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Wheels aren’t too bad, wish they were staggered but got a great deal on new wheels and tires that someone didn’t want to make work on their own project. Still need to run the buffer again and all the small stuff that adds up but coming along slowly. Just got the wheels on yesterday The hanging wire is my rear view camera. Waiting on my head unit to complete.
Installed one TTop and one door weather seal. OMG, had to almost sit on the TTop to get it closed after loosening the mounts. Had to loosen the door hinges and striker to get it to close at the first lock position. I’m going to give it a few days but if it does not get better I will be looking for a better seal than what I got from ECK*****s.
Installed one TTop and one door weather seal. OMG, had to almost sit on the TTop to get it closed after loosening the mounts. Had to loosen the door hinges and striker to get it to close at the first lock position. I’m going to give it a few days but if it does not get better I will be looking for a better seal than what I got from ECK*****s.
I ended up having to pull the ecklers weatherstrip, cleaned up the glue and ordered new CRC rubber from Willcox, and while his shipping is a little slower than most, his product is impeccable and fits right, the first time. The new rubber went on easy and took me about 2 1/2 hours to get both doors and tops done taking my time and taping as I went. Can’t say enough about the CRC product and Willcox recommendation for it. I haven’t removed the pillars and verticals yet but I’ll see how well the window goes up while I’m working on the door lock actuators tomorrow. She gets registered next week so it’s a little exciting seeing it this close to road ready
Got a lot of advice and ideas from good people and threads on this forum, even on the road, there’s a few things that will still need to be done but she’s almost ready. Thanks each and all.
Started on the exhaust this week and so far I’ve hung the right side and may be ready to weld in on Thursday. The driver side is in but not yet tweaked for welding.
Is that a shipping clamp on your spring? If so, I thought it was supposed to be removed (if you haven't already) to allow proper movement of the leaves while driving?
Anyway, nice thread and great job. It's looking good but will look even better when you're driving it!
Paul
Last edited by nwav8tor; Jul 29, 2020 at 02:08 AM.
[QUOTE=nwav8tor;1601919909]Is that a shipping clamp on your spring? If so, I thought it was supposed to be removed (if you haven't already) to allow proper movement of the leaves while driving?
Anyway, nice thread and great job. It's looking good but will look even better when you're driving it!
Paul, I’m not sure about that, this is the same spring that was on the car when purchased, only cleaned and painted. I’ll have to look into that to verify if it needs to be removed or not. Do you have the same spring setup?
My car is a '71 but has a similar 9-leaf transverse rear spring like yours. Mine did not have those clamps when I removed it from the car for rebuilding...
The question about the spring clamp got me wondering today so I took look under my 80 , Yep, there was the clamps . 40,000 miles on the car so it's original. never heard of removing the clamps , most if not all older spring leaf cars have them.
The question about the spring clamp got me wondering today so I took look under my 80 , Yep, there was the clamps . 40,000 miles on the car so it's original. never heard of removing the clamps , most if not all older spring leaf cars have them.
Thanks for the information. I decided to go to the local cruise show this week and check out a few of the other c3’s rear suspension. This is my first Corvette so I am not sure if the clamp is on or off but I won’t remove it unless it has to be.
Last edited by Gman81; Aug 2, 2020 at 09:56 AM.
Reason: Spelling
Gman, I believe '63-'77 used 2-1/4" wide leafs, but the 78-82 went to 2-1/2" width. From many sources I've seen, the earlier installations did not have clamps on the springs as shown in the links below:
Gman, I believe '63-'77 used 2-1/4" wide leafs, but the 78-82 went to 2-12" width. From many sources I've seen, the earlier installations did not have clamps on the springs as shown in the links below:
I'm not sure if things changed in 78 when the use of wider leafs began that would effect your '81 situation, but I can't see why it would've...
Not an expert, just MHO
Paul
Thanks Paul, I’ve been looking into this and have seen some with and some w/o. I have not taken my clamps off at this point until I am sure that they need to be removed. Seems like it’s the original spring with 75k on the clock so I will do my due diligence before I regret it. I plan to go to the local cruise show this week and check out a few if any show up. I don’t see a lot of c3 Vettes around but a few are usually at the local shows. I appreciate your input and examples. Thanks
Went on the public roads for the first time outside my subdivision. Short 2 1/2 mile run to the gas station for some gas. Car ran fine, but carb still needs to be set by someone smarter than me. It does run good and temps were around 200* looking at the gauge. I have not pushed the car yet as I want the rebuilt engine to “break in”.
The firewall was a little warm by the pedals even with the heat shield but not hot, (pesky headers).
All in all got a week to the next local show, (rained out today). Still need to get a set of headliners, but had to replace window motors, actuators, door switches and door lock switches so headliners had to get pushed. now on to the rattles and extra noises in the passenger door.
Swapped carb to a Holley 670cfm truck avenger, (recommended by Lars). Much better unit for my needs, idle, throttle response much improved. Installed a half gear on the driver side regulator and window works well, took longer to adjust the window than pulling the regulator. Planning to cruise later this week and see how well she holds up. AC work is next, parallel condenser and complete install in the next month.
Well it’s been two years since we started this journey and she is all set for the road except for AC. Still a few minor things to get right but the 81 is legal and running nicely. It is a fun car to drive and draws attention on the road. She’s only been about 5 miles from the house but I will run her down the road next week. Any thoughts on break in or just drive normally? Thanks for all the advice, help and parts from the good folks on CF. You guys and gals enjoy those cars, they are more fun on the road than in the garage.
Well it’s been two years since we started this journey and she is all set for the road except for AC. Still a few minor things to get right but the 81 is legal and running nicely. It is a fun car to drive and draws attention on the road. She’s only been about 5 miles from the house but I will run her down the road next week. Any thoughts on break in or just drive normally? Thanks for all the advice, help and parts from the good folks on CF. You guys and gals enjoy those cars, they are more fun on the road than in the garage.
Nice and Easy is a good approach for the first 1/2 hour. Lol ! Take it easy work out any kinks, but most of all Enjoy & be Safe
I recall it's a freshly built 350 w/ Flat Tappet Hyd cam & L98/ZZ4 heads.
avoid idling and keep it under 3-4K for that first jaunt. Give it a few bursts of accel then decel.
Straight from GM; here's a breakin procedure for a flat tappet 350; Very Straight & Simple & you won't go wrong following it https://www.chevrolet.com/content/da...e-19355658.pdf
Thanks Caskiguy and 71 Chimera. I will drive it on a good jaunt next week and get it together.
I’m already thinking about what I want to do next😂. Getting a little fidgety with this car so close to finish.
