1974 Mustang II Build

Yesterday started out with Cade trimming some trees back and hauling out the branches. Then it was moving on to putting a new set of plug wires on, checking fluids, putting in some fresh gas and of course some more seat time.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/881/2...b3187188_z.jpgspw by M Patterson, on Flickr


He’s getting pretty decent working the clutch and is wearing the heck out of first and second (not enough room to get into 3 and 4th). Getting about time to get him to start practicing stopping and starting on a hill LOL.


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Originally Posted by Mike P

Getting about time to get him to start practicing stopping and starting on a hill LOL.

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Driving a stick shift Chevy around Fayetteville, Arkansas was my learning experience! Pulling up a steep grade to a traffic light made a guy learn how to feel the friction point through his feet a necessary skill!! Really like your Cade posts.

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Originally Posted by rspears

Driving a stick shift Chevy around Fayetteville, Arkansas was my learning experience! Pulling up a steep grade to a traffic light made a guy learn how to feel the friction point through his feet a necessary skill!! Really like your Cade posts.

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In 1961 my stepfather bought my first car, a 1952 Ford convertible, from a guy he worked with for $125. He lived in Springfield, Ohio, about 35 miles or so north of Dayton, and when the deal was done he handed me the keys and said drive it home. I had a very limited knowledge of a 3 pedal car and to say that was a learning experience is a gross understatement.

My learning curve was just the opposite. I had started driving tractors at about 9, and by the time I was 15 had gotten pretty good driving the pickup and even the old 2 1/2 ton grain truck around the fields.

One winter Saturday when I was 14 or 15 dad and I were clearing a hedge row about 1 1/2 miles from the house. We'd taken the family car for some reason. At the end of the day we walked to the car (a 62 Super 88 Olds) and dad climbed into the passenger seat and told me to drive us home. I got behind the steering wheel started the car and then had to ask dad what to do next.....it didn't have clutch :eek:.

Dad kind of laughed and told me to just put my foot on the brake and pull it into D. I managed to get us home in one piece......first time driving something with power steering. Stopping in the driveway wasn't real smooth.....it was my first time with power brakes too :LOL::LOL:



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I once had a beater Pontiac Grand Prix that gave you 1 of two options either brake or steer, if you tried both either the brakes didn't work or the steering clamped down, found this out the hard way. It's best option was the electric windows missing the switch on the drivers side. You just had to pick the right two wires to spark and then it worked. Needless to say I didn't drive it unless absolutely desperate to get somewhere! :0

When I was first married to my first wife, she had a Gremlin (a green one no less) with a manual transmission. She had been driving stick for quite awhile, but she had a bad habit of holding the car by slipping the clutch while stopped on a hill instead of using the brake. She said that was the way her daddy taught her to do it and she was afraid that she would stall the engine. I explained to her that her daddy wasn't the one that was going to have to pull the trans and fix the clutch when she wore it out.:rolleyes: It took a little more prodding from me, but I eventually got her to quit slipping , learn how to catch the engine just right and use the brake.

New cars with an emergency brake handle between the seats make it easy. Just hold the car with the E brake and start off normally. I think that's how folks are taught to do it now. We didn't have it so easy when I was younger. Most E brakes on American cars weren't that user friendly back then. We had to learn to catch the torque of the engine.

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Originally Posted by Mike P

Dad kind of laughed and told me to just put my foot on the brake and pull it into D. I managed to get us home in one piece......first time driving something with power steering. Stopping in the driveway wasn't real smooth.....it was my first time with power brakes too :LOL::LOL:

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Having been born in 1910, my mom had zero experience with an automatic even after I was up in high school. Well, dad had always bought Studebaker standard shift cars and mom could, of course, drive them very well. He traded a very sweet little '55 Champion for a brand new 1957 supercharged 289 V8 Golden Hawk, with AUTOMATIC transmission. He took mom out in the country to teach her how to drive it. The first stop sign she came up to, she pushed her left foot to the floor with vigor (thinking that she was disengaging the clutch for the stop) and slammed the power brakes on full tilt boogie. Dad said the car turned sideways in the road and mom started cussing, making him drive her home. That was the first and last time she ever tried to drive an auto. When she went to her grave at age 86, she was driving a 4-speed Chevette.
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Richard I about pissed myself laughing great story thanks for sharing!

Cade's grades have been improving a bit, and it looks like he may pass everything this year. He's been out of school since Thursday.....his school was shutdown by the teachers walk out. As it stands right now unless they go back by Tuesday they'll start adding days to the end of the school year.

He was over last Sunday, we didn't do anything with the car but did get a new top coat on the roof of the house. Today we ended up replacing the 2 of the support posts on the porch, then it was some time with the Mustang.

Today he got to learn about setting timing. Of course he had to listen to Grandpa explain how it worked, which ended up taking about 3 times longer than actually setting it :LOL:

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/948/2...1775e4fc_z.jpgCD1 by M Patterson, on Flickr


Then it was some more driving practice. Before we got started with that I asked him if he remembered the rules.......he grinned and said "yes, don't run over Grandpa and don't run into Grandpas cars "

I ended up having Cade start practicing starting out on an incline (we'll work up to hills a bit later :LOL:). He's definitely getting the hang of the clutch thing.


https://farm1.staticflickr.com/965/2...eae23452_z.jpgCD2 by M Patterson, on Flickr



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Good looking little Mustang, Mike! What you need is one of those 88 T-Bird 2.3 turbo coupes for a donor car and then.........

When I taught my stepson to drive clutch, starting on an incline was lesson #1. I figured if he could master that, the rest would .. Wait for it ... All down hill from there. :). Besides, he already had his license and had been driving autos for a couple years.

Mike, did the teachers walk out due to low pay, or? That's great his grades are coming up and he should pass this year. I'm sure driving the stang really helps him see the light.


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Ryan I wrote a response to your walk out question, but realized it was a bit political for this forum so I sent it to you in a PM. For the kids sake it's something that will be resolved quickly (and without a big tax increase for their Grandpa :LOL: )


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Well, Cade is back in the dog house again. Seems he blew off a project in one of his classes (dropping his final grade for the class by a grade and a half). The project was assigned before the teacher walk out so he really has no excuse for not having the time to do it while school was closed for a couple of days.

His mom is understandably pretty mad, and I’m pretty disappointed. We don’t know for sure, but it sounds like he might still pass all his classes, we’ll know next Tuesday. Anyway, no working on the car or driving it this weekend.

I did convince his mom to let him come over yesterday and put him to work painting the trim on the house. Part of the money he earned for that will go to reimburse his mom for the supplies she bought for the project he never did.



https://farm1.staticflickr.com/974/2...f43216f6_z.jpgHP by M Patterson, on Flickr



If nothing else at least he’s learning a work ethic (I hope).




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Mike, it won't mean a thing but.. tell the kid everyone here at the club is giving him a big frown! 8-( :mad::mad::mad:

Oh, thats good, reimbursing mom for the supplies, I like that !

With the unplanned trip back to Illinois it's been about a month since I've seen Cade but he's been over here for the last couple of days. Good thing too, there was a bunch that needed to be done around here.

I lost some of the trees that shade the garage over last winter/spring. They're Arizona Ash and at first I was afraid that it might be the Emerald Ash Borer that is working its way west. When I checked on the internet this spring they still hadn’t made it across Texas yet and I’ve cut up enough wood to be pretty sure that the Borer is not the problem. It’s either disease, or simply a lack of water. Either way they needed to come down before they fall down on the roof or the fence. My daughter (Cades’ mom) uses wood in the winter so at least the wood will go to a good cause.

We got all the dead ones down but there are still a couple that look iffy, so we might be taking a couple more down next spring. By the time we got the trees down, cut up and loaded I figure there is a bit more than 1/2 a cord. There was a bunch that really needs split which is something I don't mind doing, but I only got thru a couple of pieces before my carpal tunnel got to me......something I guess I'll have to have taken care of this winter. Working with Cade is really a pleasure.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1805/...25c00a3f_z.jpgCW1 by M Patterson, on Flickr


After the wood was loaded Cade got some more seat time in on the Mustang....more laps around the arena :LOL: :LOL:

After that it was pretty much just putting stuff away from the tree cutting. He did have to change out the locks in his tool box (the cheap file cabinet locks I originally used gave out. He did good, and I'm finding he needs less and less supervision.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1776/...82afa58c_z.jpgCW2 by M Patterson, on Flickr

By the way it's official he did pass all his classes last school year.......now just 3 more years to go :rolleyes:

Oh and he's eligible for his learners permit in the next couple of months (I can hardly wait) :eek::eek::LOL:


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It's wonderful watching him grow through your eyes. He's really getting tall. Your guidance will help shape him in ways you might never fully appreciate.

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Originally Posted by firebird77clone

It's wonderful watching him grow through your eyes. He's really getting tall. Your guidance will help shape him in ways you might never fully appreciate.

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X2. What he said.

Yeah, I'm pretty proud of the kid (I guess it shows :LOL: )

I had a little fun with him when he said cutting and loading the wood was pretty hard work. I told him he and I didn't know what hard work was and told him a bit about my Great Grandfather and showed him a picture of Grandpa Stanbrough when he was 16 (Cade's 15 1/2).

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1823/...3bf33e1e_z.jpgS1 by M Patterson, on Flickr

He liked the picture, and (like me) was pretty impressed when he read the back. I was 9 when Grandpa passed (at 93), so i'm fortunate enough to remember him and pass on a few of his stories.

I didn't hear any more comments about how hard it was :D



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What you guys are doing is more than just family bonding, it's these shared work experiences and "work Ethic" that trust me, will give him a big upper hand in his work future, as so many kids today have no one to guide them, teach them mechanics, and wood chopping, the pride in work that is so important that will promote him as he grows older and already has!
My grandma did this for me, as my grandpa died of a heart attack at 50, some 12 years or so before I was born. Grandma owned 60 acres of grape vinyards, and knew how to care for them, as did all of her kids. She lived to be 94, in her unheated house (heated buy wood stove only, where in the summer temps hit 115, and in the winter below freezing. She chopped up old grape vines with an axe until she was in her late 80's, and hurt her back. My uncles and cousins helped cut wood until she passed at 94, still living in that house by herself. Our Grand parents had a different life full of amazing things that people today haven't a clue, it built character and they knew how to provide for their families and how to work hard. They valued the rewards this brought them from time to time, especially a new car, truck, or tractor. I'll never forget when my uncle Bill bought an air conditioned Ford tractor with a cassette stereo, he was the talk of the town!

AND. When he's done send him my way.

I'll show him how to put the hydraulic splitter to use, and get my wood split and stacked.

If something happened this day and age and people had to go back to living like they did in the late 1800s, I'd bet there may be 30% or a little more of the population that would make it.

That's great to hear Cade passed all his classes and it's good you're getting to work with him more. I really wish my kids could have met my Grandpa Russ. He was a hard working man that came from nothing and had nothing too.

Cade's had a pretty full summer, but summer's over and school's back in session already. It's been about a month since he was here last, but came over last night.

We got an early start on yard work this morning and put in about 4 hours by the time we got everything on the list done. Between this morning and the other work he's done this summer he' about 3/4 of the way to having enough for a set of tires.

It's been just about a year now since we pulled the old Mustang out of the shed and started on it. When we got to the Mustang the day started out the same way it did that first day we started on it.........with Cade giving it a bath :LOL::LOL:


https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1794/...0e13f7cc_z.jpgAug 18 by M Patterson, on Flickr

At least this time it was moving under its own power. Cade still needs to get his learners permit hopefully sometime in the next month or two......but of course that's all going to be tied to his grades.


We were talking about the car last night and Cade mentioned that down the road he was thinking about putting a V8 in it (I must have done something right :D ) .

Well, not much of an update, but at least we're still plugging away.


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Always cool to see these updates

Just started following this thread Mike you probably already know this but you are helping Cade become a good upstanding man. More parents /grandparents should be doing this as the coming generation is going down hill from what I've seen. My kids and Chris' kids all got there share of chores to do and when it came time for a car they got jobs to pay for them. All 5 are now great kids with kids of there own. two own there own business one is in the service with 3 kids the other is a pastor of a church and the 5th one is a body shop damage estimator for a big company. Hard work and responsibility never killed anyone. You sir are on the right track with Cade. You have to be PROUD.

great story Mike thanks for sharing
The story brought back lots of memories of my son and grandson going through the same school problems
both have their stuff together now
cheers
Hank

And speaking of Mustang IIs, Cades' doing good in school so it was another day working for Grandpa, working on the Mustang and getting some more driving in.

The last time he drove the car it acted like it wasn't charging the battery. We pulled it into the shop and put a volt meter on it and sure enough it wasn't charging. In the process of checking to make sure the regulator had a good ground he managed to strip out one of the self tapping screws. So he got to learn one way how to do that little repair.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1845/...04090641_z.jpgVR by M Patterson, on Flickr

Of course that wasn't the problem. The issue turned out to be a broken battery wire in the harness.......and it was Cade who found the problem, not me.

Anyway, I've got him practicing his backing right now. I'm pretty much just turning him loose in the arena now......and keep an ear open to make sure he's not getting too exuberant ......loud exhaust is good :LOL::LOL:


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Reverse should always be practiced at full throttle. Keeps their skills sharp!

My parents taught us how to drive in a 77 Cadillac Coupe deville. Dad used to tell us if you can parallel park this you can drive anything. :LOL: He was right. My driving instructor was blown away when it was my turn to do the backing stuff. I guess between the caddy and living on a small farm it made it easy.

Ilearned real young on a 49 Chevy panel truck. There was no back windows to look out You used mirrors or ran into things. Driving instructor told me to turn around and look out back window during test. That was easier but had never done it that way. Took the test in 4dr 57 DeSoto. Past first time out.

Typical Sunday, Cade was over again and it started with weed eating and mowing for a couple of hours (hopefully for the last time this season). I also had him pull/cut out some big tumble weeds along the fence line with a hook I had built a while back. After that was done we figured up his time and added a bit more credit to his account for car parts.

We've decided to go ahead and rebuild the front suspension and also replace the front springs prior to buying new tires for it. I'll be spending a good part of the money he's been setting aside for the car this week when I order the stuff.

When he was getting the car out to drive around a bit he mentioned that the hook had worked really well for getting the tumble weeds out. He also mentioned that he was going to be pulling out some big tumble weeds at his house for his mom .........rather than just come right out and ask about borrowing something he has a habit of beating around the bush for a while (a habit of his I'm trying to break). He was pretty disappointed when I told him would not let him borrow mine, but perked up when I told him I would let him build his own.

After he got thru driving it was into the shop to get started on the hook. It's actually a pretty simple affair, a simple hook welded to a large nut that will thread on to an old mop handle. I added a support strap from the side of the hook to other side of the nut for a little extra support and sharpened the inside edges of the hook.

I started by having Cade trace the shape of my blade on to a piece of flat stock and then rough cut it out with a cut off wheel.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1871/...9c331d22_z.jpgH1 by M Patterson, on Flickr


Then it was on to the grinder to clean it up and finish shaping it.


https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1887/...79f2049b_z.jpgH4 by M Patterson, on Flickr


Nothing fancy, and it probably could have used a bit more refining but he didn't do bad.


https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1895/...55cb7197_z.jpgH2 by M Patterson, on Flickr



I handled sharpening the inner edges of the V and welding it to the nut and adding a support strap to it. I realized part way thru the project I haven't taught Cade any welding yet......an oversight that I hope to correct in the coming months. After the sharpening and welding was done the final step was showing Cade how to heat treat the blade to temper it so it would hold an edge. We screwed in an old mop handle and he's ready to do some work for his mom.


https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1852/...99fe7eea_z.jpgH3 by M Patterson, on Flickr


I told him the next time I see it I expected to see the majority of paint gone and the blade smooth and shiny from use. :3dSMILE:


I think Cade actually liked building the hook as much or more than driving the car.....I know I sure enjoy playing shop teacher.



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Man I wish you were my Grandpa! What a great teacher/mentor!

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Originally Posted by stovens

Man I wish you were my Grandpa! What a great teacher/mentor!

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You stand in line behind me buddy!
I want first dibs on Mike as a Grandpa!

:LOL: :LOL: :LOL:

Sorry guys I’ve already got another grandson waiting in the wings……he doesn’t show quite as much interest in spending time out in the shop though. Hopefully that might change.


I had a pretty good teacher myself, my Dad. Although he didn’t necessarily “teach” like I do with Cade, when my brother or myself asked a question he would take the time to explain what he was doing and how things worked. He would also allow us to try things. Dad was the one who taught me wiring, welding (with both torch and arc welder), and a love for tools and mechanics. Most importantly he also taught me a good work ethic although I never realized it at the time.




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Very cool! I'm sure this kid will go far in life.

Very nice Mike! I already know my biggest problem when trying to show my wife or the kids how to do something is I have a hard time translating to them in an easier way they'll pick up on it faster. Oh, and I have to remember to have more patience with them. That's been a life long thing. :LOL:

Another Sunday and a pretty busy one. I had Cade do a bit of weed eating, help me take down a couple of small trees (and cut them up for fire wood), and then hang a couple of security cameras. Cade has become interested in how house wiring works, so I started to teach him that this weekend too. It was a good excuse to get a bad switch I had replaced and over the next few months I’ll be adding a few new outlets I’ve been procrastinating on so it’s a win win. :3dSMILE:


I think we hit a milestone of sorts yesterday……..Cade got his first box of parts from Speedway (pretty much wiped out all the credit he built up this summer) :LOL: :LOL:

We’re going to rebuild the front suspension before we put new tires on it. Yesterday was just inventorying what came in. We’ll do the front end next week when Cade is out of school for fall break.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1947/...006a30ce_z.jpgparts by M Patterson, on Flickr



We also have out big local car show on the 13th. Cade and I are planning on going and I gave him the choice of either just being spectators or taking something in to and spending all day. I guess I’ll be cleaning up the 57……. Cade doesn’t know it yet but guess who’s going to help with putting a fresh coat of wax on it :rolleyes:


Anyway that’s this week’s up date.



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I still get excited when the puple lettered boxes arrive! Not sure if they still offer shop classes where you guys are at but I took autio electrics, auto chasis and basic auto in high school (also the equivelant of auto engines, rebuilding my 68 mustang's 302.)
Doing this now will give him confidence to tackle lots of fixes later in life, it did and still does for me!

Steve they offer some shop classes (but no auto shop). I asked him over summer vacation why he wasn't taking those. He told me "I'm learning those things from you Grandpa"

I'm sitting here shaking my head as I type this :rolleyes:



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