ryan.debok

I bought the AJE K Member (MU-90UM) instead of buying the entire Colt 65 Kit. It was about $360. I've read a few forums that say that the Fox Body lower control arms can be installed on the K Member. I'm hopeful that I can install the struts and Fox springs with the AJE Spring Perches (but they don't appear to be specifically designed for this K Member).

I've also picked up a set of SN95 Front Spindles, Rotors, Calipers for under $200 on Craigslist. And a front driver's side Torque Box. There is an excellent set of videos on YouTube showing all types of rust repair on a 1965 mustang. Torque Boxes, Inner/Outer Rocker Panels, Fender Splash Guards, Cowels, etc. They'll come in very handy when I go to repair my torque box, because chances are good that I'm going to find more rust hiding out of sight.

I'll shoot some pictures when I start getting everything together.

ryan.debok

I just got home from a great weekend installing the K-Member in the mustang with my dad. Its stored in his barn at the moment -- a functional shop, but it is a barn. I mean, we lost a lot of time searching for wrenches in the loose dirt below the car.

Anyway, the install was a straight forward project with no real surprises. Here's how it went down.

Torch, Grind and Chisel

The project started by cutting out the shock towers as described on the installation page on the AJEracing.com website. I'm not certain why they recommend that you leave a small notch toward the bottom of the shock tower instead of just cutting it flush with the frame, but I'm sure I'll find out later.

We did the cutting with a blow torch, as it was the quickest method to getting through the shock towers with the tools that we had. We also used the torch to cut out the motor mounts being careful not to cut into the frame. Once we had "rough cut" out the motor mounts, we we went back over the spot-welds with a grinder and chiseled the pieces out. Most of the chiseling was with a hammer and cold chisel. I'm going to buy an Ingersol Rand chisel to do future work like this... my left hand is sore from occasionally missing the chisel when swinging the hammer.

We ground the rough edges of the shock tower smooth, and they're now ready to have some filler plates cut and welded into place.

Camber Plates Install
I bought a set of QA1 Camber plates through Craigslist. While they weren't designed for this car, I anticipated that I would have to create my own holes to mount plates anyway. I used the top of the camber plate as a template for my holes to be drilled. I also left the spring perch inside of the shock tower for added rigidity. Couldn't hurt, right?

The Camber plates installed beautifully. Once I get the car rolling I plan to take the car to an alignment shop to ensure that the caster/camber has enough adjustment available to align the car correctly. If not, I'll have to drill some new holes and remount the camber plates.

AJE K Member Install
This was easily done. As noted in AJE's installation instructions, the second-to-rear set of holes on the K-Member line up with the threaded export bolt holes on the bottom of the frame. We did grind down the export-bolt holes so that the K-Member would sit flush to the frame. Then we drilled the holes. We didn't have a perfectly sized drill bit for the project--actually slightly too big, but I'm hoping that I can make up for the slight gap once I weld it. For now, we bolted the K-member in place without welding in the anti-crush selves. Then everything else bolted together easily. I opted for the AJE Control Arms for the 1965 Mustang ($300). It was going to be way nicer than trying to reuse the control arm from the 1989 Mustang Donor car. (And I'm not sure that it was going to fit anyway).

Rack & Pinion
I was going to use the rack of the 1989 Mustang donor car but when we raised up the mustang to pull the rack, we found that it was leaking power steering fluid. It was only $60 + $20 core and $50 for tie rod ends at Oreilly's to purchase a remanufactured parts with a warranty.

Good stuff. Up next:

• Rack & Pinion Install
• Steering column modification
• Steering shaft with U-Joints install
• Battery apron and battery tray install
• Torque box replacement and rocker panel inspection
• Radiator support rust repair
• Engine fitment

As is common in these classic mustangs, the battery apron was rusted out from spilled battery acid. Can be repaired by purchasing and installing two inexpensive pieces of sheetmetal at CJ pony parts.





The radiator support was rusted through in a few places as well. I'll patch in some good metal where this is rusted through instead of replacing the entire panel.





Here is the shock tower that will be cut out while installing the AJE K-Member. Removing the shock tower makes for much easier access to the frame rails and eventually makes additional room for the engine and headers.





Export brace was removed. It's a MUST that something goes back in here to support the top of the shock towers since the coil overs will be putting the car's front end weight at the top of the shock tower.





We went low-tech and used a piece of cardboard to cast a shadow on the shock tower so we could create a straight line from the frame to the top of the shock tower. A laser line would have been perfect tool to use if available.





Here's where we'll cut out the shock tower. Notice how we left a bit of the lip on the upper shock tower. Again, I was constantly thinking of ways to provide strength to the upper shock tower if possible.





I ended up leaving the shock tower support on the inside of the shock tower. I can always remove it later, but I figure that it can only add strength to the top of the tower that will be carrying the load of the car.





My dad showed me how to properly use a blow torch to cut out the shock towers. The torch was quick and easy, but we'll have to clean up the rough cut with a grinder before we weld in new panels to close up the open shock towers.





After the shock tower was cut out, it was just grind, grind, grind to make everything smooth.








Here is the finished shock tower after cutting and grinding.








I took the QA1 caster / camber plate that was designed for a SN95 mustang and laid it on top of the shock tower to mark where the tower holes would be drilled. This was a best-guess effort. I specifically paid attention to the upper plate so that at full camber it wouldn't hit the fender. I may take the car to an alignment shop to ensure that the camber/caster can be adjusted properly as installed.





Once the camber plates were in, everything else bolted together easily. Understandably, I'll have to adjust this later and receive a professional alignment when the car is completed.








A view from the inside of the car.





A view with the wheel installed.





A view from under the car

racer_dave

wow, sounds like great progress there!! Would love to see some pics of the deconstruction and fab work. Sounds like it went pretty well. Keep us posted and keep wrenching :-)

thx for posting the you tube link- bookmarked them

ryan.debok

Hey, just got pictures posted from the last weekend of work. Thanks for stoping by.

ryan.debok

Brrrr... It's 30 degrees outside in southern Iowa today, so it's giving me a chance to update everyone on the project. I was able to do a little work on Thursday between the multiple massive Thanksgiving meals. I got the steering rack installed and temporarily installed the steering shaft to the original steering column. I also mounted the rack to the knuckles so the car can be moved rolled around with a little more ease.




The power steering rack bolted in easily. I bought the unit for around $90 including the $20 core at Oreilly's auto parts. Also, I bought tie rod ends for another $50 just to get it all bolted together. The Helix steering shaft kit was found on eBay for around $65. In the future, I may need a bump steer kit that will replace these tie rod ends, but I'll save that for later.





You can see how the steering shaft is putting tension on the bottom left side of the column grommet. Also, see the tension that the steering column is putting on the firewall seal. Both of these will need a better solution.





I had intended to use the original steering column and steering shaft to save money. But I ended up finding a great Black Friday deal on a new steering column from www.johnnylawmotors.com -- under $250 for a tilt column that included the bearing, firewall mount, and Ford turn-signal adapter. Additionally, this meant that I could keep my upper u-joint to use on the new steering shaft.





I also bought some bump stops for the top of the coilover shocks to keep the spring caps from rubbing metal to metal on the camber plates. <br/><br/>The mustang can once again be set back down on wheels moved around using its own suspension and steering.

ryan.debok

Hey all. I'm moving from front to back as I work on the mustang. I knew that the front drivers torque box needed some rust repair. I was just going to replace the panel. However, I've discovered even more rust along the inner torque boxes.



Rust hole in the passengers quarter panel. Small, but it is probably evidence of even more rust below.



This is rust at the rear of the drivers inner rocker panel. This may indicate that the entire inner rocker, critical to the 65 convertible, needs to be replaced.



[I]Another view of the rust in rear of the drivers inner rocker. [/]



Drivers side trunk dropoff, lower wheel well and quarter panel patch are all on the list for future repair.



This rusty spot was one that I had forgotten about. It's the bottom of the drivers side rocker panel. I'll have to scour the internet for the best way to repair this rust. Since this inner rocker's rear cap is also rusted out, it's likely that I'll be replacing this entire rocker panel.

sailfish11

Great work - keep it up! I love to see another '65 vert coming back to life.

ttoney

Subscribing. Thinking about a similar project with a 67/8. Definitely want coilovers/disks and 4.6 TKO. Never noticed a bolt in K-member.

onetrkpny

Doing the same exact same project, subscribing!!

onetrkpny

Do you have a link to the JohnnyLaws Steering Column and Helix Shaft?
Thanks a million for the continued write up!