55 chevy...new arrival

[Daffy]

Just got her home last nite...She has been in this coat of primer(and proabaly unwashed) for 6 years.Needs about 30 hours work to get it in paint.It has a fresh 383 stroker 4 speed and 4.11 12 bolt rear.All I have done so far is to unload from the trailer and wash the green crap off of it.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/first55shots001.jpg

[WINGNUT]

Love the '55 and '56 tri-five's! Do you know what the factory colors were? Did it originally come with a 265?

[RiversideParish]

To hell with factory colors, paint it grey primer with a black front-end, straight-axle suspension a 4.88-geared 12-bolt Olds rear-end, an L88 big-block, and a Turbo 400 under the floor.

[Daffy]

Love the '55 and '56 tri-five's! Do you know what the factory colors were? Did it originally come with a 265?
I sanded on it some last night and found a few colors...still not sure what it was originally..Don't have a clue what was in it for a motor but it has a very stout 383 stroker with a roller cam now.I have yet to decidde what color to go with but I plan on painting it pretty soon.

[1957Chevy]

Look at the cowl tag to see what the original colors were -- if there is one. I think it'd tell you just like the 57s, but I don't have a 55 so I might be wrong.

[72Chero]

Yay glad to see it at your house. I still say green, :rolleyes: sure wish I could test your rubber on that car.:rolleyes: Oh well a girl can dream.

[dseale4888]

If the tag is on there it will tell the tale.
Dave

[Daffy]

Did quite a bit of sanding on it today...It was a green car originally.There are NO major issues on this body:D .I'm hoping to have some paint on it in the next two weeks.

[WINGNUT]

Green's a good color, was the back section white....or haven't you sanded back there yet? Have you decided on a color yet?

Out of curiososity, what parts will you need to search around for?

[74runner]

ya that mint green is pretty sweet

[RiversideParish]

I still say gray primer with a black 'glass front end... maybe a mailbox-type hood scoop, hm?

[Daffy]

Green's a good color, was the back section white....or haven't you sanded back there yet? Have you decided on a color yet?

Out of curiososity, what parts will you need to search around for?
I'm leaning towards the two tone only because I like a white top(no AC)...Still not sure what color though...I'm gonna need park lite bezels tail lite bezels...Maybe a better grille...doorhandles...Lenses...I have all that stuff but it's crappy...

[Daffy]

All white for now...I may decide to two-tone it after we do some more work to her.:D http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/Gloss55002.jpg

[THEL78ISGREAT]

You paint yourself?

[72Chero]

Congrats......looks good :D :D

[Daffy]

You paint yourself?
I do...It takes a lot more time because I don't use any power tools over 40 grit.Every thing is hand blocked.Does make them pretty slick though.

[THEL78ISGREAT]

Wow, it looks awesome

[72Chero]

nothing beats an old school paint job.

[WINGNUT]

Daff, what did you use for paint........laquer, enamel, basecoat/clearcoat?

[Daffy]

I use DuPont products(nason) Base coat/clear coat.I did my first work on laquer and did several in acrylic enamel...You really can't beat urethane...The nice thing about it is that you can rework this stuff as many times as you like and it keeps getting BETTER:D

[WINGNUT]

Which is more durable......urethane or enamel. When I start restoring my GTO, I'll want to consider what paint to use, what are the pro's and con's to enamels, urethane's, and basecoat/clearcoats? I'll want something thats easy for a beginner, but has a durable, long lasting finish.

[Daffy]

I assume we are talking about a keeper here so...Without a doubt a basecoat/clearcoat urethane is the way to go and don't buy the cheap crap because you'll regret that later on...You can save a hundred bucks by buying inferior materials but that compared to the time and labor it takes to do the job doesn't compute.That's why I spend the extra dollars to buy dupont products.There are comparable products too but none of them are cheap.

[WINGNUT]

I have heard that PPG and House of Kolor make great paint products..........but the DuPont name has a solid record of quality........so thats what I'll probably go with.....but thats a few years down the road.

[Daffy]

PPG products are very good...I've had a little experience with them...

[72Chero]

My personal experience...the Dupont Chromabase...crap....it chipped so badly...never again. Now RED has a solid mixture of PPG Three stage and it's almost bullet proof. After four years of driving....I've only acquired a couple rock chips. That's just my two cents..... PPG is great

[74runner]

My personal experience...the Dupont Chromabase...crap....it chipped so badly...never again. Now RED has a solid mixture of PPG Three stage and it's almost bullet proof. After four years of driving....I've only acquired a couple rock chips. That's just my two cents..... PPG is great
ya I used ppg for one of my dusters and it's holding up really well

[72Chero]

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i258/19RED72/The%20Abbey/100_2721.jpg

I'm still routing for the green.

[Daffy]

I ordered a hood scoop today so I will have to wait till it gets here before I can finish the hood.Looking forward to putting the stainless steel on it soon.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/RednWhite001.jpg

[72Chero]

looking good :D :D :cool:

[Daffy]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/greywheels003.jpg

[Daffy]

Hopefully this hood will be red,and on the car tomorrow night. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/greywheels004.jpg

[72Chero]

great set of wheels, I think they need more rubber but hey, what do I know, I'm just a girl :D :D

[72Chero]

Well Daffy all of that hard work paid off....that looks really sharp. Too bad your on the east coast...we could swap out some accounting for some body work.... :D :D That is going to look beautiful when painted. I really love the lineage going down the center of the hood, can't say I've ever seen that carried through nice work :D

[Dover78]

Nice job Daffy, I love it except for the rims. They look like they belong on a 350Z or something. How is the interior? I've always been a sucker for the interiors of those cars, did you paint the dash? Man, I've gotta say you have a nice garage, I wish I had a building like that to work in. My garage is 25 x 30 x 10, I can't even get my 4x4 in the door. Once you get the old Chevy road-ready you should take a trip up here to Dover/New Philly.

[THEL78ISGREAT]

I dont care much for the rims either, they make the car look kind of short and high and are a little odd looking with all of the spokes IMHO. My opinion doesnt matter though, since its your car. Just my .02 though.

[Daffy]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Daffy427/redhood002.jpg

[72Chero]

Very very nice :D

[THEL78ISGREAT]

Very clean looking, you should be on one of those shows where the cars have to be done in a week for pretty much no reason except the people wait until the last minute to do them and then complain that they dont have enough time and they try to drama it up by having the workers argue.:D You probably hate those shows though, I know I do.

[Daffy]

Like when Boyd Coddington never has a steering column in stock. He always has some ugly wheels though.

[72Chero]

Boyd Coddington...... PFFT :p

you've seen one.... you've seen them all