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  #1  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:20 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Default Home built 67 Firebird

Back in 2009, I got bitten by the muscle car bug, eventhough I've always drawn to imports most of my life. After search CL/ebay, I found a 67 Firebird in Puyallup, just east of Tacoma WA. It was a 400/T400 car, with complete interior, but front end was either missing/unusable. It needed new quarters, front end sheet metal, and trunk pan. The plan was restoring the car back to stock with upgrades to front discs.



After getting the car home in Vancouver, I did research on farming it out for rust repair, and quickly learned that for the labor cost of one quarter panel replacement, I could pick up a welding set up/tool to do it myself, so I dove head first into metal repair/body work.

Since I have not welded before, I've decided to practiced on scrap pieces of sheet metals first, then welded on the car where pretty welds are not required, such as floor pans and trunk pan.

Repaired rear floor pan




Repaired trunk pan



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Old 09-23-2013, 07:28 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Now that I was comfortable with the welder, I tackled the quarters. The pass side got a full quarter, and driver side got a skin. I also replaced the piece between the trunk and rear window. I used SEM panel bonding adhesive on the full quarter and the trunk filler piece.

Pass quarter removed





Pass quarter mocked up


Driver side quarter removed



New skin screwed in place



Welded.


Replaced trunk filler piece


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  #3  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:31 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Started on the bodywork






Worked on the gap between the trunk lid and the filler panel between the trunk and rear window



Removed the sub frame and had it blasted
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Old 09-23-2013, 07:35 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Car with all the sheet metal back on. I repaired the original doors with patches, patched the rust hole on the DS fender, and used repo fender on the pass side.




Sprayed primer on the car in my garage.




Wet sanded




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  #5  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:37 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Since I have not painted a car before, I decided to farm out the final paint/clear coat.

On the trailer to the paint shop


Painted



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  #6  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:41 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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I got lucky as one week after I had the car painted, the paint shop got burned down.

Had the Pontiac engine rebuilt at AC Nutter in Vancouver, Wa



AC tried to talk me into going LS engine, but I was restoring it to semi stock so I had him rebuilt the block with forged internals/roller cam etc...

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  #7  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:42 AM
will69camaro will69camaro is offline
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Car is looking good! Kudos for taking on the sheetmetal work! I couldn't bring myself to do that portion of it.

**Edit** Answered before I could post!
__________________
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Old 09-23-2013, 07:44 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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Dynamatted the car (3 boxes total), replaced all wiring with American Autowire, put front/rear disc brakes from an 02 Firebird in the car. Installed VA a/c, Mark 8 fan, Hotchkis subframe connectors.

Got the car running and entered it in a car show in Vancouver, WA. That was back in 2011. Almost 3 years after I started.

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  #9  
Old 09-23-2013, 07:49 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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September 2011 we decided to move to Houston from rainy NW. The wife and kids left first with the movers. They left me a couch/table/TV and my tools in the garage.

One month later, I found a job in Houston and joined the family.

My Firebird on a trailer somewhere in eastern Oregon, with the Uhaul packed to the roof with my tools/stuff from the garage.

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Old 09-23-2013, 07:51 AM
rickpaw rickpaw is offline
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The car at its new home in Houston. In 2012, I put in Gear Vendor O/D, Dakota Digital VHX gauges (awesome piece), and drove the car around for almost a year.

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