Update:
Okay, it took a while to get all the parts together. Getting the hood latch parts hard chromed took longer than I thought it would, so they were at the shop in Oregon for almost three weeks, then a few more days for shipping back to Idaho. So call it three weeks. When I got the parts back, I was in the middle of installing insulation in a shed that's I'm converting into a workshop, so the parts were assembled and then set aside for a week or two. The new bolt i was using as a shaft for the spring fit perfectly, and the replacement spring fit just fine. The only problem was that the way the hood latch is designed, there really isn't any way to get the short end of the spring (which is the end that activates the latch and holds the hood shut) into the groove in the moving part of the latch assembly.
I went over to Harbor Freight and bought a couple of special long nose pliers and a couple of cheap screwdrivers, then came home and took a Dremel with a diamond cutter and a carbide cutting bit to the screwdrivers and made a couple of spring installation tools out of them. That almost worked. I could get the short end of the spring almost to the groove it needed to fit into, and then it would slip. I kept wrestling with the spring on and off for a week or two, then finally called a guy in my VFW Post who is also into old cars (has a gorgeous '62 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible), and he came over to see what he could do. He couldn't get the spring into the slot either. After a little discussion, both of us attacked the spring. Using four hands and two modified screwdrivers, we finally managed to get the spring into the slot, then tested the hood latch. It now works like a charm.
Next project is to get the new grill installed, and then I can start on the bucket seat installation and exhaust system. Stand by.
