April / May update


More work required on the trunk lid than I thought there would be.

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it turned out pretty good.

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But I found that even with a bunch of clamp-on lights I still couldn’t see well enough. (the haze in the air is paint , need better ventilation, more on that later. )

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So I wired a few switched quad receptacles and put up a bunch of 4000 lumen LED shop lights, seven so far. And I can click them all on or off easily. Now with these and a couple more strategically placed clamp on lights I can see to paint without shadows

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Next up was ventilation. Using a couple box fans in the doorway I put wooden/cardboard fillers on each side and attached a piece of heavy construction plastic sheeting across the top of the doorway, to keep dust from being sucked back in.

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And put furnace filters into the windows, taped around the edges to give me some filtered fresh air.

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Now I am ready to do some painting in my Shed/Custom Paint Booth.

June 2016 update

Back to the drivers side to finalize the work on the fenders and lips. One last wet sanding with 600.

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And I shot the cowl, windshield frame and top and inside of the Targa bar. The inside of the Targa bar sail panels were a real PITA to get with a HVLP spray gun, I had some bad runs here and painted one side twice and the other side three times. I finally got a good job after digging out an old siphon feed touch-up gun I hadn’t used for about ten years. I was able to get in there with it and lay down some nice paint.

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And FINALLY I get to put some color on the fenders. I have been working to this end for what seems like forever.

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Still not done yet though. Since my shed workspace is kind of limited I can only work on or paint one side at a time. So now I have to finish the passenger side. Another round of wet sanding and fixing anything that pops up during that. With my new lights installed I have already found a couple, three spots that need some more attention.

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If you have a favorite bodyman that does good work for you, you should take time to go buy him a bottle of Crown. Cause this shit is hard, I would hate to have to do it for a living. Especially as picky a bunch as we are…

Paint looks fantastic!! Congrats!

Looking great

Really really nice work! Going to be a great looking car when done!

Tom, Thanks for sharing all your painting details. It looks great. I'm curious how much difference the single stage makes in getting the results you're after? Not sure how much painting experience you have. I'd like to take on the painting myself (also using single stage), but with little experience at this I wouldn't want to do it twice.

Any insights you can offer?

Single stage is a great step into painting.

You can read the first part of my build thread for more details on painting with single stage, or my other paint thread in my signature for me painting Peters car as well as the issues we had with bad paint.

Painting with single stage can easily be done in the garage for a nice driver quality paint job.

Andyrew

I just went back and looked at your body work.... Damn, I though I took a lot of pictures.. Ha-Ha.

That's pretty much what I went through also. Your car turned out nice. I hope mine buffs out that good

3d914

This is the first car I have painted. I have done paint and moulding on a my motorcycles and some bodywork on an old Mustang but that was in my teen years.

I chose the single stage PPG because I thought it would be easier to fix any flaws or mistakes. rather than having to go through a layer of clear coat. Also in the future I could shoot a clear coat or a single stage / clear coat mix. so I'm not locked into this.

Same as Andyrew I used a combination of glass fiber, and polyester body filler, I used Rage Gold. and some evercoat glazing putty then sprayable body filler - Slick Sand. I shot the Slick Sand with a 2.5 tip spray gun. it really lays it on but get it out of the gun quick because it sets up fast and will plug up your spraygun. Same with the high build primer. I used a 1.8 tip with the PPG K38 High build primer, and you get 20-30 min at best before it quits spraying and you have to hurry to clean it out of your spraygun.

Read the sheets on the paint and primers and keep very close to those times and mixes. Temperature is also very important, I used a digital IR HF thermometer to make sure of the body temp. and match the reducer temp range to that.

Not being a bodyman I found it hard to determine what was good enough and probably did too much prep work, if you can. you really need kind of an artists eye to get the lines right. I struggled with this a lot.

I think you have to accept that 99% of the people that look at your car. (bodymen excepted) will never see the little things you work so hard to get just right. Just try to keep yourself from pointing out to people the tiny flaws that you know are there.

July 2016 update.

Got the final paint on the passenger side. so the tub is painted. still have to do the doors and front hood.

now I can start putting some parts back on. Also have to paint a bunch of little parts like the hinges, and the headlight covers.

Here are some update pics. I'll post some more after I get it pushed outside, hard to get a good pic inside the shed.

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And this is my Happy Face at getting to this point.

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Hey Tom,

Looking Goooooooooooooooood :-)

Thanks .. If I had your drive it would be done in no time...

Moved it outside for some pictures. paint turned out good. still will need a cut and buff.

And starting to put stuff back on...


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Refinished the headlight mechanisms and got them installed. Had to hunt down some little parts, Thanks for friends with parts cars... I need to get one of those..

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Installed the PMB 914/6 GT rear calipers and the vented rotors. also got all the hydraulic lines and hoses installed , glad I kept the old lines to use as a pattern. still need a couple little parts for the parking brake

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those rear calipers should play nice with the with the A calipers and vented rotors on the front.

PMB also rebuilt my pressure regulator... Thanks Eric..

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It is really great to empty out some boxes and get parts on the car...

only wish I was at that stage

Keep up the great work

You are making some huge progress!

Jeff B

I imagine I'm not the only one sitting here on a Friday night, drinking a beer, looking at this thread with an intense melancholic jealousy.

Great work!

Looking very good!
Great job with the paint!

Are they aluminum alloy rear calipers ?

Yes, Aluminum calipers

Working on bleeding the system now.

And starting to think about tires....

OK, well 9-14 day has come and gone and I am still not running yet, so that puts me out of contention for the win. For me it wasn't about the win anyways, I just liked the push to get some work done worthy of sharing with the 914 community.

Congratulations to those that did get their cars running

Andrew, Darren, Garland, Jeff and Philip. great job.

I worked through a few more setbacks. First when I finally started to strip off the doors to get them ready to take and be blasted I discovered that the drivers door was hammered. someone did a pretty good job of hiding the work and it stayed hidden for the 37 years I owned the car. but I didn't think it was worth my time to try and fix this mess. These are some of those rare doors, 9-72 thru 12-72 late window mechanism and no door bars. didn't think I was going to find another of those so....

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so after checking out a couple doors a friend had, I contacted Garold and he picked me out a nice one.

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they are at the blasters now then I will go to work on them.

I wanted to get it on the ground and started to look at tires to fit the 7 and 8 in Fuchs I wanted to run. Well in spite of getting the fenders flared it looks like the 8 inchers may not work, even with 225 / 50 -16.

I really like these wheels though........

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I have another idea but I will do a little more research before I decide what to run. But this will have to happen soon. I want to get it on the ground before I put the engine back in.

Spent 4 days working on the brakes. two days to finally get the system bled and two more to get the venting clearance tight and have a working parking brake. The brakes feel good now ( at least pressing on them in the garage) so I think I am good to go with that.

I got the rear sway bar mounted and picked up a new creeper... this thing is like a Magic Carpet the way it slides around, No more fighting with my old creeper to roll around, or it eating my shirt....
This really helped while working on the brakes.

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Still Moving along.

Tom

Hard to believe those wheels won't fit under GT flares?

Or are you talking under the stock fenders?

Car is looking great BTW!

man, very nice work!

I wanted to get it on the ground and started to look at tires to fit the 7 and 8 in Fuchs I wanted to run. Well in spite of getting the fenders flared it looks like the 8 inchers may not work, even with 225 / 50 -16.

I really like these wheels though........


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I have another idea but I will do a little more research before I decide what to run. But this will have to happen soon. I want to get it on the ground before I put the engine back in.

Still Moving along.

Tom
[/quote]
The way the trailing arm rotates will bring the wheel inboard slightly under load. Disconnect the Spring/shock with the wheel on and lift it up to a loaded position to see if fender clearance improves

Your camber goes very positive as the suspension droops so if you jack up on that wheel it might tuck in nicely. Also, have you checked your toe? If it is very negative your wheel will also move outward.

Thanks! Awesome looking wheels but I agree 8" might be too tight. You made great progress so far so you should be very proud.

It is a lot of work but it is worth it once it is running. Keep at it and you will have a great looking 914 on the road very soon!

Jeff B

I will take a look at this today. easy enough to unbolt the shock and see where it pivots to.

I haven't done any type of rough alignment, tough to do without the weight of an installed engine and other parts (or tires)

Yeah, I know it's tough to do. With the shocks unbolted you could put the wheels on the back and try doing a rough string alignment (or even just visual toe check would be enough) to rule that out too.

Those are beautiful wheels-I really hope they fit!

Another little bit I spent too much time on.......

dug out the heater control lever and thought. I can't run this crusty looking thing.

I guess the carpet holds moisture against the lever.

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So off to the chrome shop with it... A good friend runs the chrome shop, so he usually can get little parts through for me quickly. this piece took a LOT of sanding to get rid of all the pits and then he had it in the nickel tank for over 4 hours to build it up. then on to the chrome tank.

Looks much better now.

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I could have just painted it but that wouldn't be right....

This is just an example of why it takes me so long when working on this car.... OCD.. Maybe..

The 8s with 225s should fit fine.

Good workmanship pays off. You and others will appreciate those details when you're driving it around. Keep up the good work!

[quote name='barefoot' date='Sep 20 2016, 06:51 AM' post='2400755']
I wanted to get it on the ground and started to look at tires to fit the 7 and 8 in Fuchs I wanted to run. Well in spite of getting the fenders flared it looks like the 8 inchers may not work, even with 225 / 50 -16.

I really like these wheels though........


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I have another idea but I will do a little more research before I decide what to run. But this will have to happen soon. I want to get it on the ground before I put the engine back in.

Still Moving along.

Tom
[/quote]
The way the trailing arm rotates will bring the wheel inboard slightly under load. Disconnect the Spring/shock with the wheel on and lift it up to a loaded position to see if fender clearance improves
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Ok, This may work....

I leveled out my cart and disconnected the shock to enable it to move up to more of a running position and the clearance did increase. from 3/16 to about 3/4 inch. that should be enough to clear the 225/ 50 - 16 s

This is with 2 inch vertical from rim to fender lip. I really just guessed on the ride height.

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presently there is a 2mm shim installed and my rough measurement shows it to be around 2 deg negative camber

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So I may be able to stay with Plan A ,

Plan B involves different wheels and it would be better if I didn't have to go there...

Go to a tire store and ask them to mount a used 225/50/16 because you want to check fitment. Tell them not to put any weights on it or anything and they can even write on the tire not for road use.

Then put the wheel on, take the shock off, and move it through the wheel arch. You should have 1/2" play on the inside and outside on a 50 series tire to prevent rubbing on load.

Quick note. You CAN mount 205's on 8's if you need it. it'll have a little of the modern "Stretch" look to it, but it'll function all the same. If you have any stretch to those fenders then 225's might work.

So I took a leap of faith and ordered the tires. BF Goodrich G-Force Comp 2

Fronts 205 50 16 on 7" rims
Rear 225 50 16 on 8" rims



And they do.

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Still need an alignment to see where they really end up, But looking good now.

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So its OFF of the cart and finally gets to stand on its own four feet.

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It starting to look like a car again.

Just got the doors back from the blasters, So now I can start the bodywork on them.

Painted up the hinge hardware too. So I can mount the rear trunk lid, the front lid still needs paint. I will do that when I get the doors ready.

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Little more progress....

Well its been a while since I updated this thread, but I haven't quit on it.

In the last installment I had painted up the hinge hardware. then after mounting them with the new rollers I noticed a crack on the passenger side trunk lid mount. I had already repaired the drivers side before painting it and had looked at the pass side then and it looked ok. ..... Well it wasn't. Fortunately I found it while I could still get in there, unfortunately it was previously repaired by brazing it

So I had to grind out all the brass and get in there with the mig to fix it right. I am still learning with this mig but did manage to get in there, it should hold up now. Then I had to fix the paint I just burned up with the mig....

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Since I had just picked up the doors from a local restoration shop that I had taken them to be blasted inside and out. I started on these.

then found that the shop had added some warp to my doors when blasting them.

so they were going to need some more bodywork. They are ready now just waiting on some warmer temps to paint them (might be a couple months now)

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Worked on mounting the fuel pump and filter. not a lot of room with the sway bar there.

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After joining the engine and trans and strapping it to a cart, it started on its journey from the garage to the shed.

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I had to use the winch to pull the combo up the ramp into the shed, and into place under the car.

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Using a couple pieces of allthread on the front motor mounts and a floor jack under the trans, I was able to get the engine raised into place without damaging anything.

although this is a slow method it gave me a lot of opportunity to make sure everything was clearing. I angled up one side first to clear the fuel injector lines and clear the tins on the suspension bolts.

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You can see the allthread still in place this picture above. It worked great..

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After much parts cleaner, elbow grease and a liberal dose of Barkeepers Friend my once cruddy looking Heat Exchangers shined up nicely.

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To keep the copper exhaust gaskets in place while I installed the HE's I sprayed them with some of this. it provided just enough stickiness to keep them in while I fitted the HE's

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Then I could put on the Custom Deluxe Triad Exhaust System.

I had a bung added for an AFR gauge.

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And some Chrome tips for a little extra Bling.

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These pipes fit up PERFECTLY. Thanks Dave.

very high quality, can't wait to hear how they sound.

Just dropped off a couple heater parts for powder coat yesterday, and can finish up that stuff once I have everything back..

I keep putting off tackling the front airbox installation, having read what a PITA that job is. But know I will have to get to sometime. Still have to put the wiper motor and linkage in first of course. and dream up something for the windshield washers.

But that all for now folks.

This is looking really clean. Great job. Keep it up.

beautiful!

Updates?

Well its time I brought this thread up to date.

So in preparation for the dreaded airbox install I decided to inspect, test, clean and lube the wiper mechanism. The lube part went ok but getting the wipers to park was another story. The instructions in both the Haynes and Clymer manual will not work to get the wiper into a park position for a bench test.
I found I had rig a switch to mimic the column switch to get them into park.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...=304921&hl=

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Then on to the air box install. The teener gods were with me that day as it only took about 1 ½ hours to get the airbox in. I admit I had to cheat a little and elongated the mounting holes. But it went in much better than I expected.

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Moving to the interior I installed some Xmat sound deadner from Eastwood. Using paper I first made patterns and after getting a good fit transfer that to Xmat. It cuts easily with sharp scissors. Before putting it in place I waved it over my heater for a couple seconds to warm up the butyl rubber backing making it more flexible and stickier.

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Then after waiting on a warm day I got the doors finally painted.

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And had a friend help with the install. I put the tape on the edges to prevent nicks in the new paint while we were handling them.

its coming along.

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With the airbox in place now I can work on the gas tank stuff.

I had already installed the fuel pump, moving it to the front. its a tight fit with the front sway bar but everything clears nicely

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the gas tank was pretty clean inside with just a little rust at the very bottom and when scraping this I uncovered a couple pin holes. so after having this professionally repaired at a local Tank Renew place and pressure tested it was ready for a coat of paint and install.

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With the fuel taken care of it was time to move on to shifting.

next up was the installation of this beautiful piece .

Jwest Rennshifter.

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I think I have it adjusted correctly but won't really know until I try to move it under its own power.

That day is coming soon.

Still have a couple things left to paint and the front hood is the largest of these. also need to paint the headlight doors and the eyebrows.

Since the hood still had the 30+ year old acrylic lacquer paint job on it I decided to strip it totally down and start from scratch. It looks good but I can feel some imperfections that will need to be leveled out.
when cleaning up the underside I used my sandblaster and sand just KEPT ON coming out from under the ribs on the bottom.
using a combination of air pressure and vacuum I managed to get most of it out, but I still find a couple pieces of black beauty creeping out.

Little Hood humor > http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...=311019&hl=


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Looking great!

Drove the car yesterday.

First time it has moved under its own power for 27+ years.

After chasing a couple vacuum leaks that held the idle above 3000 and doing the cam break-in. I got the idle to settle down around 1100-1200 then after a little clutch adjustment I drove it up and down the driveway a few times. Then took it down the street, and when all went good ventured around the block. 3.1 miles

Finally getting past the 137,000 mile mark

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No hood, bumpers, rocker panels, or valences installed and just the drivers seat bolted in, no carpets, door panels, etc. I have a lot to finish. all the window mechanisms are lubed and installed and work smoothly.

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for the legal weenies out there, I do have new plates and insurance (they were in the trunk )

Unbelievably I seemed to have gotten the Rennshifter adjusted correctly the first time as I was easily able to shift. I don't think I took it past 3rd gear, there were too many things to try to monitor.

It was a momentous day.

Now back to work..... get sanding on that hood.

Congrats on getting rolling. Great looking car. Mine will never look that good.

Where in the burgh are yinz?? I am in the south hills.

A Big Congratulations. You earned it. Very clean work.

Congrats!!!! Sure is looking great!

After blocking the hood, painted it along with the headlight doors and eyebrows.

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Then did some work on the bumpers, I built a couple wooden frames to hold the bumpers while I worked on them, they clamped securely into the workmate stands it made it a lot easier hammering and sanding on them. The rear needed some massaging from being hit by a Lincoln years ago. Put paint on them also. Used SEM euro black trim paint. If I would do it again I would use the SPI black epoxy and add acetone to get the satin look. the good thing about the SEM paint is you can just buy another quart or spray can and it will still match. I will be using it on all the other trim pieces, and the rocker covers.

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Thanks.

Irwin now, bout 20 miles east of Da Burgh.

Born a Yinzer, always a Yinzer.

Tom, you're going to love those tires. I put a set on my LS400 and it now sticks to the road great. Hard to even squeel tires now they grab so good. Looking for the same wheel/tire combo for my project.

Enjoy!

What a great build !

Wow congrats! That is fantastic. The car looks great to.