65 GTO

[Thumpin455]

You guys are being a little rough on us PY peeps...

Please don't think all nice cars are 100k Restos.

You are aware this build is on PY too, almost verbatim. I follow the other guys in the 64/65 area and their builds. There is nothing wrong with the rest of them, and the other 65 I mentioned, but damn it was a clean car. PY has helped me with a ton of parts, more than a few donated, so I appreciate and respect those guys just as much as these guys.

Yours looks awesome, and if someone spends $100k on a resto they hauled around to shops to have the work done instead of doing it themselves. You and I did it ourselves, that is how we managed to do it much cheaper.

I have other issues with PY, and a couple other Pontiac only sites. Mostly with the same group of people that are on all of them, so PY is the only other place I frequent now.

[Thumpin455]

Nice. Now that you guys need something to do... http://flagstaff.craigslist.org/cto/3754408590.html

Haul it up here. I have a 74 Formula 350 already. THe last thing I need is another 2nd gen F body, unless its an HO or SD.

[Thumpin455]

Boring update, but have gotten lots of the small things done. The Th350 is rebuilt, just need to clean the valve body, get a detent cable and the speedo gear out of another trans and its ready to go in. If I can get the detent in then there will be a transmission in the thing soon. Spent today cleaning parts, pulling clutch packs and pistons out and replacing the seals. No extra parts so I am pretty sure it went back together right. If it works good then I still have the knack for the three speeds. Just concerned because it went so easily.

Spent 4 hours on the doors, adjusting the strikers, moving the windows around so they seal up and dont run into each other. What a chore that is on a near 50 year old car that has been rebuilt as much as this one has. Turn the screw and tighten the nut, roll the window and see how it does... do it again, and again, and you get the idea. 4 freakin hours of doing that crap. I think my mother in law will be able to open the door now, and not shatter the door glass when the door closes, so that is good. Need to get the door panels on and install the window cranks. I think I will jam the rear windows so they dont roll down, those things are sticky and I dont want to be tearing into it every week because someone rolled it down and broke something.

Rebuilt the alternator too, now its a 100amp fry small rodents with current while running a stereo capable. The harness I got for it is set up for an internal regulated alternator and HEI, just to simplify things.

Soon it will go up on jackstands for what hopefully is the last time, install exhaust, make sure the suspension is tight and secured, run the cooler lines for the trans, and bleed the brakes. Then the last thing will be spraying some bed liner in the wheel wells to minimize the road noise and make it look black under there.

If I wasnt so sore today I would still be out there doing all the little things, like the carb, oil filter, radiator hoses, etc. It feels like this stuff takes even longer than the body work and welding.

[milner351]

All in time! You're a one man army! Got to take some time off to heal up and preserve your sanity - work on the internals of doors is one of my most hated jobs on a car.

[SuperBuickGuy]

. Just concerned because it went so easily.

If I wasnt so sore today I would still be out there doing all the little things, like the carb, oil filter, radiator hoses, etc. It feels like this stuff takes even longer than the body work and welding.

I know that feeling - the easy bit - statistically speaking, somethings got to go easy, otherwise, you'd have nothing to compare the rest of the work too (at least, that's my cynical feeling when something finally works right )

I always figure I'm about 50% done when the car is painted... so you're well on track and close to being to 90% done (the moment when you can safely take the car for a test drive)

[Thumpin455]

Thanks again guys, the test drive is getting closer. The brakes are causing me some trepidation, I dont trust my flare work, but its rare I have leaks. A big leak on this thing would be heartbreaking to have it sprayed all over a panel or something. Will bleed them when I get it up in the air to put the 350 in and finish the work under there.

Spent a few hours out there today enjoying the 50+ temps. Its about freakin time. This is what I got done, among a few other small things.

Cleaning the back seat, it was nasty so some hand cleaner and a toothbrush were called into action.



Still not great but lots better.



Decided to just go ahead and get this done, even if I need to fix the rear window fitment. I can always tape off the interior or just yank the stuff out of the back if I need to reweld something. It looks damn near hospitable in there.



Also got the rear door panels in, the fronts can go in tomorrow. The transmission is buttoned up except for the pan because I am waiting on the detent cable to show, might be in tomorrow (hopefully) and then I can put that thing in there and get the shifter connected. Then I wont worry about it rolling away or into things. I am leaving some things out because I want it running, the other small stuff can be done later once its drivable.

I found out the hard way that the accelerator pedal mounting pins wont take much torque, the stupid thing just snapped right off when I tightened it, not even grade 3 hardware there. Need to find some better quality parts for that.

[74NovaMan]

Looking good! Nice to see the updates!

[Thumpin455]

Todays effort was cut short by the Houdini dogs, and subsequent fence repairs, but over the last couple days progress has been made.

The interior is coming along, and the window felts are all in so it looks more like a car now than it ever has since I have had it on the yard.






Tomorrow the gauges will go in, and the final few bits including the package shelf. Tonight the sill trim will get worked over and hopefully I can polish it up and clear it. Otherwise it will look like crap with the rest of the car being decent. Too bad nobody reproduces those pieces, sure would be nice to get new ones.

[NightShifter]

Haul it up here. I have a 74 Formula 350 already. THe last thing I need is another 2nd gen F body, unless its an HO or SD.

I'm not up for that long of a trip. I'll let you know when it's sitting in my backyard.

[Thumpin455]

I still have to keep telling myself, "ITS NOT A SHOW CAR" because I keep wanting to fix the spots I dont like on it and repaint it, and rework a few places I really dont like how it turned out. Its a driver, and Dave doesnt want it too nice or he will be afraid to drive it.

The transmission is in, need to run the cooler lines and put the dipstick tube in it, make a modulator line for it, add some fluid then it is done. The driveshaft is already in there bolted up and ready to go. The ST300 shaft does fit a Th350 perfectly, thanks GM.

I have a list of small stuff I need to continue and get it running, going to pick that up tomorrow and hopefully fire it up this week. Still need to order some resto parts like a headliner, arm rest cushions, and GTO plates for the door panels to finish the interior. Might as well buy an alignment tool so I can set up the front ends here, for $200 total it only takes two or three cars to pay for itself, so that will be on the way from Summit. Ive done enough alignments I think I could do this one in my sleep.

Here is what the office looks like right now.

[DanStokes]

Todd, you are AMAZING!!!! And thanks for saving one - a lesser man would have taken this apart and sold it for parts and probably made a tidy profit. There aren't that many early GTOs left on the planet so it counts to save one. Did I mention that it's looking GOOD!

Dan

[Thumpin455]

Im not amazing, amazing would be having it come out looking like Chip or Troy built it, and doing it in two months. That would be amazing. I agree about saving them, and I think we should also be saving the LeMans and Tempests too. Anything old and hotrod-able should be rebuilt, not scrapped. Doesnt have to be a resto, it can be a driver, street/strip toy, or something interesting, just so long as we dont scrap the ones that can be redone. If there are guys who want to run it, they should be allowed to, not part them out and send the big pieces that dont unbolt to China.

I picked up some of the little stuff, odds and ends that go here and there and take up space or hold things together. Made a list yesterday because I knew I was headed in today, and little stuff adds up quick. So many pieces to a car, tons of little things and this is an old relatively simple car too.

[mike343sharpstick]

Chip or Troy wouldn't have touched that car, that what makes this project so cool.

[Huskinhano]

What a difference!

[Thumpin455]

I was looking at those two pics earlier today, and it dawned on me that everything in the bottom one except for the door, A pillars and trans tunnel is not in the top one. Its all different stuff, including half of the drivers side A pillar. Even the steering column is different.

Yeah, Chip and Troy wouldnt have done this one that is for certain. If my kids have a tombstone for me, it should say "Saved a 65 GTO" and nothing else. =P