Date: 11/08/03
The van on the right is the next victim - It will wear the roof from the wagon on the left and the wagon roof in the back ground will supply parts for the rest of the chop. Result ? A sedan delivery that won't give away its wagon heritage.
Date: 11/08/03
Another view of the victims.
Date: 12/08/03
The victim awaits its fate.
Date: 12/08/03
The chopping begins!
EK_van_chop_2
Date: 12/08/03
A little off the top...
Date: 12/08/03
A little off the side...
Date: 12/08/03
A view inside the pillar- showing use of the reciprocating saw...
Date: 12/08/03
Stagger cut - you will see why later.
Date: 12/08/03
Getting it off!- The roof that is.
Date: 12/08/03
Bugger me dead - I've lost me head!
Date: 13/08/03
Awaiting its demise.
Date: 13/08/03
Removing the victims head.
Date: 13/08/03
Stubs added for guiding new roof into place.
Date: 13/08/03
Oxy welding - making sure it don't fall off.
Date: 13/08/03
New roof in place.
Date: 17/08/03
Removing rear of Wagon roof
Date: 17/08/03
Joddling (stepping) wagon roof for Van roof to sit in the recess-allows for adjustment.
Date: 17/08/03
Sizing up the old Van roof - after removing nearly 8 inches and porta powering out the pillars. Looks ugly at this stage.
Date: 17/08/03
A few careful mig welds and lots of hammering. Roof will be very strong in this area now. I used a temporary roof brace borrowed from another wagon roof to allow it to be held in position and prevent sagging. This and other braces will be welded in permanently after the new roof rail is made and installed.
Date: 26/08/03
As you can see - some substantial cutting and re-profiling going on here.
Date: 26/08/03
Using the Henrob torch I am welding into place the new piece that will form the rearmost pillar.
Date: 26/08/03
Carefully shaped piece of roof borrowed from the old Van roof, This is made to fit so it can be butt welded.
Date: 26/08/03
The new piece hammer welded and file finished - How much body filler do I use?
Not much.
Date: 26/08/03
This shows the rear roof profile. Its all about profiles.
If its not right now - it will never be right. This whole process to do the two sides took three days.
Lots of file finishing and gettin the desired shape. Lots more to go though.
Date: 29/08/03
Sizing up the old van roof rail and gutter.
Date: 29/08/03
Oxy welding it in position after a bit of persuasion.
Date: 29/08/03
Relief cut made to persude gutter to line up ...More welding.
Date: 03/09/03
Front of roof oxy hammer welded and blended into the old Van roof rail and door jamb.
Date: 03/09/03
Removing the wagon roof rail and gutter. Most cuts made using 1mm Cut off discs. No distortion and is very accurate and quick.
This 30 x 30 x 1.6 mm RHS was bent gently and follows the roof profile . This was bent by placing it over the hoist base and standing on it.
Very technical. This achieved the desired shape quickly and accurately.
Date: 02/09/03
This 30 x 30 x 1.6 mm RHS was bent gently and follows the roof profile . This was bent by placing it over the hoist base and standing on it.
Very technical. This achieved the desired shape quickly and accurately.
Date: 03/09/03
Rear roof rail relief.. To achieve a perfect fit the rail was pie sliced top and bottom prior to fitting to allow the side of the rail to met up with the two different angles of sweep in the roof at this point. The gap will be filled with Oxy welding.
Date: 03/09/03
This shot shows the roof rail trail fitting and you can see the profile of the roof has been achieved. This new rail will allow for the join of the new solid sides to be hammer welded against. Note the braces I welded in before any cutting was done . These are supporting the factory roof braces that will be welded back onto the new roof rail.
Date: 06/09/03
Roof rail fitted - All file finished. Have to question my own sanity at this point.
Would not be the first time thats come into question.
Date: 06/09/03
The profile carefully measured several times by two of us and ready to cut out with the 1mm thick cut off disc. No distortion and as quick as slicing through butter. Note paint sanded off ready for fitting.The reason for using this roof is so that profiles will match nicely . Its a bit of a jigsaw but this is my formulae for sucessful custom body work - don't force it - let it slip into place by itself.
Date: 06/09/03
The shot youve been waiting for - the look of a true sedan delivery. Yep this is as difficult as it looks... warp factors come into play here folks- not for the faint hearted. Don't try this at home! (Unless you are REAL good at heat shrinking.)
Date: 14/10/03
Just checking profiles out side- its easy to fool yourself into thinking all is well while its inside the shed. A minor adjustment of the roof skin is in order.
Date: 14/10/03
I am considering some further customising now at this point . I feel the EK could benifiet from some smoothing out in the grille area and front bar - This is a reason why not much has been happening as I let the ideas grow and mature.
Watch this space.
Date: 22/11/03
I have been playing with a grill- its now fully reconditioned. I decided to stay with the stock grille in the end.
Date: 22/11/03
In case your'e wondering what I've been doing - here it is at last. A file finished left guard that was heavily damaged but not rusty. Would have been quicker to fix a rusty one. Still to finish the chop on the left side.
Date: 11/09/03
Front guard file finished.
Date: 11/09/03
You can see here the result of spending days getting this guard back to its factory condition. I was too tight to buy a decent one.
Date: 22/11/03
Upper tailgate underway. This gives an Idea of what the back view will be like.As you can see it needs some corrective surgery to make it all fit.
Date: 22/11/03
Here is the inner reworked to fill the gap and conform to the new roof profile.
Date: 22/11/03
Then the outer skin is made. Ironically the metal used is from a HQ Van upper tailgate - just happened to be lying around.
Date: 22/11/03
Also scored this EK Sedan for its Hydro floor. This will make life easier for fitting the Blue motor and trimatic. Also will yeild some other goodies I need. Cost? Nothing . Value? Priceless.
Date: 22/11/03
With the upper finished as far as it can I started on the lower. Using a donated fabricated inner lower skin that some else had started I have been adapting original end sections and slowly making the whole thing come together and fit the hole. The Hinge cut outs wont be needed and will be filled - Just as well they didn't line up anyway. When finished the tailgate will swing upwards in one peice assisted by gas struts and using parts from a Commodore wagon tailgate. The lower part of the window area wont be finished until the outer skin is in place.
Date: 28/11/03
Here I am finally fitting the taigate skin I bought to the fabricated inner. This gets large bits of Van out of the way at last.
Date: 28/11/03
At last the tailgates are one. There is a lot of adjusting to do at this stage. I used a VW Kombi tailgate mech in the end - it was the most compact and simple unit available.I have yet to add dove tail guides and gas struts. Internaly I braced it a bit more before adding the outer skin.
Date: 01/12/03
This shot shows the 15mm box section used to join the inners together. Bit messy looking at this point.
Date: 01/12/03
As you can see with it all welded up and metal finished, its abit more acceptable.
Date: 01/12/03
This is what the finished product looks like -only took a solid week...Some warping occurred durind welding and I cut an inspection hole and massaged the waves out ,then file finished it.
Date: 01/12/03
This dramitically shows the difference between stock and chopped. 8"difference.
Date: 01/12/03
Front view of the chop.
Date: 01/12/03
Another angle. This gives the true sedan delivery look I was after.
Date: 19/12/03
Here is the left roof rail ready to fit. I sandblasted it after this piccy.
Date: 19/12/03
Fusion welding with the Henrob torch... After much swearing and adjusting. Has to fit perfectly. (industrial strength swearing aids tremendously in this process.)
Date: 19/12/03
File finishing for a seemless look - 'cause -I have threatened to display this car in its birthday suit - I have to put extra effort into the body finishing... Sanity is still being questioned strongly by observers.
Date: 19/12/03
Look closely at the swarth from the filing process. One ounce of swarth = one lost litre of sweat. I think this is why they made grinders and body filler. Still the effort is worth it - I think.
A true sedan delivery. Will appear at the Brisbane hot rod show 2004 Labour day long weekend in early May. It will be displayed in bare steel.Hopefully a bit more finished than it is now.
Date: 06/04/08
A true sedan delivery. Will appear at the Brisbane hot rod show 2004 Labour day long weekend in early May. It will be displayed in bare steel.Hopefully a bit more finished than it is now.
Date: 11/08/03
Typical of the repairs I carry out - this one belongs to the EK Van project. But in the end was not used - fabricated new innerskin. Did not throw this one out though.
Date: 22/11/03
This is the right door file finished and it started life as a sedan door. I added the van frame tilted inwards to meet up with the new roof. I am considering making the doorglass one piece to save the trouble involved with chopping the 1/4 glass. Plus the window will be a bit too small for comfort with the 1/4 vent re-installed.
Date: 02/02/04
Well the gas struts are installed and I am working on installing the catch. Rear pan has been fabricated and installed.
Date: 02/02/04
Deleting the tyre door was deemed necessary - both do address rust and the previous owners attempts at fixing this difficult area.
Date: 02/02/04
This allows for the fitting of a full width FC Sedan bar.. this one is just for demo and setting up purposes a bit worse for wear. The final bar has to be hand fabricated with a dead straight centre section to match with the new dead straight panels at the rear.
Date: 02/02/04
Tailgate catch recess has been hand made . Find out about how I do this in the streetneats secrets revealed album.
Date: 02/02/04
Ready for welding into the new rear pan.
Date: 26/02/04
When building a car One of the first things I do is to get some attitude happening on the project. I have resisted this for as long as I could bear. Know ing my wheels were on the way I knew it was time. Here it looks like one of them mexican jumping beans. One coil only has been removed.
Date: 26/02/04
As you can see the other side window has not been filled. This has just been started on now.
Date: 26/02/04
At last the remnants of wagon roof are trimmed away.
Note finished push button on door.
Date: 26/02/04
I have thrown a bumper or two at the van just to aid in the overall look of the car This ride hieght will be about where it sits except the rear will be lower. I have just bought the lowered stub axles so when I set the suspension up I now have a reference point of where I would like the car to sit. Tyres dont seem to scrub on full lock.
Date: 26/02/04
This is the new style of dragways they have released. Tyres are fronts : Goodyear NCT's 185/60/14 and rears : 195/60/14. This will keep it all legal. Rims are 14x6 front and 14x7 rear.With the new style the centres are flatter which gives the american racing look I was after with out the exspense.
We later sold these wheels when we dcided to go the V8.
Date: 10/04/04
This is a Mazda 626 Fuel door. One of the most common customising tricks performed in the shop. This particulatr one will replace the original filler recess in the EK Van.
Date: 10/04/04
I simply go to the wreckers armed with a specially made chisel for this task and hack a lump out of the flanks of the nearest 626. We aim only to take this from damaged 1/4 panels ... a swift kick soon means we have a suitable donor.
Date: 10/04/04
This is what we are deleting... lovely isn't it?
Date: 10/04/04
After making a cardboard template from the trimmed piece from the wreckers, I transfer this to the 1/4 panel. Using the thin 1mm cut off wheel I trim inside the line first. this allows for minor repositioning once I have cut the original out.
Date: 10/04/04
Inskirt view of the inner brace wich I have already trimmed to allow the new Fuel box to sit in place. What the factory used to fill the gaps was tar and rags- very common with wagons and commercials.
Date: 10/04/04
Devoid of paint and rust after a quick seeing to inside the blast cabinet. This is the trimmed piece complete with filler box still attached.
Date: 10/04/04
Oxy welding with the HENROB torch the new piece is fitting just nicely.
Date: 10/04/04
The heat spot is glowing red and the hammering is forging the weld whilst its still very malleable.
Date: 10/04/04
After all the hammering, heat shrinking and beating into submission has been thought to be sufficient, I am leadwiping a thoroughly tinned surface . Lead is being applied here.
Date: 10/04/04
Lead being paddled. The trick is to have the right amount of heat and get it to stay on instead of all falling off the panel.
Date: 10/04/04
The finished article. Leadwiping and filling took two days. Lots of work but the result is worth it in my opinion. I grabbed the cables and release mech for this door whilst I was at the wreckers. Cost sometimes $20-this time free! Priceless results are what we look for.
Date: 23/04/04
This is the final stage I undertake to fill in the seam left by the joining process. Here I am "tinning" the area to be leaded using the tinning paste and a bit of carefully applied heat.
Date: 23/04/04
The paste when heated is thoroughly wiped into the surface and gives a chrome like shiny finish for the lead to stick to.
Date: 23/04/04
In case you missed it ... a quick heat.
Date: 23/04/04
...and a quick wipe.
Date: 23/04/04
The fun part- lead loading. Nothing like holiday leave loading. Unless you were leaving the Mafia then you would be loaded with lead I guess.
Date: 23/04/04
Paddling the lead into submission. careful heating to excite the tinned surface and not end up with the lot on the floor . rather like icing a giant cake.... The lead is then laborously filed useing a body file which takes a while.
Date: 14/10/04
Not much has happened for a while on this project - other than parts being raided or sold off and new parts sourced - the Windscreen has been getting a look in (another bad pun)
Here we have taken a fibreglass mould of an original screen, giving us a starting point.
Date: 14/10/04
Here our good freind Bill has undertaken the task of not only making this mould for me but also oversee its subsequent removal of the first fibreglass windsreen and its trimming to size.
Date: 14/10/04
This mould is now usless to our needs - but as you can see it was taken from the out side of an original screen giving a smooth surface to make the new fibreglass screen.
Date: 14/10/04
And this is the end product - a fibreglass screen that will be the right thickness to fit into a genuine (albeit cut down) screen rubber. Once this screen is installed in the car Bill will fibreglass brace the inside so as to hold its shape. THEN we will have our template to take to the screen manufactures - I wont cut down screens- I spend up large and get one made - Actually there will be several made so expressions of interest at this point in 3 inch chopped FB/EK screens are welcome- ring me on (07) 3206 0340 to place your order - final price to be determined. To give an idea - the first screen will set me back $3500 for set up costs and one screen - after that we can produce them a hell of a lot cheaper than that!is s one area we are still looking into. (couldnt leave it alone could I?)
Date: 12/04/05
This is how the van has been living for the past year- nothing much happening - except raiding it for parts to build Kims FC. Its got the walk here - quite tough! This happens when you remove all but two of the rear springs - chuck in some lowering blocks and then add a standard height HR front end- we kept swapping front ends around here for a while as people kept buying them from me-I woould just slip another back under the van to keep it mobile.
Date: 12/04/05
The roof was primed with PPG DP40 - to stop the rusting- the rest of the car still has most of its cheap clear on the bare steel to keep it from rusting. Note the Dragway wheels also got sold. We decided to really go the doctor in the end and six cylinder stuff had to go ...plus we needed the money to complete Kims FC.
Date: 12/04/05
finally back into the EK van project. This is a Modified EH style of outrigger that is for the HR front end we are fitting with Phil Huttons Rack and pinion set up.
Date: 12/04/05
The out rigger has been carefully unpicked from a EH x-member and now has been piecut to reduce its height- I re welded this with the HENROB TORCH .The given it a quick clean up in the blast cabinet.
Date: 12/04/05
This shows the outrigger installed as well as the Phil Hutton (0415 745 703) supplied and shortened LX Torana rack - This is by far the best method of installing rack and pinion steering into one of these cars. Note I also have used the CRS 2" dropped stub axles and this will be fitted with WB brakes. Also note the use of speedpro nolathane bushes in the outrigger and front end insulation positions.
Date: 12/04/05
Note how the tie rod ends follow the same angle as the lower wishbone. These are Commodore manual steer tie rod joints that are now connected to short style HQ non RTS steering arms.
Date: 12/04/05
The view from above- showing plenty of room for a V8 - 307 Chev in this case. The chassis rail has been slightly tapped in around the steering shaft and the lip nearly removed - this was then seam welded to put back some strength- using the Henrob again.
Date: 12/04/05
The problem with these old cars is their ability to collect crud - this member is now redundant. Note the huge rubber we are trying to fit; 245/60/15!
We ended up going down a size to 235/60/15.
Date: 12/04/05
...not to mention chockkas full of QLD road base!
Date: 12/04/05
There where actually critters living in this,look closley and you can see the egg bits.
Date: 12/04/05
Here the old member has been deleted and cleaned up in readiness for the fitment of a streetneat designed chassis kit. Although I dont sell these - you can feel free to copy what I am doing. Thats what this website is all about - sharing info and passing on ideas!
Date: 12/04/05
And basically this is what it looks like-- its some 2.5mm wall thickness RHS - 65x 65mm Note I have already added the Hydro EK tunnel into the car( see how this is done in Mrs streetneats album) The RHS is channeled slightly into the floor - meaning the chassis rail replaces some small sections of the floor pan.This is acheived by slicing along side the new rail and removing just what is needed to fit the rail into place. Another bit of RHS is releived of its top to from a channel and this is welded to the EK auto floor brace- it helps to not have the floor in at the time.
Date: 12/04/05
This is the simple bolt in continuation of the chassis rail that is simply some folded 3mm plate added to some more RHS. I splayed the ends to distribute load and this helps to make it look a bit tidier as well.
Date: 12/04/05
The main rail is permantly welded and you can see how neatly the bolt in part sits here.
Date: 12/04/05
Inside the floor brace the removable meber now bolts to - we have added crush tubes- note the tempory wheel nut to position the tube as it was brazed into place - now you see why its best not to have a floor fitted.
Date: 12/04/05
The neat part of this chassis rail installation is the fact it happens to line up perfectly with the seat braces!
Date: 12/04/05
This allows for us to weld the rail onto the brace as shown here.
Date: 12/04/05
A quick trial fit of my other 307 engine destined for the HG Ute project- I had to satisfy myself it wouldnt fit!
Date: 12/04/05
And here is one reason why-the steering box - this is why it had to be converted to rack and pinion.
Date: 12/04/05
And the other side meant the chassis rail is in the way- rest assured when we make our Custom pipes - they wont be exiting through the inner guards!. You dont need a CRS conversion kit as you can see here - with a little work you can have something much neater! (this is why we are called streetneat)
Date: 24/04/05
Time for a tub up! this shows the 1/2" gap that can be deleted between the rail and the tub creating much needed space for big feet.
Date: 24/04/05
.....and after the modification is done. We should have gained about 1/2 an inch on that one modification alone, but gained 25-30mm! I have pumped the guard as much as I dared. So instead of a wheel tub to wheel arch measurement of 265mm as standard-its now just under 300mm!
Date: 24/04/05
The first of the mounting process - a bit out of the normal as we did the gearbox first After a whole week of different possibilities being tried, we settled on a HQ- WB X member- shortened slightly- I will pretty up the ends later. This mounts to the new chassis rails via a couple of welded and tapped 1/4" plates.
Date: 24/04/05
The drivers side engine mount as viewed from the front.
Date: 24/04/05
....and he left as viewed from the front. Note the offset to the left as the steering needed some more room to let the exhuast pass by. I made these mounts from scrap box welded to some old 6 cyl engine mounts releived of thier rubber. The standard Chev rubber mounts attach this adapted mount to the motor.
Date: 24/04/05
drivers side mount viewed from underneath- the mount cleverly allows the steering union to operate freely.
Date: 24/04/05
...and the left side viewed from underneath.
Date: 24/04/05
The choice of wheels are now weld- 5x15 fronts and 8x15 rears. A little less conservative than our first choice.
Date: 30/04/05
The new look is happening slowly. Phil Hutton supplied the Diff - more on that later. I removed most of the panels to make working on it a lot easier.
Date: 30/04/05
Its starting to look fat! The front sheet metal is at the blasters -and its not the ones I file finished -I found some mint originals - so will use those instead.
Date: 30/04/05
The rear rubber - 235/60/15 - with yards of room- I could actually slip the 245 tyres back on, but the tyre store is getting' tired ' of my tyre trying.
Date: 30/04/05
The rear springs have been reset considerably lower- no need any more for those dodgey lowering blocks... you can see the ample room now available after my sneaky tubbing.
Date: 19/05/05
The passenger floor has finally been replaced- with a new one that came with the van- and the silly buggers b4 me had cut right through the seat brace! So this meant a quick trip over to the under tree parts cars , remove a seat brace, return to the workshop and spend hours unpicking,blasting, etch priming and removing whats left of the old one. Here is what the readied part looks like b4 installation.
Date: 19/05/05
The area in which it is to live again. Without this important piece - the seat would just tear through the floor.
Date: 06/06/05
The new passenger side seat brace in place. Later we modified the HQ Gear box Xmember shown to tidy up the square cut ends.
Date: 19/05/05
And now time for silly buggers...or buggered sills. When I bought this van for $300 I only bought it to wreck out- I was aware of its badly rusted sill. As I had a NOS R/H sill panel in stock - this gave the green light to go ahead on the project. Finally its time to address it. As you can see there is copious amounts of disparing decay.
Date: 19/05/05
The sill in the EK commercials is made of three parts- an outer , a strengthening inner the entire length (Removed in this pic) and the other inner sill which has been exposed here.
Date: 19/05/05
As you can see here - the outer bulk has been removed by simply slicing most of it away from the car leaving the welded areas. This is the time consuming part- delicatley spending days removing only what we are replacing- without damaging what we are keeping.
Date: 19/05/05
We only have a NOS outer. So how do we get the good inner bits? Well we have here a remanant from the donor car that supplied the Hydro Tunnel for Kims FC... We waste little. Much to my annoyance this was a good sill - until our mate Bruce from early Holden spares and repairs at Greenslopes( 3397 9211) wiped out the outer sill with his forklift! He donated the whole car for my project Holdens, so we cant really complain. Thanks Bruce.
Date: 19/05/05
A close up of fork bite.
Date: 19/05/05
Its the inner sill we need, so time to get to work and extract it.
Date: 19/05/05
After many hours of careful grinding and unpicking - we have what amounts to a NOS inner sill treated, to a sandblasting and fresh coat or two of etch primer.
Date: 19/05/05
The other side of the newish inner sill. As you can see I have left the spot weld alone - and rather drill through evrything and hope the factory has put the spot welds in all the right places (which differ between models).
I will be drilling new holes for welding through once its in the van for final fitment.
Date: 19/05/05
The three sill parts removed. Years of dirt roads have taken their toll.
Date: 19/05/05
The two replacement sill components with whats left of the old outer.
Date: 19/05/05
The inner sits inside the outer and will be put in separatly. We deemed the extra inner sill not necessary with out substantial chassis rail upgrade, which ATM is all thats holdin' this Holden together.
Date: 19/05/05
After a few days part time,I have cleaned away all the uneeded metal and trial fitted both the inner and outer sills- using a few tech screws- strategically placed- So we can remove /replace these new components until it all easily slips and locks into position.
Date: 19/05/05
But first we have some inner bits that still needed to be repaired first - although this stuff is not seen - its vital it is repaired properly so the new parts have something to attach to. These repairs were carried out using the oxy torch ( Henrob)
Date: 19/05/05
Finally - all welded into place... The factory brazed points are repeated and the long ardious task of welding all those spot welds back into existance- without distorting the new parts is carried out.
Date: 19/05/05
Not the clearest of pics- but the inner sill now looks like it was always in this new condition. No signs of replacement is what we spend extraordinary amounts of time aiming for. The rewarding comments when peolpe eyeballing the car drop by, come in the form of "So where do you find 'em in such good condition?"
I have copped that one a few times now. (heh heh...if only they knew!)
Date: 06/06/05
rust cutting continues...Now the new drivers side sill is in place - time to start tying it in with some new floor metal.
Date: 06/06/05
This red dirt has got into every nook and cranny. I am slowly but surely seeking all these areas out.
Date: 06/06/05
The removed floor looks solid enough - but I know it would be swiss cheese after the sandblaster has been at it. aside from the trapped red dirt underneath it.
Date: 06/06/05
Flame grilled sill! I took advantage of the new sills open acsess to drown it in rustproofing. After letting it vent its gases asmuch as possible- I burn off excess vapours in order not to scare the hell out of my assisting wife when we hammer weld the new floor pan in. The new floor pan can be seen behind the flames - not fitted yet in this pic. Its hard to fit and photograph at the same time -so we will come back to this one later.
Date: 06/06/05
The Phill Hutton (0415 745 703) supplied and modified VN diff- shortened and roughly in place. We have finished mounting it properly since this pic.It uses shortend and resplined 1 tonner axles and VP independent rear discs(different offset). The hand brake cable shown was not used either.
Date: 06/06/05
My monster style shifter ( Lokar swan style) and centre mounted hand brake ( Lokar) I also bought and installed the Lokar hand brakecable kit. Using some quality Hot rod parts may not be cheap but makes life a bit easier. Plus you need a bit of cool factor to keep you honed on the project...
Date: 06/06/05
I have been progressing slowly on the rest of the body as well. Another set of front panels was sourced and sent to the blasters. Here they lie a bit naked in bare steel.
Date: 06/06/05
L/H/F Guard.
Date: 06/06/05
...R/H/F Guard.
Date: 06/06/05
...and bonnet.
Date: 06/06/05
and finally the front stone tray. Why use all these new panels? What was wrong with the carefully file finished previous panels? Well they had to be sandblasted (which would have undone all my hardwork) plus overall these panels will have far fewer repairs and were a lot straitghter to begin with.
Date: 06/06/05
In the meantime I have some lovely wall hangings to brighten up the shed.
Date: 06/06/05
Time to coat those bare panels with some epoxy primer...PPG DP40. Note the use of gloves as I cant handle the bare steel with bare hands.
Date: 06/06/05
Now to start with that front screen again. I have spent many hours whittling down the fibreglass template screen. fools many at first glance that this isnt a real peice of glass.
Date: 06/06/05
The chop has given the screen a bit of an awkward rake to it(leans back more). The slight differences can be seen with a stock one parked nearby.
Date: 06/06/05
The differences can be seen plainly here. I am toying with the idea of a sunvisor on the van (albeit a some what modified one) to take away the awkward rake.
Date: 29/08/05
All these components will be carefully crafted into an exhuast system by Marty and I. Here is what they are;
1. Stainless polished Muffs. 2. Manifold gaskets - (Factory type manifolds already fitted) 3. Engine pipe with flange - (we only use the very ends of these.)4.laser cut flange plates and aluminium gaskets. (When fitted will allow exhuast to be dismantled in segments) 5. HQ style exhaust hanger mounts and rubbers. 6. Engine pipe gaskets. 7. 2 1/4 inch stainless tube. 8. flange plate nuts and bolts (3/8 inch). 9. Mandrel bends. 10. Engine pipe flange retainer.
Date: 29/08/05
Well sometimes you have to go in the wrong direction to see if its where you want to go. This route for the exhuast was soon abandoned.
Date: 29/08/05
Its very fiddly work building the system this way from a bunch of short sections of pipe and bends. Its quite important to employ the correct tongue technique.
Date: 29/08/05
All is carefully tigged in place. Only tack welds for now in case we have to move something...
Date: 29/08/05
...like the entire system! We decided it was better to run the system straight through thus allowing us to tuck it all up out of harms way. Nothing worse than draggin' yer pipes!
This pic also shows the massive amount of other work we have been doing like adding all the brake pipes, fuel lines and handbrake cables. Also the tail shaft has been custom made, diff final mounted and gearbox cross member lowered slighly.
Date: 29/08/05
Here is one of those custom cut (and very expensive!) flange plates. This is one side that comes over the diff. We have not quite finished the system as you can tell from the previous pic. Note the new Koni adjustable shocks.
Date: 29/08/05
And here is how we got the pipes to fit. A quick call to the engineer for the green light to cut into a structural member with the proviso that it be boxed in again later. The engineer deemed my additional chassis work to be strength enough to compensate for this. This method of exhaust routing is considerably neater! Note the aluminium packer to lower the X-member. The upper plate is the attachment plate that is welded to the new chassis rail.
Date: 29/08/05
The rear brakes are now installed . They are a combination of VP Independant rears and live axle bits. This is to space the calliper away from the leaf spring due to our narrowed diff.
Date: 29/08/05
The front brakes consist of WB ventilated discs and callipers. New hoses have been custom made. the front end member has been relieved slighly of its lip to allow clearance for the calliper on full lock. It probably wasnt quite necessary, now there is plenty of room. This will be seam welded to return intgretywhen we pull it apart next time for painting.
Date: 29/08/05
Brake pedal and acellerator pedal have been fabricated and now installed. The brake pedal consists of a FC pedal arm with a HD disc brake foot pad added. The accelerator mechanism is re bent HX with HQ Statesman pedal adapted with some tricky hand made bracketry. This pulls on the new HZ V8 accelerator cable.
Date: 29/08/05
Got to love that monster shifter! It should shift this monster nicely! Its actually a 29 1/2 inch swan necked Lokar shifter (the longest on the market) The hot rodder influences from my past are starting to return on this project. So I have started to shop around in hot rod stores for my parts - like the Model A style lever hand brake- another Lokar item. This also used the supplied 'cut to your length' hand brake cable kit. Wait until you see what we use for a console! Guess you will have to wait...
Date: 29/08/05
A quick trip to the candy store - actually Eagle Performance parts at Slackscreek, saw the purchase of this very crate motor. 'Ill have that one thanks.' I bought it as an assembled deal. That saved a bit of $$$!
Date: 29/08/05
And here she is in all her glory; 1 new crate motor and rebuilt TH350 auto. This engine bay when finished will be very stock in appearence. Brake booster and M/C is Corvette from Wayne @ 'Get Boosted'. As far as I know no one has use this set up b4 in a early Holden. It just fits nicely around the hood springs. A HK offset brake pedal set up helps achieve this and I zinc plated it to match (along with a bunch of other stuff).
Date: 20/08/05
The real pain was trying to locate the correct Quadrajet carb and matching aircleaner. I ended up custom notching the air cleaner to suit the HEI dizzy. Water pump is short and the alternator mounts are HK. When finished should look period perfect.
Date: 29/08/05
We have a space issue with reguards to the battery . It was decided to run a smallish 5 inch wide battery from AC/Delco - keeping with the all GM theme. This battery is calcium filled and still boast 13 plates and 430 CCA. To help with the load we elected to go with a genuine Chev high torque gear reduction starter. We could have fitted the larger original size starter if we had wanted to as space was not an issue down here.
Date: 29/08/05
That trick looking radiator support was fabricated in all steel and was lead wiped before a coat of epoxy primer. The radiator itself is a 4 core HQ unit. I had lots of fun making this fit and it required a fair amount of surgery , but the end result looks factory. See the following pics I just unearthed for more information.
Date: 05/07/05
I thought I had lost these pics- but just stumbled across 'em. This is the somewhat modified top rad support in its bare metal glory.That white plastic fan you see there is not what we ultimatley used- we used a flexalite black plastic fan instead
Date: 05/07/05
In essence I formed a hat section to go over the top of the HQ350 4 core radiator. As the original EK member had to be substantially releived of a lot of its structure - it was important to put something back in it's place - and make it look like it was meant to be there. Note the uprights I have added to support the radiator itself- this also compensates for materials removed.
You may also detect the notching required at the base for the radiator to sit lower and further forward into the chassis rails- this was also heavily reinforced.
Date: 05/07/05
When I deemed everything to be a perfect fit- I lead wiped the whole lot- you cannot use body filler over hot areas - so this was the only real choice. Most dont realise its custom made with a bit of primer on it - thats the trick to sucsessful customising - making things appear OEM. (original equipment manufactured)
Date: 29/08/05
Moving back to the rear its time to address some of the other unfinished business. The tank is a stainless deeper unit as supplied by Marty Dean. The new custom body work at the rear called for a custom bumper bar. I started with some NOS brackets from an FC sedan. These were notched slightly for clearance.
Date: 29/08/05
I had the new centre section folded up from 3mm steel sheet. This matches the profile of the sectioned FC sedan bar end.
Date: 29/08/05
I purchased a new tig welder and was keen to try it out. The Henrob torch could just as easily have done this job but to keep the heat down to bare minimum I tig welded these two bar bits together and must say I am rather pleased with the result. There is no join to be seen at all! This is the same methods used for the stainless work we do.
Date: 29/08/05
As the new body work at the rear of the van is straight across with out any sweep we needed a sweep free bar to match. The sedans had a slight curve to thier bars so were not suitable. This new bar when completed wont look any different to a sedan bar to most people. Its these minor detais that count.
The 17th of September 2005 was a significant day - the Van finally runs and moves around under its own power! A little bit of bug sorting and a lot more work and we will get this project completed. The current executive decision is to not go overboard
Date: 23/09/05
The 17th of September 2005 was a significant day - the Van finally runs and moves around under its own power! A little bit of bug sorting and a lot more work and we will get this project completed. The current executive decision is to not go overboard with candy paints and dvd players etc. We just want to get the thing on the road and finished. Too many other projects waiting in the wings.
Here's a bit of how to on making a new glove box liner. This will mount the stereo head unit and fuses etc.First step is to dissasemble a original cardboard liner
Date: 06/10/05
Here's a bit of how to on making a new glove box liner. This will mount the stereo head unit and fuses etc.
First step is to dissasemble a original cardboard liner
Unpicking of the staples is a delicate operartion without destroying the liner. Using a flatblade screwdriver and side cutters is the best method.
Date: 06/10/05
Unpicking of the staples is a delicate operartion without destroying the liner. Using a flatblade screwdriver and side cutters is the best method.
The cardboard liner is gently teased out flat and its outline marked out onto BHP Colourbond 0.6 mm signwhite.
Date: 07/10/05
The cardboard liner is gently teased out flat and its outline marked out onto BHP Colourbond 0.6 mm signwhite.
Cutting this thin material is easy - but be aware of being neat and making allowances for folding the metal being slightly different to the original cardboard liner.
Date: 07/10/05
Cutting this thin material is easy - but be aware of being neat and making allowances for folding the metal being slightly different to the original cardboard liner.
If you dont have accses to a folder then you could make your own with a few bits of angle iron clamped to the bench. Fortunatley I have a Magna bend- wich magnetically clamps the job and then you just fold!. Basically the steel liner gets folded in the
Date: 07/10/05
If you dont have accses to a folder then you could make your own with a few bits of angle iron clamped to the bench. Fortunatley I have a Magna bend- wich magnetically clamps the job and then you just fold!. Basically the steel liner gets folded in the same fashion as the old carboard liner - making allowances for the different material thicknesses. If unsure, then you should check your fold lines by measuring, then measure the glove box aperture in the car.
Of course you have to think about the sequences you will be folding the glovebox in. I do all the small folds first where the two parts will be joined and then do the larger shaping folds last. Get this stage wrong and your glove box liner will be grac
Date: 07/10/05
Of course you have to think about the sequences you will be folding the glovebox in. I do all the small folds first where the two parts will be joined and then do the larger shaping folds last. Get this stage wrong and your glove box liner will be gracing the bin liner...
After a quick check for fit in the car the mount holes are marked (Any final trimming to fit should be done before marking the mount holes.) The cardboard is a lot thicker than the steel , so its quite normal for the mount holes to be in a different l
Date: 07/10/05
After a quick check for fit in the car the mount holes are marked (Any final trimming to fit should be done before marking the mount holes.) The cardboard is a lot thicker than the steel , so its quite normal for the mount holes to be in a different location to the old ones - dont mark them from the old liner! Check for fit in the car first before drilling.
The signwhite has a protective plastic coating - so when the last adjustments are made and proir to the two halves beeing joined the plastic must be removed , revealing a nice two pack painted finish.
Date: 07/10/05
The signwhite has a protective plastic coating - so when the last adjustments are made and proir to the two halves beeing joined the plastic must be removed , revealing a nice two pack painted finish.
(Back to the glove box when I remember to take some more pics)Another trip to friend Neils Farm saw me score (at last) a mint seat for the back of this Van. The one I had been using for set-up was full of old mango pips and rats bits.
Date: 14/10/05
(Back to the glove box when I remember to take some more pics)
Another trip to friend Neils Farm saw me score (at last) a mint seat for the back of this Van. The one I had been using for set-up was full of old mango pips and rats bits.
Its a shame I wont be using this trim - but the first step was to save it. There is only one small hole and its quite fixable. I plan to keep the trim from these seats so if any one out there wants it give me a call on ( 07) 3206 0340
Date: 14/10/05
Its a shame I wont be using this trim - but the first step was to save it by cleaning them with ARCO cleaner- you can see the difference it makes with this b4 and after! There is only one small hole and its quite fixable. I plan to keep the trim from these seats so if any one out there wants it give me a call on ( 07) 3206 0340
The amount of fabrication and repair required for this project seems endless. The front is sort of fitted waiting for final body work. The guard was flapping loose and needed a new bottom as the old one was a bit thin and missing its mounting point at t
Date: 15/10/05
The amount of fabrication and repair required for this project seems endless. The front is sort of fitted waiting for final body work. The guard was flapping loose and needed a new bottom as the old one was a bit thin and missing its mounting point at the base.
After checking the new Rares patch panel for approximate size and location- the bulk is removed within the area to be replaced. I use the 4 inch grinder with 1mmm cut off disc for distortion free cutting
Date: 15/10/05
After checking the new Rares patch panel for approximate size and location- the bulk is removed within the area to be replaced. I use the 4 inch grinder with 1mmm cut off disc for distortion free cutting
If you look at the old peice on the ground closely you should see how thin it was. I trimmed along the inside edge for easier fitting of the new peice later.
Date: 15/10/05
If you look at the old peice on the ground closely you should see how thin it was. I trimmed along the inside edge for easier fitting of the new peice later. (Note the new bullet caps I have fitted to the wheels.)
