[ron cozzo]

Dick, I had the same problem and trimmed the crappy foam gaskets to fit like the originals.

http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...&postcount=163

[Dick Boneske]

Cutting the foam gaskets to clear the bosses would be fine, except that the foam is thinner than the bosses on the housing, so there would be no seal. You'd need the thickness of two gaskets. Look at the housing photo--the bosses are 1/8" high and the gasket is 3/32" thick.

I noticed online there are gaskets already properly cut. I'll call Ames tomorrow to get description before ordering.

[chrisp]

The set i got are made out of silicone & fit excellent . Would have to dig up receipt from vendor .

[Dick Boneske]

Thanks, chrisp. That's what the originals appear to be--silicone. But they are hard due to age.

Here's how the rear end is coming along. I need to work on deck lid gaps, but it's getting close. I'm pleased at how the quarter panel end caps fit even though it cost many hours at the body shop getting them fitted.

Also need to paint PONTIAC in gas door white. Need to wait for a day of extreme patience for that, however.

[smasse64]

my 64 lemans is a dk grn, bahama grn met...this looks like it but i can tell it is more blue..great color...great body work...

[Dick Boneske]

Originally Posted by chrisp

The set i got are made out of silicone & fit excellent . Would have to dig up receipt from vendor .

I ended up using the silicone gaskets from Ames, but put the flimsy foam gaskets from PG Enterprises between them and the lenses. The silicone gaskets are not quite thick enough to make up for the bosses around the screw holes. What I did appears to make a good seal.

Pulled the engine yesterday so I can detail it properly. From the picture of the car with the engine in place to the picture of it on the floor was less than two hours. As you can see, A LOT of cleanup is needed with the body shop dirt on every part of the engine.

Already cleaned up and put POR15 on the HO manifolds. Need to decide whether to use a Flowcooler water pump to replace the leaking original. I never had an overheating problem with the original cast impeller pump. Will freshen up the Tripower carbs by dichromating the bodies again. They've been in place for 22 years and have faded in color quite a bit.

Note the picture of the heater housing. The hammertone paint I used is a little extreme in the hammertone effect. I will figure out how to tone it down a little--maybe scuff off the gloss and coat it with a dark metallic gray, but leave the hammertone texture.

Any suggestions on coating for the seat tracks? We've cleaned them up as well as possible, but don't know what to use to prevent rust. It's amazing the factory did no coating and they survived as well as they did--That is, except for the "feet" which rusted profusely.

C'mon, I need a lot of suggestions!!

[ron cozzo]

I sprayed my seat tracks with detail gray after washing out the old grease with solvent and bead blasting. Fresh grease after paint.

[Dick Boneske]

I don't know how to get the seat tracks apart, so I'm not going to bead blast them. I've cleaned them pretty well with rotary wire brush and mineral spirits. There was paint on some areas from the previous owner, but it peels off really easily, so I'm leary of adhesion with any paint over the steel.

I'll put grease in the area of the rollers after paint, but want to pick the best paint/primer so it sticks.

Also, what do you think would be the best/easiest way to clean the car from the firewall forward? I thought about moving the car outside and using my pressure washer on the frame rails, suspension, etc.

Even though the engine was covered with plastic, it is also covered with body shop dust and residual oil from years of storage and very little use. I've considered using my solvent/air sprayer with mineral spirits. Will repaint the engine after cleanup.

[War eagle]

Actually 1964 bucket seat tracks from KC all show the rear feet dipped about 5 inches and in semi gloss black. The fronts are natural presumably because they are less visible unlike the rears. I used the satin clear on the front feet. Glass beading is probably the easiest way to clean up the tracks then with safety glasses on, air blow them free of the glass beads. (Our cabinet has low air pressure on the internal blow off hose so doing a good bead removal means cleaning outside the cabinet hence the saftey glasses) Grease last.

[Dick Boneske]

I've been busy fixing some rust issues that the body shop did not. Luckily, I found the remains of the front floor pans that they used to replace two areas under the front seat that were rusted. I found another on the driver's side just behind the rise in the floor to the firewall. I've cut the rusted area out--about 1 1/2" wide by 12" long--and will weld a piece from the repro pan to replace that area. It's amazing that the rest of the floor is rust-free. There is a depression in the sheet metal there that evidently gathered water when the car was driven in winter months in its youth. I'm really disappointed that the body shop did not fix this.

The good news is, I found a '64 wood wheel on eBay and won the auction! All the horn pieces are included as well as the horn button and an original plastic center emblem(good but with craze marks in the plastic). The wheel is not perfect, but it will be when I mount it in her car. There is one crack about 1/8" wide at the 8 o'clock position that I'll fix.

Interesting thing is that this wheel was removed from a '64 GTO that was resto-moded by SEMA. I'd like to see how they "improved" a '64 GTO by removing and replacing this steering wheel!!! If I can get a picture of the resto-mod, I'll post it. The guy I bought it from says he has a whole box of '64 GTO trim items that he doesn't need.

[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by Dick Boneske

I'd like to see how they "improved" a '64 GTO by removing and replacing this steering wheel!!! If I can get a picture of the resto-mod, I'll post it.

How's this?..lol

[Dick Boneske]

Greg,

That'll be about what it looks like, I'd guess.

[Greg Reid]

I always hated those things...although I'll admit that I had one of those barefoot gas pedals.

[Dick Boneske]

I'm putting the side windows in now. I have both quarter windows in and working, but the passenger side does not lean in enough to press against the weatherstrip when rolled up. The front of the quarter window sets right in the weatherstrip, but the rear segement--from the center top to the rear bottom are not "in" far enough.

There are four adjustments on the two longer tracks that guide the window. I can't figure out how to change the lean-in on the rear of the quarter window. The short track in the rear of the window mechanism is not adjustable for in-out.

Also, since the PUI sweeps are so much thicker than the originals (not the actual sweeps, but the part with the clips), the adjustments have to be "just right" to allow the bottom of the window to slide between the inner and outer sweeps. Now, I understand why so many of you complain about the repro sweeps.

Also, the steel clips are too soft and bend when you insert them into the inner panels. It is absolutely necessary to bend them tighter by squeezing with a pliers after installation. It's not easy getting a pliers into that area with the glass in place. If this is not done, the sweeps would rattle when the windows are down.

[ron cozzo]

Another PUI 64 hardtop window sweep victim. The Repop brand fit and look much better. Sorry, I can't recall how to adjust that quarter window.

[Dick Boneske]

I found some window sweeps that look exactly like OEM. A little pricey, but worth it to make the windows work right. I'll report on results. Maybe Ames needs to look at a better quality sweep. PUI is much too thick on the '64. Maybe the felt ones for '65 and later fit better. .

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321015987085...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

[ron cozzo]

Dick, those are the Repop brand that we've been recommending. You'll be much happier with those. Color the tops of the green clips black with a marker or you'll see the green in some places.

[Dick Boneske]

Window sweeps to arrive tomorrow. Thanks for the tip--I'll color the green clips black before I install the inners.

I'm now debating whether I should change the sweeps on the driver's side quarter window. I already have the PUI sweeps installed and the window adjusted to work--but just barely, as there is so little space between the sweeps. I think you know what I'll do.

[Dick Boneske]

Time to get the wheels ready. I'm going to use the '64 Deluxe spinner covers, so I need 14" wheels. I plan to use the 225 70r14 Diamondback redlines like I have on my '64.

I have five 14 x 6 wheels. Two are 14X6JJ and have 4 1/2" backspace. Two are 14X6JK with 4 1/2" backspace. One is a 14X6JK, but has only 4 1/8" backspace. I thought the 14X6JK's would all be the same--lucky I checked. Does anyone know the difference between JJ and JK? I can't see any difference. The only clue is the stamping on the OD of the rim.

[MUSLCAH]

Did you repair the deck lid ....or the Body Shop charged you for a 40 hour repair ?