stinger12

I finished fitting most of the pieces earlier today. Still need to bond them in place, but its getting there. It took lots of twisting/tweaking of the panels to make them fit perfect. I also used a trick Mike taught me - using a heat gun to soften some of the glass, then letting it cool off. You can change the shape of a panel using this method, and it works awesome. It also prevents cracking of the panel, as it does not put stress on it.











I sandblasted and bonded this metal plate in for the windshield wiper motor...



Sandblasted these two brackets (they are getting bonded in place as well). They are for the hood latches.

stinger12

Had to drill out some holes first...



Then I bonded/riveted it in place...

stinger12

Last of the fiberglass repairs on the firewall!!!!!!













A couple hours of blocking these repairs, and I will be finished with fiberglass (on the firewall that is). I am almost ready to get going on that body

stinger12

I masked the entire body off yesterday morning for sandblasting (cannot sandblast fiberglass) - it took a very long time. Took 5 rolls of masking tape, and then about 3-4 layers of thick plastic. Not one grain of sand hit the fiberglass.

Today, me and my father drove the vette down to consolidated compressor, where I sandblasted it. These are industrial sandblasters - not hobby ones. I could not believe the power of these beasts...it was insane. The compressor they have running the blasters is absolutely incredible...it sucks air like you would not believe. I finished it in under 2 hours - the entire body, fuel lines, radiator support and fuel tank. Cost me all of $188, which is pretty damn cheap if you ask me. The big plus is that there is no damn cleanup at home! Here are some pics...

A picture of the best dad in the world. This project would not be happening if it wasn't for him (and my mom that is). I still can't believe they are letting me restore this thing to full potential (it ain't my house).



At the sandblasters...









I peeled her open once we got home...



The results are amazing - not one spec of rust/paint left on the entire body now. Now that all the bullsh#t work is finished, I can really start tearing into the bodywork















Kudos to Mike for selling me one hell of a body - this thing barely had any rust. YOU THE MAN MIKE!

autoist

Okay, dumb question...what's the bar between the 2 A-arms...the one with the heim joint ends? Where'd you come up with it? What's it supposed to do? How does it fit behind the radiator?

stinger12

Spreader Bar from VB&P. Prevents twisting of the frame horns when cornering. Not necessary, but I am going all out on this thing.

This one is designed for an electric radiator setup. The mounts were welded together when packaged. If you have a stock radiator fan, you need to get the kit with the mounts unwelded. The reason being is because it is such a tight fit with a stock fan...you need to mock it up yourself and weld it together. Its very, very tight - so they prefer you weld the tabs in for the heims.

stinger12

Had to clean up this area for the new door jamb. Bought it off ebay real cheap - its an original GM NOS replacement panel. Needs a little work, but almost every replacement panel does...

curtisjb1983

Hey how much room are you working with? I would like tackle a total rebuild on my vette but I am afraid I don't have enough room.

stinger12

2 car garage, packed with family necessities and the vette. My room is packed full of parts, and so is our storage room. I also have parts in a storage facility right now. I would not recommend restoring a car in a 2 car garage!

HOOAH

I'll agree with that. I'm in the middle of a frame off on my 69 (in a two car garage). I have another Vette, the body of the 69 on a dolly, the frame and a motorcycle all in the garage. Makes for a tight fit and a constant shuffle every weekend. But then again, I'd probably run into the same problem with a 6 car garage. Do we ever have enough room?

stinger12

I decided to remove the right door jamb cover. I busted a piece off the inside of it when I was removing the #3 body mount cover, and tore it up pretty good (I totally forgot that there were 3 pieces sandwiched together right behind the dogleg...oh well, sh8t happens). That wasn't the only reason for removing it though. the previous owner messed it up pretty bad where he tried to make a repair on the dog leg. This way I can also put the rocker channel cover back in one piece instead of two pieces (Mike sent me a used panel in my last package). I'll have to sandblast this pillar before I put the body back on the frame. This is the farthest I am going with this thing...I'm not removing any more panels (come to think of it, the only panels I haven't removed are the rear deck and quarter panels ).

I also started prepping the joint between the tub and the floor pan. I need to bond it together with marinetex. God damn fiberglass. I just want this thing together already ...seems like it is never gonna end.

stinger12

I need to finish some repairs on the underbody before it goes back on the frame for good. One of those jobs is rebonding the area where the tub meets the floorpan/ seat riser. This is important, as it is one of the few areas where the birdcage is actually bonded to the rear section of the car. I sandblasted, wire wheeled, sandblasted and scrubbed with scotch brite and lacquer thinner until the bonding surfaces were rough and clean. I also used hacksaw blades...worked great. I had to get in the rear of the interior like a moron...i could barely move, but I needed to sandblast this area for bonding (the area is at the top of the pic...picture was taken before sandblasting)



Here is the are I cleaned to perfection...



Here is what I found underneath GM bonding adhesive...



The underside of the repair was in plain sight (this picture was taken after I pulled all of the cloth off!)...



Yes, that is correct. I found this under GM applied bonding adhesive and sealant. There were pieces of cloth in areas which could not have been applied unless the tub was off the car at some point, which it was not. I talked to Mike about this, and he said he's seen repairs just like this done by GM from the factory - they never made the panels, so they repaired them the easiest way they could when they got damaged during assembly. I also found fiberglass cloth under my #4 body mount reinforcements. The reinforcements were still riveted with original GM body rivets. Anyways, This crap had to come off. I want to do this right. I sanded and stripped all the resin that was on the underbody, then I prepped any cracked/fractured areas for fiberglass. It took me more than a few hours...there was a ton of crap to clean between the tub and floor pans.

BenUK

I'm still enjoying this thread, Jeremy. Thanks for the floorpan photos after blasting - they're very useful.

riggs 74

Stinger,

I appreciate how you continue to post all the photo's of your
fiber glass repairs, You sure do make it look easy. I hope to do
some custom work to the hood of mine and you have taken the
guess work out of this for me.

Thanks, I will continue to read your post.

Riggs.

dannyman

Jeremy,

Birdcage looks great after the sandblasting. That dolly is working for you! Have you primed all that you sandblasted?

Your weather sense is good too. Just beat the snow, didn't you!

stinger12

HAHA! Yeah, me and my dad were laughing the about that the other day - it snowed one week later after sandblasting. This dolly is awesome. Even when we lifted the front of it on the trailer, while the back end was still on the driveway, it was as solid as a rock...not one problem with strength. I can work under it in comfort, and there is nothing to get in your way...I could not have got the dimensions any more perfect (seriously, its that good). If you're just a tad larger, the only thing you would have to do is add a few more inches to each post for height...that's it.

I have not primed the sandblasted stuff. Its weird, as Calgary is extremely dry and sandblasted stuff does not rust...even if you touch it. I have touched this thing with sweaty palms all over, and not one spec of rust. I only have 2 small fingerprints on the doorsI blasted months ago...that's how dry it is. Once I finish the rest of the fiberglass repairs on the underbody, I finally get to undercoat everything. Once that is done, I will be painting the birdcage and interior which I sandblasted last week. And then once that is completed, I am puttin this bitch back on the frame for good!!!!!

stinger12

Dude, we still need to talk on the phone!!! I totally forgot about that...woops.

stinger12

Fiberglass work is not hard...its just tedious. The prep work takes the longest...glassing is the easy part. Finding the time to poke at fiberglass matt for about an 2 hours straight is what kills me...I barely have time to rest as it is. The reason I am posting pics of all of my repairs is because I learned this from the master - Mike. He is the one relaying all this info to me. I am just a worker. Its really him you should be thanking. I knew absolutely nothing about bodywork before I met him. He's taught me everything.

Just take a look at what this man is capable of - this is Zwede's car, which he just finished. The guy is an artist...and the amount of body filler he uses is insanely little. Nevdr sands on original glass...he is the best. I'm sure Markus (Zwede) is one proud vette owner! http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c3-g...-in-paint.html

stinger12

Mike, you out there? Lets see some pics of the engine. I am dying to see this thing...I don't care if they are bad pictures

RobRace10

Post 1000


Your car is going to be better than new! Keep it up.