1972 Skylark Restoration(Lots of Pics)

Discussion in 'Color is everything!' started by Phoenix350, May 28, 2010.

  1. rack-attack

    rack-attack Well-Known Member

    your stubborness makes me proud:laugh:

    good luck
     
  2. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    :beer Thank you I take that as a compliment! Anyways at the least I am gaining experience and wonderful memories, and there just isn't a price for that:laugh:
     
  3. kevin mcculloug

    kevin mcculloug 72 GS 455 Convertible

    If you plan on putting 10 k into it, would it be a bad idea to part it and just put that money little by little into a bank account? Take it from me, 20 years of saving and you'll end up with something to be proud of thats worth putting money into. Just my 2 cents.
     
  4. turbotimmer

    turbotimmer Well-Known Member

    Although I agree with about everyone here, I have to say that no matter what anyone tells you, you're gonna do what you want. So here goes:

    No matter what, don't take the car too far apart. Always keep it driveable or close to it. If you take it too far apart, its easy to get overwhelmed and loose interest (ask me how I know).

    Second, do your research on this board. I thought I knew alot about these cars until I started coming here.

    Third, if you don't already have access to a welder and airtools, save up and get some. You'll be kidding yourself if you think you can do any real bodywork without this stuff. Take your time and fix the problem areas one at a time while keeping it roadworthy.

    Or, you could just stuff it full of bodyfiller and have fun with it until you can afford to get a nice one. :grin:

    Last thing, post pics of your progress and prove us all wrong. :bla:
     
  5. 70sportwagon

    70sportwagon Silver Level contributor

    That car is rusty. Rust sucks and always is way worse once you get into it than you thought.

    But, a cheapie like this that you can teach yourself welding/bodywork on is OK as long as the frame and suspension is safe/solid. Get it driveable and safe, first. You are not out much $$ if you screw something up. I learned a ton by working on a rusted out 69 Lemans convertible I had in high school. It still ended up parted out, but at least I enjoyed it for awhile.

    I will second keeping it close to driveable while you work on it. But I think you will have to learn how to work on it. Learn to do some bodywork.

    I don't see any way that you will be able to send a really rusty 72 Skylark to a professional shop because your downpayment on the bodywork would buy you a solid Skylark Coupe to drive. My neighbor just bought a decent 71 from Oklahoma for $3500 that only needs part of the trunk pan repaired.

    You don't have to start with a $10,000 car. We all wish we could save up an extra 20,000 outside of our expenses so we could buy a finished car. Apparently a bunch of us on the forum can easily do that in a reasonable amount of time. I bet a bunch of us can't though. I know I couldn't right now.

    BUT...Every $1000 you put into a base skylark coupe makes the condition go up almost exponentially. Use it as a working education that you can cruise to the dairy queen while you learn to do bodywork. If you really like Skylarks you can always keep your eye out for a better one and transfer the parts at a later date.

    Boy that car looks rusty.

    Good luck, man!:beers2:
     
  6. 70staged

    70staged Well-Known Member

    not to highjack your thread but if this was a real Stage1 in the same shape would you restore it?


    This looks like a nice size project, like a fe guys said get it drivable first and work on it little by little. Its a great car to learn alot from, like rebuilding parts to bodywork to welding. Have fun with it.
     
  7. cpk 71

    cpk 71 im just a number

    Fix what you need to get it on the road and drive it,if you restore it in the future so be it if you find something a little nicer down the road then use what you can off of that one on another one . Sometimes you have to make things work with what you have at the time.I do admire your dedication though,and GET THAT CAR ON THE ROAD :TU:
     
  8. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    Thank you for all the kind words and advice guys. I will definitely make drivabiliy a priority. The mistake I made with my last car was taking apart every little thing that needed repair and before I knew it, it looked like this:

    [​IMG]

    I ended up selling the parts because I was overwhelmed at how much needed to be done just to drive the car. Now if you think my skylark is a money pit look at that car. Its a badge engineered nova (so take the rarity of 4th gen nova stuff and multiply that by 20) that has no value and it was a 4 door. That thing had slightly less rust but it also was missing parts that nobody repros. I was planning to fully restore it but with college coming up I can't keep a car I can't drive around as I need to drive it to queens where I will be living. Now the Skylark is worth volumes more than the phoenix ever would, and almost everything is reproed for the Skylark.

    Value is besides the point, whether this is a stage 1 or a pinto I'm not doing this to make money so it doesn't matter what condition the car is in. If I got the car for free and a decent Skylark worth restoring is at least 3 grand than the extra body work this car needs will break me even.

    My friend Rob just restored a 1970 Chevelle (not a chevelle ss) and I asked him "what shape was it in when you got it?" He said "It made your car look like a garage kept gem" He put about 15 into the car, that includes the worked 454. He has new doors, new fenders, new floor pans, new interior, all new glass, a new roof, posi rear full paint job and more. All the work was done by a decent body shop and my friend himself.

    I know Skylarks are more expensive, my point is that I want to do whatever I want to this car guilt free. Not a stage one or gs455 that is a rare piece of history. What if I want a stereo system? a cowl hood? a different motor, or a new color? Most GS, GSx and Stage 1 owners shudder to think of modifying their cars and I fully agree.

    Maybe one day I'll buy a GS or other rare, valuable car worthy of taking to a car show, but that doesn't mean I have to sell this car. I am critisized enough for how often I buy, sell and trade my possessions. I need to show I can stick with something to the end for once.

    Anyways, gigantic pointless rant aside hopefully up next is either the tranny or core support and fender well patches. I have $200 so I need to decide between those things or insurance and registration. Graduation is in a week so I should get cash from that and I start work the 5th of July so it is a mad dash to get this car road worthy by September 7th:laugh:
     
  9. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    Yes sir:grin: People fix 'Rust buckets' all the time to showroom new, what's stopping me? All due respect this was never an "Is it worth it?" thread. I Just wanted estimates and some advice on what should be repaired first. I know I'm wasting time and money, trust me I hear it every day:sleep:. First I was told this car would never run again, then I was told it would never drive, then I was told it would never be road worthy. I got all that done with $500 and no job and I started in April.

    With a job and an unlimited deadline I don't see how this is so bad. Where else will I get the experience or the memories? I'll say to you all right now if this car is sold or parted out the only v8 rwd car I'll be able to afford is a 3rd gen f-body.

    For those of you who don't know me (all of you hehe:rolleyes:) My previous ambitions were stuffing a supercharged 3800 in a 95 olds ciera, supercharging a ford explorer and putting any amount of cash into a 78 4 door nova ripoff:pp All things seen as pointless, a waste of time, money, and though space.

    "Remember that just because you cannot see the point in something doesn't mean that it is automatically not worth it to others that are more ambitious. I personally do not see the point in boosting the hell out of a Honda Civic but you will never find me questioning why the other guys do it."-rocket 5979
    Resident Gearhead
    Lake Villa, Illinois

    A quote off of one of the many car forums I have been on since 13 years old and something I feel everyone should consider.

    No hard feelings, no one here can possibly insult me so go ahead, tell me I'm stupid:laugh:
     
  10. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    Some pictures:

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    All lights work except the left reverse light and the turn signals sometimes act up. Lights are dim at idle but I still have to bolt on a ground strap when the inner fender and core support are patched. Don't ask how I got that core support level when there is no support for the pass side bushings :rolleyes: Transmission will be rebuilt this month, patch work will be done and if I have extra cash I will order weather stripping.

    Also: Please excuse that bondo, my friends insisted on spending 20 bucks for body filler thinking I'd pay them back. I told them I'm not using bondo to fill 2 inch wide holes and just told them to work on the deck filler piece since the original owner is giving me a replacemebt panel anyways
     
  11. StageTwo

    StageTwo It's a Beauty Too.

    Sounds like you have some good advice here.

    I can tell you this much: I don't treasure the mistakes I made with rusty cars; they only made me re-think my approach to the hobby. I had to start over, money and all.
     
  12. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    I understand all the advice guys, but you also have to realize, this is a safe car. Heck, the registration is still valid, its only been sitting for a year. As much as you all think I am stupid for doing this, lets put that aside for now.

    I have about $900 from graduation so I have to start getting things fixed wisely. A core support patch is ~ $125, I can't find a patch for the mount on the front of the pass side front inner fender, I also have to get bushings, $25, a battery tray for $30, a rad for $?, a driveshaft, some tranny work for about $150 and after that I am good to put this on the road. I'll be buying a tach and gauges with left over cash and maybe some patch panels. The guy who gave me this car will sell a decklid filler patch for $125, fenders need lower patches at 90 ea. and for now I am leaving the cowl and other stuff alone. Rear window is going in as well as the pass side quarter window. I have to get wiper arms but I found a wiper motor.

    If you guys could show me some sites that have good patch and repair pieces I would really appreciate it.
     
  13. GSX1

    GSX1 GSX1

    Dude Love you comittment I to was told some of the same things. If you love the car enough to restore it keep at it it took me 8 years of witch i spent countless hours locating used and Nos parts to get the nicesest parts i could for the project . The small stuff (detail) was my gig . But save your pennies for the body and paint That was my bigest expence , I did every thing to my frame off restomod except the final prep and paint , Dont dare count the $ i spent , Dont care ! But it hurt to hand over almost 8K for the paint but she is sweet and 1 of a kind , She is a slone documented GS 455 i Cloned to a GSX
    Keep the faith brother
     
  14. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    Thank you very much, I hope to do the same thing to my car as you have yours, it looks sweet!

    Its funny last year me and other people were making fun of my friend pat for taking out a $15,000 loan with no co sign and no credit for a $20,000 2004 silverado. He pays about 400 a month in truck payments and we all say "wow why didn't you just buy an old silverado that you could mess with" But he loves that truck and he makes enough money so why mess with him about it.

    Sure I could go and buy a Skylark in better shape, but then where do I draw the line at deciding what is beyond my abilities? I've already changed my mind enough. I'll call it even just at the fact that I'm 18 and I have a muscle car:TU:

    Whew decisions decisions, first I was doing work with no money and now I have a grand to spend getting this car ready for the 2 hour trip to nyc. A grand is like a million dollars to me, I feel like I could build a racecar with it:laugh:
     
  15. PaulGS

    PaulGS Well-Known Member

    Been in this hobby since the '60s, and the BEST advice I ever got was:

    "Buy a car with the best body and frame you can. It will be cheaper and easier to restore in the long run"

    Amen......:dollar:
     
  16. trisheildfan

    trisheildfan Well-Known Member

    $20 grand??:puzzled:
    try $30 g's...then get more :dollar: to spend on the drive train...
    No body shop around here will touch mine for less than $10g's...and I dont have ANY rust.
     
  17. turbotimmer

    turbotimmer Well-Known Member

    Guys I say give this kid a break. Most 18 year olds around here talk about "modding" their Civics and Integras. If this were my son, I'd be helping him fix that old rust bucket. :TU:
     
  18. Phoenix350

    Phoenix350 Well-Known Member

    Thank you:beer

    What do you guys think of The Parts Place for repro parts? I'd rather use OPG but the parts place supposedly has the inner fender patch piece for $70 the only place I have 'seen' it. Unfortunately they have no pictures so I am uneasy about buying stuff there. They also have the 3 piece core support patch for $99 but I would rather buy the kit made by RACEBUICK for $125 as he is a reputable seller. If anyone knows where to buy the inner fender to firewall mount I would appreciate it.

    Slowly but surely this car will make it on the road. I see the Parts Place sells the front windshield cowl/channel which is great because I was unsure how that would get fixed. ~900 should be enough to make the car a decent (driving not looking:bla:) fair weather cruiser.

    This winter I will see if my job situation will allow some body work (or motor work, undecided on what should be first) to get done but for right now I'd like to enjoy my summer and enter in my first drag race:bglasses:
     
  19. 442

    442 Member

    Youth, time spent not listening and doing things your way. Know when your youth is over? The moment you realize the people that you didnt listen to were right.

    That car is a money pit. Its not a Muscle car. Its a 72 Skylark. Muscle cars had big engines, optional suspensions, and wild paint jobs. Your car is not one of those cars, and its not worth fixing. Think about it, you bought it for 100 bucks. And now are spending money at parts houses to fix it. Add up what you are spending to fix rust and see what that couldve bought you. I am sure there are many 72 Skylarks for sale for less than what its going to cost to fix that car. But I am only the one hundreth guy to say this to you. So what do we know....

    2,600 for a California 72 Skylark, rust free driver.

    http://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/1814077256.html

    Even better shape LA 72 for 4,000. Bet you could get it for 3,500.

    http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/cto/1815702779.html
     
  20. Ken Mild

    Ken Mild King of 18 Year Resto's

    $425 in those two parts, plus probably $1,500 in labor. That's about $1,500 more than you currently have saved.

    My car was FAR better than yours when I began tearing it down and I spent at least 20K. That didn't include the suspension and drivetrain. Add another 10K.

    As nice as mine turned out, I would NEVER do it again. Next time the car will be DONE "when" I buy it.

    You keep saying money is not the problem, yet all you've been able to accumulate so far is less that $500 which amounts to about $29,500 shy of what will be needed to complete.

    I hope you're not taking the stance that you're just going to prove us all wrong. It's pointless, we're trying to save you tons of money by making more practical recommendations.

    You will ultimately do what you feel you need to do though, so best of luck to you.
     

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