Project StinkBug: DentWorks of Raleigh

I've been a fan of paintless dent removal for about 15 years now. Some jobs are perfect for PDR, and a pretty good ding on the '57 seemed like one. Old cars can be tough to fix this way, however, since long expanses of original sheetmetal is thick, and there aren't always access holes nearby

DentWorks of Raleigh fixed a good-size ding on the rear quarter of the '57. The access hole was conveniently located nearby, right where the quarter trim was attached. The ding was massaged out at my house for only $50 (in addition to the $150 to fix 5 or 6 dents on two other cars). I recommend DentWorks of Raleigh if you are in the Triangle area.

Project StinkBug: Craigslist Treasures

Today, anything you want is just a few mouse clicks away. Acquiring various car parts for a restoration of a popular classic car is not the daunting task it used to be.

I knew that the hood, trunk lid, and steering wheel were missing from having the car painted decades earlier. I found a nice original hood (middle) on Craigslist. This parts seller also had an original orange steering wheel he threw in for no extra cost—left over from his restoration.

Probably my most amazing Craigslist find, and this happened days after I got the '57, was this original PowerPack intake manifold to replace the wheezy two-barrel on the car now. I think the original 4-barrel Carter carb (that I found locally days later) only flows about 400cfm on this manifold, but should be plenty for a 283. This intake was a smoking deal at only $50. :)

Project StinkBug: I Brake for Restomods

I decided to leave the brakes as the stock non-power drums on all four corners along with the single pot master cylinder for a stock appearance. But I'm in the middle of replacing everything for safety.

The crusty original brake and suspension pieces needed an overhaul, but fortunately (non-chrome) parts are generally cheap for a '57 Chevy.

After replacing the brakes, cutting the stock springs, adding new shocks and more, plus cleaning and painting everything satin black, the job is looking better. The spare parts pile included aftermarket front and rear anti-sway bars from 20 years ago, so I installed them where there weren't any originally. I used brake shoe self adjusters (and some steering linkage pieces to replace bent idler arm and tie rod ends not shown) from another Craigslist score.

Project StinkBug: Instrument Cluster Rejuvenation

One item that I really liked about this car was that it was owned by the same person since the late 1980s. And had another long-term owner before him. It was also sporting the original 283" engine. And it was a real Bel Air, not a 210 with Bel Air trim. There aren't many '57 Chevys around, and I really dig the potential.

I was fortunate that the original gauges were present, and the spare parts pile did include some replacement lenses.

I spent a few hours disassembling and cleaning/polishing the cluster and was left with this. The fresh lenses and new orange paint on the needles helped a lot. Extra fine steel wool on chrome works great.

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Introducing Project "StinkBug"

A few months ago I decided to take the plunge on another classic car. I was looking for a project, and wanted something with a V8, an automatic transmission, and four doors. Basically a cruiser with some chrome and a dual exhaust...

I found a '57 Chevy Bel Air on Craigslist out-of-state and decided to take the plunge. This car was disassembled 20 years ago for paint and never reassembled afterwards. I didn't want to deal with having a car sitting in paint jail for any length of time, and never wanted to pay for a paint job again—so this deal was interesting.

Over the past few months since I've owned the car, the parts bill has climbed higher than I was led to believe as many parts have either turned up missing or are in poor condition and not useable. Not to mention finding the small pile of spare parts absolutely covered in stink bugs. With that said—enter Project StinkBug! :)

Here's StinkBug sitting on my driveway after I had a flatbed deliver it to my house—275 miles away! I really like the old school Cragars even though they are 15". I don't like the 21-year-old tires though.

Here she is as I started taking it apart to assess, fix, and replace various things. The radiator was first to go. It was the original Harrison unit, and I found a local shop to recore it. I want to keep this car pretty original if I can, but with a mild Restomod theme.

The interior was disassembled to paint the dash long ago. Fortunately most of the stainless and chrome was present, and I just needed 5 or 6 replacement pieces.

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