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81 C3 Mini Interior Restoration Thread

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Old 02-09-2013, 11:23 PM
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InvertedHorizons
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Default 81 C3 Mini Interior Restoration Thread

Hey guys, haven't posted too much on the forums after recently becoming a vette owner! figured i would post some pics of my current progress with refreshing the interior! doing the best i can on a budget, so far im happy with the results! (tons of work left to do), i will keep updating as i go.

Heres the vette


Interior prior, decent but definitely needs an update.


door panel comes off


seat out


carpet up, exposed a bunch of rust and crusties.


cleaned up crap, prepped for rust inhibitor and heat insulation.


Seat cleaned, degreased, taped off. ready for SEM dye


Sprayed


Seat Shell sanded,degreased,painted


Door panel. Carpeting sprayed with duplicolor fabric dye. panel about to be sprayed with SEM.


sprayed and cleaned up.. i think it looks great so far


Currently dyeing misc, interior pieces, and pulling the rear carpet...about to install insulation.
Brand new black carpet has already been delivered... hope to be all installed in a few weeks in time for spring!

any input is appreciated.. again im young and on a budget!
Old 02-09-2013, 11:27 PM
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Bagpype
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That looks awesome! Keep up the good work.
Old 02-10-2013, 12:02 AM
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qwank
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nice work. looks great so far!
Old 02-10-2013, 09:12 AM
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4SPDL81
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Love the red...is that original or a repaint?...also noticed you are in the "5757" club....good luck!....
Old 02-10-2013, 09:33 AM
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Originally Posted by 4SPDL81
Love the red...is that original or a repaint?...also noticed you are in the "5757" club....good luck!....
Thanks guys! Have so much to do on the interior but theres 2 feet of snow outside and the garage is packed!!! Its a repaint was done by the previous owner "Garnet red"..... 5757!! This one was made in Bowling Green plant too!
Old 02-10-2013, 11:55 AM
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You are doing a super job there. Keep posting your progress. I have yet to get to my interior so I'll be following your posts.
Old 02-11-2013, 10:34 PM
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picked up a little goodie. 3m Carbon Fiber dash kit (some of you may not like this but the existing OEM trim is a little rough and i think this will add a little bit of a subtle flash to the interior) Weave looks deep and shifts when you move it. probably wont put this in till last.

Old 02-11-2013, 11:28 PM
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Looks great...keep up the good work!!!!!!
Old 02-12-2013, 09:23 PM
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you're doing a great job so far! Looking forward to the end product.

Once you get the carpets in, you can really get an idea of how it's going to look, and it boosts confidence because it looks so good.

I'm about finished with my interior (first timer as well), and you can see for yourself how much better it looks with new and refurbed parts.
I'm proud of myself because I did it myself.

before:




After:

Old 02-13-2013, 07:12 PM
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wow! love it , cannot wait till i get the carpet in, going to work on it this weekend... was it difficult to get it fit nicely? in the back especially.

Last edited by InvertedHorizons; 02-24-2013 at 05:36 PM.
Old 02-13-2013, 07:31 PM
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TurboStitchCW
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no, just do a few test fits and you should be fine. I got my carpet kit from Willcox here on the forum, and from what I've heard (as well as my experience), you cant go wrong with them.

It wasn't really difficult, mostly just tedious.

i think i did about 6 test fits each side after I installed the insulation (maybe a little overkill, but I wanted to get it right the first time). The first two were to make sure the wheel wells were on the correct sides. Once to find and cut the seat belt anchor hole, took it out, then refit just to make sure it was in the right spot (make sure it didn't move as I was cutting). Repeated those two fits to make sure I cut the ttop anchor hole right. Then committed with the spray adhesive. The worst part was having to work in that small area.
As you can see, it turned out pretty good fo my first installation.

Old 02-13-2013, 07:45 PM
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oh it looks like it fits pretty good!, the kit i ordered is all one piece i just have to cut out the compartment door holes... looks like a pain in the butt.. ill keep you posted hhaha

Last edited by InvertedHorizons; 02-24-2013 at 05:35 PM.
Old 02-13-2013, 10:00 PM
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got a tiny bit done today, cleaned up some pieces and sprayed the T-Tops with the SEM spray (this dye works wonders) before:


after, still drying, a little touch up and some cleaning and will look like OEM perfect
Old 02-13-2013, 10:11 PM
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where did you get the carbon fiber dash kit?
Old 02-13-2013, 10:26 PM
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Originally Posted by qwank
where did you get the carbon fiber dash kit?
*cough* ebay , shhhh lol.. Type in 81 Corvette Dash Trim kit, they have faux wood grain, carbon fiber, black, brushed aluminum etc. wasnt cheap but its really high quality
Old 02-24-2013, 05:44 PM
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Got a few things done today:

Removed the Cargo tray / doors from the old carpet,


old stinky carpet


Ripped up carpet, preparing for light coat of undercoat.


Test fit new carpet... its pretty lumpy and looks like its gonna be a pain in the butt to get in properly. Used chalk to get a rough idea of the hole for the cargo area.


Quick spray of the cargo tray with SEM, will do a few more coats. will look good when its together ;]


Coat of Undercoating on the floor to seal it up nice and maybe add an extra element of sound / heat barrier.... will be putting Reflectix insulation on top of this for extra heat protection.


Also threw the door panel back on... i think it came out nice


very slow process.. bit off a little more than i can chew before spring! but im getting there and taking my time! will keep everybody posted
Old 03-03-2013, 08:29 PM
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Got some things accomplished today!

Spray adhesive for the carpeting on the battery / storage doors.


Carpeting on, cleaned up.. was a pain to trim this to fit.


Cutting the hole in the carpet for the storage doors.. really annoyed i cut a little too much on the lower right side of the picture by the battery.. going to have to patch it from behind with some scrap carpet. you cant really see it but its not perfect


Tray laid in.


Speaker covers back on.


Laying some additional heat insulation.


Carpeting in, seatbelt clasp in.


Sprayed some of the T-Top plastics.


Hopefully going to get the passanger seat in and trim back in, and then all i have to do is work on the drivers side carpet / seat / door

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Old 03-03-2013, 09:18 PM
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tak82
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You should be proud, that interior looks like it's turning out very nice.
Old 03-03-2013, 09:47 PM
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Originally Posted by tak82
You should be proud, that interior looks like it's turning out very nice.
thanks! appreciate it,.. im learning as i go, never did any carpeting or anything before. or any interior to this magnitude haha.
Old 03-04-2013, 05:35 AM
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Looks awesome! Looking forward to your updates!


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