have a 70 454 conv bought 20 or so yrs ago. when purchased it had been sitting in a building for 10 or so yrs. yrs ago i pulled the motor,trans and front suspension(because the rubber bushing were falling apart) then sat it in the corner of shop. now i have decided to finish it and trying to decide on pulling the body and going all the way. some of you guys that have done it what do you think?

 

Well, if you're **** and retentive like me....then go all the way! I am in the middle of a body off resto myself. Seems like a never ending money pit! I know I will be happy with my decision to pull the body in the end, but right now I often get frustrated when I see someone driving their vette and I can't drive mine! Good luck on whatever you decide to do...my recommendation is to pull the body. Do it once and do it right!!

 

I bought a 72 in original, but neglected condition in early June. I decided to take the body off to do it up right. Really, it is not all that difficult to pull the body. I removed it by myself with the aid of a shop hoist in my garage. Build a body dolly before doing anything. I found a great check list here, and cannot add anything to it. Its very thorough. http://www.corvette-restoration.com/...o_articles.htm
Also, I would suggest building your dolly about 4" longer in the front end then what the plans call for. You will need to shim the front end a bit higher as well, The plans are from a popular book on restoring a C2, the back part of the frame width and length is correct, but the C3 apparently is a bit longer in the front end and if you build it to exact specifications, will leave you short up front..
I built my dolly using angle steel, it helped refresh my welding skills. I also removed the radiator core support from the body and made a temporary frame to keep the body nose from flexing. I used the lower side core support mounting bolt holes as a convenient place to support the front end of the car on the dolly.

 

I started out doing some minor engine repairs then things snowballed. I rebuilt the front and rear suspensions, etc then ran into problems with the body mounts and HAD to lift the body.

Mine is still a work in progress, but for sure the suspension work would have been a LOT easier if I had initially just lifted the body. I would recommend that you do the body lift - not that difficult, and then you have easy access for the frame, fuel and brake lines, wires, etc.

 

in the end, taking the body off will probably save you time and money. good luck!

 

I took the body off my 70 big block coupe. Not hard at all, did it using a jack and blocks. Bought a sling to reinstall.

I found things I'd never have seen if I hadn't lifted the body. One item being aluminum body mount blocks corroded, one with the bolt partially rusted away. It's easy to replace the fuel and brake lines with the body off. I took the opportunity to clean the underside of the rocker channels and paint with rust inhibiting paint. You'll have an easier time correcting what ever needs work. Easier to install the front suspension, engine and trans. etc without the body in the way. Get the chassis all sorted out while it's easy to access.

The car is much tighter now having started from the bottom and worked back. More enjoyable to drive. Still much more work to be done. These tend to be long term projects depending on what time and resources you have available. I personally think it's worth lifting the body if you plan to keep the car for a long time.

 

If you are a perfectionist, have problems with the body mounts, or have heavy rust in some frame sections you will probably need to pull the body off the frame. Other than for those reasons, there is NO reason for doing a body-off restoration [IMO]. Pulling the body off is no small task, you can do some damage to the body if you are not careful and you need a special support frame for the body if you don't want it just hanging there. For basic clean up and 'beautification', you can get to nearly everything without pulling the body. So, the choice is really yours.

 

What do you plan to do with the car once you're done?

 

this is a 60,000 miles car with no rust at all. original owner put the 60 on it in about 5 years since then it has spent the rest of its life sitting in buildings. i do have to change the fenders and quarters due to the original owner flaring the fenders when it was new.

 

when done it will mostly sit ina building and be rarely driven

 

There is no reason to do a body off for your car. No rust on the frame. Many body off projects are never driven again.

 

It's all in what you want to do but if the fender flares were done well with a 454 bb inside the hood I'm not sure I'd change the fenders favoring the wider stance that fender flares could give you. some of those cars done that way look just plain wicked and are......

Subjective and up to the owner and what you want, of course.

Lance

 

body off! just look at the avatar

 

depends if you want the underneath to look like this....


Or like this


Its a great time to replace the brake & Fuel lines, all the suspension bushings, body mounts, repair tailight harnesses etc not to mention it is a heck of a lot easier to rebuild the mechanicals with the body off...just a more thorough job.

 

I want to add, buy the stainless steel lines, they'll last a lifetime. I cheaped on mine and went to standard, wish I had put in stainless when I had the chance.

 

If you want the frame and such to look like this, then off with the body!

 

If you don't pull the body, you'll always wish you did. It's a major commitment, but well worth it when it's "done".

 

You bought the car but I don't see much ownership. Sell it.

 

Then why go to the trouble. You can get the stuff to clean up and paint your frame with the body still on. A lot of work if you aren't really going to be using it.