'55 Chevy LS1 / T56

[JMG-63]

I've been watching multiple builds on here for ideas to incorporate onto my pending '66 Mustang build and noticed an interest in '55 Chevy builds and a desire for more so here is my current (3 years and counting) project.

Nearly 40 years ago a '55 Chevy 210 was my first car - never drove it and sold it to pay for college. After 50+ cars I figured it was time to go back to square 1.

Pulled this completely rust free 2 door out of a self storage facility a few miles from where I work. Had a 350 small block of unknown origin / condition and a 700R4. Craigslist took care of that for me.

[JMG-63]

Brought it to my work and got busy with the updates. It came with a 9" Ford coil over rear suspension, Heidts tubular front control arms, 4wdb and boxes of parts.

First order of business was to get some room under the rear for a wee bit more tire.

- - - Updated - - -

[JMG-63]

After a bunch of cutting, welding, grinding and bodywork here was the semi completed result.

[JMG-63]

Spent some time smoothing the firewall, eliminated the battery box, wiper motor and a myriad of holes. Trans tunnel seam went bye bye as well

[JMG-63]

Used the purple / blue and white paint as a filler, blocked the car down, shot some grey epoxy and black urethane then brought her home for a few rounds of pre-assembly.

The '55's of my youth that stuck in my mind were black primer ratty ass hot rods. I can't shake that image...

[JMG-63]

Found a donor engine and trans in Phoenix and made it mine. Pulled from a 2000 Camaro Z28. Spent considerable time fitting, re-fitting, and fitting some more.

[JMG-63]

The vision in my head for this car was a twisted vintage mishmash.

Example, vintage looking wheels but in modern sizes, V8 stickshift but fuel injected and overdrive.

The V8's of my youth were Chevy orange - yes, I painted an all aluminum LS. I like the look.


The T56 was painted silver when I got it, stripped that to find yellow paint underneath - WTF? Stripped it to raw and brushed it with Scothbrite. Sprayed the bellhousing orange for a twist on the modern look.

Wheels are Vintage Wheel Works V40's. 18 x 9.5 rear, 17 x 8 front. 295-45-18 rear tires. Will be upgrading to 11" wide rear rims shortly.

[vette427-sbc]

Very cool... Love the modern twist on a vintage hotrod!

[JMG-63]

Its kind of hard condensing three years of work into a few posts. Lots and lots of work took place to get it to this point as you guys are more than aware of.

Computer and wiring harness went out to 150-tunes for their magic. Computer is mounted up under the dash on custom made brackets.

Front suspension got stripped off, rebuilt and reinstalled on a newly painted front frame. Steering box is a new '500' Series power steering unit.

A Tanks Inc EFI tank was installed (right side up really!) once I built and installed a set of brackets to center the tank on the trunk floor. Steel fuel lines were run from front to back and flared out to 37 degrees and linked together with black AN fittings.

[JMG-63]

I wanted to use as many of the factory parts on the swap as possible - hydraulic clutch master and slave included. Spent some time designing and building brackets and modifying the '55 pedal to work with the LS stuff. The bracket I built mounts behind the brake master cylinder and uses the late model master cylinder with zero mods - nice if it ever goes out in the middle of nowhere USA.

[JMG-63]

Doing a complete re-wire with an American Autowire harness. Battery was moved aft to the rear shelf. All lights are new repops and all connectors are going to be Weatherpack. Don't want any issues with 65 year old wire or components.

This is where the project currently resides. I did do some temporary wiring to start the engine - she kicked over on the first twist of the key and that was after sitting for four years!

Currently running battery cable and keeping it all nice, neat and safe. Will be completely wrapped, clamped and will have heat resistant covering as it nears the starter.

[JMG-63]

My twisted vintage vibe for the interior. '65 Thunderbird seats, '65 Impala console, "69 Camaro steering wheel and a new Ididit Tilt column. Seams on dash were welded up, the glovebox and ash tray were welded together (not shown) and an aftermarket wiper system was installed under the dash which explain the hanging wires.

It will get an old school chrome Hurst handle once I zero in on the style and shape. Maybe '61 Impala handle.

The last picture is the car heading off for safety prior to the onslaught of the Holy Fire in Lake Elsinore this past August. That day was the first time I had it on the ground and rolling since it arrived at my house. Front end needs to come down a bit - remember its a vintage vibe ( gasser-ish style) hot rod not a ground scraping corner burner.

I had to throw the front fenders on it to get it out of my garage. The car was loaded with all the parts I had accumulated. Aligning sheetmetal is on the list of things to do.

[JMG-63]

Weekend duty consists of wiring, wiring, wiring and all the related efforts to be able to run wire. Like making a protective tunnel thru the front pillar.

[JMG-63]

Battery is mounted with positive cable protected by a Blue Sea fuse block. I will be adding another up front before the alternator for additional protection.


The panel is for access to the in-tank pump and sending unit. Makes serviceability so much easier.

Next weekend - back to pulling and routing more wires...

[craigs73]

nice..keep up the great work

[c4racer2]

50 cars? Oh good - it's not just me then!

Nice project - keep up posted with updates!

[JMG-63]

Wiring work consumed my Friday night thanks to a Del City delivery I was waiting for.

Inside the box were a few terminal blocks and a power distribution block. Plan was to use these for my front mounted relay-driven accessories like electric fan and H4 headlights.

I'm trying to keep my wiring ultra safe, clean and hidden as much as possible. I decided to utilize the panel on the driver's side of the radiator to mount my electronics. First pic shows the layout of the relays, blocks and input power. Second shows it hidden from view.

I just laid out the panel and adapter so I can cut on the CNC plasma on Monday. Then the fun task of wiring it all up.

[JMG-63]

Here are the CNC Plasma cut panels. Solid panel is my mounting plate for all of the components. Frame now has a 1/2" lip around the perimeter.


Frame will be drilled for nut serts. Top has been laid out for all components and will have nut serts for serviceability as well.

Should have it all assembled and wired by Monday. Stay tuned for next weeks update.

[ryeguy2006a]

What a great project! I have actually been really thinking about a tri 5 lately. Love what you are doing with the relay panel. I've been trying to find a clean way to wire up my relays in the front of the car and I'm definitely going to copy this and apply it to my Camaro.

[JMG-63]

Halloween treat consisted of drilling holes and installing nutserts onto my relay panel. I absolutely love these things when mounting components onto sheetmetal. Pics of front and back of an installed insert. Clean and effective for assembly and removal.

[andrewb70]

Great work.

Can I suggest using one of the Bussmann smaller panels instead of the loose relays and fuses?

Andrew

[JMG-63]

Andrew, thanks for the tip. I'll dig into it and see.

[andrewb70]

Andrew, thanks for the tip. I'll dig into it and see.

Browse at your own risk...

https://www.waytekwire.com/products?pSearch=power%20distribution&sc=1369

Something like this:

https://www.waytekwire.com/item/46345/EATON-s-Bussmann-Series-15303-5-2-4-RTMR-Mini-Fuse/

Read the data sheets carefully as there are different versions that vary by layout and power buss configuration.

Or one of these:

https://www.waytekwire.com/datasheet/LiveWire_38530.pdf

The 3-way mini relay holders uses very robust metriPack 630 terminals, but that is probably overkill. The 72 position one would work nicely for all your fuses and relays.

Andrew

[JMG-63]

Andrew,

Browse turned into several hours of research, downloading and printing some 150+ pages of info and compiling a buy list for Waytek. How I never knew of these is beyond me but so thankful for the tip. Much appreciated.

Jeff.

[andrewb70]

Andrew,

Browse turned into several hours of research, downloading and printing some 150+ pages of info and compiling a buy list for Waytek. How I never knew of these is beyond me but so thankful for the tip. Much appreciated.

Jeff.

Glad to help Jeff. If you ever have questions, feel free to PM.

Andrew

[JMG-63]

One Bussman panel courtesy of Andrew's tip of the month.

Bought one semi-wired as I doubt I could pull off as nice a splice on a 4 to 1 setup. Came with a 150amp inline fuse as well as the bag of goodies. I have separate orders out for relays and additional connectors.

Burned a new top plate on the CNC Plasma and the car is none the wiser.

This setup is way way nicer than my 6 piece conglomeration. Once Thanksgiving is out of the way I can get back to wiring up this car.

Andrew, thank you for the tip - we actually bought a fully wired version to test out on our large truck builds at work.

[ryeguy2006a]

I have that same one in a box ready to install this winter. Look forward to seeing more progress on this build.

[rat_rod_russell]

The electrical panels are awesome! Its the details like electrical and plumbing that really set good detail work apart. Keep it up! And congratulations on getting back to the basics. I've got a 55 I'm about to go nuts on that's going to be a lot of fun as well.

[JMG-63]

Still in wiring hell. I'm my own worst enemy though because I've never done this before and I want it to be safe, clean, serviceable, and hidden.

Spent some of the holiday weekend routing wires for the front harness and finding ways to hide them from sight. Drilled holes in the front splash shield and radiator support. Installed a grommet on the firewall for the pass thru and not shown is the finished panel for the Bussmann box.

I guess I made some progress but still have a long way to go. The wires inside the splash shield will be fully wrapped and clamped. These pics were taken early Saturday so I'm actually further ahead than this.

[andrewb70]

One Bussman panel courtesy of Andrew's tip of the month.

Bought one semi-wired as I doubt I could pull off as nice a splice on a 4 to 1 setup. Came with a 150amp inline fuse as well as the bag of goodies. I have separate orders out for relays and additional connectors.

Burned a new top plate on the CNC Plasma and the car is none the wiser.

This setup is way way nicer than my 6 piece conglomeration. Once Thanksgiving is out of the way I can get back to wiring up this car.

Andrew, thank you for the tip - we actually bought a fully wired version to test out on our large truck builds at work.

I am glad to have contributed to your newly upped wiring game :-)

The 150 fuse is probably not necessary, but it won't hurt anything. I am assuming the Bussmann panel that you got has a built in power distribution bar built in. There are several ways to wire that in, depending on how you want it to operate.

Andrew

[JMG-63]

Wiring got put on hold for a combination of weekend work, a few holidays and a bare metal dashboard.

Needed to get my dash finished before I could move ahead with completing the wiring. For those not familiar with tri-five Chevrolets, the dash is all metal. Makes it easy to do some low cost customization like welding seams shut and enlarging the glovebox opening. Did the enlargement by welding the glovebox door and ash tray together to make one big opening. Relocated the glovebox light switch bracket from what was the center of that opening to the far left side and finally got the dash in primer. Tomorrow I will hopefully shoot some satin black. Once it dries I can install all my new trim and switches.

I like the semi-finished look of it in primer and am excited to eventually see what it will become in a few more garage days. The picture in my head is awesome.

The computer for the LS1 is peeking out of the right side of the glovebox opening - it took some doing to get it in there but it fits perfectly on the brackets I made.

Not a very 'pro-touring' like set of tasks or exciting for anyone except me but a necessary step along the way to getting this car wired up and drivable.

[JMG-63]

Dash is painted, assembly has started and wiring is in full force (for a novice that is).

Dash is painted with a satin black to keep the glare under control. Positive battery cable received a good dose of overkill in the routing and protection department.

[JMG-63]

Lots of activity since my last posting. January??

I now have a complete set of working lights, dash harness is complete, finishing off my instrument cluster harness, and am crossing items off my to-do list with a vengeance.


The hidden harness along the inner fenderwell and inside the radiator support is completely wrapped and run thru rubber grommets.


The headlights are upgraded Daniel Stern H4's, all other bulbs are upgraded as well. Way way brighter than anything from '55. Every single light works, dome, courtesy, clock.


I'm getting close so I even got it registered and am getting California vintage black plates assigned - the big old style!


Still a ton of work to do.

[1sikride]

Lol trade ya for my LSA chevelle ��

[Motown 454]

Nice beautiful chrome on those tail lights! back ups nice and bright What bulbs did you use?? I love the car.

[JMG-63]

The bulbs are from Ron Francis. They are from his Brite series. Used a full set everywhere. Way brighter than auto parts store generics. The have single and dual filament.

[JMG-63]

Moving along with finalizing the wiring. Wrapping and clamping it in place for hopefully the last time, well, until I ran out of wrap on Saturday.

Decided to mock up my seat bracket and get that one step closer to a first drive. Cut the parts on the CNC plasma and welded it up at home. Built like a damn battleship but I only need to do it once. As soon as I drill the floor and bolt it down I can rip it all apart again and clean, paint and detail the brackets and sliders. Seats are from a '65 Thunderbird.

[JMG-63]

Had some quality garage time this weekend.

My wire wrap got delivered in time to finish up the under dash harness. Every wire is or will be covered and clamped in place. Ultra time-consuming but I'm pretty pleased with the results.

The first pic was taken through the opening for the gauge cluster, the second shows the rear harness and dimmer switch harness.

Yes, for you younger guys, the dimmer switches used to be floor mounted. Old school.

[JMG-63]

I'm going to call this "WHAT THE FLOCK?"

Because I widened the glovebox opening I needed to fab up a custom box. Easy enough. Computer mount on the rear, ok.

My downfall was thinking I could easily "flock" the inside to resemble the factory offering. Flocking is what you'll find on the inside of nice wooden jewelry boxes - basically glued in shredded fibers which are available in a variety of colors. I chose black and picked up a kit on Amazon.

Well, its not as easy as the youtube videos. I gave up after two tries and a lot of cursing. Shot it with black paint and paintable undercoating for texture. Good enough for something most folks will never see.


The four holes are for the LS fuse box, the single hole is for the programming button for my speedo on the gauge panel. The panel I have is the one shown - not my car.

[JMG-63]

Its been a while and the car is inching closer to its maiden voyage out of the garage.

The wiring project is 99% complete - once the front fenders go on I can call it done. Wired up the instrument cluster and installed yesterday - the dash is looking pretty nice. Time to paint the steering column and install that.

[JMG-63]

Designed and burned a set of mounting brackets for the Taurus fan onto the original style '55 radiator. Got it all mocked up and installed for its test fit.

Needed to trim the 90 degree elbow for the throttle body but it all fits in there and looks pretty good. This gets me oh so much closer.

[JMG-63]

The driveshaft got picked up last week and is sitting in my living room awaiting its turn for install. Need to finish plumbing the rear brakes first. Its always something!


Every time I cross out the last item on my current punch list its just a reminder that its time for a new one. Got to get writing the next chapter.

[JMG-63]

Radiator and fan installed for hopefully the last time.

Time to finish up the air intake version 25 or so. Who knows what it will end up being now.

[JMG-63]

Four day weekend offered lots of quality garage time. Focus was on fabricating an airbox.

A while back (like 2 years) I bought a rectangular air filter element for a Toyota even though I don't own one. It was the approximate size and shape I wanted. Figured they would be plentiful ten years from now as well.

Armed with a few pieces of 18g sheetmetal I set out to create the vision in my head. By the end of Saturday night I had the hole cut into the inner fenderwell and the lower box nearly complete.

[JMG-63]

Short garage day on Sunday but managed to eek out the concept for the upper box to throttle body. Its mostly comprised of an exhaust tube u-bend that got sectioned, well, its actually mostly comprised of yellow tape for now...


Should have this top piece done by the end of this weekend.

My list of things to do before the first drive is getting shorter!

[andrewb70]

I like your airbox and intake. If you were to swap over to a "blade" style MAF, that would certainly simplify the tube part.

Andrew

[Chirus]

I am looking at the same area to add a filter to my 58' build.
How will that handle water? puddles or rain? we had a lot on this years Power Tour.
Can a deflector be fabbed to limit water but allow air? Maybe a louvered Plate to cover it?

[Motown 454]

Sometimes Figuring how to fit it is harder than building it, looks good.

[JMG-63]

I am looking at the same area to add a filter to my 58' build.
How will that handle water? puddles or rain? we had a lot on this years Power Tour.
Can a deflector be fabbed to limit water but allow air? Maybe a louvered Plate to cover it?

At some point I need to fab up a water / dirt / small child shield. Its on the list of things to do before I bolt the fender back on. Its a long list...

- - - Updated - - -


I like your airbox and intake. If you were to swap over to a "blade" style MAF, that would certainly simplify the tube part.

Andrew

Andrew, can you shed some light on this 'blade' style? I was planning on replacing the MAF anyways.

Jeff

[JMG-63]

Spent some quality garage time converting tape-to-metal. My material of choice is a 4" diameter exhaust pipe u-bend and what will no doubt be a supply of sheet stock.


Stage 1 was easy; short section of straight welded to a curve with a bunch of material cut away.

[JMG-63]

Step 2 adds in another piece of the exhaust pipe bend to make the transition. I've since welded the seams and am at stage 3 but no pics today.

No too bad for a cutoff wheel and some hammers and dollys.

[JMG-63]

Tossed out that version of the 'top'

Fabricated a simple fixture to bend the sides for an actual box. Bent up some 16gauge sheetmetal. A bit of welding and a new baseplate and here we go.

[JMG-63]

Now, for the part that keeps kicking my butt. The transition from the MAF sensor.

An exhaust u-bend gave its life up for this noble cause. Finally got the transition I can live with. All she needs now is to connect the two sections of tubing and try to take the ugly out of it.

The more I think of 1950's technology and underhood design; I think this may be in line with that.

It will be so nice to cross this off my to-do list.

Jeff

[JMG-63]

So I'll call this part "My Pleasant Diversion"

My current weekend driver is a Superformance Cobra replica with a 351W. It made for a nice sedate cruiser for the two years I've had it. Like anything else - you get used to the power and then its just not enough. The 1995 vintage engine build has certainly been outdated by a decade or two...


I had a friend who owed me a bit. We agreed to a 'trade' This is what we agreed to. A Ford Performance 427 crate engine. That ought to do with that outdated power thing.

[JMG-63]

This is the lucky recipient. The car was built in 1995 and has seen almost 20k miles since. I've only had it for two years now and am going thru and upgrading a few of the systems that need it.

[JMG-63]

Labor Day Weekend had me, my brother and a mutual friend spinning wrenches and maneuvering around an engine hoist. I had prepped the old engine a bit but we made short order of pulling the 351W, cleaning the engine compartment and stabbing in the 427W. We even took off the actual holiday to enjoy ourselves.

There was a bit of follow up work to do and I'm waiting on my new distributor to arrive so the car sits. I have a new set of tires in transit, new shocks being built and a set of beefier swaybars on their way. Its going to be on track at Willow Springs on October 31st for some shakedown / parade laps. Got a lot to do between then and now!!!


That's my younger brother muscling out the old engine. He and our friend were a huge help. I would still be messing with it by myself.

Now, back to the Chevy...

[JMG-63]

While I wait for the UPS man to drop off my new distributor I got back under the '55.

My new rear disc brake kit required some machine work on my existing axles - with Currie right around the corner I assumed it would be a piece of cake. Nope. They inspected my axles and determined them junk. Nothing $500 and a few weeks can't cure. New axles showed up mid engine swap and sat for a few weeks.

So. The driver's side axle slid right into place, the disc brake kit is all mocked up and looking good. A few more garage nights and I should have the complete rear buttoned up.

The 'test' drive is oh so close but still so far away.

[egoman]

That 427 is still out dated power, but definitely not lacking power. LOL Looks like fun!

[JMG-63]

Nothing like having to go to page 7 to get your thread.

Been working on the 55 pretty consistently, brakes are operational, cooling system operational, and Sunday I decided to fire it up and see if it would actually move under its own power.

With open headers blasting their tune at 10:00am it made a quick trip out of the garage and into the driveway for ceremonial pics. Its been four and a half years of when-I-have-time work to get it to this point and it feels great.

Lot more to do. Exhaust parts are en-route. Hope to rack up some miles on it this summer.

[Mikey97D]

Looks great!

[JMG-63]

Time to be kinder to my neighbors.

Had a set of mufflers in my stash, ordered up a set of Flowmaster pre-bent tailpipes, and some pre bent pieces of 2-1/2" tube. Decided to experiment with the v-band clamps as well.

Its a giant Lego set of parts that will morph into an exhaust from headers to rear bumper. Going to try to keep it as tight to the floor as possible and butt weld and metal finish all of the seams. This ought to take a while.

[JMG-63]

Progress is being made.

Cut some parts on the plasma I'm using for weld-on anti-vibration clamps. The red cushions came straight from e-Bay.

Spent a fair amount of time under the car on my back mocking up the passenger side set of pipes from header to rear bumper. Once that was set it was just a matter of making a mirror image. The goal was to have everything tuck within the frame rails.

The drivers side muffler is being supported by the jack stand right now which is why its crooked. Once I get it clamped it will be fine.

The tacked up primary pipe in my vise is for the drivers side - comprised of 4each 45 degree bends and a section of a u-bend. Nothing off the shelf.

I'm actually enjoying this more than I thought I would. I just need to finish off the rear pipe set for the drivers side, weld it all complete, metal finish and find a place that Jet-Hot coats in LA.

By the way - those V-band clamps are awesome!!

[JMG-63]

Spent some time welding up the h-pipe and made the mistake of taking my mini-pneumatic sander to one of the welds.

A few belts and boxes of sanding discs later I have a smooth h-pipe. This weekend I hope to finish the details, paint it and reinstall. If its not raining here maybe even a test drive!

Yes, I know my workbench is a mess...

[Alwhite00]

Great job on everything. Keep it up man.

[JMG-63]

Great job on everything. Keep it up man.


Thanks. My OCD took over big time with this but once you go down the rabbit hole might as well go all the way.

The H-Pipe is now painted and ready for install. I still have four more sections to weld and finish. The time-lapse is kind of nice to look at. No feedback on the paint yet but it dried to a nice flat sheen. We shall see how it cures and holds up.

[JMG-63]

Things are really starting to come together.

Exhaust is on the car, rear shocks set, front steering tightened up and semi aligned, front end sheetmetal bolted on, door handles on, hood and trunk latches on.

Car has made a few trips around the block and even comes back under it own power. She starts, stops, steers, and shifts.

Still a ton of details to work out but it seems the heavy mechanical lifting is done for now. Its probably been ten+ years since its been on the road.

Pics from my Easter Sunday drive.

Jeff

[andrewb70]

Nice progress!

Andrew

[Motown 454]

Sweet! nice job.

[JMG-63]

Things seem to come together much quicker now. All the big / major work is done.

H4 lights are in, new signal lights, and a few trinkets to make me smile. The windshield got delivered yesterday so it looks like I have another full weekend in the garage.

[WILWAXU]

Good looking project!

[JMG-63]

Good looking project!

Thanks,

Its truly been a labor of love. I'm getting excited to be able to drive it anywhere!

Spent some time fabricating a transmission tunnel to cover up the 6 speed this past weekend. Its almost done but it takes a while when you're using a hammer and dolly combo to form flat sheets. Fit up is coming along ok. Hope to cross that off the list this coming weekend.

[JMG-63]

Trans tunnel is finished. Spent way too much time dressing welds that will get covered with sound deadening and carpet.

Racked my brain on how to safely and securely mount the bucket seats. A bolt thru the sheetmetal floor just didn't seem strong enough. Whipped up a reinforcement plate, attached a few weld nuts to the bottom side and welded the whole thing to the floor. Its not going anywhere!

One seat down, one to go.

[JMG-63]

Couple of more days of progress.

First up is my vintage oil filter housing becomes a radiator overflow.

[JMG-63]

Re-doing my cold-air intake. My previous fabrication efforts were less than stellar. Same concept with much cleaner execution.

[JMG-63]

And now I'm apparently a glass installer. Bought the tools, did my research and watched every video I could find.

First shot; went in like nothin.

[Peanut1959]

Good on ya'!

[andrewb70]

That airbox looks awesome!

[minendrews68]

I promise I know how you feel about driving it after so long! I drove my Camaro without windows too!

[JMG-63]

The top of the airbox is finally done. Still have to finish off the bottom but that's a project for another weekend.

Welded a flat top to the box, primed it, wet sanded and shot it with satin black, 3M undercoating and a few more coats of satin black.

Drilled a set of mounting holes in all three pieces of the box-top.

Sanded the 'matrix' and gave it the same paint treatment.

Line sanded the stainless sheet with 80grit.

Add a few stainless rivets and you have a finished airbox top.

[JMG-63]

Staying at this project and knocking things off the list.

Airbox is done and crossed off the list. Fresh Honda V6 element inside and new MAF. Time to clean up the engine harness though..

177668

Two seats are now in. Fabricating the second bracket was a piece of cake. Isn't it always easier the second time?

177669

Exhaust tailpipes for both sides are now sanded smooth, painted with hi-temp paint and installed for good.

Windshield is in and test drives have commenced.

Lots of details to work out and get this fully sorted but that's half the fun I guess.

Jeff

[JMG-63]

Project is now down to fifty million small details. When its not 115 degrees outside I'll take it for a spin. Need to dial in the front end alignment and with no interior she's tinny and loud as all hell.

Pulled the console from my parts stash. '65 Impala SS automatic console. Spent a Saturday trimming it to better conform to the tunnel. Once the sound deadening and carpet goes in we should be good.

Also. Welded the ash tray and glove box together for more smoother look to the dash. Fabbed up an extension for the inside and metal finished it up a bit. A new longer hinge is in the works so hopefully soon I can scratch that off the list.

Next up is dialing in the sheetmetal gaps and installing the sound deadener followed by some carpet. Who needs side windows...

Jeff

[ryeguy2006a]

Jeff,

Watching your build unfold is causing me a huge problem. I now really want a Tri-5 in my garage... haha I love that air box. I may steal that idea.

Ryan

[JMG-63]

Ryan,

if you want an airbox i can send you a set of parts.

jeff

[JMG-63]

Spent the day prepping the floors for the eventual installation of sound deadening. I purchased the Noico brand. Anything has to be an improvement on this giant tin can.

Six hours of labor and an assortment of abrasives got the floors to bare metal. 45 minutes in the shower almost got me clean.

My starting point evolved into something nice. What was utterly amazing was how super clean the sheetmetal was under whatever finish was on there. Not one speck of anything like rust or pitting. Not one speck!!!

[JMG-63]

Took advantage of that nice clean floor and added a few boxes of sound deadening. Used the NOICO brand and so far so good. What a difference in removing the 'tinny' sound from the floors. Did the underside of the roof as well. Guess its good not to have any interior to get in the way.

[BzrdBay]

Designed and burned a set of mounting brackets for the Taurus fan onto the original style '55 radiator. Got it all mocked up and installed for its test fit.

Needed to trim the 90 degree elbow for the throttle body but it all fits in there and looks pretty good. This gets me oh so much closer.

Which manufacturer did you go with for your radiator? I recently bought a direct fit HP one from Dewitts for my 55 and the drain petcock did not line up with the splash pan opening so it is on its way back. Looking for other performance aluminum options resembling the original style that actually fit.

Thanks!

[JMG-63]

Which manufacturer did you go with for your radiator? I recently bought a direct fit HP one from Dewitts for my 55 and the drain petcock did not line up with the splash pan opening so it is on its way back. Looking for other performance aluminum options resembling the original style that actually fit.

Thanks!


I used an Autocityclassic radiator. I did have to trim the opening in the lower splash pan but otherwise great bang for the buck.

Jeff

[ryeguy2006a]

Sound deadening really does make a big difference. I used ACC in my LS swap for my 1968 Camaro too. Great product.

[BzrdBay]

I used an Autocityclassic radiator. I did have to trim the opening in the lower splash pan but otherwise great bang for the buck.

Jeff

Thanks for taking the time to reply!

[JMG-63]

Did a 'Trim Test' back in November and decided there was just too much shiny stuff on the Bel Air to distract me.

This is what I pared it down to (well minus the fuel door trim as well). Still have tio decide if I want the door surround trim and windshield trim installed.
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This required a fair amount of time welding holes shut and doing the necessary bodywork to both front fenders and doors. At that point I made the decision to go ahead and make the car one single shade of black again. Went for a low sheen finish and got the trim installed this last weekend for good. The Fuel Injection flags and logo have not made it to the passenger side yet.

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Next up for this weekend is carpet install and my side glass sits waiting its turn. The good news is my parts pile has gotten so much smaller over the past few weeks. Hoping for a nice drive this weekend.

Jeff

[Peanut1959]

I'm jealous! Looking great, man.

[MrBlonde]

I love this build!

[JMG-63]

Carpet Time!

Started with some 3/8" thick underlayment which got fitted and glued to the floor. Yes, I did both sides...
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That went so well, and it was nice and sunny and warm out so the ACC one-piece carpet came out of the box.

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A few hours later it was in place, trimmed up, edged in nicely with the new sill plates and had the seats reinstalled hopefully for the last time. What a difference!

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It was a good Saturday! Sunday was back to the myriad of a million small projects and details.

The side glass is sitting in the shipping box (still) so I guess that's the next big project.

Jeff

[JMG-63]

I'm jealous! Looking great, man.


Thanks, Its been a long road to this point.

- - - Updated - - -


I love this build!

Thank you.

[ryeguy2006a]

I drove mine around for quite a while without the side glass too haha.

[JMG-63]

Been splitting time between this and my '66 Mustang build.

The '55 now has the console refurbished and installed. Used one from a '65 Impala SS. Can't find a pic of it in there. Seatbelts up next.

Front end finally got aligned at a great shop in Temecula, CA (Precision Alignment). Drove it home in Friday Southern California traffic and it ran perfect. Still no side windows installed yet but I can live with that for now.

Last pic is a gratuitous under hood shot. Still have to clean up the harness a bit more but that's the beauty of this car - I have the rest of my life to finish off the million small projects.

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[Peanut1959]

Been splitting time between this and my '66 Mustang build.

The '55 now has the console refurbished and installed. Used one from a '65 Impala SS. Can't find a pic of it in there. Seatbelts up next.

Front end finally got aligned at a great shop in Temecula, CA (Precision Alignment). Drove it home in Friday Southern California traffic and it ran perfect. Still no side windows installed yet but I can live with that for now.

Last pic is a gratuitous under hood shot. Still have to clean up the harness a bit more but that's the beauty of this car - I have the rest of my life to finish off the million small projects.

186277186278186279Looks like a great ride! I know you'll be enjoying it while you finish it.

[JMG-63]

There's been a bit of activity behind the scenes on the '55. My EStopp system finally showed up after a month or so on backorder. Not too terribly difficult to instal, mounted it on the outside driver's frame rail, installed the switch where the console latch used to be. Stealthy. Rear cables (not shown) came from Lokar and fit up nicely.

Adjusted the GM rear calipers and need to do it again. System shows some real promise. Mid install pic before cables and a new clamp block with correct spacing for cables. Guess I'm better at the work than the documentation as of late.

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Also, now that I've been driving the car I got tired of sitting so high up in the cabin. Yanked the front seat brackets and whacked off a good inch and a half. Now my face is smack in the middle of the viewing window

Next up is going to be fabbing up some mounting brackets for the front swaybar. And the side glass, yup, still sitting in its shipping box.

And Ryan, if you're reading this - I blame you! My new addition (like I needed another car...)

188792 Day 1

Last night

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Jeff

[TANKMASTERJ]

That 55 looks killer and stealth

[Motown 454]

I love the wheels against the satin paint. Sweet Camaro.

[ryeguy2006a]

Jeff, we must have very similar tastes because I've been browsing for tri-5's haha. I really like that parking brake bracket. I'm going to make something like that for my Camaro. I don't like the way that I have it set up right now.

That is a super clean 67 dude!! What are your plans for that??

[JMG-63]

I've had this part in my pile for a few years now and its been patiently awaiting its turn to be installed. Let's call that day Yesterday!

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The ugly rusty part is a sway bar from a late 80's Camaro. It took some fabrication time to whip up some frame brackets and by end of day I had one side in and the other welded up and cooling off. Should have it all in and buttoned up for the long weekend ahead. Maybe now the door handles won't hit the ground on a tight left hander...

Oh, and yes I know the bolt is too long - came with the kit. I've got the correct length on my desk. I had to use a shorter spacer due to lack of room. Heck, I may even paint the bar before I button it all up.

jeff

[JMG-63]

So, in 6+ months I've managed to get 3/4 of my side glass installed. The Camaro was a bigger distraction than I thought!!!

This was my learning experience putting side glass in. Not helping too much was the supplier who shipped me the wrong tinted glass but stepped up big time to make it right.

While inside the doors and rear panels I made sure to add the requisite amount of sound deadening. Installed all new window crank mechanisms, seals, window channels and fur strips ensuring this will be the last time I have to deal with this. The doors got new weatherstripping and now close like a Cadillac.

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[JMG-63]

My distraction courtesy of Ryan.

Decided to spruce up the engine bay a little bit (before and after). As usual I got carried away. I'm still getting carried away and should probably start a thread for this as well. It's going to be a stealth style PT project. I'm piecing together a JL8 inspired braking system and have my eye on the new Tremec 5 speed, and am planning a vintage looking 383 stroker so I can save the number matching block and parts.

I guess this is why it takes 6 months to install side glass...