Thought if I was going to the auto store for lines and oil, may as well try to return the *new* battery and get another. Removed the negative cable and the little felt post washer came off with it. Tried pulling it off the cable and it was stuck to something. Seems the cable had been tightened around the little black plastic post cover new batteries come with. Cable was never contacting the post! That's why it wouldn't start when I first saw it without the aid of the charger being connected directly to the cables!!!
Removed the plastic cap from the cable and re-attached to the battery and it fired right up. Went to the parts store to get the lines and oil I needed. Total cost: $35. Took about an hour and was able to cruise around the block just to get a feel for her. Runs good...
Put her back in the garage and removed the soft-top and hardware (the top had a small hole eaten out by a field mouse), removed the non-operational radio antenna, and took the headrests off. I like the cleaner look. Not to mention, without the headrests or the side marker lights (not present on an early-'69), it looks just like a 1968. Washed it good and tore into the oxidized paint with an orbital buffer and some rubbing compound and wax. Got it fairly shiny, considering, but think I need a real polishing wheel in order to get the paint as polished as I can. Not high on my list yet, but I'll get it shinier :-)
This weekend I am planning to take the wheels off to prepare them to be powder coated. I will be enjoying relatively cooler evening drives until then. It will probably be up on stands for at least a week so I need to enjoy it now, but October is just around the corner and the days will be cooler too. Thinking about replacing the badly bottomed-out exhaust system too. We'll see...
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