Before work began, I decided to take
care of an
issue I'd already had to deal with
on the previous Ranchero:
The C6 transmission does not have a
detachable bell housing,
so the car has to be at least 2 feet
off the ground in order to
slide the tranny out. On the first
Ranchero, we did this with
jack stands extended to their rickety
maximum height
(a little scary to be underneath).
On my next project (the Mach 1 Mustang)
we opted for ramps,
but they were a pain because they got
in the way.
So, with jack stands and ramps on the
unfavorable list,
I opted to build some cribbing to put
under the wheels.
I was a little dismayed at the cost:
it turned out to be $80
worth of 4x6 and 2x4 lumber. Yikes.
Oh well, it was worth it.
The next day, the car was up on the
cribbing, the hood was off,
the sun was out, the beer was cold,
and the engine was a rusty and greasy mess.
I shook off the apprehension, opened a beer, and got busy.
Several beers later... success.
Next order of business was to wheel
out the tranny and
take back the rented tranny jack.
While I was doing that, Dad busied himself with some dismantling...
And some more dismantling...
By the end of the day, we were looking
at the big greasy
hole that the engine and tranny once
occupied.
What a mess, where's the wire brush?
The wire brush would have to wait for
now, it was time
to start shipping off work to the local
shops. The tranny
was ready to be taken Gil's Transmissions
in the morning.
The next day, the car was an empty shell
poised high in the air,
the tranny was off to Gil's...
...and it was time to do some more engine dismantling.
Until there was nothing left to dismantle.
Oooo, car parts. I think it's time to call Reynolds machine shop.
