Author Topic: 67 Cyclone Bodel Panel Fitment - Opinions/Advice (Read 15303 times)

mlcraven · « **on:** December 03, 2012, 10:50:27 PM »

Getting to grips with pre-paint panel alignment and final fitment. Have installed the doors and aligned the trailing edge with the leading edge of the quarter panel and the door bottom with the upper edge of the rocker panel, using the old paint stick alignment gauge. So far so good.

But beggared if I can get a nice alignment along the trailing edge of the front fenders and the leading edge of the doors. It's at the point where I'm really stumped.

It has dawned on me, maybe I shouldn't be attempting this on a uni-body car with the drivetrain out and perhaps this is part of the current issue. Is it possible the combined weight of the 390 and C6 would impart a sag to the front of the car that would correct the front fender alignment issue. Or that if I do get the fender alignment sorted without the power train in, that when the engine/trans are installed it's going to throw things out of wack again?

Any thoughts would be very much appreciated.

ScotiaFE · « **Reply #1 on:** December 04, 2012, 06:50:28 AM »

I would have the weight in.
It's pretty much light by about 1000 lbs.

BruceS · « **Reply #2 on:** December 04, 2012, 09:42:07 AM »

I'll throw in with Scotia... When my 66 Fairlane came back from the painters it was stripped to a shell. I put the engine and trans in while the front clip was off, it was just easier to get at everything. I then started with aligning the doors, etc. like you have done.

One thing I do remember about the fenders is to make sure they go back on the same way they came off. In the case of my car it has a main fastener that holds the bottom of the fender in place, and also has a Z-shaped bracket with some smaller sheet metal screws that seem to do the same thing. But without the Z-bracket that fender won't stay close to being aligned! Must've been something they did at the factory when they aligned the body. My car has a little larger gap between fenders and doors than I would like, but any closer and the door rubs the fender...

Hope that helps!

BruceS · « **Reply #3 on:** December 04, 2012, 10:10:45 AM »

PS - my Fairlane's front end sags quite a bit when I put it on jack stands behind the front wheels. I do that when I'm working on something under the engine or steering...

Heo · « **Reply #4 on:** December 04, 2012, 04:25:35 PM »

One thing...adjust the doors and fenders so
the door is just a tad outside the rear
fender and the front fender is just a tad
outside the door. That way the leading edge
is protected from wear from sand and other
road debri that can wear the paint fast

I had a 66 fairlane that was a bit soft in front.
I found out that the Torque boxes that go from
the frame rails out to the rockers was rusted
thin from the inside without visible from outside.
So i made new ones from 1mm thicker material
and painted the inside. There was no rust protection
at all from the factory

mlcraven · « **Reply #5 on:** December 04, 2012, 04:42:10 PM »

OK, thanks everyone for your feedback. I've decided I'm not going to sweat the front fenders for the time being...they're going to be off the car for paint anyway and they're pretty darn close now.
Thanks again.

TimeWarpF100 · « **Reply #6 on:** December 05, 2012, 11:52:16 PM »

Quote from: mlcraven on December 03, 2012, 10:50:27 PM

Getting to grips with pre-paint panel alignment and final fitment. Have installed the doors and aligned the trailing edge with the leading edge of the quarter panel and the door bottom with the upper edge of the rocker panel, using the old paint stick alignment gauge. So far so good.

But beggared if I can get a nice alignment along the trailing edge of the front fenders and the leading edge of the doors. It's at the point where I'm really stumped.

It has dawned on me, maybe I shouldn't be attempting this on a uni-body car with the drivetrain out and perhaps this is part of the current issue. Is it possible the combined weight of the 390 and C6 would impart a sag to the front of the car that would correct the front fender alignment issue. Or that if I do get the fender alignment sorted without the power train in, that when the engine/trans are installed it's going to throw things out of wack again?

Any thoughts would be very much appreciated.

I would say the 66-67 Comets/Cyclone has the best body panel fit of any old car. Usually very easy to get perfect body panel fit. Just align back of door so its perfect gap to quarter with proper fairly tight gap and the fenders should fall into place.

TimeWarpF100 · « **Reply #7 on:** December 05, 2012, 11:55:08 PM »

mlcraven · « **Reply #8 on:** December 06, 2012, 07:50:08 PM »

I'll take those two photos as inspiration and the standard to shoot for.

66FAIRLANE · « **Reply #9 on:** December 06, 2012, 08:37:48 PM »

Make sure you have the glass and hardware in the doors before you align.

mlcraven · « **Reply #10 on:** December 07, 2012, 08:37:18 PM »

All removed for painting...which I want to do with doors on. So I'm laying an equivalent weight of bricks inside the door to account for the fully assembled weight.

BruceS · « **Reply #11 on:** December 08, 2012, 12:29:39 AM »

Timewarp,
That black 67 Comet 427 is a rare one! Do you have a Marti report for it? From what I remember reading in the Fairlaner magazine, a little under 300 Ford intermediates were built with 427s in 1967. That includes all Comet and Fairlane body styles with both the W code (4V) and R code (8V) versions. So yours may be rare indeed!

TimeWarpF100 · « **Reply #12 on:** December 12, 2012, 09:55:20 AM »

Quote from: BruceS on December 08, 2012, 12:29:39 AM

Timewarp,
That black 67 Comet 427 is a rare one! Do you have a Marti report for it? From what I remember reading in the Fairlaner magazine, a little under 300 Ford intermediates were built with 427s in 1967. That includes all Comet and Fairlane body styles with both the W code (4V) and R code (8V) versions. So yours may be rare indeed!

There were only 6 427 "R" Capri's built

Total number of 427 Comet's was 60 Cars

I have all 427 Fairlane & Comet VIN's along with all invoice info for the 60 427 Comets

1 W code Capri

15 Cyclone R codes

22 202 R Codes

4 Caliente R codes

8 Cyclone W Codes

6 R Code Capri's

These are the numbers I remember but something is off as that is only 56 cars. Will have to look at my spread sheet to see what is missing.
I know there were some Cyclone GT's too but do not remember the breakdown.

mlcraven · « **Reply #13 on:** October 20, 2013, 05:04:59 PM »

Notwithstanding my new-found obsession with 63-64 Galaxies, I continue to work away at the Cyclone. Have the powertrain back in and am working away at aligning the front fenders, bumper, etc. Has a bit of a nose-high vibe happening, to be expected I suppose with glass hood, headers replacing cast iron manifolds, alum intake, plus AC and PS delete.

Anticipating first firing in the second half of Nov.

jayb · « **Reply #14 on:** October 20, 2013, 06:11:39 PM »

Car looks great!

mlcraven · « **Reply #15 on:** December 17, 2013, 06:09:50 PM »

Further Cyclone activity has been set aside until the New Year. Spent last weekend undertaking additional front clip assembly and gap alignment and generally pleased how things are coming together -- back-of-front-fender to front-of-door gaps still need to be tightened up a bit but it's almost there. Lots of work to get the best fit possible with the Crites hood, for which the end result is now to my satisfaction. It's a real beggar being obsessively particular about these things, a wonky gene somewhere in the family.

Coming up with a replacement for the bit of aluminum trim that runs across the front lip of the hood promises to be an interesting New Year's project.

2014 will be "the year of the interior", plus attention to a bunch of loose ends. Target is the second annual FE Reunion in April, although it will very much depend on the demands of work travel in the Jan-Mar period.

I'll take this opportunity to wish all FE Power Form members a safe and relaxing Holiday Season (and to all you Christians out there like myself, a Merry Christmas too

)

machoneman · « **Reply #16 on:** December 18, 2013, 09:20:09 AM »

Very nice, but we need a few more side and rear pics too!

Merry Christmas back at yah but also......Happy Festivus!

mlcraven · « **Reply #17 on:** December 18, 2013, 09:04:39 PM »

Here you go...Festivus!

BruceS · « **Reply #18 on:** December 19, 2013, 09:44:06 AM »

Michael,
For that hood molding, there is a repro for the Fairlane available but I'm not sure how close it is to the Comet. You could check or ask DearbornClassics.com or Autokrafters.com. Another good source of info is the Fairlane Club - Fairlaneclubofamerica.com which also covers the 66-67 Comets. I have a 66 Fairlane and bought the repro hood molding some years ago. That molding is made for 66 or 67s.

Happy holiday season to all the FE Forum members! I've really enjoyed this forum and have learned so much about my all time favorite V8! Plans for 2014 include a new build...

Bruce

mlcraven · « **Reply #19 on:** December 19, 2013, 02:27:59 PM »

Thanks Bruce...I've very much enjoyed looking at the pics of your cars that you've posted. Orig I was hunting for a Fairlane but after several months searching came across the Cyclone and the rest, as they say, is history. Always understanding that a 'next' project can't be ruled out, if it comes to that I'm very enthused about the possibility of a 63-64 FE-powered Galaxie -- there seems to be a decent number of them available at fair prices.

Not sure I understand correctly, but have you replaced the complete front end on your Fairlane with a Total Control suspension, or just select components?

BruceS · « **Reply #20 on:** December 19, 2013, 07:53:51 PM »

I used Total Control for the struts and sway bar pivots - they are great parts! The upper arms are NOS and lower arms are good repro. I also added a 3/4" sway bar and it really helped. I also got the TC variable rate coils but haven't put them in yet...

Bruce

BruceS · « **Reply #21 on:** December 20, 2013, 09:48:57 AM »

Forgot to mention; I put the single adjustable Vari-Shocks on too. If I remember correctly they are made by Chris Alston's chassis works. Total Control is a division of theirs. They are really nice parts too, aluminum body and fit with no issues. I'm running them on step 3 (of 10 I believe!) for plenty of damping of a heavy-ish car...

Bruce

mlcraven · « **Reply #22 on:** July 05, 2014, 09:10:56 PM »

I mentioned back in Dec that this was to be the "year of the interior'. Also that attending the 2nd annual FE Race and Reunion at Beaver Springs was my deadline target. Unfortunately, demands of work and life in general scuppered plans for Beaver Springs. However, on a positive note good progress is being made with the interior. All panels and upholstery are repaired/refurbished and the new carpet and headliner is in. Received the vent window frames back from plating about a month ago and reassembled and installed them this week. All that's left now is to install the door window guts and glass. Pics of the interior attached:

mlcraven · « **Reply #23 on:** July 05, 2014, 09:15:39 PM »

Here a pic with the vent windows installed. Shout out to Rick and Debbie at R&D Finishing in Elisabethton TN for the restoration and plating work on the frames.

BruceS · « **Reply #24 on:** July 06, 2014, 08:12:33 AM »

Michael,
Lookin good. Nice color combo; not many nice Comets out there!

Bruce

thatdarncat · « **Reply #25 on:** July 06, 2014, 08:36:07 AM »

Really looking sharp, it's got to feel good getting this close to finished.

fastback 427 · « **Reply #26 on:** July 06, 2014, 10:29:55 AM »

That white interior looks way cool. They are Not a cheap thing to restore on a cyclone. Very nice car Michael.

mlcraven · « **Reply #27 on:** July 06, 2014, 09:03:43 PM »

Thanks everyone. It sure feels good to be in the home stretch of the home stretch. I was able to save some dinero by tackling much of the interior on my own: fixed the cracked dash; repaired split sun visor seams, re-colored the seats, and refurbished the package tray. Relied on a local Hampton Roads upholstery outfit (Young's) for the headliner install and to repair split seams on the seats -- very pleased with their work and prices. My wife chides me for replacing the steering wheel with the Grant unit; I still have the original (it's in real rough shape) but have misplaced (read lost) the horn cap center section.

News:

Author Topic: 67 Cyclone Bodel Panel Fitment - Opinions/Advice (Read 15303 times)