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Hey theoldcar, thank you very much. I have reused the filler neck O ring a few times but they are available new now so my advice is to get a new one. If the old one is not torn or cut in any way, I guess you could reuse it. Use assembly lube on it. I dont have any more videos on the black 66 conv yet but some day. I want to make a convertible top repair video with it when I get around to working on it again. Thanks.

Hey Alex, call the Birds Nest, they sell used Thunderbird parts. If you look at my video, 1964 66 Thunderbird steering column and slide mechanism PT 3 Operation I think this video shows exactly how this spring loaded lever or slider works and how to adjust it. I dont know what else to add to that. Without seeing your car in person, I cant tell you whats wrong with it. Look at the video and see if that helps. Thanks.

Hey Alex, Ill do what I can but I need a doner car to do the video. I guess I could use my 66. Im also having trouble with my Window Movie Maker and I have to solve that. Thanks.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 even any diagrams that are reader friendly? I appreciate all your videos. Its very nice to have some videos with info you dont find out there

Hey Manuel, thank you so much for the kind words. Tops are a pain in the ass because so much can go wrong at the same time so figuring it out is difficult at best. I have always said that a convertible owner must know the top system so when something happens, they can deal with it. Thanks again.

Hey Mike, that "air horn" (for lack of a better name) is attached to the evaporator box with one hex screw on the bottom and it is hooked to the evaporator box at the top. Once you undo the hex screw at the bottom, you can lift up on the air horn and pull it off the hook. Scrape some of the tar off and you will see what I am talking about. Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 thanks again Nick. I’ll be back at it tomorrow.

Thank you, thank you again. That 5/16 hex screw would have been impossible to find without scraping off the tar. It was on the bottom behind a cluster of wires. You the man!

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 Got it. The hex screw was covered in black coating. Thanks again

Hey Richard, sounds like the spring is broken which will not allow the ratchet to come back into position. If the ratched doesnt return, it wont engage so likewise it cannot disengage. Without seeing it, thats what Id say it is if it was good one minute and bad the next.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 Thank you so much. A quick question, how to you navigate around the fresh air tube/funnel that's in front of the e-brake assembly? So frustrating to see around! Thanks again!

​@@richardpropper7011 Hey Richard, the only way to work around that is to remove it. Its held in at the top with 4 hex screws. If you have to fix the ebrake, you must remove the vent. Its not that hard but Id remove the drivers seat for better access.

Hey William, yes, it is just grounded by the bolt that holds it to the back side of the speedo assembly. If your gauges dont work, its either the CVR, the sending units, the gauges themselves which is easy to test, or the wiring, probably the wires in the engine compartment. Its a process of elimination. Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 for an video a few years old I appreciate the quick response! I am trying to test everything I can before taking the gauge cluster out. As I have read that can be a pain. As far as the wires in the engine compartment. Do you have any more insight on that? I have tested the CVR. It is operating as advertised and is grounded.

@@williamhumble4740 I reproduced the 3 sending unit wires in the engine compartment that go to the oil send, temp send and coil positive wire. They have to be spliced in the loom at the firewall. The sending units you can purchase new. However, testing them is easy, just ground the wires with the key on but for just a second. Have someone in the car to watch the gauge. If the gauge needle starts to go to the right, then the wires and gauge are good. You can do the same thing for the fuel sending unit power wire too.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 i grounded the gauges. And they all operated when grounded. Sorry for all the comments/ responses. I feel like I’ve hit a dead end road with forums online. What would you suggest next?

Hey Steven, yes my Windows Movie Maker program messed up and I cant use it. Ive been busy and unable to resolve the problem. I guess I have to uninstall and reinstall the program. I have a good timing chain video I want to post so Ill do that once I resolve that issue. Thanks.

Ok good to hear your still making videos

Thank you Pshyco, I appreciate that. Unfortunately, the people I made the video for never even watched it. At least, not in its entirety. Some peoples kids!!!

@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 exactly lol. I have a 66 tbird and it help me understand things I never knew about the car, especially the slide action steering wheel and parking it! Thanks again

Hey Avery, it looks like Holley may have replaced the -1 with the -2 but I dont know if thats the case. Ive only used the -1 so I only have experience with that one. I stopped buying them when I discovered the Holley Street Warrior. Those are 600 CFM and are perfect for the 390 engines in these Thunderbirds. Looking at the pictures of the carb, the only difference I see is the throttle linkage. The -1 was almost exactly like the original Autolite. This -2 carb is similar to the Street Warrior which is like a Mustang carb. The linkage will work but you have to modify it slightly. I dont know what to tell you otherwise. I have no experience with the -2. My advice is that it is probably fine to use and I would not hesitate to order it but its up to you. Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 Holley Street Warrior number 4160? If you say that's a good carburetor and it's worked for you then I'd for sure be willing to try it out myself

@@Avery_Piano Hey Avery, I dont think thats the number I used. However, I thought you said you needed a 465 CFM carb? The street warrior I use is 600 CFM.

@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 All I know is the car has a 390 with the original autolite carburetor, it's a friend's car that I've been working on so I'm not too sure other than what's on it now. It's just been giving issues and I'm no fan of the choke adjustments on it lol. I'm not used to Ford products but GM and Chrysler I am

@@Avery_Piano For Thunderbird 390 engines, they were all fitted with the Autolite 4100 carb at 600 CFM. If your working on a 390 then I guess you should use the Holley Street Warrior 600 CFM carb. Most have the electric choke and thats what I use too.

You have to remove all the trim around the lenses, then the center lens, then the outer lenses. You can see and access all the screws. Its not hard. You can buy the lenses and gaskets new. Good luck.

You mean the trim that goes around the fender well when the car does not have skirts?

Yes the wheel well trim.

@@lather68l I think I have used ones that are damaged and need to be straightened and polished.

I'd love to buy a pr if the price isn't to staggering.

@@lather68l I have to look and see what I have. Ill get back to you soon. Thanks.

Hey John, the Power to Love will definately help along with anything on the Electric Ladyland album. Good luck.

Yeah, your probably right. Ive already taken the dented door apart and started prepping the replacement door so I guess I'm committed. In reality, I should be committed! Thanks.

Hey Mike, you need a volt meter and power like a car battery. You ground the body of the CVR to the negative terminal of the battery, apply power to one of the terminals on the CVR with the positive terminal of the battery and hook a volt meter to the other terminal. If the CVR is good, you will get a pulsing, on - off - on -off etc. Its easier to use an analog volt meter, not a digital volt meter.

Hey moose, Ive seen some shafts that have a rubber "cap" or whatever between the bolt that holds the shaft to the car and the bushing. I dont know who reproduced those and they are very rare. Originally the bushing had an O ring with no zerk fitting. Reproductions have a zerk fitting.

The 390 is a good engine and should do well in your highboy. Good luck.

Hey James, you can remove the booster from the outside without ever going inside but its difficult because of very little access. With my sausage fingers, I have to do it from under the dash and even then, its difficult.

Hey 123richza, I pretty much show the replacement proportioning valve throughout the entire video. I show the part number and manufacturer of the replacement valve right at 0:22 seconds into the video. It is a Russell 654000. I do not show the original proportioning valve in this video in case you thought that the one in the video was the original. It is not. Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 so it was a video of the replacement part, not of replacing the valve. i cannot find one vid of the actual replacing of the valve. like how the fk do i get all those rusty frozen brake lines off (with out removing the body from chassis) it is in an impossible position to get any leverage on all but 1 line. soaked in penetrating fluid for a week, bought a set of crsftsman flare nut wrench's - they were striping the nut. 77 A-body

77 A-body? Thats a chrysler, not a Thunderbird. This video is about the proportioning valve on a 65 Thunderbird.

Thanks Mike.

Hey David, glad to be of some help. Thank you.

Hey Johnny, thank you very much. See, you learn new things every day.

Hey Harry, Im not following you. What is it that your trying to rotate?

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 The back panel limit switch was in pieces... in a bag, when the car was bought . I assembled it without instructions so I'm not 100% sure it's correct. The inside has the "half-moon" hole and the outside has the slot. I'm watching you in this video rotating the switch with the flap arm driveshaft, but l've been using a small screwdriver in the slot. it's hard to see exactly how far you're rotating it. As I rotate mine, the brass rollers inside are completing the circuits as they should, and I feel the spring bounce at both ends. But mine won't let me rotate it a full 180-degree half-turn. As you said, if the motor pushes it too far, the switch is destroyed. So is it supposed to be able to rotate a full 180 degrees?

Hey Harry, I dont have a swtich off a car to check it but memory says that it does turn almost a complete half turn, almost. I never measured it so I can be exactly sure. If your bypassing the switch and just applying power to the motor, then you could run the switch too far and ruin it. But if you were just using the switch on the dash, the limit switch will stop the motor before it goes too far. So if you had the flap itself off the car and the flap trans is on the car and you pushed the button on the dash, the arm on the flap transmission should point almost directly down and almost directly up. Thats almost 180 degrees. But if the arm is pointing to 4 or 5 oclock when down and maybe at 1 or 2 when up, then there is something wrong.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 It makes sense that the contacts opening /closing at the ends of the rotation should protect it if I don't bypass it. It was a real bear getting that switch put back together... so much so that I don't even want to risk taking that outside cover off again to look inside and check my work. The travel I have on it is more like 12:00 to 5:00, so we'll see. Cross your fingers. Thanks so much!

Good luck.

Hey Mike, there is not a lot you can do. You can reconstruct them in fiberglass or have someone repair the bottoms with sheet metal. Ive done both but the ultimate repair is just to replace them. There's really not much you can do with that. Good luck.

Hey Mike, thank you very much. Good luck with your new project.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 Nick, I’ve watched your video on console switches many times. Today I tackled removal and cleaning. Do you have a source you can recommend that would have the plastic parts the seam to disappear over time. I guess it’s a rocker piece. I’m assuming these can be installed on old switches. Thanks, Mike

Hey Moosestang, try rotating the tires or swap them from left to right. That always has an effect on the alignment. Its worked for me in many instances in the past. Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 I swapped the back to the front, but i'll try side to side as well. Alignment shops around here always want to do it next week.🤣

Thank you.

Thank you very much Wayne, I appreciate that. It was a lot of work but the car did turn out well.

Hey Michael, there could be a number of problems. Maybe the problem is in the horn ring. Id take that off and take a look at that. The horn switches are in the horn ring. Also, the two contact rings under the steering wheel, look at them too. Without being there, I cant do very much, sorry.

Big green dot, 1,2,3. Small white dot next to neutral, 2,3. Get an owners manual and it explains how that works.

Hey mooosestang, yes check the trans when its hot and running. Remember to never leave your car while its running without sliding the steering column to the right and applying the emergency brake. Good luck.

I got this thing from tomsclassic on eBay. Its a piece of shit, doesn't fit, totally not what they claim, and they flatly refused to give me any support what so ever, and I'm the only one who ever complained or claimed that it didn't fit. You can clearly see from the video that this thing doesn't fit and requires a massive amount of mods to make it fit, so who is the liar? Once I got it on the car, it did work but look what I had to do to get it to fit. So for those that are mechanically experienced and have the resources to make this thing fit, go for it. But for those that cannot work on their own cars and must depend on disreputable shops to do this, I say stay with stock parts and don't mess with this crap.

Hey user, no I dont have anything. I dont know of anything that will fit that is tested and reliable and wont crash into the cross brace. Sorry.

Hey iamipodfan, yes the gear box is removed from the bottom. Once you unbolt it from the frame, unscrew and remove the 3 gear box mounts first so it will be easier to get it out since there is not that much space. Do everything in reverse putting it back in. Lining up the splines with the coupler when putting it back in is the trick. There is an alignment spline, mark those on the outside of the coupler and on the gear box so you can see them when putting it back in. Two people is best when doing that. The Birds Nest has rebuilt units I think. Can you do it yourself? You need mechanical know how, tools, a way to pressure test the gear box, the parts, etc. I don't even rebuild them. I leave that to those that have the experience and equipment. good luck.

Hey Scott, now your really testing my bad memory. I remember once upon a time that I used extra heavy duty Gabriels and Monroes but those have since gone obsolete. There are a bunch of Monroes on the web for sale (google search). For example, from the parts geek, Monroe #15293-02581159. You can call the Birds Nest and ask them what they use. For the 64-66, I like the extra heavy duty shocks when I can find them. I have not used these Monroes that I mention above so I cant say one way or the other if they are good. They look correct. I hope that helped. Thanks.

Hey Chris, what is a "crassest?" Ive never heard this word before.

Hey Lance, I think Muscle Car Mike sells to the Birds Nest. You can ask them. Ive been using their shafts and bushings for years and Ive had no issues with them. I used to sell used ones too but those are all gone now. You know they are bad when the inside of the bushing and the shaft itself is worn out. In most cases, the shaft is so badly worn out, its very obvious. Ive taken them apart and sometimes after cleaning they look like they have no wear on them. You can tell when the threads on the shaft are worn out. When looking at them while they are still on the car, if they are bad, usually you can see that the bushing is no longer centered on the shaft because of wear. this is usually very obvious. IN most cases, they squeak badly when they go bad. Not always but usually. I always take it for granted that they are bad when the arm itself is old and crusty, and or the ball joint is also original, and there is no zerk fitting. Then you know they are probably bad just from age. Its also not uncommon to find replacements installed improperly too. Did that help? Good luck.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426yes that helps. Thanks for the quick and detailed reply!

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 I spoke with MCM. He says "hello" to you. He confirmed that Larry's T-Bird carries his parts.

Hey Jeff, its pretty heavy and I'm surprised its square. Usually electrical motors are round for obvious reasons. Ive seen them before but never work with any. I'm anxious to take it apart and fiddle with it, see what makes it tick. Once again, this Cadillac doesn't hold a candle to the Thunderbird.

Hey Scott, you were the first one to leave a comment so you win a million dollars and an evening with Scarlett Johansson. NOT! Wouldn't that be great though? Yes, your right, a bad repaint. And the new non-methylene chloride aircraft paint remover sucks and wont take the paint off. I liked the old stuff that would take off your skin if you touched it without gloves, and did irreparable damage to your sinus' if you sniffed it. Ah, the good old days. And when you unscrewed the latch screws that were painted over, it would chip the paint around the screw hole usually. I did some of the latch stuff with the Thelma and Louise car. I don't remember any details right now because my mind is gone. Thanks.

@@vintagethunderbirdrepair9426 Nick, please send me my winnings in the gold equivalence. As for an evening with Mz Johansson, I'm free any time she is! LOL. Don't even get me started on today's lame chemical paint strippers which are basically nothing but a waste of money and time. I long for those good ole days...

Hey Scott, yeah, everything is water based today. However, that new paint stripper still smells really bad. I didnt look at the ingredients but its pretty nasty. I saw an ad for Citristrip. They say that is not too bad. I guess Ill be using my sander. 😒

Hey Don, long time no see. I hope you guys are doing well. Do you still have the convertible and the corvair? Man its been a long time. Im still working in my shop. Currently Ive been working on my 1961 Cadillac. Right now Im in Grand Junction helping a friend finish up a 1964 Cadillac convertible. It need a lot of work. I still have my 66 town hardtop. I also bought a 66 convertible recently in Los Angeles. I have a video of that too. How are you guys and your kids? they are probably all moved out with kids of their own?? So nice to hear from you. Cheers!

Hey, I hope it helped you. It helps to know what your in for. Mine is running good now. Thanks.