Talking to a guy about his shop he is setting up for woodworking when he mentions a T-bucket that he has been dragging around for 25 years. Since I ask what he's going to do with it, he has me come over and check it out. The bucket shows no rust out at all and he has clean doors, pickup box and front fenders stored else where. As we talk he mentions a 30thou over 283 in the corner that he bought from a machine shop freshly rebuilt 25 years ago. Said it was a 301 with a 375 horse cam and 12:1 compression. The heads on another shelf were 461 cast double bumps which were rebuilt and have 2.02 valves but still pressed studs and no guide plates. Also has early corvette non staggered valve covers. Bottom line of course is he'll sell but hasn't thought about a price as it hasn't been looked at in years and he is not in touch with pricing. As he says......"Make me an offer". He is not hurting for money but knows he'll never build it. SO, Opinions????? How much???? Thanks
can't see it all,can't give a guess. sorry but you can't ask for an appraisal on thin leads.frame??? any other parts,axles? too many variables.
Yeah, we need more info on the frame, etc. That body looks GOOD though. As for the engine, it's not a .030-over 283, or it's not a 301. A 301 is a 283 punched .125-inch, to a 4-inch bore. The engine will need to be taken apart and have the cylinders wiped down at least, and take off the ancient break-in lube, since it's probably paste by now. -Brad
Isn't a 292 a 283 bored .030+.060? I have a set of rings around here somewhere for my old 283 that was a 292 and I seem to remember that is what's on the box for size. And, by the way, BUY that damn thing without hesitation and with conviction.
when he said 301 I suspected that made it a stroked motor....327/283???? There is no frame, just the shell in the picture, good doors, grill shell, the box for behind the shell and the front fenders. The shell is in great shape, smooth and rust free, and he said the doors are just as nice. Been stored indoors by him for 25 plus years.
tell him you got 500 cash. if he laughs, then say you can maybe borrow a grand from your mom. if he still laughs, tell him you maybe got an open credit card with another grand you can run against, but now your rent maybe in jeapordy. and the baby may not get formula this month. If he needs more just move on.
just tell him to give you an idea of what kind of price he was thinking or not to be upset when you offer him what you think it's worth ! body looks to be nice but doesnt look like there's a whole lot of parts that come with it, frame , axles , etc ? as far as the engine i wouldn't pay a whole lot to get it if the machine work was done 25 yrs ago , has it been baged and stored in a dry place , who knows the history of the machine work , and with 12:1 compression your not gonna get gas at the pump nowadays wihout switching the pistons to lower the ratio , i would personally tell him you are interested in just the body and any other parts that go with it !
What is it worth to you, I know you want the best price, but you have to have a price in mind you would pay. Offer 1/2 that amount he might bite. Good Luck...Scott
One thing to keep in mind is that he personally might think that the engine is worth more than the body since he had to pay X dollars to have the work done or at least has $$ invested in it. I've bought cars CHEAP sometimes because the owner thinks the car itself is worth very little but there "improvements" like mags or an engine on the stand or some racing parts they bought have them thinking big bucks. I ask "how much without the engine" or whatever, and many times "I'm shocked. It's also a good way to figure out what they think each piece is worth in case you don't want/need all of the stuff they are trying to sell with the car. I'd ask him how much for just the body, then ask how much for the engine.
That looks to be a beautiful body. You need to explain to him how the high compression engine is a negative instead of a positive as it was 25 years ago. You have to talk about all the rest of the stuff that it needs just to make it a basic car. If you start with a rough estimate of a beater in your area and then subtract all the costs for the parts to make it a car (not counting labor) then you can get an idea of what's it worth. Asking prices from unrealistic parts vendors isn't a very good place to start. You have to feel him out. If he's seen too many Barrett-Jackson shows he may have unrealistic expectations. Low balling him in hopes of a home run can backfire. Being honest and fair usually works better. I like to make an offer in the form of a question....How does 1500 sound to you? The piston may be able to be machined to bring them into the realm of today's gas but to most people the engine isn't a huge asset but it could be parted out to reduce the initial price of the body. 25 years ago I bought 27 roadster from Texas. This one makes that one look rough and it was considered a nice piece at that time. Negotiate.
Technically that's not a T-Bucket. It's a 26-7 Roadster or RPU. It's hard to tell from your fuzzy pics, but the lower portion of the panel behind the door is supposed to have a swoopy bump that goes from vertical to horizontal. The body there looks smooth which would mean that some kinda of patch work has been done. From what you discribe of the sheet metal, I'd say that stuff is worth in the $750 - $1250 range. The SBC is a real crap shoot. It could be $1250, or it could be $250. Do like others have said and see if he will give you a price for just the sheet metal.
I think you should vote for the winner of Tech Month, because 9 outa 10, your gonna use some of their free advice!
My .02 offer $1000 for the whole lot since theres no frame or running gear.My 283 is .040 over and its technically now a 289 With that bore.
If the engine was rebuilt 25 years ago its probably going to need it again. Sitting for 25 years it might be seized. Even with new parts. Might get away with taking out the pistons and honing out the surface rust. If its a 301 id find another engine. Thats a boat anchor. Id offer $1500 tops with the parts you listed and thats if you really want it and if he has a title. Just my .02 cents
he will sell it to you cheap! hes setting up a wood working shop hes done with that car. he knows how much time, work, money will be involved getting it together, thats why its still sitting in as bought condition. he invited you over to see it. he wants it out of the way! tell him you would sure like to have it & ask him what hes thinking. i dont think youd lose out at anything under 2k.
Well the owner got back to me about the rpu. He will sell me the body with a box, part of a windshield, old steering wheel, front fenders, chrome rad shell and a frame he started on 25 years ago for $1500. He wants $1000 for the 283/301 with the 202 461 cast heads and the corvette valve covers. I think the body deal might be good, but need to negociate on the motor if I want to take it. What do you think????? Opinions?????
just athought on the engine,use the short block with some big chambered ALUMINUM heads and thick (copper?) head gaskets... sell the 461's to a restorer, not that they're bad heads, just that you can get better heads nowadays maybe swap out the cam for a hydralic unless you like adjusting valves... btw, a .060 283 is a 292...
$1500 for the body/frame is fair...not a an awesome deal by any means...but if it is what you want to build I think it is a fair praice. $1000 for the motor is a gamble...it is worth that only if it everything is perfect...which you won't know until A)you pay to have it blown apart or B)crank it up further into your build... For much less you can put together or get another used/unknown motor or for just a couple hundred more bucks you can by a remanned small block crate that is guaranteed to run and even has a warranty... Just my 2 cent and good luck...looks like it will be fun
Well the parts are slowly coming home. I settled for $1500 on the parts but got the motor down to $750. The motor is clean with no rust in the bores and turns over fine. Will take it apart for a clean and then reassemble. Probably use newer heads to get the compression down. Have pictures of what was dropped off last night as the parts are stored in 3 different locations. Wasn't even sure what all was included as he didn't remember what all he had. Only thing that whould have been nice is if they hadn't have cut the box down to bucket size as I suspect they cut up a nice clean unit, but that was 25 years ago.
Few more pictures. Still waiting to pick up the frame they welded together, I'm thinking a front axle hopefully plus the motor and body. All the body parts are in surprising condition with no rust.
Much to my anquish I passed on a 30 A roadster body about 15 years ago. It had no floor and had been channeled, but good steel and a rumble seat lid. Guy wanted $850 for it then. I should have bought it and built it later, but wasn't thinking at the time. I agree with another post, offer him $1k for it and see where it leads.
Technically? Is that from one of the boys who believes that 17-22 or 23-25 Ts are not roadsters either? Technically, a bucket T is any year T roadster body without a deck or pickup bed, but generally refers to the 17-27 roadsters.
Those front fenders could make your investment much smaller if they are as nice as they look in the picture. Good straight 26-27 fenders are few and far between. The last pic of windshield frames and the assembly are not T but that doesn't mean you couldn't do something with them. The round tubing frame show in one of the earlier pictures is a T frame, which year depends on width and placement of pivots. $1500 is a swinging deal.
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