Another FE love story...

[revhead001]

G'day guys,

I thought I'd just share the latest project that has come home to roost. This is the earliest holden I have owned. I have had a swag of them over the years, From a factory auto HR X2, LC  LJ LH LX torana's, HK HT HG HQ HJ kingswoods Premiers utes and vans. Not from a wrecking yard point of view, they always looked rough but I have always had them going hard. I always used to go between Holdens and Datsuns. Although it only recently become apparent that every time I sold a Holden to buy a Datsun, everything turned to crap. Bad luck would settle in. I'm not a crystal hugging, candle sniffing hippy or anything like that but I do believe in Karma, and that the car that my Dad and I chose together as our project car will remain a family heirloom and that is was meant to be in my driveway.

Bought after several months of searching out a project that Dad and I could agree on was difficult. It had to be Holden or Chev and Old. We decided a while ago on the FE or FC but most of the ones we looked at were averege. I am sure that if we kept searching that a better one would have turned up but I am pretty happy with what we have and what the plan holds.



As she rolls into the drive way I have an instant gut feeling about it. It's a very solid starting point with bugger all structural rust but plenty of surface rust. The guy who previously owned it planned to Slam it on airbags and leave it as is, rat style but I would rather clean it up, 50's hotrod style. I plan to retain the grey, I've already started getting some old school carbs and alloy rocker covers. I have to do a fair bit of work on the shed before I'll start though. It's pretty tight in there.



So here it is, in all it's glory. When work begins I'll update, it won't be too long, I'm already itchy.

[hrpremier]

Welcome on board and make sure you keep updates exactly that. Updated.  Once you start Im sure progress will move forward quite quickly as you seem as keen as I was when I started.   I was never a fan of the grey before I bought my FC and am now happy to say ive joined the masses and can appreciaite a hot 138 like most of us on here.  As far as the Datsun fetish goes, thats cool.  My first car was a 120Y fourdoor and the Dato will always hold great memories.

Jase

[customFC]

Sure looks like a tidy starting point.
Look forward to the updates.
Most important though is to have some fun and get a whole lot of enjoyment out of doing the work, especially if your Dad is out there helping.
Regards
Alex

[EffCee]

Nice solid start you have there, I look forward to seeing the car progress through the stages.

As Alex (Custom FC) has said, most important thing is to have fun

Keith

[GOA350]

Welcome to the forum.
This is probably my favorite colour sheme in the FE range, i have very fond memories of being picked up by a guy from footy in one of these, in these colours, and taken to footy training and it was stinking hot and used to scream.
  I look forward to the updates of the build and i too am a huuuge fan of the Grey and am looking forward to driving my one around soon.
 The most important thing you need to keep in your mind while doing the build, is, enjoy yourself and your Dads company while building. Never let it get you down when things aren't going to plan, just go and have a coffee or a beer and come back to it later.
 The best part about these is the building, the driving is fun, but the building is better.
Cheers Scott

[revhead001]

Cheers guys.

It is kind of funny that, as a young kid in the early 80's, a couple of the neighbours had FC's and they were one of the first cars that I fell in love with. But I have never considered buying one as I have always felt that they shouldn't be fitted with bucket seats and small steering wheels. To me at least it wouldn't seem right. As those were the things that I wanted I went for HG's first, then torana's. As a youngling I was surrounded by Holdens. My old street in Strathmore had about 6 or 7 hotted up holdens and at Harry's old place there was never any shortage of burnouts. My dad and Harry were for a long time best mates and I would be forever in the shed alongside the boys messing around with stock cars and smashup derby cars. Dad had a menta LC GTR and later a warmed over one one tonner then the old HT Brougham. Grandpa had a FE, Red and Black, fitting for an Essendon family living near windy hill, and Dad still remembers getting Booed in the car visiting Uncle John in Geelong... But I digress.

One imparticular FC up the road, one of 2 in the drive driven by husband and wife, was a dark, almost a midnight blue, lowered with jelly bean mags and that big gleaming bonnet bird. It was a very impressive sight and one that has never left me. Even their son, Nick went on to create a beast of a FC sedan.

Scott, you will be pleased then to know that the colour scheme will remain.

We will do our best with the bodywork ourselves and the interior will also remain mostly origional, the pattern on the bench will probably change slightly and a floor shifter is a definate, I had pondered fitting a aussie 3 speed to it but I'ss get another gearbox for now, pull one down at work and suss out if I can beef it up a bit. I might have a go at building my own impala style shifter for it. In a H style but with a very close shift. I have been hoarding a Impala shifter lever for about 15 years now waiting for the right car to use it on but I have no mechanism or linkages to suit. I'll have to get my brain out of neutral and make one myself. I'm sure the boys at work will love the idea and give me a hand.

[GOA350]

Hi Revhead,
               i have just fitted a original Impala floor shifter to my FC and it's a breeze, i you need to later to see how to make the mechanism then you are welcome to copy mine.

[Stewy]

Hi Revhead, Glad to hear about keeping the original colours. Our family waggon FErgus is Teal blue roof
over Breton blue body and is in a similar condition on the outside. We are just about to strip him down and give him the mid life make over for the next 50 years! look forward to seeing your progress.
Cheers Stewy.