Interesting find

[Joe M.]

Re: Interesting find

Was your car built April first?

Again I refer to an April fools joke on the line but wonder if an oldtimer thought it best to write the color in crayon on the bulkhead in the trunk as on the pre 61 cars. Just to be obstinate and show up the young wipersnappers. WAG since we have to create a myth we can believe in to account for the discrepancy.

Perhaps check for more crayon marks behind either seat as well as the trunk bulkhead. Who knows!!!

[John M.]

Re: Interesting find

Perhaps check for more crayon marks behind either seat as well as the trunk bulkhead. Who knows!!!

Joe,

As far as I know, all pant "codes" for the 1962 model year were written exactly where David found his IVORY, and nowhere else. A few years back I also found IVORY in this same location on my 1972 purchased Red 1962 Corvette, but in my case I could see that under the crappy Red repaint it was Ermine White.

Everybody likes a Red Corvette!!

Save the Wave .........

JG Mattson

[Joe M.]

Re: Interesting find

Agree, 61, 62 codes codes were written behind the passenger seat but I stress, there is always a contrarian who, just once may have marched to his own drummer.

The initiation joke of a new line worker is another possibility. Imagine how some jokester pointed out the 'ivory' notation written behind the seat to a new painter who just sprayed and ivory order red! Joke is that the car was supposed to be painted red and not white... or some such scenario.

Like the doctor who says to the expectant couple, "I bet the baby is going to be a boy", while he writes down "girl". Baby is a girl and the pround dad proclaims the doc to be wrong, until the doc shows him his note that clear states, "girl".

[John M.]

Re: Interesting find

[quote=Joe Mish (43421);472645]
The initiation joke of a new line worker is another possibility. Imagine how some jokester pointed out the 'ivory' notation written behind the seat to a new painter who just sprayed and ivory order red! Joke is that the car was supposed to be painted red and not white... or some such scenario.

Joe,

I agree that jokesters prowl the assembly line. I used to work as a sheetmetal/welder maintenance millwright in a plant with 7 assembly production lines so I know what can go on on the line and in the maintenance shops. My understanding though is that there were 2 painters on each car, one on each side as the car entered the paint station. Maybe you could fool one, but two? and for both to be a newbe? Also, the paint color written in green crayon was not hidden behind any seat at the time of painting but in plain sight to also be painted over.
I suppose anything is possible though when you pair man (or woman) with their creativness and/or ignorance. See my assembly line story in a previous post above.

Save the Wave .......

JG Mattson

[David H.]

Re: Interesting find

I will continue to search for the white paint but am fairly confident that I will not find any. I will also continue searching for more locations of the 59 build number. Is there anywhere available that the build number will cross reference to a list or anything that will tell me more about this car?
Thank you all once again for all the input to this. I just love a good mystery, dont you?!

[John M.]

Re: Interesting find

David,

I also love a good mystery, and especially so when it flys in the face of "what it is supposed to be".

What the Job/Broadcast number will tell you is that if all assemblies on the car that are supposed to have the J/B number (instrument cluster, doors) do have the J/B number, they are all the same number, and if they match the master number on the engine side of the firewall then they are the original assemblies for the car. Unless of course some sharpie did a highly detailed transplant. What it won't tell you is if any gauges, window glass, pw motor, etc have been replaced in these assemblies and is not original.

The only thing that the J/B number on the car will "cross reference to" with any information on the car is the Holy Grail of Documentation itself -- the cars Build Sheet. The VIN however will do the same thing. I think I told you that the Build Sheet for the '62 is a rare and seldom seen document, but if you want to see one (actually 3) I will refer you to the Corvette Restorer magazine Vol. 28 #3 Winter 2002; Vol. 28 #4 Spring 2002; Vol. 29 #1 Summer 2002; Vol. 30 #1 Summer 2003. There is also one in hard to read condition that was posted on this Forum; 62 Build Sheet posted on October 16, 2009 @ 4:18pm. I don't know the Forum page as it keeps changing but it will probably be around page 100 or so, so look for the date of posting.

Save the Wave .........

JG Mattson

[David H.]

Re: Interesting find

[quote=John Mattson (13840);472633]David,

"Work the numbers on your own car and see if they come out right or how far off they are".

John, what exactly do you mean here by "work the numbers"?

Dave

[Jerry W.]

Re: Interesting find

David.....If your car was the 2,550th 62 built and job numbers were issued incrementally in blocks of 500 ....then .....if it was a perfect world.....your job number would have been 50.....not too far off from job number 59 that you found on your car.

i'm guessing that's what John had in mind.

[David H.]

Re: Interesting find

Yes, I am sure that is what John had in mind. Thank you Jerry.
I did some more investigating today looking for the Job Number in other places as suggested. I have revealed another of its secrets by doing so.
On the firewall next to the headlight dimmer switch I uncovered the correct job number 59 that matches under the dash. However, the passengers door has revealed that most likely it has been replaced at one time or another. The revealed job number there is 374! No job number was found on the drivers door anywhere. I do know that my brother had some body work done after a pallet of glass fell and hit the passengers side of the car while it was in storage at a warehouse that he had at his business. I wasnt aware of the door being replaced but I can find out from my sister-in-law I expect.

[John M.]

Re: Interesting find

David

Jerry hit the nail square on the head for the "perfect world" J/B number for your car as 50.

I also ran the numbers for you and like Jerry found that VIN sequence 2550 is in the 5th cycle of 1-500 J/B numbers and should be J/B number 50 in that "perfect world". However it is not, it is J/B number 59. So now the mystery, WHY? Why the 9 added numbers from that "perfect world"? Were some J/B numbers accidentally skipped along the way on the assembly line? Really, I guess it wouldn't matter too much what J/B number a car got as long as consecutive cars didn't receive the same one.

The Job/Broadcast number 374 written in green crayon on the passenger door, as per your picture, I would say definitely means that this is a replacement door, not the original for the car. How about paint? Did you find any different color paint under the red on this door? If not, it could have come from a Roman Red car also. Was this door replaced before or after Woody painted the car? What about the date codes on the door glass, driver & passenger, do they match or are they different? If they are the same the original glass could have been used in the replacement door. I'm guessing your key works in both doors.

I'm not surprised that you didn't find a J/B number on the driver door. The doors came from the sub-assembly station by matched pairs, driver (left) and passenger (right). What information I do have about the J/B number in this location kinda supports that the J/B number was only written on one of the doors, that one being the passenger (right) side. What you found on your car also supports this with no J/B number on the driver door and a J/B number, although wrong, on the passenger door. Information on this area is hard to come by because owners don't want to remove the door trim panels for a look just for this reason, and I don't blame them or ask them to do so. I have never removed the door panels on my own '62 just to check this out either.

Save the Wave ...........

JG Mattson

[Jerry W.]

Re: Interesting find

The VIN number of our 62 ( 9786 under resto ) is 286 units past the closest 500 j/b number increment ( 9500 ).....We found j/b # 241 on the passenger door and # 282 on an inside fiberglass trim panel near right of the passenger feet.

both j/b numbers are close to the VIN if figured incrementally.....Door is within 45 numbers to the VIN...trim panel is within 4 numbers to the vin. ( both finds original to the car )

close but no cigar......David ....based upon this find....there may not be reason for you to think that your door is a replacement door...

[David H.]

Re: Interesting find

So based on what you are saying, my VIN being 2550, and the door number being 374, the difference is 324 is it not? Seems like a lot to me.
Shouldn't all the numbers found on the car be the same? Why would some of the numbers be different, especially by this much?

[Jerry W.]

Re: Interesting find

david...you're right....that's a big difference on your door....but .....at the same time , the General's syncflow system must have been flawed a bit.

we're going to look for some more numbers on our car where you found some.

[John M.]

Re: Interesting find

Jerry

It will be interesting to learn what Job/Broadcast numbers you find in the other locations. Look in the speedometer dome and on the firewall as stated in previous posts to this thread. Are the numbers 241 & 282 that you found both written in green crayon? There are lead pencil numbers to be found on these cars too, but they are not the J/B number. I have recorded the J/B number from VIN 9260 as J/B 184 and from VIN 9834 as J/B 260. These VINs bracket your VIN 9786. I have worked the numbers from these VIN and J/B numbers to your VIN and find that from VIN 9260 with J/B 184 to your VIN 9786 indicates that your J/B number should be 210 or close. From VIN 9834 with J/B 260 to your VIN 9786 indicates that your J/B number should be 212 or close. Both of these show close results. The next closest VINs & J/B Numbers that I have recorded that bracket your VIN 9786 are VIN 9252 with J/B 176 and VIN 10172 with J/B 98, if you care to run the numbers from these forward and back to your VIN for comparison.

David

You already stated that the passenger side of this car suffered damage in a warehouse when a pallet of glass fell on it. How extensive was the damage? Did it warrant replacing the door? If it did, that would explain the non matching J/B number. From your posts I take it that your brother is no longer with us, and if I am correct on that I am sorry for your loss. You mentioned asking your sis-in-law about this to see what she knew. Go for it, and also ask if there are any receipts, records, or repair bills. If this is a replacement door it came from somewhere.

Save the Wave .......

JG Mattson

[Jerry W.]

Re: Interesting find

Geeeeze.....I didn't mean to HiJack this thread but David's mystery has us all thinking.

John....I took a closer look at the pics of the markings that my son found and the marking on the door is Green.....BUT...the number is clearly 211....not 241....your calculation was right on based upon your previous documentation....the pic of the marking on the trim panel is not good but looks like graphite pencil and i could not make it out clearly....i'll ask for another pic from my son.

David....IT's all your fault.....good luck on your mystery.