Source for individual ARP bolts

[chevynut]

do it as well as you can and can afford, but GET IT FINISHED..

Then what?

I guess I'm having a hard time understanding how buying ARP bolts prevents one from getting it finished.

I've been working on my car WAY too long, much longer than I expected. But I've done ten times as much on it as I expected to do too. On the way, I learned a lot of things. I had never TIG welded anything until I started working on my frame and bought a TIG welder, so I learned as I went. The frame was essentially done years ago. I had done some bodywork before using an acetylene torch and brass rod but hardly anyone owned a MIG welder back then. During replacement of my floors, quarters and rockers I taught myself to use a MIG welder. I had never welded aluminum or stainless steel before, so I had to teach myself how to do that too. I had done very little metal forming before but still built my cargo floor, tubs, firewall, and all the under-hood sheetmetal. When it came to the interior, I had never built anything with foam and fiberglass....so I learned how to do that too. There were tons of things I had to design and figure out. Nobody taught me how to do any of this stuff, except what I could pick up from forums or other online sources. The learning part has been a lot of the fun in building this car.

I didn't expect to have to rebuild my BRAND NEW crate engine, but I did it. It was sitting way too long, and I knew of some issues with it that I heard about over the years. It took me a few months to get all the parts and get it torn down and back together. But it's done. The chassis is almost done. The body is close to ready for paint. All my chrome work has been done (except the rear bumper). Pretty much every part has been fabricated and assembled at least once.

I can't say how many thousands of hours I have in my car, but when you look at all the modifications and repairs I think it would have taken a rod shop several thousand man-hours to do the same work. Sure, an experienced guy could have done it faster, but I had to learn a lot of stuff as I went.

On top of all this I had a full-time job and a part-time "job" until about 4 years ago when I retired. I still do the part-time job. I have another hobby (hunting) that takes weeks at a time out of my schedule. I love to fish and camp in the summer. I go on vacations. The other day I looked at how many weeks I was gone in the past year and I counted 8 full weeks, not counting when I took off for a weekend or a few days at a time. I own a home on 2 1/2 acres that I built almost 29 years ago so there's always work to do and we've been re-modeling...with me doing all the work. I built two shops since I started my car too. My life doesn't revolve around my car, but sometimes it feels like it does.

For me this has been the fun part of the project. I still have a lot of assembly ahead of me once the body is painted, and I know that's going to get tedious. But I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm trying to get there doing the job as good as I can do it. I can't see slapping it together now, after all the work I've put into it over the years.

Anyone can buy a finished car and wash and drive it. I could have done that too.

[BamaNomad]

Chevynut... It was not my intention to 'slam' you or your car with my post. I mostly was responding to a prior post where someone posted that 'most of us can't afford to use the best parts' in our builds (which is true). My intent was simply to say that nice cars come in all forms; if they are safe, attractive, driveable, and WE like them.. then that's what matters. Most of us have gone thru most or all of the steps in learning that you described on our 'projects'... I've got some that have been 'in the works' as long, or longer than yours have. I'm constantly teased by family/friends as to 'WHEN' one of my projects will be complete (so I suppose you are right too in saying that they are 'never finished', or are finished when you believe they are finished!)..

My primary goals with that post were to point out that 1) The parts don't have to chromed, polished, etc... nice paint looks good too, 2) that most of us just want to get them completed and DRIVE them... but it's also true that some of us (you and I it seems are in that category) also love working on them. I enjoy working on other's cars as much, or more, than my own (I tell my wife/family that it's 'cheaper' to work on someone else's cars, because they have to buy the parts!)..

Anyway, your car project is well beyond what most of us can do, or can afford to do, but bottom line.. you enjoy it, you can afford it, and WE all love to see your progress photos...

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

[chevynut]

BamaNomad, I didn't think you were "slamming" me about anything, but I get a lot of ribbing from lots of people I know about working on my car so long . I constantly get asked if it's finished yet or when it's going to be finished. Most of them just can't understand the work involved in building a car to this level and with the mods I've done. Some can't understand WHY I do it, but then you have to ask yourself why Foose, Troy, Goolsby, Alloway, and gobs of other builders do it. I ask why people waste their time on a golf course chasing a ball around.

I'm not going for the Ridler, I just want to build the car to the highest level I can...it's just my nature, and is part of why it's not finished yet. But if you look at my build pics you'll see that most of the time was spent building it, not polishing things. I only started final assembly around a year ago and hopefully people will see the fruits of my efforts when it's finished. I quit predicting when that will be. Sometimes I have to step back and reconcile to myself why it's taking me so long too.

Some guys are all about driving their cars and showing them and don't understand the build part because they've never built anything and many of them couldn't if they had to. That's fine with me if that's what turns their crank. Some of them paint a few pieces and maybe drop in a new engine and tranny and say they "built" the car. To me that's more like maintenance....lol And then there's those who claim they built it but just wrote checks to someone who did the work. I could do that, but it wouldn't mean much to me.

There are plenty of guys who have been working on their cars just as long as I have or longer, and aren't building them nearly to this level of finish. So in that regard I think I'm doing okay on it. I think posting pics as I go actually makes it look like it's taking longer, but unlike some guys I like to share my progress and document it, as slow as it might be.

Merry Christmas!

[BamaNomad]

Chevynut... many of us, me included, get ribbed about how long our projects are taking. I first began work on my 57 Nomad so long ago I'm embarrassed to even think about it! Obviously (I hope) i haven't worked on it continuously.. but it's been many years. The body was on a rollover cage for 20 yrs!

Anyway, ALL of us love the work done on your car, and we love the photos, AND we are very impressed by the quality. WE may be more interested in seeing it finished than you are..

[Troy]

WARNING Chevynut THIS IS A JOKE NOT REAL JUST A JOKE!! I APPRECIATE YOUR BUILD AND CAN"T WAIT TO SEE IT DONE!!! But Foose can build one in a week or two, just watch Overhauling!!!

Some can't understand WHY I do it, but then you have to ask yourself why Foose, Troy, Goolsby, Alloway, and gobs of other builders do it. I ask why people waste their time on a golf course chasing a ball around.

[55 Rescue Dog]

That's the problem I had with a 18 year build until I was able drive it, that I am trying to avoid. It was only worth 10 cents on every 100 dollars until it was finished. Now I don't want to mess it up by driving it, and beating the crap out it, like I should. And, after taking too long, I would do it totally different. Sometimes the best part is the build, then it's WTF was I thinking.

[chevynut]

Foose can build one in a week or two, just watch Overhauling!!!

Thanks Troy, sometimes I joke about having my car "Overhauled" by Foose since I've owned it since I was 20 and it's been with me through 2 divorces. I think there's a lot going on in the background on those Overhaulin' builds that we never see. They've filmed a couple of episodes at SEMA and I watched Gabe stitch up an interior for the car. They even hauled a paint booth there and set it up so they could paint the car. Not sure how they do the chrome work, but they can get it done a lot faster than any of us!

[chevynut]

Back to ARP bolts...here's a comparison with grade 8. Which would you rather use if cost wasn't a big consideration? One of these 1/2"x 2 1/2" ARP bolts costs less than a microbrew at a pub and the nut is less than that! And they're stronger too! I'll just have to give up going out drinking for a while.


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[Rick_L]

I'll take the microbrew. LOL

[markm]

I'll take the microbrew. LOL

Me too.