[Big_B_96]

hey i have a 69 Grande (Coupe) that came stock with a 351W. 2v carb. auto trans. (FMX i think?) and 9" rear. I'm gonna skip the bs and post pics now bc thats all anyone wants anyways. lol still need to take some new ones. and pics start in the middle of everything. i cant seem to find the ones from when i drove it home.

new driver side shock tower. and half the front end cut off haha




ugly ass spot welds.... dont worry. they've been grinded down smooth.







rack of little pieces that have been sand blasted and painted


the floors before




cutting the old crap out


sand blasting


some of the floor in. i have the whole floor in now and its painted. again excuse the ugly welds. its really the first thing project ive had to weld this much on. and i've gotten better now. not much but better.


area under the cowl i had to replace.

[Big_B_96]

more of the above...


in the pic below you can see one of the pieces i had to make out of flat sheet metal to patch this spot. its the new shiny one lol




finished... and yea i know its not perfect but its solid and womt leak and its under the fender and the cowl. its not like anyone's gonna see it anyways. it just has to work in the long run and i belived i accomplished that.


so the previous owner thought it was a good idea to fiberglass over the rusty roof...


you can see my 96 dakota (red & silver truck) and my 85 s10 (blue truck) in the background








get that shit outta here




you can see i have the rest of the floor in and its painted in these next pics




new roof off of a '70 coupe

[Big_B_96]

drillin out the spot welds


rusted out. by the back glass. same on other side too.


more pics are coming

[MustangOne]

You are doing a Great Job...

Keep up the good work...

[Countryboy_99]

Christ... you could of damn near put together a second car with all that new metal you put in it. So, for that I congratulate you in regards to your dedication and tenacious work on the car.

[Big_B_96]

Originally Posted by MustangOne You are doing a Great Job... Keep up the good work...

Originally Posted by Countryboy_99 Christ... you could of damn near put together a second car with all that new metal you put in it. So, for that I congratulate you in regards to your dedication and tenacious work on the car.

thanks guys. its good to hear some encouragement haha. and yeah it feels like ive built another car, im so damn sick of body work. this project has been on hold for over a year (many reasons) but im starting back on it now.

more pictures.
cut both this piece out on each side bc they both looked like the last pic. you can also see the roof skin (i guess you'd call it?) that i cut off the '70 is fitted on and just needs to be welded and "leaded" smooth

new piece off the '70 roof cut to fit. compared to rusted piece


the SoB fell while i was taking a picture thats why it looks to have huge gaps but both sides fit perfectly.

[Countryboy_99]

Just keep it up. It'll make you all that much more happy and proud when you stand looking at your finished product.

[Big_B_96]

yeah you're right. i'm just ready to put the hammer and welder down and start turning wrenches!

[Countryboy_99]

Yeah. I would rather turn a wrench any day (harder for me to screw something up to the severity that a mishap in body work would entail).

[Big_B_96]

you are right sir. i have nightmares about getting all the body back together and it be crooked as hell. but i think i've doin pretty good so far for never having done anything like this before. i try not to worry too much.

im waiting for the weather to cool off before i do anything else so its not miserable out in the shop. bc i have some sand blasting to do before i can do anything else.
pants + long sleeves + sandblasting hood + respirator + crazy hot south georgia weather = a bad day to try to get motivated. lol

[latamud]

Awesome build! Rare to see anyone with the guts to take on a job like that, impressive.

[Big_B_96]

Originally Posted by latamud Awesome build! Rare to see anyone with the guts to take on a job like that, impressive.

thanks man! in all honesty it's been a lot more involved than what i originally planned. the further i go into it the more i end up doing. i'll see something and think to myself "well i'm already in it this far, may as well get this too while im here."
and i want it to be done right and last a good while. i dont want to be doing this again in 10 or 15 years. and i dont want it to be just another half ass built muscle car rolling the streets. there's a lot of those around here.

[Moosestang94]

nice work, i have a 1970 grande, and all i've been doing is bodywork too, but this weekend i finally did some engine work and put on some headers

[Big_B_96]

lucky. i cant wait till i get to that point. yours looks like its goin to be hella nice if thats it in your avatar.

i got this thing when i was 13. im 19 now. it has been a project off and on ever since i first got it home and just keeps getting more and more in depth. lol we're starting to have some nice weather here now so in the next couple weeks i should have some updates.

[Big_B_96]

hopefully i'll get some work done this weekend if the dakota doesnt get in the way too much. its an attention whore. i get to where i can work on the mustang again and it decides to develop a bad leak in the rack and pinion. and start squeaking like crazy in the front suspension. but hopefully that wont take long to do so i can get some things done on the mustang before i go into work saturday night.

[zinc-vert02]

looking good bro

[mach1racer]

OMFG!!! What the hell happend to the roof????

[RZNCAIN]

Good work guys!

[jessemachone]

nice project!

[Big_B_96]

Originally Posted by zinc-vert02 looking good bro

Originally Posted by michschi Good work guys!

Originally Posted by jessemachone nice project!

thanks guys!

Originally Posted by mach1racer OMFG!!! What the hell happend to the roof????

It's a Grande so it came with a vinyl top. and it probably started leaking which probably led to it rusting out. and the previous owner didnt want to fix it the right way so he paid someone to fiberglass over the swiss cheese roof and put a new top on it. but thats just my guess. if i would have known it when we were looking to buy it, i wouldnt have bought it.

and sorry guys not gonna make any progress this weekend. i'm sick as hell.