rainy days and budgets

okay. as stated before, i'm still trying to get past the anxiety of placing my first order for parts. i mean, other than the weatherstripping, but that's a drop in the bucket compared to stuff i'm finally getting into now.
it's going to rain all day today, but since i've cleaned out my shed, i will attempt some work on the rear axle/differential today. cleaning. possible tear down to see if the insides seem okay, but...well, more anxiety there, of course.
i've decided, as a girl who makes TONS of lists, that i need to sit down and compare the impact on my budget between a rebuild using the original 14" wheel set up (with 5x4 bolt pattern) or upgrading to a 15" set up (and needing a set of adapters to change the bolt pattern). i'm definitely swapping the front drums to disc (as i know i've stated over and over again, and oh my god, just do it already! i can hear you all. i know.), which i can do with the 14" set up, it's just a matter of the rotors (probably) being too big to fit inside the 14" rims. a solution would be to just get extra rotors (and just maybe sell the bigger ones from the kit), so it's not an impossible scenario.
but does it just make sense to try to swap it all out and go bigger now? yes.
but let's remember that i REALLY want to keep the rim covers. i have the originals and i just think they make the car more authentic and cool.
and, my tiny budget needs to be worked out, so i've got to just sit down and price out all the parts.
what are rainy days for, anyway, right!?

looks pretty pitted and rusty...hoping i can salvage this thing with a good cleaning

taking lots of notes

today will be a day of measuring and making parts lists.
i keep pretending the snow won't come. but it will. and i need to be ready.
that means, i need to have all my measurements written down and ready to pull the trigger on some parts this spring.
i've done a little more research on my leaf springs and discovered that they should fit my car.

just not sure if sitting out in the trunk (which of course needs a new floor, since there's a gaping rusted hole near the back seat) has affected the effectiveness of the bushings...

but i'll also be needing other bits and pieces...since the U-bolts had been cut off...

...not really sure if the shackles and brackets and whatnot need to be replaced. i will say that, as overwhelming as all these parts can be for me, looking at pictures and attempting to wrap my brain around how it all goes back together does seem to be calming my nerves a little.
a little.
i think once i get over the initial fear of actually buying parts and putting something back on the car, instead of just taking more apart (yes, i know that's just how the process works), then i'll feel different. right now, i'm still in that 'i feel like a great big poser' phase and i'd love to move past that.
but i have forward momentum and i'm thrilled about that!
so today i am spending most of the day measuring and cleaning (more cleaning!) and preparing for winter. i will be ready to get moving once spring arrives. i'd set a goal, but i just don't have the experience to know what a reasonable goal would be. instead...we go with the flow.

the things nightmares are made of

front drum to disc conversion...easy as pie, right? just buy the kit and follow the instructions!
well, which kit will fit? just look up your specs and get the corresponding kit, right?
oops...that part may not quite fit. but it says 'fits your application' ...so it should fit, right?

maybe not. try another route...swap out another part to make that mismatched part fit.
ok...but now this other part won't fit, so you'll have to change that too.

farther and farther down the rabbit hole, i go.

i do have part of a broadcast sheet i found when i ripped out the headliner last year...

...but it doesn't offer much help when i look up a decoder...these codes just don't match the codes on any chart i find. you can see HERE that these codes mean nothing, when compared to those in the above photo. maybe i'm just dense...am i missing something?

i'm on forums for what seems like every waking hour...or messaging my car friend (or, poor guy, calling him after i've looked at so many numbers i can't even remember how numbers work any more). 

there has to be a simple solution, right? well, there is...but i'm not giving up!

oh...other than that, there's another way out, but i'm afraid that way is simply out of my budget.

so, with all this help, i think i've just decided to try to continue going forward with the drum to disc conversion, keeping the old 14" wheel and 5x4 bolt pattern, as long as i can get a kit with rotors that fit...or, possibly spending a little extra on an extra set of rotors, apart from the ones in the kit? that might work? 

time will tell.

lots and lots of time...

2016: jan. 2

Well, the weather is finally starting to feel like winter. Wind is whipping and rustling the carport tarp, and my fingers are frozen.
But, we still have momentum...at least a little. And, there are still things to be done.
My focus right now is finding a front drum to disc brake conversion kit that will work with my 14" rims. And, i also need to get the rear drums back in order ...and get those leaf springs in...clean up the rear axle/differential...
okay...stop running down the list...focus! this is getting to be a real problem! it's so much more obvious to me these days!
well, moving on...

the car has been on jack stands in my driveway for 3(?) years. i just put boards under those stands last week! i know, i know...rookie move, not doing it from the start. i remember someone telling me to do it, too, but i just didn't. the front two were so imbedded into the blacktop that i had to really wiggle them loose. the front end had lowered nearly an inch, i'm sure. but we're back on stands on boards.

currently doing a lot of shopping and research and worrying that parts won't fit.
it's in the back of my head that my brother told me he's not sure the new leaf springs would fit, so i'm just waiting for that shoe to drop, when i have to spend money on something i thought i already had...hoping for the best. always hoping for the best with this project.

here are some pics...

maybe it's just a half inch deep, but it was a bitch to break free!

next dirty project

trunk full of junk...and leaf springs that i hope fit on this car...and 3 tire irons!?

original color still visible inside trunk