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Looks great! I guess I threw up my toys and took it for powder coating. If it’s not that great I will go that route and take time and buff it smooth. Probably more rewarding knowing the work you put in.
Hi again Proactive,
I did the same thing with my '73 Air Cleaner assembly as rdrdstr72. The polishing gets that "smooth" close to original look! As a matter of fact I've bought a few of these in various stages of disrepair if you can call it that. (just to get a mint or near mint correct original rubber seal that wasn't smooshed." I've used krylon on a couple, duplacolor gloss black on one, then polished them out. I even used John Deere Blitz black on a lid then used gloss clear coat on it after a couple days, then polished it out a bit. It's a little tougher job to do on the 73-75 air cleaners because they don't have the nice large chrome lid. Lots of black, and the most of the inside of the base is visible. I've included a few photos.... the first two are from my '73 with IIRC.....Krylon gloss black. The third photo is from an unrestored original one owner '74 LS4 to show you the "original"shine on the lid. Most importantly take a look at the poor paint coverage on the seal ring! That's the way this car came from the factory. Ugh! Right? The point here is to show you that we become so **** in restoring our cars to perfection, lol! St. Louis could care less....
Oh yeah, one more thing I wanted to bring to your attention. Might be too late for you on this one since you've taken it for blasting and powder coating but on the back side of ALL original 73-75 lids there are two visible marks in various locations from where the lids were placed on a rack or 'jig' for painting. If the lid is original and not repainted you might need to carefully (soap & water) clean through all the years of carbon buildup or backfire residue to see the marks. The last photo is from an original unrestored 73 lid showing the marks. BTW, all this cool stuff is pictured & mentioned in the latest 3rd edition of the NCRS 73-74 TIM&JG.
Kind regards,
Jimmy
Note, this rubber seal is a reproduction. Just wanted to focus on air cleaner finish. Note: This is a near mint original rubber seal. Original unrestored 74 LS4 lid. Note the poor paint coverage. Original unrestored 73 lid backside ...showing factory paint rack marks.
no actually not too late. This explains a lot. I actually told the powder coating guy to leave the bottom of the lid alone because I want as much from 1973 on my car as possible. It actually looks just like yours with those lines. I figured somewhere along the lines it was messed up but I guess not.
May I ask about the rubber seal. I took off my original one as to not get it damaged and hung it up then I bought one and put it on and it looks like your second photo. Like standing straight up again like your second photo. Is there anything I need to do to get it to be like your first photo? This seems to be like the original one I am preserving. Thanks
Oh and I left the ring that seal attaches to alone because it was not bad. Again I would like 1973 where ever possible.
Last edited by Proactive_Solutions; Aug 11, 2021 at 10:14 AM.
Ha!Ha! To be honest the first photo of mine with the repro seal...the seal wasn't installed properly. This was early on in my resto experiences with the car. I put it on this way because I didn't want it to become smooshed. To be honest there really isn't anything you can do to your original seal to reshape it. Best you can do is to keep it soft and pliable. I rub my originals with Dawn dishwashing liquid right out of the bottle a couple times a year to keep them soft. I kept an extra ring... so I keep both on the ring to keep them in a circle. Wouldn't recommend hanging your original up to hang down. I've down a fair amount of research on these seals and talking with many original 73-75 owners their cars were delivered with a smooshed or folded over on one side rubber seal from the factory. I think it was just the way the guys applied the adhesive and hurriedly installed the seals. Plus closing the hood down on them and engine compartment Heat added to the disfiguring I'm sure. Interesting to note if you look at enough of them, it's always only one side that flops over...not always the same though. Go figure Now back to my second photo showing the near mint seal. Funny...when I submitted it for inclusion in our new Judging guide many of the team members thought it was a repro. Close ups of the ribs running around the inside( only found on original seals) and visible signs of original yellow weatherstrip adhesive and original cloth tape at the seam, satisfied their curiosity. The one pictured here came from a very...very low mileage '74 that the original owner took off his car right away because he replaced the air cleaner on the car with an aftermarket setup. As you know by now, this isn't typical of what we normally see on these 73-75 cowl induction cars. I just got really lucky in my searches over the last six years to find two really nice seals. All part of the fun. My recommendation to you is to just keep your original seal nice and soft on an extra ring so you don't keep stretching it on and off. The less handling the better. Use the repro for everyday. It looks great. Once I park my car in the garage I just pop the hood to release the pressure on the seals. In winter, I remove them and keep them in the house. My garage isn't heated. Then if you decide to have the car judged down the road put the ORIGINAL back on. I'd rather see an "original"in its TYPICAL factory installed condition than a repro.
Hope this helps,
Jimmy
PS... Glad you had the insight to keep the backside as is. Leave the finished product alone once you get it back. You've spent enough $$$ on it. Enjoy your 73.
I received my air cleaner back and am really happy that I did not have to do much more. Have had recent tennis elbow surgery and probably would not be able to polish it. I will take better care of the original seal. I saw an original GM seal on eBay not long ago I will look for one and purchase it. My valve covers are not original I also saved them in a box.
Chrome comes two forms: Decorative & Hard. All of mine was done hard.
Hard has at least two layers of nickel applied before the layer of chromium & it's always thicker and better than decorative.
Now, you can call chrome triple plated if it has a layer of copper before the two nickel.
Or you can call it triple plated if it has three layers of nickel.
Hell, you could even call it quadruple plated if it had four! But in the end you always have one layer of chromium. So it's more of a sales pitch.
And Proactive, I guarantee you'll like your air cleaner. Powder coating doesn't age & it's almost impossible to scratch.
I was so happy with mine that I went back with my fan. Damn thing is still shiny even when it's running...
Another thing I learned that day, it's all about the copper and nickel because the chromium dip is really quick compared to the other two.
The air cleaner looks real nice Pro! Aluminum finned valve covers dress it up nicely too! A couple things if you don't mind... 1. What is the part my yellow arrow is pointing too? Can't say that I recognize it. 2. Just a suggestion for you... I know you are a stickler for trying to get things correct; I notice that your belts have the notches in them. Eventually you may want to replace them with correct original style belts. Quanta makes them, and supplies most of the vendors. Again, just a suggestion. Your engine bay looks great!
Regards,
Jimmy
Yeah stickler is putting it nicely I guess. Wife uses other words. I will check out the belts because I went to zip corvette to order them and the ones they sent did not fit. I think it was something to do with 1972 instead of 1973. Well the car was already in the shop so my mechanic purchased ones and I had to return the ones to zip. Maybe better luck with quanta.
I have no idea what that part is. It is not attached to the manifold just attached to one bolt of the AC compressor. I took a few pictures of it. It’s old like it’s been there a real long time. It has three holes in it. Being not a mechanic my guess might be somewhere someone mounted something there maybe? Maybe an engine heater? It looks really easy to remove especially when I recently had my AC compressor rebuilt and those bolts where out. I should remove it right? Only thing it looks like it is doing is rubbing against the manifold.
Hey Proactive: I see your profile has you in North Carolina. I'm in Troutman, which is between Mooresville and Statesville if on I-77. Are you close to me?
Whatever seals/weatherstripping you have, the life of it and the condition of it can be improved (cosmetically) and maintained for much, much longer by giving them a wipe of polymer polish every month or two. Nu-Vinyl (do not confuse with Nu-Finish) and Meguiar's Protectant for Plastics are two very good examples. Start with clean seals, then just spray some into a clean cloth and wipe over the entire surface of seals, weatherstrips, rubber/synthetic hoses, wire insulation, interior plastic parts, exterior plastic parts...even tires! The polymer polish dries quickly and will leave them flexible, non-sticky (so they won't stick to mating surfaces), and will last a long time. The stuff won't peel, doesn't turn yellow (stays clear), and blocks UV rays to prevent degradation of the material from sunlight. I mention the seal, particularly, because that big seal around the air cleaner tends to get hard and lose its shape due to engine heating/cooling. The polymer polish will help to limit that, as it seals the surface of whatever is coated with it. (Fabulous for interiors!!)
Thanks for the info 71Tvette I have the plastic product just never used it in rubber. I usually use a tire shine on rubber. Not sure it’s great for it.
Thanks for the info 71Tvette I have the plastic product just never used it in rubber. I usually use a tire shine on rubber. Not sure it’s great for it.
i don't see that bracket either on PDF..
guys try this on ANY rubber seals etc.. its amazing.. use sparingly..
I put it on this way because I didn't want it to become smooshed. To be honest there really isn't anything you can do to your original seal to reshape it. Best you can do is to keep it soft and pliable. I rub my originals with Dawn dishwashing liquid right out of the bottle a couple times a year to keep them soft. I kept an extra ring... so I keep both on the ring to keep them in a circle. Wouldn't recommend hanging your original up to hang down. I've down a fair amount of research on these seals and talking with many original 73-75 owners their cars were delivered with a smooshed or folded over on one side rubber seal from the factory. I think it was just the way the guys applied the adhesive and hurriedly installed the seals. Plus closing the hood down on them and engine compartment Heat added to the disfiguring I'm sure. Interesting to note if you look at enough of them, it's always only one side that flops over...not always the same though. Go figure
Now back to my second photo showing the near mint seal. Funny...when I submitted it for inclusion in our new Judging guide many of the team members thought it was a repro. Close ups of the ribs running around the inside( only found on original seals) and visible signs of original yellow weatherstrip adhesive and original cloth tape at the seam, satisfied their curiosity. The one pictured here came from a very...very low mileage '74 that the original owner took off his car right away because he replaced the air cleaner on the car with an aftermarket setup. As you know by now, this isn't typical of what we normally see on these 73-75 cowl induction cars. I just got really lucky in my searches over the last six years to find two really nice seals. All part of the fun. My recommendation to you is to just keep your original seal nice and soft on an extra ring so you don't keep stretching it on and off. The less handling the better. Use the repro for everyday. It looks great. Once I park my car in the garage I just pop the hood to release the pressure on the seals. In winter, I remove them and keep them in the house. My garage isn't heated. Then if you decide to have the car judged down the road put the ORIGINAL back on. I'd rather see an "original"in its TYPICAL factory installed condition than a repro. 
