• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Hawk-Rod: The Restoration

Sorry, I have not posted in a bit, but I have been making slow progress. It has been busy with family having come over, graduations and birthdays. All good stuff, but it takes away from car work.

So I polished and installed the B Pillar stainless. I also polished and installed the driver side and most of the passenger side stainless molding that sits under the drip rail. I went to install the Year One reproduction drip rail molding, and it is NOT RIGHT!!! It is missing the little turned down piece at the back window. I'm disappointed and now need to return that. I also ordered what is hopefully the correct molding.
IMG_4879.jpg

I also installed all the decals on the car except the dust trails. I'll install those this weekend. Here is what I do to install these:
(1) Measure and KNOW where they need to sit before you start ANYTHING.
(2) See step 1.
(3) Then pull off the backing off the decal and lay it upside down on a clean surface. Do not remove the top transfer layer off the decal.
(4) Spray both the sticky glue side of the decal and the body of the car with a bottle of water mix: Mix has a teaspoon full of Dawn or similar dish detergent, and about 2 teaspoons of rubbing alcohol. (If you only have regular alcohol, drink it and find some rubbing alcohol :grin:). Avoid bubbles. Keep both car and decal very wet.
(5) Position the decal and slide it around to its proper position. As you get it into position, slowly start to squeegee the water out from under the decal. You have time to work so go slowly. Continue to repeatedly go over the decal and push slightly harder until you have firm pressure and have most of the water out. Also, work from the center out. There really should be no bubbles or water pockets under the decal. If there are, work them out.
(6) Walk away for a 2-3 hours.
(7) SLOWLY peel the backing away at a sharp angle to the decal.
(8) Work out any bubbles, if needed, with a pin. You shouldn't have to do this if you did step 5 well.
IMG_4891.jpg

I installed the wipers. FINALLY a job that went as easily as it should have!
IMG_4882.jpg

I have been working slowly on the grill, but this job has turned into a nightmare. First, cleaning up and painting the grill has been a chore. A neighbor kid helped me paint them, and he did a nice job, but mending broken parts and polishing the stainless trim has been a pain in the butt. Here is a picture with the center in (sort of) position. I also had to readjust the lower metal grill to make the opening the proper size. Finally, the headlight buckets are not centered properly. All these variables make the grill a royal PITA!!!
IMG_4910.jpg

Finally, I also installed the interior kick panels, finished all under dash wiring cleanup and dress up, and installed the front seat. Sorry, no pictures of this - I guess I forgot the camera for this part, but this is pretty boring stuff. I also finally tried driving the car up and down the street slowly, and that went well. I have a video and I guess I will try posting that if you want. It is kind of boring because I took everything very S l o w to make sure there were no issues. Here is a shot of it in the street at least as proof!
IMG_4899.jpg

So I am getting close, but I only have a couple of weeks until Carlisle. I'd say I have a 1 in 3 chance of making it, but I am sure as heck going to try - I already bought the parking pass. I just need to keep pushing and see if I can make it!
 
Made some good progress today. I polished the glass in my back side windows. This is basically a powdered slurry (not quite sure what it is) and then a hard cotton/fiber wheel. The stuff looks like this:
IMG_4913.jpg

After polishing, the windows look a mess, but it does a good job of getting 45+ years of grit off of them. It will take out very fine scratches, but anything deep will stay.
IMG_4912.jpg

I then installed the new weatherstripping, latches and installed the windows. I am not sure they fit perfectly, so some later adjustment is likely needed. But they will have to do for now since I am short on time!

I then decided to put on the dust trail decals. These are a bit of a pain because anything that is not perfectly straight can be easily seen. I also cut the birds and dust trail connection on an angle to minimize the black that has to cross between the decals. This made the connection less noticeable.
IMG_4920.jpg

Here are the decals and windows installed. They really set off the car - I like!!! :hello2:
IMG_4922.jpg

I also finished the front hood latch and some other small things. Nothing exciting to take pictures of though.

Man, the wheels are looking bad now! :puke: New ones are on their way though...
 
She's the bomb as the kids would say..... Or used to say..... I found your description of how to put on the decals helpful as I have to put the stripes on my freshly painted GTX. Haven't been looking forward to that. It seemed as though I only had the one shot to do this right. From your post and using your advice it looks like I'll have some time to get it right.

Your RR looks great. Good luck at making it to Carlisle.
 
Looking awesome, hope the RR makes it because I'm planning on going for my first time. Good luck
 
Looking good Hawk. I'm just now getting to the window and trim part of the resto and am getting a taste of the challenges. Good luck on making it to Carlisle.
 
She's the bomb as the kids would say..... Or used to say..... I found your description of how to put on the decals helpful as I have to put the stripes on my freshly painted GTX. Haven't been looking forward to that. It seemed as though I only had the one shot to do this right. From your post and using your advice it looks like I'll have some time to get it right.

Your RR looks great. Good luck at making it to Carlisle.

Glad you found some of the descriptions helpful. If you keep the body and decals wet with the Water/Soap/Alcohol mixture you can move them around almost indefinitely. One other suggestion especially for long stripes: Don't just look at them from the side. Looking at them from the side will help determine that they are level and the right height. Look at them also while crouching down at the front headlight and sighting down the length of the decal. This way, you can see if the stripe is perfectly straight. You'd think you would be able to see that from the side, but you'll miss the small details...

- - - Updated - - -

Looking good Hawk. I'm just now getting to the window and trim part of the resto and am getting a taste of the challenges. Good luck on making it to Carlisle.

Yeah, I found all the stuff relating to the windows to be more work than I figured. In all cases, cleaning off 45+ years of haze from the glass is a pain, but then all the trim and weatherstrip that goes around them can be difficult as well. The rear quarter windows have to be riveted back together (I elected not to take mine apart) but that makes it tougher to deal with the weatherstrip and window cleaning too. The wind wings have both chromed pot metal and stainless, and mine had to be welded in a couple of spots. Yikes - what a pain!

So at this point I am cleaning them up "just OK" and throwing them on the car. Perhaps later this year before my trip or next year I can make that a project to improve these...
 
Hawk, this is looking sweet! Im looking forward to THE picture of the new wheels on her! :)
 
So I've been working like crazy to get the car done. I think I may likely make it to Carlisle now, although the interior won't be 100% and there will be a few pieces that have been "thrown" on the car and will need some work to improve their fit or looks.

I finished installing the trunk weatherstripping. The trunk is now fully done except the spare. Also, I am missing some kind of plate that goes over the jack?
IMG_4935.jpg

I also got the grill installed. This is where I found one of the more disappointing issues with the car. My driver's side fender had taken a shot and needed some repair. It turns out it must have been tweaked a bit, so the grill does not fit perfectly. That's all right, the Chevy guys will just see the back of the car anyway... :grin:
IMG_4944.jpg

I also got the side drip rail stainless installed. Two lessons here: (1) Many reproduction trim pieces you can buy DO NOT include the proper "turn down" trim piece at the back. The first set I ordered did not, so I had to send it back and get it from AMD. This fit properly, but (2) I discovered the back windows and stainless trim above it needed to come out. Crap! OK, after some more work I got it in. I also installed the passenger side mirror. My car didn't have one originally, but I like it and want to have one.
IMG_4968.jpg

Then I got one of the more important elements cleaned, painted and installed...
IMG_4963.jpg

IMG_4971.jpg

Functionally, it works just fine - I just need to get the Air Grabber hoses attached to the hood. Of course, I discovered I forgot to order those. Damn!
IMG_4972.jpg
 
Hey Hawk....looking very nice Man....first i realized Your car is a post...Bonus! You'll make Carlisle...You going to come West for Bakersfield in October? Hope to have the Fireball's engine done so i can take the Dog and shredding machine. I'll have some pics up on the filler thread shortly after the 11th, of the fenders in process to prime...cab-o-sil is the Bomb
 
So I have been out driving around today. As I am dialing in the computer some it is driving better and better, although it is still a little bit rough just coming out of idle. There is also a lean condition when I get off the throttle that I need to richen up. However, it pulls strong and seems to be OK - so far so good.

I am also happy that it seems smooth and nice. No rumbles or vibrations up to about 50 MPH, which is the max I got it up to. Another thing I am happy with is the suspension, brakes and steering. The brakes stop on a dime and feel really good. The car drives well around turns and handles bumps well too. And that is with my front wheels totally out of alignment - just set "eyeball" straight and not aligned.

So far so good. My chances of making Carlisle are getting better! :hello2:
 
Ha ha ha . . .Hawk . . . how much you want to bet that your "eyeball alignment" is pretty close to what is really needed ? ? Seems like we all get a pretty good feel for that after doing it few ( or many ) times in our past . . .

Great news on the drive - does that mean that you might make it to Carlisle ? ?
 
Great news on the drive - does that mean that you might make it to Carlisle ? ?

I'd say my chances are decent if the weather holds. I don't have my inner splash shields in, and they will take some work because the stiffening braces are in the way. The inner splash shields will need to be customized to fit. I also need my passenger window installed. I didn't get the plastic guide that goes on the front of the window.

There are several other things that won't be done, but hopefully it will be drivable. I'll keep my fingers crossed and keep pushing!
 
You'll get it! We need to see if we can park together at the show so we don't have to track each other down?
 
A perfect use of cell phones...locating the crew @ the event!! You Guys have a Gr-r-r-eat time there!
 
Got the inner fender splash shields in last night. It should have been easy, but there now is a brace that helps stiffen the car. This meant that the splash shield had to be modified to fit around it. Luckily, the modification wasn't too extensive, as I had to cut about a 2 inch slit in the shield and then bend the metal back so it could sit on top of the stiffening brace. The stiffening brace can be seen in the picture below as a triangular piece near the top with a single hole in it. (Crap, another rotation issue - check the LEFT side of the picture...)

I also elected to undercoat the one bolt and tab on the fender to hide the bolt a bit. Initially, I was thinking of putting a painted green bolt in the tab, but thought undercoating it hid it better and gave a nicer line for the eye. Finally, I carefully undercoated it hopefully somewhat similar to the way the factory would have done it.
IMG_4984.jpg
 
Hawk car looks awesome! Wish I could say I could make it to Carlisle but time hasn't permitted. Good luck and can't wait to see the bird with new wheels.
 
I got back at around midnight last night - finally with new wheels and tires. So I have tonight to install and garage align the wheels.

If I make it (I think and hope I will), the car will NOT be done, but will be a work in progress. The interior is not fully done, but it is what it is. My build thread will just go live to Carlisle!

Hopefully some pictures tonight. Now off to work and then a funeral for my friends son, who was tragically killed in an accident. :icon_sad:
 
Auto Transport Service
Back
Top