Love the floor pics on page 14. So nice.

Any updates Chuck? I'm addicted to the build!

Tim

Thanks for your interest Tim! I do have some updates but where do I begin?? I know I've been MIA for a while. Looks like we left off with the rear end and rear suspension. So a while back I scored a good deal on an a 30 year old Lakewood splatter, I mean SCATTER, shield and block saver. It is NOS. Pretty neat piece with a 1991 SFI sticker, not quite Day 2 but less money than a brand new piece. It was essentially brand new with box, hardware and instructions all intact. My buddy and I bolted it up and thought well how do we adjust the adjustable screw in Lakewood pivot ball.... I mean we know how but where do adjust it to... Time for a little YouTube University THANK GOD Al Gore invented the internet!! Discovered the proper measuring technique and also saw the guy in the video dialing in the bellhousing to the crank centerline. I remembered doing this on my 68 with a Tremec TKO 600 transmission so figured what the heck might as well check. Good thing I did because it had .0135" runout. I decided to call Autogear and they notified me the tolerance is .0100" and recommended RobbMc performance dowel pins. I'm so glad they did because I probably wouldn't have discovered them otherwise. Easily adjustable and installation was a breeze. Got the runout to within .001"!!! Installed the 30lb steel McCleod flywheel, and McCleod Super Street Clutch.

Now that scatter shield and engine were mated we decided to drop the big girl in. Install on the engine was also a breeze. Now lets do the transmission. Well that was not so easy.... Slid it in there and it looked good, bolted it to the crossmember and Houston we have a problem. Shifter is just a couple thousands from the tunnel. :hmmm: Seems strange I have factory original big block frame mounts and a big block chevy crossmember. What's the deal? I had Crash build me a Hurst Competition Plus shifter for the 32 spline output shaft bolt pattern. That SHOULD fit right into place but it doesn't. As I started thinking about what could be wrong I resorted to the internet and decided to type in 1967 Pontiac Firebird crossmember and what did I find? BINGO! I bought a Firebird crossmember, not a Big Block Camaro crossmember. Looks ALMOST identical but doesn't have the 1/2" offset to the passenger side. Needless to say I have a beautifully restored Pontiac Firebird crossmember now. I found a nice used BIG BLOCK crossmember and got it today. Tomorrow I'll install it and see if it corrects my shifter problems.

I also restored the inner heater box. Soaked it in Evaporust and repainted it. I discovered the original color was closer to a blueish gray than black so I repainted it with "steering box blue" paint. Looks good to me, practically dead nuts to the original color. I saved the inspection sticker and glued it back to the box after I painted it.

I also installed a new sound deadener pad from Quiet Ride Solutions after receiving two incorrect pads from Heartbeat City. I finally ordered direct from Quiet Ride and got the correct part.

I bought a gorgeous brake booster from Mike Gibbons, since a reproduction unit just wouldn't cut it for this build. My car did not have power brakes from the factory. Mike worked with me to find a pretty close date code to my car, the booster he sold me is dated 254. Car is dated 09B so close enough. I'm not trying to claim the car has original power disc brakes, I really just want as many factory parts as I possibly can.

I also took my gauge cluster apart. I bought a new, repro, cluster and had it painted when the car was painted. The original is not cracked but the black inside the gauge pods is very faded. The gauges are 100% original, all I did was clean them with a q tip and some windex. 54,113 ORIGINAL miles. I also put a new plastic lens in. I also bought the simulated chrome stickers to go around the gauge pods because the masking tape removed some of the silver finish on the gauge cluster.

Fresh cluster...

Looks great !!
Surprised you found a firewall pad that actually fit. They are, usually, quite a bit off.
I like the Torquer intake. I have the same one on my 493 with an old NOS Comp Cam 280H. The idle is a very pleasant sound to hear...:smile:

Thanks Chuck! That should hold me for a day or two.............;)

I bet it sounds good! I thought it screamed 70s. Engine builder said it's definitely a dinosaur but would work good and look the part. He had lots of success with the Torker and Tarantula back in the day.

Yeah, my engine builder laughed and said I was leaving some hp on the table with the outdated cam too, but the rough idle is 70's correct too..:cool2:
I had a short vid of it running, but seemed to have lost it when I moved all my old Win 7 stuff to this new Win 10 computer...:crazy:

The big block crossmember I received from Heartbeat City is in fact another Firebird piece! I called and they agreed to take it back but still frustrating that they advertise Firebird crossmembers as OEM Big Block Camaro crossmembers.

If anyone has a big block CAMARO crossmember they want to sell, I'm all ears....

Well, that SUCKS !

Can you post pics and describe the difference ? I'm planning on hitting local swap meets again this summer and will keep watch for one in case I need it.

This is a FIREBIRD crossmember, which I now have two of :no:

Notice the holes are more in the center. The square shaped hole where the tranny mount goes is the same as a big block Camaro piece.

This is a big block Camaro piece. The mounting holes are further forward in the "notched out" section of the large access hole. They're also offset to the passenger side 1/2" Notice the comparison drawing as well.

VERY similar but NOT the same!!!

Wow, very subtle, not certain I'd recognize that easily.
Thanks for the pics...:biggthumpup:

How different is the small block crossmember?

Good question. The small block has a perfectly oval shaped hole and the mounting holes are centered, no offset to the passenger side. The big block is offset to the passenger side for the exhaust to clear the steering box.

Here is the distinctive oval hole on the small block crossmember. I have two of these :wink:

The SB ones are fairly common and relatively cheap. I would have to fire up the plasma and make one for now. Could take a while and a "bit" of coin for an original BB one.

Chuck,
Did you lay the black as single stage over the gold clear or did you clear over everything once the stinger was on?

Thanks

The gold was cleared and left to dry a couple weeks. We then sanded the hood shot the black and cleared it again. Helps to “bury” the stripe and the transition from gold to black. Plus more protection. Thanks

Cars looking great. Did you use the chrome tape that a guy on ebay sells or another process on the cluster opening trim.

Shown in my picture is before the sticker application. The masking tape removed some of the simulated chrome from the cluster. I had the stickers for probably 2 years. I ordered them from D&R Classic Automotive. They fit decent, I'll get a picture later on.

Sorry missed the last paragraph. I too used the decals. Had to add a little clear nail polish on the seem but worked pretty well.

Sent my original seat belts to Charlie Santorelli of Seatbelt Sity in New Jersey. I read about this guy on this site and the Corvette forum. This guy is my kind of guy, he doesn't beat around the bush. He can come off as a little grumpy but I'm sure he gets a lot of people who want champagne on a beer budget. Once he discovers you value the service and you want it done right, he gets excited about the project. He is very informative and detail oriented. He also does a great job at keeping you in the loop, lots of updates. Some of my original webbing was in decent shape but some was stained beyond repair and all of it was faded. He went through the process of finding me some genuine GM 3 ply webbing, not 4 ply reproduction. He then reinked my original tags and cleaned up my buckles. He did admit they didn't need much work and were some of the nicest ones he's got shipped to him.

My car, being an early car, has no retractors which helped on the cost of the job. I definitely recommend him! First photo shows some of my original belts, second shows some black mold stains, third is the restored belts.

Very nice, and great info, too!!:headbang:

Crossmember dilemma is officially, at least seemingly, over! The new crossmember is in. Shifter is right in the middle of the hole. HUGE thanks to Crash for a great shifter that really is positioned where you said it would be, of course when the correct crossmember is used... :haha:

Another HUGE thanks to Russel, Mr. 4 Speed, for these totally awesome NOS Appliance headers. As I previously mentioned Russel sold me these with the stipulation that they get installed on this car. Well buddy almost three years later and here we are, your headers have been test fitted.

I am very pleased with the fitment of these headers to say the least. So many people, and companies, seem to struggle with big block Camaro header fitment. Well these headers are nearly 50 years old they clear the steering box with room to spare. If you have a lift just remove the steering box and the headers slide right in for the bottom. Plenty of room to add the steering box back in once the headers are installed. This is a two person job. These headers have great ground clearance too, sorry I didn't get a picture of that this time. Tomorrow I'm taking them to get ceramic coated in the original white color.

Nice! I have the same headers on my L78, and they fit as well as anything I’ve ever installed.

----Won't take too many shim removals to push that upper A-frame bolt in to the header!....Bill S

Let's hope we leave the shims alone or add more :wink:

Are you recoating those white? Let us know who you use.

The stud doesn't get any longer, just the nut moves further down it...:wink:

Yes! I'm bringing them to Newport Mesa Powder Coating in Newport Beach, CA. They do powder coating and ceramic coating.

True that! Its a fixed press in stud!:scholar:

My '70 454 Chevelle had Appliance headers and they were great. Thicker wall tubing too and were still good after 10 years, when I sold the car.
Tony, I have a ceramic coater near me and he can do white, well, many other colors too.

After bringing my headers to the shop to get coated in white, they said never mind we can't do white that'll withstand the heat.... Subsequently I've called three more shops here in Southern California who don't do white. They're telling me the product is no good and turns brown/beige. I really want white headers

I can call my local guy about doing white, but the shipping would be crazy.

Can you paint them white over the coating they put on? Paint is what would have been there back in the day anyway.

Jason

Looks like if I want white ceramic I'll be shipping them out anyway. A guy near me said he can do it but it won't look good after a few heat cycles.

Jason- I've thought about blasting them and painting them with VHT but I'm worried with the longevity of the paint. The paint looks decent on them right now because they've never been ran...

I talked to Jet Hot in North Carolina, they will do the white but it ain't cheap! I like the smooth finish they offer since it is similar to the original paint.

I am also considering Swaintech White Lightning. Supposedly this is some of the best coating and is applied very thick. The ceramic material leaves a somewhat rough textured look that actually looks almost just like Black Jack headers. Guessing Black Jack discovered this after white paint failing on the Appliance headers...

I just talked with Clinton at Race Coatings. He said the Swaintech is an awesome coating but has a course texture and will retain every bit of dirt and grease that gets on them. Impossible to wipe off. In that vein, ALL white coatings are going to stain from any oil and dirt, because of the color. He can ceramic coat them, which for white is a 4 stage process, for $300, BUT he says you should wear gloves for install and anytime you need to touch them. The coating will be smooth. And never use fresh coated headers for engine break in or dyno. The coating should be cured with a few short drives with normal heat cycles.

I remember the staining as an issue on my appliance headers in the 70's too. :frown:

PM sent

Here is where I was looking at getting my headers done in white for my '62. I think the ball park price I got from them was under $500.

https://ccpcoatings.com/