1965 Chevelle - BOLT.ON.BEAST
 

Hey Guys, I thought I’d finally post up a thread on my Chevelle.

I have always loved the squared off design of the early Chevelles. The project began in my mind after I won a box of bolts from Larry at Prodigy Customs at the 2010 Pro-Touring SEMA dinner. I came up with the project name: BOLT.ON.BEAST I wanted to use great parts from a myriad of vendors to meet the goals stated below. When parts weren’t available to my needs, I would design and fabricate them myself.

I wanted a car with a great stance that I could enjoy looking at it every time I saw it. I also wanted it to be as low as possible without putting it on airbags. I enjoy driving the twisties, so I needed it to handle like it is on rails. I love shifting gears, so it needed to be a manual. Lastly, I want to be able to enjoy the car as much on the street as at track events.

I like pro-touring better than pro-jackstand, so I spent considerable time planning various phases of the design to keep my car running and drivable with minimal downtime. After saving some money to begin the project, I searched for nearly 2 years to find my car. My goal was to find a solid mechanical car with limited body work needed. After passing on a big block Chevelle in Oregon, I saw this car on craigslist only an hour from my house. I've made many incremental changes to the car in order to attend various ASCS and Goodguys auto-x events in CA. Last year I made the long trek to the Lone Star state last October with the Goodguys Texas road tour, driving the car over 4000 miles without many issues.

For questions: please PM me or send an email to: BOLT.ON.BEAST at gmail.com

Project Rendering: (By Carter Hickman)

Attachment 48740

Just after purchase in June of 2012:
Attachment 48741

On the Goodguys Texas Road Tour::
Attachment 48742

Phase 1: - Completed Q4 2012
DSE suspension - rear
Ridetech Triples - rear
Global West Uppers - front
Hotchkis 2" drop springs - front
Ridetech 2" drop spindles
Lee Manufacturing gearbox
Hellwig solid sway bar - front
Recaro seats
Custom harness bar
Schroth harnesses
Sparco steering wheel

Phase 2: Completed Q1 2013
T56 Swap
Manual brakes w/ Wilwood pedal swap
Z06 brakes / Kore 3 Hubs - front

Phase 3: - Completed Q3 2013
Global West extended coil over kit
Ridtech triples - front
Wilwood W6A - front
Z06 Brakes swapped to rear
12 bolt swap
PSC P/S remote reservoir w/ XRP lines
Vintage Air install
TSW 19x10.5” wheels installed

Phase 4:
Optimize front track width /steering angle
Custom front swaybar
Diagnose Vintage Air heating issue
Install new fuel gauge shunt resistor
Re-do brake M/C hardlines
Install rear swaybar
Raise exhaust

Phase 5:
LS3 swap / Ricks Vaporworks tank
Digital gauges
Mini tubs / frame notch
Solid body bushings
Rear wing

Phase 6:
Paint / Body mods to match rendering
Interior refresh: rear seat, carpet
Stereo Install

Detailed Build Sheet:

Suspension:

Front:
Upper: a-arms - Global West Negative Camber w/ Del-a-lum Bushings
Lower: a-arms Stock ( modified to fit RideTech Coilovers with lower T-Bar mount )
Hubs: Kore 3 (black Anodized w/ ARP 1/2”- 20 wheels studs ( reduced length ))
Spindles: RideTech 2” Drop
Coilovers: RideTech Triples, 5.2” Stroke, 600lb 12” Spring ( double shear design )
Sway Bar: Hellwig 1-15/16” Solid Sway bar
Misc: Global West Extended Travel Coilover kit

Rear:
DSE Swivel Link Control Arms
Coilovers: RideTech Triples, 5.2” Stroke, 175lb 12” Spring w/ 1.75 spacer
Sway Bar: None

Brakes:

Front:
Calipers: Wilwood W6A with 5.4” piston area
Rotors: E-Coated GT72 slotted rotors w/ Dynamic hats
Pads: Polymatrix E
Misc: Wilwood Caliper bracket machined for clearance to Kore3 C6 spindle bracket

Rear:
Calipers: Z06 6 Piston (Silver)
Rotors: Z06 14” OEM drilled rotors ( modified to fit over axles )
Pads: Hawk HP
Parking brake: IPSCO viper spot calipers with custom mounting brackets ( yet to be installed )

Steering:

Box: LEE Manufacturing 670 Quick Ratio Box
P/S Pump: KRC ( cylinder head mount )
P/S Reservoir: PSC Remote
High Pressure Lines: XRP - Black Braided Hoses

Wheels / Tires:

Front:
Wheels: TSW 19 x 10.5”, 5 x 120.65mm Matte Gunmetal
Tires: Michelin Pilot Super Sport: 295/30/19
Wheel Spacer: Adaptec Hub Centric spacers 1.75” w/ ARP 1/2”- 20 wheel studs

Rear:
Wheels: TSW 19 x 10.5”, 5 x 120.65mm Matte Gunmetal
Tires: Michelin Pilot Super Sport: 295/30/19
Wheel Spacer: Adaptec Hub Centric spacers 0.875” w/ ARP 1/2”- 20 wheel studs

Rearend:

GM 12 Bolt ( rebuilt by Meanstreets Performance: San Carlos, CA )
Eaton Tru-Trac / 3:55 gears
Moser Axles
Misc: Custom hardline to flexible braided brake lines to Z06 calipers

Transmission:

Viper T56
QuickTime scatter shield ( modified for additional ground clearance )
Driveline: modified stock, shortened and new yoke welded
Clutch: McLeod RXT twin disk
Flywheel: McLeod aluminum 168 tooth
Throwout bearing: McLeod old style hydraulic
MGW short throw shifter w/ shifter extension
Electrical:
Reverse solenoid lockout activation ( wired via momentary switch + brake pedal depression )
Reverse lights wired via transmission pigtail
Pedals: Wilwood 6.25:1 reverse mount triple M/C pedal
Master Cylinders:
Front: Wilwood High Volume 3/4" bore
Rear: Wilwood High Volume 7/8" bore
Clutch: Wilwood High Volume 3/4" bore
Misc: Custom pedal bracket / MC box
Wilwood proportioning valve with pressure switch for brake light activation Wilwood in - cockpit brake bias knob ( yet to be installed )
Plumbing: custom bent hardlines

Interior:

Recaro Sport Seats, Wedge Engineering seat brackets
Mounted using some existing holes and welded Schroth harness brackets to the floor pan Harness: Schroth 6 point with custom color patches
Harness Bar: custom low profile ( Meanstreets Performance: San Carlos, CA )
Sparco steering wheel
A/C: Vintage Air ( 3 Knob Backlit Controls / Swivel Ball vents installed directly into the dash )
Custom pulley & tensioner setup for low mount compressor ( left side )
Bracket: Alan Grove low mount compressor bracket

Cosmetic Mods:

Glass: Dark Window Tint
Body Mods: Shaved Drip Rails, Filled Rear decklid seams
Fenders: Trimmed lips to 1/2”
Brake lights: Dakota Digital LED bulbs

Awesome Josh! Glad you posted. Great stuff. Love what you have done and kept it on the road in the meantime.

Nice to see you start a build thread (Finally!!!!)...haha, just teasing, but not really....but jk.

U making it this year on the road trip?

BTW, i like phase 5 the best, that will be worth the price of admission, although cornering and stopping are a must too..

Anything going on with your work ventures?

:thumbsup: , Mike

Blue?!? I'm gonna miss the GM code 81 red!!

Looks good Josh. So, you're calling your car Bob?

Nice Josh. I've been waiting to see more info on your car, looks like you've done a lot already and have a great plan ahead.

Question on the 10.5"/295's all around: what is your plan to get them up front? I run 265's on 9.5" and a steering stop restriction and still get a rub on hard turns (ARB arm). I'd love to get to a 295 setup all around also.

He is already running them. No inner fender wells and the fender lip has been trimmed flush. I was surprised too when it didn't rub during normal operation. He will have to add steering stops.

Wow. Yeah my inners rub only on a hard turn, trail braking with the nose in full dive a little. Its the ARB arms (spinded bar, arms barely clear frame) that hit. No room to run less backspace or I'll be in the fender arch on the outside.

Classic!

Oh, and nice build too! I also like the older; squarer Chevelles way better than the later ones.

WOW!
Very nice build:thumbsup:
Would love to see a LOT more pics of everything.
Any build pics?

Someday I hope to be there with mine.........