A Texas Sized Project - 1975 2.0L, 12/8/20 - Wiring & Interior Update Options

[aggiezig]

Time for some sheet metal updates....

Here's the trunk with what was left of the rear floor removed:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195773.1.jpg)

We decided to weld the RD floor panel to the existing lip as a flange using rosette welds. Here is that lip cleaned up:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195773.2.jpg)

After some sandblasting, you can see the areas that are heavily oxidized with rust (black spots). These areas were treated with PickleX20 and then top coated with Zinc Weld Through Primer for now.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195773.3.jpg)

Starting to fit the new panel from RD:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195773.4.jpg)

First issue encountered -- the original trunk floor sat much lower than this replacement panel, causing an interference with the two reinforcement supports and with the trunk latch mounting bracket. In this picture, we had already trimmed the supports and latch bracket to allow the repair panel to slide up high enough in place:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195773.5.jpg)

Doing some minor shaping to get the replacement panel to fit snugly:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.6.jpg)

Here's a reference shot of how much higher the new floor sits as compared to the old. The old was spotted in where the holes are drilled. You can see the new floor level through the holes cut for patches.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.7.jpg)

The second issue we ran into is with regards to these bumper support pieces. Originally, the floor was tacked to these supports (see circles where old spots drilled out):
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.8.jpg)

The new panels have a corrugation that falls exactly in the middle of this support, creating a gap between the two pieces:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.9.jpg)

I blasted the tops of these bumper supports so that they could be top coated with Master Series encapsulator as they will be "sealed up" when the floor is welded back down.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.10.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195774.11.jpg)

We decided to coat some other areas with MS as well including the inside of the transmission support frame. I also broke out the siphon gun to spray the inside of the sail panel I cut open:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195775.12.jpg)

Third issue with the RD panel is that the corners are not formed anywhere close to the shape of the original panel. This leaves pretty significant gaps in the corners. One option would be to unfold the edge, but that would leave practically zero lip to flange to the car. Another option is to fill with seam sealer.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195775.13.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195775.14.jpg)

After some final fit and finish, I used screws to hold the new panel firmly in place and rosette welded the panel in. Additionally, I finished the patches on the rear fascia.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195775.15.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485195775.16.jpg)

[aggiezig]

Next up... front trunk floor! The front panel from RD was a very close fit and we had no issues getting it in place after some trimming. Similar to the rear trunk floor, we decided to flange the new metal with the existing and use rosette welds. This will call for seam sealer, but a lot less work than seam welding & grinding. I also salvaged the tow hook and spare tire hold down off of the original floor.

RD Patch Panel:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.1.jpg)

Existing mess from aftermarket A/C & sharpie line for rough cut:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.2.jpg)

The "final" hole size:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.3.jpg)

Cutting to size / Fitting Shape:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.4.jpg)

Trunk prepped w/ Zinc Primer:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.5.jpg)

Holes Drilled & Prepped w/ Zinc Primer:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.6.jpg)

Adding Tow Hook:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196551.7.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196552.8.jpg)

Fitted & ready for welding:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196552.9.jpg)

All done (minus the spare tire bracket)
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1485196552.10.jpg)

[aggiezig]

I've been making a lot of progress on unexpected firewall patches and soon-to-be new rear floor pans. Will update with those pics soon... but until then, the 914 just got a new garage mate:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486702578.1.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486702579.2.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486702579.3.jpg)

This is Dad's new project car, however I'll be jumping to help whenever I can. 1962 Sunbeam Alpine Mark II (which also came with a '67 parts car). In pretty good shape for its age with minimal visible rust. The only scary bits might be what is hidden under what appear to be outer rocker repair panels that were riveted on. Will find out soon...

[aggiezig]

Well, this will be a pretty big update. After spot blasting areas of the floor it was clear that there were quite a few holes and a couple of the seat mounts were looking pretty crusty. There were a few holes in the lower firewall that seemed to grow as well. At that point, we decided it was best to order a rear floor half from Restoration Design.

In the mean time, we got started taking out the old floor and cleaning up the leftover spot welds. In order to do this... the car needed to go up on its side, so it was the perfect chance to test out the rotisserie stand!

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875698.1.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875699.2.jpg)

After much much much drilling, the old floors started to come out:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875699.3.jpg)

Inside of the tunnel, mostly clean. But if you look closely there are three fuel lines - one is the original plastic line and there are two other black rubber lines that were added later on. Of course, this means one of the PO's added another hole in the back of the firewall.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875699.4.jpg)

Mud dobber nest hiding away in the tunnel:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875699.5.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875700.6.jpg)

Of course, once the floor came out and we started cleaning around we found more and more rot. It became clear that I would need to make some serious patches in both inside and outside corners of the firewall. Here's some of the carnage:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875700.7.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875700.8.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875700.9.jpg)

Note all of the junk that is on the floor that fell out of the inside of the firewall:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.10.jpg)

Close up:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.11.jpg)

More holes discovered on the engine side:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.12.jpg)

Look how thick the white sealant from the factory is! Easily 1/2"
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.13.jpg)

While examining the firewall, there was a small section of the long that seemed too soft for my liking. I cut it out and made a patch to go in its place:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.14.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875701.15.jpg)

Weld-through primer:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.16.jpg)

Repaired and ground down:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.17.jpg)

Here's the first patch I made for the driver front side of the firewall. I flanged around most of the edges to try and get a better flush fit using rosette welds. This worked ok, but still ended up having to do some stitch welding.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.18.jpg)

The old crunchy on top, replacement on bottom:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.19.jpg)

And another patch for the driver backside of the firewall:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.20.jpg)

Backside patch in place:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875702.21.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875703.22.jpg)

Both patches welded in, and tubes for parking brakes repaired and back in place:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875703.23.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875703.24.jpg)

Cut out the bad metal from the passenger inside firewall:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875703.25.jpg)

Some rust hiding out under the passenger side jack point support plate:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875703.26.jpg)

I was hoping to be able to save the passenger outer firewall, but no dice. So this is my mark for what to cut out and replace:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875704.27.jpg)

Outside patch welded in and fitting inside passenger patch:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875704.28.jpg)

While I was there, I decided to see if there was a good way to add a doubler around the clutch tube as I've seen some other cars with metal fatigue / failure here. I also discovered some more history... it looks like the car had driven over something pretty hard that put a good bend on the middle of the firewall. I made some relief cuts and worked to flatten it back out. This picture is after re-shaping and with weld primer in place for the doubler:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875704.29.jpg)

Here is the doubler I made:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875704.30.jpg)

Welded in place:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875705.31.jpg)

After all of the firewall repairs were made, we finished grinding and preparing the flanges for the new floor. Prior to closing up the bottom side, I wanted to do some extra rust prevention measures for the future. We shot master series inside of the tunnel, firewall cavity, crossmember cavity, and into the longs.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875705.32.jpg)

All coated with MS & weld primer on the flanges:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875705.33.jpg)

Kind of a wild shot with no floors:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875705.34.jpg)

Next up was test fitting the replacement floor from RD. Overall, a really quality piece that required minimal fitting for my application. Here is a rough overlay to determine what needed trimming:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875706.35.jpg)

We decided to flange the new repair on top of the existing floor at the front edge of the crossmember. This will effectively leave three layers of metal spot welded together at that point. The entire piece was rosette welded into place. Here is the piece with all holes drilled and weld primer on top:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875706.36.jpg)

Here it is screwed into place with self tapping screws:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875706.37.jpg)

And finally, after a good two hours of rosette welding, here is the new floor firmly in place. I have new support rails and hinge mounting plates for the seats from RD that will go in next.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875707.38.jpg)

Unrelated #1, but after quite the fit I also managed to separate the rusty crusty pedal assembly:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875707.39.jpg)

Unrelated #2, spent a weekend building a nice metal shop table to house a vice and a break for all of the metal work:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1486875707.40.jpg)

Phew, that was a long update. The remaining metal work includes two patches higher up on the firewall where it is single layered, a portion of the engine shelf, and adding back the battery box. After that work is completed, I'll shift my focus to blasting the bottom of the car, coating with epoxy primer, seam sealing, and top coat of paint to match bedliner.

I just dropped off another load of parts for powder coating and visited an upholstery shop to get some ideas for a slightly custom interior. In mid-March I'm planning to get started with the engine. I'm making pretty good progress and really pushing to have this teener driving in 2017.

[Cairo94507]

Very nice working documentation. That is going to be one very nice chassis when done. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smilie_pokal.gif)

[jmitro]

nice work. Looked exactly like my crusty old car

[aggiezig]

Thanks for the kind words, gents.

Small update, but here goes. I ended up spending all of last weekend with my other project ('70 Cal Look) that is stowed away for now. I had it before I bought my teener but, long story short, it's on hold and stored in my old college roommate's house for now.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488343249.1.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488343249.2.jpg)

So, after a weekend of cleaning out / placing the bug body back onto the rebuilt chassis / bringing some tools back, I was pretty pooped. But, I had a little spare time & energy today so I was able to knock out a few quickies on the teener. The new seat support frames / rails from RD are now welded in place. I also cleaned up the jack points / mounts and Dad helped to straighten them out as they were pretty bent up from years of abuse. The backsides were coated with master series and then welded into place. I also took a few minutes after to grind down the high spots of all my rosette welds from the new floors.

(IMG:http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/cameraman123_photos/IMG_1816_1.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488343260.3.jpg)

I think that's everything I need to do on the underside of the car, so it looks like I may be flipping her back over soon to look at the remaining patches!

[StratPlayer]

Amazing job, well done (IMG:style_emoticons/default/first.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/first.gif)

[76-914]

Grinding down rosette welds takes the Fun right outa welding. I like your pace. Don't let up! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[aggiezig]

Amazing job, well done (IMG:style_emoticons/default/first.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/first.gif)

Thank you! Just giving the car what it deserves.

Grinding down rosette welds takes the Fun right outa welding. I like your pace. Don't let up! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

Amen... I'm ready to drive this thing already!

Ok, so the fun continues tonight... It is officially time to tear into the hell hole and see what lurks ahead....

Firewall, engine shelf, inner fender, and top of long all rusted with pinholes. In this pic, the lower corner of the firewall has been cut out.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429129.1.jpg)


So, I started dissecting... Here is everything all opened up with just a little bit of the engine shelf left to cut out. Also appears that a PO hacked off part of the engine tin seal channel and folded it down? Need to confirm but doesn't look original to me.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429129.2.jpg)

This is the section of the top of the long I cut out and will have to re-create. I did not realize there was a doubler underneath, so I'll have to get creative to weld something back in to retain that original strength.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429130.3.jpg)

But, still glad I cut it out because the top of the long was pretty pitted with a few pinholes:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429130.4.jpg)

Pretty clean down inside there:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429130.5.jpg)

Before stopping for the night, I coated the inside of the long with Master Series:
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488429130.6.jpg)

We'll see how energetic I'm feeling tomorrow after work, would really like to get this repair knocked out to say I'm "done" with the major sheet metal repairs.

[Cairo94507]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/popcorn[1].gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/popcorn[1].gif)

[aggiezig]

The repair saga continues... doubler is in and so is inner fender patch. These two tiny patches were four hours of work... not fun (IMG:style_emoticons/default/chair.gif) Next will be the long patch and engine shelf. I can't wait to close this back up.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488517848.1.jpg)

Repair patch for top of long is cut and sitting on top here, but will need final trimming and adjustment.
(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1488517848.2.jpg)

[aggiezig]

Small update... I just got a truck load of parts back from the powdercoaters so will get some pics of those parts soon. Also dropped off the engine at my "go-to" VW engine guy out in Comfort, TX. After closer inspection, the worst is confirmed, and some parts including the rods and crankshaft will be replaced with new. I'm itching to get back in the garage after being out of town for what seems like two weeks. Will post updates on the metal work once I actually make some progress (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)!

[aggiezig]

Finally got a chance to get in the garage and play last night. Doesn't look like much, but was a few hours worth of fitting and welding.

Hell hole / Top of Long patch fitted to size:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490282442.1.jpg)

Welded in place (still need to grind and fill holes)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490282442.2.jpg)

Also made a new piece for the passenger side sail panel and got this welded in. I was way down on the welder (A-1.5) and used compressed air after each weld to try and prevent and warpage. I think we did ok, but will have to grind and block to see if there is anything serious.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490282443.3.jpg)

I'm still not sure if I am going to attempt to cut open the driver's side just for peace of mind. The inside of the passenger sail was very clean with no real rot to speak of. I'm wondering if I can find a way to drill / cut a small hole and "melt" the foam out with heat or chemicals. Then spray in some Master Series as future rust prevention. Not sure...

I still need to re-create the missing engine shelf, patch the firewall, and replace the missing engine seal track. And then still need to tack in the battery tray and muffler heat shield. Possibly some of that this weekend? I also have a bit of patch work left to do up where the front trunk seal channel is. There are definitely some crunchy corners that will need replaced. But, once that work is done I think I will be almost done with all metal repairs? Oh... except for the emergency brake pivot mount that is missing a pivot. The list never ends. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sawzall-smiley.gif)

Lastly, I discovered two weeks ago when crawling around in the engine bay that the PO, for some reason unbeknownst to me, decided to remove both the rear trunk hinge pivot mounts and then lose one of the brackets. So, rather than fight with welding the OE style mount back in place, I broke down and ordered the J West Engineering kit with heim joints. I also ordered front & rear strut kits from Camp. Should be a nice upgrade. When life gives you lemons...

[aggiezig]

Time for another update! Today we finished up the engine shelf, creating the patch from scratch. Man, that was a chore. We stared with a gaping hole to fill:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490505168.1.jpg)

Dad took charge shaping the patch:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490505168.2.jpg)

The PO had cut out part of the engine seal channel and folded down that portion of the engine shelf out of the way. I decided to cut out some more of the what was left of the original shelf and build out to where the seal channel should go with new steel. We made a template of the driver's side seal channel shape and mirrored it to use on the passenger side.

The main patch of the engine shelf took quite a bit of creative shaping, as neither one of us are skilled sheet metal workers and we certainly don't have all of the typical tools. But, we were able to create a patch that is pretty darn close to the original shape. We used a torch and ball-peen hammer to dimple the metal patch and create a low spot to re-create the original drain hole.

I think it turned out pretty good, but these aren't the best pictures:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490505168.3.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490505168.4.jpg)

Also managed to blast & paint the exhaust shield and battery box with Master Series. Will be looking to tack these parts in soon:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490505169.5.jpg)

That's all for now... More metal work updates to come!

[aggiezig]

Took her out, flipped her over, and got her wet. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

I couldn't stand the road grime and grease when crawling around getting in / out of the engine compartment. So, I soaked everything with some super clean and pressure washed. Probably the first time the underside has seen a bath since new? Also ended up washing out a few pounds of petrified rat turds.. think I got the last of them now.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490590954.1.jpg)

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[aggiezig]

Gotta keep going while I'm on a roll...

I used the seat rails to figure out where to mount the hinges back in place on the floor. These were missing since the rear floor pan half was replaced with a new panel from RD. I wanted to make sure there would be no future fitment issues, so I tacked everything with the seat frame in place, then removed to burn in.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490676367.1.jpg)

I also welded the emergency brake cable guide back in place. I was curious about the overlap of this guide and the outside, driver seat frame mount. But, after referencing the original floor pan it looks like there was some overlap from the factory.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490676367.2.jpg)

Lastly, got the spare tire hold down back in place in the front trunk.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1490676367.3.jpg)

Slowly getting there....

[aggiezig]

Some small updates, but first a little day-dreaming:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1491285260.1.jpg)

Loving these ABS rockers I picked up from another forum member. Going to look great when actually installed. Note the real shiny section of the door and front fender - I did a little polishing the other day. The original Malaga red shined up pretty good. It's a shame this car was taken apart and screwed with because the paint was good enough to be a survivor with a buff.

I ended up stealing the rotors off of my '72 parts car because they measured out to basically brand new thickness despite some really heavy rust. I had them turned down to within machine limits, so saved some money there vs. buying new rotors all the way around. I'm going to blast and paint the centers black once I get a chance:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1491285261.2.jpg)

Now back to the last of the remaining hell hole repairs. I made the firewall patch and got it welded in place on the front side. I didn't feel like crawling around in the hell hole tonight but I'll have to finish the welds on the back side soon.

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On to the front hood seal track... the more I dig the more I discover some really rotten areas under the seal. There are likely 3 corners that will have to be replaced, like this one here:

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1491285262.6.jpg)

The passenger side where it meets with the fender has some areas of concern that really need to be cut out and replaced. I tried to tack weld up some of the rust holes but the more I poke around the less I trust the metal that's actually leftover. So, I think I'm going to cut it out in three sections, but it's going to be a pain in the butt to recreate some of this...

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1491285262.7.jpg)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/i120.photobucket.com-19557-1491285262.8.jpg)

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More to come once I figure out my game plan for the seal channel replacement. I'm also planning to knock out fitting the new J West hinges and Camp hood struts soon. My goal is to have all of the "metal work" done in April, so that I can strip down to bare metal and epoxy prime in May.

[jesse7flying]

Great work and great thread! I've got the same problem with the channel seal on my 914, so I'm paying close attention to how you go about fixing the problem. Thx.

[aggiezig]

Great work and great thread! I've got the same problem with the channel seal on my 914, so I'm paying close attention to how you go about fixing the problem. Thx.

Thanks! Good to see another TX member here. Wish me luck with the seal channel... I'll take lots of pics and post them here for you.