0Road-Race Vette

NO, no trial and error.I restore cars for a living.I already had the fundamental knowledge to do this.The rest was just becoming familiar with what you are working with. Knowledge is power so get as much info as you can and then try it .You will know quickly enough if you got a knack for it or not.

RunningMan373

That is nice,, but you should be out here in Cali instead of Mass,, so you could work on my car.

On thing this forum could sure use is a difinative answer to one question and some views of a common job that seems to be a nightmare to some of us. A badly rusted birdcage including all the mounts. What does a repair job like this look like and what does it cost? And a related question, How about a Vette that is not as rusty,, that just needs a serious windshield suround and firewall uppers repair, how is that done and what's the aprx cost. Mine needs the suround repaired, and the uppers sanded and treated,, no through rust.

orourke

A good body/paint man has vision. He can see the end at the beginning. Good work!
Marty.

0Road-Race Vette

Yes I agree. when you look at a car you have to be able to see it finished in your mind. It gives you a clearer path to follow during the restoration.When we take a car in , I spend a long time consulting with the customer,ultimately learning what they are looking for,and making it happen. Everybody tends to be a little different so individual attention is needed. That ensures there are no dissapointments in the end, and everyones expectations are exeeded.

tjhuyser

I'm gonna PM you some close shots of my front clip...i think it can be repaired, but it seems like you would be a better judge...

dbeall1968

Thanks for resurrecting a 68 vert. I almost puked when I saw those rear flares on the before pic. You did a beautiful job of making it right. BTW- are you going to re-install the proper tail lights for 68? I like the look of the 4 red lenses, IMO

chuck d

Nice work

0Road-Race Vette

Oh yes.those lights happened to be on that panel because I used a good gm one that I had around(like to use gm parts when I can)

929nitro

Great work. Keep the photos coming. I am one that tries things myself and learn by asking questions, reading and following great posts like this. Keep up the good work posts like yours are a great inspiration to those of use that try to DIY. Not a drinker either including DD even if I was from Mass until last year now next door in RI.

Tim H

Its good to see a vette going the other way instead of the way you bought it!!!!

panic

Flame suit is on: I loved the front end of that vette...very sleek, aggressive, custom sweet, like a punch in a silk glove, a black haired lover ready to give and to take...

...ok who comes first?

jimiscnc

press molded oem type or aftermarket hand lay up or what?

vendors pleez.

nice work.

nastiest aspect of this, if you can handle the carcinogenic dust, is ALIGNMENT! nothing sux more than gluing panels IN THE WRONG PLACE! thats why its important to be able to stand way way back, so you can verify alignments by eye, in addition to measurements.

question 2 of 2: did you use lots and lots of vise grips and other clamps or sheet metal screws temporarily to hold in place until the glue/resin set?

-jim B.

only 90 miles away!

0Road-Race Vette

GM NOS, AND PRESS MOLDED.
ALLIGNEMENT IS WHAT WE DO BEST.GOOD GAPS ON VETTES ARE CRITICAL TO ME BECAUSE EVERYONE PUTS VETTES DOWN FOR NOT LINING UP WELL. AS A RESULT ,I ALWAYS MAKE SURE OUR VETTES LINE UP AWESOME.IT IS A PET PEEVE OF MINE .THEY GOT TO BE STRAIGHT AS AN ARROW AND LINE UP AWESOME.PERIOD.I LOVE THESE CARS AND I TRY TO MAKE EVERYONE I WORK ON AS BEAUTIFUL AS IT CAN BE.

YOU ARE CORRECT,LOTS OF VICE GRIPS ,SCREWS, CLAMPS ETC....

bruced267

Road Race welcome to the forum! I see your from Mass. where about? Where did you get the car from? I can see why it sat, but hard to believe! If I saw that car I would have done the same thing

vwcorvette

Panic, I'll take the first bullet for you! I too like the look of the smoothed and filled nose. There was one similar at the Northeast street machine nationals here in Vermont last month from Northern NY. Looked great. Only bad thing about it was square headlights in the lower opening.

So Road-race, what happened to that front end anyway? I'd put it on my car!

And, yeah, where in Mass you at? I frequent Bean town on occasion and would love to stop by and see your work first hand.

0Road-Race Vette

my shop is located in walpole . near where the NE patriots play.We actually did a car for one of them last year (not a corvette, sorry)

0Road-Race Vette

I cut the old nose into bite-size morsels and used it for mulch!!!!

vwcorvette

Can you do that with fibreglass??? Now I know what to do with the old pieces!

tripleblk69

Road Race,

Where do you find most of these hards to find parts? Radio delete plate decals, even the period correct tires. The detail on the finsh product is very cool. Is that shop open on week-ends?

0Road-Race Vette

yes it is open on weekends.I researched the parts for a while until I found the ones I was looking for. I agree with you its all in the details