# '67 basket case



## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

After a 2 year hiatus, I'm back working on the GTO again !!!
I pulled the body off the frame to finish welding in the outer rockers. I then prepped and installed the floor pan and outer rockers.





































Then it was time to tackle the trunk floor and tail panel.
Before; the tail panel was butchered for cougar tail lights...



















Fitting it to the front floor and tail panel.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Once I had the front edge welded, I tried to pull it back to match the tail panel, but it spread the mounting bolt pattern too long to fit the holes in the frame. I will have to weld an extension panel in the center to close the mistake by Dynacorn.


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## BearGFR (Aug 25, 2008)

Nice to see it's coming along :cheers

Bear


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## skurfan (Sep 19, 2012)

Sure wish I had garage space like that! Three projects and it's tight quarters. How did you keep the quarters straight when you removed the tail panels?


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Two things: It's GREAT to see you back working on it, and MAN you do some nice metalwork. 
It looks SO much better than it used to, and you're nearing the end of the tunnel, nightmare wise. I'm glad you didn't give up on it. Congrats, Sir.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

geeteeohguy said:


> Two things: It's GREAT to see you back working on it, and MAN you do some nice metalwork.
> It looks SO much better than it used to, and you're nearing the end of the tunnel, nightmare wise. I'm glad you didn't give up on it. Congrats, Sir.


Thanks Jeff. It got delayed WAY too long with other projects jumping in line ahead of it.


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

2 years? Where did that time go, Mitch???? Man, you're going to have a spankin' brand new car when your done. Talk about having to touch every square inch of her. You'll have way too many blood, sweat and tears(beers) to ever sell her..... Truly an inspiration to those that say "it can't be done"......:cool


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

Those 1 piece floor pans look sweet!! Great job! :cheers


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

skurfan said:


> Sure wish I had garage space like that! Three projects and it's tight quarters. How did you keep the quarters straight when you removed the tail panels?


The quarters just hang in the air...:willy:
Once I clamped the new tail panel in place, they lined right up again. I left the wheel houses intact to prevent sag. I will remove them one side at a time for replacement.
I have 7 vehicles in various stages of restoration. 2 of them are drivers and are in winter storage off-site to make room for working.


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Mitch, Good to see you back at it! The floors look excellent!!!!! I'm waiting for my "blower hood" to get finished, then I gotta install the trim....Ericarty:


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

Eric that looks [email protected]!!


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Thanks John!


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Motovational pics for Mitch!!!arty:


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Eric Animal said:


> Motovational pics for Mitch!!!arty:


I'd have to second mortgage your house to get mine looking like that....:lol:


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Today I removed the left rear wheel house. I cut the bulk of it out with the plasma and then proceded to use both the plasma "grinder" and spot weld drill to remove it all.





































By lowering the trunk floor, I was able to wedge the 2 pieces in separately but it was tight. They actually fit very well. I will weld them to the body and braces but I need to leave the floor loose for now until I get the other side in.


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Mitch, I don't know if you need to hear this or not, but here goes: I've shared/showed your fabrication work on this car over the past few years with friends and co workers, several of whom are pretty fair fabricators and welders. Every one of them was impressed/amazed, as am I. And these are pretty stoic and hard to impress guys. Keep up the progress and keep posting...these are some _very_ helpful and well done photos!! 
Jeff


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

geeteeohguy said:


> Mitch, I don't know if you need to hear this or not, but here goes: I've shared/showed your fabrication work on this car over the past few years with friends and co workers, several of whom are pretty fair fabricators and welders. Every one of them was impressed/amazed, as am I. And these are pretty stoic and hard to impress guys. Keep up the progress and keep posting...these are some _very_ helpful and well done photos!!
> Jeff


Thanks for the kind words, Jeff. I guess there is a benefit to being a "perfectionist"...

Last fall, I started working part time at a restoration/frame shop. They had taken in a '65 Mustang 9 YEARS previous, cut it all up and and no clue how to put it together again. I agreed to take it on both for the shop owner and the car owner, who actually forgot he owned it until the shop contacted him to see if he still wanted it done. It is now waiting to go to a paint shop to have all the new metal primed and painted chassis black. Pretty amazing, if I do say so myself, to see this as a car again....

Link to photobucket pics... Stillwaterchevs's Library | Photobucket


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Picked up a paint marker today to help with prepping the inner wheel wells for install. I need to punch a bunch of holes, sand off the edp and apply weld thru primer in the areas indicated. The small circles in the outer flange will be in only one of the pieces to provide plug welds to the other half. The large circles will be thru both pieces to weld them to the inner quarter struture.


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Gotta agree with Jeff.you are doin' some fine work there Mitch!:cheers


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## Koppster (Jul 27, 2008)

Mitch...ditto here, great to see you back on the Goat & keep those pictures coming. Sure wish you were in Texas! 

Rickster Sends....


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Koppster said:


> Sure wish you were in Texas!
> 
> Rickster Sends....


Me too, Rick. Been a loooooooong cold winter already and we woke up to 5 inches of snow overnight and more all day. My son will like it though, school is closed.

I quit trucking last Sept and only work part time at a restoration shop. I told my wife that next winter I'm loading the Harley in the back of the pick up, one of my cars on the trailer and heading south for a couple months...:lol:


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Like this?????:willy:


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Eric, I think you're on track for getting as much snow as us this winter. Welcome to my world...


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Took a while to get back on track. I had to take a short vacation to CA and do a few other things.
I got the wheel wells all prepped and welded in...



















There are 2 braces that drop down from the package tray and there was NO WAY I could weld them from inside. I blasted some holes with the plasma and plug welded them from underneith. Not fun sitting on the floor welding straight up with sparks landing all over me...:willy:


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

:cheers been there, done that with the sparks.


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## ROGTO67 (Dec 11, 2012)

where did you get the floor pan from? di it have the inner rockers attached to it? looks great


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

ROGTO67 said:


> where did you get the floor pan from? di it have the inner rockers attached to it? looks great


Floor pan is a Goodmark piece. I ordered it without the rockers. That wasn't a common option when I bought it 3 years ago. Actually glad the inners were separtate as I had to "modify" the floor brace ends to seat tight against the inner. It's a big piece to handle and work with but once you weld it in....you're DONE with the floor....:cool


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## ROGTO67 (Dec 11, 2012)

thanks for the help


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Just spent 3 hours removing the right rear wheel well. Got all the attachment points cleaned and the new one fit pretty well. It is off about an 1/8" and I will try to shift it next time I work on it. Then it will get marked and prepped same as the left one and installed. I'll take a couple pics once it's in. It's pretty cool standing at the back looking in the trunk at all that new metal...


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Got the right wheel well welded in today. It didn't fit as good as the left. Took a while to finally compromise and just weld it in. 



















Trunk floor is still loose so it can be positioned on the frame. That is the next step. Get the body on the frame and all the mounts and bolts in. THEN I can tack the trunk pan good and lift it back off for finish welding....


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

As I was getting ready to put the body on the frame, I had to whittle down the upper cushion for the center mount. I have tried to find ones the correct size for the smaller hole but all the vendors think I'm nuts when I tell them it is different. The bolt is shorter too to prevent hitting the floor pan.



















Once I had the body on with all the bolts in, I welded the trunk pan to the rear wheel wells to hold it in position when I lift the body again.
I welded the rear seat brace now too.


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## krallstar (Aug 23, 2014)

Real nice work. My son and i just bought a 67 GTO in need of some TLC. My other son is as excited as we are. He just sent a brand new snap-on mm250sl. A quick question, The package tray looks like crap and i can't seem to find one on line. I was wondering if i could us a chevelle package tray. I know i might have to custom fit but was wondering if it might be a close fit.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

krallstar said:


> Real nice work. My son and i just bought a 67 GTO in need of some TLC. My other son is as excited as we are. He just sent a brand new snap-on mm250sl. A quick question, The package tray looks like crap and i can't seem to find one on line. I was wondering if i could us a Chevelle package tray. I know i might have to custom fit but was wondering if it might be a close fit.


I measured the package tray size in my '66 Chevelle and the GTO. They appear to be very close, if not identical. Shouldn't be much modification....go for it...:thumbsup:


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

I lost track of this thread and since krallstar dug it up again, I'll update it. I have done a lot since the last post. The most frustrating thing was the last 10" of the new trunk floor wasn't formed correctly and I had a heck of a time getting it to line up with the NOS tail panel. Once I threw caution to the wind and bent the sheet out of it, I got the tail panel welded in too.

Gap between trunk pan and tail panel



In this pic, look at the last step the pan makes before going out to the tail panel. The step is very shallow.



In this pic, I put the original floor in for reference. The step is almost 1" higher, the exact amount of the gap...:cuss:



I used a straight edge and bent the pan up to meet the panel.





Once that fit, I was able to weld the tail panel in.



Then I pulled the body again to finish all the welding underneath.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

"You are limited to 10 images in your thread"....:nonod:

Then I found a weak spot in the right rocker that I had missed so I cut that out and replaced it.







Next up were the bucket seat adapter brackets.



Then I used the original shifter hump to mark the pan and cut it out.


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

GREAT to see that you are back in the game, Mitch. Looking good! You've definitely rounded the bend on this project......all downhill now, I hope.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

geeteeohguy said:


> GREAT to see that you are back in the game, Mitch. Looking good! You've definitely rounded the bend on this project......all downhill now, I hope.


Hey Jeff, how have things been ??

I'm assembling all the parts I collected for the car and am planning to sell it this fall yet. I realized at my age, I'm never going to get all my projects done and have sold 2 other cars already. I won't see this as a done car but the next proud owner will have a LOT more car to start with than I did.

After the small body patch, I cleaned up all the welds on the bottom and shot some NASAN primer on the bare areas to prevent rust. 
Then I built up the chassis.

I got the engine down off the rack.



I had a flywheel and bellhousing but not a clutch, so off to NAPA for a kit. Got all that bolted on along with a Saginaw 4 speed I picked up for it.







Dropped the assembly in the chassis.



Installed the Hooker headers that have been hanging on the wall as garage art for years and bought a pair of "Purple Hornies" to quiet it down a little.



Since I was this far into it, I bought new fuel lines and tank/sender/strap kit. I also replaced all the brake lines and flex hoses.







Once I had the chassis built, I dropped the body back on and bolted it down again.


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## 68GTO4004Spd (Jun 19, 2008)

I was wondering what happened to this thread, good to see you're back at it. Amazing what you are doing, I have never seen anyone attempt to a restore a car that was that far gone. Now.....GET BACK TO WORK.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Few more "in progress" pics...

Mounted the core support and the radiator to get hoses and see if the engine would run. I bought it off the shelf and have never heard it.



New fuel tank all snugged in place and the fuel system all done.



Dug out all the grille pieces I obtained over time and put the best together and on with the fenders.



The engine runs pretty darn nice and sounds cool thru the header mufflers...:thumbsup:
Needs a hood and fender "adjustment" and it's pretty much complete.



The right headlight bezel wouldn't mount straight due to a previous oh-boy. I made a ******* puller and pulled it back out very close so the bezel would look better.





And here it is, OUTSIDE after 7 years !!! I drove it a mile around the neighborhood. It's crazy to think back to what I started with and now it's a "driver".







Sadly, I put it on craigslist too. Just been too long and too much more to do for it to be a really nice car. Someone else can start with a solid foundation and build from here.


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## Matthew (Feb 11, 2011)

Wow. Did not see that last line coming.


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## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Great news, Mitch. Sad that you can't keep it/finish it, but you did, indeed SAVE one for future generations. That's definitely one '67 that never would have survived, and now will be cherished for years to come. Hope you get all the money for it, too. 
Jeff


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## ALKYGTO (Mar 29, 2010)

Matthew said:


> Wow. Did not see that last line coming.


X2! Wow Mitch, so much work you've put into this one and then to let a new owner finish it to his liking. You couldn't buy a more honest car I would say. All a potential owner would have to do is look at this extensive thread. No mysteries here!


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Matthew said:


> Wow. Did not see that last line coming.


Yeah, I have mixed feelings about it too but I have acquired 6 other vehicles since I bought this and some of them are drivers. I've also retired this year and don't have the income to finish all my projects. Years go by and priorities change, I guess seeing this thru to completion became a casualty of those changes...

I believe I've brought it back from the dead far enough that someone else will finish the process and put it back on the road. It's a far better fate than the car faced after having been stripped of all valuable/usable parts and left in a field at least 17 years ago.


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## Matthew (Feb 11, 2011)

If I wasn't already working on a 67 Lemans, I would come up and try to take it off your hands. In fact, if you don't find an owner at the swap meet, I'm a potential buyer. My challenge is space as I have 6 autos, a skid loader and two large mowers that require garage space in the winter. As the others have said, it is most certainly a well documented restoration you have done so far. Best of luck to you. Matt


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## Squidtone (Nov 26, 2010)

Too Many Projects,
thanks for finishing up this thread. It's great to see it roll again. What I really appreciate is that your work really will inspire alot of folks to tackle a repair job that they might have never attempted. I've referred people to your GTO resurrection threads and I think it's gotten some folks to get out there and repair what they've got!
Good luck on future projects....
Dave


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

Thanks for the kind words, guys. Those of you who have been on here since the start of this journey have been an encouragement to me too, so right back at ya...:biggrin2:


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