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Well, here it is. FINALLY, the beginning pictures of "Project Belvy". Here you will see my adventures in the restoration of my 1958 Plymouth Belvedere (other cars will follow here as well). With the help of Paul Wright of Advanced Restoration and Collision (http://www.advancedresto.com), "Project Belvy" is finally underway. As you can see, the first step of any restoration is, "Take it all apart!". This is critical in determining what metal you have (or don't have) to work with. Lucky for me, the Belvy is in pretty good shape. The rear quarters and rockers will require some work, as well as the front fenders, but overall, she is very sound. Thanks to Drew Picard in California, I have some very nice rear quarter sections from a 4dr parts car. Also, I have a pair of new rockers from ( ), which were scored from eBay. Paul and I tore the car down to the basics in the early part of 2001. First step was stripping the car. I took the car down to bare metal, and let me be the first to say it, there is a LOT of real-estate on one of these old cars! Thankfully though, there were no hidden surprises under the old paint, besides what I already saw on the surface. With a D/A, 8" grinder, and a wire wheel, everything finally came off. Afterwards, Paul shot the car in an epoxy primer to keep the car from rusting more as well as give us a base coat to start the body work on. Couple dings here and there and the aforementioned rust spots will be first on the list of exterior repairs. Currently, Paul has the front fenders at his shop for repair. After the initial work is completed on them, we will trial fit them to the car again, the proceed to the rockers and quarters. Follow these exciting (huh?) links to see pictures of my progress as it happens (kinda). First day at her new home - August 18, 1996 Fender work - October 23, 2002 Engine prior to removal - January 5, 2003 |
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