Jason Line's Biscayne Blog (1/18/2010)

Editor's note: Jason Line is transforming a 1968 Chevy Biscayne station wagon into an 800+ horsepower, grocery-grabbing beast. Jason will detail the build in a series of blogs, including this installment which covers the gameplan for the build.

As I mentioned in my first blog, my original plans for the project changed almost as soon as I got home from the long drive from Arizona. For example, I originally saw this as a 10-year project, something I could tinker with, and probably wouldn’t even touch until after the season.  Instead, I barely had it in the driveway before I started working on it, ripping off the hideous full-width mud flap from behind the rear wheels.  I really should have known better, because once I get involved with something, I usually keep going on it until it’s finished, because if not, I might lose interest, scrap it and move on to the next thing.  As a result, the wagon will probably be done some time this year. 

In addition, the plan to use the original 427 drive train was soon dropped in favor of building an entirely new big block from scratch which we’ll talk about in the next blog.  This is the result of another of my personality traits, where I tend to go more than a little overboard on any project. 

Finally, I thought I could get away with doing this entire process rather inexpensively.  After all, it was just a plain Chevy wagon, so getting parts to fix it would not be a problem.  I quickly found out that my reasoning could not have been further from the truth.  Doing the bodywork, engine work and anything else necessary cost just as much.  Still, I was really enthused about the entire project. After all, the tradition in my family is that we never sell anything, so I know we’ll get years and years of use and enjoyment from this car once it’s done.

Armed with this new plan, I began the long and tedious process of taking the car apart, putting together a list of the parts I would need to get the job done. Keeping in mind there is not a lot of demand for wagon parts, I did some extensive searching on the internet to find some of the more quirky ones. I was also able to find a lot of what I needed in the Summit Racing Equipment catalog.  Even though the build was going to take several months, I wanted to get as much of the inventory put together as time and my wallet would allow.  I would recommend that to anyone putting a project together.  If you can afford it, having all the pieces in place helps ensure the project will get done.

Having committed to a total rebuild, I knew I would need help.  I was comfortable handling anything related to the drive train, but thought the bodywork would be best in the hands of someone else.  This is something I would pass along to any prospective hot rodders – do as much as you can and feel confident doing, but don’t be afraid to farm out some of the work you can’t handle.  Even if it means delaying your project while you get the money, it guarantees the job will be done right, and you’ll end up with something you can have fun with. 

Fortunately, during my daily drives into the KB Racing shop, I had noticed this one place, Street Customs & Restorations in Mooresville, NC, that always had some nice muscle cars parked in the driveway.  Thinking they might be able to help me with the Biscayne bodywork, I decided to stop in.   I met the owner, Jim Smith, and realized pretty quickly that I had found the people to work on my wagon – they do some amazing stuff.  We’ll be talking more about Jim and the gang at SCR in future blogs, but I wanted to mention them here, as they got involved very early in the process, and helped to keep it moving along.

So there you have it, the foundation for what I believe will be a tremendous hot rod.  We’ve laid out our project, obtained a vehicle (and a suitable parts car), completely revamped our design, started disassembly, and found someone to take car of the bodywork.  All-in-all, it took about six months to get to this point, keeping in mind that through the entire time I was slightly tied up at work, building and racing my Summit Racing Pro Stock GXP. 

In the next installment, we’ll take you through the process of assembling the engine for the Biscayne wagon including giving you the part numbers to put together one of your own – can you say 800+ horsepower on pump gas? Make sure to join us and find out how it’s done.

Editor's note: You can find an up-to-date photo gallary of the Biscayne build here.