So I'm a stupid kid..

Looks like you have a great start to a long term project there. Best advice I can give, and i know you never asked for it, is make it safe and make it yours.
Start a short list of stuff that the car NEEDS before it is a safe driver....Brakes, electrical, cooling system, major leaks.....pretty much the stuff you've already said you've started to fix. After you get the basics done, moce onto the next list of items....replace the trunk floor, move onto the rear floors then to the fronts. Tackle one thing at a time and take a month or so off between each major thing to just enjoy the car. That'll keep you from burning out and staring at a money pit that'll never seem to get finished, trust me I seem to end up there after a while on my long term projects.


So yeah, take the advice however you wish, don't let the guys here beat you up to bad, and take it one thing at a time and one step at a time (advice I got from my auto shop teacher when I was 18 and started on my '59) The pic is after I drug it home with my '63 dodge...took another 3 weeks just to get it running and up into the driveway. It was no where near as solid as it might look in the picture. No floor, the right quarter was cut off in 4 pieces and welded back on, the bed was rusted out bad under the front bed cover panel area and both inner wheel wells were paper thing.

 

the 57 i had when i was 19 didnt have a floor or rocker panels.

fix it right yourself and you wont have to worry abuot it anymore.

 

Someone once said to me in a similar situation" consider it the cost of life's tuition". We all ( and now you ) know that there are people who will always try and take advantage of you. But resist becoming synical and distrustful. Just be a bit smarter next time.

 

BUILD A BRIDGE & GET OVER IT . Then go kick his ass.
your bad , you should have checked it out .
NICE RIDE THOUGH WHEN FINISHED.
"AND THE BOWTIE ROLLS ON"

 

If I remember right, the radiator can be mounted either in front of or behind the radiator support. Mounting it out front will give you a little more fan room.

 

Keep it and fix it. The education yor get in the process will be priceless. These kind of guys are a dying breed. Its a wonderful addiction.

Don't paint it. Its Perfect! Kind of that two lane blacktop look.

 

Tri-Fives still fetch a good price, so it's not as bad as you think. Everything you'll need is available for them and they're great cars to learn some skills on. You can bolt everything on, or you can customize it.
I won't tell you what I paid for my 55, but is was a lot more than $6000. I bought it because it had a solid, mud free body and a good solid frame, and my hands are no good for body work. Mechanically, it couldn't have been much worse and actually been drivable. I was in the same situation. I was younger, the seller was an old guy who had bought and sold a lot of old cars, probably to unsuspecting folks like me. On top of that, when someone called him to see if the car was still for sale, he gave them my number!! Even a couple years after I bought it, I was getting calls from brokers looking to sell my car. The guy I bought it from definitely didn't do the work, but he damn well had to know what it's issues were. He was in central New Jersey and said he had driven it to NYC many times, which I believe it would have made the trip, but you;re going to tell me you never tried to go above 3000rpm? With the 400 under the hood you bragged so much about???
Anyway, I drove out to see the car, but only got to test drive it around a Home Depot parking lot. It seemed ok, so I dropped the cash. Turns out the reason for this is the engine wouldn't rev above 3000rpm. It was a 400 someone butchered and assembled with spare parts. It had milled 305 heads, 3 different valves int he heads, a 600vs Holley and a torker ii intake. I ended up ripping the top end apart and putting some decent stuff in it just to make it run decent. The rear looked like a stock 55 piece, but some fuck-knuckle put an early Nova center section in it. Like I said, thrown together. In fact the only driveline part still in the car is the solid th350 that came in it, but I did add a shift kit and a convertor.
I have done a LOT of work to it and even though I was misled when I bought it, I love the car now. It would take one hell of an offer for me to part with it. It's truly become MY car now. This is the same opportunity you have. It might be a wreck, but it's all fixable. Take the purchase as a learning experience and take the opportunity to make it YOUR car. People have and will do more with less, you should decide now whether or not you want to put the time into it. Anyone with the money can buy a finished car, but in my mind it's not truly theirs until they put the work into it.
Best of luck with it if you decide to keep it!!

 

Yeah that's what everyone keeps telling me! I like it too, but I think it's starting to rust underneath I'll post pictures of what I mean. Ok first thing I wanna tackle is the rear shocks. Says I gotta drill holes into the frame to bolt in, sounds like I gotta get myself an air drill right?

 

Nope, regular drill is fine

 

Ok great so now I don't have to worry about a compressor etc, it sounds like a pretty easy installation it says it comes with instructions but if I have any questions I'll be sure to ask! I'm ordering it today!

Oh and i've officially moved up from FNG to Newbie!

 

It's a shame that your first life lesson has to be so costly. Ours were cheaper only because it was earlier. My first purchase for my 36 Ford coupe turned out to be a tail light stand for a 35 sedan. Not even close for an experienced Ford man....25 bucks not a big deal.

I hope you can remember how glib the guy was so that you can hone your bull shit antennae for the next time you come across one. There seem to be more today than there were in the past. You can not trust anything the guy said so assume nothing.

I'd assume that your engine was misrepresented also but you certainly are capable of fixing any leaks and curing the overheating problem. The leaks should be easy to locate and fix.

The over heating problem can most likely be fixed with some help here. Take a picture of your radiator/fan system and start a fresh thread asking for opinions. Include all known facts at the start.

You might look for a car club in your area. Ask questions at shows.

At one time the old car hobby was a very honest group of people. The escalating prices have brought in the crooks.

 

Yeah man get stuck in!you'll be drivin in no time.
Take some pics of the new shock mounts when your done!

 

Try to keep it on the road and driveable as much as possible, that way the interest stays up and another basket case doesn't get scrapped for lack of interest.

 

Like what has been said here numerous times, chalk it up to experience. I do not know of anyone who has purchased an old car(or any car!) that did not find things after they purchased it that they wish they would have spotted before they sealed the deal. But we all get better at it each time. Life is a cruel teacher, but very effective. Good luck with your project.

Kirk

 

Well I doubt if anyone will tell you this or has told you this, but we are not an honest bunch. There are some good folks on here but there are too many of us to say that we are an honest bunch. Maybe it would be better said that we are a basically honest bunch with a bad apple or two that we try to catch and out before they do too much damage to the rest of the bunch.

That said I am sorry that someone took you but the same fella would have taken an older person as well as a kid he is just the type of fella that we all wish we could weed out of the hobby.

Now that you are here why don't you make the best of it and start learning to find those mistakes and rectify them yourself. that way you will not be at the mercy of the bad elements in the hobby. You can certainly put your own floorboards in the Chevy as well as repair the shock mount. Horns are no biggy either. Yes you may have to learn a new skill or two but that is hot rodding. You'll do fine as long as you apply yourself anything that any of us do we had to learn none of us were born with the knowledge and skills that we posses.

 

I feel you man. When I was 16 (circa year 2000), my first car was a 57 Chevy Bel Air 4 door sedan. 283 with a Turboglide. It was a good car for the money and ran well, but stuff broke. The radiator had a small leak, the generator kept burning up, it had terrible exhaust, etc. Little by little, I learned how to fix it. Friends I made then in my car club taught me how to fix things, replace a trans, convert to an alternator, etc. It made me a better builder and I had some of the best times in that car. I'll need to scan pics later.

As mentioned, don't be too upset. You didn't get ripped off too bad, and these cars have a lower learning curve than many others. This is good news.

Start with the basics. You need to make the car drivable since you need to get around. The overheating is the first issue you need to deal with. You don't need any fancy expensive aluminum radiators. These cars stayed cool from the factory with V8s, so yours should too. Swap out the long water pump for a short one, which will be about $40 at any Napa or Pep Boys. No need for a Milodon or Edelbrock, an OEM rebuilt one will be fine. Then put a standard 5 blade fan, preferably with a clutch (not a flex fan) on there. Done. You will need to pull out the radiator to do it. No big deal, take the opportunity to replace the hoses and clamps too. This is beginner level work that can easily be done in a driveway with basic hand tools. Ask questions and we'll walk you through it.

Good luck and start wrenching!

 

You popped your cherry!!!
That's probably longer than a lot of folks hang around. The HAMB gets a reputation around the "car guy" world, particularly from those content to ride around in a shitbox thrown together with junk, but you will not find another resource like it. This place is FULL of guys who know their stuff. Professional builders and garage mechanics. Body guys, frame guys, engine builders, everything. You'll get all kinds of good input. It's not to say you won't get the occasional jerk off, but it's a small price to pay for the knowledge you'll gain here.

 

any chance the guy you bought it from is on the Hamb?

 

I doubt it, he really didn't seem like the type he seemed like he just bought and old car to lean on at car shows without any genuine intrest.



-that's the trunk, is it safe to drive like that?

 

Gasoline Junkie was the man from the baby bomb generation. Every time a deal w/ that generation I get screwed. They feel world own them something for being born. Give the hobby a bad name.

 

Happens the best of us, just gotta move foward at this point.

 

on the underside, there should be a support bar that should be flush up against the floorpan that stretches between both shocks, and both shock rods pass through it. if it's ok, it's safe to drive like that. if the bar isn't there, i would get one in short order.

 

You should probably try and peddle your disdain for your parents or grand parents someplace else.

 

ahaha. This made me laugh out loud in the office place again... :s

and Gasoline Junkie... like everyone else has said, don't worry about it too much. Just learn lots and get to work. We've all be screwed. I bought a running, driving truck. Once I found all the sketchy stuff that I overlooked in my excitement, it started to come apart quick. Now I have a garage full of pieces...
Also, I'll go against the grain and tell you that I like those four doors! Nobody will admit it, but they're damn functional when you have a couple of friends/girls to cruise with. I'll keep an eye out for your build thread.

 

I'm not sure if I entirely follow, here's a pic of the underside:

 

Let's not get OT here guys, this young lad needs some guidance with his car. If you've got an axe to grind with any generation, best leave it for somewhere else.

Gasoline Junkie, where are you in New York? There's a great car scene up in north NJ with lots of young guys doing it right

 

Reality check here....It is ok to drive ( for a short time ). Leaf springs "harmonic " frequency is such that they self dampen to a certain extent. ( friction from being bolted together, etc. )
Get a repair kit from danchuck or classic chevy. I install them on every tri 5 I work on..Most of them out here had air shocks ( remember " hi jackers " ??lol ) and they drove the top mounts right thru the trunk floor.
FYI NEVER drive a coil spring suspended car without shocks. You will get seasick if you can keep it on the road long enough.!
Dave

 

I know how you feel. when i bought my olds i made the mistake of checking it out at night. that sure was dumb. didnt look in the back seat to see the seat pulled forward over the rotted through floor. oops. but, it is very complete so live and learn man and have fun. its amazing what lessons you learn from getting ripped off.