pistons are almost new. The guy I bought them from went with a forged bottom end because he was going to use nitrous..a lot of it. They are 9 to 1 compression and with the heads that I have they should yield about 9.8 to 1 or maybe 10 to 1. I have about 8.4 to 1 right now stock. Right there I should pick-up about a 5% increase in horsepower if nothing else changes. That is a compression only figure. That does not include the fact that I'll pick-up about 50HP from the heads alone. The rods and pistons weighed in at 2.85. One rod and piston was 2.90, but I shaved some of the rod to get it to the 2.85 of the others. Yes, I am going to do my best to balance the motor. I don't have all the fancy equipment, but I can get real close.

I BE JAMIN'

Had some time to do a little painting today. I finally got the drivers side jam done along with the inner fender area. The paint went on smooth with no issues. I am going to stay focused on getting the car put back together, so that I can take it to the track again. Can't really go to the track with half the car missing? Or can you?
Work has been hectic and it looks like the weekend coming up will be spent at the store and not working at home. We are close to hitting a milestone, so the extra work is worth the time. With the days being longer and the night being warmer, I can work on the Capri late into the nights. Hey, don't forget that you can click on the photo(s) for a super sized view. LATER...

ANOTHER POST

Ebay is a intresting adventure, you actually never know what you will find. Here is a photo of another banner to add to the collection. The garage is slowly feeling like a "man cave" MMMMMMMMMM......

HAS IT BEEN 2 YEARS???

Wow, I just realized it has been two years since
I trailered the Capri home and started my quest to make it a race car
or something that looks like one. Over the past two years the Capri has
had some dramatic changes in both its appearance and performance. It
even made it to the track a time or two. I guarantee the progress will
be quick this year, as the addition of the garage is making a big
difference. As you can see, I was working on the other fender today. I managed to get it in primer before I was rudely interrupted by my wife to go help her with some garden work. I thought I had a back injury? I can't do garden work!!! Oh well...Later...

COMING TOGETHER

Hey!
Just a quick post to let you all know that things are coming together.
Things will be much slower this year, but I am determined to get things
done. As you can see I got the passenger side fender in primer and shot
the performance red on the inner fender. It starting to look like a car
again. My back obviously is slowing me down, but it will slowly come
together. That's it for now, but keep watching...its getting much
warmer and I have power in the garage. You know what that means....
Late nights!!! LATER...

BACK BOO BOO

Let me explain what has been going on lately. I guess years of wear and tear is taking its toll on me, especially my back. Why are you posting this on your car blog, some might ask? Well, if I'm broke, I can't do @#$%. I can't begin to tell you about the pain. The issue is I have spinal stenosis, herniated disk, and a cyst on my kidney. This all sounds great, doesn't it? The issue is coming from the L4 and L5 disks, which are causing the S1 nerve to be pinched. OH WHAT A FEELING. They are talking surgery, but I am looking at more therapeutic options. I have been out of work now for a week and the doctor won't let me go back until the 27th of this month. I am bored off my mind!!! Trust me I would love to be working on the Capri, but my back tells my otherwise. LATER...MAYBE???

ONE MORE PIECE

I just had to show the engine again. I might do it with every post from now on. It sure looks cool. Hey, so check out the fender. This would be the passenger side. This was another free score from my sister and her husband. I went and picked up a front clip for the Capri. The fenders are rust free and that is what counts. I began stripping and sanding this one. I want to get this one in primer before winter hits hard. I am not sure if I'll get the shop heated in time. LATER...

THE LITTLE ENGINE THAT COULD...

Here we go. What we have here is my new little project. I have way too many. I found a .30 over 302 block that was casualty of someone elses project that never got finished. I have spent some time cleaning it and doing a little painting. I have installed the cam bearings and most of the "block plugs" I put my aluminum heads on just to see what it will look like. Its going to look mean, we will see if it will run when I'm done. This is only my 2nd engine I've done. But, I will reference an old post. There is something about doing things yourself, just like the old hot rod guys. I am now currently trying to scavanger some additional parts to finish the bottom end. Seeing those heads on the block really gets me motivated to keep working. Keep watching because I am on a roll.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Watch out because here come some posts. That's right I officially have electricity in the garage and that is what makes that picture so great. What till you see some of the next posts. I am excited!!! I have no clue what the heck I am doing, but it sure is fun. I am working now on getting heat in the garage. If that happens, my wife may never see me again. LATER....

GETTING THE MAN CAVE READY FOR WINTER

Its been a long time since the last post. Vacation, work, life, etc. Just wanted to let everyone know I am alive and well. I started preparing the garage for winter. I am adding some R19 factor to the walls and even have some electricity in the shop. That's it for now. LATER...

HAULER UPDATE

Just a quick update on the truck that will get me to the track. The drivers side looks pretty good. Got it pretty straight and added about 3 coats of primer. Now its time to block sand and get some of those "BONDO" scratches out. PREP..PREP..PREP..I think its time to start buying stuff I don't have to work on. I'm getting tired of this stuff. LATER...

NEW HAULER

I know its not the Capri, but this truck has an impact on me getting to the track. My father has been "eyeballing" my 99' Silverado for a while now, so we did a swap. I got this 88' Silverado. The plans are simple. A nice solid silver color, tinted windows, sports mirrors, cowl hood, and lower the stance a little. It has a nice 350 motor and seems to run well. No rust on this side of the bed, but I ran into where there was some body damage. I'll make it look better, but I never seem to get it real straight. Oh well, there is some pleasure in doing it yourself. LATER...

EBAY SCORE...BETTER LOOKS...LESS WEIGHT

Just got back from a trip to Iowa with Dan from work. I thought it was going to be an all day affair, but 2 1/2 hours both ways was pretty good time. Having a buddy to talk to passes the time. As you can see I scored a 3" cowl hood for the Capri. These are pretty rare to find, as the hood is only piece from a Mustang that won't work on a Capri. Mustang cowl hoods are a dime a dozen, but this one for the Capri was a great find. It has been worked over pretty well with additional support and it is ready to paint. There is some weight savings that comes with it. I have not weighed the factory hood and this one yet, but even with the additional layers of fiberglass, there is some weight savings, though it is much heavier than the average fiberglass hood. By the way, the guy I got it from had one COOOOOOL Capri. Mine will never look like his, but with the budget that I am on, I think mine looks pretty good. I made the trip up to Iowa in the F150 HARLEY truck you see in the pictures. It's the company vehicle, not mine. $30,000 for a truck seems a bit much for me, but the cool thing is I can drive anything under $35,000, not bad for almost 5 years of service. I think the Capri is looking better all the time. I just hope my sister doesn't want it back!!! LATER...

ITS REALLY A ONE MAN JOB...NOT...

Just a quick post today. I got the door back on!!! It wasn't that bad to do it myself, I didn't even scratch the paint. Surprised? Me too. Now I just need to get it lined up. LATER...OFF TO WORK...THE PAYING KIND...

LOOK AT WHAT I CAN DO!!!

Have I said that having a garage is the coolest thing EVER!!! I can use all my tools. I can do things now that I would have never been able to do without the garage. Well, as you can see I have been doing some painting. I have went past the point of no return now. I think the color looks pretty good. I think I found the cheapest tire covers for painting. Just take a garbage bag and place them over the tires. Pretty ingenious I know. I bought a HVLP gun for painting. I have done little painting in the past, but I can say these things make the job easier and sprays paint pretty well. It also cuts down on the overspray and you use less material. I actually took the time to read the manual and it actually gave some great tips. It also helps that my brother-in-law has had his own shop forever and I always ask him LOTS of questions. Remember folks ALWAYS listen to people that have the knowledge, they can teach you everything you need to know. Then you need to just go do it. Well, that is about it for today. Don't forget you can click on the pictures and super size them to get a better look. LATER....

A NEW RED???

I have started to shoot the inner parts of the doors there new color!!! I have chose not to go with the original medium red that the Capri came with. I figured that all of the original "hot rod" guys painted there own stuff and so shall I. The red is a much brighter shade and goes on well. I have chose to also go with a single stage lacquer as they did back in the days. I chose the single stage because it is easier for a first timer to spray and if you spend the time prepping your area to paint it will turn out fine. I am really trying to do everything on the car myself. I see lots of these "garage builds" in the magazines. Are they really being built in the backyard garages of America? Or are they paying someone to do everything for them? Oh well, you can see I am doing this on a budget and doing it myself. It might not be the best, but it will continue to run faster and look better as I continue to complete this project. LATER...

BARE METAL

With the rain today in KC. I decided to utilize the garage. It is so nice to work on stuff when the weather sucks. Before, I would just lounge in the house all day and be lazy. You can see by the pics I have been working on the passenger door. Look at that bare metal..MMMM...Its rust free. I decided to use paint stripper instead of sanding. It was much quicker and I wanted to make sure those doors really where rust free. This one looks great. It has a few dings, but I can take care of those. I was able to get a coat of primer on today as well. Looks pretty good. LATER...