Been awhile since my last post also.

[ARKAR]

Been awhile since my last post also - Update: posted some pics.

Been away for awhile. I posted a few years ago with some pictures of my two '64 Impalas. One is an SS with a 402 big block/Muncie and the other was my Dad's sport coupe that he bought new with a 425hp 409/Muncie. Had some things come up that
kept me from doing much work on the cars, but I think I'm about to start on the SS car again. Gonna need some help, so expect me to post with some questions. Great site here with some great members!! Lots of guys that always seem to be eager to help out. Thanks!

ARKAR

 

[Nuts]

ARKAR,

Welcome back, hope you stay around this time.... Really would like to see some pictures of your cars !!!!

Bill

 

[ARKAR]

Thanks Bill, I took a few more today, but the ones I posted in 2009 are on my other computer. I'll get them uploaded onto photobucket and post them in a day or two.

Thanks again,
Keith

 

[ARKAR]

Here's some pictures of when I took my '64 SS out of my Grandmother's barn. I had it in there for probably 10 years. Told her I wouldn't have it in there for a year or two when I took it over there. Took it back to my Mom's place in 2008, it's only about 1/2 mile away. Gonna bring it over to my house in a few weeks, which is about a 25 mile trip. My Grandmother passed away last year, she was my Dad's Mother. Dad passed away in 2004. I'll get some pics of his car up too. I posted these here about two years ago.

Keith

 

[ARKAR]

Some more pics, same ones I posted two years ago.

 

[ARKAR]

Here's some pics of my Dad's '64 425hp 409/Muncie:

 

[Dick MacKenzie]

Welcome back Keith!! Don't stay away so long!

 

[62impala409]

All that sun shine is pretty tough on your paint jobs down there. We certainly don't have that problem in the frozen north. Paint on top lasts quite awhile, but the bottom half of the car rots away pretty fast. Leo

 

[Nuts]

Looka like between the two cars, you have a complete Hondorus Marron car ?

Bill

 

[Tuxedo63]

There's just something about seeing these old Impala's before thier restorations that i love. Call me strange, you wouldn't be the first, but i love seeing em.

GREAT car's by the way!!!

Tony

 

[ARKAR]

Looka like between the two cars, you have a complete Hondorus Marron car ?

Bill

My Dad bought the 409(white)car new, ordered it at the dealer, I have the invoice for it. When my Uncle wrecked the maroon SS car, my Dad bought it for parts. My Dad had a accident and his hood was repaired but was starting to crack where they had used filler on it(back in the 60s). He took the hood off the maroon car and put it on his. The maroon SS car had busted front fenders and a bent frame from the wreck my uncle had in it, so when I started work on it, I swapped it over to a '63 409 four door frame from a car that my Dad had bought for the 409 engine. I got another white four door hardtop parts car gave to me, so I pulled the front cap off of it and put it on the SS car(this was about 25 years ago). I can scan and post pictures of my family setting the car onto the frame if anyone wants to see them, it was back in the 80s. Also have pictures of the SS car sitting in the woods where my Dad put it when he bought it. The front fenders on the 409 car are just discolored/rusted to the point that there's hardly any paint left on them.

Keith

 

[ARKAR]

The funny thing about it is I have almost no money in that SS car. My Dad gave it to me, he had the '63 four door sedan and I pulled the body off of it and put my body on it's frame. Then it was actually he that got the '64 four door hardtop parts car given to him and I used the front cap from it. I did buy a Muncie four speed for the car(my uncle pulled the third member, tranny and 327 after the wreck. The 402 BB came from a station wagon that was a family car that my folks drove(I think they retired it for a new car when it needed a timing chain). My Dad gave me the 402 motor out of it when I started working on this car. Like I've said, I've been working on this thing for a LONG time. I took it to town at one point, me a a couple of buddies roared thru the streets of my local hometown with about 1 & 1/2 feet of exhaust bolted onto the manifolds, it was quite loud. I bought a few other parts like motor mounts, brake parts, etc. But I have hardly any money in it. I was really lucky to have a Dad that loved the old Chevys. Before he bought the 425/409 car, he had a 1961 Impala with a 3x2 348/three speed column shift. He said it was pretty fast too, but he sold it to buy the '64.

Keith

 

[Tuxedo63]

Cool story's.
Real cool your dad bought that car new! Wish i was lucky enough to have my dads old 63!
I'd love to see the other pics you have. Like i said, i'm a sucker for them.

Tony

 

[LongIsland63SS409]

Nice!

Welcome back!


Mike

 

[ARKAR]

Thanks guys!! I dug up the old 35mm pictures, I'll try to get them scanned and posted tomorrow night. Kinda makes me sick to see how much better condition my Dad's car was in when the pictures were taken. His 409 car was pretty famous around here for being fast. He always wanted to restore it but with five kids to raise, he really didn't have the money. He was such a good guy and I miss him very much.

Thanks again,
Keith

 

[ARKAR]

Scanned some old 35mm pics. My '64 SS as it came from the woods where my Dad had stored it. Pics were taken about 1984-85, I think.

Here's the '63 409 fourdoor sedan that was the donor frame for my car since my frame was bent in the wreck. Dad had bought this car for the 409 engine when his 409 had swallowed a vavle in cylinder #1. Still have his block and was hopeing to sleeve it and keep it original. The other 409 might make it's way into my SS car someday.
[IMG]http://i803.photobucket.com/albums/yy320/ARKAR_photo/IMG_0003.jpg

Floorpan on passenger side was rusted out. I cut out one from a '64 donor car(same car that my front cap came from) and used a few sheetmetal screws to secure it temporarily. I'll be stitching new ones in.

Cleaned up the frame as best I could and sprayed on a little paint.

Dad, Me, my sister and brothers-in-law set the SS body on the '63 409 fourdoor frame, original SS frame was bent:

Notice the factory writings on the firewall to let assembly workers know what parts to ready for the car as it came down the assembly line. On driver's side: "8 4spd" - V8(327) with 4 speed muncie.

 

[ARKAR]

Cleaned up and painted my firewall and put on a front cap from a donor car that one of Dad's friends gave us.

Picture of both cars.

Pulled the 402 BB out of a station wagon that my folks had retired and was cleaning it up to paint it. The carb was being used on the truck that the engine is sitting in. Later, we put the carb back on the 402 when I got it into my car.

Here's about as far as I got on the car. Remember, I was a young, dumb kid with not much money to spend on the car. But I had BIG dreams of cruising the streets in this old car, just never happened. Got busy with life so the car had to wait. I'm going to start back on it - you guys are either a good, or bad influence - I can't tell. Oh well, hope y'all enjoy the pics. I know we all looked like a bunch of Arkansas hillbillies, but we were(and still are)!!

Here's a couple more of Dad's car with the rear bumper removed. Car had been bumped from the rear and I pulled the bumper and swapped the center section out with the '63 bumper. The car had a set of Mickey Thompson magnesium 14" wheels on it
at the time but they eventually were put on my Mom's Buick Regal. Still have the wheels, guess they would be hard to find now. Anyone know?

 

[Last 60]

Impala

Neat pictures and history. Was that 63 a factory 409? If so , I would say it was pretty unusual. And there ain't nothing wrong with hillbillies, Arkansas or any other kind!! Good Luck with the project.

Lonnie

 

[jdk971]

not only was my father a hillbilly, he was a river rat from the ohio river area. they are what this country was built on. jim

 

[PAINTJOHN1]

Cool Story,great pictures,Thanks so much for sharing.Hope to see at least one of those 64's on the road in the next year. John