My 1967 Belvedere Convertible Plans and Restoration (aka - Mad Scientist Build)

conv67bdere · Sep 8, 2020

On to the next project . . . the Hood . . .

Here's what I've got to work with . . . just started . . .

After 2 hours with an "old" cup type wire knotted wheel . . . progress was slow . . .

So I went and get a "new" one and tore into it . . . MUCH BETTER !
Note to self - buy a NEW wire wheel when starting a new project . . .

Now to figure out the layout of the holes . . . looks like I might be fabricating a new dimple die for this project too

Created a 1" and a 1/2" dimple die for the trunk lid project ( needed to fit into the tight locations)

conv67bdere · Sep 14, 2020

with no "easy" access holes, like in the trunk, getting started on this hood was a whole lot harder . . . everything is blind and no way to get to the back side to hold the cutting parts . . .

But I've finally figured it out and now I'm making some progress . . . . the first set of 4 holes took me 2 hours . . .

BUT . . . got them done . . . Oh, the 4 holes are to match the trunk lid and like them both look like "maybe" there was some planning in the layout . . . maybe ? ! ?

You can see the bottom of the dimple die in the hole - and see that there is very little access to work with it and get it attached to the tool to make it work . . .

In comparison, the next 9 holes were done in less than and hour . . .

And I'm starting a new collecting of cut outs for the hood - not that it'll remove a lot of weight

Now it's time to get back it, got a lot more holes to get in the hood and get them dimpled

conv67bdere · Sep 17, 2020

With all the rain from Hurricane/Storm Sally . . . I got a chance to "try" and focus on getting more done on the hood . . .

Working in these confined spaces, with holes so small I can't get my fingers through . . . means being creative . . . and finding method that will work.

But . . . got the next line of holes completed today . . . ( thanks to the rain )

Got more holes to get drilled, punched, and dimpled on this project . . .

hunt2elk · Sep 17, 2020

I think you are getting obsessed with holes all of a sudden Larry :poke:

.

dadsbee · Sep 17, 2020

Them poor mice will have no where to hide...

Ghostrider 67 · Sep 17, 2020

Looking great pal!

conv67bdere · Sep 20, 2020

Adding more holes in the hood . . . getting the tools to this concealed area is difficult and interesting . . .

But progress was made and I'm getting it done . . .

Got an issue with the bottom dimple die binding on the bolt when it's dimpled . . . not sure what's going on an I need to get this fixed.

conv67bdere · Sep 23, 2020

More fabrication work . . . on this side, the 1.0" dimple die would not fit . . . so I had to make another dimple die measuring 0.9" . . .

And the result is that it worked great . . .

No, that' not my bed, that's my great dane's bed . . . yes, it's a twin bed ! And he fills it up too ! !

conv67bdere · Sep 24, 2020

How to make these holes and dimple die them . . . here's my step by step process . . .

First - the holes are laid out and drilled to allow the Greenlee tool to go through the hole ( the hole going to the right and up on the screen )

From the previous dimpled hole - drop the cutting die into the opening (access to this area is not very easy )

After the cutting die is in there, get a metal rod into the center of the cutting tool, and use my finger to raise the cutter up to the top . . .

Position the cutter on the hole so that the threads from the Greenlee tool can get threaded on the cutting tool under the metal . . .

Holding the cutting tool up and in place, thread the bolt into the threaded cutting tool . . . then just pump the tool and cut the metal . . .

Metal is cut . . . and hole is made . . .

Remove the cuttings from the tool ( for the next hole ) . . .

Debur the hole, the edges are very sharp and I got tired of getting cut up . . .

The bottom piece of the dimple die was already maneuvered into position through the hidden access maze of the hood . . . move it from the last hole over to this next hole . . .
You can see the bottom die in the hole . . .

Move this bottom die up into place to be able to thread the bolt into the hole . . .

Thread the bolt into the bottom die . . .
Yes, the Greenlee tool could be used here too, but swapping the parts was getting frustrating - so I use one tool for each operation to simplify the process *( in my mind)*
Tighten it snug and make SURE the bottom of the top die is properly in the cut out hole ( I messed up one on my trunk - learned my lesson )

conv67bdere · Sep 24, 2020

Tighten the bolt until it gets snug . . . then loosen it . . . and remove the tool

The finished product . . . dimpled hole . . .

Repeat "umpteen" more times for all the holes . . . and you're all done . . .

( Maybe ? ! ? ! ? )

conv67bdere · Sep 25, 2020

More Hood fabrication work . . . only got 2 more runs that I want to get done . . .

Here's where I want to put them . . . but they already have holes in them . . .

Hummmm . . .

Measured the holes and they would not allow my "existing" 1 1/2" spacing or I'd have a FUN time with those existing holes . . .

So measure . . . calculate . . . layout . . . and get 'er done . . .

One more run ( the other side ) and I'll have this hood "matching the trunk . . . and ready for paint ! ! !

Wait, found some bad areas that will need some welding and metal moving . . . but not much . . .

Here's the hood holes details:

65 - 1.00" holes - metal is .035 = 2.275" of solid 1" rod
32 - 0.90" holes- metal is .035 = 1.120" of solid 0.90" rod
60 - 0.50" holes- metal is .035 = 2.100" of solid 1/2" rod

all of the punched metal had a 3/8" hole drilled in it, and the 1/2" holes were drilled out completely, so the above should give a much better estimate of the weight . . .

Calculated on the web:
65 - 1.0" holes . . . 2.275" of round stock - 5.98 pounds
32- 0.9" holes . . . 1.12" of round stock - 2.39 pounds
60- 0.5" holes . . . 2.10" of round stock - 1.38 pounds

Total 9.77 pounds ( almost 10 pounds ) *calculated*

Ghostrider 67 · Sep 25, 2020

conv67bdere said:
More Hood fabrication work . . . only got 2 more runs that I want to get done . . .

Here's where I want to put them . . . but they already have holes in them . . .

Hummmm . . .

View attachment 1006601

Measured the holes and they would not allow my "existing" 1 1/2" spacing or I'd have a FUN time with those existing holes . . .

So measure . . . calculate . . . layout . . . and get 'er done . . .

View attachment 1006602

One more run ( the other side ) and I'll have this hood "matching the trunk . . . and ready for paint ! ! !

Wait, found some bad areas that will need some welding and metal moving . . . but not much . . .

Ain't customization fun?

Cranky · Sep 25, 2020

Dayam lol! Gots to make a dimple tool for the holes I've already done with my doors. Got a glass hood already but thinking about leaving the trunk lid alone for the extra weight on the rear. Might just end up with a 50/50 car

conv67bdere · Sep 27, 2020

Since I did the calculation of the weight removed on the hood, decided to do it also on the trunk . . .

Calculated on the web:
100 - 1.0" holes . . . 3.5" of round stock - 9.2 pounds
50- 0.5" holes . . . 1.75" of round stock - 1.15 pounds

Total 10.35 pounds ( over 10 pounds ) *calculated*

conv67bdere · Jan 1, 2021

Happy New Year (2021) to everyone at FBBO . . .

People always say that hindsight is 20/20 . . .
Well, the year 2020 was a pretty rough year for me, but I'm very happy to have it in my "hindsight" now . . . finally !

Hoping to make more time to get into the shop and make some progress on my Belvedere . . . that's my goal !

Ghostrider 67 · Jan 1, 2021

Happy New year pal. Hope it happens for you.

monroegtx · Jan 1, 2021

It’s great to see the end of that horrific year. Looking forward to the new one and seeing you getting stuck into this build again. Stay safe.

conv67bdere · Jan 2, 2021

The only way I'm going to get this car done, is if I get myself back out into the shop and start working on it . . . so that's what I did . . .

And it was great to get back in the shop, and also very frustrating . . . I'll explain why . . .

First . . . I've crossed a threshold . . . and I was actually putting parts ON THE CAR today ! ! !

First . . . need to get this after market A/C unit mounting figured out . . .

Then I realized that I need to know "where" the windshield wiper motor and pivots need to be . . .

So the hunt begins . . . where in the heck did I put that thing
( are you sensing the cause of my frustrations . .. yet - uh - where are the nuts ? ? ? ARGH ! ! ! )

Then the wiper pivots ( actually found the nuts for them . . . that was amazing )

So after FINALLY finding the nuts for everything, and getting it all in place, I realized that the wiper motor is NOT going to work . . .
Not when that 5.7 Hemi gets shoehorned into the engine compartment ! ! - - - - ARGH ! ! ! !

BUT . . . for the first time ( wait, the new K-member . . . that's right . . . ) Okay, I'm actually putting parts ON the car . . . YAY ! ! !

Then there's this that I noticed . . . this is the spring for the driver door hinge . . . and it is worn 1/2 way through the spring . . .
That's going to need to be fixed . . . oh boy, more things to work on . . . just what I need . . .

Now . . . go back up and look at the top picture with the wiper motor . . . after spending about an HOUR looking through all the bagged and tagged plastic bags in the 2 boxes that they're stored in . . . I finally walk over with a couple nuts from my hardware stash to get it held in place . . .

But . . . look very closely at the bottom of the picture where the electrical connection for the wiper motor is hanging . . .
What do you see . . . look closely . . . see a plastic bag wrapped around the electrical wires . . . maybe ? ?
Guess what's in the plastic bag . . . on the wires . . .

You guessed it . . . the nuts for the wiper motor the I just spent an HOUR looking for ! ! !

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry . . . ARGH ! ! !

Ghostrider 67 · Jan 2, 2021

conv67bdere said:
The only way I'm going to get this car done, is if I get myself back out into the shop and start working on it . . . so that's what I did . . .

And it was great to get back in the shop, and also very frustrating . . . I'll explain why . . .

First . . . I've crossed a threshold . . . and I was actually putting parts ON THE CAR today ! ! !

First . . . need to get this after market A/C unit mounting figured out . . .

View attachment 1049496

Then I realized that I need to know "where" the windshield wiper motor and pivots need to be . . .

So the hunt begins . . . where in the heck did I put that thing
( are you sensing the cause of my frustrations . .. yet - uh - where are the nuts ? ? ? ARGH ! ! ! )

View attachment 1049498

Then the wiper pivots ( actually found the nuts for them . . . that was amazing )

View attachment 1049499

View attachment 1049500

So after FINALLY finding the nuts for everything, and getting it all in place, I realized that the wiper motor is NOT going to work . . .
Not when that 5.7 Hemi gets shoehorned into the engine compartment ! ! - - - - ARGH ! ! ! !

BUT . . . for the first time ( wait, the new K-member . . . that's right . . . ) Okay, I'm actually putting parts ON the car . . . YAY ! ! !

Then there's this that I noticed . . . this is the spring for the driver door hinge . . . and it is worn 1/2 way through the spring . . .
That's going to need to be fixed . . . oh boy, more things to work on . . . just what I need . . .

View attachment 1049497

Now . . . go back up and look at the top picture with the wiper motor . . . after spending about an HOUR looking through all the bagged and tagged plastic bags in the 2 boxes that they're stored in . . . I finally walk over with a couple nuts from my hardware stash to get it held in place . . .

But . . . look very closely at the bottom of the picture where the electrical connection for the wiper motor is hanging . . .
What do you see . . . look closely . . . see a plastic bag wrapped around the electrical wires . . . maybe ? ?
Guess what's in the plastic bag . . . on the wires . . .

You guessed it . . . the nuts for the wiper motor the I just spent an HOUR looking for ! ! !

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry . . . ARGH ! ! !

You're not alone pal, welcome to your support group.....

HawkRod · Jan 3, 2021

conv67bdere said:
The only way I'm going to get this car done, is if I get myself back out into the shop and start working on it . . . so that's what I did . . .

And it was great to get back in the shop, and also very frustrating . . . I'll explain why . . .

First . . . I've crossed a threshold . . . and I was actually putting parts ON THE CAR today ! ! !

First . . . need to get this after market A/C unit mounting figured out . . .

View attachment 1049496

Then I realized that I need to know "where" the windshield wiper motor and pivots need to be . . .

So the hunt begins . . . where in the heck did I put that thing
( are you sensing the cause of my frustrations . .. yet - uh - where are the nuts ? ? ? ARGH ! ! ! )

View attachment 1049498

Then the wiper pivots ( actually found the nuts for them . . . that was amazing )

View attachment 1049499

View attachment 1049500

So after FINALLY finding the nuts for everything, and getting it all in place, I realized that the wiper motor is NOT going to work . . .
Not when that 5.7 Hemi gets shoehorned into the engine compartment ! ! - - - - ARGH ! ! ! !

BUT . . . for the first time ( wait, the new K-member . . . that's right . . . ) Okay, I'm actually putting parts ON the car . . . YAY ! ! !

Then there's this that I noticed . . . this is the spring for the driver door hinge . . . and it is worn 1/2 way through the spring . . .
That's going to need to be fixed . . . oh boy, more things to work on . . . just what I need . . .

View attachment 1049497

Now . . . go back up and look at the top picture with the wiper motor . . . after spending about an HOUR looking through all the bagged and tagged plastic bags in the 2 boxes that they're stored in . . . I finally walk over with a couple nuts from my hardware stash to get it held in place . . .

But . . . look very closely at the bottom of the picture where the electrical connection for the wiper motor is hanging . . .
What do you see . . . look closely . . . see a plastic bag wrapped around the electrical wires . . . maybe ? ?
Guess what's in the plastic bag . . . on the wires . . .

You guessed it . . . the nuts for the wiper motor the I just spent an HOUR looking for ! ! !

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry . . . ARGH ! ! !

Ask me how many times I have done the same thing!!!

My 1967 Belvedere Convertible Plans and Restoration (aka - Mad Scientist Build)

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