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Old 10-05-2021, 09:27 PM
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Default An OHC addition to the Breakaway Squad

Just bought a 1969 Firebird ragtop. It’s a base engine OHC6 (1bbl), power glide (column shift) combo. Nice rust free survivor car and all original except for one nice repaint, some detailing, an aftermarket 8 track and rally 2 wheels. Relatively well optioned for such a basic powertrain car. PHS has over 20 options. Steering and brakes (drums), decor, whitewalls, wire wheel covers, power trunk etc.

One odd option is deluxe belts with shoulder straps, pretty rare for a ragtop. Car was with its original western Ohio-Kentucky owner till 2008. Two owners since. Mileage isn’t low (a bit over 100k) but obviously lived a sheltered life.

Plans are to sort out the mechanicals, get it back to black wheels and wire wheel covers and upgrade it with a stereo and factory 8 track that I have on the shelf.
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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
The Following User Says Thank You to north For This Useful Post:
  #2  
Old 10-05-2021, 09:40 PM
thews thews is offline
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That's a beautiful car. Really rare option for the harness belts. Can you publish the part number on those shoulder belts?

  #3  
Old 10-05-2021, 09:40 PM
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I’m on the hunt for a nice clean set of four stock wheels. Being a base OHC it would have been the exception to the 7” wheel, so I’m looking for for 14x6. I’m not a code guy so just want some correct offset era correct GM rims. 67-68 Firebird rims, 68-72 A body all are functionally the same. I could buy them or trade some spare 14x7 rally 2 wheels.

The color combo on the car is Limelight Green, Green basic interior and the top (power) is Ivory. Carpet must of been changed, looks more like the 68 green than the correct 69 green which was quite dark.

This car is the quintessential example of the car you’d buy for a teenage daughter or your wife, pretty but not enough power to get into a wreck ;-)

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #4  
Old 10-05-2021, 10:00 PM
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The option code for deluxe belts with front shoulder straps is WS1 (431). They were a common option on Firebirds (10-15%) but records don’t segregate between convertible and hardtop.

Most convertible buyers who wanted deluxe belts would order A39 (434) which was about $10 instead of $37 but didn’t include shoulder belts. About 10-15% of convertibles had this option (it was only offered on convertibles)

An inverse of this was option AS1 (438), also convertible only, which was shoulder straps but without having deluxe belts. It was about $23 and an indication of how rare the deluxe shoulder belts were on convertibles is that they were only installed on 49 cars.

Lastly, you could order deluxe belts with front and rear shoulder straps WS2 (432). This option was offered on
hardtops and convertibles but cost about double on convertibles (hardtops already had front shoulder straps as standard equipment). The convertible price was about $64 and total installations (ragtops and coupes) was 233. Rear shoulder belts were only available this way, no equivalent standard belt option for them was offered.

This car has the WS1 belts. It includes stowage clips on the front of the rear armrests. Strangely if you ordered the front and rear shoulder straps there was no stowage system for the rears (I guess you were just supposed to leave them in the top well?

__________________
My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #5  
Old 10-05-2021, 10:13 PM
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I’ve never driven a 1bbl OHC, so not sure what to expect, you’d think with over 20 options ordered they’d have scared up the extra $20 odd bucks to get a Hydramatic 3 speed automatic instead of the powerglide 2 speed. But a glance at production records indicates that most people thought like him; with the base engine the powerglide outsold the TH350 two and a half to one. Interestingly when the 350 2bbl was specified the TH350 was installed three times more than the powerglide (the powerglide wasn’t offered on any other engines in 69).

The standard axle is a 3.23 so hopefully that will be enough to get relatively decent pep from the six (the 350 2bbl with automatic had a 2.56).

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #6  
Old 10-05-2021, 10:15 PM
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Will also be nice to lose the flexy rad hoses ASAP!

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #7  
Old 10-05-2021, 10:46 PM
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Nice find. I like the color with Ivory top.

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1968 LeMans conv. 350 HO - 4 speed triple white (hear it idle here) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVmq...ature=youtu.be
1968 LeMans conv. 350 - 4 speed Solar red/pearl
  #8  
Old 10-05-2021, 10:50 PM
thews thews is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by north View Post
The option code for deluxe belts with front shoulder straps is WS1 (431). They were a common option on Firebirds (10-15%) but records don’t segregate between convertible and hardtop.

Most convertible buyers who wanted deluxe belts would order A39 (434) which was about $10 instead of $37 but didn’t include shoulder belts. About 10-15% of convertibles had this option (it was only offered on convertibles)

An inverse of this was option AS1 (438), also convertible only, which was shoulder straps but without having deluxe belts. It was about $23 and an indication of how rare the deluxe shoulder belts were on convertibles is that they were only installed on 49 cars.

Lastly, you could order deluxe belts with front and rear shoulder straps WS2 (432). This option was offered on
hardtops and convertibles but cost about double on convertibles (hardtops already had front shoulder straps as standard equipment). The convertible price was about $64 and total installations (ragtops and coupes) was 233. Rear shoulder belts were only available this way, no equivalent standard belt option for them was offered.

This car has the WS1 belts. It includes stowage clips on the front of the rear armrests. Strangely if you ordered the front and rear shoulder straps there was no stowage system for the rears (I guess you were just supposed to leave them in the top well?
Thanks for this. When you get time, can you grab a picture of the part number tags on the shoulder belts? Again, really awesome car. With power FDB I'll bet it rides nice.

  #9  
Old 10-05-2021, 11:47 PM
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Scarebird Scarebird is offline
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Is this an actual PowerGlide or 2 speed BOP trans?

Did OHC's have the Chevy bellhousing pattern?

  #10  
Old 10-06-2021, 05:26 AM
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Good question, I don’t know much about 2 speed automatics. I just called it a powerglide because that’s the name that comes to mind.

Given that it’s a six, which I understand to be heavily based on the Chevy six I’d guess it’s a Chevy transmission rather than the BOP version.

__________________
My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #11  
Old 10-06-2021, 05:28 AM
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north north is offline
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If the tags are still on the belts I’ll post a pic. But I won’t get the car for a few weeks.

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #12  
Old 10-06-2021, 08:06 AM
66sprint 66sprint is offline
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I think it would have the Super Turbine 300, used on Pontiac Buick and Oldsmobile base model cars.
If you were so inclined you could easily upgrade to the T350.

  #13  
Old 10-06-2021, 08:19 AM
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I’ll look at the shop manual to see what trans they actually used. While a TH350 would surely perk her up I’ll leave it stock, with the base 6 it will be a slug regardless, it’s part of the charm of the car ;-)

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #14  
Old 10-06-2021, 12:01 PM
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tinindian68 tinindian68 is offline
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OHC’s have the BOP bell housing. I picked up a 68 LeMans 1bbl OHC 2 speed auto and am really surprised with how peppy it is. Great car, North!

  #15  
Old 10-06-2021, 12:08 PM
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Thanks for the clarification on the bellhousing! I'm figuring the 3.23 gears will keep the car zippy feeling in town compared to long legged 2bbl cars but I suspect it best to stay out of hill country! The closest I can remember is a friend had a nova with a straight 6 and the glide, we drove it through Vermont and New Hampshire White and Green mountains, it didn't like those long interstate hills one bit! The trick was to floor it on the downhills so that you'd hit 100 at the bottom and thereby hopefully not drop below 60 by the next crest. My first new car was an 86 6000 with the 2.5 four, same thing, zippy in town but wheezy with hills.

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #16  
Old 10-06-2021, 12:48 PM
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Jeff Hamlin Jeff Hamlin is offline
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Thumbs up Sweet '69 FB Cammer.

Glad it found a good home.
I posted it on our Forum a few weeks back.
And I hope the seller was flexible on the asking price.

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Not screaming like the passengers in his car.
  #17  
Old 10-06-2021, 12:51 PM
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Very cool Firebird, north.

Re: ST300 transmission... I believe the 64-65 Buick Skylark and Olds Cutlass would have the switch-pitch torque converter. For a neat “hidden” mod, you could retrofit that with a little engine tuning to wake up the car just a bit.

  #18  
Old 10-06-2021, 01:14 PM
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I got a decent amount off the asking price but I'm sure I overpaid in the sense that if I had to sell it I'd get clocked hard. I've tired to add a nice 1bbl OHC6 to the collection for years. I actually didn't care if it was a Tempest or a bird, even a 4 door would have been fine but man there aren't many unmolested, rust free survivors left out there. Even though this was much more expensive than say a Tempest sedan or coupe it at least would be easier to sell if I had to. The hardest part of the collection to fill are those bottom feeder cars, they were used up and weren't the type of cars people would save and cherish.

The remaining elements I'd like to see in the collection are a Tempest and a Custom S since I have none, it would be nice if I could check some other boxes with them too, like a 3 on the tree, 2 and 4 door sedan bodies, and of course a mid size wagon, ideally a LeMans to get some wood grain into the collection. Some blue would be nice, 20 cars and the closest thing I have to blue are the stripes on the TA!

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My Break Away Squad
1969 Fbird (Base, 350 & Sprint Cvt’s - 400HO & TA Hardtops)
1969 LeMans (2dr & 4dr Hardtop and a Cvt)
1969 LeMans Safari 2 seat Wagon
1969 GTO (2 Cvt, 2 Hardtops & Judge Hardtop)
1969 Catalina (3 Cvt’s & a 2dr hardtop)
1969 Ventura 2 Seat Wagon
1969 Executive 4dr Sedan
1969 Bonnie Cvt
1969 Bonnie 3 Seat Wagon (2 of them)
1969 Bonnie Brougham (4dr Hardtop & Cvt)
1969 Grand Prix SJ (2 of them)
1969 2+2 2dr Hardtop (Canadian model)
  #19  
Old 10-06-2021, 06:19 PM
694.1 694.1 is offline
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Congratulation are in order.

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"At no time did we exceed 175 mph.”
Dan Gurney's truthful response to his and Brock Yate's winning of the first ever Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining Sea...

Still have my 1st Firebird
7th Firebird
57 Starchief
  #20  
Old 10-06-2021, 10:11 PM
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So, how many of your 21 vehicle Breakaway Squad are green?

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