Good News and Bad News...
The good news is that I was able to replace the oil filter adapter gasket today and it was visibly damaged.

The bad news is that I still have an oil leak and I also have a coolant leak.  A new thermostat cover gasket should take care of the coolant leak but I think I am going to let a mechanic take a crack at diagnosing the oil leak. It appears to be coming from above the oil filter but not from the adapter so I am stumped.
While I was at it today I fixed the lock on the right rear door, screwed the molding back onto the front seat, put some velcro on the old back seat to hold the seat cover and vacuumed the carpet for good measure.  The extra bumper that was in the back floor is now safely stored on the shelf in the garage freeing up some space for passengers in the back seat.  That came in handy this evening as our neighbors wanted to cruise around the neighborhood.
I guess the big victory today was that I got the windshield wipers working.  It turns out that there was just a wire that needed to be connected.  I will need to find a screw and washer to hold the control cable on but that should not be too hard.

Here are pics of the engine cowl identification plate and the VIN.

For those of you who are interested, here is the meaning of the VIN:
V = V8 engine
C = Belair (cheaper versions were the 150 and 210)
57 = Year manufactured
A = Built in Atlanta
13806 = This was the 3,806th car to come off the line.

Cowl information plate:
Style 1019D = 4 door sedan (kind of hard to see in the picture)
Body No 7892 = Sequence number of the body
Trim 665 = Med. Blue Vinyl w/ Black & Blue Pattern Cloth
Paint 810D = India Ivory/Larkspur Blue

http://www.oldride.com/library/1957_chevrolet_bel_air.html
Series 2403, Style 1019D, Body Type & Seating 4 dr Sedan - 6P, Factory Price $2,390, Weight 3,272 lbs, Total Production 254,331

Next up, having a mechanic diagnose the oil leak and getting the brakes checked.

It Fits!

It Fits!

Worked all day in the 95 degree heat to clean out and rearrange the garage (with Amy's help) and was able to fit the Belair in...just barely.  There is enough room to squeeze around the front of the car with the garage door closed so I will take it.  Plenty of room between the car and the workbench.  My (early) Father's day gift from Amy was a creeper to save my back and a couple of jack stands that are better quality than the stands I already have.  Safety first.
Here is a picture of my dad from the trip to pick up the car, the pictures from the advertisement - consider them "before" pictures, and a couple of what it should look like in a couple of years when it is finished.

Dad looks at least as happy as I felt.

283cu 4 barrel - Not the original but a reproduction.
I have the original oil bath air filter but the previous
 owner told me that the hood will not close if you try
to put it on.  I will test this tomorrow but have no
reason not to believe him. He sold me two original
carburetors; one with manual choke and one with
automatic choke.  He also included a rebuild kit so I may
give that a try.  

Original carbs and the rebuild kit.

Original interior - black and blue.

Notice the cigarette ash tray on the back of the front seat.  Needless to say, there will be no smoking in the restored car.  

The steering wheel and dash were original "Larkspur" blue.
 It is a baby blue or powder blue color (see pics below). 

You can see the original color peaking through the chips
on the wheel.

Check out the original color where the kick panel is missing.

The headliner will be replaced after painting.

The Purchase

5/19/2011
My dad, who is just finishing up his own 19641/2 Mustang convertible restoration project, made the 11 hr trip from Clearwater, FL, rested for a couple of hours, and then joined me on the 22 hr round trip to bring the Belair back home.  He not only split the driving with me but had the knowledge to get the rear brakes unlocked so we could get the car out of the previous owner's garage.
Jason's Belair

5/20/2011
I quickly began making a list of items to work on, beginning with safety and infrastructure and ending with convenience and luxury.   An oil leak had to be addressed immediately and it appeared that it was leaking around the oil filter so I figured that an oil change should be first on the list.  I quickly learned my current oil filter wrench would not fit and the position of the filter would not allow me to use the friction strap wrench.  My neighbor, Aaron, contributed an old screwdriver and we broke out the hammer to drive it through the filter and loosen it up.  The over-tightened oil filter made me think that perhaps the leak was simply a matter of a damaged oil filter seal and the new filter appeared to do the trick.  We spent the next half hour or so joy-riding around the neighborhood and giving the neighbors rides.  As soon as the engine heated up the oil leak reappeared and it seemed to be coming from around the filter again.  We did not have easy access to a lift and it was getting late so I figured I would take it to a local mechanic for a head to toe  inspection and oil leak diagnosis.

5/22/2012
I stopped by the local auto parts store to pick up a drip pan, oil filter wrench and look for door lock knobs and got to talking with the owner about my oil leak problem.  He happened to specialize in late model Chevy engines and explained to me that the original oil filter was a canister that fit inside the engine and that a special adapter had been placed on the engine to allow a modern external screw type oil filter to be used.  Between this adapter and the engine is a square shouldered gasket.  The only way to buy one of these gaskets is as part of the original canister filter so I spent about seven bucks just to get the gasket.  My next task is to clean out the garage so I can fit the car inside and then I will tackle removing (and saving) the good oil, removing the oil filter adapter and replacing the gasket.  In the mean time, I have been rubbing the steering wheel with denatured alcohol on a rag and revealing the original steering wheel color (Larkspur Blue).  Pictures to follow.