Engine Compartment

This picture was taken a little over a year ago shortly after the firewall was power washed for the first time. Note the hole between the heater access panel and the fresh air intake on the left side of the picture, the hole above and to the left of the transmission tunnel, and the hole between the two fresh air vents above and just outside the engine compartment. Not visible in this picture is another hole located in the passenger side foot well. This picture was taken about a week ago. All the holes have been repaired and the firewall received it's first coat of primer then it was sanded as shown.

Another coat of primer was applied to all areas in the engine compartment.

The firewall looks great and it only took a few hundred hours. Ty recommended we paint the engine compartment black to showcase the engine for Cool Desert Nights. So....

Por 15 Chassis Black paint was applied in all the hard to reach places using a paint roller. This is a very durable paint that is UV tolerant, dries matt black, and was developed for engine compartments as well as frames.

The rest of the engine compartment was painted using a spray gun. Lots of masking tape and masking paper were used.

The paint is still wet and glossy in these last two pictures.

The final results are awesome. We have about 10 days before Cool Desert Nights. The next posting should be setting the body on the chassis. Stay tuned!

More Primer

We were finally able to put more primer on the car. As a reminder, the primer only signifies that the fiberglass resin and mat work is complete. Most all the primer you see will be removed when we start the body work for real. The most recent paint was applied above the center line of the car only. Additional primer will be applied below the center line once the body is put back on the tall dolly. That will occur after Cool Deserts Nights.

All issues with the 67 hood have been fixed and it too received a full coat of primer.

The car looks great from 10 feet away but, once the primer was applied it became even more obvious there is a lot of body work to do.

You can see clearly in this photo that Wilson still has work to do on his section of the car. Wilson... come back...

Thankfully most of the fiberglass blemishes look like this.

Period Correct/Era Modified

Period Correct - In the beginning of this build we decided this car would be built period correct. For me, this means the driving experience would be the same as you would get back in 1963. This would be achieved by making sure the drive train and major components were manufactured in 1963 and they would also be date coded appropriate for the day and month the car was manufactured. Exceptions would be allowed only if they supported the fact that the car would be driven often. Some exceptions we have taken include neoprene bushings, stainless steel fasteners and shims, and the engine has valves and valve seats that tolerate unleaded gas. This is an example of a period correct car:

Era Modified - We are considering 1960’s era modifications simply because if you had a car like this back in the 60’s chances are it would have been modified. Era modifications for our build would be limited to bolt on modifications only, no cutting allowed, and the original part would be retained. Era modifications under consideration include: · American Torq Thrust D wheels · Side exhaust · 1967 Big Block Stinger hood · Other modifications you might recommend

This is an example of an era modified car:

So, do you prefer period correct only or do you also like era modified? There is a poll at the top of this posting. Please be sure to vote. Thanks.

Rear End Alignment, Stabilizer Bars, Shocks & More

Ty came over on Friday and finished the alignment on the rear end. If you look past the shock tower and past the (left) control arm you will see several of the shims he installed. Unlike the original shims these are stainless steel. This is the right control arm. Shims were installed on both sides of the neoprene control arm bushings.

Ty also refurbished and installed the rear torsion bar on Friday.

1965 was the first year a Corvette came with a rear torsion bar. Although the 63 model did not have a torsion bar it was common practice to have one installed simply because it offered exceptional handling performance. It's hard to believe that a 3/8" torsion bar could do so much. Although it's not period correct it is an era modification that I am OK with.

A close up view of the same area.

The front torsion bar was also installed. This is a 7/8" bar sold only with the hi-performance package. The standard size was 3/4".

The rolling chassis is surprisingly close to completion. The gas tank will be next followed by the drive shaft. If my nephew James comes out for Cool Desert Nights we will most likely fire up the engine at that time. James is attending Michigan Tech for his Mechanical Engineering degree and he and several of his classmates have expressed interest in this motor. I think as a good uncle it's only appropriate he gets first honors. I know, I am a nice guy.

And look who's back. I dug this out from under the tarp and made a spot for it in the garage. This picture was taken yesterday morning and since then it has been fully block sanded from the spring line up and is ready for more primer.

This area desperately needs a coat of primer and it might happen today. Stay tuned.

Rear Brakes, Parking Brake & Fuel Line

The old fuel line was installed 10 years ago when Dennis S. rebuilt the frame. It had mild rust on the exterior just from sitting in the Hawaiian air. Since this line can only be replaced when the body is off I decided to install a new stainless steel line. You can see it running down the right frame rail. The parking brake assembly was also rebuilt. Once the body is put back on the frame the emergency brake cable will attach to the empty clevis.

This is the right rear brake assembly.

This is the left rear brake assembly.

Ty comes over later today and we will rough align the rear end assembly. Should be fun. Pictures to follow.

Front Brakes and "The Trailer"

Work continues on the front brakes. All the original fittings are fine. I used a little Scotchbrite on the stainless steel lines and a wire brush on the brass fittings. This is a picture of the main fitting that the master cylinder will feed. Only one line from the master cylinder feeds all four brakes. Another picture of the brake lines. This is the left rear. All new hoses and brake cylinders are installed.

This is the right front brake assembly. I was unable to find a good picture depicting the correct arrangement for all the pieces on a 63 Corvette so this is my best guess. It looks good, feels good, but I am not quite positive it's correct. Click on the photo and check it out. If you think something is odd let me know.

This is the left front.

This is one of the rear brake drums (it still needs to be sand blasted and painted). Other than the size, it's representative of all four drums. Do you notice anything odd? For me, it's the brake adjustment hole. I've never seen one on a drum, they have always been on the backing plate. None of the backing plates have an adjustment hole.

Once the chassis was back in a rolling configuration I thought I'd see if it fit on the trailer. The width is a tight fit for sure but then the car does have over sized tires and wheels. When we get the proper size tires and wheels I'll have to adjust the channel iron for the front tires. But that's for a later date. The trailer works fine for now.

It towed very nice. Shouldn't be an issue at all for Cool Desert Nights.

Clutch, Transmission, & Rear End Assembly

Earlier this week I installed the clutch, pressure plate, throwout bearing and pilot bearing. In this picture the clutch is being held in place with a splined tool that came with a clutch kit I bought from Napa. The pressure plate was fastened to the flywheel using ARP bolts designed specifically for this application.

Grade 8 hardware was used for the bell housing to the engine and the transmission to the bell housing.

Additional work was done to the front brakes including shoes and brake cylinders. The brakes are far from complete though.

Ty came over today and put in a full 9 hour day working on the rear end. Here Ty is adjusting the rear bearing assembly to one of the trailing arms. This whole assembly is made up of numerous parts that are unique to either the left or right side. It would be very easy to inter-mix these pieces.

Ty installed the pumpkin and cross member first. Only grade 8 fasteners were used.

Both trailing arm assemblies were installed next. They will receive final alignment at a later date.

The installation of the half shafts and the leaf springs completed the assembly. Although the brakes are not installed the wheels and tires were put back on the car for mobility.

Here's the picture you asked for Max. The overall suspension still needs a lot of work but it's back into a rolling configuration. Thanks Ty for another productive day. It really looks nice!

Brakes, Clutch, Rear End, etc

This is a video. Be sure to push the play button (triangle)

More Suspension Work

Front suspension assembly continues. The idler arm, connecting rods, dust shields, and front hub assemblies are now installed. Although the brake cylinders are shown installed these will be replaced with new ones shortly (they are on order). The steering box has also been installed, however, it doesn't turn as smooth as it should. This will either be adjusted, rebuilt, or replaced as needed. We also have the 1975 steering box that Dennis S. had installed. Replacing this one for that one is also a consideration.

Ty came over Saturday and put in a full day dismantling the rear end assembly. The shop was a blur in activity. We were both so involved in dismantling, sand blasting, cleaning and painting that we forgot to take pictures. These pictures were taken the following morning (this morning).

We have two sets of leaf springs for the Corvette. The 9 leaf set at the bottom of the picture was standard equipment and was built for comfort. The 7 leaf set was sold as a heavy duty option and was often used for racing. We will use the one not designed for comfort. :0)

Dis-assembly will be to the bone. All parts will be cleaned, sand blasted and painted as needed. We have several books, manuals and publications for reference and we use them often.

Here are a few pieces that made it through the process yesterday. We elected not to rebuild the pumpkin simply because it rotates smooth, has no play, and it doesn't have any leaks. The pumpkin weighs at least 100 pounds and it was a pain getting it in and out of the sand blasting box. It cleaned up real nice though. Thanks Ty for another great day.

Cool Desert Nights - 2010 Vision

This is a video. Be sure to push the play button (triangle).