HAMMER FAB · BUILD SERIAL

HF-69-01

1969 · Pro-touring restomod

COMPLETED

69 Chevelle SS

1969

CLIENT — STUART, FL

COMPLETED

§ 01

THE BRIEF

We started with a solid 1969 Chevelle SS and set out to build the ultimate pro-touring street machine. The body stays faithful to the original Super Sport lines, finished in classic white with blue racing stripes. Underneath, a modern chassis, big brakes, and a fuel-injected V8 turn the vintage cruiser into a corner-carving daily driver. Every panel gap, suspension pickup point, and interior detail is being worked in-house.

Spec sheet

BODY: 1969 Chevelle SS — body and paint work by Hammer Fab. Pearl white with pearl blue custom stripes
CHASSIS: Roadster Shop SPEC chassis, powder coated black
DRIVETRAIN: GM Connect & Cruise LS3 with GM 6-speed automatic, Holley low-profile intake manifold
EXHAUST: Ultimate Headers coated with Zybar high-temp cast grey coating. Stainless 3" exhaust, TIG welded and mandrel bent. Borla mufflers
WHEELS: One-off Hammer Fab design, CNC-machined centers, painted and assembled in-house
BRAKES: Baer 6-piston billet calipers front and rear. Blue inlay to match the car
INTERIOR: Avant Garde Design custom upholstery, designed in Fusion 360 CAD. Stereo by Hammer Fab, billet steering wheel by Ironworks, Dakota Digital gauges, re-shaped bucket seats — all covered in Moore & Giles leather. Alcantara headliner

§ 02 — Note from the shop

"Classic muscle silhouette with modern pro-touring DNA. Built to drive hard and look right doing it."

§ 03 — Build journal

The updates.

A living log of every meaningful moment on this build — new photos, short notes, and the milestones worth marking.

12 UPDATES · 9 MILESTONES

Milestones

JUL 13, 2026— Final shots — Goodguys 2026
NOV 4, 2025— SEMA 2025 debut — Roadster Shop booth
AUG 15, 2024— Final assembly — drivetrain, chassis, and paint
OCT 5, 2024— Custom interior — Avant Garde Designs
MAR 15, 2024— Body & paint — refinishing in the booth
JUL 13, 2026— Engine bay rendering
JUL 10, 2026— Roadster Shop SPEC chassis — rolling
JUN 30, 2026— Render locked
JUN 1, 2023— Transmission tunnel modifications

UPDATE 12 / 12

Jul 13, 2026

FINISHED MILESTONE

Final shots — Goodguys 2026

Finished car in the sun and at the Texas Motor Speedway Goodguys 2026 show, where it took home a GAP award. White with blue SS stripes, one-off Hammer Fab wheels with CNC-machined centers, and the stance we chased through the whole build.

Driver-side front three-quarter — finished paint and stripes.

Driver-side rear three-quarter into the setting sun.

Rear three-quarter — SS badge and blue center stripe.

Nose-on — cowl-induction hood and blue SS stripes.

Straight-on front — grille, quad headlights, and stance.

Overhead front — hood scoops and stripe geometry.

Texas Motor Speedway — rear three-quarter on the apron.

Speedway sunset — passenger rear three-quarter.

Goodguys 2026 GAP award at Texas Motor Speedway.

Show floor — driver-side front three-quarter in the paddock.

UPDATE 11 / 12

Nov 4, 2025

DEBUT MILESTONE

SEMA 2025 debut — Roadster Shop booth

Honored to debut the finished car in the Roadster Shop booth at SEMA 2025 as one of their top 12 builders. The Chevelle also picked up a Best on RS Contender award. Owners, builders, and vendors all met on the show floor to celebrate the finish of a long build — an unforgettable week in Las Vegas.

SEMA 2025 — parked under the Roadster Shop banner on debut day.

Hood up on the show floor — LS3 on display in the RS booth.

Front three-quarter with the hood open under the RS lightbox.

Reveal morning — Coverking cover with Hammer Fab and Roadster Shop Equipped graphics.

The Hammer Fab crew alongside the finished car in the Roadster Shop booth.

Best on RS Contender award — top 12 builders at SEMA 2025.

Interior on the show floor — front buckets, console, and SS dash.

Front seat detail — Moore & Giles leather with contrast blue stitching.

Rear seat detail — matching pleats and perforation under the package tray.

UPDATE 10 / 12

Aug 15, 2024

ASSEMBLY MILESTONE

Final assembly — drivetrain, chassis, and paint

Final assembly in full swing. The GM Connect & Cruise LS3 gets dressed with a black serpentine accessory drive over the blue block, and a Holley low-profile intake manifold is fitted so the stock hood closes with no clearance issues. The engine is then dropped onto the Roadster Shop SPEC chassis with long-tube headers, stainless flex sections, and a custom X-pipe routed through the frame. Out back, the Ford 9" rear end is hung on the parallel 4-bar with Fox coilovers and drilled rotors. Meanwhile the body is in the paint shop — Le Mans-style blue stripes laid over white, being color sanded and polished.

LS3 front dress — black serpentine accessory drive with billet pulleys over the blue block.

Power steering pump and accessory drive detail.

Overhead — LS3 and 6-speed auto mocked into the SPEC chassis with stainless exhaust.

Custom stainless X-pipe routed between the frame rails behind the transmission.

Long-tube headers and coilover front suspension on the rolling chassis.

Valve cover and header detail — blue block against the black chassis.

Rear chassis assembly — parallel 4-bar, Fox coilovers, and drilled rotors.

Ford 9" rear end mounted to the SPEC frame.

Rear coilover and 4-bar mounting detail.

Body in the paint shop — blue stripes over white, masked for color sanding and polish.

UPDATE 09 / 12

Oct 5, 2024

INTERIOR MILESTONE

Custom interior — Avant Garde Designs

Avant Garde Designs out of Palm City, Florida built the entire interior. They flew out and 3D-scanned the bare metal inner structure (hence the scan target dots covering every panel), then designed all of the interior panels in Fusion 360 to be resin-printed and installed with magnets. Finished with an Alcantara headliner, custom Mercedes-Benz carpet, and Moore & Giles leather — hand-stitched by the best in the business.

Bare metal shell prepped and coated — scan target dots applied across every inner panel.

Rear interior floor and wheel tubs coated black — targets set for full-body 3D scan.

Avant Garde applying scan targets to the sail panel before scanning.

3D scan data of the inner structure captured in GoSCAN SPARK — the base for every Fusion 360 panel.

Interior installed — rear seat, console, and door panels finished at Avant Garde Design, Palm City, FL (Oct 2025).

Passenger side installed — console, rear seat, carpet, and door panel in place.

Finished front buckets — reshaped, perforated inserts, Alcantara center stripe, contrast blue stitching.

Front buckets straight-on — matching pleats, perforation, and SS emblem detail.

Bucket seat three-quarter — Moore & Giles leather over reshaped foam.

Bucket seat front — Alcantara stripe, perforated leather, blue accent piping.

Ironworks billet steering wheel — hand-stitched leather with blue cross-stitch detail.

Door panel installed — 3D-printed structure, Alcantara insert, chrome trim, blue stitching.

Avant Garde craftsman hand-cutting a door panel cover at the Palm City shop.

Trunk interior finished — 3D-printed panels, Alcantara-lined walls, carpeted floor.

UPDATE 08 / 12

Mar 15, 2024

PAINT MILESTONE

Body & paint — refinishing in the booth

Body and paint work by Hammer Fab. Shell blocked, sealed, and sprayed with pearl white base, then laid over with the pearl blue custom SS stripes. Shot in-house in the downdraft booth with full paper masking so every inner surface — trunk, jambs, and underhood — comes out as clean as the exterior.

Shell in filler primer — final block work before sealer.

Front clip in sealer inside the downdraft booth — ready for base.

Passenger side after first coats of pearl white base.

Quarter panel and rear glass area — pearl white laying flat under the booth lights.

Driver-side quarter with pearl white base fully laid down.

Rear three-quarter — pearl white base coats on the quarter and sail panel.

Roof and rear glass masked — full paper coverage before stripe work.

Trunk jamb painted and masked off — clean edges before the exterior stripes.

Pearl blue custom SS stripes laid over the white — masked and shot in-house.

Trunk interior sealed and sound-deadened — every inner surface finished to match.

UPDATE 07 / 12

Jul 13, 2026

DESIGN MILESTONE

Engine bay rendering

Concept rendering of the finished engine bay — LS3 with a Holley low-profile intake manifold and smoothed inner fenders, previewing how the drivetrain will present once it's dropped into the body.

UPDATE 06 / 12

Jul 10, 2026

CHASSIS MILESTONE

Roadster Shop SPEC chassis — rolling

SPEC is an engineering-focused approach using the latest in manufacturing technology to build the lightest, strongest, and easiest-to-install complete chassis system. These technologies streamline procedures, resulting in lower cost and shorter lead times. The SPEC IFS is engineered to deliver outstanding performance in a user-friendly package, with a completely new proprietary suspension geometry designed to provide the best balance of ride quality and performance in its class. The benefits of the SPEC chassis: no kinks, bends, or stressed areas that are prone to flex like mandrel-bent tubing; the ability to contour to stock floors for a low-profile design; stronger, lighter, and more precise construction; CNC-located factory mounts built into the frame for easy, vehicle-specific installation; frame rail designs to accommodate mini-tubs; an aggressive 7" ride height for the modern pro-touring look; and 100% bolt-on application. For this build, the Roadster Shop SPEC chassis was powder coated black, then dressed with a GM Connect & Cruise LS3 backed by a GM 6-speed automatic. A stainless gas tank and custom stainless exhaust round out the package. Standard features include: RS exclusive 'Laser Rails' precision CNC laser cut and contoured crossmembers and chassis bracing allowing for 3" exhaust; engine mounts for SBC, BBC, or optional LS & LT; adjustable drop-out trans mount; utilization of factory body, bumper, and core support mounts for true bolt-on installation; SPEC IFS RS SV by Fox fixed valve coilovers; power rack & pinion steering; easy-to-adjust upper a-arm eccentric mounts for fast and accurate alignments; RS forged knuckle with OEM performance sealed bearing hub; parallel 4-bar rear suspension; RS SV by Fox fixed valve coilovers rear; Ford 9" housing with 31 spline axles; and narrowed rear frame rails that allow for wider rear tires when mini-tubbed.

Front three-quarter — LS3 and GM 6-speed auto on the Roadster Shop SPEC chassis.

Rear view — stainless gas tank and custom stainless exhaust routed through the SPEC frame.

UPDATE 05 / 12

Jul 5, 2026

MERCH

SS vertical — Hammer Fab shirt design

New vertical SS graphic developed as a Hammer Fab shirt design inspired by this build. Available on our Shopify store — product link to be added to this entry.

J057

SS vertical shirt graphic by Hammer Fab — available on Shopify.

UPDATE 04 / 12

Jun 30, 2026

DESIGN MILESTONE

Render locked

Final pro-touring direction approved: white with blue SS stripes, one-off Hammer Fab wheels with CNC-machined centers, and a stance that fills the wheel wells without rubbing.

Approved render — 1969 Chevelle SS pro-touring direction.

UPDATE 03 / 12

Apr 12, 2026

CHASSIS

Frame modifications

Roadster Shop SPEC chassis with RS exclusive 'Laser Rails' precision CNC laser cut and contoured crossmembers and chassis bracing. The frame uses CNC-located factory mounts built in for easy, vehicle-specific installation and frame rail designs to accommodate mini-tubs. The SPEC IFS delivers a completely new proprietary suspension geometry engineered for the best balance of ride quality and performance in its class, with an aggressive 7" ride height and a 100% bolt-on design that contours to stock floors for a low-profile fit.

J059

Roadster Shop SPEC chassis — full side profile with front coilover suspension.

Front suspension detail — rack-and-pinion steering and tubular control arms.

Head-on chassis view — front and rear geometry squared up on the SPEC frame.

UPDATE 02 / 12

Jun 1, 2023

FABRICATION MILESTONE

Transmission tunnel modifications

First job on the list. The prior owner had mounted the LS3 and 6-speed automatic too low — low enough that the pan and trans were dragging the ground. We pulled the drivetrain, fabricated new engine and trans mounts to raise the whole package, then cut and re-built the transmission tunnel to clear the taller trans position. Floor and firewall were patched, welded, seam-sealed, and re-coated top and bottom.

Interior stripped — firewall and floor prepped for tunnel modifications.

Trans mocked up in the raised position to mark tunnel clearance.

New engine/trans mount fabricated on the bench — welded up before install.

Old flat trans tunnel from the previous shop — insufficient clearance for the driveshaft and raised engine. The rounded tunnel is our updated replacement.

J066

Low-profile Pontiac G8 trans pan to gain proper ground clearance, with the newly fabricated raised transmission mount fully TIG welded.

Rear floor pan and widened wheel tubs installed — the shell is rock-solid.

Drivetrain back in — LS3 and accessory drive sitting at the correct height on the new mounts.

UPDATE 01 / 12

May 14, 2023

TEARDOWN

Donor car arrives

Picked up in Florida and unloaded at Hammer Fab. Solid 1969 Chevelle SS rolling shell with an LS3 and 6-speed automatic already dropped in by the prior owner — a clean starting point for the pro-touring build.

Rolling off the trailer at Hammer Fab — Florida pickup delivered.

Unloaded in the shop — first look at the donor before teardown.

§ 04 — Process

Chapter by chapter.

Every build is documented as it moves through the shop. Here's how this one came together.

C071

1969 CHEVELLE SS BODY, WHITE WITH BLUE STRIPES

01CHAPTER

Body & stance

The original Chevelle shell was stripped and straightened before the pro-touring stance was set. Classic white with blue SS stripes, kept clean and period-correct from every angle.

C072

ROADSTER SHOP SPEC CHASSIS, POWDER COATED BLACK

02CHAPTER

Chassis & suspension

Roadster Shop SPEC chassis powder coated black, set up with a modern independent front suspension, coilovers, and a triangulated four-link rear. Ride height and track width dialed in for aggressive street handling.

C073

GM CONNECT & CRUISE LS3 / GM 6-SPEED AUTOMATIC

03CHAPTER

Drivetrain

GM Connect & Cruise LS3 backed by a GM 6-speed automatic, topped with a Holley low-profile intake manifold to keep the stock hood line. Custom stainless exhaust and a stainless gas tank finish the underside as clean as the top.

C074

CUSTOM INTERIOR, MODERN GAUGES

04CHAPTER

Interior & finish

Updated cockpit with modern gauges, bucket seats, and a clean stock-style dash. The white and blue exterior theme carries through the details.

§ 05 — Gallery

Frame by frame.

1 FRAMES · SHOT IN-HOUSE

§ 06 — Next steps

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