I'm glad you bought that car, I saw it for sale for about 2 years and always thought I'd like to own it but it was too far from me to make it feasible. Getting to watch you restore and refurbish it is the next best thing. I too worried it would be parted out. I'll be waiting for the next installment, keep up the nice work.

 

Thanks texxas, I will try and get some pictures soon. Everytime this car popped up on craigslist the temptation was intense. I am a sucker for the 67's

 

I am happy to say the rockers are patched and most everything else except for the rear glass area which will be started next and the front windshield area. I hope I dont find too much rot there. I have been playing with the brake system and the only hold up now is the driver's side 4 piston caliper. It looks like there may have been a little seepage of fluid around a couple of the pistons. Searching for these is not so easy and even rebuild kits. Information is vague with these calipers. I thought I could get repops from the Parts Place. Turns out the pistons in theirs are smaller than mine. I have not decided if I will rebuild mine or send it out. Hmmm somerebuild kits I see are 95 bucks and most places want around 150 for a rebuild.... doesnt see like there is much to it at all...

 

WOW, great project and thanks for sharing all the details. Always thought these cars were super cool and unique. There's more to life than A-typical 1970 Cutlass 442's, Chevelle 396's and Boss 302 Mustangs.
Also, reading that early tech article, solidifies that Oldsmobile's engineering department, was on the cutting edge....for American cars, that is.

JT

 

Joe you are making good progress. Keep it up and keep the updates and pictures coming.

 

Thanks guys for the comments, hopefully the thread will help those with similar projects.

 

Thanks to the weathermen blowing today's forecast I got a snow day from work!! They called for 6 inches along with some freezing rain and we ended up with less than an inch. This gave me another day to play with the project. I am glad to say the rear glass area is just about done as far as patching and welding up holes. It was pretty bad and needs some attention still but the worst is over. I dont expect to find nearly as much work on the front windshield ... I hope! I will try and grab some pictures next week.

 

I spent another 10 hours or so on the rear window channel. I wanted to rid all the rust in the pits in the metal so I used a dremel with a ball diamond bit. It worked really well but of course thats when weak spots and more holes appeared so the welder and grinder were called upon again! I started to then fill the pits with filler and sanded everything smooth. I only wanted a thin layer of filler just enough to even out everything and fill the pits. It is coming along nice. I did bring the camera but the battery wont hold a charge so I could not get any picts this time.

 

Patience certainly pays off, Joe.

Wish I had more than I do!

- Eric

 

Thanks, Eric. The rear glass can go in now. It was tough going but its done and am glad that job is over. I need to grab pictures for sure. I pulled the windshield and there are only 2 TINY rot holes at each lower corner. This is great but I still need to clean everything good and hopefully nothing else shows up.

 

You might consider installing the drain tubes in the rear window channel. It really helps keeping it from rotting again. Looks like you've made some real progress.

 

Well the next 45 years in this car's future will hopefully be sheltered and free from road salt. The drains are for sure something GM should have considered for these cars but I doubt collectability or antique was on their minds during design and production. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

Glad to hear you are making progress Joe. Looking forward to seeing some pictures if your handy work.

 

The back glass went in today without incident. Then I installed some of the rear trim just to be sure it would go on after the painting is done and it fits nice. I moved up front to the windshield. There were rot holes at each lower corner which helped rot the floors away for sure. I got one patched and have the other one to do yet.

 

Hey Joe
I talked to Muskegon Brakes a while back about rebuilding my stock 4 piston calipers. He said they will rebuild them and stainless steel sleeve them for I think around 200 each. Im thinking thats not bad with the stainless sleeves. Sorry I cant remember the exact price but ill send him mine when i get to that point. Also I thinks its Advanced auto has these listed and Rock Auto has them too, Most generec auto parts stores have them rebuilt. Prices vary.
Steve

 

Thanks for the info, I did see ads for other companies that sleeve then as well. For now I am going to try the front calipers as they are, since the pistons move freely and no real signs of leakage. Some swaps are coming up so I will keep an eye out for perhaps some rebuilt ones.

 

Nice work Joe

 

Thanks Eddie, ever get the feeling you've done something before? Its deja vu for me with this 67.

 

Glad to see another A body getting a new lease on life. You have a real gift and a whole lot of patience, nice work. I will enjoy watching the project.

Larry

 

Thanks! I am a sucker for these cars.

Today I worked on the front glass channel. Found a few more holes and needed to clean all the rust out of the pits. A little filler is needed and then some paint. I need to paint the dash panel too.

 

Had some time yesterday to fiddle with the project. The shortblock is on the stand assembled so I painted that bronze along with the 2bbl intake. I still need to drop off the heads to the shop. I was going to install the lifters and noticed there was no movement of the plunger. Sure enough it was stuck as they all are. I had enough time to get 3 of them disassembled and cleaned and back. Other than this they look to be in great shape with not even a hint of concaving on the bottom. These .921 lifters are pricey so I want to get by with the originals. I painted the interior windshield pillar posts and the glass can go in as soon as the metal dash panel is painted.

 

Got all the lifters cleaned and plunger inside moves good now. I also installed the front winshield with 1/4 " butyl tape by 3m. It went in without a hitch. I pulled the radiator core support out of storage and see it needs minimal welding/patching where battery tray was mounted. In 2 weeks I hope to make Carlisle. The bumpers I dropped off last fall should be ready for pickup after I part ways with a G! There is still lots of cash to spend for carpeting, weatherstrips, exhaust and rubber parts and there is no shortage of work to be done. I am thinking of putting repop G78 14 tires on this car. The ride with bias ply is not like the radials that we are used to but they have era look that just cant be gotten with radials.

 

trucking right along Joe

Don't think that you mentioned what colour you are going with this car?

 

Wes, since I like to keep most everything as they were originally the car will be white.

 

This a really cool project. Thanks Joe, now my Olds lady HAS to have a T/C. So that adds to her list of Oldsmobiles she must own. HAHA Great job with this car!

 

Thanks, yeah I have a list too but realize some of the ones on there will have to remain on there. This one was pretty high on the list and an opportunity came for the purchase... Welcome back to the fold!

 

The radiator core support has been patched. It needed a couple of holes patched on the battery tray side and both mounting areas were enlarged and weak from rust. I still need to paint it but I wont mount it till the engine is in place. I bled the brakes and had a little trouble getting fluid to the rear cylinders. Even though I bench bled the master cyl it still wanted to suck air from the line side. I ended up back feeding fluid under pressure up to the master cylinder thru the line. There is not much progress to show so I have no pictures. Thursday I will be at Carlisle to pick up the bumpers and visit Fusick's booth for some odds and ends.

 

Carlisle swap was last week and I picked up the bumpers done by tri City. They came out very nice even the rear one that was a pretty mangled core. I got the core support patched and painted and one inner wheel well. The other one has also been patched in the battery tray area and needs de-rusting and paint.

 

Here are a few pictures of work done. I am starting on cleaning and stripping paint off the fenders.

 

Have been busy with the hood, trunk lid and fenders. I am glad to say they are just about ready for paint. Lucky for me the car was already primered so I did not have to strip layers of paint! The hood needed the typical front edge patching which was minimal. There were a few dings and high spots that needed fixing. I was able to sand the primer and recoat a few times. I did the same with the trunk lid. As for the fenders I found replacements. One from a 66 so trim holes needed to be filled and redrilled in the proper locations for 67. The other fender was a 67 with lots of surface rust and only a few tiny pinholes on the lower part that typically rusts. This fender had no major dents but lots of wavy areas that had filler under the rust and paint. It took many hours but I think I have it straight. I must say smoothing panels does not come easy for me. The doors and body have not been started on as far as sanding and smoothing. I am hoping to get the engine together and running soon so the car can be moved out into daylight for the work on the body. I still need to drop off the heads for a valve job. The exhaust has been ordered from Classic Exhaust. It will be duals with turned down ends. It is still unclear to me what the TC came with as far as tailpipes. I could swear I saw one with the 442 style tipped tailpipes back in the 70's. The GM parts manuals are not clear on what they would be. One magazine article back in the day said the TC had resonators but none are listed in the parts books that I could see...

 

FWIW, I replaced the last original tailpipe on the white convertible, it had a turndown right at the bumper. The end of the pipe is not really seen if installed as the original was.


Best luck,

 

Yes 66Luvr, the TC option on a vert is very rare. I dont recall ever seeing another but in 45 years of fooling with Oldsmobiles I have seen perhaps 3 or 4 TCs in person.

As said one magazine article said the TC they tested had resonators. I would think the exhaust may be a little bit loud without em? Thanks for the tailpipe info.

 

The white car has both original head/manifold pipes, one original muffler, and it had one original tailpipe which was like Swiss cheese. There were no resonators nor any sign of ever having one. The exhaust is quiet, not at all loud no matter hard you drive it.

 

Ok thanks, thing is I got the 442 exhaust from the same place Classic exhaust and it is a little throaty at idle and it has repop chambered tailpipes... Will see when I get it installed and engine running. Maybe the TC calls for different quieter mufflers....

 

The mufflers that Scott at Classic Exhaust sells are a bit on the loud side.
I specifically asked him to include his quietest ones, and the car has quite a rumble.
I'm sure Walker or some other supplier has much quieter mufflers in that size format.
In my case, I bought a pair of resonators on eBay (same ones specified by Walker as original replacements) and installed them, and while it's still louder than I would prefer, it just sounds so darned good that I really don't care.

- Eric

 

Yeah I was afraid the 442 would be too quiet but to me it is perfect but probably too quiet for the younger crowd. But on the TC is would be a little too loud. I may need to do resonators but that is a ways down the road right now.

 

How does the Gardner repro exhaust system sound? I may get that setup for my 67, and being a 442, it can be as loud as it pleases within reason, although stock sound would be nice.

 

I dont know about Gardner, alls I know is they advertise repop 67 chambered tipped tailpipes. I called them to ask a price and they would not quote me unless I was ready to buy, which I was not. They said when I am ready they would work up a high quality system for my 442.... I blew them off as expensive and not wanting my business.

In my opinion Classic Exhaust had the perfect stock sound for the 442 with Walts repop chambered tailpipes.

 

I started spraying color a week or so ago. The trunk lid and hood have 5 coats of white lacquer on them. I will put on 1 more coat and set them aside for sanding and buffing later. (who knows what nicks or scrapes may befall them before assembly) The fenders will be next and then I can start on sanding the body and doors and smoothing things there. I did drop the heads off finally for a valve job and should have them back in 2 weeks or less. Exhaust is on its way and need to get a carpet for the floor. I hope to post some picts soon.

 

Please do Joe! Where in the world do you keep finding lacquer?