I just pulled the body off my 69 convertible and wanted to put in my findings. There is some conflicting info out there on this forum as well as in some publications as to number of body mounts on a coupe vs. a convertible. 8 or 10.
My early 69 vert has 4 body mounts on both sides not 5. There are also only 2 alignment holes on the frame under the sill plates.
These holes are 5/8" in diameter and 8" behind the #2 mount on the drivers side and 9" in front of the #3 mount on the passengers side.
I am sure most of you guys know it but I figured a little more info can't hurt.

 

Actually there are 5 every one forgets about the Bat Wing under the radiator is the #1 body mount. It control's the height of the nose of the car with the use of shims. See photos

 

[QUOTE=PJO;1605585679]Actually there are 5 every one forgets about the Bat Wing under the radiator is the #1 body mount. It control's the height of the nose of the car with the use of shims. See photos


Well then let’s add in the bumper supports at each corner, that would make for 13 if my ‘rythmetic is correct.

The #1 mount is not what you are describing. That reference is to the mounts visible from the engine compartment near the cowl. The #2 is behind the kick panels, the #3 through the access door in to the of the rear fenders and the#4 is visible in the aft rear wheel well. While you are correct that the rod your photo illustrates does indeed address the height of the surround (at the middle), is is a support, not a mount.

The OP’s point is addressing the oft-asked question about how many (4 or 5) mount points there are on the C3, particularly with a convertible. The answer is 4 (per side). If I recall correctly, C2 convertibles have another mount point between the aforementioned #2 and #3.

 

the rad support is also the nose support. but it is not named a body mount. let's not get confusing by calling it the number 0 or .5 body mount. the nose IS bonded to the car at the firewall. it IS part of the body. that rad support and inner fenders DO have to be mounted and solid. but it is adjustable without pulling the body to replace shims. it is not called a body mount.

 

I guess you do not see the shim tape under the front U bracket. That is supporting the body and I never said rod.

 

Apologies for that. The U bracket supports the front bumper and does not have a direct effect on nose height as it does not connect to the body. The rod, on the other hand, extends from the core support to the surround reinforcement that is just forward of the hood opening. It does have a direct effect on the fair between the surround and the front edge of the hood. Neither are considered “mounts”.

 

Thanks for that info-going yo be raising body on one side in winter to replace fuel lines so this info is handy...

 

how many shims did you find under the body mounts?

 

This thread should probably have been started in the tech forum, IMO, but that's neither here nor there....

OP, and others who are curious as to the process, or who are contemplating taking this on - it is not a simple task, and requires a lot of patience. Especially for first-timers. Things tend to break and seize after trying to be dislodged after 50+ years.

This has already been discussed previously - I have a thread I created recently about this very topic, as I am in the process of a complete rolling chassis replacement on my '69 vert. I went through what you are going through.....It's a long thread (see below), but I'm sure you will find it quite helpful (or even chuckle as you read through it as you appear to have run into the same issues along the way), as I got some amazing input from other members in there who were far more knowledgeable than me in this matter.

PJO raised a good point about the so-called 'Bat Wing' under the radiator. That is something that I found out myself through trial and error. I also called it out in my own thread when I discovered it, and I agree that it's something that is often overlooked - I certainly did (refer to my 7/24/22 post in my thread)!

The process is still ongoing, but I am getting to the point (again) where I will (re)attempt liftoff. It has not been a terribly fun process, but certainly has been a good learning experience.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...off-frame.html

If you have in fact successfully lifted the body off the frame, you are one step further than me. The usual rule applies, if you don't post pictures, then it never happened. Let's see pics of the body separation. I, for one, am very interested in seeing the pics you've taken of the process. All stuff is disconnected, and now it's just a matter of lifting the body off the frame safely, as I have already caused some damage during the initial effort to lift it, not realizing how nose heavy the C3 is - and I was being VERY careful.

That was enough for me to take a pause, as I had been chipping away at it every weekend for the past couple of months trying to get it done in order to get it over to the paint shop before Fall.

 

Back in the early and later 70's did several tours thought the St. Louis assembly plant. Spoke with several of the line workers I was very interested with the body to frame joining. They said the front mount was very important as the radiator core support stabilized the nose of the car as it would sit on the bat wing. Just like the other body mounts it could have no shims or what ever was needed support the nose of the Corvette in the correct location. So the extensions front left and right of the frame attached to the bat wing then to the core support set the basic position of the nose. The shims were added to the front U-bracket if needed as the final adjustment to get the body nose in its correct location due to frame variations. As the frame of the corvette was the part that would vary the most due to frame variations from welding. The body was the most accurate part of the assembly. The rod was added to give additional support for the nose. The weight of the fiberglass nose of the Corvette body sits on the top center of the bat wing through the front center U-bracket and core support. That is a body mount.

The U-bracket is the center support for the bumper but it also went through the front nose of the fiberglass that has a metal reinforcement called upper panel reinforcement riveted to it. The bumper was already installed and U-bracket at the body drop any final adjustment were then made along with shims if needed.

 

Body suspended Strap also connected to the rad support to keep the nose up. Went great.
This is my first project to this extent and while there is definitely some trepidation, other than some elbow grease and cussing, it really went pretty smoothly.
Thanks also to all the great info on the forum!!

 

Lift off!


#4 mount. Square nuts just spun around as the cages were totally disintegrated. Used a grinder to cut kerfs in the heads and just cold chiseled them off. Little bit of work but no big deal. The #1 mounts came off no problem. Soaked real good with PB Blaster. #2 heads were a mess but once got a 12 point socket hammered on they came right out. #3 were both very easy.

Body off

Frame ready for disassembly

Side by side. Body on the cart built with the available plans. Cart is much smaller on paper!! Could probably knock a few feet off the length. But everything fit just about perfect. I used 10” pneumatic swivel wheels from Harbor Freight. Best deal for those.

 

These are the straps I bought on Amazon. I think around $50 for both. They have a flat hook on the ends and worked great. I also rigged up some boards to keep the straps coming straight up from the rocker edge as much as possible to minimize pressure on the doors. They worked out great.

 

Engine off.

Engine removal

 

Strapped up lowering on to the cart


Pulling it off

 

Ah, got it. The main (huge) difference between my situation and yours is that you've stripped the body down to a basic shell. Honestly, that's the way to do it, if you can, as it lightens the body significantly and takes most of the heaviness out of the nose. Because time (and space) is limited for my project, I've left the body basically intact, which makes it significantly heavier, and more prone to damage when lifting off.

I wanted to keep the disassembly to a minimum, which has made this project more challenging, and has added risk of damage. This was an unplanned frame off restoration.

 

Yes there is nothing in the car as I completely removed the whole interior, dash, steering column, etc. Even took out the heater core housing box both in and out.
I bought it as a project that someone started and bailed out.
I stripped the body as you can see.
The nice thing is that except for the engine paint being the wrong color ( which I will fix ) all of the components inside the engine have all been replaced. It is a 4 bolt main 350 out of a 1970 Camaro so it is somewhat period correct.
I’ll get it running and see what it does. Hopefully save me some $$$. Even a fuel injection BluePrint that will fit with an original hood is close to $8000!!!
I am not looking to reinvent the wheel on this one. Just a nut and bolt restoration with some upgrades without going crazy, which is funny…You have to be crazy to do this anyway, right.
At least that is what my wife tells me!
The next one will be more of a resto-mod once I get very familiar with the process.
Good luck with your project.