i was just wondering if someone could tell me where i could buy a in dash player and speakers.the ones i have now the drivers side speaker is blown and a wire or 2 have dryrotted and every time i close the door a peice falls off of it and im getting tired of picking it up so im going to replace them and i figured while i replaced the speakers why not replace the whole system. so if someone could tell me where i could buy some that would fit or post pictures of ones they had installed that would help alo thx. Bristol
All the "new" in dash players don't fit the stock hole. However there are company's that are making modern technology look like the stock unit and it fits the the hole too.
Did pintos come with speakers in the door? To my knowledge the one in the dash is the only speaker my car ever had. Neither the pinto i had before or the one i have now have ever had more than just the one speaker. Are there any speakers out there that will replace and mount right in place of the speaker in the dash? What about mounting a CD player, ive seen somone do it before, but how does a person make it look clean? No one makes a "filler panel" for a pinto do they?
As I understand it, the Am-FM Stereo cars came with speakers in the doors. They are easy to spot as they have a speaker grill attached to the lower front corner of each door panel. The AM radio cars have the single speaker in the dash. I have never seen any factory rear speakers, only the doors. I removed the factory AM-FM stereo from my 79 wagon and added a single DIN radio instead. Instead of using the original plastic radio bezel, I found an early metal radio bezel that I cut out for the din cage. It was much stronger than the plastic bezel and it did not vibrate or creak when I hit a bump.
Is the door any different or just the door panel?
What does DIN mean? Also, i didnt know the early models had a metal bezel, i will definantly have to find one of those. By "early" do you mean 71, 72 and 73?
Hey there,
As a disclaimer i have to tell you that to do this requires some knowledge of handling hand tools and cutting tools and the safety of using them with out drilling into your hand and or sawing fingers off etc. I do not recommend that anyone try this without knowledge of handling and using metal cutting instruments.
Also I know there are many people who have a simpler idea ,and I for one have tried about 3 different ways, all of them came loose and resulted in a bouncing tape/CD player. I gave up and went for a permenant fix. This didn't come loose or bounce one bit for around 3 years of daily driving.
Anyways,
I have DIN size in my pinto dash, 6x9s in the rear and 6.5 in the doors. Yes ,you will need to get a metal radio bezel from an earlier model Pinto. It cuts fairly easily
For the Cd player I hogged out the radio plate. I used many tools ,but however i think if you have a and lots of patience you can get the stamped steel 'frame' into the radio plate. What i would do is to mark and scribe the proper rectangle, then drill series of small ( 1/8 dia) holes side by side long enough on the ends and AWAY from the final edge, to allow you to use a "hand held" hacksaw blade to cut out the major portion of the rectangle. Start from the old radios rectangle and work your way around carefully.
Then with the rectangle cut out but small, id use a nice size file to gently and carefully file away to the scribe marks.
You have to remember that to rush this step is to wind up with a sloppy fit and with a CD player that jumps around. Expect this to take a couple of hours to do it right. RESIST the temptation to try an electric jig saw. Its too unstable an object to expect that to work safely.
Now with the CD player in you need to get inventive to support the rear of the player. If it bounces and it will if you don't support it , you will ruin the player eventually. I came up with a aluminum bracket that I whittled out on my mill at work .Its about 3/8 x 1/2 plate alum and it goes back towards the player and up at and unspecified angle to the support stud at the back of the player. Its very ridged. Its bolted with a 1/4 20 bolt and nut to the bottom of the dash, and i used the hardware that comes with the CD player to secure the other end. I have no final dimensions, but if you play with it long enough and be patient you can get it. To make this you will need a piece of 3/8 plate alum about 6 x 6. Make a template from some stiff cardboard and cut it to make the profile that works for your CD player. Then just simply trace it onto the plate and and Now You can use a Jig saw. Use a metal cutting blade and use wd40 to lubricate it to keep the blade cutting free. Expect this to take a few hours if you've never done something like this b4 And get some help if you can.
  WHEW!!!
NOW for the speakers.
For the front I cut out some holes for the 6.5s i have in each door. if your carefull you can use the hand held jig saw with the finest blade made. i think its 32 TPI . If you have some nice paint on the door then use some masking tape to protect the paint and also so you can draw the hole out from the cardboard templates that come in the box. To get the speakers to sit squarely you might need to use some sort of spacer on the top 2 holes of the speaker so that they tighten up against the metal part of the door, not the cardboard door panel. You will see what i mean if you get to that point.
Assuming you have a Sedan: ( if you have a hatchback then I'm not sure of the best avenue to take with the rear speakers.)
The rear 2 are 6x9s and you will find the holes under the cardboard panel that is there. At least that was on my 71 sedan. 6x9s drop right in and screw down after you make some screw holes which can be challenging if you don't have right angle drill. You'll have to be inventive to make the screw holes because of the rear window being SO close.
Expect this to take the better part of the weekend and have a place to do this if you can. Take your time and ask for help if you need it from your parents ( i just saw that your profile says your 14 ) or someone experienced in this field if you can.
It will be worth it just don't rush it and you will find out that this will sound real nice! Don't expect to win any sound off contests but it will be waaay better that the stock.
Also, don't expect the local stereo shop to know what to do. If they cant use a KIT to install it then they prob wont touch it. Not without some big money from a shop that knows what there doing.
Good luck with this and remember ,
"No question is a dumb question"
Quote from: pintoguy76 on December 13, 2005, 02:06:48 PM
Is the door any different or just the door panel?
The doors are the same but cut from the factory for speakers. My 79 looks like it was cut on the assembly line to add the door speakers. All door panels that I have seen have the perforations for the factory speaker grills on the back side. Basically a small U is taken out from the front lower corner. I tried to attach a picture of one that is uncut.
Quote from: pintoguy76 on December 13, 2005, 02:10:56 PM
What does DIN mean? Also, i didnt know the early models had a metal bezel, i will definantly have to find one of those. By "early" do you mean 71, 72 and 73?
A DIN is the unit of measurement for the thickness of a radio. I have only seen the metal radio bezels in the 71-73 cars but I am not totally sure as one of my 79 parts cars came with one that had some sort of grain pattern to it? I have a spare metal bezel and a set of factory speaker grills. PM me or send me an email if you are interested.
When cutting the holes in the doors,MAKE SURE that the window will roll down and not hit the speaker.I speak from experience.I have been in the radio business for over 21 years.Take your time and do it right the first time.
Quote from: pintoman on December 14, 2005, 05:18:15 PM
When cutting the holes in the doors,MAKE SURE that the window will roll down and not hit the speaker.I speak from experience.I have been in the radio business for over 21 years.Take your time and do it right the first time.
Great point pintoman.............
Also, make sure the speakers you get are not too deep! If the speakers are to be mounted the way the factory did on the inside of the door, some high-end speakers have too large of a magnet and are too deep to fit properly or not cause clearance issues with the door glass operation. As a side note, Ford did not actually cut a round hole to mount the speaker. It was actually an odd shape that looks something like a cross between an oval and triangle. the speaker is fed in sideways and then mounted against the door from the backside. I have a radio kit that has a template to cut the hole, if anyone needs a copy. My email address is: pobs2u@yahoo.com
Hi Folks,
Haven't been around in a while but when I read this post I couldn't resist giving a sneek peek to my Runabout mod. The blank space above the perforated sheet metal is where my stereo is going in. Haven't made the cutout yet but will do so soon. Would be VERY interested in placing speakers in the doors. Would love to see pics and info as to their final placement.
As you can see, I'm an instrument nut.
Al