Hello! The name is Dave and I’ve been posting in various areas over the years. Just realized that I’ve had the car up on jack stands for 10 weeks already and not much to show for it. I actually dove into into the interior first, during lockdown of spring 2020, and it’s on hold. The goal is to get this thing on the road where it belongs next May. It will be a frequent sunny day driver here in Iowa between May and Oct each year.

There it sits……

 

Right now is good painting weather. I have 4 wheel wells, some frame areas, the rear axle, and some trunk sheet metal ready to go. Gonna use the Rust Seal version of POR-15 with a chassis black topcoat on most of it.
Cant decide on the wheel wells. Tempted to use an undercoat of some sorts. Which is surprising, because I just blow torched a ton of that old school stuff off of there.
Anybody have wheel well ideas or suggestions?

 

Looks like a great start. I will be checking your updates.

 

Wheel well before…..



Before the torch and scraper, and before pass after pass of soaking in Goo B Gone.

And now we have this…….



Seems to have been Cameo Ivory body color under all that.

 

First coat of Rust Seal Satin Black. Might be a little shiny for me, so will likely top it with Eastwood Chassis Black.

 

This thread seems to be setting the world on fire. 😁. Probably not really a “major” build. The wheel wells and part of the trunk floor pan have been sealed with Rust Seal, which would be easier to just call POR 15.



Front driver wheel well before.

Same well, different angle.


Goo B Gone ended up stripping off everything down to what looks like original primer.





Then wiped down with Eastwood PRE, scrubbed with water based cleaner greaser, light sanding with 320 grit, then a soaking in acid etch / zinc residue stuff, then 2 coats.

 

Did the brake drums too, so I don’t need to be in a hurry for a disc brake conversion.

 

While I’m at it, might as well lay on the creeper and clean up the underside a bit. 54 years of oil and trans drips preserved things quite well. But it takes a solvent to get that off, so I went back to goo b gone. And just like on the wheel wells, it started to take off whatever paint was under there. No stopping now. Will have to work it and work it until I’m down to clean primer. So… the next couple weeks will be this kind of paint work until it gets too cold to ventilate the garage. Then on to the suspension beginning with the rear. At which time I’ll finally be forced to make a decision on springs and shocks.

 

Before.


After, shot from different angle. After seam sealing, it will still need a top coat of something. Tried KBS Blacktop aerosol in flat on the brake drums. It’s also moisture cured. I liked the look.

 

That car is very clean and dry. Certainly not a Michigan car! Very nice!!

 

Keep the momentum. Car looks solid!!!

 

Hey thanks, Greg! The funny thing is that it was (and is again) an Iowa car. It’s definitely a survivor. The sheet metal is mostly immaculate, except for a couple big problems in the rear that I’ll hire out. I’m trying to do most of the work myself to keep the costs from spiraling out of control.

I got most of the floor pan cleaned yesterday……

 

Appreciate it, Sugar Bear. Moral support goes a looooong way!

 

Pretty clean. If the only takeaway from this thread is that Goo-B-Gone is pretty good stuff, it'll be a significant contribution.

 

Goo B Gone…. Got the idea from a YouTube vid. Mineral spirits is just as effective, but the GBG is in a spray gel format, which clings to the surfaces better. Dissolves rubberized undercoat, oil based paints, adhesives, etc. BE SURE not to get any on your rubber bushings, hoses, etc.

 

While we’re under the car, let’s have a look at the frame. I took it to an old school axle/suspension specialist in my city and they put it up on the hoist. They’ve been around since 1939. Said it was rock solid as expected. This thing looks like it has a story to tell…..

 

With people all into the “patina” look and stuff like that these days, it makes me wonder if I should leave the frame as it is. Anybody have any thoughts on that?

 

Well, you have already cleaned up and painted everything else underneath. I would do the frame too, if it were mine. Just my 2 cents.

 

Most people doing a patina car will leave the outside (paint, trim, etc) as is, but make the rest of the car nice (underside, interior, under hood). I would paint the frame.

 

She shall be anointed with Rust Seal. And top coated with a flat. Time to start wire wheelin. The coatings are on their way.

 

Got er sanded today…..

 

looks real nice....MAW just lift that body up oh a couple feet to get to the rest ?

 

Thanks for all the detailed pictures. Love your passion for your ride. It will be surely pay off big time.

 

Yeh Retro, frame off just seemed too daunting for one guy in his garage who’s learning as he goes. But I thought about it, if that counts for anything. 😃

 

Was blessed with highs in the 60’s this weekend, so yesterday was a long messy day of final prep. ( Of course this whole painting project started with sealing the coil pocket, while the coil and shock were out. And ended up being a total redo of the frame and sheet metal from the firewall back to the mufflers.) So I got under there for final inspection. Then I noticed that I hadn’t prepped the metal right above the rockers next to the frame. So did that and then wiped everything down again with PRE. And, oh yeh, I hadn’t even scuffed the floor pan yet so hit it all good with 320. Here’s a chunk of it post-scuffing…….


Why not drop a bolted on exhaust? Probably because I’d spend more time dinking with that than just working around it. Cleaning the tight space above the drive shaft was fun too.

Then time for the water based degreaser soak and scrub, and then the Rust Blast soak and rinse.

Lake Titti-Caca…….


Containment worked well, but I got pretty wet in the process.

 

That surface looks pretty “thirsty” to me…… Let’s roll……

 

Lookin' good, nice work!

 

Drum roll please…….. 🥁

 

Beautiful, nice job!

 

Thanks, 6D7!

So….I fell for a MAW. Realized I have indeed POR’d most of the underneath except for the rear. Might as well drop the gas tank and finish it. (Finished except for bumper removal, which would be yet another potential MAW.). Got about a 1/4 tank of gas still in there. Never siphoned in my life. Hell, I never imagined I’d be doing any of this stuff myself.

Anyhow, I bought a cheap ball squeeze pump. Then I got too cute with my siphon hose and put a “splint” on it to keep it from curling up in the tank. The splint was made out of cheap plastic-coated garden stake. But like an idiot I made it too short (or just shouldn’t have inserted as far.). What happened is it did the same thing a toggle bolt does behind drywall. Caught a across the neck filler and would not come out. Tried all kinds of things to get it out and finally got pissed and just yanked on the hose. Hose came out. 12” of garden stake and 2 plastic cable ties still in the tank. That tank is coming down now for sure! Gotta get that crap out of there and pronto.

Oh…..I managed to siphon about 2 gallons for my efforts……

 

This type of siphon (jiggler)works great but you do need some minimum to get it started, i have added to the tank to get the minimum knowing im draining.

like yours the hose curls i let it hang and after some time, its nice and straight except for the bend in the middle where it hangs.

if it wasnt for MAWS half the work on our cars wouldnt get done.

Your doing a great job!

 

I had that shaker style in my hand at the store too. Oh well. I’m thinking there can’t be more than about 4 gallons of gas in there. Thats about 25 lbs. Can’t find the weight specs for the tank anywhere, not even on Tanks Inc site. I’m going to try to lower it as is….I think.

This will be the first time I work with AN fittings. Disconnect looks simple enough. 2 AN fittings, the ground wire, and take those other wires out of the clips (there appears to be enough slack). Wonder how much fuel is going to pour on me when I disconnect fittings.



I’m the fool who had the Fitech installer spray rubberized undercoat, while they were at it. I was convinced that I’d never be dropping a tank myself.


i used some carpentry skills to rig a “jig” for use with my jack. Larger spread of weight distribution. Might work great. Might be a disaster.

 

The tank is down. I am beaming with pride. 😁

 

The why is a long story, but when I first got the car a few years ago I threw some money at it for Fitech fuel injection and the necessary tank, etc. The one above is from Tanks Inc. Even with it tilted up on its end to drain the remaining gas out of the neck, it takes some effort. Those internal baffles must do their job well, because I had to tilt it side to side several times to empty it.

It was destined to come down anyway, because I’ve been sitting on a new sending unit and pump that I picked up a while back. Im changing the sending unit from float arm style to “floatless”. Hopefully, that will fix the floaty gas gauge needle. And I’m removing a perfectly good Walbro pump to replace it with another Walbro pump that works with PWM, pulse width modulation. Basically, the Fitech allows you to control a variable speed pump so I’m putting one in. Instead of running full blast continuously, it will slow down when say, idling. Less noise (which really isn’t too bad to begin with) and less heat.

 

Here’s a peek at the underside of the trunk. It looks pretty good except for where the tank makes contact with the braces. The rubberized stuff is peeling off there. I think I’m gonna have to remove it and Rust Seal it. I don’t mind undercoat, but it belongs on top of the sealer. not under.

 

SIDE NOTE…..Some of you South Texas guys might like this…… Prior to me bringing the car to Iowa a few years ago, the car was stored outside San Antonio for about 15 years in an unconditioned residential garage. Wasn’t driven much. Well, the freaking mud daubers had built nests all over this car. I must have found 15 so far. Some were just attached to the floor pan. They loved to build them in protected areas like inside the boxed frame and floor braces. All those places are being cleaned out and eventually cavity coated.

WARNING….. They had also built them in the gas vent hose. That dirt then gets in your tank and clogs your lines. It also blocks the vent and causes the system to burp gas.

Here is the bastard…..

 

Yep, had those little b-tards in New Mexico too. And California, and Arizona, and... You get the idea. They can wreak havoc on open ended hoses and holes of all types and locations. I noticed in your other thread about your chassis that when up on jack stands your door gaps were moving around a bit. Something I ran across a few years ago with my first 67 vert is the polyurethane body bushings. A lot of people have said that the poly bushings can increase the road noise but in a convertible you get a lot more noise anyway so it doesn't seem to make a difference. Using the poly bushings will also stiffen the chassis/body connection so there is much less flex in the total vehicle. My current 67 came with a new set of rubber bushings of questionable heritage and they are fine for the construction phase but I will eventually put the polys on this one too.

Totally green with envy over your 67! That much clean under-body is a beautiful sight. Mine may never get that nice, but it sets the project bar for something to shoot for! Enjoying your progress pics!

 

You have done a good job so far! I'm working on the same car and wish I could do it your way. I have started the whole restomod thing and it is a huge thing. I'm not doing much of the work because I'm to busy working to pay for it to be done. The car came from my dad over 30 years ago and has just sat in my storage for that long. Not sure I will be able to drive it when done due to OCD and living in WA. I would be sick if it should rain when I'm away from home with it. Keep posting I want to watch the progress.

 

Wow, 2 weeks flew by cuz I was having so much fun! Proud to announce I have officially finished the Rust Seal portion of the job. I’ve done some dirty unforgiving jobs in my life, but this one is near the top of the list. Will post some updated pics later today.

cjsdad….. Thanks for your input and nice complement. The poly vs rubber debate continues. I really, really, like the smooth ride of the car and am scared to death of introducing NVH (noise, vibration, harshness.). Particularly concerned about the harshness. So…I declared in yet another of my many threads that I would stay with rubber. Already bought them from OPGI. Those won’t go on until probably April, so I still have time to change my mind.

dabuster….Thank you! I’d like to see a pic of what you’re working with. Don’t fix it all up and then let it sit for another 20 years. Cars are for driving!

 

The lighting makes it look less black.