Since I don't have one of those magnetic finder/retriever probes, I decided to repeat my trick of dropping the 5/8 deep socket into the frame when wrenching on the front bumper, resulting in having to fish it out with a wire hanger. This year I wanted to add a new level of skill and challenge to the trick, so at one point I got the socket onto my pinky, and decided that I could poke a short extension into it and pull it out, only to then drop the extension in there as well.
But onto more sublime discussion, how do you get the bottom back bolts out of the fenders on a '70? Whatever is inside there is also turning along with the bolt and I can't get a wrench on it. Also, I pulled all the plugs today and they look pretty oil fouled. There is also oil all over the engine so I am debating whether to take the time to rebuild this engine (not original to the car) or buy a crate motor. I'm going to pull the top half off of this motor next week for a closer look, but I'm thinking crate as long as the price is feasible. And, since I have no way of knowing whether or not the tranny is any good, I figure I may as well replace that too with a 5 or 6 speed. I know this has been discussed but I usually haven't paid close attention, so, any recommendations and/or cost guesstimates are welcome. I am definitely not looking to modify the trans tunnel, and if I could use a stock driveshaft that would be great, but that's not a dealbreaker. This will be a small block (350) car so I don't need the biggest baddest tranny out there. I just want overdrive for gas mileage. Thanks, John Nasta
