caminoluvver
Nov 7th, 06, 2:47 AM
Hi, my name is Jeff, and my wife & I have been working on a 65 El camino project (I do most of the hands on stuff, she lends moral support & CASH from the houshold budget). Team Chevelle is a rich source of knowledge and inspiration; it is the first place I look to for answers & ideas on this project.
I've been a gearhead forever. Built plastic models as a kid. Worked as a pump jockey/grease monkey when gas stations were still "service stations". Got a lot of OJT over the years on medium/heavy truck drivetrain, some dealership training on electronic engine controls. Worked a few years in industrial machine maintenance. Now 52, I'm an operater at an electric power plant.
Anyway, I'm glad to be here, and so a little about the car.
The car was built at the Fremont, CA plant and my father-in-law had it in Arizona till we took posession of it a few years ago. It was a complete, running car with a tired 283/powerglide & some bad bodywork under cheap paint, but almost all the trim is "driver quality" and the body didn't take much to clean up.
The body was media blasted, then I filled & smoothed the firewall, and had it primered. the frame was blasted, coated with POR and reassembled with a tall-spindle disc brake conversion, boxed lower rear control arms, front & rear sway bars, shorter front springs, and polygraphite bushings. The body was reunited with the frame and hauled off to a local guy's home shop for bodywork & paint, and it will be coming home any day now.
When we get it back, thats when the fun starts!
Immediate plans are to install a mild 350 I'm building on the cheap, & 350 trans. The 10 bolt 3.08 open diff will have to do for now. Electrical upgrades are in the works. The goal here is a solid, comfortable driver that we won't be afraid to take anywhere. We've got a Vintage Air evaporator kit, new carpet, new repro door panels, a great set of salvage yard bucket seats, and misc other parts ready to go in. I hope to have the biggest part of it done over the winter...
I've been a gearhead forever. Built plastic models as a kid. Worked as a pump jockey/grease monkey when gas stations were still "service stations". Got a lot of OJT over the years on medium/heavy truck drivetrain, some dealership training on electronic engine controls. Worked a few years in industrial machine maintenance. Now 52, I'm an operater at an electric power plant.
Anyway, I'm glad to be here, and so a little about the car.
The car was built at the Fremont, CA plant and my father-in-law had it in Arizona till we took posession of it a few years ago. It was a complete, running car with a tired 283/powerglide & some bad bodywork under cheap paint, but almost all the trim is "driver quality" and the body didn't take much to clean up.
The body was media blasted, then I filled & smoothed the firewall, and had it primered. the frame was blasted, coated with POR and reassembled with a tall-spindle disc brake conversion, boxed lower rear control arms, front & rear sway bars, shorter front springs, and polygraphite bushings. The body was reunited with the frame and hauled off to a local guy's home shop for bodywork & paint, and it will be coming home any day now.
When we get it back, thats when the fun starts!
Immediate plans are to install a mild 350 I'm building on the cheap, & 350 trans. The 10 bolt 3.08 open diff will have to do for now. Electrical upgrades are in the works. The goal here is a solid, comfortable driver that we won't be afraid to take anywhere. We've got a Vintage Air evaporator kit, new carpet, new repro door panels, a great set of salvage yard bucket seats, and misc other parts ready to go in. I hope to have the biggest part of it done over the winter...