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1963 Chevrolet Bel Air PAGE 2 PAGE 3 PAGE 4 PAGE 5 PAGE 6 PAGE 7 PAGE 8 PAGE 9 PAGE 10 PAGE 11 PAGE 12 PAGE 13 PAGE 14 PAGE 15 PAGE 16 PAGE 17 CARS FROM MY PAST

After I got this thing home, I had to put a tarp over it to keep the rain out (why?) and it sat there, while I got catalogs, found web pages, discovered web sites about 63's and Chevy's in general, and hit Ebay and bought parts.

Engine - passenger side

The firewall on May 14, 2006

Engine - drivers side

Pressure washing, solvents, and spray cans.

JoAnne and I originally picked metallic gray as the color for the car.  We planned a black interior, but that changed as you will see. It would be a sleeper, a real plain jane, with all that motor under the hood.  Then 4 years later as I get ready to actually have the paint applied, I realize that this color does not go well with the interior, so I changed it to GM Dark Cherry Metallic, very similar to a factory 63 color (Palomar Red Metallic). I can buy Duplicolor spray bombs in this color so I can do touch ups down the road with no problem.

Thank goodness Mitch has a complete shop at his home, including an Eagle lift.  When we got the car to his place, I had detailed the engine bay, so he bagan cutting out the floor.  I ordered a complete floor from Dynacorn, and later had to order the rear section that is under the rear seat.  Mitch used his plasma cutter to get it nice and clean, and then painted the bottoms of the new panels, and primed the "topside" of the panels.  This step, in coordination with cleaning and painting the frame rails, makes it as clean as a frame off restoration.

Frame  - during the cleaning

There is more to see on Page 3