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'71 Nova. Project "Urban Legend" (Updated 4/20 Pics Pg.2)
It's embarrassing how long I've been a member here and other places and just now feel I can start a build thread :( but here goes... Oh, and I apologize in advance that it isn't a Camaro :rofl:...
I got this '71 at 15 and will have had it for 20 years this fall. Been through 2 build-ups prior to this but never really "finished" those. School, career, wife, housing, etc has always gotten in the way. Couple that with too much indecisiveness on my part, change in priorities and you get long, unfinished project car :rolleyes: . A good friend of mine nicknamed the Nova project "Urban Legend" a few years back because "everybody has heard about it but few have seen it." Sad but true I guess. You have a car this long and every family get together, run in with old friends, etc it always comes up, "how's the Nova", "you still got that Chevy II", etc. Unfortunately, as I approach the big 35, I began to realize life is short and those that are close to me won't be around forever. Many of those people lived through the era when all the cars we love now were rolling off the lines. They have countless stories and memories developed over the years of enjoying these great machines. I never get tired of hearing the stories. Sorta like the movie Dazed and Confused but real. I just want to get this thing together so when I get asked, "finish that Nova yet", I can say "dayum right I did. Let's go do some burnouts." I can only imagine the stories that's gonna conjure up :lol:. To me, that appreciation and enjoyment of the project by those individuals will mean as much as anything. So here's the plan... Exterior: Mostly stock. Maintain the classic heritage of the car. Chrome bumpers, etc. DSE mini tub DSE subframe connectors VWW V45 17" front 18" rear Interior: Factory replacement stuff Maybe some basic Recaros that don't look too out of place 4 point rollbar w/removable harness bar Decent sound system Front Suspension: Modifed OEM subframe Speedtech UCA/LCA QA1 D/A coilover conversion Hollow swaybar Basic Wilwood 4 piston setup (clear 15" wheels) Rear Suspension: G-link w/Fab9 -OR- 12 bolt, 3" drop leafs with Speedtech billet shackles Drivetrain: 496 big block (resisting the LSx temptation...) 4l80e |
Off to good start...
Last few months I've been tearing the car back down while I waited for my turn at the fab shop. After so much idle time over the years it really feels good to be giving the Nova some love again. I think I have enough of a plan together and have been saving long enough that I can make some good progress towards something I'll be happy with. I won't go so far as say "finish" cause well... we all know that never happens :D . Thanks to Lateral-G I made the decision to go with Dan Holohan. He recently opened his own shop up in Mooresville, NC. His name is associated with some of the high profile projects out there like SickFish, BlowFish, Chicayne, etc. He also recently completed some work for Jay on his "wife's car" from here on the forum. My project won't be a challenge for him even with one hand tied behind his back and a blindfold on :lol: . Yesterday was the day I'd been waiting for. I had to load up my heap and make the 8hr trek up to Mooresville. Note Friday afternoon rush hour in ATL must start at noon. Towing through ATL on Friday afternoon between 3-4 took years off my life I'm certain. Oh, and up I85 I saw this vehicle with "Bristal or bust" type stuff wrote on the rear glass. I couldn't help but laugh at the misspelling and wonder what that was doing for the stereotypes :rofl: . Met up this morning with Dan. His shop is new, very clean and organized. And holy smokes does he have some cool equipment to make you giddy. That massive Dake bandsaw he has makes my import look like a jigsaw. I also think his call to Dake for a shop press went something like this, "Hello. Send me the biggest shop press on the planet. This square peg will fit the round hole. Thanks." We talked about all the projects in the shop and I drooled over the fab work. The Olds seemed thrilled to have some company in the shop that wasn't an F-body :cool: . And then I left it like this. There's my junker. Guarding the door against the assault of more '69 Camaros... :woot: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...dropoffMed.jpg |
yea!!! givin the nova's some love! looks real good!
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great story
:cheers: WOW 20 years
Dan is an awesome choice and the nova will be something you can be proud of. Most of us dream of having our cars reworked with that caliber of talent at the tig. Keep us updated because im sure its gonna be a great journey to the end. Tom |
John,Project is going to be amazing:thumbsup: .Since you live in Brimingham do you know Mark whitlock of Mark's Outdoor's.He's a great guy.Scott M.
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Wrong Car
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Project is back from the blasters and the load of replacement sheetmetal has been ordered. Looks worse than I thought :faint: . I guess the first 20 years of the car's life must have been rough cause this sure didn't happen over the last 20 that it has spent in the garage :_paranoid .
Glad we had it stripped though. That's the only way to know what's hiding under all the ancient filler, kitty hair, riveted aluminum patches, etc. I think the next pics I get from Dan should classify as "progress pics" :cheers: John What was the dash http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...stripDash2.jpg Flintstone toeboard http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...ipToeBoard.jpg Rear glass channel http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...assChannel.jpg Patched tail panel http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...pTailpanel.jpg |
progress
Thats where ya start
Im sure Dan will make it a distant memory. Im headed up to see Dan @ HHRS next week. Im excited to eyeball all the projects and fab. :woot: Tom |
Dan's been plugging away at my heap the last couple weeks. He is really an artist with metal. Now if I only had the "long bread" so I could just cut all his talent and creativity loose I can only imagine what he'd come up with... :wow:
He's made good progress on the firewall and repaired my Flintstone toe-board as you can see in the pics. I don't have the pics but the floorpans and trunkpan are also fitted. Can't wait to see the new sheetmetal going on. Bye bye rust :yes: On to the pics... http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...oardRepair.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...BodyMounts.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...llProgress.jpg |
Good to see another Nova
Keep up the progress its good to see more Nova's on here! keep us updated
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Great update John. It's such a relief to get your car past the 'swiss cheese' phase. Keep posting pics...:)
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Hey John. Your Nova is in great hands with Dan. Its nice knowing you will get top notch work and not have to worry if this or that was fixed properly etc.
I just wish I had the $$ to let Dan's creativity loose! Keep the pics coming. Jay |
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Dan's still plugging away at it. Here are a few recent updates. The quarter removal has started. The trunk pan has been fit and this pic also shows all the bracing that Dan did to ensure things don't move around.
It's gonna be a huge relief to have this part of the rebuild done and done right by a pro. I've learned a lot just talking to Dan and examining the pictures to see how he approached different things. Maybe in my next life I'll tackle more of this part myself :lol: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...terRemoval.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/trunkPan.jpg |
I saw your car just last friday
Looks like it is heading back in the right direction. Best and worse thing you can ever do is blast a car. It never fails that they are never as good and soild as you would have hoped. Since this car is obviously a keeper, it is worth the time and expense to get that part right. You will never have to revist it again.
Look forward to seeing more progress! |
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Keep the pics coming. |
Thanks guys! Exchanged some emails with Dan yesterday and he said the quarter fitment was looking pretty good. I was really concerned about having to go aftermarket with the quarters so that was welcomed news. Tweaking here and there he said. Almost like he's done this before :lol: . He said more pics coming end of the week so stay tuned.
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As promised new pics were delivered :D . Quarter and tail panel fitment is progressing. Dan asked that I ship him the taillight assemblies since the 3 panels come together in the rear in a way that could impact taillight fit. While those were in route he went ahead and completed finish welding of floorpans, trunk pan, and started dash removal.
One thing Dan suggested that I thought was a good idea was to go ahead and apply the Lizard Skin Sound Control product to the inside of the quarter panels. Not something you can easily do later ;). These are repop panels anyway so this extra mass should help (somewhat) make up for the thinner material used I think. I like the texture of it from what I can see. I'm going to rethink using it other places instead of the mat products I originally planned for. Another thing I enjoy seeing is every area that is exposed by the R&R process gets cleaned up and coated with paint. They didn't e-coat back in the day so this takes care of the surface rust that developed over the years. One of those things I know I'd take the time to do if I were doing it and it is really nice seeing it done without having to ask for it explicitly. Here's all you really care about :lateral: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/innerQtr.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...LizardSkin.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...LizardSkin.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...metalFitup.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...FinishWeld.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...rewallDone.jpg |
Just when I come to terms with using the QA1 Pro-Coil conversion kit I have, Blake(killer69) just has to go and post this pic up of his recent conversion done using a traditional coilover and the Speedtech Chicane Kit. Exactly what I was considering just a few months ago. IMHO, for an OEM subframe this is the ticket.
http://i1235.photobucket.com/albums/...a/DSC_1138.jpg |
The driver's side door had some previous work which apparently included drilling holes to pull with. The decision was made to replace the skin. Given the prep and Lizard Skin application to all interior door surfaces I think it was the right decision. Now the passenger's side is jealous :rolleyes: . That door has been "worked" some but nothing too serious. So it doesn't really *need* a skin...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...erDoorPrep.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...LizardSkin.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...LizardSkin.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...inComplete.jpg |
Nice metal work, wow.
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Applying Lizard Skin to the inner sheet metal panels and structure while they are exposed will go a long way toward sound control. A lot of those panels are the noise makers. That's thinking ahead. Looking good! Jim
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Few more recent progress pics. The mini tubs are done except for the support braces, the dash replaced sans the speaker grate and the subframe connectors have been fitted.
The plan is likely changing some. The timeline I had in my head it growing by a lot :(. I'm also seriously considering going T-56 Magnum instead of the 4l80e. Just gotta keep fertilizing that money tree seedling and hope it will mature and produce :lol: . John http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...gerMiniTub.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...nstalled-1.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...sfcFitment.jpg |
Awesome,Dan H. is the man.:thumbsup: :hail:
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Looks great John. Its a good feeling to know, work is being done correctly and you dont have to worry or stay on top of someone or a shop to get want you want completed in a reasonable time, etc.
Keep the pics coming. |
Car is really moving along
I saw it in person Wednesday. Looking good!
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The work looks great. Thats a good idea putting the Lizard skin on the inside of the panels. I'd like to put it in my interior. You'll have a sweet ride when your done.
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Just a quick update. More to come later. Starting to look like a car again :D
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...tingCloser.jpg |
Car is looking great!Without a doubt your in great heads with Dan doing the fab work, Dan is one talented fab. guy. :thumbsup: Joe
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Looking really good John. Great update.
Keep us posted. |
Looks great John!
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Time for a little update. Few weeks back a lot of the big stuff wrapped up. Then we had to wait on hood so some odd-n-end stuff was wrapped up. I needed the break for budget reasons anyway so it's been good.
Dan did a great job on the DSE subframe connectors. I asked that they be installed so that the front sub bolts to the connectors so I can remove as necessary. He took that and ran with it. He ended up boring holes through the tube and installed threaded bungs that go all the way through. Then there are 4 bolts on use on each connector. He then added some metal to closeout the sub extensions and blend the transition so it looks nice. Makes the rest of that OEM sub look bad :o. http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/DSCN2517.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/DSCN2603.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/DSCN2595.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...t/DSCN2595.jpg |
hey john im going to be doing my dse sub frame connectors this week and like the idea i have a ?? did they cut off the floor over th torque box like on a camaro or did they just weld to the floor as is ( im talking about the most farthest rear part of the connector) looking great
john |
Once the new AMD front fenders arrived they were fit up and gaps checked. The passenger's side which still has OEM door skin but new fender(AMD) and quarter, looked pretty good. The drivers side which has new fender(AMD), door skin and quarter looked really bad with gaps you could drive a truck through :eek:. Dan worked his magic and the driver's side now looks really good. Below are some before and after pics.
Before: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...rGapBefore.jpg After: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...trGapAfter.jpg Before: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...rGapBefore.jpg After: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...erGapAfter.jpg |
Here is a teaser of the AMD aluminum cowl hood just sitting in there with no hinges, bumpers, etc. And finally a couple outside shots of the current state of everything.
Up next will be the decklid gaps, T56 tunnel mods and DSE clutch master bracket for the manual conversion :unibrow: http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...oodProfile.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6.../tailPanel.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...driverSide.jpg |
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Here is the only pic I have showing the rear and this was just during mockup prior to final welding. http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...ct/rearSFC.jpg |
Man,will somebody tell that man he can fabricate.:thumbsup: AWESOME
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