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Corvette Resto: The Body
Tips and tricks of fiberglass bodywork
Steve Temple / autoMedia.com
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In addition to the bodywork, the final stages of restoration called for some work on the original rims. "I cleaned and restored all five aluminum wheels, which took all the skin off my fingers," Lewis says. But the alternative was probably more painful, at least financially. Back in 1964, steel wheels cost less than $20, but nowadays they're hard to find, and go for ten times as much. The real kicker is the knockoffs. He paid $300 for them back when the car was new, but today he says they go for as much as $6,300. So it's not surprising that Lewis put so much of his own time into the project. All that sweat-equity seems to have paid off because he's been offered more than $60,000 for the car—not a bad return on a $5,600 initial investment. Undoubtedly the real treasure is all his wonderful memories of owning and pampering his Vette over the last four decades.
Resource
C&S Corvette Restorations, 23206 Mariposa Avenue, Torrance, CA 90502, 310/325-6367
Copyright autoMedia.com 2000-2008
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Removing the door panel reveals #379 on the sheetmetal, which is the job number. That same number is on the firewall as well, so the factory-workers would know this car was fit with electric windows, and had to be wired accordingly.
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Once the body is off the chassis, it's placed on a dolly to keep it as straight as possible during the six-month prepping and painting process.
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Alignment of panels such as the hood should be done evenly, but not too precisely or the judges might deduct points for "over-restoration."
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Replacing rear quarter panels is fairly common due to accident damage, but often the replacement parts are of better quality than the original fiberglass, and thus need to be "aged" so they match the rest of the body.
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Even the small trim pieces require patient attention and refinishing.
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Milton Lewis, the car's owner, spent two long weeks removing the undercoating so the car would look like a factory original.
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Once the body has been refinished and the trim pieces re-attached, it's placed on a lift and then gently lowered back on the chassis. Care must be taken to use the exact shims that were on the car from the factory, or the alignment may not be right. No two Corvettes from this era were alike.
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