Disassemble of 69 SidepipeCover
 

I got used original Sidepipes but the covers needs rechroming.

http://up.picr.de/6600843kvo.jpg

I unscrewed the compositeisolation and try to remove the 3 metalparts.
One was easy to remove
http://up.picr.de/6600847dul.jpg

but the one in the middle and at the end is not removable.
Im afraid to pull to hard, because it feels like the isolation will break

Any ideas how to seperate without destroying ?

Thanks

Frank

Difficult to see clearly in the picture, but it looks like a "drill and tap" to me.

:cheers:

The last set I took apart, came apart easily after removing the screws.
Make sure the people who are doing the re-chrome know that those covers are made of pot metal, that will dissolve, if they try to chemically strip the old chrome. Mine were ruined in the chemical strip process.Good luck :thumbs:

The metal parts should certainly come away from the insulators. Just make CERTAIN that you got all of the screws and rivets. You could probably replace the metal parts for less that rechroming but obviously that's your choice. Wreck the insulators though and you've got a real problem.

The side pipe covers are, to my understanding, not pot metal but an aluminum alloy. For instance, the left and right front grills of the 70, 71, etc are this same alloy.

Hydrochloric acid, I believe, is a common chemical used to strip chromium. It can also be stripped electrolytically. Since hydrochloric acid will eat aluminum vigorously, it can't be dipped. Interestingly, the nickel plate underneath the chromium plate cannot be removed with hydrochloric acid, it has to be electrolytically removed.

Getting your old covers stripped is just part of the battle. You have to find someone that can chrome plate aluminum. You have to strip to bare aluminum, polish, and then anodyze with an electrically conducting anodyze. Then you're pretty much home free with the traditional nickle and chrome plating process.

A new set of factory covers (repro'd with original tools and processes) can be bought for about $2200. I think now you can buy just the end pieces new to save a little money. Since the middle piece is pretty much black, just paint it black completely.

I have the factory sidepipes on my 68.

Rivets :eek: I only removed 11 small crews per side.

Do I have to ? Which ? All ?

Thanks a lot

It's the thin, stand off brackets at the back that I was referring to and I see from the pic that you've already removed those. Sorry if I scared you. The rivets on the front bracket don't go all the way through.

I've gone a similar route, But I'm thinking about painting mine with ALSA's chrome kit, I hear its 98% reflective, and actually used to touch up real chrome.

If you look at the second picture there is a small spot of glue visible. Did they use a bit glue to fix the 3 Covers on the Insulation ?

Make sure you have taken all of the screws out of the covers where they are secured to the insulators. The factory used some type of silicone adhesive between the covers and the insulators. Be very careful and just use a small screw driver and pry the 2 pieces apart. That is what i have done to several sets that have worked on.

Thanks, it was a hard fight between the cover and me, but I won :thumbs:

Nothing broken, everything in good shape, including my fingernails

It was glued on 3 additional positions, but a consistent pulling and some sh..t screams, helped :rock:
Here is the result
http://up.picr.de/6611692xdr.jpg

Do you have any idea how much the refinishing process is going to cost?

I have an offer here in Germany for about 200 USD per side. But I think when he has the parts in hand it will be a bit more.

The only other set I've read about being redone ended up costing something like $1200, so $400 would be one hell of a deal lol.

Have one piece polished and then decide if you want to have them re chromed.
You might be surprised at nice they look polished.
G.

If you only polish them, how to prevent oxidation ?

Does your man know you're wanting aluminum (aka aluminium) chrome plated?

So far the front left and right grills of my 70 are polished aluminum. The man that does my plating, electrolytically removed the chrome and nickel from the original pieces. They were corroded. The polished aluminum, about 5 years out, still looks OK, but they've never been in the weather. I think some people here have spoke favorable about Zaino. Apparently it provides protection for polished aluminum.

I keep my chrome plated, polished aluminum, etc surfaces coated with WD40. Seems to work pretty good. I clean the surfaces with Windex (window cleaner) and then spray WD40 on a paper towel and coat the surfaces. I haven't tried Zaino yet, it costs about $100 or something like that. Maybe other forum members are familiar with Zaino.

I will give them
http://www.mov-designtec.de/index.ph...=82&Itemid=111
a try.
The text is in German but the pics should speek for them self. They are well known at the german Corvetteforum and also have expirience with aluminium.

And thanks all for your help

Best Regards
Frank

Thanks. Don't know German, but i still could read a little bit of the text. I'll write down some of the sentences and later use Google translate.

I was amused that in today's German, the english word "oldtimer" appears.

In restoring this car, was chrome vacuum deposition used to restore some of the parts? Chrome vacuum deposition is used to chrome plate plastic parts. I've had the thought of chrome plating my aluminum grill pieces using the vacuum deposition process.

You can always patch the insulators if needed with fiberglass cloth.

Hi Frank

Its a mixed bag... for me - I did real well on the fiberglass, fit, repair of the screws, etc. However, on the chrome, the chrome shop did a sub par job on the chrome. On the paint, I will have to verify which I used. But on the paint, I waited a bit too long on the razor blade exercise and wound up with paint that looks 'chipped' rather than a nice straight line/edge.

All said, I would most likely just but new ones on sale ($2k) and sell my old ones. My status is - the sidecovers fit well and look decent. When I do get some time, I will re-paint and ensure I do a better job of using a blade before hardening of paint.

We have lot of english words as regular implemented . Oldtimer is one of them, and the word is used for older cars since I was a child (40 Years ago )

Yes they use vacuum deposition for nonemetalparts.

Did you paint directly on the chrome or did you something to prepare prior to paint ?

Thanks

Frank

Hi Frank.... yes - I wiped it down with lacquer thinner and then sprayed on the adhesion promoter Bull Frog. :thumbs:

I think I waited to long to wipe off the paint on the fin tips.... when I have the chance to do again - I will do one section at a time and wipe excess paint off the fin tips more diligently.

The parts are shipped now.

I wil post pics with the result, when I got them back

Thanks

Frank

After he is getting the parts, he modifies his offfer :(

Now his around 800 $. Something around I expect. I hope the result is worth the money :toetap:

$800 US dollars total? I still think that's a good deal. I plan on sending out all of my pieces that need chrome at one time so I can hopefully get a better deal on everything.

No News (still at Plating) but one more question:

Are the screws to attach the Sidepipecovers the same as the original to attach the RockerPanel or are they different ,( length) ?

Thanks
Frank

Thats a good ass question. I'm gonna need to know the same.

Hi Frank,
I've used the cross headed screws that are proper for the interior sill plates. These are a #10 screw with a #8 head. This way the smaller head 'nestles' down in the counter sunk area of the holes in the insulators.
I found that I had to be very careful installing the screws because it seemed VERY easy to damage the insulators.
Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan

Today the first rechromed parts arrived :thumbs:

Before :
http://up.picr.de/6611694jkb.jpg

and now :cool:

http://up.picr.de/7596477ybx.jpg

The middlesection should arrive next weekend :rock:

Is that the spray chrome from Germany that was featured on Jay Leno's garage?

Hi Roger
No its real chrome for a lot of money :hide:done by the adress I posted a bit above

Best Regards
Frank

It looks very nice. :cool:

Hi

Yes, now you need to adjust those with some Scotchbright to get some Patina back .
They are now too nice, hence over-restored.

I will hopefully see them in real in September in St.Leon Rot

Rgds. Günther

Just an idea, to keep them looking good. I would get some of that clear plastic chip guard, and put it on those front pieced, that curve right behind the front tires. It should help minimize the rock chips in the future. :thumbs::thumbs:

As pretty as those are , I'd be installing big mudflaps. :rofl:

someone actually makes clear molded, protective gaurds for the C2 pipes.
The qualtiy looks great on the chrome work you had done.

This idea sounds good to me :thumbs: but maybe Günther is right, they look to good for a 42 year old car :rock:

Those are AWSOME!! Very nice work. Before you try and put them back together I would chase the treads with a tap to clean any of the plating out of the treads. Will make it a lot easier to put back togther. IMHO.:thumbs:

First testing of colour and adhesion

I masked a small area on the back of the rechromed part and spray it without preparation (only cleaning
http://up.picr.de/7618078utm.jpg

original look
http://up.picr.de/7618076ile.jpg

result
http://up.picr.de/7618077pyo.jpg

Here its a bit better to see
http://up.picr.de/7618601kav.jpg


I think the colour is pretty close, so I will take it

Adhesion test follows when its dried

First Result :hide: waited too long till I remove the paint :eek:
http://up.picr.de/7621932mll.jpg

I think I need to improve something :blueangel:

Today the middlepeaces arrived :thumbs:
http://up.picr.de/7705460qah.jpg
http://up.picr.de/7705463aux.jpg
http://up.picr.de/7705462hgb.jpg

I hope I find at the weekend a good procedure to paint the black areas :woohoo:

Today I finished painting the small parts.
Not perfect :(
I would even say not good :hide:
Maybe a 5 Footer :D
How do they do it in original :eek:

http://up.picr.de/7801008bfs.jpg

The center pieces are finished

http://up.picr.de/7821260rhb.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7821261iti.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7821262rot.jpg

After I find my screwset , where are they :toetap: :willy: , I know I had stored them somewhere, the reassembly can begin

First Side finished

http://up.picr.de/7869294pyd.jpg
http://up.picr.de/7869296msu.jpg
http://up.picr.de/7869298bba.jpg

If I would found my screws I were able to finish the rest

Hi Roma,
Audi TT to the rear of your cover?!
Regards,
Alan

Hello Alan,

yes, the car of my girlfriend. :blueangel:

Maybe she has thrown away my screwsets while cleaning the garage :hide:

:rock::rock::rock::rock:
I found my srewsets :cool:
http://up.picr.de/7895114pxj.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7895116ixa.jpg

Next Saturday will be "Transformer-Day" :thumbs::rock:

Have a nice day like had one today

Frank

we'll be waiting for the 'after installation' pictures...:lurk:

Hi Roma,
If you don't want some more work...stop reading now!!!!




The black fiberglass insulators had a front-end and back-end. Yours have a top and side, but are open at the ends. There was a little piece fiberglass about 3/8" by a 1" in front and 3/8" by 2" in back that closed the openings.
Details!!!!
Regards,
Alan

Hi Alan

do you have a pic of what you mean ? I think I can not follow .

Thanks

Frank

Finally I got it :rock::rock::rock::rock::rock:

Nothing is cooler then original Sidepipes :cool::cool:

http://up.picr.de/7924015bhl.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7924016tcu.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7924017lpa.jpg



Thanks to all that helped

Dwight for selling me the pipes even that it was hard to get them to Germany and your help for make it happen

Alan, Günther, Uli, Markus and all that replied in this Thread for your knowledge and tips

Soundfile will follow

Thanks Frank

you are right - nothing is cooler than original side pipes - fortunately, I have them too

Hi Frank,
YES! VERY COOL!!!!!
I believe your pictures can only be the result of ALL the EFFORT you put into this exhaust system.
WELL DONE!!!!
Regards,
Alan

Hi

I'm jalous.
The yellow Vette comes good with this pipes.
Now you belong to the hard core coke bottle design destroyers.
That's what I keep on getting told by individuals that don't like side pipes.

Good that we don't listen to them.

Have fun. Günther

Don't know why the video looks so silly

Before:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmY4_6D6DO4
And now
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2fmbPcjEoE

You can not realy hear a huge difference, but in real : Its so cooool

Sounds nice. I am not sure if its just the video or my speakers but to me it sounds like you hear the vibration or sound of of the covers like maybe they aren't tight. I have a 69 350/350 w/factor side pipes and don't hear it but like I said could be the video or my speakers.

Could be that it is the licence-plate , with the low vibration you here it a little bit . The coversare tight

Hi

Roma, you know that when you push onto the right hand food pedal under the steering column, that this would speed up the engine and the noise level dramatically.
That's really what we would love to hear. The sidepipes at 4000 RPM.

Great looking car and so far , great sound. Keep the info coming.

Rgds. Günther

Hi Günher,

you will hear it at the Corvette-Meeting in Speyer.

The VideoCamera was from my brother and its back now.

Have a nice Sunday

Frank

Last thing to do is to turn this :

http://up.picr.de/7992961ifb.jpg

in a better looking view.
Therefore Markus closed some old exhaust bezel

http://up.picr.de/7992954qme.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7992956vgx.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7992957bej.jpg

Now I painted them

http://up.picr.de/7992958mrg.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7992960yrl.jpg

Tomorrow they hopefully are dry and then I will install them

@Faster Rat
The price for the complete rechroming including sanding , preparation and chroming was 650 Euro around 950 USD. The time I need to dissasambe and reassemble the Covers was around an 1 hour.
But the change from regular to sideexhaust was something around 10 hours

Hi Frank,
That looks like some very nice work on those 'fillers'!!
QUITE INGENIOUS!!!
Regards,
Alan

Its not perfect :D, but should be good as a interimsolution :blueangel:

http://up.picr.de/7997742khz.jpg

http://up.picr.de/7997743vts.jpg

Thanks again and have a nice Sunday

Frank

The story goes on :rock:

I purchased a rear filler panel by ACI http://www.acivette.com/

It has just arrived and here are some pics :
http://up.picr.de/9109265xwr.jpg

http://up.picr.de/9109267ytz.jpg

In the corners is still some work to do :

http://up.picr.de/9109258hyo.jpg

http://up.picr.de/9109264etz.jpg

Overall quality looks acceptable.

Now I need some time and motivation :hide: to change the current panel and look like it fits in real life

Happy New Year :cheers::thumbs:

Frank

I started and removed the panel, it was easy to do

http://up.picr.de/9194639avg.jpg
http://up.picr.de/9194636gsp.jpg
http://up.picr.de/9194660pwl.jpg

a direct comparison shows the bad fit :(

http://up.picr.de/9194661ema.jpg
http://up.picr.de/9194692xam.jpg

I started removing a bit here and a bit there and still not fits well.
For excample the Rear License Plate Bezel will not fit as well
Looks like the recess of the new panel is to small :eek:

next weekend I give it another try or decide to do something different with my original panel

Have a nice Sunday
Frank

Hi Frank,
I realize you have bought the repro filler panel.
Is it too late to buy a 69 side exhaust exhaust panel and doing the bodywork on the quarters?
I know for a fact that the 69 fillers FIT? I do see them offered for sale on occasion.
Regards,
Alan

Hi Alan,
its not to late , and I think thats the way to go
Lesson learned :hide:
Maybe I can cut the ears from the new panel, so I do not have to start from zero:blueangel:
Best Regards
Frank

Hi Roma,
The trickest part of the fiberglass work is that you need to create a flange on the quarter panel patch that matches the flange on the filler panel. It's where the 2 bolts go that bolt the filler panel to the quarter panel. (2 each side)
Regards,
Alan

I found someone with the same problem with the licence frame being not wide enough, here is his solution
http://www.corvette-restoration.com/...ence_panel.htm

Should I go the same way ?

First step was easy
http://up.picr.de/9249193hgz.jpg

I have to agree w Alan - fix the 1/4 panels and go with the vertical N14??panel. If its all that work - I would invest that work in your 1/4's.

Btw - nice color.

Finally I will go with vertical panel and fix the 1/4 , but at the moment the original ones are a bit highpriced for me :woohoo:
And maybe with the aftermarkedpanel I have the same problem as with the fillerpanel :(
By the way if someone has laying a original one around :blueangel:
Sending back the aftermarketpanel from Germany does not make sense, so I try to make it fit for the next season and maybe next year ...............
Thanks and have a nice weekend
Frank

Hi Frank,
I do have an original 69 panel that was on my 71. At this point I'm keeping it with the 'over the counter' pipes and covers, thinking is I'll sell it all as a package to a 69 owner ... some day.
Sorry....
It's a shame, (but not a surprise), that the repro panels fit so poorly.
Regards,
Alan

Hi Alan

Im young and have time ;-)

There are several on Ebay and sometimes here pops one up. I think I will get one sometime . Im not in a hurry

Thanks
Frank

Yes you are and no you don't! You have to be ready in spring for our tour through the South of France my friend:thumbs:

Martin

I know this is really getting off topic.... but I wanna go !!! :party:

Hi,
I asked my wife and she said we can come too!.... if we get to stop for lunch and dinner in some nice small town restaurants!
Regards,
Alan

Hi Martin, be sure Im ready in May :rock:

Hi Kaiserbud and Alan, you just need a ship to good old Europe and you can join :cheers: . The tour starts in Switzerland then Italy and South France (near ST Tropez) and back, something around 1500 miles and a lot of small town restaurants:thumbs:

Its a tour with something around ten Corvettes and 4 of them are 69' ! The rest are C4, C5 and C6 as far as I know :party:
Have a nice Sunday
Frank

PS: Im sure you will find a lot of pics here after the "Adventure"

20!

Last year around 30, that was to much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxEqPUic-gM

We feel privileged to be part of that tour. No wonder Frank (roma) is shaping up his Corvette for the occasion:cool:. What is especially nice: "we", the owners of the four 69s know each other. Oh... but I still dream about taking my Corvette "back" to the US and tour there:thumbs:.

The Côte d'Azur:
http://i833.photobucket.com/albums/z...ote-d-azur.jpg

Have a great Sunday everybody

Martin

First half is painted :rock:
http://up.picr.de/9387334kks.jpg

The other side needs a bit more modifying till it fits

Cheers
Frank

Hi Frank,
Paint looks nice!
????? I sort of thought the 2 sides were going to be joined together... will there be a space between them?
Regards,
Alan

Hi Alan,

yes there will be a small one, but hidden by the licence frame

http://up.picr.de/10058647ky.jpg

Next Winter when having an original sidepipepanel
I will do it the correct way

Finish :rock:
http://up.picr.de/10544165ga.jpg

Hi Frank,
Your car looks terrific!
You deserve a lot of credit for making that all happen so far away from where the car was born.
Well Done!
Regards,
Alan

This Winter its time to transfer the rear to look like an original side exhaust car.

But wich road to go ? Modify the original panel and fill the holes or the aftermarket cut the ears ?

https://up.picr.de/34228025by.jpg

https://up.picr.de/34228027nc.jpg

Cheers
Frank

Inspired by DUB and rvzio the plan now is to fit this aftermarket panel

https://up.picr.de/35092055ph.jpg

and for the half hole ,that would be left, I started to make negative forms from the ends of the panel. Later I will build positives and try to fit them to close the half holes in the back.

https://up.picr.de/35092057ql.jpg

https://up.picr.de/35092061cs.jpg

https://up.picr.de/35092066rz.jpg

Cheers

Frank

First mold is finished , looks like my plan will work :cool:

https://up.picr.de/35101980ng.jpg

https://up.picr.de/35101982or.jpg

https://up.picr.de/35101987nj.jpg

First Part out of the mold is finished, still needs trimming
https://up.picr.de/36561000rh.jpg

https://up.picr.de/36561001ll.jpg



second mold started

https://up.picr.de/36561002qf.jpg

https://up.picr.de/36561003tf.jpg

Nothing like a long term project!! Thanks for the update. Looks good so far

Finally finishedhttps://up.picr.de/41110493db.jpg

Looks fantastic!!! Glad for sticking with it!!!

Ummm- just a word of caution- " finally finished and Corvette " -does NOT work in the same sentence!!!

that loooks clean!!!