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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 03:24 PM

Hey gang,

Just wanted to introduce myself and say cool site. I've been cruising around the site for a few weeks now and I am very impressed by the quality of the posts and members (not to mention the cars!). I have been a member of several other car sites and such a large percentage of posts on those sites were rants, flames or whining. I've seen very little of that here and conversely have been EXTREMELY impressed and inspired by the restoration and modification threads that seem to abound.

I have had my project car for over a year, but two kids, a new job and a move from Santa Cruz to Palo Alto have prevented much work on it.

Originally, I intended my 1974 1.8 914 acquisition to be a short term money maker since the car ran fine (relative to not running at all), was currently registered and had some front end damage that I thought would be within my abilities to repair (as limited as those abilities are...). I found the car on http://www.craigslist.org for $450. Since there was a free roller parts car (1975) also available at the same time, I pulled the trigger and got BOTH of them for $450 delivered.

After I got the car settled in my driveway and pryed the hood open, I realized 914 fenders are not bolt on!

So, typical of many 914 owners (especially the members of this site) I got more than I bargained for.

Here is a pic of the front end after I cut the fender off.

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 03:26 PM

OK, that image was huge, so I will try to shrink it down and post it next. I have a bunch of pics so I better figure that out now....

Posted by: tat2dphreak May 25 2005, 03:27 PM

welcome... yes, I think we all got more than we bargained for: more rust, more issues, and more fun!


sounds like you got a great deal though!!


btw, don't hit "preview"... it won't show the pictures... the site is like our cars: quirky

Posted by: SirAndy May 25 2005, 03:37 PM

welcome to the club!
you have come to the right place!

please read the FAQ section on how to prepare and post pics ...
we love pics ...

Andy

Posted by: Brad Roberts May 25 2005, 03:39 PM

Welcome Jake !!



B

Posted by: Headrage May 25 2005, 03:39 PM

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 03:50 PM

OK here is the first pic of the frontend after cutting off the bad fender.


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 03:52 PM

Here is the interior during the initial work. I'm sure it's a familiar sight to many of you...


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:29 PM

Here is a shot of the engine at the same time I was doing the body work. Notice the custom Italian wiring (i.e. spaghetti) and the lovely sponge/firewall pad...


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:40 PM

Here is the left side after the job (pic taken last night).


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:40 PM

Here is the front shot


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:41 PM

Closer fender shot


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Posted by: MW 914 May 25 2005, 04:42 PM

Welcome

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:44 PM

Shot of the weld seam (with 1 year's worth of rust on it - I know, shame on me, but what can I say... I lived by the ocean and have two kids, 7 months and 2 years...)


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:51 PM

Close up of the light bucket. Any ideas on how to remove rust in that tight space easily?


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Posted by: redshift May 25 2005, 04:51 PM

Welcome Jakester!

Looks like the 914 picked you, buddy.

Thanks for showing up with homework... and for making me feel... no wait..

I AM LAZY!

Remove the rust with a small wire brush, then use Ospho, or any other rust converter, then a seal coat of a metal protective paint.



Miles

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:54 PM

Here is a close up of the GAPING hole left behind by my un-expert welding at the crown of the fender where it meets the body closest to the door. Also - MAN they used a lot of seam sealer in this area and it STILL rusted over the years. Had to rebuild the pad for the upper hinge due to collision tweaking.


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:55 PM

The door seam turned out OK to the eye, but closes pretty roughly.


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:57 PM

Here is the interior. This was a daily driver for me for 2 weeks in between selling my '00 BMW 328i and buying the Honda Odyssey. There is still clutter left over from that commute time.


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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 04:59 PM

QUOTE (SirAndy @ May 25 2005, 01:37 PM)

welcome to the club! you have come to the right place! please read the FAQ section on how to prepare and post pics ... we love pics ... Andy

Hope you weren't kidding about loving pics - cause they'll keep coming!

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:03 PM

Here is a later pic of the engine


wait, is that the before pic??? Oh... I can't tell...must be because I didn't do anything to it...

Well, I did replace the firewall sponge with the one from the donor car and "liquid nails" it into place.



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Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:04 PM

Here is a closeup of the weld on the bottom of the light bucket. I know it's hard to orient, but the hole in the center is the light bucket drain pipe.


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Posted by: Carl May 25 2005, 05:05 PM

Welcome. Thanks for sharing the photos and good work on the car.

If you havent' heard, B'fast at IHOP at 280 and Lawrence Expy., Santa Clara this Saturday at 10AM. This is your invitation.

You've got to lose the socks with those sandals.

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:06 PM

A shot of the rear - Oh, the license plate block out is nothing personal - I just don't know you well enough yet


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Posted by: MecGen May 25 2005, 05:07 PM

Welcome
Sit down, have a beer, your hooked now anyways...
This is hands down the best club on the net.
Thanx to Andy and the other admins, we have a place to hang and chill without having your email spammed with peddlers.
Being from CA you will not have too much troubles hooking up with other members...just don't let them touch you....
Later
Joe

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:35 PM

Final pic for today: My ride looking it's best


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Posted by: Gint May 25 2005, 05:37 PM

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 03:24 PM)

Hey gang, Just wanted to introduce myself and say cool site. I've been cruising around the site for a few weeks now and I am very impressed by the quality of the posts and members (not to mention the cars!). I have been a member of several other car sites and such a large percentage of posts on those sites were rants, flames or whining. I've seen very little of that here and conversely have been EXTREMELY impressed and inspired by the restoration and modification threads that seem to abound.

You obviously haven't been around long enough yet, that's all.

Welcome to the club!

Wanna sell that steering wheel? Trade for a nice original factory leather wheel?

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 05:37 PM

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 01:24 PM)

and I am very impressed by the quality of the posts and members

[QUOTE]

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:43 PM

Thanks to all for the warm welcome.

I have to admit, before visiting this group I was satisfied to just slap some bondo on, spray some paint (BC/CC, of course), take care of a few electrical gremlins and be done with her.

After looking at a few rustoration and race car fabrication threads, I don't think I'll be content with anything less than a complete tear down to the tub with a full restoration (my wife will miss me ). I'm sure I'll have to find a happy medium but I have plenty of inspiration nonetheless.


Now, I have two questions (feel free to roast if these are "use the search" questions):

1) What are my wheels called? Are they aftermarket or factory?

2) Anyone know where to get affordable seam sealer? I've only seen the $150/tube 2 part stuff which is difficult for me to justify at this point. Any good alternatives for covering new seams?

Posted by: nebreitling May 25 2005, 05:46 PM

welcome jake!

great to have another local (i'm at stanford). there are actually a handful of teeners just in palo alto! you should definitely be at brkfst on saturday!

Posted by: nebreitling May 25 2005, 05:48 PM

btw your wheels are commonly known as "westerns". they are not factory, but they are a fine wheel nonetheless. 15x5.5 (same as factory) and 'just about' the factory offset.

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:49 PM

QUOTE (Gint @ May 25 2005, 03:37 PM)

Wanna sell that steering wheel? Trade for a nice original factory leather wheel?

Sorry, I LOVE that steering wheel. I assume the factory wheel is GIANT in comparison. I never thought that mine was anything special, though... is it hard to get?

Posted by: jkeyzer May 25 2005, 05:50 PM

And the bay area 914 crew grows one stronger...

Welcome to the site!

Posted by: GWN7 May 25 2005, 05:51 PM

Hello and welcome

Not sure on the wheels, but most try and stay away from seam sealer (it traps moisture = rust). Clean it all out and paint the metal.

Most surface rust (on your headlight bucket) could be sand blasted, treated with POR15 and then painted.

Posted by: Jakester May 25 2005, 05:51 PM

Ha! look at that! 21 posts in only 3 hours! At this rate I'll have 5000 by the end of the year!

Of course, I might shut down our intranet and lose my job...

Posted by: bd1308 May 25 2005, 06:10 PM

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 05:51 PM)

Ha! look at that! 21 posts in only 3 hours! At this rate I'll have 5000 by the end of the year! Of course, I might shut down our intranet and lose my job...

i had a 500 post per month record....and still get bugged about it. Welcome to the crack coccaine of the internet friend.

Posted by: MecGen May 25 2005, 09:15 PM

Hi Britt
Out of 500 you started 499...does that count ?

Kiddin
Later
Joe

Posted by: rick 918-S May 25 2005, 09:55 PM

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 10:16 PM

rants, flames or whining.
How long have you been here???

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 10:20 PM

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 02:44 PM)

Shot of the weld seam (with 1 year's worth of rust on it - I know, shame on me, but what can I say... I lived by the ocean and have two kids, 7 months and 2 years...)

[QUOTE]
Jakester...I'm sooo confused...
Kids make welds rust????

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 10:27 PM

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 03:06 PM)

A shot of the rear - Oh, the license plate block out is nothing personal - I just don't know you well enough yet

[QUOTE]

Uh, We don't know you EITHER there smart guy!!!
After you go to breakfast on saturday, Jenny'll start a new thread and then we'll take a poll to see if we'll let you in or not.

Hey Jenny, make sure to post some pics,
we should'nt let ugly people in either!!!

Posted by: bd1308 May 25 2005, 11:02 PM

relax man...i surely hope your joking....chill dave.....go drink a beer on me.( not literally)

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 11:05 PM

Of course I'm joking.
I would like to know how Jenny's b'fast goes, though!!!

Posted by: Dead Air May 25 2005, 11:08 PM

How sarcastic (over the top) do my replies have to be before I start to sound like Redshift???
that's all I wanna know!!

Posted by: bd1308 May 26 2005, 07:46 AM

QUOTE (Dave Eddy @ May 25 2005, 11:08 PM)

How sarcastic (over the top) do my replies have to be before I start to sound like Redshift??? that's all I wanna know!!

you DO NOT want to sound anything like Redshift AKA Miles Hendrix. Trust me on this guy......


Miles, you know i'm just bugging you

Posted by: tat2dphreak May 26 2005, 07:48 AM

QUOTE (Dave Eddy @ May 26 2005, 12:08 AM)

How sarcastic (over the top) do my replies have to be before I start to sound like Redshift??? that's all I wanna know!!

don't start screwing goats and I think you are safe...

Posted by: Jakester May 26 2005, 09:54 AM

QUOTE (Dave Eddy @ May 25 2005, 08:27 PM)

QUOTE (Jakester @ May 25 2005, 03:06 PM) A shot of the rear - Oh, the license plate block out is nothing personal - I just don't know you well enough yet [QUOTE] Hey Jenny, make sure to post some pics, we should'nt let ugly people in either!!!

Gee, I better back out then - cause even my mother thinks I'm UGLY!

Here's me about 10 years ago - things have only gone downhill since. Guess I won't see you all at IHOP.


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Posted by: Dead Air May 27 2005, 06:49 AM

Just trim your eyebrows and get a couple stitches over your left eye and I think "you're good to go"!

Posted by: Dead Air May 27 2005, 05:58 PM

QUOTE (tat2dphreak @ May 26 2005, 05:48 AM)

QUOTE (Dave Eddy @ May 26 2005, 12:08 AM) How sarcastic (over the top) do my replies have to be before I start to sound like Redshift??? that's all I wanna know!! don't start screwing goats and I think you are safe...

[QUOTE]

Not a chance. Here in NYS, we prefer heifers. And before Ordella, there was... Bessy


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