If you have been following this thread that seems to be 15 miles long, you know that I decided to plunk down some coin and purchase a crimping tool that would help me get the AC lines and fittings together. I figured it was a good idea since the wife wants me to start putting together a Mustang for her in a few years.

The tool is from a company called "Mastercool" and seems to be very well made. It is designed to be placed in a vise as you crimp your lines.



The main unit is heavy, and the tool comes with 4 different sizes of crimping inserts, 6, 8, 10, and 12. (did not need the 12 for this installation) The tool I purhased also came with a nice plastic, blo-molded case to keep the entire unit and inserts together.

Basically the idea here is that you set your fitting in the crimper, insert your hose to the end of the fitting (each one has a sight hole so that you can be sure you have inserted far enough) and then use a wrench or ratchet to cinch the ends together - the inserts crimp the fitting and hose together.





I made sure the fitting and hose were centered in the bore before I hand tightened the press, and then after doublechecking I used a 3/4" wrench to bring it all together. There is a mark located on the boss so that you know how far to go...



The tool works as advertised and the crimps look to be even and of course that hose is very tight in the fittings!



For some hoses you make you will end up with fittings that need to be oriented to a particular "clock" or angle. Of course, if one end is a straight 180 degree fitting then there is no issue. I marked my fittings and hoses by using a sharpie and making sure the fitting and hose were oriented correctly before I cinched them down.



Of course, keep a little mineral oil on hand for those O-rings, and make sure you don't cut them as they go on the fittings/get connected to fittings in the car.





I am pretty happy with the AC kit I purchased - although the price point seemed to make it a "budget kit" the hoses shipped with the kit are obviously name brand "Parker" - a well recognized name in the industry.



Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

And some outdoor shots on this trunk... I got home tonight and decided to get it out, go over it with 2000 and then run the buffer real quick - still want to do one more pass but my wife came by at the end and just dropped her jaw and stood and looked at the trunk and then looked at me. :clap:

I just nodded lol!

Take a look - hopefully I can continue this trend through the build.

before cut and buff:


and then after:




Flat out - it's awesome stuff. Take away the amateur portion of this work and the products used would really stand out.

Now where did my wife get off to? :wink:

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

Look what came in today!







The AC kit I ordered some time ago has plenty of fittings/etc for a standard install, but this install is not going to be "standard".

I wanted a clean pass through the firewall, hence the bulkhead fitting. Also, since I am using a Vintage Air bracket that puts the compressor extremely low. I am going to use inline service ports for the HI and LO sides. I also ordered a small plethora (is that even a phrase?) :eek: of various fittings and sizes so that I won't be locked in to the fittings from the original kit (with the bulkhead I needed fittings anyway). I like where the condenser, drier, compressor, and evaporator are all sitting. It will now be a matter of plumbing all of this up while using the original heater parts and controls.

I did plunk down some change for the Mastercool crimper. I did some research and read reviews - they all seemed to be pretty good on this unit. I will certainly let you know what we discover. When I found out how much places wanted to crimp hoses I just decided it would be good to get my own crimper. I have to make quite a few for this AC install, and of course Mama keeps talking about a late 60s Mustang she wants to have done for her 25th wedding anniversary. That car will have to have an AC unit as well. And.....that car will have to wait as well - gotta get this one done first. Anyone have a lead on a late 60's Mustang? :confused:

I will be out of town again this weekend but hopefully I can get to some of this stuff. I did make myself a little diagram so that I can follow along as to how I am installing this system. Once I get the fittings chosen and the lengths of hose all dialed in I will add that to the diagram as well.



Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

These Urethanes are great stuff! If I can just keep the dust and crap out of it...I will certainly post pictures of the cut and buff on the trunk. Hopefully I can get on that soon.



Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

That sounds amazing! Things have changed so much over the years. I need to learn more about the chemistry behind the paints.

Got a little more done today - we will take some time to talk about a product I really like so far: TAMCO HC 2100 Clear Coat.

Times have changed since the early 90s when I worked at a shop out in Manassas Park, Virginia. The helpful advice on this site, and others, has been invaluable. From some of you retired body men to the guys that make only an occasional post, I remain very thankful for all of the help!

My pieces don't look like professional panels but that's ok - I am satisfied with my build and getting oo's and ah's from the fellas that take a look at the work when they come by the house - they can tell I have put some quality time and effort into it. The car is going to be a daily driver and not a show car, but when I get ready to build a 60s Mustang for the wife on our 25th anniversary i will be light years ahead of the game.

A while back I was introduced to clear coat. One of the old men at our church is a retired body man, having worked in the industry for over 40 years and built over 10 cars of his own. He recommended I go that route. On another site I learned about a Euro clear labeled HC 2100. Now remember when I say all of this I am a novice - if you look up the definition of the word there is a picture of me standing there grinning ear to ear with a paint gun in my hand lol. There are probably other clears that are better than this product at $130 a gallon. Today I shot three coats of this clear on the exterior of the trunk lid. While the pictures at this point cannot do it justice, when the Tamco HC 2100 clear says it is "self-leveling" it ain't kidding.

Take this first example...



Yes, that is a bug, and yes, that is picture of the two toothpicks I used as a set of tweezers to pull said bug from my freshly clearcoated trunk!



It is difficult to see in the second photo but when that bug was removed the clear coat "leveled" out. 5 minutes later and I could not tell where the bug had been. Add to that my small mistake of having a one inch run during my 3rd coat (yes, I waited 30 minutes for the previous coat to flash, just got too close on my pass). I don't know if anyone would believe it unless I had a video but THAT RUN LEVELED OUT TOO.

Needless to say I am very happy with this clear - it almost seems like it was made for guys like me that are not that experienced, do not have a professional paint booth, and need a little "magic" from their products to get the job done. Just want to say again I am very grateful for the advice from you fellas out there who contribute your autobody knowledge. As we know, much of the work that goes into restoration includes body and paint!

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

Okay, Okay, laugh out loud!!! You are not the only person who has ever said that to me.

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

Not a bad idea. Let me see what can happen here beyond a lock washer!

Daniel Jessup

Lancaster, California

aka "The Hot Rod Reverend"
check out the 1955 Ford Fairlane build at www.hotrodreverend.com

"Why I get involved in little projects like this, I don't know. Maybe it is the satisfaction of fabricating something small that will be entirely functional and serve a purpose, maybe it's the OCD part of me that just can't let things rest, who knows? :confused:"

It's called Anal Retentive Disorder. ( Describes a person who pays such attention to detail that it becomes an obsession and may be an annoyance to others, potentially to the detriment of the anal-retentive person.)
Good luck with that!


"FREE SAMPLE"

NIce work.  I would find a way to attach that shield using at least 2 mounting points.  The hoses will lay on it in a way that the vibration and very slight force applied could loosen the bolt.


Lawrenceville, GA