Had a few hours of clear weather today so I did a bit of work on the frame-side mount plates:
I forget where I got this drawing, its for adjustable motor mount plates for a SBF though for 65-70. I figured it was a good starting point. So I modified the basic design a bit for my application.
The sharp corners on the old plates were stress joints....they had to go.
Rough cutting.
I clamp them together for final grinding...makes for a nice, consistent size and shape.
Blanks.
Laying the template on the blanks for locating the holes needed to drill. I used to use a punch for marking holes...but these days I find its more accurate to use a sharp-tip carbide bit to locate them instead.
I find the easiest way to make a neat slot is to use an almost worn out cutting wheel to cut the lines from each side...then to finish the cut with a body saw...then use a carbide bit to clean them up.
Test fit to make sure everything works as expected.
Throw them on the sander to get rid of the mill scale and prep for paint.
A few coats of primer and paint and voila! Adjustable frame-side motor mount plates that are suitable for either driver or passenger side, and for either front-steer or rear-steer to mount a 3.5L or 3.7L in a 65-70 Mustang(and likely whatever other For uses the shock tower bolt pattern). Unfortunately I ran out of time and wasn't able to address the engine-side plates...but those will just be a matter of cleaning them up and slotting them.