Getting Ready For The Mustang

Another winter for working on the Mustang.  This is a big one and hopefully the last, as we will be working on the engine and driveline.  First, some prep has to be done.  I had saved the bell housing from the old engine and it was a greasy mess:

Using a gasket scraper, I got the majority of the baked-on oil off......not easy to do because of the various contours of the surface:

I got the rest off by soaking it in three gallons of gasoline in a trash can and then brushing with a parts dip brush.  It came out pretty clean inside and out:

 

Notice the broken flange in the ten o'clock position in the bell housing.  This had me worried, but it is just for a locator pin and shouldn't cause any problems. 

The flywheel was also saved and only needs to be cleaned and re-surfaced.  The teeth for the starter motor are in good shape. 

The flex plate, that goes between the engine and the bell housing was cleaned and painted:

 

We also bought a rebuilt four-speed transmission with the shift linkage and lever:

And finally, after one false start and much research, we decided on an engine builder.  Our false start was a "turn-key" engine, which was to be complete with everything except headers, starter and flywheel.  We ordered the engine from a website in Phoenix and paid half the cost to get work started on building the engine.  It was supposed to be a 12-week build job, and about half way through the twelve weeks I decided to call the shop and see how progress was going and ask a couple of questions.  Nobody answered my calls or emails and after doing a google search on the site I discovered they had apparently gone out of business.  This was one example of where paying with a credit card saved the day, as I got all my money back from Bank of America Visa. 

After that experience I decided to look around at local shops.  We narrowed it down to a couple of places and decided on one which gave me a printed, itemized cost estimate for all the parts they needed and labor they planned.  It was pretty expensive and a large part of the expense was because we did not have an engine for them to rebuild.  The original block was shot, and after I thought we were getting a complete engine from the Phoenix shop, I had thrown away other usable parts like the crank, heads, rods, valve covers, and all the bolts.  For the local shop to source these parts cost a lot, so I found a complete engine from my local Mustang parts supplier and bought it for the same price the shop would have had to pay for the block alone.  Here is the doner engine after I got it home:

 

 

This is a 1969 Ford 302 that looks like it has never been opened up.  Hopefully it is rebuildable, but if not I am assured I can return it and get my money back.  I did check to see that it can be turned over and is not frozen.  In the picture above you can see the flywheel and the fan pulley that I plan to give to the engine builder.  Unfortunately, I threw away the crank pulley and the alternator bracket that I am going to need for the rebuilt engine, since the Phoenix shop engine was to include an alternator, pulleys, and fan belt. 

Tomorrow I take the doner engine into the shop.  While they are doing the rebuild, we will be buying motor mounts, a clutch, and different valve covers, and getting the car ready for the engine.