Buinicorn my 1964 wagon

fuel line

hmmm... adapting to fit doesn't work...

bright side is the motor is now bolted in place until I blow it up....

 

hardware store raided


the best purchase, ever


still waiting for a couple fittings, but closer


pressure regulator in place


I'm just going to go out on a limb and say there's not quite enough room for that one fitting (on the transmission)

 

time to complete the fuel system

today's arrival

filter placement verified

lines made

a trick to keep from fraying the black covering

 

I love the tetris of instructions.they don't tell you. like this?

nope, like this

and installing

I think the repair turned out okay.... quite literally no one will see it


too wide - it's from when my Corvette had the stock front suspension

moving forward


the next thing is a radiator...

 

radiator is ordered
Time to get the floor done so I can paint then put the body on the frame forever


fit

more fit

just welding left

 

looking at my pictures tonight, there really isn't anything 'new' - but I think I'm going to take a different tack, the left side will have a nitros bottle, right side a ethanol tank and battery - but I was going to build the box in - I think the better choice is make it flat then form some boxes built especially for the various things....

more likely I'll tuck the bottle in further to the fender.... my 'goal' with this car is do Rocky Mountain race week or such - but this would be home and race car... so comfort it going to happen and sleeping in the back as well....
which means as wide as possible.... I actually hope to drive this to SEMA this year....


now all I need is motivation.... seems we might be moving at about the same time as SEMA - so the window to get this done is pretty narrow.

 

metal work

2/3rds of it is done

minus a little bit

 

the basic shape is done....
Inner fender

a bit of filling left

inner panel


I doubt I'll weld this fully - the biggest problem this car had was water got in at the window and pooled in the inner fender until it rotted away...

That said, a bit more welding and I can paint the underside, and sound coat the inside... then wire it, then it can move under its own power.... then the Corvette, then this body/paint.

 

Did I say this was a solid car? well, it is now





so time to take it even further apart.... the driver's side doors haven't been removed - and the rear left doors ... well, they fought.
if you're counting, only one of these came off as intended

I love heat

I win


I need to strip the rest of the shell. do some minor clearancing, fix a couple small spots then get to coating

 

more coloring in the lines
a box

looks like another warranty is going to get its feelings hurt

for those wondering... the 64 Buick support is different than the Chevelle

now it fits



in other news, starter is bolted in and the converter is as well


and revisit something... where the dark spot I heated to fix oil canning.... it worked! I really didn't get it that warm.. ~ 200 degrees, maybe... I put a block behind then heated it briefly... worked great

 

for those who wonder what the bolts looked like to get them out....

 

Which are those? You welded on larger nuts?

 

the rear doors have phillip-screw-head bolts. the nuts are welded to them - does 2 things, 1) gets something to grip after the phillips stripped, and 2) heat always helps get bolts out.....

 

Thanks. The threads do look mint on those screws...

 

I've already got the allen head bolts to replace them....

 

outside of today's shenanigans with my FJ40, I did other things
first was get the steering column out ... that was a lot more pain that I was expecting

then came the yoyo of up and down to clearance the floor for the 4L80e. I refuse to cut and add metal... so I heated and banged


banging, round 2

round 3 (keep in mind, up and down)

what needs clearance - the cooler fittings

and took the wiper box off the firewall (it is seized solid)

 

well would you look at what I found


someone had a book, copied the pages, then bound them into a reference manual. Whoever did this, you're a legend, a hero, and savior of the universe.


all is not 100% happy, though, because the copies are not all very clear. That said, it is more than good enough for me
picture of blurs in the shape of words


frame got rolled outside and covered because the most hateful task is ahead

cleaning the underside

and, of course, welding (until I ran out of gas)




once this is done, etch primer, maybe paint? maybe undercoating? maybe bed liner? I honestly don't know yet

 

Do you do something to the surface rust before applying the self-etching primer?

 

it depends on its severity. If I can still see it after it's been sanded, I'll use phosphoric acid to convert it... otherwise, no.

 

new tool. do I recommend? maybe. It's about as powerful as an air die grinder - the straight kind. So it is useful, but keep in mind I punched one hole with it and did the rest with my larger Makita..... which is dying because I use it to smoke coming out - and it keeps working but the writing is on the wall for it (and my Makita sawzall)



these were done with the Makita - this is the rear-most mounts on the car and both were rusted solid - so no choice but to cut replace the nuts and weld back (when I get my nuts)


I can't imagine why GM made this nut-holder so complex


this was done with the new tool


finished welding the battery box


the rest of my evening was a fan-favorite wire brush the dirt off the underside

I weighed it, 10 lbs of dirt


tomorrow a bit more cleaning then likely put the body back on because the motor may be ready for my Corvette.... I need to get it out of the shop because the next parts of the Buick are dirty in both dust and overspray