It was a parts car and now it is a project car

[mikec4193]

So I really did not want to build this project yet...I was actually looking for a early 50's Chevy coupe to build into a vintage late model like what I remember running on the local oval tracks in upstate NY....Then I was offered this parts for the cost of getting it shipped to my house...

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How do say no to that deal...so I will be turning this car into a mini late model / vintage mini stock type car like I remember as a kid in the late 60s and early 70's...

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the next day my neighbor gives me this rooted out hulk...so away we go boys and girls...we are off to the races...

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it only took me weekend and we had it stripped down to its bare bones...

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then came winter and I took 12 weeks off for a trip to the Carolinas and Kansas to see my son and then Erie PA to visit...now we are back at and full steam ahead...

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Not sure what year we have here...I think very early 1950s

More to come

[mikec4193]

The first thing is to shortened it up about 16 inches...

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This how not to do it but it is going to a little on the rough side when we get it all done...a rat roddy I guess..

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I love the feel of rusty metal on my hands...we have plenty with this project...

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Lookie here...we got it narrowed down...I had bought 2 lengths of 2x3 steel tube years ago for a Jeep project that got sold...so we dug a couple of pieces out and cut everything to fit...

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this is part of what we cut off...we need to make it little and lite...

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I hacked off the front frame horns too...so much welding and grinding and cutting and welding and grinding...I love it...

more to come

[mikec4193]

I wanted to show off some of the patina on this old man...I oiled it down recently...I plan of oiling a lot in the future...

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Is this not the coolest old pile of rust you have ever seen???

I love it...
I picked up a 1980 Mercury Bobcat 2300 motor from one fellow in one town then I found a 4 speed from a another fellow in another town...

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More to come

[panky]

I love this type of project
If anyone is interested in more backyard car building check out Oak Swamp on YouTube.

[jaekl]

Mike, that is an early model and very scare in the States. Most of the suspension wheels are different than the later ones. There is a guy up the Hudson that may be interested in the parts you don't use.

[Paladin1962]

For certain, don't scrap what you take off. Somebody will find it useful.

[mikec4193]

Thanks for the replies folks...

Nothing is getting tossed out as the fellow that gave me the gift wants what I cut off back for his stash...so nothing will be lost to the junk man on this rebuild...

Oh yeah I wanted to share how big this chassis actually is...I did not think it was that big until I trimmed all excess off of it...I took this from 112 inches wheelbase down to a 96 inch wheelbase...

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This chassis now looking a lot better for putting under this Morris Minor sheet metal...almost looks a little sporty...

More to follow

[Chief]

Out of interest, when you say you oiled the paint, do you mean that you literally wiped oil all over the paint, or is that a term for some product or method?

[mikec4193]

Out of interest, when you say you oiled the paint, do you mean that you literally wiped oil all over the paint, or is that a term for some product or method?

I was really bad with whole patina thing...I had a jug of drain oil...probably 5w20 or something similar out of my Datsun truck project...I poured it on the car and spread it around with a 2 inch wide paint brush...I did the same thing to the Oldsmobile chassis...
I will be redoing it again probably this week as it is still sitting outside

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[POMMReg]

Early LRBM, Z10427/8 10/50 onwards

BM number on the driverside firewall

[Paladin1962]

In Case anyone's wanting to duplicate this, I have a '57 2dr in Central Florida with a bunch of extra parts

[mikec4193]

This is the part that I enjoy the most...shopping for GM A body suspension parts...first off lets do shocks from Rock Auto

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I snapped off the lower bolts on the front shocks but I found a set on Ebay...they are enroute to my place as I write this..

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I got the lower body supports layed out...not sure if this is where the floor will sit when we are done but at least I have base to start at...

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My welds are not pretty but they do the job...

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Like I said...function over form here...

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I have spent a lot of time in my head and with a tape measure in my hand trying to get the desired look...fingers crossed and we pray it all fits in the end...
Like I said in the beginning I was looking for a 1950-53 Chevy coupe...so we will try our best to make it look cool and keep the costs down too...

[mikec4193]

So I really did not want to cut this car a part but there was a little voice that kept saying...this was a parts car you are trying to save...

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Surgery started Sunday afternoon and we finished it Monday morning...

It felt really strange cutting away and feeling the floor pan drop out from underneath your feet...but it did...

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I spent hours marking this car up with sharpie pens and chalk too...

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When I finally did not feel bad for cutting was when I cut into the middle crossmember and it crumbled when I cut into it...

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Then the main support in the front of the car that holds the whole front end together and it was full of mouse nests and was paper thing when I cut into it...

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So here is where we sit right now...I went inside and did some more welding...

The inner sill I think it is called is really rotted too...since it is not coming back to stock I and going to be making some new sills from some square tube or some rectangular tube...still scratching my head on that end of things...

[mikec4193]

So every time I open up something on this project I know to expect the unexpected...I did learn that this nice newer brake drum was rusted tight to the hubs...so I got out the old angle grinder

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Sometimes you just have to cut your loses and order new hubs from the fine folks at CPP Performance...I already had the drums from the Rock Auto company....

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How sexy is this stuff???....very very sexy it is...I bit the bullet and found a OEM type supplier that sold pre bent brake lines...

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These are the rear drums...and they even painted them a nice gray color

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I made up a carboard template for the front wing trimming to come...I am taking the wheel base from 86 inches to 96 inches so I am pulling the rear axle back 4 inches and the front end will be pushed forward 6 inches...

I know it will be freak show of sorts but the old guy seems to happy he is getting worked on again...adding a new chassis and drive train should make it a totally different animal...only time will tell...one bite at a time...

more to come

[mikec4193]

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More boring pictures...I had to bite the bullet and replace both front hubs....so thankful for this chassis being what it...there is a crazy after market support which is good...

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How sexy is this picture???...love bolting new parts onto the old rotted chassis...makes me smile...

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Still waiting for a front brake adjuster...I bought a kit from some online source and the picture I bought it from had the parts I needed but when I opened the box it only had some strangely shaped brake springs but no brake adjuster...

What is a guy to do now??...order on the computer some more front end pieces...like the out tie rods as the ones I have are rotted on the nut side...

Trying to figure out tire size

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These I think are 205/75/15's off of my Chevy S10 daily driver...I do not think they are that bad...not too hideous...and the Pinto motor might actually be able to roll this thing down the road.....

[mikec4193]

I finally got the brake work done on the chassis...and really big news too...I got the sheet metal setting on the 72 Oldsmobile chassis...

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I wish I could have gotten pictures as I was mounting this up...the wind was blowing and it was bobbing all over the place...

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This has been a blast to work on...

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right now I trimming sheet metal to make sure stuff fits...

A lot of time scratching my chin...drinking my tea and smoking the ole crack pipe too...

I need to have my head examined when I get this one done...

[mikec4193]

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Motor is set up in place as we try to get everything lined up and level and all that other fun stuff...I am doing this whole floor on the fly as they say...

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Are we having fun yet??,,,of course we are...nothing like the feel of rusty crusty metal to keep the excitement going...

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I have more pictures to come...

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I hoping it was going to go a little smoother but I keep finding stuff trying to fit in areas where there are floor supports...so whatya do??...you wing it...cut cut cut....grind grind grind....weld weld weld...grind grind grind...repeat

I am having way more fun than I should have but that is ok too...

MikeC

[mikec4193]

My goal was a cool old vintage type (mini stock style) racecar that I might actually be able to drive around town...

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Old race cars have roll cages in them...I found a company in the mid west part of the USA Rhodes Race Cars...they had a kit for air cooled style VW bug...

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I used one of their cages for a 1939 Plymouth jalopy I recently finished...that had cage in it designed for a 1937 Chevy coupe

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Super slow going as I wait for parts and parts show up and then you sit and stare at something and something else needs to get looked it...

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I am still having fun...love to build old race cars

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More to come...hardware showed up yesterday for the flywheel and the clutch assembly...I have pedals to hang and all kinds of fun stuff going on here in the ole Cob Job garage....