Mustang Monthly

'65-'66 V-8 Rear Suspension Conversion/Upgrade

To the Nines

Detailing something that is going to be hidden under a car is one thing few people outside of our hobby understand. Several of my fellow editors at our other magazine titles looked at the funny paint splotches and markings and just shook their collective heads or muttered "Why?" to me. True, some semigloss black could have covered the entire housing in five minutes, and we would have been finished with it. But I couldn't do that. Even though this car will be driven a few times a week, I wanted to detail the differential housing as if it was going to be scrutinized by MCA judges. When the housing is completely detailed, it almost looks like a work of art. It is actually a canvas when you really think about it. That goes for engines, transmissions, steering boxes, and other items that get the detailing touch. While black-and-white images don't do justice here, we wanted to touch base on the detailing process for those following along. National Parts Depot came through with all the correct items that we would need for our new rear axle. With some technical assistance from MCA Gold Card Judge Jeff Speegle, our detailing chores went quite smoothly.

16 We're not sure where the factory dual exhaust brake line bracket has to go yet. We'll wait until we install the long, hard line to the back of the car, and locate another factory dual exhaust car from which to take measurements.	17 With the '66 back down on all four wheels, the final job of tightening the top shock mounting bolts was all that was left.	18 Our Currie Super Eight rear axle is now home, and our '66 is sitting pretty on all new V-8 spec brakes and suspension. It's finally time to head off to the body shop to squeeze some paint.
19 Since our Currie Super Eight-Inch came unpainted, we decided to pull the axles and brakes out of the housing for painting.	20 The housing was cleaned up-including removing the excess gasket and silicone from around the centersection-primed, and then finished off with several coats of semigloss black.	21 While the housing dried, we painted the brake drums using Eastwood's Spray Gray for a cast-iron look with the protection only a paint coating can give. The brake wheel cylinders, the wheel cylinder retaining bolts, and the backing plate bolts were all painted and then reinstalled. As a crowning touch, we installed these factory retaining clips for the rear drums.
22 Since we were converting to a V-8 driveline with factory dual exhaust, we needed the correct hard lines and brake hose for dual exhaust as well. The flex hose was installed and secured by the axle vent hose nipple (shown here in my hand with thread sealant applied).	23 The stainless steel brake lines were installed into the factory mounting tabs on the rear axle housing and then carefully secured to the rear wheel cylinders. Use a tubing or flare wrench to prevent damage to the tube fittings.	24 National Parts Depot carries the correct tools and parts to complete the job. This handy clamp crimper is the correct tool for the clamp on the axle vent hose (and on many fuel lines as well).
25 Using a masking kit and some tape, we masked off the centersection and the mounting bolts (including the copper sealing washers), and painted them the correct red oxide. This was the easiest way to complete the job, since we didn't want to pull the centersection free of the housing.	26 As many of you know, the rear axle housing and the centersection (or pumpkin as it is sometimes called) have areas that are machined after the parts have been painted, leaving a shiny bare metal surface. As we said before, we didn't want to totally disassemble this rear axle-which unfortunately is the only way to correctly machine these areas. But with some silver paint and a touch-up brush, you can simulate these machined areas quite well.	27 Since we didn't have the original V-8 rear housing to find all of our detailing markings, we checked with several judges and car owners to get all the correct markings we could get our hands on. Shown here is the yellow paint daub to denote that the case has been filled with oil. Others include centersection-to-housing bolts (orange), the pinion nut (yellow), the brake flex hose installation (green stripe), and more. Don't overdo it, though. If you have your original, put back only what you found on your restoration project.
28 There will also be an assembler number and the actual gear ratio painted on the right side of the centersection, as shown here.	29 National Parts Depot markets an exact reproduction parking brake cable in full stainless steel and it is absolutely beautiful. NPD also carries the correct cable housing retainers for the rear of the floorpans.	30 Since our Mustang will be wearing Styled Steel wheels when the project nears completion, the brake drums will receive a quick blackout treatment just as the factory did. This blackout paint kept the bare rusty drums from keen eyes when you looked through the open slots of the Styled Steel wheels.