I have no need for a trailered show car, and given that wagons just ain't worth much money it'd hardly be economically worthwhile to try to do a 100-point restoration of the car even if I could find parts like NOS rear load-floor linoleum which just doesn't seem to exist anymore.
That being the case, we're left with one incontrovertible fact: old cars may have all the character in the world, but most just don't work very well as cars by modern standards. The MS Galaxie is no exception. The big 390 is capable of writing checks that the four-wheel drums can't pay. The suspension, so well tuned for cruising smooth, uncrowded highways that no longer exist, isn't too well suited for much else. Tire technology has advanced in spectacular leaps since Ford put 14x5.5-inch wheels on this 4000-plus-pound car. Air conditioning, stereo, power conveniences - this car, typically for the '60s, has none of them. And engines with cast iron valve seats and lots of rubber in the fuel-system plumbing are easy prey for the unleaded, MTBE-laden gasolines we live with today.
What I'm after, then, is to maintain a more-or-less '60s look and enough of '60s feel while updating various systems to get braking, handling, and engine reliability closer to '90s standards. I'm hoping to keep most modifications, with only a few exceptions like disc brakes and modern front seating, either pretty much invisible or reflecting some degree of '60s period practice. This offers plenty of possibilities, from invisible Dove or Edelbrock aluminum heads to '60s period Traction Master-type traction bars, multiple carburetion, or a Paxton blower (remember - they were OEM on Studes and some Fords in the '50s and early '60s).
Beyond overall budget considerations, the prime constraint on the project is Thou Shalt Not Cut. I will not butcher the car. If a part is to be modified I'll find a replacement and store the original. If a new part is to be mounted it will be bolted to an existing hole, or a bracket will be made to bolt it to an existing hole. Nothing will be done that can't be fairly readily un-done if I change my mind later.