Project WidowMaker - The Chevelle Build Thread

[craigs73]

hey man this car is looking good. i have a question where the rocker panel meets the quarter panel what you going to do with that seam there?

[41565 chevelle]

Tim, I talked to Lanzini about painting your ride. He said to come down or maybe I could swing him by one night with me. He does all of Foose's paint work these days so the quality is top notch.

Let me know when you are back in town and I will intro you to him, he is a great guy.

[The WidowMaker]

hey man this car is looking good. i have a question where the rocker panel meets the quarter panel what you going to do with that seam there?

it will either get welded or seam sealed. im not totally sure yet. i might also extend the rockers down another 1" to cover the pinch weld, so i need to make my mind up on that as well.

[The WidowMaker]

Tim, I talked to Lanzini about painting your ride. He said to come down or maybe I could swing him by one night with me. He does all of Foose's paint work these days so the quality is top notch.

Let me know when you are back in town and I will intro you to him, he is a great guy.

dude, youre awesome. i'll let you know a little more shortly. im almost finished getting a refi thats going to save me $$$$$$ a year, so there will be a little extra money floating around. id love to have a painter like that work his magic.

youre also going to have to come by and check out the frame after paint in a couple of weeks. it should look sweet!

[craigs73]

it will either get welded or seam sealed. im not totally sure yet. i might also extend the rockers down another 1" to cover the pinch weld, so i need to make my mind up on that as well.

probaly look cleaner welded.i always wondered what exactly what they did wasnt sure im on my first project sooooo

[DriverzInc]

Looking good Tim, keep up the great work!

[Zanie]

I sold my 71 Chevelle SS hardtop 25 years ago, to get a 71 Chevelle convertible. Just this year, I got around to getting that convertible. After following your build, now I wanna hardtop again!
Tim, I’m in awe of your craftsmanship!!
Even though you post the same pics at chevelles.com, I look at them over there too, I can’t get enough!

[FRENCHBLUE72]

Nice wheels and damn they do have a lip...

[The WidowMaker]

well i got back from vegas and im still alive..... and married. we went to the rehab pool on sunday and some guy actually died while we were in the pool. we didnt find out until the next day, but another group of medic firefighters (one was a friend of my buddy) actually tried to help and were told to leave. one actually got thrown out because he was irate that nobody was performing cpr on this kid. pretty friggin crazy and there will be a HUGE lawsuit to come.

i took today off from the car, but tomorrow is day 11 of what is now 12 prep days. im going to take the frame down to the blasters on monday morning and try to have it in epoxy sometime in the afternoon. if all goes well i should have it all finished in paint by a week from saturday. stay tuned!!!

[The WidowMaker]

so i borrowed a buddys trailer and when i get off tomorrow morning the frame is going to the blasters!!!!!!! i plan to put a couple coats of epoxy on it tomorrow night. i work tuesday and then there will be a 3 day thrash to get it all done. the only part that wont get painted with the others is the rear housing. i figure i'll leave that for maybe saturday or sunday since theres a lot of prep left on it and theres still 33 suspension parts to paint on friday.

pics of primer tomorrow night!!!

i just hope the wind and paint cooperates...........

[BLQWN]

Great build story, a real inspiration, keep it comin!

[The WidowMaker]

a couple of epoxy pics for you guys. $250 to blast the frame and a few parts that i was too lazy to clean up again.

tomorrow i work, wed it gets filler and slick sand, thurs (burning some sick time) it gets sealer, paint and a nice satin clear. friday i will get the parts all painted up.

more pics to come!!!!

[Flash68]

Jesus man. This is an amazing home project. Keep on truckin.

[mc84_zz4]

This is one of my favorite threads to follow.
You have given me some great ideas for a future frame upgrade, specially since I will be doing this in my own garage as well.

[The WidowMaker]

today i got all the filler work and the slick sand done. tomorrow i need to finish doing the final sanding and some pinhole work. tomorrow night it should be in fresh paint!!!!

[1badchevelle]

Just wondering who will offer to put the car in their sema booth first?

[Jeffrotech]

Frame looks fantastic (especially now that it's all one color).

Got any way to weigh it? I'm very curious.

[67goatman455]

im speechless.

After looking at all your progress there is NO WAY i can leave my frame with minimal modifications. Im not sure if this is a bad, or a good thing. I know i have the ability to do this stuff, knowledge, eh ill learn as i progress, but i have no where near the right amount of tools or space. :(

AMAZING build is all i can say

[rixtrix1]

Looking great! I enjoy homebuilds like yours; really show what one can accomplish at home with a little perseverance. Seriously thinking of converting my backhalved '66 Malibu drag car back into a street/track car. How did you determine your frame design? Thanks for sharing!

[The WidowMaker]

How did you determine your frame design?

lots of looking. i seriously spent hours between the computer making brackets and sitting there staring at the stupid thing. if i had to do it over small changes would have been made. the biggest is the ride height. the added c-notch and lowered stance conflicted with a lot of what had already been done. i could have saved a few hours routing the exhaust if i had only known where it would eventually end up.