Hold The Phone! I'm working on MY CAR!, Prepping for paint.... Options

[McMark]

I think it was the Tied House meet that gave me the kick in the pants, but I finally decided to jump in and get started on my car. It's been begging for work for a long time. I'm starting with the rear end sections. Can't wait for it to actually DRIVE! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif) Here's the list off the top of my head.

1. Pull the motor and fix oil leaks, pull the ceramic lifters, clean everything, install carbs (for now).
2. Fix the hell hole and firewall rust, plus weld all the little holes in the firewall. New battery tray and new rear trunk pivots.
3. Fix the 'access hole' some DAPO cut in the rear trunk. The top starter bolt is not THAT hard to get to. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)
4. Clean and paint the engine bay and rear trunk.
5. Clean and reseal the transmission and replace the speedo angle drive.

Here are the pictures from day one.

[McMark]

I finally finished the one thing that started off this whole madness. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/lol-2.gif)
The new rear trunk pivots are in. I bought stock reproductions, then TIG welded the nut boss to the 'frame'. The welds that came on the parts were obviously crap. One of my TIG welds came out better than the other. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) Once the welds cooled, I used some sandpaper on glass to smooth out the face, since the hinge will pivot on that face, and any 'boogers' will cause wear and could cause future damage.



Then I drilled the holes for the rosette welds and painted the back side of the bracket (since you won't be able to get paint back there later). To weld them in I attach the hinges to the lid with the bolts in the middle of their adjustment, and set everything into place. The I line up the gaps as much as possible and use masking tape along the gaps to help hold everything in place. Then using shims I brace the lid up to the correct vertical height. Getting this part right is THE MOST IMPORTANT, since you won't be able to adjust it later. Then ZAP! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif) I used power C and wire feed 5.5 on my Lincoln WeldPak 100 with bi-mix gas for the welding.





Now I can make the final gap adjustments as necessary.