Any other 1st gen F Body owners here?

[JustABuick]

Hey all,

Just wondering if anyone else on here also owns a 1st gen Fbody? I'm in a spot now where I am probably going to slow down on Buick upgrades (except for maintenance and fixing whatever breaks) and I'm looking to start the restoration on my 1968 Camaro SS. It needs a total resto, so I'm building it ground up. I'm leaning towards a mild pro touring style build- LS and 6 speed, but the drag race style is tempting, too. Post up some pictures, and any input is welcome!

Kelly

 

[ITSAV6]

Need Boost has a '68 400 Firebird and my son has a '69 Firebird. Bought son's car as a pretty nice roller, had no interest in the BBC that was in it. We put a 400 Pontiac and 2004r in it. It has a 2nd gen T/A rear with 3.42's.Still in progress.

 

[JustABuick]

Sweet! I love the first gen Firebirds, you don't see them nearly as much as the Camaros

 

[ITSAV6]

Exactly, need boost and my sons are the only 2 in our area.

 

[JustABuick]

I think I saw a maroonish 68 Firebird with a Buick V6 in it at the 2012 nats. That was an awesome build, too

 

[ITSAV6]

I saw it in Renyolds GA back when it was doin 12's or so, next time I saw it there was a parachute on it!

 

[JustABuick]

Yep, it was flyin! Found a picture of it.

 

[Instro84]

i had a few, started with a 68 camaro then a 67 firebird then 69 firebird, wanna get a 68 bird one day. the 69 was the most modded had big brakes aftermarket suspension still kept the pontiac motor thou it was a fun car.

 

[JustABuick]

Sweet! I am really liking the first gen birds more and more.

 

[Rugby]

I have a 69 firebird convertible that needs a complete restoration on. Funny story is the wife gave me the ok to start buying the parts for the bird and i cane home with my GN thats now getting a slight restoration

 

[JustABuick]

I have a 69 firebird convertible that needs a complete restoration on. Funny story is the wife gave me the ok to start buying the parts for the bird and i cane home with my GN thats now getting a slight restoration

hahaha....yeah. I was about to start the resto on my Camaro, and I went to check out the GS Nats and came home with my T

 

[corsair231]

I've got a 68 SS 396 that I've had since I was 19 in 1984. I was a typical 70's style build with shackles and Keystone Klassics. Back then I worked at a grocery store and couldn't really afford to put the money into it I needed to so when I spun a bearing doing something I probably shouldn't have I parked it. The problem was it was a vinyl car and the top had been replaced but the metal wasn't sealed under it so you know where this is going. Bought my WE4 in 88 and it became my daily. Did put the Camaro back on the road for a little bit in 89 but the top was so bad by then I had to park it again.

Anyway, fast forward to now. Still have both of them. Currently both of them are parked but I have what I need to go roller in the T and I'm planning the repairs. Which I will get to right after I get a Mustang convertible I'm restoring finished for my son and a VW Cabriolet finished for my wife and our daughter and of course barring anything else that pops up in the meantime. Good Lord willing I will get to retire in about 5 years and my retirement project is a total resto of the Camaro. I may go resto-mod or may even go back to the period build but I plan on driving it so I definitely won't do an, "I've got so much money in this thing I don't dare drive it" concours build. There are too many of those already. I don't plan on selling it so it may seem selfish or what ever but I don't care what my kids can get for it after I'm gone, I'm going to drive the crap out of it while I can.

 

[69RSCLONE]

Here's mine. 69 camaro with trans am spoiler. 383 sbc currently, in the process of a 4.8 ls turbo swap. 4 linked with coil overs at all 4 corners. Basic 4 wheel disc conversion to get rid of the 4 drums. Complete ground up with only the roof skin original. Basically bought a vin #. Car was destroyed.

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[JustABuick]

I've got a 68 SS 396 that I've had since I was 19 in 1984. I was a typical 70's style build with shackles and Keystone Klassics. Back then I worked at a grocery store and couldn't really afford to put the money into it I needed to so when I spun a bearing doing something I probably shouldn't have I parked it. The problem was it was a vinyl car and the top had been replaced but the metal wasn't sealed under it so you know where this is going. Bought my WE4 in 88 and it became my daily. Did put the Camaro back on the road for a little bit in 89 but the top was so bad by then I had to park it again.

Anyway, fast forward to now. Still have both of them. Currently both of them are parked but I have what I need to go roller in the T and I'm planning the repairs. Which I will get to right after I get a Mustang convertible I'm restoring finished for my son and a VW Cabriolet finished for my wife and our daughter and of course barring anything else that pops up in the meantime. Good Lord willing I will get to retire in about 5 years and my retirement project is a total resto of the Camaro. I may go resto-mod or may even go back to the period build but I plan on driving it so I definitely won't do an, "I've got so much money in this thing I don't dare drive it" concours build. There are too many of those already. I don't plan on selling it so it may seem selfish or what ever but I don't care what my kids can get for it after I'm gone, I'm going to drive the crap out of it while I can.

I like it! I agree, I have more fun driving the cars than I would creating a show winner restomod, although I definitely appreciate the hours, labor, and craftsmanship that go into those builds. They were built to drive!

 

[JustABuick]

Here's mine. 69 camaro with trans am spoiler. 383 sbc currently, in the process of a 4.8 ls turbo swap. 4 linked with coil overs at all 4 corners. Basic 4 wheel disc conversion to get rid of the 4 drums. Complete ground up with only the roof skin original. Basically bought a vin #. Car was destroyed.

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Very nice!!!! That's along the lines of what I want to do, upgrade the suspension and brakes, etc. What brand coil over did you go with? How do you like it so far?

 

[69RSCLONE]

I used the QA1 Pro Coil-Over retro fit bolt in shocks in the front. They have the conical springs that seat to the original frame. No need to cut out and weld in upper mounts. Rear frame rails were completely rotted and had to be replaced. I made new rails out of 2x3 box tubing and did a 2" mini tub. It has the QA1 kit that included the AlumaStar shocks, springs, cross member and mounting brackets. The front is single adjustable, rears are not. It rides stiff, but I think better than my Mustang that is stock other than Edelbrock performance springs. Fun car to drive, but doesn't get as much attention as the GN. Probably 8-10 TR's in the area that drive around, and about 100 1st Gen F bodies.

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