I dug out the filler I just put in and redid it w short hair filler then went over that w a thin coat of rage gold

even w epoxy primer then paint and the urethane windshield stuff I got concerned about water getting behind the windshield again

Made brackets and test fit the new vents

I’m running out of steam but I need to get in process stuff tied up so I can move it to the shop

going to try to do the trunk next ( gonna need help and call in a favor or three)

I do have a trunk to use at least

 

Keep at your doing great!

 

^^ thanks. I appreciate it

There’s lots of projects on here that makes mine look like a rusty Soviet tractor

 

I used the Eastwood 2k rattle cans and got epoxy primer over the windshield and dash, also got the 55 truck dash and everything that will be behind the windshield gasket. I had a leftover can of primer over the firewall and a few engine brackets

then everything was covered in the Underhood semi flat black

its still wet but to qoute aVe. It’s good enough for the girls I go out with.

having a cold snack while it dries

 

Nice work !

 

Nice Work!!!

 

Thanks guys.

I’ve got the heat on right now trying to warm it up. I don’t know what it costs to run but this forced air gas heater will take only an hour to get it from 45 to 65-70

working on brakes today. Should have been done last weekend. But I didn’t like the brake flex lines that came with the kit from southwest speed so I’ve got a set with the banjo bolts that came in this week

I called legendary auto interiors and got a qoute Whoa. It hurts. Also she told me that even seat covers were an October shop date
So I do need to order now. But it’s gonna put a crimp in my style for a while

 

I am in the same boat for seat covers. I am just going to have a local guy make me new front covers. This round of work on my 64 is not a restoration but more of get the car together and drive it.

 

brief update.
Im putting together the clutch and setting up the hydraulic bearing, I need to check the bellhousing run out as well.
Went ahead and bit the bullet and have an interior ordered from legendary. I lost my starter, so ive got that ordered and a balancer.... this leaves me with needing a carb
I have only tried to tune a quick fuel, and i spent alot of time messing with it (but I am very dumb), like every other weekend all summer it seemed

Its starting to warm up here and I have a two page list of stuff to do for the house; 20 yards of dirt to move (with a fork and small trailer) , beds to build and a fence, a trellis for hops, a pretty healty garden to plant. So Im gong to try to knock all of that out while I am waiting on parts.

Pics to follow soon

 

I Dont Know but i am interested in this process as well !!!

 

I did check it all on another project and was glad to have done it. I ended up needing to use offset dowels to get it within the .005” recommendations

I’d be the worst to explain the process but I just watched a bunch of you tube videos until I felt like I knew what I was doing

 

Been to Lowe’s and tractor supply already Having a coffee. Have the Beatles live at the BBC 1-2 on
On to the trans here in a Little bit

 

I got the throwout bearing set with .073" clearance and the spec from Howe is .060. the bellhousing is parallel to the block and the runout comes right in at the max spec of .050..... max spec is .005"

 

So I cannot find the rocker trim panels that I know I have somewhere, I do think they were in bad shape, and one was broken where it connects to the front fender, but i do have the four wheel arch trim pieces again I think one of the four has a dig dent in it.

I know the arches are hard to get, do people like me have a couple good pieces and not a full set? Will I have any luck trying to get what I need or should I sell my parts and help someone get what they need? (I cant imagine someone with a full set would break up the set to sell one corner) Does it look weird to not have the rocker trim and use the wheel trim?

 

trim for the 64 is almost impossible to find in perfect shape but is doable usually have to buy 1 here and there but they are repairable probably not on the cheap side for cost repair but they can be saved.


personally I feel the look with just the wheel well is nice and clean I would save them and install them with out the rocker lower part if it was me but again you can get a decent amount for them depending on condition admins could use the funds towards the build

 

definitely need to update us on the 4 speed swap and parts used and how you like it

I am doing a 6.0 with 6.2 heads in the vert would love to swap to a manual

 

for the clutch I am using the reproduction GM aluminum bellhousing for a muncie. Lakewood Part # LK4000
The flywheel is for a LS motor I picked a billet steel unit from Ram clutches #1550 11" 27#
I needed a 10 spline clutch I went with McLeod Racing 75224 its a street/strip unit, but they have a street clutch and a race clutch both in 10 spline
I used a stock GM pilot bushing I think its for a LS3 application or that's what everyone calls it (it came with clutch, i bought a diff one too but dont know why id didnt use it)
For the hydraulics I used a mcLeod linkage kit for a Chevelle Part 673-1434004, It comes with a new clutch pedal that you have to use, but it swaps directly in place of the old pedal. This unit also uses, what I'll bet you lunch, is a stock 2002 F body master cylinder.
Howe throughout bearing Part Number : 505-82870 JEGS
Hose kit Part Number : 505-8287 JEGS
mcleaod bearing 673-8617 JEGS (i bought this but I may have used a different one)
____
____
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ram-1550
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mcl-75324
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mcl-75224
https://www.jegs.com/i/McLeod/673/1434004/10002/-1#

 

Do they make an option that comes with a nice anodized billet master cylinder?

 

For this setup I dont think so. IT seemed a little hokey to me as well. After putting it all together I realized that it is pretty tight all around the factory pedals and pushrods and all. In my mind that is why they set it up the way it is.

Our 55 truck just has a big flat firewall and plenty of room under the dash For that I used off the shelf components and a universal pedal. It was a lot cheaped and had at least a metal master cylinder.

 

I had to order a an4 with a 90 to make the Howe bearing work. Well it would have “worked” with the straight hose but it would have stayed uncomfortably kinked all the time

So. The first time since 1977 or 78 the cutlass now has a motor and trans installed

it has brakes and a suspension it has steering








minimal clearance to steering box. I’m gonna have to think on this some

 

That’s for the parts list!!

do you have any pictures of the unit installed in the car yet just wanting to see how you set it up.

I am kinda visual hands on type of tech.

any ways great progress love the build

 

If it fits, it fits! Or maybe replace that bolt with a button head Allen bolt for extra room and no worries.

 

Ill be out there again tomorrow, and Ill get some pics. it is installed but I haven't attached the clutch pedal linkage to the pedal but it is all in place..

That's a good idea, I know it is hard to really tell in the photo but its just the side of the bolt head that is in the way, a button head would curve away and give me some extra room on the edge where I really need it...

I think there's something going on with how my trans crossmember is working, it is too high maybe.(it is integral to the chassis reinforcement kit) Holley says my mounts are supposed to work with the truck FEAD and a 5" pulley and a Delphi 600 steering box. I am using a Lares 11353 which is just the metric fittings version of the grand Cherokee box everyone uses, which is a Delphi 600 box unless I made a mistake


thanks all for the kind words and encouragement

 

There is a thick steel plate that sets the angle of the clutch master. The plate fits between the brake booster and firewall. It has a large hole for the brake pushrod to pass through. I did enlarge the top of the hole but I don’t see it being a issue structurally

I took out the pedal box and then you remove the old clutch pedal and reinstall the new on e from the kit. I bet you could do this in the car if you had to

I have not decided on a location for the fluid resivoir yet

the kit come with one straight line and one with a 90. I used the 90 hose from the kit for the bleeder and bought a 24” line with a 90 to clear the steering. This does seem like oversight on their side as it would absolutely fools the steering with a straight line

 

Thank you.

I am really liking the 4 speed with the hydraulic set up. What gears are you running ?

 

It’s just a regular m20 from a 67 gto. So It should have a 2.52:1 first

I know it sounds crazy but I’m not real sure what the rear gear is. I think the rear end came from a junk yard because the whole bottom of the chunk was painted yellow

I tried rotating the yoke and counting and I came up with something close to 3:1 or even taller maybe

I should count the teeth and figure it out
but I know I want to upgrade it later when funds allow so I kinda just didn’t worry about it

I’ve been eyeing the a body 9” that the place up in Iowa is building. Seems a pretty good setup for the price

 

I got the headers in from Hooker and tried a dry fit… these are the same ones Slwrde is using on his 65

Everything looks good. The headers fit well and the install was pretty easy.
The passenger side slipped in from above and the drivers came in from below. The stock dip stick looks to work as well.

There is good clearance around everything. Except one small corner of the driver side clamshell motor mount which can be easily trimmed back. I will have to rework the trans mount that came with the chassis kit, but that was on the list anyhow as it had the Muncie sitting too high in the rear

I didn’t realize that these were slip fit headers…how do you guys connect them?
I'm thinking v bands or just the big flat band clamps??

I’ve been clearing my head by working on my little brothers Monte Carlo and some garden projects, but work on the cutlass should resume in just a little while....

 

Well I could detail a list of non oldsmobile work I’ve gotten done recently that has kept me from doing anything on the cutlass. It’s been a couple months I guess. But I started fitting and building a new trans crossmember. The one that is included with the chassis kit of course doesn’t allow room for the shifter linkage

is 3 degrees down to the back an appropriate angle for the driveline ? That’s what I have always read the ls motors like

I’m going to try to get some more done this weekend. We will see

 

Great thread, I’m subscribed!

 

Made a transmission mount. I have 3.5 degrees slope backwards, measured from the valley cover
and the output shaft on the Muncie is centered between the frame rails within 1/8”. Ish.

I had to build this to work with the chassis stiffening kit and I have decent but not perfect clearance for exhaust.

there is also plenty of clearance it seems for the shifter linkage which was one of the problems with the mount that came with the kit

 

Nice looks solid

 

Shifter and new linkage installed. The reverse rod fouls the mount but I will clearance that

I haven’t set the stops yet either but it goes into each gear and snaps back, with reverse being just a little sticky coming back to neutral.








EDIT: I did clearance the transmission mount and now it feels much better going into and out of reverse.

 

Not much progress. I am still waiting on OPGI to ship an order of interior parts from February of this year. They keep pushing the expected date back and they have no info or expectations.
I mounted the clutch reservoir, and I hope I got it right. I had to look online at wiper motors to see how they are shaped, and imagine where my inner fenders will be.

I am only running the shop AC on the weekends and it only keeps it about 80 or 85 at best so I'm having a hard time finding motivation.
I'm waiting for the weather to break and I'll get going again.

Since I don't have a wiper motor, or the switch... can I just buy the two speed motor and corresponding switch?

I did get an email from OPGI telling me my points would expire soon. I didn’t know they did a rewards program. So I logged in and realized I had about 150$ worth. I could not think of anything I needed right now except door hinges. Which I swear I thought no one made. Anyhow they have them so I’ve got those and some door locks coming all for 20$ in shipping I'm all for small victories.

 

Been watching Oldsmobeast’s YouTube videos and I decided to get out in the shop some today

after I got the driveline plumb in the chassis I was not happy with the belt clearance to the steering box. ICT billet has two brackets that move the ps pump inboard one inch. One keeps the alt in the stock location and the other moves it down and outboard a bit. I think the latter may look better but maybe that’s just buyers remorse. I ordered the stock alternator location.

They ship super quick and it comes with every part and bolt needed and a color cad assembly diagram. No actual instructions but the diagram shows everything

I had hoped to go back to the larger pulley but it won’t fit. So the later smaller pulley went back on and I can fit my fingers in the new gap. I’d say 3/4 to one inch plus is the new clearance.

I'm going to pull it all back apart and try my hand at powder coating. I’d like it to be a semi flat black.

I say life gets in the way. Just don’t seem to have time or motivation. I’ll have one and not the other.

My Quincy compressor started smoking and blowing oil out of the breather. Took it apart and found a big score in a cylinder. I usually try to buy for life but after about 1500 hours on this unit I’m now facing a 1100 $ rebuild. A 1200 $ new pump or a 2000 new complete compressor

 

A brief update, and a small rant.
I got a tank, fuel pump and sender from Tanks inc .. Super quick shipping, and everything looks of high quality. The sending unit is a giant PITA to get installed. I got the 0-30 ohm unit, and after instalation on "full" I get 31 ohms and empty I get 7... So I know this will make the gauge read incorrect in the dangerous way...1/4 tank on gauge will actually be empty. I dont know If I have the patience to redo it... but It looks like I will have the time....

I ordered a full interior through OPGI back in February (Legendary). They told me to expect it in October, then November... well a piece or two at a time has shipped and now I am mostly waiting on seat covers. I got an email yesterday with a new ETA of September 2023... I called and was told oh it will probably be May, and somehow I should be excited it wont be a full 20 months it will only be 15....

 

If you used the supplied cork/rubber gaskets, get your supplier to send a set of VITON gaskets. My cork/rubber leaked from day one.

 

Thanks... will do

 

Front seats are out at my buddys shop. I stripped them and did the little bit of rust repair on the frame bottoms. I read a bunch of everyone’s threads on how to build them. One day I’d like to be able to do them but you need to know when to punt.

I bought this little tool to help a guy pull the windshield off his Samurai mud truck

Man it works good. I had to add a second flat spot for the handle to lock to to get the length I needed on one screw

Ive been dreading doing these door hinges for a while but this pulled the screws in 3 minutes flat

I notice the factory screws don’t match the countersink dimension in the new hinges. I’m gonna look into that and may drill the hinges just a hair deeper so the screws sit flush. They do have a conical Star washer I could remove but I’m sure they could use the extra holding power of the washers.

 

Front seats are done. There’s some chalk marks left from the manufacturer on one seat but I think I can get it off w some sort of cleaner

Replacement seat rails from year one are too low and at the wrong angle so I pulled my old rails off the shelf to look at them. The drivers side was missing the back roller/ ball bearing cage assembly. But other than that seem to be in good shape. Could not find the roller online anywhere

I’ve been keeping a pile of junk for a while and found what I think are old or spare seat rails for my Sonoma. I checked inside and it looks like the same part. Cut it open and it looks correct what are the chances?

Well it fits perfectly and the rail moves with no binding or slop

i called year one and they said they show the rails they advertise for 64 are for actually 66-67 and I could send them back?!??

 

I’ve been talking with OPGI about the seat covers

The manufacturer is going to replace them due to the way the horizontal panels were cut too short