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Vintage 1960's Ford Racing Restoration
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In 1988, we were approached to find & build three Vintage Shelby GT350’s for vintage racing. We found the cars in the northwest and we were off & running in the vintage race restoration business. Since then, we have restored all or partial of 22 cars. These consist mostly of Shelbys, including 4 R models, but include 4 Mustangs and 3 Falcons.
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Click here to see a range of specifications covering the vehicles restored by EPS.
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This started a new facet of our business. We call it “Off-site Restoration”. We have two Mustangs and a Shelby going through this process.
It works like this...
We provide information for the owner to prepare the chassis/body away from our shop. Then we provide the parts & subassemblies as the car progresses. Usually, at one point in the process, the car comes to EPS for a short time to have some operations completed.
For example, there is a Shelby that just went through the shop. It had the electrical system fabricated and installed along with the fuel & oil lines. When the car is complete to the point of running, it will come back again to be fired and have the engine and drive line broken-in on our dyno and then have the engine set up for running on the track.
This system works well for the owner that wants to build the car over an extended period of time and do much of the work himself. And we don’t have a car parked in our shop between work periods. We are limited to about ten cars.
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We only build cars to meet the SCCA 67 GCR (General Competition Rules) following the specific information in the FIA papers for sedans and SCCA PCS (Production Car Specifications) for production sports cars.
Thus the completed cars should be eligible to race with any club in the country.
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Following are the steps we now go through to restore a car for Vintage Racing:
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1. First the car is inspected for missing or damaged parts that will have to be replaced.
2. It is then dismantled and the parts are cataloged. Then the body shell and body parts are sent out to be dipped. This is a three step operation using a caustic solution to remove most of the under coating, paint, and rust. The parts are then rinsed and neutralized in several tanks. Any remaining unwanted material is removed by sand blasting.
3. Then the car is returned to EPS and the body shell placed on a rotisserie. This allows the body to be rotated until all the remaining fluids and sand are removed. Then the body shell is shot with a transit and many cross measurements are taken to determine whether it needs to be sent out to be straightened.
4. Next our metal fabricator receives the car. He stitch and seam welds the complete car, makes the necessary modifications for racing and fabricates the cage.
5. Then the car is returned to EPS to receive a number of brackets for suspension parts. After this is completed, the car is sent to the body shop to be painted.
6. While all this is happening, the engine, drive line, suspension, fuel system, interior body panels, seats, electrical and other parts are being prepared or purchased so that the painted car can be assembled when back from the body shop.
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Next comes the fun as the car begins to take on it’s final configuration.
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7. Finally, fuel and other fluids are added, the battery is charged, the oil pumped is driven to prime the engine and check for pressure. The plugs are installed, and the distributor is pre-timed. Then we are stand around and take bets as to how many seconds it will take the engine to fire and keep running. Usually this is within ten seconds. That is called an “EPSeon” start.
8. Then the proper break-in procedures are completed. The car has it’s alignment done and is ready to go to the track for a shakedown and track tuning. At this point, the owner joins us and gets his first run in the car. We usually have the owner race it once in Colorado so we can teach him how to maintain it and make adjustments to suit his driving style. The owner also goes through about a half-day training at the shop to learn about maintenance, spare parts, etc. He is also given a manual with maintenance information and a wiring diagram.
9. The car is given a final check over with the owner and then it is on it’s way to it’s new home!
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For more information:
E.P.S., Inc.
P.O. Box 1043
Evergreen, CO 80437-1043 US
Email: epswalth@aol.com
303-674-6017
© Copyright 2007 This website was created by SNetSolutions
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