[SupergasDil]

Here is a set of 4 pictures showing different levels with the new airbag set up I just finished today and one of the engine almost done. The car has a long way to go but I'm making progress.

[Stuart]

Neat! Do you have any pictures of the airbag setup? Who's product did you use, and was there a lot of fabrication involved to make it fit?

[SupergasDil]

Stuart,

I purchased the front bag mounts from airbagit.com for a 69 camaro and had to whack the top 1 1/2" off to get the correct height. The bottom mount is a flat plate that needed a little trimming on 2 sides. I'll see if I can get my camera in there for some close ups. I didn't want to weld anything so if I ever wanted to put it back to stock I could without any trouble. So on the bottom mount I pulled the mounting pin out of the stock shock and drilled a hole in the center for the bottom center bag bolt and used that to secure the bottom.

[Stuart]

I like that you were able to come up with something that didn't require major mods to the suspension. It seems like most of the airbag setups I see in the magazines require a bunch of welding so once you go there, you can't go back.

[ponchopio]

Whoah...that is a KNOCKOUT!!! You nailed every stage of the airbag stance!

John Piotrowski
www.fullsizepontiacs.com

[Steve Barcak]

Your looks good Dil. How strong are those air bag deals? Would they withstand wheelstands? I wonder if the low rider guys use that stuff or not?
I have had the idea for years to put them under my altered wheelbase 65 Temp funny project. The idea is to give me a high, correct and nostalgic stance while at shows, doing burnouts and in the pits. And to also be able to lower the car from inside during staging for the run for a faster, safer ride. Any ideas how tough they are?
What color will your car be?
I have all of my int done now for my 61 bubble top. Mine is Jadestone green with tri-tone Bonneville int.
Steve Barcak www.pontiacheaven.org

[SupergasDil]

I know the bags are very strong. They are made by Firestone and they offer many different bags for different weight catagories. There is a sand rail company called FunCo that uses these air bags on a lot of their rails and they fly. I mean they really fly. They use Caddy aluminum V8's and they are some of the smoothest riding rails out there. And I'm sure you've seen them underthe cabs of big diesel trucks as part of their air ride systems.

As for using them in a drag racing application, I'm not sure they would work to well. My friend has them on his 68 Camaro and he gets no rotation on launch.

[SupergasDil]

Here are a couple of pics of the air bags. Unfortunately you can't see the mounts.

[SupergasDil]

Here's one with the engine in the car now.

[SupergasDil]

I was ready to fire the engine today, but the engine wasn't. I'll show you a few pictures of what I found, the hard way.

[SupergasDil]

Now that you've seen the pictures I'll tell you what happened. The 61 block is flat on the front up to the valley area. The later 72 block is cast with more of a dip right where the upper hole in the 61 timing cover is. Needless to say I missed it. So the upper hole on the cover had about an 1/8" gap at the top and as I was filling the system with water it just ran right out. You can imagine my dissapointment cause filling the cooling system was the last thing I needed to do before firing the engine. So off came everything on the front of the engine to remove the cover, drill a crossover hole between the 2 holes and install an expansion plug in the upper hole. It's all back together now and ready to fire after church tomorrow,

[SupergasDil]

PS Notice the later model front crank seal.

[SupergasDil]

Here's waht the engine compartment used to look like

[SupergasDil]

Here it is

[SupergasDil]

Here's a newer one

[PITTSBURGH 64]

Thanks for the picts.
If you have the time could you post what kind and what number air bags you used.
I would love to do that on my 64 Bonneville.
I'm looking for a better ride and the air bags might do the trick.

Looks like your bringing that kid up right.
Good for you.

[68fatcat]

Very nice.

[SupergasDil]

64, You got that right. He's 3 years old and loves helping Daddy. I think I like it more than he does. Just call me the proud Dad.
As far as the bags go I got them used from a friend so I don't know the numbers. I'll see if I can take some more detailed pictures for you guys of the bag set up next time I'm under the car. In fact,I'll take one loose so you can see the mounting I made. The lower part is kinda gay but I didn't want to weld anything to the frame in case I ever sold the car and someone wanted to make it all original again.

[SupergasDil]

I've been doing some late nights in the garage and though it's hard to tell I am making progress. You cant tell from the earlier pictures that I posted just how bad the grilles were but they were thrashed. The car was stored down by the beach for a while so they grew rust **** all over. Lots of grinding, filing, filling, sanding, filling, sanding, filling, priming, sanding, priming, sanding, priming, you get the idea and paint. They actually turned out okay

[SupergasDil]

Here's a corner shot of the car showing some of the sanding work and body work I've been doing