Dash, Headlights and Wiring

I accomplished a lot of things this week.  It started with the installation of a new speaker.

I re-painted the speaker grill with Por-15 Chassis Coat Black.  It's satin and turned out very nice.

The clock was re-installed using 2 special clips.  They hold the clock and insure proper grounding.

I purchased a new glove box (upper left).  All the metal components were media blasted and painted with Por15.  The glove box door is unique to 1963 and ours is original but it's condition is horrible.  It can't be saved, at least not by me.  I'll be watching for a better one.  

Our 1963 door has missing pieces, holes drilled at the top, cracks and scratches everywhere.

I installed the glove box and frame then remembered...

I have a 64 (or later) door that didn't sell at the Portland Swap Meet.  I reconditioned it with Por15 and installed it temporarily.  It's not a 63, it has a couple dents, but it will do for now.

Not too bad.

I installed the windshield washer spray heads and used Rivet Nuts to fasten the wiper grills.

I coupled the Flaming River steering column to the steering box with a beautiful polished stainless steel universal joint.  The spline counts will vary by year.  Mine is a 3/4" 36  X 3/4" 36.  It took me too tries to get it right.

Here is a better picture of the blinker and tilt levers I modified to make look like  original.

The headlight wiring harness was finally installed.  I had to remove the grill and bumpers for access.    In this picture you can see the running lights are now working. 

 Viewed from below are the two headlight bucket motors.  They are installed and wired.

Also installed are the two horns.  GM horns in the 60's were identical between most models.  The difference is the bracket and orientation of the horn.  An original set of working horns for a 1963 fuelie would set you back about $1500, but you can't find them.  Mine are from a Skylark.  The horns sound like a 63 Corvette, they're orientated properly, but the mounts are slightly different.  I am good with it.

I also installed the headlights.  Here they are tucked up under the nose.

Here they are in the open position.  Ty had spent a lot of time refurbishing these so they were simple to install.  They still get bezels but they're not yet painted.

So, after all of this work, do you know what time it is?  Check out these videos.

Visiting Dennis and Annette

Gerri Following Along

Very Responsive and Perky

Headlights, Clutch and Steering Column

I thought I'd show you a picture of the hood and upper air intake cowling.  If you've been following this blog from the beginning you'll know that this area had a lot of issues and consequently received a lot of TLC.  I think you'll agree that the time invested was well spent.  This really looks nice.

I am getting tired of the body work postings so I'll skip all the steps that got us to this point.  All the hard work has already been done to these primered headlight buckets.  They're now ready for paint.

When I let the paint dry for more than 4 hours I have to scuff the paint so that the next coat will stick and not lift.  The bucket on the right has been scuffed and I am getting ready to do the other one.

The buckets are fiberglass but they do have a lot of metal reinforcing on the inside.  I thought it best to paint the inside as a rust proofing measure.

This is the hardware needed to install the buckets.  The assembly manual in the background is a must have if you've never done this before.  I chose stainless steel screws since the headlights on a C2 Corvette are notorious for rusting.  Note the tube of silicone grease.

I chose silicone grease for the headlight mechanism because it's waterproof.  Waterproof?  Yep, that's right.  Not all grease is waterproof, but the silicone grease is.  If I didn't use silicone grease it would only be a matter of time before rain and car washes would wash away the lubricant.  Silicone grease is a great product but it comes with its drawbacks.  It's almost impossible to wash off and it's the worse contaminate you could have when painting a car.  That's the reason for all the tape in this picture.  I am trying my best not to get anything on the primer sealer.

It took a whole afternoon to install and align both buckets.  I even painted and installed the electric motors.  There is still work needed under here but you can see how it's set-up.  This is directly behind the nose of the car between the headlights.

Ty and I did a lot of work on these headlights over the last couple of years.  We must have at least a 100 hours invested.  They look great and I am sure they are better than factory installed. 

Switching gears, this is the clutch pedal and the clutch rod that goes through the firewall.  The clutch never quite felt right to me and it took me a long time to figure out why.  After a lot of research I found out why.

We were missing this plate.  The plate moves the clutch rod higher and it engages the rubber bump stop.  The clutch operates much better now.

Then there's that grungy old steering column.  It's original to the car and it's an original 63 but it's not friendly to "men of measure".  It gets in the way.  I talked to several people that own C2 Corvettes and many of them have the same issue, they don't fit well in their car.  The solution?  A tilt wheel!

Flaming River sells a tilt wheel steering column specifically for C2 Corvettes.  Everything is identical to the original except for the extra lever.  This one will be painted to match our car and it will allow big boys to drive in comfort.  At least that's the plan.  I know, it's not original to the car but this is one of the few things we are doing to improve the driving pleasure.  Besides, it comes with a flasher and that's a great safety feature.

Next I'll start working on the rear exhaust valance.  That is the last piece that needs body work.  Hopefully paint will follow afterward.

As always, thanks for watching.

Rocky - Headlights

Ty T. and Rocky R. are in the building! Rocky is visiting from Houston, TX and I couldn't wait to put him to work. Rocky spent the day working on various parts of the car while Ty spent the day working on the headlights. It was a beautiful day. Rocky spent most of the day working on the rear exhaust valance. Pictures of that will be posted soon. Here Rocky is removing the door handles in preparation for painting.

After the handles were removed Rocky used the Fein to sand the tight nooks and crannies. We found one crack behind the drivers door handle. That crack has been removed and it will be repaired soon.

For the last 4 months Ty has carressed and masaged the headlights into perfection so I figure the Corvette must be a girl. I am OK with that because the results are a knock-out.

Both of the following pictures are videos so be sure to push the play button. Watch Ty's face as he brings the headlights to life.