57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'s

[Jacob A.]

I am doing my first body off on my 57 Corvette.

I need to rebuild the rear-end and I don’t believe the carrier is correct. I know a guy who claims to have an AJ coded rear end for a 57 corvette, that came out of a 57 corvette. In the book it says that the AJ is foa a 56 corvette, but the date code of the rear end is Jan 7th 57 and assembled a few days later? Will this housing work for Top Flight Judging on my car?

Can I still take top flight if EVERYTHING on the car is correct but the 997 heads were switched for 539’s?

Thanks,

Jacob Angel

NCRS # 40987

[Verle R.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

Jacob,

To answer your two questions:

1 The rearend codes are not judged in NCRS Flight judging. AJ is a 56 code. This may be a carrier sold over the parts counter later.

2 539 heads in place of 997 heads will not by themselves preclude a Top Flight. There is a total of 50 originality points assigned to the heads themselves. 50/4500 = 1.1% deduct maximum

I suggest you get involved with your local NCRS chapter and participate in Chapter judging classes and judging events as an observer judge. This experience will answer a lot of your questions and you will meet a lot of nice people.

Good luck and get involved.

Verle

[Terry D.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

Jacob

I agree with Verle, if you are planning to Top Flight the car you should get involved with your local chapter. As for your rear end question, what is the build date of the code. You normally have a 6 month window, but a few days is cutting it awfully close.
Terry

[Jacob A.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

Thanks guys for your response. I would love to get more involved with my local chapter, and will eventually... but right now, I live on Orcas Island which is about a 7 to 8 hour commute plus ferry boat terminal waiting. Not exactly the easiest commute to go to a meeting. I am a member of my local chapter.

Thanks again, I think I need to get the judging sheets, from what I have been told, these will answer quite a bit.

Thanks,
Jacob

[Jacob A.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

so as I was explaining, going to Portland to a local meet is an entire day's travel plus ferry ride. If I have 8 extra hours to travel, I need to work on the car.

I am going to have to lean on the judging sheets, reading material, and you guys and the graciousness of this board to help me with this restoration that I started to tear apart just shy of one year ago!

Even though I knew when I pulled her apart I was alone on this Island out here in the Pacific Northwest... a love of a Corvette, is a love of a Corvette!

God Bless the NCRS

my first body off, 57 Corvette Vin # 1851
Jacob Angel

[Terry D.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

Jacob

With a Judging Manual, assembly manual, books available from the NCRS store and the help of the members on this board, you will do fine. By the way, nice garage for the middle of no where! What sent you there?
Terry

[Jacob A.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

Thanks Terry,

I spent a summer up on Orcas Island in 94, and figured if I ever got married I would come back. I got married in 98 and moved here in 99. I have loved being up here in the middle of nowhere... but it is too difficult to ferry everywhere for car shows, the speed limit doesn't exceed 40,etc.... I am strongly considering moving to Seattle and opening a restaurant, right now I own a small catering business.

I do have all the books for a 57 resto, I think i just need "the road to top flight" and some judging sheets.

here's another pic of the garage going the other direction. I built it with my friend in the spring of 2005. It is very small and is attached up to the back of my catering business. I did total dissassembly of my 57 here, frame and all. After stripping the paint with a razor blade, and then picking paint out of everything in my house for the next 6 months.... I got a good deal on a shop and rented a small garage downtown to get "dirty" in, and this little garage is for minor stuff and is housing my other Corvettes.

thanks again,
Jacob #40987

[Jacob A.]

Re: 57 Rear End Housing, a couple of Top Flight ?'

here's a pic of my shop downtown. It has come in really handy for sanding the 57, and I just pulled a big block out of my 69 here. I can just treat it like a regular shop... it is not part of my house, hence I don't track up the house anymore.... I can also store a couple of OLD BEATERS out back that I have that my wife doesn't like to look at. (not corvettes.. I would never call a vintage corvette a beater!!!!) The best part is one of my best buddies owns the garage that is attached next store, and it has lifts, tire removal and balancing, all kinds of special tools etc.... I have given him the Corvette Fever too... since I moved in, he has bought a 68 S.B. Roadster and a 2002 ZO-6 and he is looking into a 92 LT-1 Roadster to purchase as I type!!!

excuse the pics... I just learned how to post them, and am a little picture trigger happy!!!