Good job. whats next

 

Front seat

 

Looks like it was a mouse house when it was in the salvage yard. Hope it turns out as well as the back seat

 

After evaluating the complexities of the front seat, and realizing how much work it was going to be, I decided to keep searching for blue seat covers. After all, my interior is blue. I shouldn't have settled for the green. I really didn't want to have to do this again, at least not until I won the lottery and could afford NOS material. Besides, the rear cover was crooked and I couldn't live with that either. SO, I was looking on ebay this weekend and found some blue covers that will fit my car, and I won them, for 61.00. I had made some money last week selling parts so my budget was OK with the new purchase. I also upgraded my hog ring pliers to a much better pair the makes a tighter ring.Since i have 2 68 Firebirds to put covers on, I thought they would make a cool addition to the toolbox. The picture of the new covers is pretty crappy, but the early 60's theme is there.I can resell the green ones at a later date to recoup some of my money.

 

Back on the blue track again. These covers are waaay lower quality but they will fit the tacky 60's theme for the summer. After all this is low budget project , even if I bought 2 sets of covers. I will hold onto the green ones for awhile. They were relatively easy to work with and will make a great base for better set of covers in the future. Anyway the front is ready to go back in.

 

From page 1 of this post....."....,73 Cutlass 4spd car,..." SHUT YOUR MOUTH!!! Don't speak of these things if they are not true! Where and how much?! TELL ME! TELL ME! TELL ME! TELL ME NOW!

 

I'm giddy with excitment about that! A '73 4spd Cutlass? I gotta have it! Gimmee, gimmee, gimmee! Stop teasing me!

 

You know that much excitement makes the price go up...... You can call Joel atXXX-XXX-XXXX PM me for info

 

The seats are done, test drove it all afternoon, checks good. I'm real happy with my 150.00 total investment.

 

Made a door panel for the pass side, I started with a piece of press board from the hardware store and painted it to look the the original. I used a little stone spatter paint to give the top and center some texture. It came out real nice . I also duplicated the medallion with foil tape. I used an epoxy to glue the metal top piece to the board. The metal piece was real rusty so I used www.rustbullet.com on it. Here are some pics. I'm going to make them all. If I ever find the original material, I can just go right over this. I may be putting another coat of the lighter blue since it has dried it shows poor coverage. I will finish them off with a clear satin coat.

 

Lookin' good bro!

 

I also scored this for 150.00 It's a 63 394, 330HP ,10:25 to 1 comp , J code engine with cylinder heads that look like they were done at one time. I spins over. Good core if I need it later. Still thinking about that 455/400 turbo if my trans ever takes a dump.


I'll post some more pics of the door panel project later, I'm beat.

 

Great stuff! I like your thinking on the door panel.

 

Great copy on the door panel. Keep it up

 

Interesting thread and posts on your 2 door post Olds. '61 Chevy Impala 2 door post cars are also rare as is the '61 Chev Bel Air 2 door hardtop. Limited production body styles are like yours are always a treat to see compaired to the run of the mill body styles usually seen at car shows. Love your Olds, Good luck with your restoration.

 

NAS what did you ever do about your speedo? I was supposed to get back to you and I never did. I still do have one if you need it. I also have some interesting war stories about mine as well. It seems everytime the car hits the street I am fixing something else. NEXT gas gauge.

 

Wow!- -Great job NAS, that`s the spirit!

 

Real creativity and good workmanship. Very nice

 

Very nice!

 

Thanks for the comments. I was goofing around with the skirts the other day and was trying them on the car. I think they make a cool option when I get in the mood. I also scored a set of seat belts for 10.00 and a trans cooler for 20.00. I've been driving it alot. I'm going to have to bite the bullet and get a transmission filter for it. (ebay 45.00)

 

Thanks for taking the time to post.

Great story and a really sharp car.

My father in law had a 61 Impala with a 348 that was a lot of fun to drive, always thought it would be cool to have a 61 olds.

 

Good job, friend.
I'm going to start back on mine July 1st.
Thanks for keeping my spirits up while I've been broke as a joke.

 

Fender is nice detail..

 

Amazing...that's all I can think of to say! Great job...keep us posted!!!

 

Been real busy with the Olds lately. Flushed 2 gallons of trans fluid into a tub until clean, then installed a new filter and transmission cooler. Then I decided to do the lower suspension since the control arm bushings came apart .I replaced the lower contol arm bushings, lower ball joints, springs and shocks along with a stabilizer link kit. The upper bushings and ball joints still have some life left in them until I can get some new ones. THe tie rods and idler are OK at this time also. I spent about 3 days on it. It brought the car back up to were it's suppose to be. Next is the brake job.

 

Bet she steers a lot better, more like driving the herding I would guess. I am in line to do the same thing onmy 57. Never done a front end before. Your pictures help

 

ditto on that one. How broke is a joke exactly??

 

Finished the front suspension and did a complete brake job, new everything. Also replaced the rear springs, rear wheel bearings and seals. Just test drove it Tuesday and what a difference!.

 

You had the go, now you have the stop as well. Nice job

 

Nas, What a great job your doing on this Olds But PLEASE ditch those 1/4 panel skirts. They are trashy and cheapen your great Olds. Of course your in Calif so maybe there OK there. LOL. Blackwalls and dog dish hub caps make this car a little old lady sleeper- but NO SKIRTS !.

 

Thanks, I hear you on the skirts. Their just an assessory I wanted to have but may be reserved only for Halloween.

 

I agree, I love the car without the skirts, you are doing a great job, I am still shaking my head at the painted door panels what a cool idea!!!

 

Looking very nice I'm amazed @ how the low budget is turning out. Looks like you spent more then what you are. Do you know if that guys still has the Jetstar 1 ? If so is he willing to part it out? I need some parts for my 65 thanks

 

I love looking at these pics of your progress. The trans pan had a drain plug...what a concept!

 

Hello, nice thread! I too have been following your progress. I like the way you are doing it "thriftly." I too have become more thrifty (cheap) in my "middle" years. As soon as I get some open space I plan on diging out a 1966 Dynamic conv that I have buried in a building. How much does it wiegh? Your doing a nice job. Good luck. Ken

 

Awesome find and kudos for bringing it back from the dead.

I see the remnants of a Vista Cruiser sitting in that yard. Can you PM me the guys phone number. I am in desperate need of a rear hatch and bumper after the shipper hauling my pristine '68 VC let it roll off his trailer, down a hill, and into a tree.

Thanks,

Mike

 

Thanks, the low budget had been side tracked a little with the parts. Although still cheaper than paying full list from obsolete vendors, i've had to bite the bullet a little. I still need to buy upper control arm bushings (186.00 for 4) and upper ball joints , their not totally shot yet. I'm holding out for deals on ebay. As of now, I have about 650.00 in the front suspension, front and rear springs, and complete brake job. Full list would have been almost double that. The guy has several 65's in stock and I will be driving the Olds back up there in Oct. and will be getting a full inventory of all the cars and parts available. I got the alignment done, same size tires on all 4 corners, brakes adjusted and it drives and rides great. The car weighs 4080 lbs without anything in the trunk. I gave it a good scrubbing with Comet/0000 steel wool tonight and took it for a cruise.

 

 

Guess I'm showing my age, but on THAT car, the skirts look great! Now....how 'bout a set of '56 spinners..............

 

We had a '61 Dynamic 88 2-door post in glacier blue. 394/auto. Dog dish hub caps. It was about 4-5 years old when we got it. I drove it some in H.S. and all summer long in 1969. Was fascinated with the tri-color speedometer (green, orange, red). The slim jim's governor went kaput early in our tenure, requiring a trans rebuild, no problems after that. Even with a cubic inch advantage, my friend's mothers '66 F-85 with 330/jetaway would blow the '61 away in a short (approx. quarter mile) romp. The slim jim was the culprit, I suspect, as the jetaway could run the entire distance in low range. The '61 was a strong highway cruiser though.

In an accidental "encounter" with a Rambler ('68 ?), the '61 received a minor scratch. The Rambler lost it's fender. The car was a tank. I can't recall exactly when it departed, I think it was the early 70's, for something a bit smaller ( '67 VW beetle, '71 Opel 1900 ).