1969 Ford LTD Country Squire- Restoration

You betcha I'll buy an NOS as soon as I can find it. Too bad I missed the one that was there. If I could repop these dahs pads for the 69-70, how many people would like to buy one, say at $400 each? Gray, you paint. Phil

 

Steering wheel: 69 Ford LTD Country Squire

I'll get a shot of that tonight. Not pretty either...

 

Steering Wheel: Cruise Control Option

Eek.

This should keep me busy for a while. Going to need some heavy duty plastic cement...and a sander. I don't see many of these on EBAY.

Phil

 

There is a two-part epoxy you might want to consider for the repai. It is frequently used because it has little to no shrink and is readily available from places like Eastwood products.

It's called PC7. I am repairing a wheel right now and did a test application more than a year ago with no separation at the repair.

Best of luck!

 

As for JustDashes, in doing searches in the past, I have read some outstanding things about them as well as some horror stories. The cheapest price I have seen was well over $800, and from what I have read, expect over a grand.

Other things to consider:

A good used or NOS dash is one that just hasn't cracked yet. They tended to crack because of the material used.

JustDashes uses a different material (denser) that is supposed to perform MUCH better.

The final fit of the restored dash seems to be the biggest issue that I have read about from JustDashes. An original part should give you the best fit.


I was fortunate and recently found an NOS dash for my '67 Merc. At $325 it was a steal. At $450 it would have still been a bargain, in my opinion. As was stated previously, most of these parts are slowly disappearing, or already gone and likely never to be reproduced. Get them while you can. They can always be resold if you don't end up using them. Case in point, I have two sets of NOS tail light lenses. I don't want to have to try and find one after it's been damaged. Likewise, I have a full spare set of glass, and my car isn't even on the road yet.

Anyhow, good luck with locating what you need.

P.S. Great looking wagon!

 

Your steering wheel is the same on used for cruise control equipped 1969 Thunderbird but not Mark III. It is rare, for sure, but more common for T-Bird than full-sized Fords. That might broaden your search perimeters for a good replacement.

David

 

Thanks for the tip!

That might indeed make it easier to find. I'll look.

Thanks,
Phil

 

Not so available it seems.

Looks like I will fix mine as far as possible. The plastics at that time must have experienced a lot of contraction with heat, temp and UV exposure. Anyone know what materials may have been used then? I am guessing vinyl base with some butadienes. I don't want to damage what I have, so I will work on a few spares to see what can be done. Phil

 

Found a similar cruise control steering wheel on EBAY. As bad or worse than mine. Wrong color. Going to be a long search...

 

Part of the problem with steering wheels, I think, is that the plastic outer covering was molded to a steel core. The two materials have different rates of expansion and contraction, which often causes the older plastics to crack.

 

Steering Wheels from 60-70s

Yep,

Combination of heat, cold, UV and time just beat the heck out of the old steering wheels. Newer plastcs would be a much better choice for plastic resins. I'll be repariing some of this myself. I'll let you know how this goes. Phil

 

LH Tail Light Assembly

More parts here than I remember. I forgot about the small rubber gasket that surrounds the perimeter of the bezel. The gasket has shrunken a bit. I doubt that Ford still carries this or the tiny clips that held the gasket to the bezel.

I just replaced the lens with an NOS unit. Looks good.

 

Fiberglass Trim for Tailgate

Scored my first piece of NOS fiberglass trim on EBAY. This is for the tailgate area. Expensive but very nice. Still looking for more pieces wherever I can find them. There are 15 pieces in total. Here's a pic of the piece. Phil

 

That looks nice! When you get a chance, would you mind posting a close-up photo of the woodgrain? Also, I'd appreciate seeing a photo of the back-side, to see how/if the woodgrain wraps around to the back.

 

69 Ford LTD Country Squire: Woodgrain and Tailgate pics.

Here is the tailgate area with fiberglass trim removed.


Close up of tailgate area, lower right side.


Close up of woodgrain (bright area is Stripeman comparison swatch).


Phil