I was a shop teacher in Sayreville, New Jersey, for 30 years. It was a great run. When I retired, I decided to do a project car. I looked around and found a real junker Corvette-a '77 "rat" of a car. I should have looked some more. Instead, I spent five grand and soon realized I made a huge error in judgment. It was pure junk. All I could really use were the body and the dashboard. I persevered, though, and the result is outstanding.
The project took a solid two years and hundreds of hours of hard labor to complete. The 0.030-over 350 engine was a gift from a shop-teacher buddy. It has Dart heads, a steel crank, I-beam rods, forged-aluminum pistons, Crane roller rockers, a 750 Holley, and a Comp cam. As a result, it has about 450 horsepower and is tons of fun to drive.
Last year, my Corvette took top honors in six of the ten shows I entered. Was it worth all the work? Well, let me put it this way: There's no way I'd do another!
 The first change was the addition...  The first change was the addition of an '82 rear fascia with spoiler. |  The Vette was then stripped...  The Vette was then stripped in preparation for body repair. This portion of the car alone took eight hours. |  While the car was being stripped,...  While the car was being stripped, much of its original interior was removed. |
 The stock L42 was in poor...  The stock L42 was in poor shape and made a woeful 180 hp. |  A new, performance-built 355...  A new, performance-built 355 is good for around 450 horses. |  Partway through the sanding...  Partway through the sanding process, the Vette starts to look like a new car. |
 Priming and wet-sanding f...  Priming and wet-sanding followed. |  Resplendent in a fresh coat...  Resplendent in a fresh coat of Corvette Red, the revitalized '77 pauses for a photo in the North Carolina mountains. | |
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