New Guy from California - 65 GS Resto

[Clatter]

Greetings from Santa Cruz.

I'm embarking on restoring a GS for a good friend.
New to Buicks but not new to wrenching.
Worked as a fleet mechanic before i had a license.
My 5th car was a V8 Vega, My 6th actually ran (a Fiat)

Been deep into aircooled VWs for the last 40+ years.
Have three, including a Porsche-transplanted Fastback and a Beetle with a 300HP turbocharged engine in the works.
Could post some details if anyone cares...

Built Street/drag Harley Davidsons for a living for a while.
Also have been a machinist.

After 27 years too many in IT I'm now enjoying a retirement job (oxmoron) of restoring cars.

But first,
There is a Fiat we found in the woods being fixed up for my sons in the way of our Buick project.
Here's something different - have a strong stomach.
https://xwebforums.com/forum/index.php?threads/the-rats-nest-81-x1-9-build.44813/

Once the Fiat gets evicted my friend's GS will take priority.
In the meantime, I'm learning and sourcing parts.
The plan is to restore the car to original correctness as much as possible.
It's rough, but numbers matching and unrestored.
Unlike a good survivor car, getting it correct will be difficult.
Engine and trans were done recently, but how accurately remains to be known.
I'm going to be leaning heavily on the experts here for help.

We have a Skylark that might have been a parts car, but it's too nice.
We'll call it the 'example car' - because i really do not know how these cars go together... 

First thing will be to put an exhaust and fuel tank in the GS, finish dressing the engine, and light it off.
Might even take it for a spin around town if the brakes and whatnot cooperate.
Want to know the motor/trans etc. were done correctly before we tear the car down.
If these things were done wrong, we want to be able to do that part with everything else,
And not find out the hard way afterwards.
Right? 

I have trust issues with engines anyone else built.
That -might- have something to do with VWs.. Or maybe Fiats..? 

Started a build thread before i knew about this site on V8 Buick.
https://www.v8buick.com/index.php?threads/buddy%E2%80%99s-beauty-%E2%80%9865-gs-build.393837/

Buddy and i are VERY grateful to have a dedicated group of enthusiasts on these forums to help us along.
Doing this without would surely be nigh impossible.

[GS66]

Welcome! Looks like you have a great project there! These are fun cars to drive and still comfortable.

[cwmcobra]

Welcome! Looks like you have a good candidate for restoration and the skills to do it well. Kudos for helping a friend!

Your VW and Fiat experience is impressive. Particularly to me as I'm working on a 70 Opel GT for a friend that was a mouse and squirrel house for 30+ years. And driven on salty roads in Michigan. So, lots of challenges and frustrations.

Interesting rainbow of colors in the engine compartment of that GS. Does it have an automatic trans? Please post some pictures of the interior and underside when available. We all love to follow along on a restoration.

 

Chuck

[Loren At 65GS]

Welcome !

 Took a look at your build thread on v8. From what I gather, the engine was done by previous owner with parts purchased from the Martins. Russel and his son are among the best Nailhead builders.
 You have already done some parts sourcing I see. Speaking from experience on interiors, Legendary has the better seat covers. I have installed both PUI and Legendary seat covers. The Legendary are more accurate and better fitting. I suggest going directly to Legendary and skipping the middleman. Dash pads were remanufactured through a Texas company, but they have become unreliable. They still owe me a couple of pads that I have paid for.
 As Walt stated, stay away from FB for information on restoration. I look at those when I feel like I need a good laugh.

  Again, Welcome.
   Loren

[cwmcobra]

Sorry Steve. Seems I missed the link to your V8Buicks post with all the pictures and information.

Thanks for joining us. Looking forward to your build thread!

 

Chuck

[Rollaround]

Welcome to our GS support group. Looking forward to watching your Buick resurrection. 

[WkillGS]

Hey Steve, great to have you here!
It looks like a solid car and a great candidate for restoration.

Body panels and chrome can be tough to find replacements for. The mechanical stuff (other than engine) is mostly shared with the other GM divisions and generally available. With that said, Ames Pontiac is a respected supplier here. Many of their GTO parts will fit our Buicks, so get one of their catalogs. CARS (in NJ) is a Buick supplier which has parts repo'd. They make many unique parts, which are sometimes sold by other retailers. I haven't dealt with the big retailers like Year 1, OPGI, etc. Some of their products are hit/miss when it comes to quality.

The 'Documentation' section of this site is a gold mine.... start with the 65 Buick Chassis manual and the GS supplement manual. The Body manual and Parts book can be invaluable as well.
The 'Gallery' contains lots of literature ranging from dealer info to old magazine articles... great stuff.

I'm primarily a '66 GS guy, I have a bunch of those, and a 65 GS vert project I picked up years ago.
I did get diverted to the other side with a daily driver '88 Saab 900 turbo around 1998. They're fun cars. My dad had a '64 VW squareback I learned to drive in. I'd like to see a pic of your fastback if you'd care to post.

Looking forward to your progress!

[Clatter]

Aw, shucks, guys, thanks for the kind welcome.

At this stage (stage 1?    ) -sorry- *cough*... I'm just a babe in the woods.

My plan at this point is to comb through any/all info already written here that might help us.
That way i don't have to bug y'all with questions that have already been answered 100 times.

I did indeed order the interior directly from Legendary.
They're sending samples of their headliner material that they admitted wasn't perfectly accurate.
Perhaps one of you guys knows where to get the right material, or even a whole headliner?
SMS has a reputation for taking years and years... Maybe that's our only choice?

Any of you guys use Just Dashes?
They did one for my friend's car and it came out kind of "puffy".

This is an example of what makes an accurate resto so difficult.
Aftermarket parts are often the only choice.
It's a real burden having an experienced eye.
So many things that 99% of the world would think are fine can really bug a guy who knows and cares...

Man, i would -so- love to head East and meet up with a couple of you guys at a show.
Seeing someone pick apart a car would be most educational.

I can do that with VWs now.
Could be a show judge with them for sure.
-But-
The VW scene has changed massively since the 80s.
It used to have spectacular customs and perfect restos,
Now it's success if the car arrives under its own power.
Unlike a real show,
Most VW events,
People get super offended if you show up and start critiquing.
Having incorrect stuff is a point of pride for many of them.
My friends and i have developed nonverbal signals to communicate when checking out cars,
So not to get someone's little panties all in a bunch... 

Really looking forward to a change of scene.

I'm the opposite.
If someone knows something i don't and points it out,
I'm totally stoked.
It's an opportunity for me and my car to improve.

So, by all means,
I'm 100% -all ears- when it comes to missing and incorrect things with this car.

We have the opportunity to save another GS from extinction.
Between my skills and facilities,
(And Buddy's money)
We'll all hopefully live long enough to save another nice example for posterity.

[Loren At 65GS]

I've heard the same thing about Just Dashes being too puffy.
It's sad and maddening regarding the guy in Texas. I worked with him to remanufacture the '65 Skylark/ Gran Sport dash pad. We ended up with a super product in the end. It fit exactly like an original and had the correct grain to the vinyl. Now he won't even return messages or calls to me.
 SMS should have the correct headliner but as you noted, they aren't the quickest with delivery time. It took just over a year to get the headliner for my Sportwagon from them. Finally got it after reporting them to my credit card company.
 If you are in the neighborhood of Strongsville, Ohio July 10-13, The BCA National meet will be going on. It's posted in the Events Section here.
  Don't hesitate to ask questions here. That's why I keep the forum going. We have a small but very dedicated group willing to help and we love to see pictures. lol Members here have restored some really fine cars whether they be a Special, Skylark, Gran Sport or even the Sportwagon. We've chased down the parts and people to get the right stuff.

 Best wishes with the Gran Sport restoration.

   Loren

[Clatter]

So glad to be here..! 

Where to source a correct headliner?
The one in our car is completely gone.

Interior color was saddle.
Is there a specific headliner color for this interior color?

Or are all of the headliners the same color?

About to just gamble on SMS knowing full well how its likely to work out.
Maybe just get one from Legendary as a back up?

What other choices are there?

[Loren At 65GS]

I don't have access to all my reference materials but when I get back to my home in Nebraska, I can look it up. Buick had a salesman reference book that listed the interior colors with the exterior color. Although there must have been some exceptions. I've seen silver headliner in a GS but I don't recall ever seeing it used in a Skylark. Also, I know of at least one GS with a silver star pattern headliner.

  Loren

[gssizzler]

Trim code 159 saddle for hardtops and 199 for post models list the headliner color in the color and trim book as being Fawn in color with a tier grain pattern! They do list headliners on rock auto not sure how close the colors or pattern would be!? Would love to get a sample but dont think you can from them!?

[Jim]

Hi,and welcome  good luck  with sms took 18 months to get his interior,and they lost the tack strips for his door panels  65 ponitac  .jim

[Clatter]

Excellent info gentlemen.
Thanks again.

Wonder if any of these colors are close enough to fawn?
See attached.
Only like $150 to get just the headliner.
Kind of an expensive sample.
Maybe i can find Acme and they will send a sample?
Then the question of if tier grain vinyl is right.

Since we have so much work to do,
And Rockauto always ships so quickly,
Maybe we?ll at least order one from SMS,
And, if years later, we still don?t have one, and are ready for it,
Get the next best.

[35chevcoupe]

Welcome aboard !  Great group of guys here and can't wait to follow along on your build .