sschanz

Well today around noon my '66 will arrive for restoration. I have a question for all you veteran restorers out there....

What is the 'preferred' order of restoration? It really seems to be owner preference, but there has to be some science to the madness. If I was to categorize the elements, it would be body work, suspension, engine/trans, interior and paint. I have searched the Internet and all the forums and cannot find a sequence suggestion.

Any suggestions would be great...because in about 4-6 hours I'm ready to start tearing into this car.

Thanks all! Pics will be coming soon!

boeing747arowair

congrats man, make sure to post plenty of pics up! When i started my project which was a rust bucket, i tore eevrything out and left the car on bare bones. We did the body work removing completley 100% of the rust. Last week i just finsihed the suspension all around and im ready to tear into my engine before droppin back in and finsihin this project. interior and detailing would certainly be the last step of this adventure. GOOD LUck and Welcome!

mortman

your question is some what up to you, depends on the condition and your priorities. so say i am doing things backwords because i strted with the suspension and breaks, went to the interior (new stuff not installed yet) and now i am in the stages of body and paint. the back wards part is i have not touched the power train YET, thats because i have not decided what to do.

so as i said before it amaater of your prioritys.

1slow67

That is what we did with our truck. We had it soda blasted and the frame sandblasted. Then started bodywork and replacing any panels that needed it. We did an engine swap so we replaced the front suspension and put in another rear axle. Next we had to modify the frame to get the engine and trans to fit. We are currently working on interior and paint. Can't forget doing all the wiring.


If you look on pages 7, 3, and 2 there are pics of the truck in different stages that might help you.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v6...ash/?start=120

Carlos Pineiro

I had to drive mine every day while I was restoring, so I did the interior first. At least it looked, felt and smelled like a new car while the process was happening. Working on the weekends, I had to live with a leaking, multi-color car for 3 years.

Paint should be last. Good luck.

CP

MonsterBilly

It depends on your sitiuation! What your time frame is and how much room you have. I am just reacing the end of mine. If you have room and time here is what i would do.

Complete disassemble (I mean completely) and catagorize everything. putting all the nuts and bolts in baggies and writing on them with a sharpie will save you countless hours as you reasseble it later.

Have the car sand/soda/ or media blasted. coat the car with a light coat of primer/sealer.

THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.
find out what you want to keep and what you would like to replace. Decide on things like steering, suspension, brakes, clutch, tranny and all the other things you would like to do. make detailed lists and write out all the modinfication that you will be making.
You can start the body work and replacing panels if you neeed to. I had my motor built vs. doing it myself. i had the motor built while i was doing the body work. Once the mods to the body and the body work and paint is complete and the motor is built you can start to reassemble the car. Take your time and recondition all the parts before you put them back on. Otherwise you will have a nice pretty body with old looking parts bolted on.

Finding out what you want to do before you start is the most important step though.

JMD

I say... (Largely)

1. Rust repair
2. Chassis/Suspension Work
3. Paint Chassis, Under Car, Firewall/Under Hood.
4. Engine/Drivetrain
5 Paint Interior/Jambs
6. Paint / Bodywork
7. Detail Assembly and Interior Assembly

Thia is more or less the order that we did the 66, except we had no rust to contend with. It worked well and allowed us some time behind the wheel as we were working on the car. (We did a 6 to 8 cyl conversion also.)

palerider

If you are gaoing to drive while restoring - remember safety first. Items like brakes, suspension, etc. should be first

Nick.Simonds

Well, pretty much like everyone so far. I ripped the interior out first (I think somone/thing pee'd in there). Put in a floor patch. Then got into electrical. Now I am on to brakes and suspension, because it will be easier than with the added weight from the drive train. Then through the engine and trans in. Put in the interior. In another year or two after I buy a house, replace the rear with a 9 inch, and send off to paint.

Tony R

what kind of time frame are you looking at? What is your budget? I took mine apart as soon as I got it and put it on a rotisserie and it has been there ever since. I did a lot of the body work that was noticeable like my drivers side quarter and floor boards and then I sand blasted the car. Saw that the roof was shot so i cut it off and replaced it. If you are planning on a full restoration I hope you are not married because your wife will not let you work on it as much as you would like. Have fun with it and like stated above mark everything and place every nut in bolt in zip lock baggies.