Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

[Chris F.]

I have had my baby for just on four years now importing her from a lady I purchased the car from in Texas to Tasmania, Australia.
Since that time I have been progressively restoring the car back to as far as possible original condition. It has been NCRS judged twice both Second Flight Awards. The last time I was very close to Top Flight and with further work I hope to achieve that in the future.
My questions are:
I will have to replace the radiator in the near future, it has a slight weep and I would rather replace than repair. Who should I look to to supply the correct radiator.
Also I will need to replace the shock absorbers in the near future. I do not race the car or anything like that it's just for cruising and attendance at shows. What sort of shock should I be looking at. I know that the original should be gray, AC Delco etc. If I go for a different type of shock, what are the judging implications. I notice that suppliers like Corvette Central have AC Delco shocks painted black, are they any good.
What are the judging implications.
As you may appreciate I live a long way from the US amnd it's not just a simple case of going into a store to compare these items.
I would appreciate the help and knowledge of fellow NCRS members.
Best regards,
Chris

[Terry M.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Radiator from Tom DeWitt. He advertises in The Driveline.

[Steven G.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Chris, Have you searched ncrs arcives ?? I think that would answer many questions during restoration, I use this post when I have exausted my resources or just give up searching sometimes?? I am restoring a 72', S/B, std., loaded coupe, send me a pm if I can help get you started, I am a step ahead of you on the restoration of 72's. Steve

[Jack H.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Chris, my man! How's the weather in Tasmania?

On the radiator, you might be pleasantly surprised at what a local rad shop can do for you. These were brass in composition meaning they CAN be taken apart and rebuilt...

BTW, is M'lady still red or has she changed her 'hair color' back to factory stock?

On the shocks, I run Delco Pleasurizers on my '71 (these are gas shocks). Once painted and affixed with ID code stickers, I typically see a 40% deduction on the judging field (20% for Date, and another 20% for slight visible differences in Configuration).

[Chris F.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Hello Guys,
Thank you for the replies. Jack it's great weather here at the moment much like when you were down under about 28oC. We are still missing a lot of rain but when you look at the world picture, Tasmania is a pretty good place to be. They are breeding your favourite Tasmanian Devils in captivity to ensure population for the future so it all looks good.
Yes there are some repair shops in Tasmania but I thought going for new might be better. My radiator I believe is original but does not have the identification tag on it, again another judging comment. When I last pulled my radiator out I could not get it out without disconnecting the a/c hoses. Was this correct???
Any advice on the shock absorbers please.

[Alan S.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Hi Chis,
It's really great to see your name on this Board. I'm sure you'll find really well thought-out replies to your questions. I've always enjoyed hearing about your experiences with your car.
I look forward to your posts!
Regards,
Alan

[Steven G.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Chris, I am doing a body off, complete restoration on my 72, so, I am years behind you, sorry about that ! On the shocks, there are guys who restamp and sell on e-bay and other suppliers as you have/may discover. I suggest zoom in on the stamping size, type, relevent locations and overall configuration before spending a lot of cash if for future judging. Steve

[Joe L.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

I have had my baby for just on four years now importing her from a lady I purchased the car from in Texas to Tasmania, Australia.
Since that time I have been progressively restoring the car back to as far as possible original condition. It has been NCRS judged twice both Second Flight Awards. The last time I was very close to Top Flight and with further work I hope to achieve that in the future.
My questions are:
I will have to replace the radiator in the near future, it has a slight weep and I would rather replace than repair. Who should I look to to supply the correct radiator.
Also I will need to replace the shock absorbers in the near future. I do not race the car or anything like that it's just for cruising and attendance at shows. What sort of shock should I be looking at. I know that the original should be gray, AC Delco etc. If I go for a different type of shock, what are the judging implications. I notice that suppliers like Corvette Central have AC Delco shocks painted black, are they any good.
What are the judging implications.
As you may appreciate I live a long way from the US amnd it's not just a simple case of going into a store to compare these items.
I would appreciate the help and knowledge of fellow NCRS members.
Best regards,
Chris

Chris-----


For the radiator, you could have yours recored locally using a reproduction core you can get from DeWitts. However, if you don't want to go to all this hassle, you can just get a new reproduction of the GM #3019190 radiator from DeWitts. Also, if you're willing to sacrifice a little originality, you can get an aluminum "direct fit" unit from DeWitts which mimics most of the elements of the original configuration but is made entirely of aluminum. This radiator has substantially improved cooling ability from the copper/brass 3019190. In fact, this radiator has a higher cooling capacity than ANY radiator EVER originally installed in any Corvette from 1953 through 2009.

For shocks, I recommend going with the current Delco shocks, removing the labels and painting them shock blue/gray. These shocks will perform well, are relatively inexpensive, and are configured as close as you're going to get in a NEW shock. Forget used or rebuilt shocks.

The Delco # for the fronts is 530-315, aka GM #88947653. The rears are Delco #530-4, aka GM #88945172.

[Chris F.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Hello Joe,
Thank you for the good advice your help is appreciated. I bought a cross member repair tool some years ago and finally got around to using it myself last weekend. Two other guys used it prior to me with good success.
You have to take a spring out to use the tool and I thought why not take out the two and do some resto on the springs. Well that's another story trying to get the buggers back in.
The shocks were not original and a little tired so now that I know how easy they are to replace I am on the hunt for some replacements and your information will be very useful thank you.
I saw someone selling NOS shocks the other week on Ebay for a grand but unfortunately I don't have a back door key to Fort Knox. I also have to realistic my car has 130,000 miles on it, she has had sympatetic resto and every time I try and replace with a genuine part or something that is as near to correct as possible. Unfortunately the shipping is a killer to Tasmania with the shipping costing as much or more as the part.

[Robert S.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Chris asked if you needed to discharge the AC and remove the AC hoses in order to remove the radiator. I think the 72' and 74' are close enough that my experience is valid. I removed the radiator on my 74' (L48) with AC without disconnecting or disturbing the AC system. To get it out I had to remove the fan and fan clutch, the two headlight actuators and remove all of the bolts holding the radiator support and I removed the clips holding the AC lines running to the AC system on the firewall. With all this stuff removed I was able to move and rotate the radiator support with the AC radiator attached/connected enough to get the engine radiator out. It was tight but can be done and all was reinstalled and the AC worked as before.

I have pulled and repaired two radiators on two different 74's with AC.(mine and my son's) However I think if I ever have to pull the radiator again on my 74' I will replace with new rather than repair as it is such a big task to get the radiator out and back in - I think your decision is part cost and part how much you want to maintain originality.

[Chris F.]

Re: Restoration on my '72 BB Auto Convertible

Hello Jack,
The car is still Mille Miglia Red but is going to be painted back to Sunflower Yellow probably as the last job. I have looked over the car very carefully and I don't think she needs a body off resto. Having said that if I did take the body off I might get a shock. We did a body off school on a member's '68 last year and the body had been off before, man what a mess and no vin numbers in the subframe either. I'm not daunted by the painting it is not an issue. My spray painter friend is a very patient man and understands my passion for Corvettes. I was looking for a numbers matching '69 BB Vert in Red before doing the color change but now the dollar is .65c to your dollar I'll be waiting a while for another car. Megan would probably kill me anyway.
I am finding a lot of suppliers will not ship shock absorbers by Air Internationally because of the gas in the chamber. Will have to investigate that a bit more but am leaning towards yours and Joe's suggestion.

Hello Robert,
Thank you for the information on the a/c disconnect I will look at things more closely when pulling the radiator. I didn't realize the implications when disconnecting the a/c last time like changing the gas, the drier etc.
We repaired the radiator support as it was rusted out and seems to be a common issue.
I'm not real keen on repairing the radiator but will investigate that when it is out. My dilemma is if I need a new one it takes so long to ship out. May be a winter project.