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Hey guys, new here.. I'm in the process of refreshing my 68 corvette and right now have the entire interior stripped to remove mice nests and the stench of sitting for a few years. The story of this car is pretty cool, I'll save the long story and pics from back in the day for another thread but basically step dad bought it in 72 when he was 18, modded it to the state it is in now over the years and in the 80s, kind of abandoned it in the 90's. Me and him fixed it up again in the 2000s, then it sat again. I bought a house in 2018 and he told me to take it and give it the love it needs before it gets ruined. Its a running driving car, I just couldn't deal with the smell of the mouse nests in the hot sun anymore. So here we are..
To do list:
Strip Interior out, frost king duct wrap as sound deadener and reflectix/dei for insulating the tunnel area
Removing the original heat system (non-AC car) and installing a Vintage Air universal heater
New black carpet, probably without the backing for weight
Swapping in my black cloth Corbeau A4 seats from my 4th gen camaro
Going to try to clean up the rusty stock gauge faces and install LED's / clean up all the wiring
Clean up wiring
New windshield (the original glass is far too pitted and scratched)
Powder-coat the windshield trim and t-top trim semi-gloss black
After the interior is all set, I'm going to do some modern suspension upgrades, lower it on 18's, and get the 1970 LT-1 dialed in.
Its my first time diving in this deep with this car, any pointers along the way is appreciated.
Here's some pics, I think I might start to call it project mouse trap
Making slow progress, but getting there. Finished removing mouse nests under the dash, in the wiper cowl and vents. I felt reassured that I'm doing the right thing here when I saw the heater core and HVAC duct packed with smelly mouse nests..
Vintage Air gen 2 universal heater to replace the old heavy bulky stock setup:
I figured while I'm this far to remove the original windshield and all the windshield and t-top trim to have it powder-coated black. The birdcage appears to be in great condition, I have two questions if anyone might know:
1. After cleaning out the windshield channel bird cage, what should I paint this with to clean everything up before I have the windshield installed? I was thinking POR-15 or just Rust-Oleum
2. Does anyone know what the clay-like material is under the t-top trim? I believe this has never been removed so I think its something from the factory. Looking for suggestions on what to put back in place to seal upon reassembly.
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
Originally Posted by LTkev1n
Making slow progress, but getting there. Finished removing mouse nests under the dash, in the wiper cowl and vents. I felt reassured that I'm doing the right thing here when I saw the heater core and HVAC duct packed with smelly mouse nests..
Vintage Air gen 2 universal heater to replace the old heavy bulky stock setup:
I figured while I'm this far to remove the original windshield and all the windshield and t-top trim to have it powder-coated black. The birdcage appears to be in great condition, I have two questions if anyone might know:
1. After cleaning out the windshield channel bird cage, what should I paint this with to clean everything up before I have the windshield installed? I was thinking POR-15 or just Rust-Oleum
2. Does anyone know what the clay-like material is under the t-top trim? I believe this has never been removed so I think its something from the factory. Looking for suggestions on what to put back in place to seal upon reassembly.
nice car...
I have a convertible so I can't answer about the clay but I would use a 2 part sealant/ rust converter on the rusty metal. T tops are prone to leaking and it all goes down the windshield frame so anything you do will help.
On the backing for the carpet. You definitely need some sort of heat reflective or insulating material under the carpet to save your feet from melting. I've got a really heavy jute and my feet still get warm with the new headers. With the rams horns they were fine...good luck. Have fun!!!
Cool car. I cringe when I see pics of interiors stripped to the hull like this, that's how I bought my car. Putting it back together has been a nightmare, best of luck with it.
Peter
I got rid of all that dusty annoying jute-insulation in my 68. I replaced it with the generic stuff from lowe's and it's been fine....may not be the best but it's ok. If I was to do it again I might buy the brand-name silver stuff, but so far mine has been satisfactory (I suspect the brand name glue-on stuff is better though).
You can see what it looked like in this picture....I was installing Hot Rod a/c at that point. https://www.corvetteforum.com/g/picture/6185113
Last edited by carriljc; Jul 18, 2020 at 09:25 PM.
Reason: add picture directly
I must be about your stepdad's age. I bought my 68 in 1972 and I was 19. While it's apart, I would replace the vacuum lines. There is a good chance that the mice ate through some of the lines. I would also consider adding a product like Thermo Tec peel and stick insulation to the floor,front and back and include the tunnel. It will help to keep the cabin from getting too hot. As you will find out, 68s had many unique parts throughout the year. Keep as many of your original parts. Good luck with your project. Jerry
The most important advice I can give to you is to go back and label all of the connectors and loose ends on the wiring you left hanging. You are young and have a good memory, I am sure. But, when you sleep, s4!+ gets lost from the synapses. While the disassembly is still fresh in your mind, get labels on those wires!!
Thanks guys, it surely escalated quickly, seeing it this far apart temps me to just pull the body off the frame and take my time going over everything but.. I want to drive it
Originally Posted by carriljc
I got rid of all that dusty annoying jute-insulation in my 68. I replaced it with the generic stuff from lowe's and it's been fine....may not be the best but it's ok. If I was to do it again I might buy the brand-name silver stuff, but so far mine has been satisfactory (I suspect the brand name glue-on stuff is better though).
You can see what it looked like in this picture....I was installing Hot Rod a/c at that point. https://www.corvetteforum.com/g/picture/6185113
What did you end up for doing a final cleaning of all the old jute? I've been using an oscillating multi tool with a scraper and that had been working great to remove the bulk but I want to sort of clean out the perminent old moldy smell
Also, how did you block off the firewall? I'm thinking to use an aluminum plate temporarily and glass it in down the road.
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
Unless you want it to sit for the next 3 years I would get it put back together and driving it as soon as you can....unless you need to swap or weld the frame I would drive it to get that feeling and memory of it burned into your brain...then it’s incentive to get the next job finished so you can be driving it again...even if the next job is a frame off you’ll get it done that much faster...
Unless you want it to sit for the next 3 years I would get it put back together and driving it as soon as you can....unless you need to swap or weld the frame I would drive it to get that feeling and memory of it burned into your brain...then it’s incentive to get the next job finished so you can be driving it again...even if the next job is a frame off you’ll get it done that much faster...
This is VERY true! This is how I have lost interest in other projects I bought not running so no attachment.
Some more slow progress, cleaned out all the weird putty material and used a stripping wheel on my drill to get down to the window frame metal and HOLY F this thing is solid.
Now I'm panicking on what to use to paint the frame before the new windshield is installed. I bought SEM Rust Trap, similar to POR but now I'm not sure if that's the best thing to use on the fresh metal surface..
Either way should get painted this weekend, reinstall the trim and window goes in next week. Then its time to start putting the interior back together finally.
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
that frame looks great...I would find a metal prep rust sealer.. Not necessarily a paint. Theres an acid wash that seals the surface that converts metal and rust to a solid layer kind of like rifle bluing or a nitride type surface. Then a paint to seal it...good job!!!!
that frame looks great...I would find a metal prep rust sealer.. Not necessarily a paint. Theres an acid wash that seals the surface that converts metal and rust to a solid layer kind of like rifle bluing or a nitride type surface. Then a paint to seal it...good job!!!!
Thanks, I actually do have some rust converter stuff. Not sure if that would do it. I want to make sure it sticks good, do it once and right and hopefully it's good for another 53 years lol
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
the acid wash I was thinking of actually transforms the metal surface itself so its not a coating on top, its actually a conversion. ....I'll look and see if I can find that...give me a minute
the acid wash I was thinking of actually transforms the metal surface itself so its not a coating on top, its actually a conversion. ....I'll look and see if I can find that...give me a minute
Just updated my post with a pic of what I was talking about, something similar to that?
I was of the understanding that the phosphoric acid based treatments are used to turn rust into something inert? As you have cleaned all of the rust off there is nothing there to convert so I'm thinking a zinc based coating would be the go?
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
i believe once the surface has started to oxidize, its always there. Atleast all the metal I worked on as a kid ended up that way...LOL. What ever product you use that converrts that bare metal to something inert will be the best. You just dont want to lay something over it. THe phosphate bath that we used for treating rifle barrels has a couple of steps and the barrels were not rusty
Last edited by Rescue Rogers; Aug 26, 2020 at 08:53 PM.
Definitely get some heat reflect or insulation under that carpet, not the place to save weight (youll never feel it). These cars get hot inside, period.
68 Vette Refresho-Mod
Have fun..........
