Important tip: When hitting something with a hammer it’s a good idea to make sure the bracket is solid or else put something behind it. I didn’t do that and I wound up cracking the timing cover. So, $60 later I have a new (used and very dirty) timing cover. Also, another $15 for the gaskets since I’m pulling it off now. Argh! I have to look at the bright side of this. It will give me a chance to paint the timing cover itself. I think I’ll do it a silver just to set it off. Woot!
John Wilkins is the man. He’s letting me borrow a wheel and tire so I don’t have to mess with the tire situation right now. There’s $250 I can defer to a later date! He also loaned me a very good Ford shop manual and some thread cleaner/chasers. Since I’ll be removing the timing cover I’ll take the opportunity to chase out the threads that are buried in the block.
I now have all of the parts I need to put the wheels on. No more excuses for not having a roller. I still need to get the front brake pads but that can wait for a bit. Maybe, just maybe, it will be a roller this weekend. That would be a very nice thing.