To give a little context to the project.

After the car was sandblasted and primed.

Still needs to be cleaned up but the majority of the floor is out of there.

 

Replacing convertible rockers is a big job. First off you should not be doing it on a rotisserie imo, especially with a convertible. It needs to be properly supported on a body jig. Where are you located? I have one in Texas you can borrow.

With a little luck @tp_smith will drop in and post detailed guidance. Or check out his build thread. He goes into everything in great detail with a lot of pics.

Don

 

Replacing convertible rockers is a big job. First off you should not be doing it on a rotisserie imo, especially with a convertible. It needs to be properly supported on a body jig. Where are you located? I have one in Texas you can borrow.
With a little luck @tp_smith will drop in and post detailed guidance. Or check out his build thread. He goes into everything in great detail with a lot of pics.

Don

I appreciate the offer but I’m up in NY so not exactly nearby. Maybe I can weld in two cross supports off the rotisserie to have the body supported immediately before and after the rocker panels? My rotisserie has that central cross bar running through it so thinking I may be able to make use of that if I can’t find a jig.
I’ll be sure to look at his build, thanks!

 

Don't cut anymore metal.

I would replace your rockers.

The convertible rockers are very different from the coupe rockers. They are shaped differently on the inner side. They also have two extra layers of metal that is inside the rocker. You can see the inner layers in the photo below.

The convertible rockers are a one piece assembly. They don't come as an inner, middle, outer rocker. The rocker assembly also has the triangle piece that is welded at the front of the car.

It also includes the rectangle piece that is part of the A pillar. The rectangle piece is behind the kick panel.

The rocker is welded to the tulip panel that is on the outside of the cowl panel. Yours are rusted at the bottom.


Tulip panel missing in the photo below:

Inner part of the tulip panel welded to the rocker and cowl panel.

Outer part of the tulip panel.

The placement of the rockers are just as critical as the frame rails. You need some alignment points.

I had one in the front that the triangle piece rested.

I had a bracket that bolted to the seatbelt mounting hole.

I also had an adjustment screw that held up the rear part of the rocker.

Notice all the bracing and alignment points on my jig? Your rotisserie does not have them. The rotisserie also is not rigid, it will flex.

10 photo limit.

Here is a link to the extra bracing that I added to my jig for a convertible.

https://www.camaros.net/threads/ext...-bracing-for-rusty-1st-generation-f-bodies.332553/?post_id=2981617#post-2981617


Your rotisserie does not have the alignment points for the floor pan to subframe holes. If you need the dimensions, I can look them up in my notebook.

 

You said what I was expecting but was hoping for a guru to tell me there was an easier option lol. After looking at all your photos I’m hoping I didn’t screw myself already… If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate the dimensions.

What rockers did you use? I have an AMD floor pan but they have been out of stock for one of the rockers for a little while now.

 

Disregard my last reply, just read @tp_smith comment

 

You have not screwed yourself.... yet. That is why I mentioned not to cut anymore metal.

The distance between the rear subframe mounting holes are 33.75 inches. Those are the captive nuts on the floor pan. I had to stand on the hump of my floor pan to stretch it out to get the spacing to be 33.75 inches.

The distance between the two firewall to subframe bolts are 40.5 inches. This is not the measurement of the alignment hole that is next to the mounting bolt. It is also a captive nut. Here is the location of the front firewall to subframe mounting bolt.

The diagonal measurement from the firewall to subframe mounting captive nut to the rear subframe to floor pan mounting captive nut is 47.75 inches.

The diagonal measurement from the rear subframe to floor pan mounting hole to the frame rail guide hole is 48.25 inches.

All measurements were made with a tape measure from point to point. No tram was used.

Here are the alignment measurements from the fisher body manual.

All my parts are DynaCorn. At the time, they were the only people that made parts for a Firebird. Don't worry, the floor pans and rockers are the same as the Camaro. Quarter panels, tail panel, and a few other parts are different. I bought three pallets of sheet metal at one time to get a quantity discount.

 

In case it’s still not obvious, you should not do this on a rotisserie. Take the time to build a body jig.

Patrick @tp_smith once again delivers an epic response….

Don

 

It seems like every time I feel like I start making progress something new pops up to slow me back down lol. Definitely makes sense on taking the time to make the jig, just got a little overzealous with the grinder and wanted to see some progress.

 

Thanks @tp_smith for all the info! Would you replace the rocker panels before the toe board/firewall panel?

 

You are making progress. The first generation jig is what I used. I have documented proof that it can make a F body.

Put your car on the jig. Bolt it down. Get yourself a notebook. Decide what kind of car you want. You want a stock convertible, one that is slightly modified, or one that is completely customized?

Make a list of the parts that you need. Write them down in your notebook. Take photos and measurements of your car. Write them down in your notebook. Remember that this project can last a few years. Your memory is not that good.

Search the internet for cars similar to yours. If you like one or more of the photos, right click on them and save the photo to your computer.

Then decide what part you feel the most comfortable changing out first. Everybody is different.

Get out of the body shop section on this website. Go to the build thread section and start a new post. The people in the build thread section are much nicer and more civilized.

 

I have a set of plans here for a first gen jig. Since they are no longer in business I can send you a copy. It’s the best jig out there imo. PM me your address if you are interested.

Don

 

@tp_smith
I‘ve already decided that if I am going to be this deep into the car I’m going to customize it and go over the top with it. Been working on the parts list but somehow every time I go over it, the list grows.
I guess the best partof never doing any of this before is that I’ll be equally comfortable changing