Not going racing this year.

I've come to the conclusion that the car won't be ready for Watkins Glen in September. I guess it's no big surprise. But now I'll have 10 additional months and I believe it's a more realistic time frame. Heading out to the 40th F5000 reunion at Road America this month. Looking forward to meeting the drivers and taking a close look at all the F5000 cars

One year later.

I have owned the car for a year now. This was to be a 1 year project. I guess that was optimistic. Well, once again progress has ground to a halt....damn day job. But on the positive side, did come up with the color, 1974 GMC "Jasmine Yellow". The color coat will be shot in Lacquer, more work but historically correct. This was the item holding me up, so I should be able to make some headway now.

Roll bar and paint color.

Picked up the last of the nickel plating, the roll bar, looks good. Tried 3 shades of yellow hoping to match the 1975 color. Going to order one more yellow, then pick from the four. Been working with Ed Justice Jr. whose father, Ed Sr. owned the "Justice Brothers Lola T192" in the 1970's. Ed Jr. has been a tremendous resource in the restoration. The side crushable panels where required starting in the 1974 Pro-series, design and built by Zeke Justice, Ed's uncle. All aircraft quality

A trip to Carlisle,PA

Took a day off and went out to the collector car swap meet in Carlisle, PA. In search of anything F5000. Came up empty, but saw a lots of cool cars and a million parts.Work has again interrupted progress. But did get some of the fiberglass repair on the main body and nose done and shot the primer.

Plating and fuel cells.

My fuel cells from Eagle have arrived. They look good, should fit with no problems. Just picked up 60+ parts from the platers. Decide to go by air, it was a picture perfect day.I have to admit, I felt like a kid on Christmas morning opening up all those little packages. A couple of more things that can be checked off the "to-do" list.

History under paint.

Decided for a little change of pace. Starting on the body work, removed a couple of layers of paint and discovered the 1973 Justice Bros. livery paint as raced by Mark Waco. Confirmed by 1973 photos. Pretty cool. I'll just prime over the stars and leave it for the next person to discover in 35 years.

Brake caliper, new pistons and seals.

Received new pistons and seals from Transatlantic Raceparts for overhauling the brake calipers. Jim at Eagle fuel cells called and said the 2 fuel cells are finished. Thats fast. Should have them in a week or so

Shocks have returned.

Just got the shocks back from Archie at R & A Manufacturing, Nice work with a quick turn-around. Got this contact from Chip. Getting another batch together for plating, prepping can save a few bucks

Gear Box, Shocks and Plating

The gear box is in Indiana, the shocks are in Washington State the fuel cells are in Wisconsin and the suspension parts are in Pittsburgh for plating. Rebuilding the brake calipers. Used a porta-power to remove the pistons, after 30 odd years sitting they weren't ready to fall out. A couple of C clamps and a lot of rags. This setup worked perfect. (the idea came from my A&P)You know your in trouble when the guy who's going to be rebuilding your gearbox calls, and ask if your sitting down. Overall the box was in very good condition, but 30 years without any use has left surface rust on many internal parts. Oh well, I was hoping for better news. The fuel bladders are my next problem. The pickups must be moved off the corners about a 1" or more. That means existing holes in the tub must be modified, still work on this issue. But good news, my Armstrong shocks have been rebuilt and should have them back next week.

The New Year

Ah..the New Year. Hmmm...5 months left. Still stripping paint and polishing the tub. Also spending a lot of time inspecting for cracks(Magnaflux). Still hoping to have the car ready for the first event at Road America in July.

Tub polishing and paint removal

Brought the tub back out. Starting to remove paint and also started to polish. Wow, this is going to take a long time

Cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning

Spent most of the month, cleaning, blasting and inspecting

Front and rear uprights

Working on the front and rear uprights,inspecting bearings and suspension parts.

Hewland Gear Box

Did find a gear box # DG300-59 stamped on the main housing. If this is a factory Hewland number then it does not match the Lola/Hewland serial number list, they where much higher starting with the T190's. Also roll bar # 19840, talked to SCCA about the roll bar # they didn't keep records until the 1980's. The rear suspension has been removed with no surprises. Inspected the gearbox, was expecting to find no gears because only 1 nut was securing the case. But to my surprise, it was complete. Next the uprights and half shafts are on the list.

Tub Stripped

That's it for the tub. The brake lines, gas, brake and clutch pedals and been removed. Will place it to the side for now. Next is the dismantling of the rear suspension.