By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

I’m totally jealous of CarDomain member LN7_NUT, who pretty much has my dream junk collection, including an ambulance, an old Fairlane stock car, a vintage bus, a sweet tow rig, and even, yes, a 1st-gen Escort variant–but this incredible ’59 Apache limo built by Stageway Coaches stands out as the jewel in this particular rusty crown. He saved “The Hugeness” from the crusher in Montana back in ’08, and has finally completed the red-tape ordeal of importing it to Canada. Now that it’s home, I’m hoping to see some great progress on this deserving rig, but he’s clearly got his work cut out for him–stop by his ride page and offer some encouragement!

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

It sucks when perfectionism denies you any sense of accomplishment in a project. I’ve tried pretty hard to make my cars as perfect as they can realistically be. My Caprice, however, has other ideas. Some of you may be familiar with the complications I’ve endured just trying to get a set of headers onto my this car–it was one of those deals where whatever could go wrong, did. First came modifying multiple accessory brackets to bolt the headers on. Then came a car that refused to go into gear, requiring a custom shift linkage to clear the headers. Then came the saga of the crossmember–the later-model Caprice one that everyone said would fit but didn’t, the botched fab-shop butchery of my original crossmember, the cutting into the header that that in turn necessitated. In the end, the exhaust guy did wind up doing a good job except for one pipe that I feel could have been better. But then, as the icing on the cake, on the way home from the exhaust shop my throttle linkage broke at the carburator. All in all, this project was a nightmare, but the important thing is that it’s done. So am I happy? No. Does it work? Yes. Does it sound good? It sounds great. So really other than getting my perfectionism subjected to an extreme trial, everything did work out in the end. So I guess I should be happy–or should I? More pictures after the jump.

Continue reading "Does It Work? Yes. Am I Happy? No." »

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

When it comes to building cars, these two simple words put together illustrate a depressing picture of hope and failure. But without trial and error, none of us would learn anything when it comes to building a car. I have experienced many trials and what feels like many errors in the course of working on my Caprice. Trying to adapt non-factory parts not specifically designed for your application is always an adventure. My current error comes in the form of a 1994-1996 crossmember. One that everyone from online forum blow-hards to a supposed “B body guru” absolutely swore would fit my ’84. Well, I’m here to tell you that every single one of them was very wrong. But without trial and error, I never would’ve figured out the correct answer. Luckily my error didn’t cost too much, and now I’ve decided to send my original crossmember to a local roll cage fabricator for a little cosmetic re-shaping. Here’s hoping that the “error” part is behind me for now. How about you? What notable trials and errors have you been through in your projects, and what wisdom did you come away with?

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

One thing I’ve seen time and time again in my 15 years going to regular car shows is that people have no concept of money or what things are worth, and the car corral at the recent Rhinebeck show was proof-positive of that once again. Like many years before it, the corral was filled with clone cars asking real car prices, Grandmas’ low miles daily drivers, and rotted-out hulks of metal that used to be cars. The latter category is what I would call highway robbery to anyone even thinking of making a purchase. How someone can slap a multi-thousand dollar price on something I can see through is beyond me. Take this 1970 Impala convertible–it’s a mess.  The seller’s statement of “Doesn’t run, Needs work” is an understatement if I’ve ever heard one. With a broken right front spring and flat tire on the same wheel, almost worn-through paint, no actual metal left behind the rear wheel and a top that hasn’t come up since the Regan administration, it looks like a wounded junk yark dog. What may you ask is this car worth to someone like me? About 200 dollars as a parts car. What the seller wants is a far cry from that–follow the jump to see his well-placed ad.

Continue reading "Are You Serious…?" »

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

Holden’s ’76 Cordoba sat on brand new wheels and tires for two years out in the woods after he bought it, but when it started sinking into the ground, he decided it was time to get around to restoring it. Pretty much everything you ever needed to know about rust repair and sheetmetal work is photodocumented on his epic ride page. Looks like this big bad cruiser is getting pretty close to done!

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

With a JDM WRX motor stuffed under the hood, Suberdave’s GL wagon is putting nearly 300 hp to the wheels. Check out the impressive engine swap sequence, as well as cool track pics, on his ride page!

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

We all love to work on our cars–for the most part. A big factor in whether or not you truly enjoy wrenching on your ride is where you are doing it. I’ve done oil changes on a lift, on a pair of jack stands, and on a piece of cardboard out in the street. Let’s just say I enjoyed doing it on the lift more than on my back. Recently, I’ve had to bounce my ride from place to place in search of a decent place to work. Luckily I have a cool service manager at work, and he’s agreed to let me service my ride after hours at the dealership, as long as it’s back outside when I’m done (there’s always a hitch haha). Most of the work I’ve done in the past took place at my grandfather’s garage, but it’s great to have access to a lift for those projects that really need one. So how about you–are you fortunate enough to work out of a garage, or are you doing your wrenching on the asphalt?

By David Clarke

highspeedhijinks

Rob’s recent post about the Hondabaru (or whatever you want to call it) kind of gave me nightmares. Just think of all the obstacles that builder had to overcome to get such a contraption to work. Even thinking back on my own projects, I don’t envy what this builder had to go through. For instance, my header install on my ’84 Caprice should’ve been fairly straightforward–little did I know that by the time all was said and done, I would have to fabricate accessory brackets, modify my shift linkage, and source a “double hump” transmission crossmember only to find out that it too needs fabrication before it will fit. This is supposed to be fun, right? Luckily in my case these are all minor bumps in the road, but a few more and this could fast become a project nightmare. How about you–what was the one project that you wished you never started, or wished you  could be done with already?

By Jen Dunnaway

Editor

If you’ve ever wanted to know absolutely everything about chopping, channeling, lowering, widening, tubbing, and caging a tri-five Chevy, JohnyMustang’s ride page would be the place to start. He has photodocumented everything on this ’55 Chevy’s build. Take a look!

By Chris Bicknell

Bick66

Last summer I installed a power disc brake conversion on my ’66 Impala convertible–it just made sense, considering I was putting a 400+ hp stroker motor in it, and the non-boosted single-chamber master cylinder putting juice to four smallish drums made it kind of a death trap. There was a ton of aftermarket conversion kits available for my ride, and I finally settled on one from Matt’s Classic Bowties.  After laying out all of the parts and reading through the few short pages of rudimentary installation instructions, I was a little worried about the outcome of this project–it was my first attempt converting manual 4-wheel drums to power front disc brakes, and it basically entailed tearing out the whole braking system. So once I started, I was kind of committed. But now with the install complete, I’m amazed by how well it turned out. Other than a few simple modifications, the entire system bolted up smoothly. Wanna learn how to make your big-boat classic stop on a dime? Read on below the jump.

Continue reading "Power Disc Brake Conversion Install" »