rot on door pillars

[John Grandfield]

[Chuck S.]

Now you talkin' 'bout...

John,

Now you talkin' 'bout...a royal PITA. I haven't had this problem, thank heaven, but I believe you will have to remove any fiberglass in the area. Welding generates tremendous heat, and fiberglass will burn. Simply cutting it away doesn't seem like a good idea to me either; but maybe Jerry Bramlett and others will weigh in here.

A really good fiberglass repair book is Eckler's Complete Guide to Corvette Fiberglass Repair. You can buy it on the NCRS website and its cheap. It tells you how to remove/replace a front end complete if you find you need to do that.

Chuck Sangerhausen

[Joe L.]

Re: rot on door pillars

John-----

You've got a MAJOR problem on your hands here. Replacing the pillar posts does involve fiberglass removal and considerable other disaasembly. Personally, I would not do this job (or have it done) without replacing the entire pillar post. Unfortunately, the pillar posts have been GM-discontinued for quite some time. Reproductions MAY be available soon, though. Contact CSC Reproductions of Rocky Ridge, OH for information regarding availability.

Also, before getting involved in this work I'd highly recommend a complete survey of both pillar posts and the windshield frame. If you're going to get involved in as "ugly" and difficult a job as this, you might just as well do it all at the same time. If the costs exceed what you want to put into the car, it's best to determine that before you get started. A "piece at a time" approach to such a situation can get you sucked into a "bottomless money pit".

[Bob Booth #33372]

Re: rot on door pillars

John,

In addition to what Joe said, you should also look closely at the eight body mounts where the birdcage bolts on. Also where it runs under the door sills as well as the frame itself. Most of these spots should become apparent after body removal but you might want to check them first. Other usual trouble spots are the radiator support and the frame crossmember under it. If there is rust in these places, you may want to reconsider and buy one in better shape. My experience is that it is usually cheaper and alot less aggrivating to buy a car already done than to do it yourself.

Take it from me, I had to fix/replace all these on my '72 as well as the winshield frame and it was NOT fun and NOT cheap!

Good luck, Bob Booth

[Chuck S.]

CSC Telephone Number Or Website?

Joe,

Is CSC Reproductions a direct selling manufacturer or do they get their parts from other suppliers?

I was thinking of using a lower windshield corner as a donor panel to patch my birdcage, and that part is EXPENSIVE from Ecklers ($95) or Caledonia ($135). At those prices, I probably will try beating a patch out of 18 ga sheet steel, but it will be tricky because of the curved windshield frame.

Do you have a telephone number or website address for CSC Reproductions?

Chuck Sangerhausen

[John Grandfield]

Re:Thanks for the info

Well this car is mine for better or for worse, hopfuly if I take my time it can be fixed. Thanks again for the advice John G

[John Grandfield]

Re: rot on door pillars

New Question, does the noise come off or do I have to cut the fiberglass near the post? If the noise comes off how is it held on? Thanks Again for the help John G

[Chuck S.]

Re: rot on door pillars

John,

The nose is "bonded" to the plenum fiberglasss, and the plenum fiberglass is riveted to the birdcage. The plenum and sill fiberglass is really what you need to get out of the way.

The Eckler's book shows the front end being removed by breaking the fiberglass bonds to the plenum. I don't know if "experts" would recommend the same technique if the objective was to remove ALL the fiberglass, but removing the nose first probably simplifies the alignment to the body considerably during reassembly because of the "flexibility" of bonding versus aligning all those rivet holes. This flexibility, however, also increases your chances of getting the front end misaligned with the body. This work should DEFINITELY be done with the body on the frame, and be sure to bag/tag and record the location of any shims . If it were me, I would also buy the Assembly Instruction Manual for '73 before starting this project. Also, if you don't know it, be aware that your '73 uses different bonding adhesive and resin than the earlier cars because of the SMC.

I suggest you e-mail Al Sowash on www.ecklers.com. He answers questions about Corvette problems, and he is Eckler's original fiberglass expert. He might be able to give you some good tips.

Chuck Sangerhausen

[Joe L.]

Re: CSC Telephone Number Or Website?

Chuck-----

CSC Reproductions is a parts manufacturer, but the do sell direct. I believe that most of their sales are through other Corvette vendors. They manufacture a fairly wide range of stamped steel parts for Corvettes. However, the more complex pieces are fairly expensive. The 68-82 upper windshield frame, which they've produced for about two years now, sells for $200. The upper corner pieces are $40/ea. Last year in Bloomington they told me that they were working on other parts for 68-82 birdcages, including pillar posts, and would probably have them out in about a year. I'll see this year what's happened.

I don't have their phone number handy, but I've provided it before so it's probably in the archives if you do a search. I don't know that they have a web-site. At least, there was none shown on their catalog that I picked up last year.

[Joe L.]

Re: CSC Telephone Number Or Website?

Chuck------

In case you haven't found it yet, CSC's phone number is 440-331-8939. Beware of possible area code changes, though.

I plan to look these folks up at Bloomington and see what their latest offerings are. Of course, it's all academic for me----my 69's windshield frame is totally rust free, plus I have a complete set of NOS pillar posts and remaining windshield frame components in my collection "just in case I ever need them".

[Chuck S.]

Re: CSC Telephone Number Or Website?

Joe,

Thanks for the number.

I will give them a call and see if they reproduce what I need. If they do, I'll ask them who sells the part, and see what develops.

Chuck Sangerhausen

[Patrick H.]

Re: CSC Telephone Number Or Website?

Joe,

I agree. I visited their booth last year as well, and was quite impressed with their offerings. I'll have to pay more attention to the windshield support this year.

Patrick