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Blackmoon - This is a nice build and yes those numbers make sense. We all will spend our limited dollars differently and splurge on some things while being more conservative on others.
No widened quarters or front fenders...all factory stock.
Lotsacubes - Thanks for the suggestions on front end options and carbon doublers. We can discuss offline.
Gents - Overall budget is by no means unlimited. In fact, I'm trying to be prudent in the decisions. I'm sure I'll forget some things in my wish list but that's Ok. Will live with it. What I would really like is thoughts on things that you did that you were happy you spent the money on, things that you realized it wasn't worth the money, and things that you wish you would have done or that if you were in my shoes, you would do if this was your car.
I'm pretty set on the Art Morrison chassis route but chime in about any component of the build. For example, spend the extra $XXX and upgrade to 6 piston caliper Brembo brakes versus 4 piston Wilwood, the upgrade to XYX that you did wasn't worth the money, do a six speed but you will need to modify the tunnel various ways, recommend this or that fuel tank, etc. Post pros and cons. I'll listen, consider comments, and may or may not use various suggestions but I'm open to hearing them. As the title in the post said, Soliciting Helpful Direction & Advice. The car is going restomod. This is not an original numbers matching car, never will be and I'm improving on the original components while retaining the original lines. I'm going to drive it. I won't panic if it rains - it will have wipers. I do want a lot of horsepower but dependability (maybe an oxymoron). Not going to do something so unique like dropping $60K on some custom one-off twin turbo meth injected engine. Just want a tastefully build car that rides much better than the factory chassis and suspension that I can have a nice drop and tuck for the big rear wheels, has modern creature comforts (air, PS, PB, PW, etc) and still retains the beautiful original lines of the car. I'm staying with the factory brightwork (bumpers, trim, chrome, etc) but all lights, emblems, trim, bumpers will be new, polished, or re-chromed. That's been decided and paint will be black. Other than that - fire away with any helpful ideas of suggestions as mentioned above.
As far as the 6 speed I cut the 2 sides and across the back of the tunnel and raised it about 3/4" to clear. The 63 may be different though. Either way it was a minor mod compared to others i did. If you're going with that much hp I'd advise against the 5 speed. Used them twice and had issues at high rpm shifts. The 5 and 6 speeds are very different transmissions as far as how they work internally. Got mine from AmericanPowertrain.com.
Big HP requires big brakes. Don't cheap out with C4 or 4 piston calipers.
Only buy parts you'll need in the next month or two. It makes it less painful, you may change your mind or find them cheaper. Most suppliers like Volvette.com will give you a project discount if you buy everything from them (within reason).
Most frame companies are 6-8 month backed up. Order soon. They will be your best source of information and guidance if they build cars for their customers.
Make a project book with sections for each category. Good to have all your notes and prices in one location to go to.
If your current nose is in decent shape, I would reuse it. With a modern chassis, it’s not going to flex. I have no problem with a one piece nose on a restomod as long as you install separate Louver panels(for fitment reasons).
If you go with the LT5, definitely install the wide rear quarters. I like the units from JM enterprises inc. You are going to need the extra tire width to handle the hp. With stock quarters, you will be limited to about a 295mm rear tire even with the modern chassis. With after market quarters, you will be able to use 355mm without issue.
Last edited by 65silververt; 02-21-2019 at 08:03 PM.
As far as the 6 speed I cut the 2 sides and across the back of the tunnel and raised it about 3/4" to clear. The 63 may be different though. Either way it was a minor mod compared to others i did. If you're going with that much hp I'd advise against the 5 speed. Used them twice and had issues at high rpm shifts. The 5 and 6 speeds are very different transmissions as far as how they work internally. Got mine from AmericanPowertrain.com.
Big HP requires big brakes. Don't cheap out with C4 or 4 piston calipers.
Only buy parts you'll need in the next month or two. It makes it less painful, you may change your mind or find them cheaper. Most suppliers like Volvette.com will give you a project discount if you buy everything from them (within reason).
Most frame companies are 6-8 month backed up. Order soon. They will be your best source of information and guidance if they build cars for their customers.
Make a project book with sections for each category. Good to have all your notes and prices in one location to go to.
Good luck and post pics when you get started.
Great advice. Decided to go with the six speed. Also began organizing receipts and parts lists. This week was a very big spend week . Ordered the new Art Morrison GT Sport 3" drop chassis. Full IFS / IRS coilover suspension. To assure everything can handle the amount of horsepower I'm considering, we upgraded to the Dana 60 Strange HP axle IRS with the optional Posi upgrade to Eaton Truetrack (helical gear) worm type differential. Here's a video explaining the Eaton Truetrack:
I honestly could not decide on the brakes since I don't have the tires / wheels picked out yet. This is a domino effect I've learned. Going to go with the top of the line Wilwood Aero6 6 piston brakes. However, still working on the largest rotor size we can use which will be dictated by the wheel size we will use. Likely going 19/20 or 18/20. Fronts around 8-9" and rears 11-13" width with rear tires around 325-355 width. Molding in a tub system to handle this.
Originally Posted by 65silververt
If your current nose is in decent shape, I would reuse it. With a modern chassis, it’s not going to flex. I have no problem with a one piece nose on a restomod as long as you install separate Louver panels(for fitment reasons).
If you go with the LT5, definitely install the wide rear quarters. I like the units from JM enterprises inc. You are going to need the extra tire width to handle the hp. With stock quarters, you will be limited to about a 295mm rear tire even with the modern chassis. With after market quarters, you will be able to use 355mm without issue.
Chris - Honestly your black 63 SWC in your avatar was the inspiration for the exterior of my build. Doing the same white optional backup lights but doing sidepipes on mine. Decided to keep the factory front end as opposed to go with a one piece since the nose was perfect / never damaged and some fender damage will not be too difficult to correct. Almost ordered the 1.5" flared rear quarters but decided to do all other bodywork to paint ready state and wait until the chassis arrived. They are 4-5 months out now so this gives us time to figure out many other things. Once the chassis gets here, we will cut the rear for the minitub and see if we need the flared fenders. If possible, I would really like to keep the factory quarters for the factory lines but we will just have to see how it fits up.
Thanks guys for the advise and keep it coming! Here's some progress pictures...the journey is just beginning.
Here ya go
’66 Coupe Black – Chrome – No badging – Factory Sidepipes
Stock Power Coated Frame
RideTech Level II suspension
235/40/18 Front – 245/45/18 Rear
Wilwood Brakes 14” & 12”
383 Storker 450HP
Holley Sniper EFI
200-4R Overdrive
PS-PW-A/C
Great fun driver -- Plenty of power and options and FUN FUN to drive
Only a suggestion...As far as brake calipers and rotors. I own a 1972 DeTomaso Pantera and used a complete set of Porsche 996 Turbo calipers ( monolithic casting and 6 piston design) along with Coleman rotors 333mm front....330 mm rear...as my braking system...Needed to have custom designed and fabricated mounting brackets . Well worth it in my opinion...Mark
Also for brakes I'm using C6Z06/ZR1 Rock Auto and around $1500 for calipers/rotors. A great system for much less than Wilwood but my suspension on my frame is C6Z.
I'd ask Art Morrison for their suggestions especially since the frame may require changes for whatever you use.
Also for brakes I'm using C6Z06/ZR1 Rock Auto and around $1500 for calipers/rotors. A great system for much less than Wilwood but my suspension on my frame is C6Z.
I'd ask Art Morrison for their suggestions especially since the frame may require changes for whatever you use.
Would love to use C7 ZR1 stuff but Art Morrison said corvette calipers won't work. Need to say with Wilwood to assure compatibility. Just need to figure out the wheels to use so then I will know the brake disc sizes
Here ya go
’66 Coupe Black – Chrome – No badging – Factory Sidepipes
Stock Power Coated Frame
RideTech Level II suspension
235/40/18 Front – 245/45/18 Rear
Wilwood Brakes 14” & 12”
383 Storker 450HP
Holley Sniper EFI
200-4R Overdrive
PS-PW-A/C
Great fun driver -- Plenty of power and options and FUN FUN to drive
That looks like a really nice car to start with!!! If you aren’t going with wide rear quarters, I would save the $4k and just go with the LT4 wet sump crate engine. That is what I’m using in my 67 Coupe with the Silver sport 6 speed conversion and quick time bellhousing. Still expensive, but a great combo. You might not need the 6 speed, but they shift a lot smoother than the TKO 5 speeds. If you go with a TKO 5 speed, use the 600 series with the .82 5th gear ratio. With the .64 gear ratio, 5th isn’t useable until 55mph, which is annoying when cruising around town.
That looks like a really nice car to start with!!! If you aren’t going with wide rear quarters, I would save the $4k and just go with the LT4 wet sump crate engine. That is what I’m using in my 67 Coupe with the Silver sport 6 speed conversion and quick time bellhousing. Still expensive, but a great combo. You might not need the 6 speed, but they shift a lot smoother than the TKO 5 speeds. If you go with a TKO 5 speed, use the 600 series with the .82 5th gear ratio. With the .64 gear ratio, 5th isn’t useable until 55mph, which is annoying when cruising around town.
Are your engine rpms even 2,300...when in 5th gear at 55mph?!.....Mark
Last edited by sidepipe seeker; 03-04-2019 at 03:08 PM.
That looks like a really nice car to start with!!! If you aren’t going with wide rear quarters, I would save the $4k and just go with the LT4 wet sump crate engine. That is what I’m using in my 67 Coupe with the Silver sport 6 speed conversion and quick time bellhousing. Still expensive, but a great combo. You might not need the 6 speed, but they shift a lot smoother than the TKO 5 speeds. If you go with a TKO 5 speed, use the 600 series with the .82 5th gear ratio. With the .64 gear ratio, 5th isn’t useable until 55mph, which is annoying when cruising around town.
Agree to above and in my opinion I would never use the 5 speed with an LS. I've used them twice behind a 327 and a 383 stroke and they will not shift at high rpm. It's like hitting a wall trying to do a fast 2-3 or 4-5 shift above 5500 rpm. If you go to Tremec's website you'll see they are very different internally.
Don't think twice about going with the T-56 Magnum. It's precise almost beyond measure and easy to fit with a simple cut and raise of the tunnel. You should consider what rearend gearing you want before you order the transmission. I have 3.70 gears now and they seem a perfect match for the standard Magnum (2.66 first gear). I had 3.36 gears until last month and found them to be too tall. But 3.36 might pair nicely with the close ratio Magnum with the 2.97 first gear. It depends, I suppose on how much highway driving you plan to do.
Don't think twice about going with the T-56 Magnum. It's precise almost beyond measure and easy to fit with a simple cut and raise of the tunnel. You should consider what rearend gearing you want before you order the transmission. I have 3.70 gears now and they seem a perfect match for the standard Magnum (2.66 first gear). I had 3.36 gears until last month and found them to be too tall. But 3.36 might pair nicely with the close ratio Magnum with the 2.97 first gear. It depends, I suppose on how much highway driving you plan to do.
I'm trying to decide on which gear to run but haven't settled on wheel/tire combo either so it all really depends. I was thinking 350-373 range with a 20" wheel/30 series. 2.66 first gear here.
I vote for widening the fenders a tad to provide room for somewhat proper tire widths. 755 HP with anything close to stock width meats would be hilarious - I think the units from JM that Chris mentioned are sweet...
Don’t mind the haters, some around here love to hear themselves **** about resto mods; how they make “the originals” worth more, blah blah blah. Yaaaaawn!
Plus, I’m positive this thread solicits “helpful direction,” not wanking...
I wanted my tires to be stock height (about 26") and have enough rubber so that the belt line would cut through them to maintain the "stock" appearance. I went with 17x8 and 18x9 rear and selected the width and profile to obtain the 26" height. It's a pretty good balance between street and highway.
Last edited by Mike (Naples); 03-04-2019 at 08:37 PM.
I wanted my tires to be stock height (about 26") and have enough rubber so that the belt line would cut through them to maintain the "stock" appearance. I went with 17x8 and 18x9 rear and selected the width and profile to obtain the 26" height. It's a pretty good balance between street and highway.
I'm between a 27.2 and 28" tall doing a 19/20 or 18/19 setup. So based on your observations the 373 area might work. Thanks Mike!
Are your engine rpms even 2,300...when in 5th gear at 55mph?!.....Mark
I'm just giving my personal opinion. A 5 speed is fine if you pair it with the correct rear end ratio and 5th gear ratio. My personal preference for a TKO 600 5 speed is the .82 overdrive and a 3.9:1 rear end ratio. I love TKO 600 5 speeds, but they shift hard until about 600 break in miles and if you use a .64 fifth gear with anything less than a 3.7:1 ratio, you will not be cruising at 55mph without a good bit of jerk. Hey, but what do i know...you guys are clearly the experts!
02-20-2019, 10:15 PM
