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I finished the staples on the front air dam today. My unconventional process was as follows...use the top of the screwdriver handle to roll one side of the staple kinda flat, use needle nose pliers to bend the other side, put a piece of wood under the staple, and gently take a small mallet and flatten the staples. It worked surprisingly well! I had detailed the hardware a year or two ago so they just needed a coating of T9 and in they went. I was able to get the washers to line up exactly where they were from the factory.
Original rubber that has been restored being reunited with its original plastic.
Restored original hardware.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Sep 20, 2020 at 08:23 PM.
Today consisted of installing the brake lines for the MC and proportioning valve and throwing the radiator drain hose on. I cut it the same length as the original. I’m having a hard time getting the clip for the hose to mount on the lip of the core. Sigh.
I also pulled the inner fenders down from the parts room and in to the garage. I have one original flap and did a comparison tonight. They’re almost identical. See pics below. What have you guys done for staple installation? Thinking of taping the flaps to the inner fenders and drilling tiny holes through the rubber. These staples seem a tiny bit more pliable than the air dam staples.
I had to sort through all my inner fender hardware. I ended up having to procure one additional long bolt and three J nuts. I took fairly detailed pictures of the bolts during tear down, and the LH inner fender was installed to the lower fender bolt with a bolt that resembles the trunk latch. I don’t believe the inner fenders were ever out of the car because there’s only one set of washer marks in the plastic. Kinda interesting. I hope to have the inner fenders installed this weekend.
Factory flaps are just a touch longer.
Other than that, they’re really close to the originals. If I knew what happened to my other factory flap, I would consider restoring the pair.
Original inner fenders repaired and restored.
Just making sure the staples fit the factory holes. They do.
On mine, one side had two of these and the other side only used one. I think that’s a factory goof if I am reading the PIM right.
Replated hardware.
Factory placement.
Factory hardware.
For those that followed this build starting at the beginning, the original owner painted the inner fenders white.
What have you guys done for staple installation? Thinking of taping the flaps to the inner fenders and drilling tiny holes through the rubber. These staples seem a tiny bit more pliable than the air dam staples.
Exactly what I did, and it worked perfectly. Just used a hammer to flatten them after pushing them through.
Exactly what I did, and it worked perfectly. Just used a hammer to flatten them after pushing them through.
Originally Posted by mrolds69
I made an aluminum template with 2 holes the width of the staple legs. Then drilled holes through the rubber like mentioned.
Good stuff. I ended up rolling up masking tape to hold the flap in between each staple for the inner fender. I took the smallest drill bit I could find, placed a small piece of wood on the inside applying pressure to the flap against the plastic, and drilled tiny holes. The staples went right in. I only bent one in to place before I stopped for the evening. I hope to pick it back up this weekend and at least get the LH “filler plate” in place. Both the inner fender and rubber will need a good wipe down before going back in the car.
Once the holes were drilled and the staples were in place, I would roll the tape out without the rubber slipping off the staple. Probably an easier way out there, however, this worked for me and kept the staple positioning intact.
All the staples in for the LH side. Just need to bend them over.
My interpretation of bending staples. Again, probably one of my least favorite parts to the restoration thus far.
I made a tool for bending them since was doing 2 sets of wheel houses, my original black ones & the re-pop red ones. I used a piece of steel rod I had lying around, I drilled a hole in the center & tapered the end. It went over the end of the staple & made it easy to start the bend & I finished flattening them with a small hammer. Like mrolds69 did, I made a template for the staple width out of a piece of aluminum since the new red liners weren't drilled for staples. Also standard slip-joint pliers are the perfect size for making extra staples(the kit I bought from Fusick didn't have enough) I used large paperclips to make them. Your car is looking Awesome!!!
I've been following along with your build. Great job. The car is beautiful and you have an incredible amount of patience. I guess this is a little late now that you've installed the seals to the wells but, for future reference, a company called R.E.M. (pretty easily found through the internet) makes the reproduction mastic parts that are available from Fusick and others. I've contacted them directly in the past to make parts for my '69 which weren't available from the parts houses. I sent them my original parts to use as templates and they accurately cut out duplicates.
They were great to work with and I got the new parts and the originals back in great shape. Perfect match.
Made solid progress on the LH inner fender installation today. It was stressful getting it in without scratching the plastic. I removed the wheel and tire and pushed it in from the underside. I tried my hardest to get the holes and washers to align like the factory, but I couldn’t quite get it perfect. Surprisingly, the two bolts that go through the side of the fender were the most “off.”
Since I had the wheel off, I did some heavy cleaning and detailing. I replaced the ILT brake hose and bolt to the caliper with one of the NOS hoses I had in the parts room.
I had several pictures of survivor W-cars with either W31 or W30 scribbled in grease pencil inside the fender. Before I put the inner fender in, I scribbled W31 mimicking another survivor car that had the pencil in the exact same spot.
Installed the battery tray and reproduction R59 battery. I briefly hooked up the positive cable and negative cable, and the wiper switch was on low, so the wipers started going. At least the pump works!
Speaking of wipers, I installed the NOS washer jar, cleaned the factory cap, hose, and filter after a thorough cleaning.
Finally, I’m trying to figure out which wires go under the loops. The connectors that go to the relay I think go under the middle loop despite what the PIM shows. The connectors that go to the stud on the relay don’t go under the middle loop based on what the PIM shows.
Inner fenders all set.
50 years of nasty. I soaked this in a baggy of
vinegar to clean up the mess.
NOS washer jar.
W31 scribble. Nothing like trying to replicate a UAW workers chicken scratch.
Original hardware soaked in T9.
PIM routing for wiring.
I think the black, green, and pink wires should go back under that middle loop. (I removed the black plastic cap for the relay, FYI).
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:17 PM.
I made new staples from tinned copper bus wire that is used in electronics wiring. I had a roll of the correct gauge (diameter) material. I found it looks correct, won't rust, and easy to align and to bend. Not the strength of steel but it seems more than adequate.
Cleaned up some items hanging around in the garage. I started with the original bucket seat “piping”. The sides all cleaned your nicely, however, the larger pieces for the seat backs had cracks. I am on the hunt for two factory pieces for the back. I also ordered the kit from Ames to do a comparison. Stay tuned...
I came across what I believe are the original door protectors. I may try to have the stainless polished just to have in the parts stash. I have an NOS set in a paper package that I had planned on sticking in the trunk. I have no intention of putting them on the car!
Lastly, I started cleaning up the frame that goes around the inside of the car for the headliner. This was just the first piece, and I can already tell it will take awhile to get through all the pieces, but it cleaned up nicely. I soaked the piece in the 5 gallon drum of Evaporust, scraped the old adhesive off as best as I could, and then hit it with 0000 steel wool.
Hard to tell how much these faded over 50 years. I can tell the stuff I bought off eBay is way too bright! I have a feeling the piping from Ames will be spot on.
What I believe are the original door protectors. If so,
cool stampings from Adell in Detroit.
One of the many pieces for the headliner. A lot more cleanup ahead!
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Sep 28, 2020 at 06:57 AM.
Picked a few inside activities so I could watch football and work on the car.
Today’s work included wiping down the plastic bucket seat panels after they had been painted, installing the correct piping, and installing the arm rest base trim.
For the arm rests, I had an NOS LH arm rest sprayed blue when the other panels were dyed because I was not sure how the factory LH arm rest would hold up. There was a tiny bit of discolor that ended up not being an issue after it was sprayed. In the end, I reused both factory plastics. If anyone needs an NOS LH plastic arm rest sprayed in the correct blue, let me know! The stainless was polished professionally and looks great back inside the plastic!
The arm rest pads will be recovered with NOS blue vinyl material acquired from SMS. I don’t like the look of the reproductions!
On to the bucket seat plastic piping. I ordered the set from Ames Pontiac for around $90. Their color under the plastic was PERFECT! The molds are spots on, and they give you plenty of material to cut. I went through tons of pictures and concluded that at tear down of my car, the plastic was actually a touch shorter at the corners. Not a single panel touched the corners, and each panel had a 1/4” to 1/2” gap. I may have taken a risk here, but I decided to match those lengths. It’s possible that the plastic shrunk over the 50 years. Who knows. It’ll work for me. Again, I am very pleased with how this turned out.
I cleaned the screw heads with a 0000 steel wool to remove a tiny bit of oxidation.
The engine compartment is about 99% done. I’m awaiting literally two freaking staples from REM to finish the RH inner fender flap. Once the staples get here, I’ll install that, swap the brake hose to an NOS hose, and button everything back up.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:15 PM.
Plastic arm rest bases dyed the correct light blue.
Polished stainless.
Top base is the NOS base. I will reuse the factory pieces.
Ames Pontiac supplied the seat “piping.”
Seat back from the passenger seat.
Comparison between original factory piping and Ames. It is meant to be trimmed.
You can see the excess material that needed to be trimmed.
More trimming required.
I made the cuts a little shorter since that is how they were on my car. It could very well just be shrinking. Not sure and don’t care now that I have cut them
Side panel reinstalled with factory hardware.
Here is how I did the piping. I heated it with a blow drier, installed it, marked where I wanted to cut with a blade, started the cut with a blade, and then stuck the plastic in this hose cutting tool. Worked perfectly and cut smooth and straight every time!
Check out the gaps on the piping before I ripped the car apart.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:11 PM.
Your seats look great!, Like everything else you're doing!!! I also used the Ames piping kit on my '68. Excellent quality!! I had to be extra careful when trimming mine since the '68 seats still used those pain in the *** stainless end caps that have to capture the end of the piping. Luckily my car was only missing 2 caps after all these years! While the Ames piping was the right thickness the caps that come with their kit were much "thinner"
The original seat backs have been installed. Again, I wanted to keep the factory plastic, and although it isn’t perfect, it still looks pretty damn good.
My factory push buttons were pretty beat up and the plastic had started chipping off. I was lucky enough to find a NOS set last year, and that is what I ended up installing. As a side note, the NOS and factory buttons are identical to the reproductions outside of the backside where you see a screw. Once the repop is installed, you cannot tell a difference! I did spray a touch of white grease in to the slider just to get it moving a bit better.
The only other nuance may be the center spot on the button itself and how the plastic chrome reflects. It’s almost more to a point.
Backside. Note the screw and the text embossed on the plastic.
Passenger seat ready to go!
Correct screws were nice enough that they just needed a bit of steel wool. Original rubber bumpers were restored and reused. When we judge at MCACN, this area of the seat is usually neglected and showing wear.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:07 PM.
I had to call REM and request additional staples. They were incredibly accommodating and had staples to me in just a couple of days. I only need two of them so I popped them in, followed the same steps as I did on the LH inner fender, and finished prepping the inner fender for install.
I am hoping to install Friday afternoon or Saturday morning. That’ll leave just a few minor items left for the engine compartment and then it’s on to the interior.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:07 PM.
Are those new inner fenders? If not what did you clean them with? Did you also paint them with some type of vinyl spray if they’re the originals?
I read the whole thread and I don’t remember you addressing this but I could’ve missed that somewhere! Grandpa’s memory isn’t what it used to be… LOL
Are those new inner fenders? If not what did you clean them with? Did you also paint them with some type of vinyl spray if they’re the originals?
I read the whole thread and I don’t remember you addressing this but I could’ve missed that somewhere! Grandpa’s memory isn’t what it used to be… LOL
They are the original inner fenders that have just been cleaned up a bit.
Jimmy, the last seat pic, the RH apron is not hooked on the metal tab. You hook the back first, then i usually get like an awl or small screwdriver to hold one of the front screw holes in position and put one in the one next to it. Those apron screws and the bumper screws, I use 4-0 steel wool, too. I put the screw(s) in my drill, hold the wool or put it on the bench, and let the drill do the work. Slowly, of course.
Jimmy, the last seat pic, the RH apron is not hooked on the metal tab. You hook the back first, then i usually get like an awl or small screwdriver to hold one of the front screw holes in position and put one in the one next to it. Those apron screws and the bumper screws, I use 4-0 steel wool, too. I put the screw(s) in my drill, hold the wool or put it on the bench, and let the drill do the work. Slowly, of course.
Looking at the battery clamp that I pulled from the car and another one I had around the garage, there is a big difference in the curvature. Anyone know what the deal is?
And I’m going through the blue vinyl material for the rear arm rests as I wait for SMS to get their act together. Look at the stitching color on the material that wraps around. It appears to be blue. What I want to figure out is whether all the stitching was blue and it just faded or something else is going on here. Curious what others have seen.
The clamp I removed from the car is on the right.
If you look closely, you can see blue on the stitching and then it appears to be an off white stitch. It could just be that the blue faded but something is clearly going on here.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:06 PM.
In my experiences, the hidden parts of the interior stitchwork usually show the "as-new" stitching. I've only had black or white vinyl in my cars, so they either had black or white stitching, so I can't say for certain about other color interiors. But the hidden parts of the black are a darker shade of black if you will than the exposed threads.
So in your case, apparently they used a colored thread of blue. My guess is, that they may have had waxed thread at that time and whatever coloring they used to match the vinyl was what they dipped the thread in and stitched the vinyl together. Regardless, the exposed threads either get sunbaked, or cleaned/wiped over the years causing the color to fade or degenerate to the base color of the thread, and that's the color you're seeing on most of the exposed vinyl areas. After all, it's like half a century old, right?
IMO, the entire stitching threads around the interior of the car should be the color blue you found in the "hidden" areas.
Jimmy, those battery clamps were used for a long time on GM products, I've seen differences in them. I know there is at least one other early type, with like 2 wrinkles on the long edge. I remember reading a TSB somewhere those were recalled because they would bend at the wrinkles if you tightened them too much. The early (before 1967 or so) GM cars mostly had brackets that went over the top of the battery. Then GM decided the single bracket was cheaper and easier to use. By the late 60's most GM used those. It was like a universal design. Before that clamp, it was crazy. A 65 GTO would have a different bracket then a 65 SS or a 65 GS. Because they were new, people would just crank them down too hard, and they would bend. They don't need 20 ft lbs, because as you tighten them, the bracket is forced to clamp. I've got a box with a few NOS clamps in it in my stash. I'm guessing the one on the left is an improved design. I'd bet there are 6+ superceded numbers for that part. I'll see what they look like....
I guess good things do come to those that wait. My March order from SMS arrived today for the blue vinyl material. It’s several yards (I think several more than I actually ordered) of NOS blue vinyl material. I need to make new rear arm covers (unless someone tells me Legendary makes them??) and recover the arm rest pads. Pretty cool to see the 02-70 date!
RH inner fender went in this afternoon. This side was much easier for me. The holes all lined up without issue. I did the top two bolts to the fender first to keep them positioned, then made sure the four bolts at the core support lined up, then the four bolts around the lip of the fender, and finally the three lower bolts. I did some bolt shuffling as I realized that the inner fenders actually had been removed from the car prior to me tearing it apart. I have everything button up now.
Swapped the brake hose and detailed the frame and suspension to get all the dust off. Added chalk marks to the RH fender, and put everything back.
For now, there are maybe a handful of super small detail items left in the engine compartment. It’s now time to turn my attention towards reassembling the interior. I have the carpet laying in the car now as my wife was tired of seeing it in the basement. I’m working on getting the headliner knocked out first which should hopefully set everything else in motion.
I was fortunate to cover the washer impressions from the factory almost perfectly. It’s a pet peeve of mine when I see that on restored cars.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:05 PM.
Made an appointment for a local shop to install the headliner November 9th. For the interior, the plan is to work from the roof down.
For those that have gone through a headliner installation, are there any "gotcha" moments with regards to the install or any of the associated parts? I'm going to have them cut the holes for the dome light, seat belts, seat belt clips, visor pivots, coat hooks, etc.
I sure don't miss installing new carpet.... The one I had for my W-30 took me a really long time to get it to fit correct. Even then, I have no idea why I done it but mounted my seats on top of the carpet instead of cutting around the feet of the buckets. I never did fix that.
I sure don't miss installing new carpet.... The one I had for my W-30 took me a really long time to get it to fit correct. Even then, I have no idea why I done it but mounted my seats on top of the carpet instead of cutting around the feet of the buckets. I never did fix that.
The cuts on the carpet are pretty wild. They make sense though. Carpet is already in before the seats, and the carpet flaps essentially fold right in to place. It’s a pain in the *** to cut (did a practice run on one of the other cars last month).
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:03 PM.
I can already tell I am going to have a ton of questions.
First up are the flasher colors. I see NOS flashers in yellow and blue. What’s right? Anyone have a picture of a factory flasher?
I am also digging in to the fuse colors. Looks like red is 10 amps. I see white, too. Who makes the fuses like this with the color?
I may regret not painting the plate for the column to the firewall in a detail grey, but for now it’ll remain bare steel drenched in T9 to prevent flash rust.
And yes, I went with a reproduction pad. Two reasons. I had mice in the car and secondly I can’t imagine that stuff is good to be breathing after 50+ years.
I have some dusting and detailing to do here.
This looks like a vintage replacement part. Still researching...
I need to find a replacement vent for the LH side of the dash. This somehow cracked and looked awful through the windshield. Anyone have one for sale?
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 15, 2020 at 06:42 AM.
I previously installed a set of NOS door jamb “vents.” I don’t like the fit on the LH side despite working it over and over again. I think the plastic is defective. I dug out my originals and did my best to clean them. There’s a tiny spot on the factory LH vent that I think / hope will buff out. The originals will be going back in the car.
Cleaned the original speedo cable grommet. If it will seat correctly in the pan, I’ll reuse it. Pretty cool to see how it has shaped from all the years of having the cable through it. I may need to soften the rubber a bit.
I wanted to get the numbers off the pedal pads for the e-brake and brake. In the same bag was the original gas pedal. I cleaned every line in it to remove 50 years of dirt and tiny pebbles. While it’s clean, it’s also worn and faded. I have an NOS one so what I may do is put something together for the original owner of the car as a souvenir when I show him the car in the spring. In fact, I may do that will all three pedals / pads.
Tomorrow starts the cleaning and detailing of the massive wire harness. I’ll post picture of that tomorrow. To start, I’m going to have to do some soldering to get one of the done light clips reattached.
Does anyone have pictures of the routing of the dome light wires as it comes up through the trunk? Same for the rear view mirror.
I could have sworn I saw someone disassemble these vents to detail them. Maybe it was the dash vents.
If only this pedal could share its stories.
Last edited by WTHIRTY1; Oct 26, 2020 at 03:02 PM.
Minor cleaning today on a few loose interior pieces. The plastic for under the steering column, along with the plastic corners for the rear, had a nice bath in hot soapy water today. Overall, they cleaned up well. I have a bag with two small interior screws that weren’t labeled so I am assuming / hoping they’re for the plastic under the column. See the pic below.
Need to mask the plastic and get at the rust with a little bit of steel wool.
Are these the correct screws for the plastic piece that mounts under the steering column?
Prep for the headliner continues. I dug the dome light wires out and recalled how one of the prongs for the bulb broke off while disassembling. Oops. The actual tab on the prong broke so it would be tough getting the wires crimped it without that tab. If anyone has an extra metal prong with a good tab,
let me know because I would like to reuse the factory wires.
Anyone have a spare?
Also tried to get the lock off the glovebox tonight. I read the tutorials on this site, and I still can’t get it. I tried depressing the tab but nothing would come loose. I’m likely just doing it wrong, but I followed the steps, and I still couldn’t get it. I move the spring clasp over to the closed position, insert the key, turn clockwise so it’s locked, pushed on the tab in the tiny hole in the back, jiggled it, and nothing popped off. Hmm.
