[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by Scarebird

eep.

I am glad I sent mine out for blast and powder - 40 hours of what you did by no means is fun.

How are you going to run your fuel and brake lines? Most kits are either hardtop/post or conv't - yours is neither now frame-wise

Nope, not fun, but I'm happy to keep the $1300 it was going to cost for blasting and powder coating.

For brake and fuel lines, I'll make them myself.

[ZeGermanHam]

A few photos to show where things are at as of tonight. Finished the last few details with the frame. Fabricated some mounting tabs for the trans support and also cleaned up and redid all the welds around the front upper control arm mounts. Frame painting begins this weekend.


The top of the passenger rear quarter needed to have some new metal patched in.





Tonight we test fit the new trunk pan and tail panel.



Also got the Global West bump street correction kit in the mail today. I can't wait to drive this this thing, someday...

[Scarebird]

Those steering arms - are the holes 1/2" or 7/16" Ø?

Pontiac spindles lower holes were 7/16" unless disc - I am curious whether Global West made them in both sizes...

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by Scarebird

Those steering arms - are the holes 1/2" or 7/16" Ø?

Pontiac spindles lower holes were 7/16" unless disc - I am curious whether Global West made them in both sizes...

Global West doesn't offer them in different sizes. They sell the same for all '64-72 GM A-Bodies, and they use 1/2" hardware. This means that if your spindles use 7/16" hardware to attach the steering knuckles, you will have to drill the holes out to 1/2". According to the paperwork that GW supplied, this applies to '64-67 A-Bodies, presumably more than just Pontiacs.

My car has all brand new suspension components and it's getting disc brakes, so I'm not sure what size bolts my new spindles use. I'll have to unbox them and check. Either way, it's an easy workaround.

[62cat]

Looking good. I love this part of the build.

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by Scarebird

Those steering arms - are the holes 1/2" or 7/16" Ø?



Pontiac spindles lower holes were 7/16" unless disc - I am curious whether Global West made them in both sizes...

Originally Posted by ZeGermanHam

Global West doesn't offer them in different sizes. They sell the same for all '64-72 GM A-Bodies, and they use 1/2" hardware. This means that if your spindles use 7/16" hardware to attach the steering knuckles, you will have to drill the holes out to 1/2". According to the paperwork that GW supplied, this applies to '64-67 A-Bodies, presumably more than just Pontiacs.

My car has all brand new suspension components and it's getting disc brakes, so I'm not sure what size bolts my new spindles use. I'll have to unbox them and check. Either way, it's an easy workaround.

To follow up on this, I just test fit the Global West steering knuckles on my CPP disc brake spindles. Both use 1/2" hardware, so no compatibility issues there. I know this info only helps people who have converted to discs, or are considering doing do. But hey, it's one more data point.

[Scarebird]

Yes, only early Chevelles, Novas and LeMans/GTO's had the 7/16 lower bolts. Not sure if factory disc Pontiacs had 1/2" lowers or not - could go either way.

[ZeGermanHam]

Finished painting the frame yesterday, and wow did it come out nice. It looks more glossy in the photos than in person. I used Eastwood products, which were very easy to apply and achieving an even coat was a piece of cake. Suspension and rear end assembly begins tomorrow!

Beginning


Middle



Finished product

[Old Goat 67]

Boy, does that ever look good!

Used the same paint on mine, quite satisfied 10 years later.

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by Old Goat 67

Boy, does that ever look good!

Used the same paint on mine, quite satisfied 10 years later.

That's very good to hear that it has held up for you. Painting the frame myself was done in the interest of saving some money over powder coating. Hearing from people like you that the Eastwood paint has held up over time makes me feel good about that decision.

[ZeGermanHam]

Put in some hours today and yesterday assembling the rear end and getting it installed. The rear shocks have considerably less droop range than what came out of the the car (air shocks). This made getting them connected to the axle somewhat of a chore without the weight of the car to hold the frame down while raising the axle up high enough. Ended up using a ratchet strap, which worked great.

Tomorrow will be work on the front suspension. Loving the quality of the UMI parts so far.

[Scarebird]

Do your fuel lines first before your suspension if you plan to fish the lines thru the frame - much easier to reach into the spring pocket with no spring!

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by Scarebird

Do your fuel lines first before your suspension if you plan to fish the lines thru the frame - much easier to reach into the spring pocket with no spring!

Good point! I'll probably just get the front control arms and steering linkage mocked up but leave the front springs out until I deal with the fuel line. Thanks for the heads up.

[RedDirtRoad]

Just a little trick I do on these A body cars.
I like to tack the head of the bolt to the chassis with the mig welder. If you ever tried to change out shocks with the body on the car sometimes it’s a hassle to get a wrench up between the frame and body to hold the head, especially when it’s rusted
In your case , I seriously doubt your car will ever be rusted again. !
Looking really good man!
Keep it up

[ZeGermanHam]

Another good idea, Dominic. As you say, it likely won't be necessary in my case, so I'll probably just leave them alone. Hopefully these are the last pair of shocks this car ever needs.

[younggto]

You might want to flip the bolts around because with the body on you likely won’t be able to get them out if you ever need to; damaged threads/etc. Unlikely yes, but it could happen.

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by younggto

You might want to flip the bolts around because with the body on you likely won’t be able to get them out if you ever need to; damaged threads/etc. Unlikely yes, but it could happen.

Not a bad idea. I'll probably flip them around later today.

[ZeGermanHam]

Since the facility where I store and work on the GTO is temporarily closed due to covid-19, work has slowed a bit on my end. Got the front suspension and brakes mocked up for fitment. Body work is ongoing, but i don't have many photos showing updates. In the meantime, I've been looking for projects I can work on at home, so I decided to try my hand at rebuilding a carburetor. So far, so good. I'll use this carb initially just to get the car on the road, but long term plans are to go to EFI. Anyhow, the carb has been a fun little side project.

[RedDirtRoad]

karl
You are a braver man then me!
Carbs always scare me. Good Luck

[ZeGermanHam]

Originally Posted by RedDirtRoad

karl
You are a braver man then me!
Carbs always scare me. Good Luck

I have indeed always been intimidated by the thought of rebuilding a carb. In the end, it wasn't very difficult, and was actually somewhat meditative work made easy with the help of some very informative tutorials on YouTube. In my view, carb tuning is much more challenging than rebuilding, but I've got a ways to go before I cross that bridge.

Just buttoned it up a few minutes ago!