[Amc-list] '65 American 330 4 Door - where we're at!

["Bruce Griffis" <bruce.griffis@xxxxxxxxx>]

Decided to take the American out for a test drive again today. It did
good around the neighborhood, so we took it out on the road. So -
what's the scoop?

It did well around the subdivision - 15 to 25 miles an hour (I'm at
the back end of no-where, so fiddled around with air vents and sliders
and defrost and heat and all that at a stop sign. I looked in the rear
view mirror, and a neighborhood lady was patiently waiting, lol).

So, we got out of the subdivision and hit a 45 mile per hour street.
We did just fine at 45. Got out on Dallas Highway, a 55 MPH four lane
divided road. I noticed that the car wanted to pull towards the left
on braking. Didn't notice that at lower speeds. I'll check that out -
all brakes have been rebuilt. They might just need adjusting, so I'll
start there.

Got to Chick-Fil-A. You northern guys are missing out on fast food
heaven, that's all I can say. My 12 year old son (he's homeschooled,
so was home and came along for the ride) stocked up on chicken
tenders. I checked around the water pump. No leaks! Checked the master
cylinder. Looks good! I'm still getting a very small leak by the
thermostat housing. It's negligible, but I'll try and hunt down a
replacement housing. I put the old one in a vice, filed it flat, hit
it with a sander to make sure it was even, checked it for being level
- but evidently didn't get it flat enough! Anyone got a spare surface
grinder?

So, things we did:
new brake shoes, brake spring kit, self adjusters
new master cylinder
new brake hoses
surfaced the rear drums
(maybe surfacing the front drums would correct the pull to the left?)
new brake light switch
packed the front bearings
new tires

new spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, condensor,
points, coil (and replacement distributor breaker plate - thanks!)
new air filter
new fuel filter
new oil filter and change (need to swap to high zinc oil and use a
good Wix filter!)

new water pump
new radiator hoses
new thermostat
new temperature sending unit

new harmonic balancer

new turn signal lights in front

replaced wiper blades (don't like 'em, but they're there and work)


Things I have parts for, but haven't done yet:
gaskets for turn signals and back up lights
lenses for back up lights
parking brake cable
rebuild carb
valve cover gasket


Things I need to do:
torque head
figure out how to check valves
replace strut rod bushings
pack the ball joints
check the vacuum wipers (right now it has a vacuum hose from the
manifold to the wipers, and it bypasses the fuel pump - I need to run
the hoses correctly and test them out.)


And lower priority:
fix leak - have cracked windshield gasket (might become high priority
when it rains!)
replace door weather seals - cracked and leaking
replace windlace
fix the wiring for the fuel level sending unit (I did a bad job there,
and the fuel gauge doesn't work)
fix the dashboard lights


And things I'd like to do, or get done:
install non-retractable shoulder belts and anchors in front (or
retractable, whatever)
install seat belts in back
maybe install headrests (this is Atlanta traffic, lol)
could use shock absorbers


Also have to address some of the rust areas. Gonna have to read a
book, rent a video, ask a friend for help.

That's it! I'd like to get it in driver condition, and think it's
pretty close. I figure I'll do a little at a time.
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