It was on the bumper recess. I will need to cut out the edge and repair it. There were holes that were welded up that opened up we I was moving the metal back where it belonged. I did no welding here. that is what I uncovered. You can still see the pick hammer marks. The repair is at the level of high build primer over the surface with the exception of the recess.

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Time for an update. I spent several hours working over this right fender. Besides someone slicing it open, there was an extensive amount of damage both from the accident I am repairing and a prior collision. There was about 3/8" of body filler across the section above the wheel lip from a prior repair.

I was unable to swing a hammer to knock the damage out. The planishing hammer I made for the inner wheelhouse repair was to big to fit inside the tight space as well. So I made another one.

I used a needle scaler and the dies from the bench top Harbor Freight planisher I have.

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This photo show the extent of damage just past the hammer.

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You can see how flat and concaved the fender was over the wheel opening.

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Welding up the Cut

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Roughing in the damage

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Nearly Repaired.

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Along with the planisher I used a shrinking disc and lots of time working the surface with hammers and blocks. I can say now that I will be keeping the original fender with the car. I really doubted I would be able to bring it back into a usable condition.

Simply amazing skills.

Well done Rick!

Great job on this. I assume you were hammering left handed with the dolly to work that area.

DaveB

@Rick_918-S

Rick, i think you are a glutton for punishment!! I mean, something about minnesotans maybe? I mean anyone that subjects themsselves to such climate by choice is just different (former reformed minnesotan talking here) just kidding, but the reason i say that is it would be less time and effort almost to just take a donor fender like you did in the front and replace the whole thing and you dont have that damaged hammerd out metal, BUT i know your goal is to keep and repair as much original metal as possible. If not for it being an original six, i am wondering , would you on a different car take that approach instead?

Phil

Hey Doc!

We both left Minnesooota. Me, not s far. I still look across to Downtown Duluth from my deck in Superior WI. Still have snow in the winter. Except this year.

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Here is our house from the street. i designed it with the help of my friend at ARI. in Duluth. It's a SIP house. I was the general for the build and did much of the work myself.

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Here is our view across the bay.

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I am a crazy guy with a lot of ideas. Some good, some not so good. Which brings me to the 6. It would be much easier to change the fender. I have an NOS one on the shelf. But if I don't need to remove the factory fender I would rather not. And if this was a 4 cylinder car that was crashed this hard I would have to have a real personal attachment to it to even entertain a repair.

That's a really beautify MCM and great choice to use structural insulation. I have a happy place for glassy mid century style; had one for many years in Northern CA.

DaveB

Amazing house..not to forget the incredible metal work here!

Bests

Antoine

thanks for the reply, sorry for a hijack of your build thread,truth be told growing up i did dream of someday having a home on a lake up in N. Minnesota, we used to spend a lot of time on Pelican Lake, Breazy point , but friends owned a resort across the lake from it. i LOVE that house and saw the build thread you posted, the view is awesome, i really dont blame you for staying, in some weird ways i miss the winter a bit, i forgot you moved across the border!. I have a friend that retired from active practice a few years ago, he was from that area originally but spent 40+ years in St. Louis, they built a beautiful cabin on a bluff overlooking a lake up in N. Wisconsin near the Canada boarder and they LOVE the winter experience, and stay most of the winter. anyway carry on..... that fender will look new and i look forward to seeing the end result.

The dream now for me upon retirement is a cabin in NC or TN area.....with a shop....

Very cool! Only knew one person who could shape metal like that. It's an art to say the least.

Just some boring repair work over the last several days. Some previous owner did some seal channel repair that kind of wrecked the back side of the right headlight bucket. Luckily I had a second front panel I got from Garold that had a good bucket for the section I needed. Still have some finish grinding but it's close now. Typical rust in the seal channel. I still have lots of clean up grinding to do but I thought I would save it for last.

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To see what the damage started as to what it is now is amazing! Thanks for posting all the pics!

Left Headlight Bucket had an issue where the headlight cover extension mounts as well as some seal channel replacement needed.

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Almost ready for epoxy Primer. I should have all the welding done on the front repair this weekend. I have 3 days off!! Wooo Hoo!

That's a big step forward Rick. Very nicely done.

Phenomenal work man!

All the seal channels have been repaired. I had to re-drill the the holes for the eyebrow rubber bumpers.

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Test fit the eyebrows.

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Probably another week before it goes into epoxy primer. Lots of little details to complete.

I am in awe at the level of skill. @Rick 918-S , count me as one of your biggest fan-boys!

Great work and a great work enviroment. And you just keep pulling out the right tool for the Job. Cool

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Thanks but your no slouch yourself. I like that cooler your doing for Michael.

Some may remember I posted about the guy that crashed the car. We became friends since I ended up with it. I pulled the triangle window with the SoCal stickers I was planning on sending them to Rocky.

I started making a trophy type display and thought I should verify his address. I have it from a packet he mailed my a few years back of some of the SoCal tours he organized. He was very fond of the car. I called his number and the person that answered hung up without saying anything.

I thought I would just pull the mailing I received and google the address to see if it comes back current. I did not realize it has been since July of 2019 when I received it. My google search came up with his obituary. I have to tell you I am pretty sad about it. I never met him in person. We spoke on the phone a few times at length.

He was a friend I never met. The post mark on the mailing I received is July 23, 2019. Turns out he lost his battle with stage 4 Lymphoma on July 22. 2020. I should have been a better friend.

https://www.californiafuneralalternatives.c...ry/Rocky-Kuonen

I remember when he crashed it ...Time marches On..RIP Rocky

I see his wife passed a year later. I wonder if any of the SoCal R Gruppe guys were close friends with him. I am looking for ideas for a fitting tribute. Maybe one of the SoCal guys would organize a Rally or something in his honor and present the winner with the triangle window I was going to send to Rocky. From the conversations I had with him I could tell it meant a lot to him to be welcomed by the Gruppe.


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Front bumper Test Fit went well.

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The car is looking good!


It is a bummer about poor Rocky.

John

Total bummer…..I am saddened by the loss of any of our 914 family members.

PS the car does look great.

Fixtures are officially off.

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What an accomplishment! Fantastic workmanship throughout Rick.

Sad the owner passed, bet he would have been stoked to see it back together, he was a San Diego guy -- from the obit memory wall :
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It turned out really nice!

Charlie

I haven't posted lately about the car. I am working on some slow, boring, tedious progress. I sprayed Encapsuator inside the rails and any of the weld seams. It flows nicely. I applied Epoxy to the underside, wheelhouses, inside the fenders and inside the lower section of the gas tank well. The seam Sealer work is completed and I started spraying on some Wurth under body rubberized coating. My friend I did the 280SL for ended up with 5 cans of Beige Wurth and gifted them to me. I was actually surprised they were still good but the factory foil seal preserved them.

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Seam Sealer Before the Wurth
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Gas Tank Well
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Front Panel

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As a foot note to the work.

I am not restoring this car. I am repairing it.

Really the car does not "need" a full on restoration. However I will be pulling the front air box and Harness to "clean up" the bulkhead while I am that close into the area under the cowl panel.

Even though a six, I can totally see this 914-6 being totaled and scrapped if not in the right hands.

So cool to see it back together!

The owner should be nothing short of elated.

I kind of am... This one's mine!

Even cooler! What a cool resurrection thread.

Impressive changes since I saw it last year. Congrats on the progress. You are a true craftsman!

Thanks Ernie! Maybe see you at RRC this year if things work out.

That would be wonderful!

When are you going to bring the Alien to Okteenerfest???????

come on down Rick! i know thats a long haul but, if Clay and Betty and others can come al lthe way from Texas....... i know there used to be a midwest gathering called MUSR somwere like central Tennessee , but that faded and Okteenerfest sprung up in its place.
We do have some fun roads !

I want to see the Alien try to abduct the Dragon!

I would love to make that event some day. I retire in a little over a year. Maybe I can work it in then.

I guess this car was really meant to end up at Area51Werks. I was pulling the stuff out from under the cowl to clean up the dirt and mess and the 4 lbs of grinder metal I could get to even with a blow gun and a shop vac. I removed the left side defroster vent and a bunch of stuff fell out. This was one of the items that was stuck in there.

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