1973 RS/LT/Z28 4spd - Gold/Parchment Restoration

[BCreekDave]

Where did you get the Z87 cowl seals? Mine are in basically good condition, just hae some wrinkles. Any suggestions on how to iron out the wrinkles.

[firstgenaddict]

1

Originally Posted by Bill Pritchard

Will this beauty be for sale when it's completed?

No... this one will in all likely hood never be sold.
The owner, my brother, has had this car since approx 1990 ~ AND IT WAS Purchased as a replacement for his first 73 LT Z28, which was totaled back in the late 80's while he was working at a local grocery store... He was meticulous and parked the car between a telephone pole and the GUY wire for the pole so no one could door ding or get near it... WELL Until the Senior Citizen hit the accelerator instead of the BRAKE and T boned it... buckling the roof and putting the pass door to the console.

Those are the original Z87 seals, I just cleaned them using Kaboom Foaming cleaner and a scrub brush.
I laid them out in the hot sun to flatten them out.


IF anyone knows of a 1972 Z28 4 spd or a 72 LT1 Vette I am looking for the right car.... must have paper and born with drive train... No Greens or Reds.

Considering a 72 LT1 A/C vette BECAUSE 72 Z28's are like HENS TEETH.

[Bill Pritchard]

With the level of detail you are achieving on this car, I really doubted that it would be for sale, but you never know unless you ask....

You're right, 72 Z28's are a rare bird.....IIRC, the 2nd lowest number built with something like only 2575

[firstgenaddict]

Originally Posted by Bill Pritchard

With the level of detail you are achieving on this car, I really doubted that it would be for sale, but you never know unless you ask....

You're right, 72 Z28's are a rare bird.....IIRC, the 2nd lowest number built with something like only 2575

IMHO - The best compliment anyone could have on a restored car is to have it mistaken for a survivor.


I enjoy the process of determining the exact way something was done... like angles of approach, how did that overspray reach that crevice or why is the mist this way... like rockers... gun were on reciprocating rails... watch the videos of the cars being painted in Fisher Body plants. They traveled side ways across the top of the car Left to right as the car moved beneath and on the side there were no tilted guns shooting the bottoms of the rockers.
I spend hundreds of hours inspecting every photo of every survivor car I can find... make model and year are of little consequence... 1922 Oldsmobile Super Sport V8 with 2500 miles to a 1990 Triple Black L98 Vette Roadster with 10k miles...

NOW HOWEVER I DO prefer anything ZORA had a hand in creating... 57 Airbox vettes to 1972 ZR1 vettes. Solid Lifter Chevrolet's - specifically

Bill Yes 72's are hard to find... I looked for a long time in the 1980's as my father wanted to get my brother and me Z28's for the year we were born...
The first 73 LT Z28 (Blue totalled one) I found was built the week my brother was born and sold new at Stott Chevrolet 40 miles from the hospital. (as a side note Quain Stott and I have become pretty good friends due to some other racing and cars) however we never were able to find a 72... we scoured Hemmings for years between when I was 13-16. Then after I bought a 69 vette and then went to college we really just gave up on it.

[firstgenaddict]

Working away, installed the kick panels, the rest of the vent assemblies and defroster ducting.

Placed a large order for carpet and under-layment, the plug wires, battery cables, rad rubber insulators, tons of misc little parts valve cover rubber elbow, etc...

I am looking for someone to plate the front and rear bumpers using only Nickel Chrome like the originals... Anyone know of anyone?

ALSO if anyone has or HAD a 73 Z... what are your wheel dates?

I have almost 3 sets of wheels and none are 1973 MY wheels.

4 are dated Jan for 1971 model year... K-1-1
4 are dated Sept 1971 Model Year K-1-1 9 30
2 are dated Nov 1971 Model year. K-1-1 11 22 & 11 24
1 is dated Feb of 1972 model year K-1-2 2 11

I would love to trade for 1973 Model year wheels manufactured in late 72.

Tipped off to a starter by a guy on the Nasty Z site (McCune) 418 starter dated 2M14 PERFECT!

[olredalert]

----Why do you say the bumpers are nickel plated? Im pretty certain they are chrome plated. They may have had a nickel underlayer,,,,Maybe?...….Bill S

[BCreekDave]

Factory plating was nickel over bare steel followed by the chrome layer. It resulted in not as good of a luster finish. Most chrome shops add an initial layer of copper that is then polished. This tends to fill the microscopic pits better and the subsequent nickle-chrome is much brighter and smoother. This then falls into the category of "over-restored". I would say that any competent chrome shop can skip the copper layer.

[BCreekDave]

On your dashpad, is the area around the gauges black or te brown of the dashpad? I always thought that on the original pads the area around the gauges was supposed to be black.

[firstgenaddict]

Originally Posted by BCreekDave

On your dashpad, is the area around the gauges black or te brown of the dashpad? I always thought that on the original pads the area around the gauges was supposed to be black.

I have never seen a colored dash pad with the area painted black.
I have some more photos of other low mile cars I will check them as well...
This is the original brown dash pad, it is dated 11/30,

My 71 RS with neutral interior had the same dash color configuration. no black recess.


Does anyone know how to determine whether the CAMARO script on the dash was silver or not?
LT includes Deluxe interior which has argent trim.

[hubleyman]

Well.... I’ve been trying to keep up the assembly pace on my personal 73 with your project but you are working just too darn hard and fast… Here’s a few comments / questions:

Wheels: My car is a 02A build date. The wheels are K-1-3 2 “valve stem” 1 AU, except one is a K-1-3 1 “valve stem” 22 AU. The odd thing is all my wheels are painted black inside as well as on the back side (original paint), except the one wheel with the earlier date code is painted gray on the inside and back side. Maybe this happened to be a transition date for changing from gray to black at the wheel factory?

Chrome: Just got my parts back from the chrome shop (ouch – you don’t want to know the $$$ on that) and they look incredible! They don’t have the over shiny chrome effect of reproduction chrome parts. Not sure what layers they used but I am very pleased. Even the inside of the bumpers are lovely. The inside of the back bumper had numbers stamped in it repeated over and over. Looked pretty neat once the plating was done… P.S. Chrome is difficult to take pictures of...

Roof rail moldings: Your recent picture shows the vertical roof rail weatherstrip retainers, but it doesn’t look like it has the second trim piece on the car that wraps over the edge of the body (see my pics)? Do you not have those items or am I just not seeing this correctly?

Keep up the great work and posting of all your progress! Your efforts are really motivating me to get mine done in the near future!

Charlie