This is going to "one of those cars" and what I mean by that is when you take this to events, people are going to RUN across the fairgrounds to see it... rock on man
Super badass car. All I can add is that I have some car show flyers for Joe Andersens custom work. In the future..people will study your car to build a replica. You've done great work getting all this info together. Car looks awesome!
Looks like a ‘60s vintage Auto Meter to me (look at the sweep and lettering) Auto Meter designs were so ahead of their time that even their early gauges still look modern.
Project X is one of the most iconic rides of my generation. Your reproduction of the earlier version is killer. Not everyone will get it, but those that do, salute you. Outstanding effort and result.
Yup, looking between the original picture and the new comparison picture, they're identical. The tach still does have a modern look to it, but it's exactly the same as the one that was originally used, down to the hose clamp mount.
Very Nice looking clone , very close to being Accurate to time frame , The Tac on clone Looks to have Sport & Pro Comp Basil, ( silver paint) Compared to B-W picture to have Crome Basil ? I have a older One I believe around here Early 70s , I think A-M started using /offering the Silver paint around 80ish .
I put on the window decals I could identify. With time I should be able to figure out the others, maybe. Part of the problem is they were constantly changing so they were different in nearly every picture.
Outstanding work, Rex!!! Earlier comment about ppl RUNNING to see this car is absolutely true. I'd probably break my neck or crash my car if I saw it in traffic. The fact that neither GMPP or Hot Rod Garage did that^^ with the original car is beyond comprehension. With unlimited resources and bankroll, they're getting their asses kicked by a guy on a budget working in a 2 car garage. Ironically, doing exactly what the original project car was intended to do. Full circle. I love it!!
Just watch Hollywood nights last night for the first time in about 25 years. And there's not enough scenes with the 57 in it.
Work is getting in the way of accomplishing much lately. I'm doing stuff that doesn't show now. I finished the fuel system. The original car used about 3 feet of rubber hose for the gas line. I want to race this at a track someday and it won't pass tech with that much hose. I came up with a solution that will pass tech and still looks pretty correct for the car. I made steel lines for everything and slid hose over them. Then put clamps on the ends of the hoses to make them look functional. It's not dead perfect but it should get me through tech.
I started on the exhaust last night. I got most of it done. Will still need some clamps and hangers, but it's good enough for now. I incorporated some of the old exhaust with dumps that came with the car and added some 3 inch Dyno-Max Super Turbo mufflers. These are very large capacity and do an admirable job of quieting down big engines. I don't know how to terminate the pipes yet. They may just turn down ahead of the axle. I'll have to get the actual axle installed and see what I have for clearance. Looks to have adequate ground clearance. I'll clean the pipes up and paint them black later.
Disclaimer: I'm a little embarrassed to say I was born too late (77), and honestly knew about Project X from Hollywood Knights onwards. I had no clue until I found your build thread there was this version!! WoW!! This is hands down my favorite, and you're flooring me with your accuracy and dedication. Well done!!
The Throttle / Gas Pedal Was Hydra/ Link Brand in the Engine Photo you can see the Slave Cyl to Carb.
Not sure if what you're looking for is in there, but this guy is selling his 1960's sticker collection https://www.facebook.com/share/1Dbkc7YpLu/ Hope you get lucky
Finally, some progress. I was given a Dana 60 a few years ago. It's a weird one out of a Chevy truck I think, so it has a strange panhard bar bracket sticking out of the housing that needed to be removed. Only 45 minutes later, with the help of my Saws-All it was gone. Nothing to it. This was a dually axle and had the drums and ends cut off. I cut the housing ends off the 8 3/4 that was in the car. I set up the ring and pinion in the Dana housing, and then using one of the 3 sets of 35 spline axles that also came with the car, I calculated the width desired. The axles were just a bit long so I trimmed the ends down with my chop saw to get the desired 59 3/4" overall width. Then I trimmed the center housing and adjusted the end pieces to proper length. The hard part was, the housing tubes are .325 thick! It takes forever to cut through them. Very important to measure twice so you only have to cut once. The good thing about the thick tubes is that you don't have to worry about anything being bent. Once it was properly sized, it was a simple matter to weld the ends on and finish assembly. I cut the spring pads off an old rear end and transferred them over. I reinforced them with some straps to prevent the axle from breaking out of the perches and twisting under the car. Used the brakes and backing plates off the other rear end and she's ready to go. While I was under the car, I installed the shock crossmember that also came with the car. Now with the brakes on the rear, I was able to bleed the brakes and setup the emergency brake. I dropped the driveshaft off at the shop to have it shortened and 1350 yokes installed. When it comes back the car will move under it's own power for the first time in 8 years. This drivetrain is gonna be bulletproof.
By the time X hit the scene I'd been thru the 57 Chev Chev " small block fix." though un-blown. I just want to comment on the twilight years comment, I am well past them also, ........told by society I am in my golden years, (86). I say, the only thing golden about this time of life is my urine!
I suspect some of you out there are wondering why I didn't use a Pontiac rear in the car like the original had. I've used Pontiac rears before, and while the 9.3 inch ring gear and the 31-spline axles are stout, the positractions are weak. Sure, if you run a spool they're tough, but spools on the street are awful. I want to take this thing on a Drag and Drive event and the last thing I need is to bust the posi 1000 miles from home in a rear end that's been out of production for 60 years. The Dana 60 Power-Lock posi is absolutely huge compared to the Pontiac's much smaller Dana 44 size. It will survive anything I can throw at it without so much as a whimper. And of course, let's not forget the 9 3/4" ring gear dwarfing even the Pontiacs 9.3" gear. The 35 spline axles are just more insurance that there will be no reliability issues from the back of the car. Plus, these are cheap to build. I had the axles and housing. I bought a new posi for $480. Bought used 3.54 gears for $150. Axle bearings for $85 and that's about it. I re-used everything else. Once again I'm deviating from the original, but I'm doing it in the name of durability. A cool car is no good if it's broken.
I am not a 57 Chev fan at all but I must say that this car is stellar. Will get some attention when it hits the road. Congrats
Nice work again, looks great!! But... A D60 does not dwarf a 9.3 Olds/Pontiac. Not even close. The guts of a 9.3 are massive by passenger car standards. Pinion bearings, pinion shaft dia, main cap size, are all very similar between a D60 and a 9.3. Yeah you're right a D60 probably is 'stronger' but you can't change ratios in an hour. You are correct about weak factory posi units, but you shoulda bought a Trophy Track that woulda solved that problem. I broke an axle on the starting line in my 55, and I drove it back to the pits on one axle with a Trophy Track. Didn't even faze it. Got a Trophy Track under 2 cars and I beat the snot out of em, with slicks.
Just read from the first post, phenomenal!! I am always so impressed by those of you that are five tool players and can do it all. Simply amazing skill set that you have. Keep pushing!
Two more things off the list. I rounded up some 3/8 plate and cut some traction bars out. These will be like the Bill Thomas bars used on the original car. I couldn't find any out there,so I made my own using a spare set of spring pads.
I got the roll bar tube back from the bender and welded on the rear supports and cross bar, and painted it gloss black. I think it turned out nice. The rear bars drop down just as the original did from halfway up the window post through the fender dip in the quarter panel.
The interior is nearly done. Just have to get the rear seat tonneau cover done and it's about ready. Still looking for some old school seat belt harness. Excuse the upper picture for being a later shot. It differs by the carpet color and the tach on the dash. The car was using black carpet at the time I'm replicating. The black carpet was under the rollbar mounts and this carpet was trimmed around the bar.
The Jalopy Journal
