1968 Firebird Restoration Tail panel final installation & welding-complete body overhaul how to
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2024
- 1968 Firebird Restoration-Replacing the rusted out or damaged tail panel has some challenges but completely possible, in this video we finish welding and show how to get a clean and tight fitment of aftermarket panels.
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Jon Forehan VVG
6870 west Washington street
Indianapolis IN 46241
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Contact us at Vinylvillagegarage@gmail.com
#Pontiac #Firebird #restoration
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I absolutely want to thank you for all of your effort to document this process. I am stripping my Firebird and starting into the floor, rockers, quarters and trunk floor so I am a happy camper.
Heck yeah let the fun begin. Keep a tape measure close and continuously check dimensions. Gotta save them birds
I came across your channel and have binge watched for the last 24 hours. I'm amazed how you've basically built a car body with aftermarket sheet metal, and it looks damn good! I know there's do and dont's, sequences of installation but you make it look easy. I've got a 1970 RS that's all original and not as bad of shape as what you started out with. I build engines and drive tranes but never body work. I use a tig welder occasionally at work and have some fabrication skills but this seems intimidating. Much respect!
Thanks for finding the channel and even more gooder binge watching!! It helps
Me a lot and I do appreciate it
$4500 150 hours
your vids are inspiring thanks Jon 68 looking better every vid
Lol super close! Again these guesses are making me feel better that I am on track with expenses I almost in my head was thinking I could do it for less but obviously not. Well to level I am doing this car. I could have patched more things to save a few bucks I suppose. I really want this car to stand out.
Your dollar totals and labor hours are far better than mine would be. Considering the cases of beer and mostly swear jar deposits I'd have to make. Swear jar deposits resulting primarily from mistakes caused by the beer. I enjoy watching the show.
Viscous cycle beer and swear jars, gotta fund the build somehow I suppose. Thanks buddy!
Great job I've been doing this a long time now and i learned a few things. Not many diy guys that are at this level. Hop you post more as the process progreses.
Thanks, will do!
Awesome results!
Thanks. Them fitment of panels has definitely improved over the years.
That plate on the bumper bracket stiffener is probably the actual fender from a prior repair. Instead of drilling out the spot welds they cut around it. Collision repair shops don’t pay attention to details. My 69 coronet had random things just like that, I thought the car was 100% factory but come to find out it had a small fender bender at one point and the collision center back in the day did a great job repairing and blending out the paint.
If only cars could talk. like you noted some repairs are done very well and not detectible and then the flip side total hack. Love to know the why
Another excellent video.
Thanks again!
Baby got GAP!!!
Thanks sir mix-a-lot!
Great video! Thanks for making it available to all of us!
Not a problem, enjoy sharing the knowledge and love for these cars.
I would guess $5000 with prices going through the roof. Another great bird video , thanks for sharing your knowledge. Have fun with the family at the Trans am nationals. I hope to get there one year.
You are soooooooo very close to the amount, I wasn’t guessing I would spend that much but I want to make a very nice car and felt this was the best route to take as for parts.
Appreciate the warm wishes for me and my family this weekend and indeed if you can ever make it let me know. Thanks for supporting our dream and channel.
Looks great
Thanks I am loving how it’s going together, this just might be the nicest bird have done.
Thanks!
Very welcome! and a huge thanks to you, it seems you sent me a very generous gift and no excuses but I had no idea you did it till today. still new to UA-cam monetization had no clue how that worked and for that I apologize and very grateful for helping save these
birds. thanks again 😎
Thanks for the videos John. They definitely put a fire under me to restore my 1967 Firebird 400, but unfortunately I think my wood is wet.😁 You make it look so easy, but I’m afraid if I tear mine apart I’ll never be able to put it back together. It’s fun to dream though.
Very welcome! 67 400 bird is definitely worth saving, what I tell people do what you can and have someone else do the rest of you have too
Another great video on the rebuild journey!!
Thanks!! Next chapter will be totally different doing some dirty work. Plenty more goodies to do before this journey reaches its end.
Panel alignment looks great, I try not to count the hours because it's not really work! Have a great time at the Nats.
I am with you i have never tracked my hours while playing cars before,
Never needed to or wanted to. I was curious how much time I had into them for the purposes of billing say a certain someone wants to maybe turn this into a career and needs to know how much to charge
To be profitable and not overcharge for a restoration 🤔
I’m learning a lot thanks for the video I would say you have about $3000 in metal
You are welcome Don, I have been enjoying sharing the process of playing car as I call it. You are closer to what I wish I had into the project at this point. I suppose if it was only the metal costs you are almost dead on but shipping and materials tip the scale a good bit more.
Great job Jonathan the Firebird is solid as a rock I know you are feeling very good about this I was feeling very good once I saw my car all welded you are moving right along the car looks great and my respect for you brother great job 👍
Thanks buddy. Hey love the new channel name! It’s perfect
Looking good. My estimates, time so far 295 hrs, costs $1725.00.
thanks, I am really loving
how this car is coming out. almost feel it will give my transmaroado a run for best car I have done.
Congratulations, definitely time for a victory lap in the 69. The car looks great. I’m going to guess parts and materials around $4500 and hours for you (definitely not me) about 160 hrs. Either way it is very inexpensive compared to paying someone else to do it. And a lot more fun.
Your guesses are very close, I spent a little more then I thought I would to this point. I normally don’t track my time or expenses on projects so this shall be interesting for all of us at the end.
Now I have an amazing metal work resource to refer to when I start my future project. Maybe even get you to tag along when the time comes? It’s absolutely amazing seeing the progress of not only the birds but the channel as well! I can’t wait to have a full restoration guide 😎
Also if you do more welding, which I know you will, you could place a welding lens over the camera so we can see the puddle to get a even better idea on what’s going on. Keep up the amazing work may many birds be saved!
Thanks! This entire UA-cam adventure has been fun for sure. No way would I believe I would be in front of a camera and even dare put it out for people to see but it’s been good.
Oh yeah that would be very cool I will have to look into that. I really want to share what I am doing and that will be very helpful
The Great Pumpking looks amazing. Great video, I wish I would have had this info when did my tail panel. Its awesome to see this project coming together and it seems you are going to catch up to my project lol.
Also I forgot I would would guess that your hours so far are between 40 and 50 and price wise between 35 and 4K
Thank you sir, I don’t know if I will catch up to you on this one but I will accept your challenge lol 😂
top notch work Jon. Really appriciate the filming of the welding process on the tail panel. I'm guessing for parts in the car you have about $2500-3K. Beautiful work and valuable instruction.
Body panel alone you are close, seems inflation is affecting this hobby a bit too unfortunately. Still in the doable and worth while range.
Can I , buy a tee - shirt with the 1968 Pontiac Firebird logo from you ? And , our they 100 % cotton . Why I ask is to gauge what size to buy ! I prefer a 2XL in 100 % cotton. I'm not worried about the cost , I just want to support your channel and homage to my first car many years was a 1968 Firebird w/ a turbo 400 transmission , and 400 engine . And , I drove it less than 6 months and had a drunk driving hit & run into 3 parked cars . Mine was totaled only do too my experience at the time . It was when I , was 16 years old back in 1976 today I am 62 years of age...
Too say the least I truly regret my actions and watching you , and my knowledge and mechanical ability I , believe I , could also pull off what your doing ! Back in the day there wasn't all these after market catalogs as today for an array classic cars , and trucks. Thank you , for helping me get the juices flowing again may consider doing as you do . LL KOOL RAY 😎 FRISCO
I will more then happily have my design studio “12 year old daughter” get one up for you as soon as possible. She is super tech savvy and comes up with some nice designs. Best of all one of my goals is to inspire people like you to get out there and save them birds so glad to hear it’s working. Thank you for supporting the channel and sorry about you losing your bird but hopefully you will find another to bring back and enjoy driving it again.
we have added a 1968 Firebird 400 with the gotta save them birds logo, multiple colors to pick from, and yes 100% cotton. check it out and there is something different you would like I will see about making it happen just the same. thank you for showing us some love!
About to do a 68 Firebird convertible. What are you temps and wire speed as well as what welder? I wish you were my neighbour.
I have and Eastwood brand welder it was their 180 mig had for 20 years now. It used letter and number for the settings I have it at D-4. Most welders have a chart for setting temps check what it says and start with that then fine tune for your likes
Another great video, thanks for sharing the info, have a request, make a video on replacing a complete cowl when you have to do one, and 4700 in parts and 175 hours
Of course a cowl video is a must when I get the opportunity to do one.
You are also a very good estimator parts spot on labor hours is a little high but a reasonable guess.
@@VinylVillageGarage was adding the 400 you mentioned but I did go a little high probably more like 3200
@@VinylVillageGarage anyway I got neck deep in a cowl on mine so I’m in the drill look think drill look ponder think mode , typical first time metal work stuff
Sounds like a great time to me. The
Cowl is a big panel and keep in mind the vin# is stamped in it so don’t throw the old one out yet. I have a plan when I visit for it possibly.
@@VinylVillageGarage oh yes I know the data plate is on it , I’m not sure that I’m gonna replace it completely just yet but may end up doing that
Jon, fantastic video's! Thanks for making these and sharing them. I noticed you use AMD parts. Have you ever used Ames body parts and is one company better than the other?
Yes I have, I use AMES for serval parts, they do a nice job overall, my friend Luis has used AMES body panels and had great results. I use AMD because I have a direct account and and friends body shop they ship to on the regular so I get a nice discount on shipping. when it comes to panels I have had good and bad experiences with all brands even AMD. it as common but it happens, I also like OER panels as my second choice
@@VinylVillageGarage Thanks appreciate your response!
Was at the T/A nationals Sat, your bird looked great. Show much larger then I expected. Question, did you paint the car yourself?
What!?? Did I miss bumping into you?
Yes I painted that car in my garage at home, came out pretty good I feel for a home grown garage resto. Wish I had my channel up and going when I did that car. Part of the reason I am sharing as much as possible now.
Hopefully next year can meet up. One of the judges told me they broke the 500 registrar car mark. Have never seen that many firebirds before in one place.
It was a great turn out for sure. I will be looking for you next time
Hours, too many, but money wise with just the few panels, I'd say under 1,500 with shipping. Like the back half of the car can cost around 5k in metal from AMD, but that also depends on your location cause the cost of parts and shipping has risen exponentially. BTW: I used self leveling two part epoxy in between those gapse masked off with tape instead of body filler.
Lol indeed many hours and many more to go. But hey time flys when you are having fun. Unfortunately parts and shipping costs have inflated a bit so I am on the high side of my personal guesstimate to this point. Still on track to get the job done of course.
Nice job 👍 Not looking forward to the contortionist welding when I get to it.
Thanks!! I have learned that being a contortionist was much easier 20 years ago, still doable now but in limited quantities. Maybe it’s a good thing that years of practice have paid off and I can get it done quicker.
Your car is looks great. I still have yet to concur the mini tub modification. Nice work
@@VinylVillageGarage Got that right! 😂 Thanks, getting ready to roll the full floor assembly back in soon for the last time and weld it all together again. Slow going in the summer - too many other distractions.
@@ParadiseBayCustoms oh you are correct many distractions in the summer, anyway it’s looking great lot of nice fab work done for your four link set up. You will have a very clean and nice car when done.
She looks great, Jon, and I look forward to the next phase! I would love to know (just out of curiosity) how much they charge for the media blasting. What type of media is it? Is it the soda blasting or ? How do they handle the large areas, like the roof (without warping)?
Thanks! To answer all those questions I will be doing a video of the media blasting and costs and how to get it there and so on. So stay tuned as I know you will and should get you all those answers.
Jon, do the 90 degree bumper brackets that come with the trunk panel get spot welded to the outer tail panel? I'm guessing they get spot welded to the frame rails on the bottom side, thus being a 3 piece spot weld, right? Wouldn't you have to do the same for the vertical part, spot weld through the brace, trunk panel, to the tail panel (or vice versa)? I'm replacing the left side bumper support on a '69 right now and trying to minimize the tail panel paint destruction. The bumper covers that area but I still want it right. Thanks and hope you enjoyed the TA Nats!
Yes the tail panel is normally spot welded to the bumper bracket you are questioning about. Like you also noted it’s welded to the trunk floor and frame rail when done too. I see what you are trying to do. Not damage the outside body panel. If I was in your Shoes I could see myself removing the old bracket and not welding it on the vertical face and use the bumper bolts to hold it all tight.---Here comes all the comments on structural integrity and not how it’s supposed to be---I am just saying I might go that route and you do what you want it’s your car. Not to mention you are most likely replacing it because it’s rusted or damaged so whatever you do will be an improvement in Strength and structural repair as opposed to doing nothing with it and continue driving it.
TA nationals was great just got home!
@@VinylVillageGarage Thank you Jon! I appreciate your technical advice. I think I may just spot weld the bracket only on the bottom and let the bolts sandwich everything back together. Glad the weather cooperated for the TA Nats.
Very welcome and thanks for keeping another awesome car on the road. Gotta save them birds.
The bumper reinforcement disk, I think I have the answer, The one with the extra thick plate, that might be for a convertible with the cocktail shakers ( witch I NEVER use !) They SAY there a anti vibration canaster, but I never noticed any difference with or without them, and they are heavy as HELL ! I still keep mine, but I never would put them in. P/S Them tail panels are the hardest thing to replace in the car, 9 million spot welds in multiple layers of sheet metal. Total NIGHTMATE ! if your using USED sheet metal ( there was no repops available when I did mine) and there was no youtube back then. Yep, been there, done that and I did mine in AUGUST HEAT! It was NOT a good time.
As for your total price $ hmmmmm? right at $7,000.00. ( you bought just about 1/2 the car in parts. The real problem now is how many of the parts are BACK ORDERED ! I been waiting for a rear seat cover I paid for, for my daily driver Chevelle 4dr for 8 MONTHS ! and the new estimate of delivery they told me last week,------ UNKNOWN !!!!!! Same for a normal flat hood, oh yes, they sell them, but there back ordered with a unknown delivery date. God I will be glade when our supply chain gets back to normal, this last 2 years has been very disappointing for old car guys. As for how many hours to complete, ---- I have the CORRECT answer! MORE THEN ONE ! lol, Later my friend.
With that in mind on back orders, I should order my interior kit now. Just incase that goes sideways
@@VinylVillageGarage Original Parts Group sent me a set for a 2 door, TWICE !. My car is a 4 door ( the 4drs are wider ) The taking off machine works pretty good, however the puttin on machine, not so much. so we waite annnnd we waite And yeeeeeeeeeeeees I called everybody. out of stock, back ordered from all suppliers. All I can say is it makes more room to haul big stuff, but it's gettin old when folks ask, where's your back seat ? lol .
4k in sheet metal and 150 hours
Very close, must have done of these before
1000 hours and 10g
By today’s prices because of the inflation you are not far off I am afraid sadly.
I should be in the garage rebuilding a power steering pump, replacing the radiator, and chasing down an oil leak on my Scout but I am watching UA-cam instead. Going to spit ball $4500 and 130 hours.
Well I thank you for giving me some of your time to support the ole VVG. Clearly you are knowledgeable on this subject of restoration I am at $4,800 120 hours spent a little more on shipping but it is what it is. Now get to work on fixin the scout.
@@VinylVillageGarage My first impulse was 120 but I was thinking of all that sheet metal butt welding and what slow going that is so tossed in another 10. Should have stuck with my gut.
Lol, well at least you weren’t picking winning lottery numbers and realized you guessed wrong and lost millions of dollars. You are hired for estimating work of course.
About 5000 and 50 hrs
You are very close, spot on with the parts price! You must have some experience
@@VinylVillageGarage here's what I'm working on
400 hours
Very close
4500 invested so far and I would think your between 200-2500 hour's invested so far
Super close in materials. You guys are good. The hours i have a bit less involved then that. Fortunately a lot has gone well on this car.
20 hours
In just the tail panel that might be about right.
1000 hours and 10g not including th cost of th car
Current prices and inflation you are not far off unfortunately
Say about 6000.00 and 100 hours
Very close, good guess
$7500 160 hrs
Very close, actually with current prices on parts and materials you might be spot on.
@@VinylVillageGarage Just purchased all new Sheetmetal to restore my 69 Camaro and have done one other full restoration on another 69 Camaro strictly as a hobby by myself and that's pretty much the hours i came up with hopefully this new build
will be much faster easier now that i have a little more experience.
Nice doing another one, you will definitely find the next one has it own challenges and do parts of it more efficiently. Where did you get your metal from? What brand?
@@VinylVillageGarage I got my metal from Camaro Central out of Richmond KY mostly AMD Dynacorn & Golden Star and I greatly appreciate all your videos on the Great Pumkin and the fact that they are in order as how the car should be taken apart and reassembled lots of great videos and i have watched them all at least a 100 times they were not in order as where to start and end you Nailed it greatly Appreciated thx again
Fantastic, i covered most of the important parts of the way I build cars. Seems to work pretty good, especially if doing most of the work solo. Good luck on your build.