[R 70 Judge]

Originally Posted by Gator67

Digital Dakota RTX gauges...was impressed how well they mimic factory design.

As much as I love engine turned TA gauge bezel, I think I'm going to stick with Firebird wood grain. Will make the required holes in my non-A/C non-gauges bezel using a Greenlee punch.

Are the black trim rings around the gauges removable? I really like these gauges. They look great! At a glance they look factory. I’d definitely want chromed rings or to use reproduction chrome rings in a TA.

[Gator67]

The gauge bezels screw on to the gauges, so not like factory. I don't remember seeing an option for chrome bezels when I ordered, but that may have changed...if that's what you want, I would just call them to find out if they have that, or if they might be willing to do it for you.

[70TA-RAIII]

Wow, those really look good! Looks almost factory original and yet nice, modern electronics. Dakota Digital makes some great stuff IMO.

John

[Gator67]

Still making progress, though a couple snags along the way.

First, I noticed that at full turn, the front wheels rub the upper control arms. So need to install r&p steering limiters. I don't think this should be a big deal. Picked some up at a Ford dealer. Just need to remove the inner tie rod boot clamp, pull the boot back a bit, snap the limiters in place, and re-clamp the boot. I bought some cv joint boot clamps and a tool, which I need to figure out how to use. I'm surprised that DSE did not pre-install limiters given that they specify wheel sizes and offsets. At the very least, should mention the possibility of running into this issue in the install manual. Could have done some major damage to my Forgelines if I drove the car without limiters.

The second issue is more of a challenge. After bleeding the hydraulic clutch system I realized that the clutch doesn't seem to release until the pedal is pretty close to the floor, and even then I'm not sure it's releasing fully. The car isn't running yet, but on a lift with the car in gear and clutch pushed in, I can turn the rear tires by hand, but there seems to be more interference than I expected. I followed the instructions I received to set up the height of release bearing, but apparently I missed that the calculations needed to be done with the bearing recessed into the body of the release bearing assembly. I didn't even realize that the bearing compressed like that at all, and it wasn't shown in any of the install videos I watched. I'm on the edge of being OK, so may wait to see how the clutch engages and transmission shifts with the car running. As the clutch wears, the fingers will get closer to the bearing, so it will get better over time. I'd like to address this now so that the clutch releases with less pedal travel, but given that the engine is pushed back 1.5", removing the transmission will be much more work than normal...not sure how much I will have to remove in order to tilt everything down far enough to access and remove the transmission to bellhousing bolts. Also, I'd like to wait until I start up the engine in the car to make sure there are no other issues (e.g., leaks, oil pan interference) which would require pulling the engine to fix.

One step forward, two steps back.

[HWYSTR455]

Can you increase the pedal throw ratio?

.

[Gator67]

Originally Posted by HWYSTR455

Can you increase the pedal throw ratio?

I messed with the pedal (length of the pushrod, and moved the position of the clevis to increase the ratio) but can't escape the fact that the clutch needs .450" for good release and I'm not sure I'm quite there with the bearing at full extension (.700") given the way I set it up. Also thought about getting a MC with different sized bore and stroke (currently 7/8 and 1.1", respectively) which would change things a bit.

Maybe I should go ahead and pull the transmission to set it up the right way...even if it's functional, I won't like where it releases. I don't look forward to wrestling with it, but haven't installed the exhaust, console, etc. so much less to take apart now.

[HWYSTR455]

So the way you are describing it, the TO was already extended partially when you installed it? Is that what you're saying?

If so, yes, pull it and do it 'right' now, before it gets harder to do so. (As much as that may suck as a job).


.

[Gator67]

Originally Posted by HWYSTR455

So the way you are describing it, the TO was already extended partially when you installed it? Is that what you're saying?

If so, yes, pull it and do it 'right' now, before it gets harder to do so. (As much as that may suck as a job).

I don't think the bearing was "extended partially". It's that the bearing can be pushed down by hand into the body of the assembly from its normal (uninstalled/out of the box) resting state. According to the Tilton tech person, the .125 buffer in the instructions should be from this bottomed-out bearing location to the clutch fingers. So once the system is bled the bearing in its natural resting position stays against the clutch fingers, and there is a .125 buffer for clutch wear before it bottoms out. Since I measured from the bearing's normal out of the box location, there is a .125 gap between the bearing and clutch fingers when installed, so I know the bearing is at least .125 too far back from spec. It still may work, but right on the ragged edge of the .45 needed for good clutch release. This evening I'll empty the hydraulic line and see if I can get something in there to push the bearing down to confirm.

[HWYSTR455]

Ok, think I'm following, but not sure how you can tell if that as-shipped resting position is in all the way, at normal resting position, or even further out of the resting position. (Unless you bottom it out).

As for clutch wear, you also have to account for 'finger growth' under RPM. As the clutch wears, and/or rpm builds, the fingers move out, away from the pressure plate. The minimum distance for the TO is similar to the free-play setting (push rod to fork gap when all slack is taken out).

Air-gap setting is the distance between the flywheel & disc when the pedal is depressed.


.

[Gator67]

Started the process of removing the transmission...those top bolts that hold the Magnum to the QT bell, especially the one offset to the right, are super difficult to access with the engine set back in the subframe. Removing the transmission mount gave my son just enough room to wiggle an 18" 3/8 extension through the shifter access panel we made. I thought the extension would snap, but he finally got it. With the transmission out I'll be able to make a little access panel for that bolt. I'll also clearance the area right behind the transmission so that I can get the back of the transmission up a little higher...just another .125" will make the angles perfect.

[Gator67]

Pulled the transmission, carefully remeasured and reset the throwout bearing, reassembled and...absolutely no change! I guess I'll wait to see how the clutch works once the car is running and things have a chance to settle in.

I finished the front brake lines. Bending 3/16 line is a lot easier than 1/2. I have to run out to Baer this morning and pick up a few things so I can finish up the rears.

[HWYSTR455]

Originally Posted by Gator67

Pulled the transmission, carefully remeasured and reset the throwout bearing, reassembled and...absolutely no change! I guess I'll wait to see how the clutch works once the car is running and things have a chance to settle in.

I finished the front brake lines. Bending 3/16 line is a lot easier than 1/2. I have to run out to Baer this morning and pick up a few things so I can finish up the rears.

Which hyd TO setup do you have? And clutch & PP?

.

[Gator67]

Originally Posted by HWYSTR455

Which hyd TO setup do you have? And clutch & PP?

.

Tilton 6000 series hydraulic release bearing, Tilton 75 series 7/8" master cylinder, Ram Force 10.5" dual disc clutch (came with pressure plate and flywheel), factory clutch pedal.

I think I could go with a 3/4 or 13/16 bore MC to lighten up the heavy clutch feel, but from my understanding, the loss of volume would make the release point issue worse (the Tilton MCs that would work best in my car are all 1.1" stroke).

[Gator67]

Been busy with work, so not much progress this last week.

Rear brakes are almost done. Just waiting for a brake line mounting tab and clip to show up.

The parking brake install has been more of a challenge. The plan was to use factory style front cable from Inline Tube and rear cables from Baer (their park brake requires a rectangular eye-end). What I did not consider is that the Quadralink install involves modifications that eliminate the normal park brake exits, and the lower control arms further limit the number of easy routing options. I ended up drilling a hole in the modified frame rail and passing it through to the front mounting tab, which seemed to work well except the park brake housing ended up being an inch too long...and I could not make the cable happy. Ended up calling Control Cables in CA. Turns out they make Baer's cables and were happy to make me new ones exactly 1" shorter (both in the housing and the inner cable) for a very reasonable price. Great company. Cables should be here next week...crossing my fingers that 1" shorter was enough.

This weekend will probably be spent helping my son prepare his 79 Y84 for paint. It's in 600 wet and need to spend some time in the door jams and a few other areas.

[Gator67]

Finished the brake lines and park brakes finally.









Next task is the exhaust. When I mocked up the Pypes system way back when, I really struggled getting the tail pipes to fit over the axles and around the fuel tank. Now that the rear sway bar, and the fuel and brake lines, are installed, it just won't work without modifying things.

Fortunately, my 18y/o son is teaching himself how to tig, and after testing his skills on some scrap pipe, he's pretty confident he can build me an exhaust. To keep it simple, we'll use the Pypes system as a starting point. I'll also have him weld in some v band clamps to make removing the exhaust easier. I think he'll end up having to go under the axle. Just not enough real estate to go over.

[Gator67]

Bled the brakes. They seem to work fine, and no leaks!

Park brakes are functional as well.

Exhaust is done up to the tail pipes. It's as tight to the floor as we could get it without rubbing anywhere, and the v band clamps make is super easy to remove. But it does hang a little lower than ideal. With a 3" pipes the only way to gain significant clearance would have been to modify the floor pan, and I'm not doing that now. If we were to redo the exhaust from scratch (rather than using a Pypes system), we could gain a little clearance. May do that if ground clearance is a problem that can't be resolved by adjusting ride height, or if there's an annoying drone.

At this point, the car is about ready to start up. I just need to re-make a fuel line that I accidentally crushed when I lifted the car, connect a few more wires under the dash, install the gauge bezel, and recheck everything one last time.

[keith k]

Looking forward to some noise!

[Mister Pontiac]

Great news, Jeff! Definitely looking forward to hearing her rumble!

Let me know when you're headed out for a test drive. I'll try and meet you along the way!

[Gator67]

Thanks guys! Feels good to be on the home stretch. Looking forward to some noise as well. Actually, the car will be kind of a sleeper from a noise standpoint. The 535 sounded really docile at idle on the run stand (246 258 115LSA)...actually not much different than an 068 in a 400...and it will sound even more tame through a full exhaust. Different story with some throttle. Though, with this build, I'm just as eager to see how the car rides, corners and stops, and how everything like lights, A/C, sound system, etc. functions.

I rebuilt the fuel line....turned out much better than my first attempt.

Son is working on the tail pipes. Turning out nicely, but am still struck how the exhaust system is so important in determining ride height, stance, etc. Spending more time and money at the mock-up stage would have given me some additional degrees of freedom. Though, it's really difficult to anticipate how little changes you make affect other things unless you mock-up the car completely. For example, if I would have made changes to the floorpan to tuck the exhaust up higher, I would have had to reengineer the park brake set-up, modify seat tracks, and who knows what else.

Hope to button things up this weekend.

[Gator67]

Exhaust is finished, at least for the time being. Below the axle looks odd, but fairly common with these types of builds. The mufflers are still the low point, so I don't think the tailpipes will make matters worse. That said, my son has enough practice now that I think he could find a way to go over the axle. Very limited space when the car is lowered so we'll give this set-up a shot first.