new member from florida

[lesbaldridge]

hey everyone. i just figured id introduce myself, and my new project. im currently living in south florida, and am originally from ohio, and might be moving back there later this year. but for the last tem uears and the near future im stuck down here. when i was 15 my mom bought me a 1980 cutlass that i had big plans for ( dont we all at that age ) but unfortunately is met a early demise due to me and some friends snaeiking it out of the driveway before i got my license and going out partying. im posting some pics of the aftermath, so if you have a kid around riving age feel free to show them these and remind them never to drink and drive. this was back in 1990. now 22 years later i have always wanted to get another 80 cutlass to build, but never got the chance due to finances, kids, wifes, etc.. a couple years ago i started looking around for another cutlass to build but south florida is not a good place to find a deal on one of these cars. they are very popular with the lowrider and lift kits w/26" rims crowd, which makes them hard to come by in unmolested condition for a decent price. a coupl emonths ago i found what appeared to be a great candidate for a total rebuild for a price i could live with and picked it up. after a coupl emonths of back and forth, negotiations, and fining someone to haul it 50 miles north for me for a price i could live with i finally got it home a few weeks ago. it has a long way to go and im sure its going to be a year or two before its completed and done the way i want, but after waiting 22 yrs i can live with that.

 

[lesbaldridge]

allright, im gonna try to post some pics. the first ones are my original ride after the wreck. i didnt even own it long enough to have pics of it before the wreck.

and heres my new project .over all pretty clean , body only, no interior, motor or transmission. so i got my work cut out for me.
the guy threw in a small block 350 and a motorstand with the car. after getting it home and running some numbers and looking it over , the 350 is a 86 300 h.p. 4 bolt main crate motor. with 1.94/1.50 64 cc heads. i tore it apart and it looks to be in pretty good shape. it came with a polished edelbrock rpm airgap intake that runs around $325. new. everything else appears stock. i am really leaning towards a 455 olds motor for this car at this time. i may throw the small block together to run while i build the 455 , or i might sell it or look for something else to put it in, just not sure yet, but its a nice bonus along with a motor stand.

 

[Bowiemontecarlo86]

Welcome to the forums bro . I too live in Florida Tampa to be exact. post pics of your ride we all like pics. If you have any questions feel free to ask there is allot of knowledge on this forum.

 

[oldtinsmith]

lesbaldridge,

Welcome to the site. Hope the "custom by crunch" was a learning experience for you ! Your newest Cutty looks pretty solid in the pictures.

Doug

 

[lesbaldridge]

hey guys, thanks for the good words. bowtie, im about 1 1/2 hours south of you, in punta gorda, off exit 164. i always like the montes to, used to have a black 79 monte back when i was younger. had the big 50's on the back with aluminum slots and a small block in it. right when i met my sons mom, think i was 19 or so. we used to terrorize the backroads in that thing till i ran it into the ground..LOL.

and yeah, that crunch custom was a real learning experience for me. by all rights we should have all died in that thing. me and 3 buddies all went out rinking and cruising the back roads in it. i grew up in north-central ohio, where there wasnt nothing but pig farms and cornfields and there was no shortage of backroads. i let my friend drive and he jumped a small hill , went off the road and over corrected it, came back across the road, and hit a grove of small to medium trees. the first 3 got clipped off at bumper level, the 4th tree the car ran up and flipped over , and then the tree fell on the car. there was 4 life flight copters, and two seperate fire depts. that responded. i ended up getting out of the car, drug one of my friends out, and couldnt get the other two out so i started walking for help. someone came along and found me walking along the road. i had 28 shattered bones in my feet and legs. ended up in cast, had to have surgery on both kneew, and around 350 or so stitches in my face. sewed most of my nose and left eyelid back on. i had a large triangle piece of the windshield that went through my eyelid and into the eye socket just missing my eye, still dont know how i got that lucky, should have lost that eye. still missing a piece of my right ear to this day to. and i came out of it better than anyone else, they got really messed up :shock: . but thanks to the doctors at childrens hospital in colombus ohio i healed up pretty good