1960 Falcon build....

65coupe408w · May 23, 2010

So I picked this 1960 Falcon 2 dr sedan up for $600

It has been sitting for the past ten years, the previous owner only drove it one time (the noticed the thermostat housing was leaking, ended up stripping the thread in the block, re tapped it and proceeded to strip that, the car never moved again)

On the bright side the car came with a 200ci short block that needed to be re-assembled, fully rebuilt head, and a replacement part for everything that is broken on the car.

Anyway...I will do my best to document my build on this. Hopefully my Mustang wont get to jealous that I am not paying her as much attention...Enjoy!

here is a picture of the car when I got it towed to my house...
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stripped the paint off the spare 200ci...block was really clean no scoring on any of the cylinder bores and all the journals looked great
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hit it with some primer...
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then some paint...
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new cam bearings and cleaned up an reinstalled cam...(car is going to be all stock, looking for a cruiser)
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polished all the journals on the crank...
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crank in place ready to check clearances with some plastigage
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everything checked out...crank back in its home
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new timing set installed...
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timing cover back on....
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pistons ready for a trial fit...
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65coupe408w · May 23, 2010

So I ran into an issue with the rod bearings...when I got the car it came with all new bearings for the motor. I was told the crank was machined .010/.020 so I went ahead and check clearances of the rod bearings with plastigage and they were way out! So i did some more research and found that the rod bearings are actually .010 not .020 so I am waiting on some other bearings to come in....

That said my roommate and I went ahead and pulled the motor and trans out of the car.

out she comes....
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the screwed up old motor (also a 200) and a 2spd ford-o-matic...
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I went ahead and tore the rest of the engine bay down so I can prep it for paint...
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This is where I am for now...not bad for a weekends work! hopefully I can keep this pace up and get the car moving before long...

StangDreamin' · May 24, 2010

Nice! I see the shortblock is a 7-bearing motor; if the engine in the car was the original, it should have been a five bearing - so that's a good reliability upgrade right there.

Is that a hard top, or is it just that the chrome window frames are covering up the B-pillar?

tx65coupe · May 24, 2010

Thats a neat project. I really like Falcons.

It would have originally came with a 170 correct? The 200 is a better engine. So like StangDreamin said, thats a good upgrade.

I don't know if your keeping it mostly stock or not, but Clifford Performance has some cool I6 parts.

This site may also be helpful. http://fordsix.com/

Realmongo · May 24, 2010

This is where you need to go next!

Falcon 6 Performance Handbook

65coupe408w · May 24, 2010

Haha thanks for the input guys!

Originally the car would have come with a 144ci solid lifter I6 with 4 main bearings. The 200ci Is a huge improvement over that!

The chrome trim is hiding the B pillar...I wish it was pillarless! But for $600 you can't complain haha.

For now I just want to get the car up and running and enjoy it. I dont want my Mustang to get jealous!

rbohm · May 24, 2010

StangDreamin' said:
Nice! I see the shortblock is a 7-bearing motor; if the engine in the car was the original, it should have been a five bearing - so that's a good reliability upgrade right there.

the original engine would have been a four main bearing 144.

by the way i do hope you are going to dump the 2spd ford o matic in favor of a C4 at least, better a T5.

Realmongo · May 24, 2010

My Mom bought a new Falcon wagon in 1960 with the 144 2-speed combo. Car was a joke when it came to going up hills! My Dad replaced it with a '62 Chevy wagon a couple of years later.

65coupe408w · May 24, 2010

rbohm said:
the original engine would have been a four main bearing 144.

by the way i do hope you are going to dump the 2spd ford o matic in favor of a C4 at least, better a T5.

I actually do have a C4 crossmember for the car...but from what I have read they do not fit in the 60' If anyone has any input please let me know!

65coupe408w · May 24, 2010

Realmongo said:
My Mom bought a new Falcon wagon in 1960 with the 144 2-speed combo. Car was a joke when it came to going up hills! My Dad replaced it with a '62 Chevy wagon a couple of years later.

good thing I live in FL and we don't know what hills are here!!! haha just want to cruise up and down the beach!

65coupe408w · May 27, 2010

Ok so a quick update...managed to get all the pistons in today. I was really hoping to get the oil pump and pan installed also but I got the wrong oil pump so I have to wait for the new one to come in. Anyway, the motor is coming along quite well.

Pistons with all the rings installed
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everything buttoned up nicely on the bottom end
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all the slugs in place for good
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tx65coupe · May 28, 2010

Thats cool, looks nice so far.

I hate when I get the wrong parts.

rbohm · May 28, 2010

65coupe408w said:
I actually do have a C4 crossmember for the car...but from what I have read they do not fit in the 60' If anyone has any input please let me know!

actually the C4 isnt much bigger than the ford o matic 2spd. it fits nicely in the early falcons. as long as you have the high mount starter location.

jonfor · May 30, 2010

if your new project was a '64 galaxy 500, i would be green with envy!

65coupe408w · Jun 8, 2010

quick update...i finally got some of the parts I have been waiting for.

I hope to clean up all the rocker arms and have them installed in the next couple of days...

I plan to pick up a small media blaster also so I can strip the engine bay of its 50yr old paint and get a nice clean surface to start on

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65coupe408w · Jun 17, 2010

here are the long awaited pictures...I managed to get the fender off with a bit of brute force, not damage done

I use the green masking take on the motor to remind me to come back and address these areas. Let me know what you think! Stripping the paint out of the engine bay is next!

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mudbilly · Jun 17, 2010

nice.......

65coupe408w · Aug 23, 2010

quick update on my progress...and lots of pictures.

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Car catching some late afternoon sun:
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My girlfriend helping with the install:
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In she goes:
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First look at the engine in its new home:
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Trans on the Jack for install:
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You can just see the trans all bolted up:
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This is where I got to:
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Exhaust, starter, and generator hooked up:
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65coupe408w · Aug 23, 2010

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Original rear seat, out for a cleaning.
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pulled tank out and will be cleaining everyting up during the week.
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and a couple of the car in the garage
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65coupe408w · Aug 23, 2010

ENJOY!!!!

1960 Falcon build....

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