Help!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bluesman1]

First off hopefully this is in the right section!!! Ok all you pro-touring and restoration gurus!!!!!!!!!!! I have hit a wall and I'm just getting started. I have a 70 chevelle that I have in a million pieces right now. It's gonna be a mix between pro-touring/pro street your typical BBC/t400/12 blt car to beat the heck out of on the street and the track. I'm as everybody else on a budget so I'm not dropping 30-40k in it at one time but I really could use some input on which direction to go in first. I have to replace the full quarters, (which I have) deck filler panel and patch the front lower fenders. Depending on what I find out next week when I get back in from working out of town. I plan to sand the top and doors to see how bad they are and replace the skins if needed. Now I have already pulled the body off once to clean/paint the frame and bottom side of the car. I have decided to make some changes to the frame, I plan to purchase the K-kit from HPC and the box kit for the rear frame portion from ABC performance just because I think not only will it strengthen the frame but improve the looks. I had used (don't laugh) Rustolem high performance semi gloss black rattle can paint on the frame which surprisingly really looks and holds up great. I want to powder coat it and the suspension the same low gloss black the Roadster Shop used on the burgandy 66 chevelle posted on here a while back. I guess now that I have rambled on and probably have everybody scratching their heads. Since I'm not one of the big shops and have a unlimited budget, I'll be dropping about 3-4k at a time. Should I work to get the frame and suspension done first or complete all the body work first before worrying about the frame?? I've made a list of the parts I have and some of the parts I plan to purchase in the near future to give you an idea as to where I'm headed. Thanks in advance for any help and input.


Chassis, suspension and wheels:
1) HPC K-kit (need)
2) ABC rear fame box kit (need)
3) Powder coat or paint
4) Speed-Tech front a-arms (need)
5) Jegs adj upper and lower control arms (have)
6) QA1 adj shock 4 corners (have)
7) Wilwood or Baer brakes (need)
8) Ricks stainless gas tank (have) Thanks Marcus!!!
9) Aero motive a1000 fuel pump and filter (have) Thanks again Marcus!!!
10) Rons Alumn radiator and fans (have) Thanks again Marcus!!!!
11) 12 blt rear end (have)
12) Wheels not sure on yet thinking on weld v-series 17" fronts and 18" rears
( I have 15x 4 and 15x10 centerline telstars with 325/50 DR's now)


Paint and Body:
1) Pretty much look like a stock 70 chevelle with a 4' fiberglass cowl hood
2) Paint factory SS look with some suttle changes


Interior:
1) Stock SS look with a rider friendly roll bar (if there is such a thing) LOL
And by the way if anybody has a decent set of factory SS bucket seats let me know.

Motor and Tranny:
1) Pump gas 468 bbc with balanced stock internals, Probe pistons, hyd roller set up, steel 049 heads with a ton of port work and a little bit of giggle juice just in case that red light is a little further away than I thought. LOL
2) T400 with a Hughes 3500 stall

So hopefully this give you an idea which direction I'd like to be heading instead of in circles!!!! LOL

[IMPALA MAN]

Sounds a lot like my build.
Here is what I did.

1. Get the body off the car.

2. Get the frame blasted and painted/coated. I had a friend strip the frame for $80.00. Then painted it with POR15 for under $100.00.

3. Get the body stripped and put in epoxy primer. I was able to get this done for under $1600.00. The best $1600.00 I spent. This way I can work on the body, when I want without worrying about rust.

4. Set the body back on the car.

5. At this point you can leave the old wheels and tires on, buy some junk ones or buy the ones you are going to use. Personally, considering that you will need the new wheels and tires to set ride height, and I cannot think of another single bolt on that gives a guy inspiration that the project will someday look cool....I chose to get the new wheels and tires and put them on.

6. At this point it's kind of your call. I found, being able to bounce back and forth prevents burnout, allows you to get work done year round and in any weather. In my case, I do bodywork from March to September. Then engine, front and rear suspension, etc October to Feb. I roll the car out to do any welding and bodywork. I like to do bodywork when it is between 55 and 95 degrees and doing it outside, prevents the garage looking like a dust bomb went off. With the climate in my area, this plan works out great.

7. Whenever you choose but sometime after you get the body and frame painted, get a chassis cart. This will allow you to work on the car much easier, leave the wheels on or off and it has many other benefits. I have about $350.00 in mine and it's well worth it.

This may or may not be how the professional shops do it, however the home builder is under a few different situations than a home builder. Personally I wish I could do it like the professional shops, however I'm not doing it for a living, have limited shop space, etc.

Feel free to follow my thread...PROJECT IMPULSE. I will have pics of the chassis cart up in a few minutes.

If you have any questions, PM me and I'll be glad to help.

[Bluesman1]

Originally Posted by IMPALA MAN

Sounds a lot like my build.
Here is what I did.

1. Get the body off the car.

2. Get the frame blasted and painted/coated. I had a friend strip the frame for $80.00. Then painted it with POR15 for under $100.00.

3. Get the body stripped and put in epoxy primer. I was able to get this done for under $1600.00. The best $1600.00 I spent. This way I can work on the body, when I want without worrying about rust.

4. Set the body back on the car.

5. At this point you can leave the old wheels and tires on, buy some junk ones or buy the ones you are going to use. Personally, considering that you will need the new wheels and tires to set ride height, and I cannot think of another single bolt on that gives a guy inspiration that the project will someday look cool....I chose to get the new wheels and tires and put them on.

6. At this point it's kind of your call. I found, being able to bounce back and forth prevents burnout, allows you to get work done year round and in any weather. In my case, I do bodywork from March to September. Then engine, front and rear suspension, etc October to Feb. I roll the car out to do any welding and bodywork. I like to do bodywork when it is between 55 and 95 degrees and doing it outside, prevents the garage looking like a dust bomb went off. With the climate in my area, this plan works out great.

7. Whenever you choose but sometime after you get the body and frame painted, get a chassis cart. This will allow you to work on the car much easier, leave the wheels on or off and it has many other benefits. I have about $350.00 in mine and it's well worth it.

This may or may not be how the professional shops do it, however the home builder is under a few different situations than a home builder. Personally I wish I could do it like the professional shops, however I'm not doing it for a living, have limited shop space, etc.

Feel free to follow my thread...PROJECT IMPULSE. I will have pics of the chassis cart up in a few minutes.

If you have any questions, PM me and I'll be glad to help.

Thanks bud for the input. I've worked on projects all my life but nothing to this degree and wow can you get over welmed quick. I'll check out you build thanks.

Howard