First thing today after sticking a few more body mount bolts in is I traded the old 235/70s that came with the car for a pair of roughly equal condition 215/70s. Not actually going to run them but I always prefer to have a project car on the size tire I'm going to run. Driver front wheel will get painted blue and get used in the car while the passenger front will get painted red and used on the 53
And moved on to some of the bodywork. Got the smashed part of the quarter mostly knocked out. Actually think I'll be able to get the tail light fixed reasonably easy enough not to justify cutting out and replacing metal. Am thinking I'll get a lower rocker patch. Also got most of the dent out of the roof
Naw. Once the hammers started swinging progress started happening. Side note a nickname that has followed me to every job I've been at despite the job having no knowledge of my previous job is Thor because of how I am with a hammer lol. Anyway going to stock up on hardware and rubber so I can securely mount to the frame. Yesterday I saw what you were talking about on the body mounts. Going to make them myself with generic bolts instead of buying a kit. Seems just as easy and a lot cheaper. And going to work on getting at least the front brakes functional on it. I know you said they were probably the wrong rotors but when I had the wheels off yesterday they seemed to fit really well. And under the surface rust looked like replacement rotors. And the bearings were adjusted right and smooth. Going to test fit a caliper and go from there. Basically the vibe I got of my boss is if it rolls, stops, and steers he probably wouldn't care if I pulled it in the shop to do stuff like paint the roof and dash and drop the engine in. So that's kinda my immediate goal lol
Something else I'm thinking is on the firewall instead of welding up all the holes I'll get some sheet metal and skin the hole thing in sections.....at least the flat parts. Make for a cleaner look with a lot less work. Not to mention an extra bit of insulation/sound deadening. About the only holes I'll need that aren't already being used are for the heater hoses and for the main harness to come through. And I can cut for the heater hoses later on after paint
And because it's easier to get my phone to upload a video instead of take pics I took a video of how close I have this thing to fitting a tail light
Decided to make a checklist of modifications I'm doing for sure the first time around on this car lol -nosed and decked -louvered and peaked hood -shaved side trim -shaved gas door -frenched antenna -55 Chevy rear bumper -50 Oldsmobile door handles -obviously lowered lol -lakes pipes -grill but undecided on exactly what I'm doing....want 54 Pontiac but haven't secured one yet -58-60 t bird center console -partially shaved lower dash -shag rear deck -license plate frenched into decklid
So I think after I get the body securely bolted to the frame Im going to hyper focus on bodywork and paint on the roof and dash. If I knock that out I can work on getting glass in it. With glass in it I'll have a bit more flexibility on how I store it. As to where it's currently sitting I can run extension cords to it to run grinders and compressors. So it's doable where it is.
Way I'm doing actually makes it easy. Do about 20 minutes of work over a period of two hours lol. Though that driver door has inexplicably fought me more than any other door I installed lol. Next time I wrench on it I'm going to set out to get the best gap possible on that door so I can focus on roof paint prep lol. And honestly it was in good shape considering what happened to it. Like all the body mount holes still lined up nicely
Weird the way the driver door fits. I guess when it went between the lift arms and got the b pillar it pulled it back at the top. When it hit the gutter I'm guessing that didn't help. Might check for square.
I think I just need to rotate the whole door slightly clockwise. That side is on an awkward spot you really can't tell in the video. Meanwhile passenger side is easy to work around. Also I looked it over pretty good. I didn't see any evidence of stress cracks that'd pop up in enamel paint if the roof or pillars had flexed or warped. And like I said it fit nicely on the frame. Iirc you told me you gave me the best pair of doors. Judging by the primer and splashes of blue on the doors I'm guessing the passenger is original. Would I be correct that the driver side isn't? This era car wasn't known for spectacular panel fitment. In fact when I bought my 53 I assumed it was a 210 someone stuck bel air stuff on based off how the trim aligned and the fact the bel air emblems weren't exactly straight. Nope. Just 1953 gm fit and finish standards and it was an actual bel air lol. And honestly I'd rather dick with fitting a non original door than deal with rust. And that door is nice. What really surprised me is how quiet the hinges are on this car. If you notice no noise when I open the doors in the videos. Meanwhile you look at a door on my 53 and the "SCREEEEEE!" that anyone that's been near a 50s Chevy has heard happens audible three blocks away lol
So that may have been the fluke of the draw then. We'll just blame 1954 gm tolerances lol. In any event it's all reasonably solvable. I'll hop back on it in the next couple days
Example of what I was talking about on the factory tolerances. My 53 has never been wrecked and this door has never been so much as loosened. But as you can see there's a slightly wider gap at the top
So I'm back debating shaving the door handles again lol. I should mention if I do I section in a similar patch on the driver side instead of welding in round plug patches. I feel like it'd be a better finished product
So yeah I've decided to go ahead and just shave the handles. And since I haven't come up with a solution for door poppers with the current latches I'll likely go ahead and swap to bearclaws. After my 53 I'm honestly tired of 49-54 Chevy door latches lol. I'll eventually modify the 53 to use the said olds door handles
And by a fluke of finding a 54 the same color scheme and stance I'm planning only more stock along with another member helping with some quick and dirty Photoshop I think we have the best visual yet lol. Obviously mine will have less trim and end up with both scallops and metal flake
So another solution to the filler neck with the gas door shaved. Ignore the wheel tubs because those WON'T happen in this car lol. But I'm thinking the mustang tank is the trick. One it's a lot cheaper. I'm already Frenching the license plate into the trunk. Think Ill hinge the plate in the recess and have the filler come in through an alcove behind it.
The Jalopy Journal
