Wednesday, June 30, 2010

6/29/10

Clicking along on trim installation... As mentioned, all original stainless was buffed professionally by Qual Krom in Erie, PA (www.qualkrom.com). Windshield stainless is all installed now, fits like a glove. NOS visor brackets and original re-chromed center trim installed. Rear view mirror and bracket installed. Steering column had to be re-painted, which is done and installed. NOS steering wheel and horn ring installed. NOS 8k rally-pac installed. Rear boot trim chrome and stainless trim installed, NOS snaps used, yes they can be found! Quarter glass assemblies installed, rear quarter metal trim painted. Not much left to the dash, just some buttoning up of the wiring underneath, install the brace and glove box door.

Engine shop is still working on the motor, was hoping to have it by now. Still more work to do on the suspension. Brakes are going to be a challenge. Slowly getting all the parts culled together for that.

Here's some pics taken this evening:







Sunday, June 20, 2010

6/19/10

Well, things are actually starting to move forward now. All of the stainless has been received and it is absolutely beautiful. The rear quarter glass pieces were assembled and look great. Will move on to the windshield and related trim soon.

The engine machine work has been completed. It was sleeved back to standard bore and an NOS set of FoMoCo pistons/rings were acquired. The engine is now at a different shop getting the rotating assembly balanced. They will also assemble the short block for me. I have an NOS gasket kit with the correct head gaskets and other misc. pieces, so I will install the heads and assemble the rest of the block. I can't wait to actually clear some parts off the shelves!

The same shop doing the engine is also going to setup the NOS ring/pinion I have, so should be getting that back soon also. Trans is also in the works to be rebuilt. If all goes as planned, should be getting a drive train back in the car soon.

Drive train won't be much good without a suspension. I've actually made considerable progress on that front. After some experimentation with floating paint on water, I threw in the towel and ordered several gallons of black acrylic enamel. Did proper dipping and the upper and lower control arms came out fantastic. I had to go ahead and install them in the car along with the strut rods, so here's some pics of that. The upper and lower control arms are original parts that have been disassembled and restored. Not a job for the faint of heart! Hope to have more frequent updates in the coming weeks.



Tuesday, June 1, 2010

5/31/10

Making progress little by little. Steering column has been painted and steering wheel installed. Will have pics soon. Pic to share today is of the rear pumpkin pieces that have been refinished. Thought they came out real nice. Original machined surfaces were not pitted, just needed to be cleaned and polished. Have an NOS ring and pinion set that will be installed, along with all NOS bearings.