New Here, Introducing Myself & The New Toy

[bachas]

Hi Guys,
I joined this forum last week as I was looking for a nice EK for my wife and was looking for information.
Well I found a "good one" so thought I would show you guys some pics,
some of you may know this car, others may have seen it on eBay a couple of weeks ago.

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I must admit I have always been more of a US Muscle Car type of bloke and you can see my Pontiac Trans AM in one of the pics i am posting, but after picking this baby up from Brisbane on Saturday at 9am and driving it all the way to Sydney only stopping for fuel every couple hundred K' and arriving home at 3am Sunday I have fallen inlove with it!!

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The bloke I bought it from tells me it is a matching numbers car, they grey motor was reco'd together with the hydramatic sometime last year, there is no rust (that i have been able to spot) and it has only ever had 1 (rear/right) floor pan section replaced, and no sign of the sills ever being rusted/repaired or replaced, the interior is 100% original and complete with only a little stitching coming apart on the front seat.... so I think 10grand was a good buy???

My wife wants it as her daily driver so i have been busy since Sunday Morning calling mates and going through ebay, trading post and "just parts" looking for a few bits and pieces.
So far i have managed to score....
1 complete HR disc brake front end - For FREE!!!
4 HR Steel Rims which i have already dropped off at the powder coaters - FOR FREE!!!
1 Complete 202 Blue Motor with extractors $250 (it will recieve a full rebuild)
Rear venetian blinds from an ebay seller (seem like good quality to me - but then again i have never had a good look at others to compare)
New Under Dash A/C evaporator with built in heater function

and it's only been 4 days hehehe.....

a mate of mine which has a few HR's he uses as bash cars (he's the one giving me all those FREE parts) tells me i should also grab one of his spare HR diffs and to tell him what ratio centre i want as i will need it with the blue motor and its the better way to convert the front to disc, would you all agree?

anyway i am sure i could find the answer to any question i have here, as you guys have a WEALTH of info here....so best i go exploring this forum a bit further...

By the way,
The name's Steve

Ohhh, I do want to get ALL the chrome re-chromed, can anyone suggest a good chroming joint in Sydney? (Im not after "Street Machine Of The Year" quality chrome, but somthing decent....

[Stygian]

Looks like a nice ride there Steve... not surprised you fell for the charms of an EK Holden... there's been a few cars on here purchased from eBay that were rotten, so I really hope that you don't find any nasty surprises...

Good diff ratios with a 202 blue motor would be 3.36 or 3.08. Yes, disc brakes on the front in a daily driver with a 202 is a good idea.

I wouldn't bother with Sydney electroplaters. I recommend Electroplating Technologies in Queanbeyan, near Canberra. They do the job properly (i.e., parts stripped, repaired if needed, then plated first in copper, then nickel and then chrome). None of this dodgy plating chrome straight onto steel business.

As you know, there's a stack of knowledge on here, especially on red/blue motor conversions. So don't be afraid to ask.

[Rusty EK]

G,day Steve , She looks like a nice old girl , hope your wife enjoys her , keep us updated on your upgrades and welcome to the Forum

[danFBwagon]

Hey Steve, welcome to the forum looks like a great buy there your plans sound perfect for a daily...

[Thommo]

Gday Steve, welcome to the forum mate
The EK looks to be a sweety, tastefully dechromed but not stripped
Keep us informed how you get along with it

Cheers
Jeff

[Dakam]

Hey Steve, welcome to the forum.
It looks like a ripper.
You dont muck around getting bits, and even better they were FREE

Dave.

[Sputzwagon]

Welcome to the House of Fun..now you've come of age...Steve
That's a nice looking EK you've bought the Missus.
You'll definitely be going the right way making it Disc-braked! Mine still has a Grey but I'd never go back to the old drum front end. They just make the driving of 'em that bit easier and no raw nerves in a panic stopping moment!
Are those wheels on it 14"?? If so a 3.36 diff should be perfect for the 202 (Chew'O'Chew)for cruising.
Don't forget to take photo's of the compliance plate & chassis/engine numbers for the forum records too..(It'll make Steve Jackson's day ).

Cheers & welcome,
Scotty.

[bachas]

Thanks for the welcoming messages guys, what least could i expect from a "Holden Bunch" hey??
If it makes you guys feel any better i have never been a "#or@" man! nor have i ever owned one LOL

I know what you mean Sputzwagon!, Those panic stopping moments of 4 wheel drums are somthing else! LOL
i had a few on the way down from brizzy....infact the last one i had was in the last 20minute stretch home at 2.30am on Pennant Hills Road (Sydney Boy here), and to avoid one of those new saftey speed/red light cammeras i HIT the brakes, and the front right drum kinda seized up on me, making me drive all the way home with that burnt brake smell spoiling the 3am breeze through the quater window you can only experience in a classic vehicle.

few pics of compliance plate coming up!!!, i'd love you guys to tell my about my (wifes, hahaha yeah right!) car by its numbers

[Mick]

yep get that diff off ya mate (you will need complete drum to drum housing) as the rear brake cylinders and shoes are different to the drum brake front ones
personally i would have picked a 186,179 etc as the 202 generally means more work for the engineers report besides the normal stuff they usually also want dual circuit brakes and a collapsable steering collum both not bad things to have if you want them

[bachas]

As requested here is a pic of the Compliance Plate
What can yous tell me from the numbers?
(Should I have posted this in a different section?)

The colours on the car are the right ones:
Cameo Beige body with Snowcrest White Roof
The interior should be brown/tan with mulberry inserts.
Originally a hydramatic as you say.

Looking at the numbers, roughly August-October '61.

[Devilrod]

Welcome Bachas, looks like a great buy and sounds like some great plans. Although I'm with Rat loose the 202, thirsty buggers those things. A 186 or 179 will go just as well and be a bit easier on the pocket for a daily.

[EK Dreamer]

Welcome to the forum Bachas... you have yourself a very nice EK...love the pink!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was the colour i was looking for You will have lots of fun driving in your little pride and joy! hehe... just some info... give a wave to other old classics when you drive... you will be very surprised on how many actually wave back at ya that you dont know

[Cal]

Nice colour