'64 interior refresh. Leather seats, carpet, dash, console and NOM info
Here's a lot of info that consolidates details from lots of posts and includes my experiences. I'm no expert but this is what I have to contribute.
Console
I did a lot of research and saw lots of different comments about the console paint. This is what worked for me. Lot's of other tidbits about the project thrown in too.
I had to have the paint mixed here rather than buy it pre-mixed. I polished the chrome then taped it off..with reading glasses at my kitchen sink with perfect lighting. There is a groove that you almost can't see with the paint on and that was my guide. I used paint remover and a nylon brush to remove the paint.
Guys have talked about testing the paint if you buy it premixed and maybe adding flattener so it's not too glossy. What I got almost seemed too glossy at first. The guy who mixed the paint said that it was thin, requiring multiple light coats. No problem there. At first, the shine of the chrome came through but after about 10 light coats, all good. You can't paint it laying flat on a table. Gotta prop it up and spray at it directly so that the paint is uniform in every nook and cranny, without needing to go back and fix edges. A couple coats of matte polyurathane and it turned out perfect. It looks like the original to me. (the paint had come off in a couple places on mine). From what I know about the car, I don't think it was previously refinished). New plastic ashtray slides keep the door tight, Brushed aluminum trim is readily available.
More info and links below.
Carpet
Seat removal. An L shaped distributor wrench was recommende for the two bolts on the front but if you slide the seats all the way back, a socket wrench works fine. The track mechanisms have extentions that just slip into an existing bracket in back. When putting the seat back, slide it all the way forward to be able to see where to line it up in back.
I bought a can of Scotchguard UV protection and water repellent spray and used that on the carpet before installation, to prevent fading. It’s a convertible. Gently rubbed it in the first two light coats then a final light coat. I won't leave my car out in the sun with the top down anymore.
Carpet was replaced years ago but faded in areas. The new carpet has foam on the back, what I took off did not. If you're looking for TopFlight, like everything, you need recommendations from here and your Regional guy about that.
The carpet was a bear. I've seen guys use glue in a can and paint brush and another guy who used a case of Spray 90. They will be cursed out for sure when its time to replace the carpet. Unless yours is Top Flight, it's going to need replacement carpet at some point. Spray 90 is really strong. Doesn't take much. If you put in new carpet with foam back and the next guy needs to remove it, he’ll need to scrape the foam off the floor when it separates from the carpet when he pulls in out. (Horrible). The new carpet needed more t******* than I expected. A sharp razor knife, accurate cut lines, carpet placed on a hard surface to trim it is the way to go. In some places like the door sill plates, I removed the foam.
Good idea to put dowels in the four seat bolt holes and where the gas pedal screws down, expecially if you have foam backed carpet. If you do have foam backed carpet, replace the screws with 1/4" longer and be sure its the right screw head and it's black (Original was black, right?)
Leather seats
I ordered replacement foam. If you do, it might need a tiny bit of t******* with an electric turkey slicer.
My seats just had cosmetic cracks. A little dry but not bad. I used Navy Blue "Furniture Clinic Leather re-coloring balm" from Amazon. I agonized over this. Some guys sand first, some use a multi-step process. I just cleaned the leather with a product from Leather Clinic, wiped that off real good and applied the balm. It's like a thick cream. I worked it in real well, wiped it once dry and did that a few times. My seats are dark blue, not original leather but the color was an exact match! I finished it off with Furniture Clinic's finishing cream. Gotta wipe it off once dry every step of the way or else you can get some blue on your white Tee shirt at first.
Furniture clinic has several colors. They show three shades of each, determined by how many coats you apply.
Dash
The finish on my dash and center panel was not uniform. I took a chance and used the seat dye on it and it turned out great.
Engine-NOM replacement
Corvette Mike in Anaheim is going to install the new Engine. All the reviews I read here made me decide on a fully dressed engine from Blueprint and one guy recommended a specific one that would fit under my hood for sure. (350/383 stroker/436 hp. roller cam, etc.). Forgive me for not looking up his name in a prior post of mine on the subject pls. The consensus here is that the original drivetrain has no problem with that much horsepower. (mine was 327/300) if the U-joints, etc. are good. Speaking of that, if you get a clunk going into gear, there’s a good chance that the culprit is a “Snubber Bushing” which joins the differential to the frame at the front. When you replace it, don’t put it in upside down by mistake.
Whether fitment is an issue with having the correct oil pan and intake or not, I didn't want to fool around so I used that one that was recommended here. I didn't feel 150% certain about using another engine from Blueprint unless it came recommended on here. Specs on mine say replacement hood and mounts required but Blueprint says I'm fine and that is a disclaimer they all have. Their 350 block should be a fit as is. I'll keep the current clutch and throw out bearing, I don't think they have many miles on them.
I don't know what to do with my rebuilt small double hump heads, (Ser. 3927186 Small Camel Humps, smaller valve size). My block is a '70 Chevelle 350. The heads are interchangeable to some degree. As well, alternator, two near new Edelbrock carbs; one 1411 750 which I have here (A carb "expert" put on the 750, too big for the engine unless all you do is race it and one 1406 600 on the car now, along with the rest of the above). Blueprint Dyno tests the engine and provides a report. I prefer that they test and tune everything.
This guy posted pics about his engine swap.
Rear wheel bearings
The last thing I’d like to share is that if your car was in storage for years like mine or maybe has lots of miles, might be a good idea to remove the axles and grease in there. My grease was old, kinda turned to wax. I found that out in the middle of East Texas. If you find a problem after they go bad, removing the axle to access the races and bearings requires a torch and sledge hammer. Video available if you want.
More Console paint info
If you are going for a 100 pt. car, here is an fyi. The exact color formula is not easy to get. I don't know how the premixed paint guys got their color but if you look at all the shades for all the years, thats a lot of research, including getting the formula number from the supplier, who will only give it to one of their dealers and that's the only guy that can mix the paint because the formula is proprietary. Plus, the paint itself today is not laquer or whatever was used originally. If you match according to color chips, the inks they used to print them were not archival so you can be certain its the exact correct shade. The experts can comment on that. I once restored a car to 100 pts (never again). That required the exact same leather grain on the seats, cadmium or zinc plated bolts and shape, size of metal flake and correct psi to spray the paint on, etc. I couldn't use mass production vendors assuming theirs was correct. As always, source info from an expert here is the only way to go. Most of you guys are pros and don't need to hear this but I learned the hard way. Not checking and double checking sources can double the cost of your restoration.
Dupont R-M Ditzler (PPG)
Flat 4430-L. 63B22. DIA 12-754
*Gloss 96221 N/a Dl12923
Note: https://www.autocolorlibrary.com/pag...HorizontalTab3
12740 Dtizler/PPG was the right color for me. Not sure about the Ekler numbers above.
Console Removal – zip Corvette
Disconnect battery while working (Interior light battery drain).
Last pic is my car at the port here, getting ready to ship out to the mainland.
Console
I did a lot of research and saw lots of different comments about the console paint. This is what worked for me. Lot's of other tidbits about the project thrown in too.
I had to have the paint mixed here rather than buy it pre-mixed. I polished the chrome then taped it off..with reading glasses at my kitchen sink with perfect lighting. There is a groove that you almost can't see with the paint on and that was my guide. I used paint remover and a nylon brush to remove the paint.
Guys have talked about testing the paint if you buy it premixed and maybe adding flattener so it's not too glossy. What I got almost seemed too glossy at first. The guy who mixed the paint said that it was thin, requiring multiple light coats. No problem there. At first, the shine of the chrome came through but after about 10 light coats, all good. You can't paint it laying flat on a table. Gotta prop it up and spray at it directly so that the paint is uniform in every nook and cranny, without needing to go back and fix edges. A couple coats of matte polyurathane and it turned out perfect. It looks like the original to me. (the paint had come off in a couple places on mine). From what I know about the car, I don't think it was previously refinished). New plastic ashtray slides keep the door tight, Brushed aluminum trim is readily available.
More info and links below.
Carpet
Seat removal. An L shaped distributor wrench was recommende for the two bolts on the front but if you slide the seats all the way back, a socket wrench works fine. The track mechanisms have extentions that just slip into an existing bracket in back. When putting the seat back, slide it all the way forward to be able to see where to line it up in back.
I bought a can of Scotchguard UV protection and water repellent spray and used that on the carpet before installation, to prevent fading. It’s a convertible. Gently rubbed it in the first two light coats then a final light coat. I won't leave my car out in the sun with the top down anymore.
Carpet was replaced years ago but faded in areas. The new carpet has foam on the back, what I took off did not. If you're looking for TopFlight, like everything, you need recommendations from here and your Regional guy about that.
The carpet was a bear. I've seen guys use glue in a can and paint brush and another guy who used a case of Spray 90. They will be cursed out for sure when its time to replace the carpet. Unless yours is Top Flight, it's going to need replacement carpet at some point. Spray 90 is really strong. Doesn't take much. If you put in new carpet with foam back and the next guy needs to remove it, he’ll need to scrape the foam off the floor when it separates from the carpet when he pulls in out. (Horrible). The new carpet needed more t******* than I expected. A sharp razor knife, accurate cut lines, carpet placed on a hard surface to trim it is the way to go. In some places like the door sill plates, I removed the foam.
Good idea to put dowels in the four seat bolt holes and where the gas pedal screws down, expecially if you have foam backed carpet. If you do have foam backed carpet, replace the screws with 1/4" longer and be sure its the right screw head and it's black (Original was black, right?)
Leather seats
I ordered replacement foam. If you do, it might need a tiny bit of t******* with an electric turkey slicer.
My seats just had cosmetic cracks. A little dry but not bad. I used Navy Blue "Furniture Clinic Leather re-coloring balm" from Amazon. I agonized over this. Some guys sand first, some use a multi-step process. I just cleaned the leather with a product from Leather Clinic, wiped that off real good and applied the balm. It's like a thick cream. I worked it in real well, wiped it once dry and did that a few times. My seats are dark blue, not original leather but the color was an exact match! I finished it off with Furniture Clinic's finishing cream. Gotta wipe it off once dry every step of the way or else you can get some blue on your white Tee shirt at first.
Furniture clinic has several colors. They show three shades of each, determined by how many coats you apply.
Dash
The finish on my dash and center panel was not uniform. I took a chance and used the seat dye on it and it turned out great.
Engine-NOM replacement
Corvette Mike in Anaheim is going to install the new Engine. All the reviews I read here made me decide on a fully dressed engine from Blueprint and one guy recommended a specific one that would fit under my hood for sure. (350/383 stroker/436 hp. roller cam, etc.). Forgive me for not looking up his name in a prior post of mine on the subject pls. The consensus here is that the original drivetrain has no problem with that much horsepower. (mine was 327/300) if the U-joints, etc. are good. Speaking of that, if you get a clunk going into gear, there’s a good chance that the culprit is a “Snubber Bushing” which joins the differential to the frame at the front. When you replace it, don’t put it in upside down by mistake.
Whether fitment is an issue with having the correct oil pan and intake or not, I didn't want to fool around so I used that one that was recommended here. I didn't feel 150% certain about using another engine from Blueprint unless it came recommended on here. Specs on mine say replacement hood and mounts required but Blueprint says I'm fine and that is a disclaimer they all have. Their 350 block should be a fit as is. I'll keep the current clutch and throw out bearing, I don't think they have many miles on them.
I don't know what to do with my rebuilt small double hump heads, (Ser. 3927186 Small Camel Humps, smaller valve size). My block is a '70 Chevelle 350. The heads are interchangeable to some degree. As well, alternator, two near new Edelbrock carbs; one 1411 750 which I have here (A carb "expert" put on the 750, too big for the engine unless all you do is race it and one 1406 600 on the car now, along with the rest of the above). Blueprint Dyno tests the engine and provides a report. I prefer that they test and tune everything.
This guy posted pics about his engine swap.
Rear wheel bearings
The last thing I’d like to share is that if your car was in storage for years like mine or maybe has lots of miles, might be a good idea to remove the axles and grease in there. My grease was old, kinda turned to wax. I found that out in the middle of East Texas. If you find a problem after they go bad, removing the axle to access the races and bearings requires a torch and sledge hammer. Video available if you want.
More Console paint info
If you are going for a 100 pt. car, here is an fyi. The exact color formula is not easy to get. I don't know how the premixed paint guys got their color but if you look at all the shades for all the years, thats a lot of research, including getting the formula number from the supplier, who will only give it to one of their dealers and that's the only guy that can mix the paint because the formula is proprietary. Plus, the paint itself today is not laquer or whatever was used originally. If you match according to color chips, the inks they used to print them were not archival so you can be certain its the exact correct shade. The experts can comment on that. I once restored a car to 100 pts (never again). That required the exact same leather grain on the seats, cadmium or zinc plated bolts and shape, size of metal flake and correct psi to spray the paint on, etc. I couldn't use mass production vendors assuming theirs was correct. As always, source info from an expert here is the only way to go. Most of you guys are pros and don't need to hear this but I learned the hard way. Not checking and double checking sources can double the cost of your restoration.
Dupont R-M Ditzler (PPG)
Flat 4430-L. 63B22. DIA 12-754
*Gloss 96221 N/a Dl12923
Note: https://www.autocolorlibrary.com/pag...HorizontalTab3
12740 Dtizler/PPG was the right color for me. Not sure about the Ekler numbers above.
Console Removal – zip Corvette
Disconnect battery while working (Interior light battery drain).
Last pic is my car at the port here, getting ready to ship out to the mainland.
. According to your profile I see that you are quite an afficionado
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