Thanks for the offer Bill - I ordered the line from Showcars. If it is like the one for the Chevelle from Inline, it comes gently bent in half in a larger box, so once straightened out you can't tell.

Progressing on some smaller items this week.....

I had to get the guts of the rebuilt master cylinder installed so I dropped that off at my buddy's shop and he did that for me Monday. Picked it up yesterday and installed last night. He is also installing the new bearing races and bearings in the restored hubs. I got the proper front to rear brake line ordered and should have that in a few days.

Tracked down some original bench seat trim brackets - as my interior guy said the reproduction ones weren't right when he was doing the seats and couldn't install the trim as a result. The originals do look slightly different so hopefully they should work. Sandblasted them and got them painted correctly so they are ready to go - I have an appointment for first week of April to get that done.

I didn't like the way the trim around the driver's side door handle fit and was able to get that fitting better - not much adjustment but much better. I polished the interior chrome on the two doors - armrests, inside door handle and both window cranks - so they look new. No pics of that.

Scope creep has set in again......

I took off the drivers outside mirror to polish it and it was a bit more pitted than I could polish out so ordered a new one - should be here this week.

The air cleaner snouts have gotten beat up a bit over the years and the driver's side one was massaged to clear the power brake booster and master cylinder since it stuck out so far. I dropped the air cleaner assembly off this morning at a friend's to get that straightened out and re-painted the correct gloss black. I am going to pull the radiator and fan shroud to get them repainted correctly as well - then I can touch up the core support as well.

Goal is to get the old brakes off this weekend and prep for the drum installation in the coming weeks. Our weekend schedule is getting full so I'm trying to get as much done in the next week to get ahead of things. April will be here before I know it.

The devil's in the details....great job!!

Made some more progress today......decided to dive in full bore on the drum brake conversion.

Jacob decided to come home for a visit and he didn't get any work assignments today so he was able to help a bunch. Dad would be over the moon ecstatic knowing his grandson was helping turn wrenches on this project. :beers:

We were able to get both disc assemblies off along with the requisite bracketry and related. Also took off most of the brake lines (I ordered all new stuff) with two exceptions. Didn't take the front crossmember line off as I need to spend some time strategizing how to do that with limited access to the fittings on the driver's side - and I still have some challenges with the front to rear line (a la the Chevelle project a few years back......). Whoever installed the disc conversion kit did some bubba engineering to the front to rear line. I have the new line here. I was able to get the front half (it was sectioned into 3 pieces vs. 1 and crossed over the transmission to go from the passenger side to the drivers side :hmmm:) of the old line removed but need a fresh mind to figure out how to get the rest of the rear section out and install the new one piece line. I haven't had to cut anything yet and I think it can be done - just not today......

I will need to spend some time cleaning things up before any reassembly (30 year old restoration showing its age) but was able to mock up the driver's side backing plate assembly to make sure everything lines up - and it does. So once I figure out the brake line challenges it will hopefully come back together reasonably quickly.:dunno:

If anyone needs a compete and good functioning front disc brake conversion kit I will be listing it for sale soon. :naughty:

A little slave labor never hurt anyone:dunno:

Good to see Jacob involved!

Good to see our CFO of Dykstra Motorsports getting his hands dirty!:biggthumpup:

Spent some time last night in the garage and was able to get the old front to rear brake line out. Went to install the new line and saw the front end flare was boogered up pretty good so that ended that project for the night. Supplier sending a new one out today.

I was able to get the wheel wells, lower firewall, and front suspension cleaned up using Simple Green sprayed directly on the components and then a warm water wipe down and rinse with a rag followed by a towel dry. I will spray some Boeshield on everything and then get some pics to post. So far pretty happy with how it looks prior to the Boeshield. I am resisting the urge to blow the control arms and related off for a full repaint but I know that will snowball into taking the front end completely apart and don't want to go there......

Speaking of scope creep...........I got some progress pics of the air cleaner assembly from the paint guy. Afraid to get the bill on that but it will look way nicer than it did. Will also do the fan shroud and radiator - and touch up the core support, and new valve cover decals......and that's it....:no:

I ordered a windshield washer pump repair kit to make a run at getting that fixed in hopes I don't have to send it out as the wiper function works fine, just not the pump.

I was able to spend a few hours in the garage last night and made some more progress...

Got the new front to rear brake line installed, it intermingles with the fuel line and uses the same bracketry so it took some patience and creativity to make that all work without cutting anything, having the body on the frame, and doing this on my back with the car on jack stands.......but it's done and it fits. I also removed the front crossmember line and installed the master cylinder to frame line.

I dug a little deeper into the project and took the radiator shroud and radiator out. I will have the shroud re-painted and I think I'm going to have the radiator re-cored as it has several spots were the fins are bashed in pretty well over the years.

I ordered a few more small parts yesterday and also installed a new set of valve cover decals and re-installed the opti-kleen decal that had come off.

One of the frustrating things I am finding the deeper I dig into this car is the previous restorer used a lot of generic hardware store fasteners - so I am trying to source and replace those with assembly line pieces as I come across them which is a whole other project in itself.

Last week I picked up the hub assemblies and now those are ready to bolt on.

Tonight I will install the new front crossmember brake line, distribution blocks, and hoses which should wrap up that portion of the project. Then I can get the front drum and hub assemblies installed and get brake fluid back in the system and bled.

The eye for detail is paying noticeable dividends!

Just a few observations.
We have ice and snow today, so all our appointments called yesterday to reschedule, so I have some time on my hands.

Went back to post #1. I know I have looked at this thread multiple times over the years, but apparently did not take it all in. Just read the whole thing from start to finish. What an emotional rollercoaster.

Post #1. I laughed and cried. Love seeing the way this car facilitated the multi generational bonds in this family. Obviously a loving functional family that would have been close anyway; but things like this hobby bring us even closer sometimes. (Just ask Tony, with his recent wild snow storm, creepy hotel adventure with his son!!!).

Post #2 (don’t worry, I am NOT going to recap EVERY post) made me cry more seeing Jake the grandson sitting in the front seat. Really hits home as my twin grandsons just turned 12 on Monday. Holy crap!!! That can’t be. They were just born YESTERDAY!!!

Also got to me when Verne Frantz chimed in. I REALLY miss Verne. He was a giant in the hobby, especially the 409s. We bonded back in 2007 when I was writing the trim tag legislation in Oklahoma. Could not have done nearly as good a job without Verne.

Loved reading about the 30 year old Sears tires. I took some tires off my recent purchase (57 Chevy) that were dated EITHER 1995 or 1985; not sure which.

Three generations in the car is freakin awesome on page five. Will be doing that soon with the 57 once it is roadworthy. (Pic below).

Notable quote #1 from Big Jake: “Only in America could this have happened!”
Is this a great country, or what?

LOVE the pics of Big Jake working on the engine and trans.

Also great seeing the LONG time relationships the Dykstra family has with Bill S. I was honored and humbled to get to hang out briefly with them at MCACN 2024 (along with Tony). Best quote from Bill S: “I must sound like a broken record, but the Dykstra's are my favorite family on earth!” That’s what I’m talking about.

Best exchange:
Jake “...hopefully no scope creep on this one.”
Tim: “LOL......good luck with that.”

Best quote from a Dykstra: “Enjoy every minute with your loved ones while you can.”
Was moved to tears again at post 176. Wouldn’t expect anything less from this family.

I feel your pain Jake!! My current project was also loaded with hardware store fasteners from a previous restoration requiring many searches through my stash and elsewhere for correct pieces.

Thanks Lynn. We appreciate the kind words. The fact that we are a close family is not lost on us.
Being able to work on the old niner is icing on the cake.

Thanks again,
Dave Dykstra

----Geez,,,I wish we were closer as I have s#it loads of bolts. some generic, but most off of old 60/70 GM cars.....Bill S

Not much actual work on the car the last week as I've been busy with other commitments - but I've been able to get some things rounded up behind the scenes......

Dropped the radiator off at shop over in Woodstock and they air-water flow/pressure tested it and cleaned off the old paint. No issues were noted and they were able to repair the fins without replacing the core. I will just need to paint it. Will pick that up later this week. Found out it is a reproduction radiator so now I am working with Jody Anderson to put together a real one (scope creep.....? :hmmm:) Jody has an original top tank and is trying to gather the balance of the 62 409 specific pieces. In the meantime I will re-install the one I have as functionally it is fine and I can keep moving forward.

I picked up the fan shroud yesterday from the painter - he will have the air cleaner finished up later this week as he wasn't happy with how it turned out and needs a bit more time to get it right. Happy I did this as it will bring the engine compartment a long way for the minimal investment. Turned out better than I could do at home......

The passenger side is ready to have the new drum assembly bolted on, all of the lines and hose are installed and tight. The distribution block and lines on the drivers side are a bit more challenging to finish up as the generator/exhaust manifold/steering shaft and clutch cross shaft are all in the way to be able to swing a wrench - so that will take some creativity to finalize.

I have a couple of people gathering up original fasteners - so hopefully that will work out.

New air cleaner decal arrived with some other small parts - I decided to replace the bolts in the upper ball joints with the rivet head ones for a more correct look. I have one month to get this back together and driving to be able to make my appointment at the interior shop to get the seat trim installed....and enjoy the spring weather hopefully.

Two steps forward and one step back seems to be a theme for me here......

I was able to get the drivers side brake lines wrapped up last night - I needed to remove the generator to get some access from above and then work from underneath the car to install the distribution block bolt to the frame. Got everything lined up and tight. I also installed the backing plates and shoe assemblies on both sides. When I went to slide the hub assemblies on the spindle I found out the inside bearing I bought was a touch too small diameter and would not go on the spindle. Luckily I saved the original bearings from the hubs after I disassembled them and those bearings fit. I threw everything in my truck and will swing by NAPA to see if we can source the correct inside bearing and a new seal. The old ones actually look good if I need to re-use them. Outside ones are the correct size.

I took some pictures of the assemblies installed along with the new outside mirror and the better aligned exterior door handles and cleaned up arm rest and inside door handle chrome. Slowly but surely making progress.

Made some more small progress this weekend after taking some time off in the garage for work and family stuff.......

Got the hub assembly and drums put on - the bearing issue was not an issue - my bad. :hmmm:

Did a preliminary adjustment on the shoes - I will have to tweak this I'm sure. One of the things I did was to source and restore a pair of correct (I think) backing plates that had the proper adjusting hole in them vs. the pair that came with the parts I bought that did not have them. I filled the master cylinder with fluid, made sure the master cylinder pushrod was adjusted to the shortest throw possible (so as not to have the plunger engaged and prohibit the flow of fluid) and waited for it to gravity bleed....and waited........and waited.......and waited some more. I was having flashbacks of my issues with the Chevelle brakes a few years ago. This is a much simpler system with no proportioning valve and a single circuit master that goes one way from the LF and around to the RF and then to the rear. Still no fluid as of now, the master is working as I cracked the fitting at the main line and pushed the pedal down and fluid came out........so not quite sure what is happening there.

While waiting I polished up the grille and the painted bumper filler. I am hoping to pick up the air cleaner and radiator from the painter next week so I can button up things in the engine compartment. I also pulled a spark plug for the first time since we put the new motor in - probably 700-ish miles on these.

I am dropping off the generator at the place that rebuilt it in town a few years ago for a refresh on the paint - I want them to disassemble it and repaint the case correctly vs. me trying to tape things off.

One of my parts sources let me know he has a properly restored bumper bolt and trans crossmember bolt set put together so that will be a nice addition.

Getting close to having it back on the ground and running again - my 4/1 deadline to drive it to the upholstery shop is coming quickly......

Spark plug is looking good, as is everything else you're doing!

Lookin' good,keep 'er up!!

Very nice,wish it was 4-0-mine. :)

I picked up the balance of the parts being painted this morning so tonight the re-assembly begins.......

Always good to see these cars revitalized especially cars with family pedigrees, congrats you've almost reached the finish line. Thanks Marc.

Seeing Tim's 67 L79 engine compartment pictures motivated me to get to work after I got home this evening.

I was able to get the under hood engine compartment pretty well buttoned up tonight after getting everything I needed rounded up this afternoon. I took off the header bar and had the painter get that while he did the radiator yesterday. He also did the fan shroud and air cleaner assembly. Last year I put a new fan clutch on the correct restored fan blade so that still looks good. The generator rebuilder took the generator apart and re-sprayed the case as it had a bunch of scratches in it since he rebuilt it a few years ago. Filled up the radiator with new anti-freeze and distilled water and installed some new decals while I was at it. Waiting for a few small things yet but getting pretty close now.

Final brake bleed (I've got fluid at all 4 corners) and front brake adjustment and I think I'm done..............for now.

Just WOW.

Double WOW!! That is spectacular!!

Jake, this car must, no HAS to be at MCACN 2025!!:headbang:

Wow,you're doing really well! Keep the pics coming!!

I'm with Bill^^^^^^

Nice work! Engine bay looks flawless.

Diggin' the details, Jake - that's one lucky car!

----Your Dad is looking down right now and knows that every last thing is done to perfection, Jake. Can't wait to see cousin Eddie's masterpiece with the Dykstra's touch at MCACN!!!....Bill S

Made some more progress today.......

My wife helped me final bleed the brakes first thing (remembering when my Mom helped my Dad do this when I was too young to help). I also installed the upper ball joint rivet bolts. The first set I ordered the rivet top wasn't wide enough to seat properly with enough contact area on the ball joint so I bought some from the Corvette vendors and I think they are much better. Not sure why this is a big deal to me other than I like the more correct look of the rivet top. Also final adjusted the front drums and installed the anti-vibration springs around the drums - they come off much easier then they go back on. Thoroughly washed and dried both sides of the wheels and tires prior to re-installing. I left the hubcaps off in case I needed to take the wheels off again for some reason - plus I'm scared to death to put them on and risk damaging them.

I had about an hour left before I needed to call it quits for the day and figured oh what the hell let's get it on the ground and go for a test drive. So I started it up and burped the radiator and topped off the anti-freeze and once it was warmed up I backed it out of the garage and tested the brakes on the way down the driveway......so far so good. Our roads are still heavily salted from some winter weather last week so I kept the drive short and just ran around the block in our subdivision. Never got out of second gear and made a few hard stops to make sure I didn't have any major issues. Luckily all went well and other than a few minor things (oil filter canister gasket leak and lower radiator hose leak at the clamp) I think we're good. It doesn't pull or make any odd noises when braking at the relatively low speeds I tested at, it has a rock solid pedal, and I was actually surprised how well it stopped. (It will never be confused with a modern Corvette........:haha:) When the roads get cleaned off better I will extend the trip to outside my subdivision and test at higher speeds.

Getting close now............3gears.gif

https://youtu.be/-4DujKMXeZ8]
https://youtu.be/5SSpEuwc8LU

Saweeet! Looks great!

Got some more work done today...

I was able to install the rear hubcaps on both sides, I was able to install them without using any tools or rubber mallets, so that was a relief. I still need to do the final install and set the front wheel bearing dust covers before I install the front hubcaps - hopefully this week. I fixed the oil leak - when I changed the oil and filter last week I must have fubar'd the gasket as it was mangled. I relocated and tightened the radiator hose clamps and those leaks seem to have gone away. The VIN tag on the door jamb was painted over when the car was restored so today I used some paint stripper and got that cleaned up correctly.

Big project today was getting after the windshield wiper motor/washer pump. In order to remove the motor/pump you have to remove the wiper/cowl cover which takes some time to do. The pump was not working so I bought a rebuild kit from Corvette Central (these motors/pumps are the same as mid-year Corvettes) but when I removed the motor and pump assembly I could tell Bubba had been in there as the whole thing was rattle canned silver, and the flat copper ground strap was broken (I may have done that on the removal :dunno:) so I will get it sent out for a complete rebuild/restoration next week. Good opportunity to polish up the area under the cowl cover as it was pretty dingy. I'll keep plugging away on these smaller detail items until the list is knocked out. I'm going to keep it at my place this summer and put some miles on it so I can get things dialed in.

No pictures since the last update but been working behind the scenes to round up some more correct bits. Washer motor/pump is at Steve Hackel's for him to work his magic on it, expect to get that back by the end of the month. I have a set of correct restored front and rear bumper bolts, trans crossmember bolts, sway bar links, upper and lower control arm bushing bolts, Lower control arm bolts, fender to cowl washers, and some others that I can't think of at the moment coming my way - so that should go a long ways towards cleaning up that issue. Through Jody Anderson I was given a somewhat geographically close contact who is off the grid (e-mail, cell phone, internet) that has what I hope are the balance of the things (all original parts, not repro) I need to convert the car back to manual steering, an original voltage regulator, original radiator tanks, and an NOS set of standard 62 Impala hubcaps (after I spent a small fortune restoring the ones I had). Looking forward to getting confirmation from him in the coming weeks after he rounds up things from his stash. Still have my appointment for 4/7 to get the seat trim installed. Will post pictures once I have more to show.

Oh....and the car is officially registered for the Fine 09's display at MCACN 2025. Thank you to Bob and Jody and especially everyone here for your support and encouragement. This has been a vision of mine since we got the car back in 2009 so I am overjoyed to be able to do this.

Not a whole lot new to report but thought I'd share an update. As is the case with these types of projects there are always ups and downs that are a part of the process. I took the car back to the upholstery shop to install the restored Impala only seat trim. Previously it was thought that the reproduction trim brackets I sourced were incorrect, so I tracked down some originals and restored them. Turns out the brackets don't appear to be the issue........I am starting to believe the Impala seat frame hinge bracket (that connects the back to the bottom) may have a different bend to it than the Biscayne seats. The trim bracket should be on the outside of the hinge bracket. The bench seat frame I used is from a Biscayne and not an Impala - as everyone said they are the same other than the trim brackets - and there aren't exactly a surplus of any of these in usable condition out there.
Doesn't make sense to me that GM would make two different seat frame hinge brackets, but maybe.....? Anyways, the trim is still not installed as I search for a solution. If anyone here knows please feel free to reach out and let me know.

While the car was there they were able to remove some wrinkles in the carpet around the trans tunnel that I did not notice until I got the car in better lighting - it looks perfect now.

Good news is that I am putting some miles on the car ............with the cool spring air the car runs significantly cooler than it does in the summer heat. I've got a 160 thermostat installed and with 40 degree outside air today it runs just about 170 in traffic.

I ran up to the local gas station tonight to top off the tank with some ethanol free fuel and while on the way back took advantage of some golden hour lighting to snap a few pictures at the local community airport. I still need to get the wiper motor back and installed, but for the most part the car is pretty close to where I hoped it would be when I started this journey 11 months ago. Still details to sort out, but it is to the point that I can drive it and work out the remaining bugs as we go.

The ol niner has never looked better Jake! Bravo!!

Looks great in front of the Sunoco pumps! Keep 'er going!!

----Good progress for you, Jake. So glad the drivetrain is working well!....Bill S

You're dad is grinning ear to ear. Likely slammin' some gears as well!

Couple of updates......

In regards to the seat trim issue, Jody Anderson had a pair of Impala seat backs in his inventory, I received those today and dropped them off at the upholsterer's to strip down so I can get them blasted and painted. The brackets are noticeably different so I'm thinking we've got that problem solved, just need to get them cleaned up and get the seat backs swapped out. Sounds easier than it will be (just time and some money) but fingers crossed there.

The wiper motor showed up today from Steve Hackel - jewelry for sure. Will try and get that re-installed one night this week.

What does a guy do when he's getting close to the end of the original scope of the project? Tear things apart again.....that's what.

I decided to pull the carbs and send them to Eric for him to work his magic on them. Will have him do the full monty since everything else will be done.

Since the carb's were off it was pretty easy to yank the distributor and make sure all is well there too. I will clean it up, make sure it doesn't need re-bushed, and put new points, rotor and cap on it. Having the distributor out makes the wiper motor re-install a bit easier too...:smile:

Good thing is the carb's are the correct numbers (3361/3362) and dated appropriately for the car - they might even be the originals. The distributor has the correct 1110919 tag. I assume the date of 1 L 9 translates to December 9, 1961? That lines up for this January of 62 assembled car, so that could be the original distributor as well.

With those components dialed in, every major component like the block, starter, and generator has the correct part number and date for the car. I think one of the 690 cylinder heads is dated a month too late, but the other is perfect.

I am still in conversations with my contact in the suburbs for the correct idler pully, non power steering idler arm, correct radiator tanks, and some other small items. He has what I need, just hasn't rounded it all up yet from the garage.

The correct chassis fasteners are ready to ship - hope to have later this week.

Since the car will be laid up for a bit waiting on the carb's to come back maybe I'll tear the control arms off for a clean up as one of the bushings is bad on one of the lower's..........we'll see how motivated I feel.

Before you know it.........the frame will be out from underneath it:smirk: