Intro from Montana: '73 2.0L rustoration thread Options

[bbrock]

Aftermarket Junk

Got my new wiper and signal switches from 356devotion today. No good (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)
There are problems both cosmetic and mechanical. Very sloppy stamping of the symbols on the signal switch... unacceptable.



The wiper switch is better. Not a perfect match, but I could live with it. However, there is a weird crease in the lever above the stamping. If that were the only problem, I could probably overlook that too.



Although the photo on ebay showed the metal tubes that the screws feed through and align the two switches, they did not come with tubes. No problem transferring my originals expect the holes in the wiper switch are too small to accept them. In addition,
shoddy installation of the metal plates on both switches causing them to misalign with the screw holes. The worst were too offset for the screws to even pass through. To make these work would require drilling out the wiper holes and grinding metal plates on both switches. Drilling the holes would thing the walls too much. No sir. These switches are going back.



The search continues for a suitable replacement wiper switch. NOS are going for $300. Too rich for my blood. Will probably post a WTB and hope someone has a decent switch to sell.

The order from 356devotion wasn't a complete loss though. I also bought their fuse cover which looks nice. I had a little trouble getting it to snap in until I got in the right position and held my mouth right. Then it clicked in nice and tight. I'm a little torn though. I remember playing that fun game of scrambling to find the chicklets in the dark after kicking all the fuses out of the box getting in the car.

[Superhawk996]

Aftermarket Junk

I remember playing that fun game of scrambling to find the chicklets in the dark after kicking all the fuses out of the box getting in the car.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/av-943.gif) I forgot that game. Looking forward to playing it again as my legs re-learn the proper muscle memory to prevent that from happening.

[tygaboy]

Brent - I don't know if the switches are different across MYs but I have a couple sets that I won't be using. Free to you if they'll help.
I don't want to clog your thread but I can post pics of them or you can PM me your email and I'll send the pics. Just let me know what works best for you.

[dr.tim]

who was that other guy from Montana ? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/hide.gif)

[sixnotfour]

who was that other guy from Montana ? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/hide.gif)

When Brock was well like really ... the initials T.K. came to mind ... :evilgrin:bad joke ..about details

[bbrock]

When Brock was well like really ... the initials T.K. came to mind ... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif) bad joke ..about details

Class clown (IMG:style_emoticons/default/jester.gif) I was a little slow on the uptake. I get it now. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blowup.gif) Now back to my manifesto (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

I got a little horny today.



I went with Hella Sharptones that are a little deeper than the older Sharptones. My car only had one horn and needs work. This seemed like the quickest, and probably cheapest way to go to dual horns. We'll see how much that yellow shows through the horn grills. If it does, I may have to paint.

I have some trouble shooting to do. Right now all I get is a pathetic buzz from them. I'm hoping the power supply that is substituting for a battery isn't pushing enough amps to drive them. Even connecting one directly to the PS, I had to crank it to 14v before it cut loose to sound its note. Another possibility is that the factory relay isn't quite up to snuff. I really don't want to install Hella relay on these. I have a hard time believing that is necessary since it pretty much just replicates the factory wiring through a different relay. We'll get it figured out.

BTW, PM sent to @tygaboy re: wiper switch. You rock Chris! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/aktion035.gif)

[tygaboy]

Brent - Again, not meaning to clog your thread, but I figured fellow OCDers and CWs may benefit from or be interested in this.

Here are the two switches I have. These first four pics show one that has the part # on it.
Let's call this one "Switch #1".

[tygaboy]

Here's "Switch #2". No part # on the stalk.

[tygaboy]

Importantly (?), the connector block is different. The wire/pin layout is the same, in terms of physical position. Switch #1 is on the lower right.

[tygaboy]

Let me know which one works for you or if you want both. PM me your shipping address and I'll get it shipped.
I'll also include the turn signal switches.

[bbrock]

@tygaboy

Thanks Chris! This is awesome! I'll send you a PM but #2 is a match for what I have. Either would work though. My understanding is that later switches (74-on?) had the extra wire channels and maybe the wires for an electric washer pump. The harness plug would still fit on there and the pinless slots would just overhand the harness plug. No biggie.

With that said, my preference would be for whichever one has the best icon figures. It's hard to tell what will clean up vs. scuffed. I'll wind up repainting either lever but what worked well on my original was to tape off the icon printing with rolled edge tape to make a soft mask and spray. The less touch-up needed on the icons, the better. I could see myself screwing that up. I'm leaning toward switch #2 but curious of your thoughts on which one would clean up nicer on the white printing.

I can't believe I got through all this talking about #1 and #2 without any juvenile jokes. Whoops! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)

[altitude411]

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

[sixnotfour]

Im guessing someone needs /wanted to park inside for a few months,,,Soo..
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/yellowsleep[1].gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/yellowsleep[1].gif) ...its the same at a number of peoples places with real seasons.. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[bbrock]

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

Im guessing someone needs /wanted to park inside for a few months,,,Soo..
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/yellowsleep[1].gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/yellowsleep[1].gif) ...its the same at a number of peoples places with real seasons.. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWtUVDG5M1w

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/av-943.gif)

Okay, I can take a hint. I've gone silent due to a combination of being distracted by other priorities, very busy with work, and doing work on the car that wasn't very exciting to share. Things are on the move again so I'll throw up a couple posts to catch up. This one is mostly off topic but what the hell...

First, the distraction. In a 48 hour period from the night before Thanksgiving through Black Friday, we got over 38 inches of snow. This is a pic of only about half what we got. It was taken the second day after I had already cleared the now from the first day.



So I go out early Thanksgiving morning and the plow won't work. A working snow plow is not a luxury here, it is a necessity. When the plow isn't working, everything else goes on the back burner. So I spent most of Thanksgiving outside in sub zero blizzard conditions wrenching on the plow controller. Somehow, I managed to get it working just in time to plow the driveway before our neighbors arrived for Thanksgiving dinner.

Here is the next morning. Somewhere under here is the plow which, of course, isn't't working again.



I spent all day working on the controller and got it fixed. The plow worked perfectly again. This made me very happy because those things are ridiculously expensive. I celebrated by spending the money saved not buying a new controller in the 914Rubber Black Friday sale. Of course, I hooked up the plow last weekend and it was dead again. That's it. Can't afford to have a jinky plow around here. $530 later, I have a new controller for the plow. Pisses me off because there can't be more than $50 of parts in these goddam things. Oh well... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

This has nothing to do with anything but I thought it was cool. Last Monday as I headed to the Pathfinder to go to town to buy the plow controller, there was a long-tailed weasel running all around it it and trying to get inside. I grabbed the camera but it took off too fast. I did get a shot of the tracks it laid over the top of the rig.



Then I popped the hood to check the oil and found this:



That rabbit's foot wasn't so lucky. Now I know what the weasel was up to. Now every time I go to start that car, I bang on the hood to make sure there isn't a weasel under there. I like those guys. Don't want to chop one up.

Getting back to the Porsche - I got a package from Santa. A World member so generous, he has a holiday named after him (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)



Yes, of course @tygaboy is Santa. Who else would it be? He actually sent two switches. The other is already installed.



I'll have to pull it out again to do a little cosmetic rehab, but I wanted to test to be positive my wipers were in perfect working order before installing the dreaded air box. Wipers worked like a champ with the new/old switch. Two speeds and intermittent. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cheer.gif) Thank you Father Chrismas!!!

[bbrock]

So what's been happening with the car? Sanding, sanding, and more sanding. I've been working long hours for my job but have spent all my free time for over a week cutting the paint. It was more work than it should have been thanks to me not knowing what I was doing. The only PPG clear I could buy at my paint shop is intended for collision repair. PPG recommends it for 1-3 panel repairs and from what I saw, that was about spot on. It flashed so fast that I had a hard time getting around the whole car without having overspray pile on the flashed surface. It wouldn't be a problem for a good painter, but I didn't have one of those available. Then there was the big spill fiasco which complicated things. The upshot is that I had a lot more sanding to do than I should have. It was amazing how much easier the panels I had really sprayed well were to work flat. Probably only 1/4 of the time as required for shitty panels.

Anyway, after many, many hours of work, I finally had everything sanded to 3000 grit by mid-morning yesterday. And yes, I did wind up resanding the hood to get those scratches out. Here it is after sanding and with just the corner after the first cut of compound.



I got the first cut done and half way through the second cut yesterday before having to quit early. I'm really happy with this Chemical Guys polishing kit. Everything needed to polish a whole car for $150 can't be beat. If I were going to be doing a lot of polishing, I'd want a better machine, but it is high quality and perfect for occasional use on the cheap.

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com-20845-1576475731.1.jpg)

Today I finished polishing (4 grits). I'm pretty happy with the results. I'm going to rate this paint job a "two footer." It looks pretty darn good up to two feet away. Closer and it isn't hard to pick out flecks of shit here and there. You have to look for them though. Put another way, the average Joe drooling over the car at the gas pump will think it is amazing. Anyone who actually knows what a good paint job looks like will quickly say, "Good for you trying to paint your own car little buddy." (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif) So here are some typically bad picks. If I get a chance on a sunny day, I'll roll it outside for better picks.







And the other side:



Whoa! That looks like shit. What's the deal? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif) If you've been following along with this project, you know I can't go long without f'ing something up, but give me credit for being consistent. Yes, of course I sanded right through the clear and into the primer. In two places actually. Quite easily too.



I obviously got the clear way too thin in this area. That area was a bitch to see and reach when I was painting and it also happens to be just downstream of my painting progression from where the spill happened. I probably was so frazzled at that point that I failed to get the final coat on at all. As unhappy as this makes me, I would much rather discover it now than in a year when the paint started to fail. Of course that's not all. This next one is truly a dumbass move. I was working on the roll bar when the wife walked in to chat. So we are talking and I keep sanding but not paying attention like I should. Bad move. Next thing I know, I have a little spot of primer peeking out in the corner.



What a dipshit! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/headbang.gif)

So here's the plan. The sand-thru on the front fender is low and inconspicuous enough that I'm going to try to just airbrush a little base in to blend the goof and then reclear the whole panel. Even if they blend isn't 100% perfect, it will be hard to notice. I would try the same on the door but there is some trash right above the door handle which is a particularly annoying place to have a blemish. I'll probably just respray the door with base and reclear. On the roll bar, I'm going to try the same as on the fender. I experimented a bit dabbing base into the sand-thru with a touch up brush. The results were promising enough that I think I can air brush in base to make the blemish disappear. Of course the whole top of the roll bar will be shot with clear. If I can't make and invisible patch, I'll reshoot that with base too. I'm hoping to do that next weekend so we'll see how it goes.

I had enough time today to do a few fun things after the polishing was done. I know the factory just sloppy brushed flat black in this area but I could quite bring myself to do it. Just a single coat of trim black here though.



Trying my best to keep up with @mb911 but it isn't easy. Ending this with a symbolic step... or in this case, maybe it is emblematic? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

[mb911]

Lol.. I am moving fast now but things are about to come to a screaming halt.. We may have to move by the 3rd week in January.. Got a cash offer on the house.. So car things may have to wait.

On another note also know you can spot clear in spots then wet sand and buff.. You don't have to clear the whole panel.

[bbrock]

Lol.. I am moving fast now but things are about to come to a screaming halt.. We may have to move by the 3rd week in January.. Got a cash offer on the house.. So car things may have to wait.

On another note also know you can spot clear in spots then wet sand and buff.. You don't have to clear the whole panel.

I thought about trying to spot clear and blend, but since I'm not sure where the thin clear begins low on that front right corner, I decided on something of a hybrid approach. My plan is to spray a coat of clear just along the bottom of that front fender, then a second coat feathered half way up the panel. At that point, I figured I might as well do a final full coat. That way I'll know I have plenty of depth over the whole panel. I do have a couple of very tiny spots on the other side I need to touch and will only spot clear those. They are so small I will probably just dab clear in with a touch up brush and then sand them flat.

I saw that you had the house up for sale. Congrats on the offer and good luck with the move!

[914_7T3]

I had enough time today to do a few fun things after the polishing was done. I know the factory just sloppy brushed flat black in this area but I could quite bring myself to do it. Just a single coat of trim black here though.

Now you tell me! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif)



Not going a 2nd round with those plastic speed nuts.......Spirit Lines (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

[bbrock]

I had enough time today to do a few fun things after the polishing was done. I know the factory just sloppy brushed flat black in this area but I could quite bring myself to do it. Just a single coat of trim black here though.

Now you tell me! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif)


Not going a 2nd round with those plastic speed nuts.......Spirit Lines (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

I saw that and thought, well that was bad timing. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) After fighting just 4 of those speed nuts last night and not completing the task, I don't blame you a bit. Have you learned any tricks with those nasty gadgets to pass along?

[914_7T3]

I had enough time today to do a few fun things after the polishing was done. I know the factory just sloppy brushed flat black in this area but I could quite bring myself to do it. Just a single coat of trim black here though.

Now you tell me! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif)


Not going a 2nd round with those plastic speed nuts.......Spirit Lines (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

I saw that and thought, well that was bad timing. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) After fighting just 4 of those speed nuts last night and not completing the task, I don't blame you a bit. Have you learned any tricks with those nasty gadgets to pass along?

Used a small set of pliers over a microfiber towel closer to the center of the pin and pushed straight down on those 'lil f-ckers. The seven pins that go straight into the "black" painted section went pretty easily. The others did not go willingly as you can't get it from the right angle with all tension rods etc. that are in the way. Mostly gripped the speed nuts from the side and twisted them down onto the pins. They barely resemble speed nuts now (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)