Work is progressing on the Silva Maco

Update 8-4-09

Tim...I think that grill will look really good in the opening.
Great job on the mock up!!!
The full grill shouldn't cut too much of the light down,
but consider that you will drive it mostly during the day,
a little less light at night may not be a problem.
Besides...if you don't like it...just change it...:D
Marv

Update 8-4-09

Excellent job.
I admire your talent and drive on the project.

Update 8-4-09

Thanks guys,

Owning a Mako has been a dream of mine since I became aware of them, probably in '76/'77 or so. I can't wait to get mine put together and driving. If you like C3 Corvettes and aren't some old stuffed suit, you have to love a Mako. It's all Corvette and then some!

I think I'll probably make two grills for it; the full-width grill, and then the smaller center-section only, which is simply the full-width grill without the extended length... it's not as though I have to make two seperate templates again. Then decide which one I like better, or maybe even occasionally switch.

I know I'm going to like the small one better than before, since it will be two slats shorter than it was previously, and appear less like a '70.5 Camaro RS grill... looked good on the Camaro, but that extra-tall look doesn't cut it on the sleek low front end of a Mako!

~Tim

Update 8-8-09 Lower valence filled in, looking good.

Ok, I finished filling in the lower valence, re-sealed it, and remounted the headlights to get a feel for it. I like it better.

Also, I'm now leaning towards the smaller grill, as pictured in the mock-up following. I spent so much time on the headlamp treatment and think it looks fantastic, and I don't want to bury it behind a grill.

So, here's the basic idea. This mock-up grill isn't quite deep enough, but I'm almost done with another that is. I'm thinking that if I paint the car black, I'll use brushed aluminum, and have it anodized black. It will look outstanding. ~Tim

8-9-09 with Parking Lamps mocked up

Mocked up my amber-lensed '68/'69-style marker/parking lamp/turn signals. I like it! ~Tim

8-9-09 with Parking Lamps mocked up

Lookin' good !!!!!!!!!!!

8-9-09 with Parking Lamps mocked up

Been thinking about maybe adding a front spoiler. If I go that route, I think I'll mount the turn signals down there. Not sure I like them in the bulkheads, although with the bumper on, all I'll see is the flash in the opening.

8-9-09 with Parking Lamps mocked up

If it were me I would run the grill over the lamps to hide them, they still shine thru pretty good and are illegal either way,
My 66 had lamps in the grill with the grill over the lights, looked trick,
I plan to run a front spoiler on mine, a personal version of the 78 pace car design,

8-9-09 with Parking Lamps mocked up

Hi- It looks like the silva catalog cover sketch. Those lite housings are great. But I dont like the grille or (sorry) the parking lites. Why not make a custom shaped amber lense contoured to fill the corner? maybe start bwith a 70 vette lense, I think it was amber and has the reflector pattern so would look factory. You may have to fab a housing . The grille, you could entend the bottom bar all the way across, and the bars above it each a little longer to match the round contour of the lites. It could look different looking down on it from a standing over it position. From the front shot, the grill looks like an after thought against those (beautiful) round lites.
YOU have done a LOT of work on this car! Looking good!
Skip

Nose

Hi Skip,

Good to see you on the board. You were a big help to me in sending me pictures of your Mako's nose, and how the front end treatment looked. Thank you.

I'm glad you like the round/factory-ish lights... I think they are very attractive in the grill opening and look as though the car was built that way. My objective is for the grill to have that same "from the factory" look.

Since I mocked it up out of wood, I had to use vertical bracing that's easy to see in the images... out of metal (aluminum), the bracing would be minimal and recessed so it would not break up the horizontal lines of the grill.

My initial impression of the smaller grill was exactly like yours. That said, after I filled in the lower valence and lost a couple of slats of the grill (making it shorter), it really began to grow on me. Tony Ta's yellow Mako (owner's section) has a very similar grill treatment, but there are no great shots of it. It initially seems "too small" in width, but it has grown on me (no pun intended!).

I've played with exactly the same thought you came up with: Making the bottom slat run full-length, and then tapering the others to follow the edge contour of the lights. In my opinion, when I get the the middle of the light and it starts getting wider again, it gets too busy. I also thought about covering only the inside pair of lights to make the grill wider, but still leave some headlamp detail exposed.... might work, but if I was going to go that route, I should have just used single round lights on each side; I like the duals.

So, I'm probably going to move forward with a grill similar to what I've got, although of aluminum (again, probably brushed and black anodized). It will look much sleeker in production form; may have an extra slat or two but be the same overall height in the opening (maybe more of a "finished look" that way?). I really like the look of the full-width grill (you would too; it looks so damned cool), but again, I would loose all my headlamp treatment behind it. Bottom line is that whatever I choose to do, I can change later if I come up with something better. I may just make two grills, one short and one full, money notwithstanding!

~Tim

Rear work begun

Started on the rear clip today by cutting out a piece of the lower rear valence roll pan. My car's lower valence wraps all the way under the gas tank. I'm going to make it flanged and removable in order to place the body back onto the restored chassis after paint, and also to access the gas tank, rear end, etc.

I selected a removal point which would not be noticable from the sides, and would take advantage of the natural body break at the bumper line:

Rear work begun

Very good idea.
I want to do something like that for my 73, because it is nearly impossible to get the gas tank down also it will make it easier to access the firebird tail lamps in my car.

Rear work begun

I did something very close to this and it makes it a lot more easy to get up and under the tail end.Makes for a quick bulb change when needed to.

Fathom427
Jim

Rear valence progress, and exhaust cut-out repair

Got the rear valence section removed; cut a couple of 3/4" wide strips of fiberglass to use for tabs/flanges. Glassed in flanges to the inside of both the removable piece, as well as the lower rear roll pan where the panel adjoins the car.

This car had cut-outs in the lower rockers behind the rear wheels for behind-the-tire exhaust, Trans Am style. Filled those in with matte and resin.

Progress pictures:

Firefingers wrote: Rear work begun

Started on the rear clip today by cutting out a piece of the lower rear valence roll pan. My car's lower valence wraps all the way under the gas tank. I'm going to make it flanged and removable in order to place the body back onto the restored chassis after paint, and also to …

Rear work begun

Hi- I made a valance extenstion that looks like part of a bellypaN Look that runs close to the rear end. Its maybe 2 feet deep and covers some of the rear end stuff . I prefer that covered look. A falt peice of 16 gauge (.0625 ) steel is needed. I dont kow if thinner would hold the shape with no buckles. There is no special bending needed, it makes its own curve when attatched. I used sheet metal screws. Made sure you have metal for the screwd to hold into so your valance doesnt become someones windshield!
The grille- I have the quad recrangular lites so my grille was shortened also. I just dont like it. Im thinking maybe 58 or maybe its 59 buick which is chrome, maybe half inch squares. My bezels are chrome so for me it may work. I believe its 57 buick that has a convex curved grille that has many thin, close together vertical slats. . It may be a possibility because the curve would follow the theme of your curved lites. The ends would be tricky around the round lites but wouldnt be that difficult. (especially compared to what youve already done! ). Im sure you can find some grille pics in the buick car clubs website.
Good luck
Skip

2Sharks wrote: Rear work begun

Very good idea. I want to do something like that for my 73, because it is nearly impossible to get the gas tank down also it will make it easier to access the firebird tail lamps in my car.

Grill work begun

I had a custom metal fabricator over today; we went around the Mako front end, played around with my mock-up, and landed on the full-width grill design in polished aluminum.

Supposed to take only 2-3 weeks; if I get it back in a month I'll be happy. The full-width grill just plain looks great in the grill opening, and when you're up close you can still see the headlamp detail. The fabricator said I'd have a pretty big "drop" left over from the aluminum sheet, and I asked if he'd make the smaller center-section grille as well if there is enough material... that would be cool to have two actual grills to play with.

The rear valence is getting close to done; got the side tabs/flanges glassed on, got the mounting tabs glassed in for the top of it as well. Fits well and looks great. Got those pesky exhaust cut-outs glassed back in as well.

Pictures to follow in a day or two.

fathom427 wrote: Rear work begun

I did something very close to this and it makes it a lot more easy to get up and under the tail end.Makes for a quick bulb change when needed to.

Fathom427 Jim

Custom upper air extractors

Ok, I agonized long and hard about this one... while I want to stay true to the Mako Shark, some creative license is in order... I woke up a few weeks ago with a vision of my Mako B-pillar/fastback in my mind... it had scoops on it like a '67 Shelby, in the style of a Le Mans race car like a GT-40. I couldn't get the vision out of my mind, and every time I revisited it, I came away liking it.

So I did it.

I located a pair of original '67/'68 Shelby upper air extractor scoops, and proceeded to sacrilegiously hack them up... literally. I removed all the material between the rear points, recontoured the sides to match the curve of the Mako, tapered the upper surface to follow the same curves, and recut the opening so that it would be parallel to the B-pillar's leading edge. It took me about two weeks to rework them so that they are "made for the Mako." I've just mounted them for the first time after all the rough work has been completed, and wanted to share the images with you.

I realize this is going to be one of those things that a Mako guy is either going to love or hate, but the Corvette has the same slender hips that the Shelby and fastback Mustangs of the late 60's had... the application fit perfectly and I think it really adds to the aggressive nature of the car.

I'm not sure how much detail you'll be able to gather from these pictures, but the rear points lay directly over the car, with no "platform" between them as on a Shelby... lot's of work there, but I think it really streamlined the scoops.

Anyhow, I hope at least some of you like them as well as I do. They add a real racy look to the car, and in my opinion are in keeping with the styling and lines of the car. Overall, I consider them a huge "plus."

Note that the rear filler panel is still removed and in the process of being fine-tuned. Obviously the entire nose is still off the car, too.

Enjoy!

Firefingers wrote: Rear valence progress, and exhaust cut-out repair

Got the rear valence section removed; cut a couple of 3/4" wide strips of fiberglass to use for tabs/flanges. Glassed in flanges to the inside of both the removable piece, as well as the lower rear roll pan where the panel adjoins the car.

Thi …

Custom upper air extractors

Im not sure if I like them or not. but you did a great job on them.

Fathom 427
Jim

skip wrote: Rear work begun

Hi- I made a valance extenstion that looks like part of a bellypaN Look that runs close to the rear end. Its maybe 2 feet deep and covers some of the rear end stuff . I prefer that covered look. A falt peice of 16 gauge (.0625 ) steel is needed. I dont kow if thinner would hol …

Custom upper air extractors

Was not an uncomon mod back in the day

Firefingers wrote: Grill work begun

I had a custom metal fabricator over today; we went around the Mako front end, played around with my mock-up, and landed on the full-width grill design in polished aluminum.

Supposed to take only 2-3 weeks; if I get it back in a month I'll be happy. The full-width grill just …

Custom upper air extractors

Again, its all about custom.
I like it, and have even considered it in the past for my car.
Just keep going, you're almost there.