ABOUT OSBORNE CORVETTE REPAIRS

I began working on corvettes about 4 years ago after 14 years of working with fibreglass as a mould maker. Going full time about 2 1/2 years ago, working from home. This enables me to keep overheads low and thus also the hourly rate that i charge. I do not run accounts and require ongoing fortnightly progress payments. This enables me to eat and ensures that you do not get a big bill at the end of the job. I will be brutally honest here, most people have no idea how much time or money these cars can consume. As i guide i have endeavored to log the amount of time my part of these projects has taken. Due to the nature of these vehicles i will not work to a quote. I will not cut corners, there is only one way to fix them and that is properly, and that can be costly.

Experience has taught me the value of using the best quality parts and panels that you can buy. It is often more cost effective to replace a panel than repair a badly damaged panel. I will not name brands but not all reproduction parts are created equal. A cheap part may require lots of work to get it to fit, a cheap chrome part wont be cheap after re-chroming... you get the picture. If you are interested in using my services, it could be a good idea to contact me before ordering any parts.

I am able to appraise you corvette before work commences, and for a modest fee, look at any vehicle you may consider purchasing. You should be aware that a coat of shiny paint can and usually does hide a host of badly done repairs, Very few of theae cars have got through the last 40 years unscathed. In the 70s and 80s, these were not worth much and most crash shops had no idea how to repair them properly.

I fully guarentee my workmanship. Your part is to understand that new fibreglass and old fibreglass can pull against each other in hot weather and reveal repair lines, and do not indicate poor workmanship. Add to this, factory faults such a pull from bonding strips riveted to framework and poor gaps between panels.

As a rule i do not offer finishing and painting services. I am happy to work with a painter of your choice and present the car with all fibreglass repairs complete and ready for him.

Please feel free to contact me at mr-osborne@hotmail.com with any questions.

Thankyou.

REPRODUCTION PARTS I MAKE

An air cleaner canister for 1962 fuel injected cars and a set of interior rear window trims for 1963 split window coupes. Both can be painted or chromed.

1968 ROADSTER work in progress

The whole front was loose, barely bonded on, the inner guards were not bonded on. Off comes the front clip to be re-bonded later. Firewall is very badly damaged and requires a donor swap. It too is basically loose and gooed up with silicone and rusted badly. After repairing the rust in the birdcage, it had to have a twist pulled out of it as well. The front clip will go back on when the car is back on the chassis. The top corners of the windscreen frame and one pillar have been replaced as well. Attention is now focused on the rear. The far rear body mount plates, encapsulated nuts and hinges all need to ne replaced due to rust and bends.

Stay tuned for updates.

1971 ROADSTER

This car really is an example of what can hide under a coat of shiny red paint. The pictures cant show the huge amount of work done on the nose of it. Everything was held together with silicone and it was like jelly... as well as a few dozen rusty steel rivets under bog and 'glass. These cars never cease to amaze me with the shoddy standard of repairs i find. The car is now on the rotisserie and repairs are underway on the rear body mounts, one of which was totally crushed.

WORK IN PROGRESS...

1964 GALAXIE HEARSE

My own Hearse. The roof was so rusted it was not salvagable. So i made a whole new, taller roof for it.

SIDE PIPE UN-CONVERSION ON A 68

Removal of side pipes and opening up the rear entry exhaust holes. On this car i also fitted a power steering conversion kit. As it was able to be done without damaging the paint, this job took about 30 hours.

C2 1964 BIRDCAGE

I dont know if anybody has ever pulled one of these out of a car to fix it, but as it was out for a special project it was an ideal time to repair the major rust. It was swiss cheese. I suspect lots of C2s have this sort of thing hiding under the skin.