Looking good Joe,hopefully we are huddled around a Chevelle and an Orange 69 this year.

Well Jeff, may not be in the cards this year sad to say. I may be getting some surgery in June and would be recuperating through the summer months. I was born with a leaky aortic valve, and up until now been fine, but will need a new one. If all goes well, the Velle, Steve and I will be in Columbus '17. The good news is that lovely orange '69 will have some miles on it before then! :D

Sorry to hear about the reason for the delay and I hope it goes well. You have to take care of our most important equipment, our bodies. I hope you get a lot done on the car before your surgery.

Thanks Wayne! It's not a surprise to me, been planning it for a couple of years now. Will keep the ball rolling on the car though - part of the rehab! :cool:

Thanks Joe, that is very helpful! Keep up the good work!

You too...:thumbsup:

I'll keep you in my prayers. My brother had one done 8 years ago at 40.

Is this the car you're thinking of my headers for?

Many thanks John! Yes pal, that would be me. I need the headers to run parallel on either side of the trans as is most common. From what I gather these are aligned to have the exhaust curl in/up under the trans, inside the tunnel as the Vette application requires. I've been wrong before though.:peepwall: They are an outstanding set of headers...

Nice transformation, love this body style.

I had a 72, 402, 4 speed Malbu when I was in the military, should have kept it.

Really like where this car is going. Looks like it's going to be really clean. Get well first so you can enjoy your toy later.

Could've, should've…You're building a sweetheart of a car brother!

Appriciate both your comments and support guys. Still trying to get some work done this season though. Test fitting motor and trans (tunnel mods), installing tank, headers, Rad, and cold air kit. That way all set in place for running complete wiring, hard lines and hoses. Pics to follow soon. :cheers:

Just received and installed a set of Fontanas from George a class guy and member - staged67gspwr. I previously had a local used set of
17" Hopsters to get the the project started several years back. I love the 18x8 and 18x10 combo for A-bodies. Feel it's a balanced look all around.
A couple of picks of what I feel are a timeless set of wheels...:D

...and after viewing his awesome '67 Lark laying rubber on BIG MUSCLE (that most have seen I'm sure), I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of meat still left on the tires. :lol:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHyZgP84IJU :trophy-1302:
Thanks again George...:cheers:

Nice!

looking good Joe,I hope you are making progress:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Thanks guys! As you know, wheels and tires, big part of the plan. Ride height still left to be dialed in of course. Now onto fabn' a trans tunnel and shift location. Funny but I'm actually starting to think of some color options = :confused59: On my short list are a classy/aggressive metallic red, 69' GM 'Champagne' or white. Fully realize that color is a very personal decision, but...
I'M OPEN TO OTHER SUGGESTIONS :thankyou:

My first car was a 66 Supper Sport if it looked 10% as nice as this I may never have gotten in to Camaros.

Joe she's looking good bro.

Wayne - There is always the next project! In the meantime, you are creating some very nice art of your own brother, particularly with all your one-off fab work.:bow:

You're a big part of it brother :cheers:

Car looks great love these cars!

Great looking car! What are the specs on your newer 18" wheels and tires? Stock width rear end? They look perfect!

Appricate the kind words...
Stock '64-67' A-body (10 bolt) rear end
Fronts are 18x8 (245-40-18 with 3"BS)
Rears are 18x10 (295-35-18 with 5.75"BS) Cheers...

Update...
 

Well, after an eventful August (planned heart surgery, thanks for your well wishes and prayers), and at 6 weeks of great recovery, my close friend and builder showed up at my garage door this past Monday. He brought along some inspiration and went to work. I'm sure you may have seen his car before:thumbsup: So went like this…

Motor and Trans + cross member installed
Complete (TANKS) fuel tank and lines
Sway bars
Modified seat brackets and seats installed
___

Next week - Front floors, and trans tunnel.
Next month - Complete wiring + Dakota dash, Headers & Rad
___

Looks like the Velle maybe out by next spring/summer. Again, the plan was to do all the fab work etc., drive her hard for a few years then deal with all the metal work/paint. Big thanks once again to Steve for all his hard work and continued support:cheers:brother, especially when I can't lift more than 10 pounds for another 4 weeks - doctor's orders...:thankyou:

Joe, cars looking good! get well & git er done!
Quick question on your C5 front brake set-up.....what size rotors did you go with the stock vette calipers? Kore stuff?
Thanks
Simon

Thanks Simon…
C6 fronts, C5 rears - All GM/Vette OEM through Tobin @ Kore3. Brillant guy and customer service. Ordered them back in '12, install was flawless. Nothing missing or left behind. Money very well invested. Where in T.O are you?

Glad the surgery went well, Joe. The car is looking great. Good luck with the recovery and the build.

If you're not too far?? I'll come out and give you a hand sometime.

Appreciate it Tray:thumbsup:

Joe get that old orange car out of the way and get to work,lol.Glad your doing well and back to work on the Chevelle,and Steves car is beautiful,really glad for him also.

:D Thanks Jeff! If I get enough scratch for a complete vintage air unit before Columbus, will bring the Velle to the show. If not Summer 18' God willing...

Joe it was a great week working on the velle!! We got progress and that's always good. Monday should be a big day as well getting the trans tunnel sqaured away. Soon you should be smelling sweet fumes out the tail pipes!!!!!

Good to see a progress report on both the owner and the car. Car is looking good!

Take care of yourself,

The other Joe

Looking good! Keep up the great work. '66 is the best year!

Yes, YES it is!!!:thumbsup:

Thanks guys! Appreciate you tuning in...I have to agree with you all!:thumbsup:

Moving right along and really charged up about the progress since the last update. Some key issues and items off the list:

1. Drive angle set and confirmed at 3.5 degrees - no thanks to the BPR's trans-cross member. Went with the good old factory built 50 years ago.
2. Brake lines and proportioning valve installed.
3. Partial floor and complete transmission tunnel done.
4. Seats and brackets modified and sit perfectly.

All metal work done by a local guy who was a big reason why Steve's '69 looks so good. His attention to detail is tremendous!

Next steps…Wire the whole car, gauges, rad and headers.

That looks sweet under there, the tunnel came out nice too. Looking good!

Thanks Wayne! Ya, our guy Sam is crazy precise. A shot under the tunnel with a bit more massaging to go, and a late sunny afternoon pic I couldn't resist:relax:

Good to see you back on the car Joe,great progress.

nice pics and looking like some good progress, Joe!
so awesome that you got the angle dialed with use of the original trans cross-member.
glad to see it continuing to come together and looking forward to further updates.
cheers,
danny

Moving along…
 

Guys, thanks for checking in and your kind words. Well the motor and trans are in for good now. The tunnel is set and because I didn't want to run a console, more work. My buddy Steve took the time to create a solid piece to which the decorative shifter trim would simply screw down to. Due to shifter size and location on the tunnel…well you either have been through it or simply take a look. The trim piece had to be extended longer in size so that if I have to pull out the complete short throw for whatever reason the tranny stays put. Also took the advice of my metal/body guy Sam, and scratched the 50 year old metal (that looked so good) and coated it with quality bed liner. Dyno mat will still be used for sound etc…:cheers: