8" Rears

There's a lot of info out there about the 9" rears.  When it comes to the 8" rear however, we who are looking for swappable parts and info are mostly out of luck.  I thought I would start compiling some data to assist anyone else that may be trying to find parts, etc.  Here's what I've got so far:

Makes/models/years that had the Ford 8" rear.  Gear ratios are unknown at this time, but expect the usual - >4.00 in the high-end models, <3.00 for the gas-savers, and between 3.00 & 4.00 for most everything else.

FORD	E-100	(1968 - 1974)
FORD	FAIRLANE	(1962 - 1967)
FORD	FAIRMONT	1978
FORD	FALCON	(1964 - 1970)
FORD	FALCON SEDAN DELIVERY	(1964 - 1965)
FORD	GRAN TORINO	(1972 - 1976)
FORD	GRANADA	(1975 - 1978)
FORD	LTD	(1965 - 1978)
FORD	LTD II	(1977 - 1978)
FORD	MAVERICK	(1970 - 1977)
FORD	MUSTANG	(1964 - 1973)
FORD	MUSTANG II	(1974 - 1978)
FORD	PINTO	(1971 - 1980)
FORD	RANCHER	1972
FORD	RANCHERO	(1964 - 1978)
FORD	TORINO	(1968 - 1976)
MERCURY	BOBCAT	(1975 - 1980)
MERCURY	CAPRI	(1970 - 1978)
MERCURY	COMET	(1962 - 1977)
MERCURY	COUGAR	(1967 - 1970)
MERCURY	COUGAR BOSS 302	1969
MERCURY	COUGAR BOSS 429	1970
MERCURY	COUGAR COBRA JET	(1969 - 1970)
MERCURY	COUGAR XR-7	(1967 - 1970)

(Info from Rockauto)

While it's not the best idea to install a used Ring & Pinion, I wouldn't think ill of it if you found a low mileage car that looks like it's be taken care of, and installed a R&P that had minimal wear.

My goal is to find a 3.25 Open Diff ring & pinion, in good shape.  New gears are ~$180, plus a rebuild of ~$200.  Cutting costs is half the battle with my Mustang, and so if I find a good set, I'll use it.

Brakes

Replacing brake lines is easy.

Replacing stock 1966 brake lines (single-bowl master cylinder, all drum brakes) becomes quite a bit more difficult when you have Granada discs up front, a dual master cylinder, and dual exhaust.

I've been working on ordering my brake parts and lines lately, and I've realized how Frankenstein-ish my car is.  It will be a dual-exhaust car, which only came on the 66 HIPO V8s.  It has front discs, which came on some V8s.  It has 10 x 1-3/4" brakes, which are equipped on my 8" rearend.  None of this came on my car, stock, obviously.

In addition to this stuff (which really isn't too bad), is the brake line kit I need to order.  66's never came with dual master cylinders, so it takes a little bit of rerouting when it comes to the lines from the MC to the Distribution Block.  I've decided to purchase 66 Stainless steel, dual exhaust disc/drum brake lines, and I will fabricate what remains to finish off the system.

In addition to this, I've already purchased all new drum components for the rear.  A little tip if you're ordering off of Rockauto.com (my favorite place to order replaceable components), is that the wheel cylinders you want for the 8" rear are the ones with a 7/8" bore (will sometimes say "from 04/1966").

Scored a Compressor!

I'm excited about the deal I scored today!  I had been monitoring the sales and prices of compressors around here and online, when I ran across the Morgan Series 60 gallon compressor on Northern Tool's website.  It's Reconditioned, but I don't mind as I picked up a 1-year warranty for no-hassle replacement.  Here are the compressor's specifications:

HP	3.7
Volts	240
CFM at 90 PSI	11.5
Max. PSI	155
Tank Type	Vertical
Air Tank Size (gal.)	60
Stage	Single
Drive	Belt
Motor Phase(s)	Single
Air Outlet Size (in.)	3/8
Portable or Stationary	Stationary
Pump	Cast iron, in-line twin, oil lubed
Manufacturer Warranty	1 month parts / 1 month labor
Ship Weight	245.0 lbs
Item#	211112

 

The hardest part about it is going to be the unloading.  I'm pretty confident about securely strapping it down and transporting it home (a mere 3 miles or so), but unloading it and carrying it into the garage will be tough.  As well as wiring a 240V connection.  And 240V 40A circuit breakers aren't cheap, either. :-)

 

As for what I plan on using this for, I will be shooting primer and some paint, as well as hooking it up to a sandblaster and cleaning up a few small parts for the car, which will need to be painted.  That will be wonderful :-D

The other thing I've been working on is the tedious - and dirty - task of removing the undercoating.  First, I had to replace my Multi-Tool with a new one after only a few weeks, due to poorly made junk.  But I don't really mind...swapping it out was free and I paid nearly nothing for it to begin with.  

So I began using the scraper blade attachment, and sort of skimmed off the thick layer of undercoating.  There appeared to be 2 types of undercoating.  One was black/darker, and one was very light, almost beige.  The darker undercoating came off with little effort.  The beige undercoating took LOTS of elbow grease to get it off, and even then, a lot remained stuck on.  Anyway, after a while, I moved on to the angle grinder, taking off the light coating of undercoating that remained.  The result was phenomenal!  The Red Oxide Primer underneath was still in great shape, with very little to no surface rust.  There are a few holes, though, from above (floor pans).  That's a different story.  

So, I spent the better part of the evening vacuuming all that crap off the floor, and I'll be back under it next week, scraping and grinding and vacuuming some more.  But until then, I've got to dream about painting!

Thanks for stopping in.