I've always wanted a Corvette, but haven't been able to convince the wife that financing a car that was only usably 4ish months of the year has not worked yet. Thankfully I just found one that does not require financing, and I never wanted a restored garage queen. So this husk should allow me to do with it as I please without much guilt. Supposedly it is a 69, and the VIN seems to confirm that. But with how much there is of the car I am not sure it's possible to confirm this VIN matches the remains of what I have (VIN: 194379S717198).

I was was told this shell came from some famous drag racer out in PA 20 - 30 years ago. I can't remember what the heck they said the guys name was, I think the last name started with an S. And they just had it since then with plans to make it into a drag car, but finally just had to let it go.

It looks like something was dropped on or hit the top corner of the pass side windshield frame and the A-pillar was buckled at the pinch weld right at the dash level. I spent a good portion of the day today with heat and some pulling and got it in a far better spot. The bird cage is in a lot better shape than I have seen on running and driving cars. It is far from mint, but should be more than savable, so I will be working more on straightening out the windshield frame and T-top bar. But for now, it is much better, also hung the doors on just so it felt like a bit more of a car. I thankfully did get all of the front and back bumpers with it too. But that's pretty much it plus what's in the pictures.

Now to pick a direction for the frame. I already have an LQ4 and 4L80E. I see frames with suspension and rear axle for 3-5k. I don't really want to go with a stock frame, but with that I could theoretically have it up and running next summer as a sort of rat rod. I would never want to keep it that way, eventually most likely a Dynamic Corvette's setup. But spreading the money out over time, I wouldn't mind doing the rat rod thing for a year or two. But we will see, with the minimal amount I have this seems like a blank canvas.

 

Wow! You either have cannon size ***** or you have some real talent to take on a project of this scale!
Welcome to CF. There’s some great experience here that will be happy to help you. I have a 69 and 2 ‘71 ‘vettes so I can provide measurements and where to find the parts.

What is the factory original colors? What options?

Rich

 

Couldn't agree more! WOW! And a big Welcome to the forum (The nut house).
First bit of advice. DO NOT KEEP RECEIPTS! years from now if you get this done. You do NOT want to know how much you spent on this. And if the wife ever finds out, well, your a dead man.

 

I'd like to say yes to both of those statements, but so would most men, lol.

Truth be told though, a 69 was always my dream, but always wide body, not factory frame, ls under the hood, etc. And I want a driver, and with the way 69's are going, it's almost a shame to buy any drivers now and start doing that with them. Not that I ever planned to get into something like this, but when it popped up and was something I could buy for straight out cash, I had to jump at it.

But we bought a house this year too, so projects and things to spend money on are of no shortage. So we'll see how much farther I get than just cleaning this up this year. If I could get that window frame straight and the bird cage patched up and coated I would be pretty happy.

I'm not really certain on anything that it originally came with. The trim tag is gone which is why I am not certain this is the original body. But I'm not all too worried about that I guess since at least I have the 69 VIN and this will never be car judged by NCRS.

Oh I learned that long ago. Be it sleds, wheelers, or cars. You probably won't make money back on it, especially if you start buying performance parts. And isn't that the truth. I sold her on picking this up by saying that she knew I'd have a Corvette, and this was about the only way to keep financing out of it. But she may not realize that the money that would go to that monthly payment are now going into the Corvette fund, lol.

 

I hope you have the necessary skills to address the birdcage problems. Also, the rear of the car is not a 69, unless flares were added. The 68 and 69 did not have them. I would hate to see you put time and money into a car you may not be able to register. Good luck. Jerry

 

I hope she never realizes how much money you would have saved by buying something already done. LOL.

Welcome to the forum.

 

Looks promising!! You need something to do during those months in the "Northland" where the weather is not that enjoyable. Trying to re-create an 'original' car from that shell would be a difficult task. But making your own creation out of the body shell could be fun and interesting. Hopefully, you can continue this thread with some brief updates on what direction you are taking with the car and with what has been accomplished to-date.

 

Welcome. Great addition to your mancave!

The cheapest Vettes are the most expensive!! [if it ever gets completed]

 

Welcome to the Forum!
1. Refill your adderall prescription (just in case)
2. Check with your Motor Vehicle Office to be sure you can register it for highway use.
3. Keep posting those pictures as you progress.
4.

 

Welcome, congratulations and good luck.
That's a project and a half, but often the journey is as much fun as the destination, so if you enjoy doing the work, good for you!

 

The clip is from a 1970-'73 Corvette. Like Jerry said, it is possible to add the flares but I don't think anyone would bother to do that and also change the '68-'69 style side marker lamps to the later style '70-'74 lamps.
But who cares? If you have a VIN tag affixed to the A pillar, nobody in the world is ever going to check up on this.
Good luck with your ambitious project!

 

I did a bit more on the window frame, but the daughter wanted a picture in the new car, so snapped one of her and the dog in there.



I do have some skills. But I can always lean on my old man, he owned an autobody shop for 30 years. He may needs many payments of cases Pabst though, but so be it. And I plan to attempt to register it soon. I have no extra cash into it yet, just a bit of time. So first order of business before any investment will be seeing if I can get a lost title.

Exactly, it'll be a great project, and with no intention of ever restoring it to any form close to factory. It seems like the perfect car for me to do as I wish.

Exactly, but the wife hates me making big investments that require financing. So I always pick up projects. Not saving anything over the long run, but at least I own everything I have into it.

Yeah, it very well may not be a 69 shell, but as you say. I have the VIN and it won't ever be restored to be judged anyways.

Although it does seem like both sides were replaced. The side pictured you can see the top of the quarter is stripped and there are huge glue type runs down the back inside of that. The pass side has a crack that goes right with the same angle of the curve. So to me it looks like they had been replaced. It seems like most replace them below the body line, and that's right where that crack is and you can see a huge seem past that crack. But I am new to the C3 game, so here's a few pictures showing these things, let me know people's opinions.

 

From the smiles on both of them...I'd say you already got a return on your investment. (When my daughter was 3 years old, every day when I came home from work in my '41 street rod truck she had to take a nap on the "bench" seat)



You should post that pic in the Dogs and Vettes thread

 

What a great photo - one for the album!

 

that glue strip is on every c3 front and rear fender. that is where it is assembled. the pic with the kid and dog? we currently have a vettes n dogs thread that absolutely belongs in. bird cage condition. decide if it is worth doing this much to. at least you don't have to pull the nose to get to it. best way to make a start on this guy is to find at least one parts hulk.

 

I think the OP is commenting on the resin drips/runs on the inside of the fender at that body seam. As far as I've seen, the factory did a much cleaner job than this affixing that panel. I'd agree that the panels were replaced at some point due to that. I'm thinking the car was in a pretty bad accident and wonder if it got upside down in order to bend the windshield frame – the t-tops are likely replacements to the original pair on that body.

 

Hey, just "play" with it for a while so you can perform a good assessment of actions required. Great that your father has the knowledge you need. If you guys get along well, get him involved ASAP. The collaborative effort (along with daughter and dog, of course) can make your journey a learning experience, a family adventure, a great group-hobby, and an opportunity to bring a nearly-demised C3 back to life. What could be better??

If you can get the "shell" into decent condition, THEN you can start purchasing the other 'things' as money is available. If the shell doesn't pan out, you've still learned and had fun with it. And anything you improve on the shell will add some value back if you sell it.

 

i was gonna talk about measurements to straighten the windshield frame, but your dad has that covered in spades.

 

Welcome to the forum, enjoy your stay with us!

 

here is where that pic belongs... https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...rvettes-2.html