[SD455DJ]

The rear window is out revealing a really clean glass channel...no rust/rot! It only needs a good cleaning and de-scaling of the surface rust. Whew! Definitely dodged a bullet there!

Dennis

[starlightblack]

[QUOTE=Shiny;6202721]Is than an NOS tank or repro?

Not to detract from your question but it's interesting for me...

I don't know squat about the part but the "TERN??" is likely "TERNE" which is referring to the sheet metal used for fabrication... probably a continuous process for electrolytic or hot-dipped galvanized steel (zinc). This material probably carried specific claims for corrosion protection and the process may have been proprietary to one mill or supplier, hence the labeling.]QUOTE

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1968-Camaro...MAAOSwsddbcmCq

[455HOGT37]

Originally Posted by SD455DJ

Was the yellow window sticker for BEALE AFB by chance?

Dennis

Sure was. It was a water main in base housing that broke outside my house and blew mud and rocks into the air and broke the original windshield.

[SD455DJ]

Originally Posted by 455HOGT37

Sure was. It was a water main in base housing that broke outside my house and blew mud and rocks into the air and broke the original windshield.

Ahaa! That explains the fine gravel all over the front end and in the crevasse's! The lower front valence had its fair share of it. Probably lost a couple pounds of the stuff.

The brakes are getting a complete overhaul the next week or so. I'm hanging onto the original rear drums and front calipers. The rotors were too thin to keep and only one was original.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

Dan installed the lower ductwork for the HVAC system (uh, no AC though) and painted the top of the cowl and dash while the windshield is out.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

Scott Tiemann has a quart of Canyon Copper paint left over from a previous restoration and is going to start the metal repair/patch to the lower rear passenger quarter panel wheel well opening. He and Dan talked me into spraying the entire body now, so he's getting some more CC paint mixed (...and here we go...again). It's my fault because I agreed to do it. So, Dan stripped all the stripes (sorry Mike!), emblems, moldings, mirrors, door handles, bumpers, etc., etc., etc. off the car to get it ready for the body work and paint. It's going to be a 'scuff & shoot' paint job...no jambs or bottom of deck lid painting. The original plan was to 'work' with the patina, so we're thinking of going with a semi-gloss finish and leave the reproduction GT-37 eyebrow stripes as is...not too sure what the best course is yet, but we have to decide soon...pressure is on.

Dennis

[455HOGT37]

I never painted the jams either. The paint in the jams and the chalk on the firewall were applied at the factory

[SD455DJ]

Originally Posted by 455HOGT37

I never painted the jams either. The paint in the jams and the chalk on the firewall were applied at the factory

Yes, we're going to preserve the original door jamb sticker and engine tune up/emissions sticker on the radiator support. Somehow I would like to cover them with a protective coating to keep them from deteriorating further. It's remarkable they survived this long.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

Well, that's not the emission sticker...let's try this again...

[SD455DJ]

New brakes! We went with a good old fashioned reman master cylinder. brakes are bled and ready to go...stop rather.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

Gas tank is in now...engine and tranny maybe next week! Scott got more Canyon Copper paint mixed and that will be mixed with the old CC paint to make sure no color miss-match.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

We installed original (not to this car) HO exhaust manifolds and heat riser shrouds on the 455HO, so it is ready to install tomorrow along with a new aluminum Cold Case radiator that will get a light dusting of black paint on the fins and normal coverage on the tanks. We got new radiator hoses from our host (Ames) and 455 (big) Mitey Mounts (lots of controversy on these, but we'll see if they hold up to the 540 lb. ft. of torque!).

The B-W Super T10 and shifter will be installed afterwards and we are looking into the new B-W shifter & back-drive linkages that Crash Enterprises makes (see the separate thread in this Section...they look very nice!).

Dennis

['ol Pinion head]

Dennis, looking fwd to pics of the GT-37 in CC code BC/CC

[SD455DJ]

Thanks Roger! The current plan was to do a scuff and shoot without the clear coat to keep with the weathered/patina look like it is now. In light of finding more trouble areas recently, we'll see what we decide to do with the extent of the body work and prep...it needs more work than we initially thought, so now we are debating what's the best course of action...do we do more body work (rust repair) now, or leave it for later...and you know what that means, not in my lifetime...so, it's either now, or never. We found a small rusted area up on the rear passenger wheel opening (where it is currently gray primer) below the rear window that should be fixed, and some of the body filler up high behind the rear window is cracked and looks rusty orange in the cracks...ugh...not good. I could look the other way, but then why paint it if it's going to get worse and is a waste of effort and money. I think, rather know, Scott will want to fix it properly before paint, or not do it at all. All it takes is more money...what's new (lol)!

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

The 455HO is in along with the transmission. The new 455 style Mitey Mounts keep the oil pan about 3/8" above the steering crosslink and saddle, so we'll be keeping an eye on the clearance over time to see if the engine weight crushes the mounts and allows the oil pan to contact the link. It did this on the '70 LeMans and I wondered why the manual steering got harder to turn! Fortunately, it just rubbed the paint a bit and didn't wear through the pan...cheap Korean made motor mounts...lasted about 2 years and 1000 miles! I'm hoping these Mitey Mounts will last a bit longer. We replaced the Lemans' motor mounts with the polyurethane mounts from Butler and they are great...so far no complaints.

Anyway...we had to order a new driveshaft to fit the TH400 output shaft of the B-W Super T10 trans and the factory 12-bolt. We have driveshafts with the '70-earlier yoke (smaller diameter), but not a '71-up style (larger diameter). We also got a stronger pressure plate to go with a new Centerforce 10.4" dual friction disc (did I mention we are using parts and pieces we have on-hand to keep costs down?) to hold the massive torque of the 455HO since we didn't have anything with enough clamping force ready to use.

Painted the Cold Case aluminum radiator and it test fitted with the factory fan shroud and core support beautifully. Now we have to find the proper '71 A-body brackets and pulleys to go to non-AC with power steering...they're around here somewhere.

More to come...

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

How about a 24 hour turn-around on the new driveshaft! Called in the order at 3:00 pm on Monday, picked it up at 3:00 pm on Tuesday. Dan also found a CenterForce pressure plate for the 10.4" clutch that was lightly used and will replace the factory style unit that we didn't feel would be up to holding the increased power of the 455HO. The original brackets for the power steering and alternator were found along with the pulleys...all will be glass beaded and painted to look as nice as the engine there going on.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

A little more progress to wrap up 2020...Centerforce pressure plate installed, trans and driveshaft back in too. Got the new heater and radiator hoses on, along with some of the other engine plumbing and wiring, hood tach heater vent hose/dryer, alternator, power steering pump and radiator/shroud. Scraped the 455 H.O. fender decals off too...sad to see them go...they've been on a long time.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

Got all the old (original) door weatherstripping off, the new non-cogged Gates fan/ps/alt belts on, messed with the front fender alignments to get the panel fit a little better, and found an older 'hand-me-down' exhaust system bent for RA manifolds on a '70-'72 GTO to use on the GT-37. Unfortunately, it is a muffler shop kink bent 2.5" system with 2.5"Magnaflow mufflers, but isn't too bad.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

The 7071263 Q-jet that was used for dyno'ing is back on the engine along with the correct rear alternator bracket (thanks to Lyn - 66carguy), along with the new B-W shifter linkage set-up from Crash Enterprises and his back-drive lever to allow the '71 factory set-up to work properly. The new AC Delco remanufactured starter is mounted too. I just have to find my extra factory solenoid heat shield to pop on another day. We had to get the proper long E-brake cable hook, so now that is working correctly with the new brakes throughout. The shifter handle is on the trans with the original 3-speed ball.

Electrical check is next then the exhaust system installation! Dreading the electrical with the extent of the new/newer wiring harnesses the car needed...we're sure we'll be chasing gremlins for a while.

Dennis

[SD455DJ]

I forgot to mention the painted black bracket on the left is for the big 80 amp alternator (A/C and heated rear glass) and the right one is everything else. It's now painted and installed.

The shifter handle for the bench seat comes through the floor where is should, thankfully.

Dennis