I think nothing illustrates the love and spirit an enthusiast has for our beloved Corvette better than one who turns a passion into a purpose. Early on, Chris Sherman nurtured this passion, one that I referred to in part one as being “born into a love affair.” [Author’s Note: This article is free and not behind a paywall. If/when any popups occur, simply click to make them disappear and continue enjoying the restoration.] Here is a quick glimpse from part one, where we got to know Chris a bit better. You don’t want to miss getting to know this builder and his insights into the Bloomington Gold certification process.
CorvSport: “What lit the fire? How did you get into restoring old Corvettes?”
“Chris’s Corvette journey began literally as a baby, and he fondly remembers his dad’s 1957 Corvette. The use of the word ‘journey’ is not a metaphor, as Chris was still just days old when he took his first impressionable trip home from the hospital in his dad’s ’57. That moment left such a mark that Chris can still vividly recall when his grandmother ‘made dad sell the ’57’.
As often happens with us Corvette Junkies, Chris was sucked into the Corvette vortex by family, and that explains the passion Chris still nurtures decades later. This passion led Chris to right the wrong, and he set out to reverse the regrettable decision the family made to sell the ’57. He began a mission to find a first-generation Corvette that could inspire the same feelings his dad’s old ’57 did, and eventually landed on, ironically, a 1954 Corvette…” Continue Reading Part One
How I was Introduced To Chris
“How I found and came to eventually talk to Chris Sherman from TiN Restorations epitomizes the spirit and love he has for our Corvette. Recently, I was in a pickle and needed publishable pictures of a beautiful Pennant Blue 1954 Corvette I saw on Facebook during this year’s Bloomington Gold event. After doing a search on the Corvette Forum, I found a post from Chris and reached out to him through a private message. He promptly replied with a simple message, ‘Give me a call,’ and I did. It was that personal and helpful nature that has earned him an admirable reputation in our Corvette community.
Chris was eager to not only help me with the pictures but also offered up his precious time to chat with me personally. Located in Plano, Illinois, a quaint town just southwest of Chicago, Chris specializes in restoring 1953-1962 Corvettes to NCRS and Bloomington Gold standards…” Continue Reading Part One
The passion that Chris exemplifies led me to develop CorvSport’s new “Meet The Build And Builder” series, so we enthusiasts can personally witness what happens when this passion is transformed into a purpose. Now, it’s time to meet just one of Chris’s creations and learn what it takes to transform an old classic into a Bloomington Gold winner.
1) Before The Work Begins
2) Meet the 1954 Pennant Blue’s Owner
Chris describes Bob S. from Batavia, Illinois, as a “Corvette enthusiast and collector.” Ironically, Bob had a different ’54 he was considering restoring. But after a trip to Carlisle, the game plan changed. Bob spotted this Pennant Blue Corvette, fell in love, and bought her, saying, “This is the one I want to restore!” They remember the Ohio Corvette was “so nice” and 100% the original color! Not much later, Bob turned Chris loose, remarking, “Do as your own.”
3) An Overview of This 1954 Pennant Blue Corvette
Initially, Chris and Bob considered keeping a “survivor” status for Bob’s newly acquired Pennant Blue Corvette. Chris noted that the paint was spotted, the canvas top was missing, and it was a “very complete” running and driving example. But Bob said, “Nope, I want it restored.” There were 3,640 Corvettes made in 1954, and Bob’s was number 1,216 for ’54 production.
When asked what the biggest challenge was with Bob’s restoration, Chris said:
“The Pennant Blue color was 1 of 300, and the toughest part was getting the color correct. We had to make sure we didn’t over-restore the body and could have spent 200 more hours of blocking. We had to hold back and do as ‘crappy’ as they did in 1954… as close to factory.”
My favorite comment from Chris regarding the restoration process was how no two classic Corvettes were the same and that the builder was trying to recreate “perfect snowflakes,” and he went on to say it’s “crude learning about fiberglass.”
Other Key Details:
- Powered by the original 235 ci “Blue Flame” inline 6, rated at 155 HP, with the matching cast iron 2-speed Powerglide transmission, both, as Chris noted, “correct for the car.” The engine has been rebuilt.
- All the “born with” body panels were intact, and none of the original panels were replaced.
- There was no rust and very little damage–fit and finish were “good.“
- The seats and door panels were original and kept.
- Overall, Chris described this 1954 Corvette as “numbers correct.”
- Chris performed all the bodywork while the PPG base/clear paint was farmed out to his go-to guy.
- All the chrome was original and restored to new.
- Without going into the exact numbers, Chris said a build like this is typically $100,000 plus.
- There were no big “oh crap” surprises.
4) The Build: Let The Fun Begin!
“Every Nut & Bolt”
In a nutshell, that is how Chris described this build. He was emphatic that every nut and bolt in this body-off restoration would be “obsessively” touched. As Bob’s Corvette arrived at Chris’s shop and the build began, Chris enthusiastically described the moment:
“We have a new member to the shop. Another REAL Pennant blue 1954 Corvette. This car is 1 of 300 Pennant blue cars produced. The car was originally from Ohio. VERY, VERY original car. We are doing a complete body off and will be NCRS judged. We are already in the process of disassembly. What a great original car!”
♦ December 16, 2018
From Chris: “We lifted the body off the frame! – First time the body has been off since 1954 – VERY VERY original car – Very unique discovery – the car has a hand laid cloth tub (lower firewall to rear valance. This type of tub is normally found on 1953’s and very very early 1954’s. Very out of character!”
♦ January 1, 2019
From Chris: “The body is at the blaster. All the bolt on parts are done and already back ! I have already repaired the hood. It was broken out which is normal.”
♦ February 21, 2019
From Chris: “The body and all the bolt on parts are back from the blaster. We picked it up on 1/25. The body is EXTREMELY nice. There is some collision damage in the RF and LF lower valance. We are already in process of repairing the damage.“
♦ March 4, 2019
From Chris: “We are moving along, we have already repaired the RF damage – we are in the process of stripping a “coating” on the body – What a pain – whatever is on the body in thick and HARD!!!!”
♦ September 23, 2019
From Chris: “After MONTHS of grinding the gel coat off the body – we are onto repairs – the RF and LF got small bumps, nothing big. So now we go towards body filler work and hanging body panels.“
♦ February 5, 2020
From Chris: “Body work is under way – Repair to the RF and LF lower valance – in the corners – looks like it got bumped some time ago – I have body worked around both headlights and the fit awesome!! – I installed the grill and it fits nice – We installed the hood and was having trouble with it closing – we diagnosed a bent RH hinge – replaced it and the hood opens and closed beautiful – the RH hood gap is done and the I am working on the LH hood gap.”
♦ July 27, 2020
From Chris: “A LOT has happened since I updated this page – and happened fast. All the body panels are on. I will try to list the order.
– We reworked the headlight bezels to fit the body.
– We worked the grill and made sure it fit to the body – fit beautiful.
– We fit the hood to the opening.
– Hung the doors, conv top lid and trunk lid.
– Body worked the doors to fit.
– Body worked the conv top to fit.
– Body worked the trunk lid to fit.
– Shimmed all the doors and conv top lid and trunk lid gaps and made sure they fit better than original. I have set a date for primer.”
♦ August 1, 2020
From Chris: “It will have a coat of high quality polyester primer.”
♦ August 3, 2020
From Chris: “The body work is DONE! – The body is being shot with polyester primer! Gap and panel fit is awesome!”
♦ October 1, 2020
From Chris: “We are letting the body sit and experience hot weather and cool weather. Reason is to get all the shrinkage out of the body work and primer. One stage we do not rush. I will start blocking the polyester around Thanksgiving.”
♦ January 2, 2022
From Chris: “We blocked the polyester primer and re coated the body with a good 2k urethane primer and blocked that. We spent the majority of 2021 fine tuning and smoothing the jams.
The body is done and ready for paint! We have been working with our local PPG rep and store to mix the paint correctly. We have a exact match and are tinting the colors to duplicate what was sprayed in 1954. Next photos will be the body in color!”
5) Photo Gallery of The Blue Flame, Chassis, Frame, and Trans in Various Stages
6) Body and Frame Meet!
7) From A Passion To The Finished Product!
♦ Closing Comments From Chris:
“We were at Bloomington Gold this weekend. It was a hot one inside but nice and cool on the inside of the Redbird Arena at ISU (now called the CEFCU arena). Great day of judging on Thursday. Car did really really well !!! My customer is super thrilled to get his first Bloomington Gold. Lots of really really nice and rare Corvettes at the show…” He goes on to note that the Pennant Blue ’54 scored a 99.3 and earned an NCRS Top Flight, scored a 99.9 at Bloomington Gold, and will be at the MCACN in November to earn its Triple Diamond Award.
Another big thanks to Chris Sherman for taking the time to share this incredible build with us. And as always, thank you for joining CorvSport on part two of our new “Meet The Build And Builder” series. If you want to keep up to date with all the fresh Corvette news and maintain a pulse on the lifestyle and culture of this exciting, iconic brand, CorvSport has the fastest-growing Corvette community on our Facebook page, with over 172,000 followers (53,000 since January 2023!). Come join other hardcore enthusiasts and say hello. This is Douglas B. signing off–click here if you would like to see more of my features.
*Note: CorvSport was not compensated by TiN Restorations for this feature.
