1963 bonneville Safari rebuild

[JUSTA6]

11 hours ago, 64 kiwi boni said:

you know this is all another distraction too !! i am setting up a proper sheetmetal work bench ! that the boss has no idea what the F  i am doing !! 

i spent a day fabing the bench, it will house my box/pan 1200mm  folder, it has a 5mm steel top. with mount for a post... i will explain in pictures once i have finished building it... but i have just ordered a sheet metal giloteen, bead roller and jenny and a shrinker/streckers 

I have built it all out of 40mmx3mm angle steel and it has lockable caster wheels so i can move it all around the work shop... Frosty could have this in his work shop..... that we havent seen for soooo long !

Every gearheads dream, but quite a chunk O change in tools alone.  For someone that has just enough room to fit my dirt bike in my garage with the Sunbird and GTO at the same time,  I have a major case of garage envy to begin with!

Edited April 27, 2023 by JUSTA6

[64 kiwi boni]

13 hours ago, Fitzy said:

I reckon she's a beauty. Old wagons are uber cool.

When I saw your pics yesterday, one of the first things to catch my eye were the stainless pedal trims. You get to pull this wreck outa the mud complete with those trims whereas I spent considerable money & effort to get mine! Well played, sir.

it certainly is mate . and very rare here in Nz.. so it will be a fun build, but really most of this work, i have been there done that already !!! 

7 hours ago, JUSTA6 said:

Every gearheads dream, but quite a chunk O change in tools alone.  For someone that has just enough room to fit my dirt bike in my garage with the Sunbird and GTO at the same time,  I have a major case of garage envy to begin with!

yip space !!!! even i have to make a space for the new bench !! but to have all my metal working gear in one location is going to be like christmas !!

[Fitzy]

Hey Chris, I have a question. I tried to find your post on weatherseals but there are too many pages to wade through. Can you tell me what supplier you went with for your seal kit on the 64? I think it's time I stopped fluffing about and did something about my crumbly almost non existent seals.

[64 kiwi boni]

Steele rubber products mate 

both justA and frosty recommended them 

and I bought all from them . And they fit perfectly 

[JUSTA6]

Fitzy,  waiting for teardown N paint on the GTO. Will replace all when I'm putting it back together.  Have used Steele on the daily drivers and they are perfect replacements.

[KiwiStarChief]

I also used Steele door weatherstrips on the '57, and they are a great product, after experiencing cheap junk "exactly same as original" ones from ebay.

Edited April 29, 2023 by KiwiStarChief

[Fitzy]

Thanks boys - once I pluck up the courage to open my wallet (and let the moths out) I'll bite the bullet and get a set. I should have done it when the car was in pieces but money was flying away in all directions at the time.

[64 kiwi boni]

Soo hanging out to get this 63 in the shed and pull the body off the frame to see how clean it is !!

plan is to get time this weekend !!

 and if i do, i can make a list of chassis related parts i will or wont need, it came with lots of new old stock parts....

 The weather down under isnt flash now, super cool, so all work for me will be in the shed

and i am still having issue with breathing so i best stay warm or the boss will bang on about me being out in the cold

[64 kiwi boni]

Saturday here in nz is like every other day for months now !!! Rain rain rain . But thankfully it stoped justA long enough to drag the safari into the hoist and get my first real look underside …

Floors are clean and rust free. So are the sills 👍

the diff has been replaced with a 12 bolt and I spun 1 wheel and the other turned the same way !!! I am thinking … wtf ? Limited slip or welded spiders ???? 
so I had to have a look !!!

No oil in there but someone had plastered anti seize over everything …..

[64 kiwi boni]

This is the stuff I need to decided on what to do with … clearly the 12 bolt needs a refresh , it has no drums, or any of the brake components …. And I am thinking … do I do a refresh of the whole thing, buy a disc adaption kit ….. or !! Sitting out in the paddock is my whole spare 64 diff from the doner car used in my 64 rebuild ? 
yes , both are strong units but which one do I blow money on ? This is still a budget build … and I have the boss to answer to for cash flow . 
the Pontiac diff will bolt straight in …

it will need drums resurfacing new slave cylinders and shoes . But the pumpkin is in good order and won’t need touching yet ! 

Having said that . 12 bolt stuff is readily available here and shouldn’t  be to expensive, and certainly would future proof any change of gears that I may or may not need to do when sorting the ls and trans combo ……
 

Edited May 20, 2023 by 64 kiwi boni

[JUSTA6]

Posi is posi and posi is better with disk.  

[64 kiwi boni]

i have bought a donor car for its motor and trans to go into the 63!!!its a 2008 ve holden calais with the ls2 L98 6.0 litre engine 6L80e 6 speed auto trans

its done 108000kms that about 60k miles 

think this is the same as your guys G8 ?  

 

justA has a little scratch by the gas cap !!!!

 

so i put it on the hoist and pushed the rear suspension back so it could at  least steer in sort of a straight line ! 

 

 

you can see the damage in front of the tire, this was enough for it to be a write off.. win for me!!

this car has the 6L80e auto trans !!! 6 cogs woop woop ... and yes, i will need to modify the trans tunnel in the 63 as it will not fit ! these transmissions are wayyyy taller 

 This was a very cheap score and will make a perfect engine and box to go into the wagon ! plus all the little extras that you get to rip off it, battery, tires, fans radiator seats,brake master cylinder and booster

i will justA on sell the body as some one will need a front end or doors, trim etc

Edited August 20, 2023 by 64 kiwi boni

[Fitzy]

Nice score. I used to have a VE SS 6 speed manual ute - lotsa fun. I got it onto a deserted dirt road once, turned the traction control OFF and got it sideways in 1st. Wow - too crazy to try & control, into 2nd - still too much of a handful, into 3rd - now it's a little more controllable but going too fast by this time to be truly safe. Fourth was totally controllable but way too fast as I had trees either side of me, and still 2 gears to go. Another car I should have kept.

I'm enjoying seeing the progress on the Safari - I also like all your new toy tools. With the right gear, you can just about turn sheetmetal into anything.

[64 kiwi boni]

first job will be to pull the ls2 out, then the shell can get sold off👍

[64 kiwi boni]

More parts arrived today …

my ls rear sump kit …..the little labels on the dip stick and pick up  state... "made in canada with imported parts" thank god for that !!! i thought they came from china 

And engine mounts … which includes an adjustable ls to Chev plate then stock Chevy engine mounts … someone had already made mounts on the crossmember in the 63 as she used to have a big block in there 👍

 

for anyone reading this and thinking of using a LS into a widetracker, you are going to have to buy these parts , justA starter! i am sure i am going to find i need more parts, and since this is my first LS into a car, its gona be fun ! i am sure nothing will fit or work, but i am sure the end result will make for a wayyy better cruiser 

i do know i am going to have to find a alternator bracket kit to relocate it up from under to the passenger side... have not found a kit yet, and really if i dont.... i will make a bracket.

i am wayyy ahead of myself ! i still havent had time to pull the LS out of that black commy/g8 !!..

 oh look its beer o'clock 

Edited September 5, 2023 by 64 kiwi boni