Progress, The 2011 Hershey show gave me another shot of motivation Options

[saigon71]

Cutting - continued:


Luckily, it looks like the rust only crept about an inch or so up into the firewall...this shot is looking between inner & outer firewall.


The damaged area:


Short on money, but long on time & sheet metal, I decided to try to fabricate a replacement piece...started by cutting the bottom curved piece at the base of the firewall and went from there. The most difficult part for me was the compound bend, where I had to cut slits to get the right contour, then fill with weld. I left it a little long in all dimensions, so I could trim it as needed for the final fit. Still need to weld all seams on this, but I am pleased with how it is shaping up:

Great work man!

Thanks...a lot of time was invested in that piece...hope it fits well!

[saigon71]

I am not sure my liver can survive the rush of 40th birthday parties this Spring...but anyhow:

Got word from the radiator shop last week that my tank was repairable. They said they can patch, clean and seal it for no more than $200. It seemed reasonable to me, so I pulled the trigger on it.

Picked up metric allen bolts at Home Depot for the front hood latch attachment point:




After reading a thread on the world about proper cleaning of a transmission, I realized that I never plugged the overflow when pressure washing mine at the local car wash last year. I got worried about water in there, so I drained the old fluid out...did not see any water but the magnetic drain plug was chock full of filings. Tranny was re-filled with proper fluid and put back in the shed:



2nd ply of the outer wheelhouse was welded in last week, prepped and ready to be installed:



10 months till Hershey...10 months till Hershey. It was a scorcher today. But I really wanted to get the outer wheelhouse welded in:



I measured the distance from the middle screw on the original drivers side long to a plumb bob off the front of the jack post. Matched the 20.5" measurement on the passenger side for proper fore-aft fit:

[saigon71]

Everything lined up pretty well, except for one section at the rear of the inner long. This area was rebuilt 6" at a time hand formed in a vice. The last section seemed to twist up in the rear when I was welding it in. However, it lined up well with the inner long section previously welded in. All things considered, I decided to add a small extension piece to the bottom so the rosette welds would line up properly:




Final fitment outside:


Final fitment inside:


Fabricated & installed a doubler plate for the rear...had to modify it several times to clear the inner ply of the outer wheelhouse:

[saigon71]

DAMNIT!!! After filling about 7 rosettes, I realized I forgot to drill the holes directly above the jack post support. Improvised with a large screwdriver wedged in to get enough clearance to drill new holes. Snuck a dremmel tool in to deburr the backside of the holes:




I found the fitment of this piece to be challenging. It was clamped on and removed about 25 times before finally filling the first rosette. Probably due to the "learn as you go method." (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) Overall, I am pleased with how it has turned out so for. The heat started to get to me, so it was time for a cold beer and cold A/C. Will zip up the seams this week and should get the gas tank back:

[saigon71]

Picked up my gas tank from the radiator shop last week. Cleaned, patched, sealed, pressure tested, primed and painted for $160. The only problem is that they painted it in gloss black. So I spent a few hours sanding it down and re-painted it in semi-gloss black. The shop used "Red Coat" as the sealer:

[AndyB]

Looking good Bob keep with it. Hershey is right around the corner (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[saigon71]

Welded up the seams on the outer wheelhouse, then started grinding...

The inner long needed some trimming at the bottom for a flush fit. A cutoff wheel made quick work of this:


"Finished" job - outer:


"Finished" job - inner:


Closeup of rear seam:


There remains a slight (about 3/16") alignment issue with the upper portion of the lower wheelhouse under the rear door jamb. I should be able to get this aligned with a hammer and block of wood.

[saigon71]

Looking good Bob keep with it. Hershey is right around the corner (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Thanks Andy...I must be part of the caravan next year! Trying to stay motivated and put in at least a few hours each day. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sawzall-smiley.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smash.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)

[saigon71]

Progress continues at a slow, but steady pace.

Continued working on the area under the gas tank and the front trunk attachment point. Areas were cleaned, rust treated with ospho, followed by two coats of rust bullet and new seam sealer. Note to self...when working upside down applying opsho with a hollow acid brush, do not hold the brush in your mouth while getting out from under the dash. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)









A crazy hail storm interrupted my work on Thursday...it sounded like someone was shooting a machine gun at the house!

[saigon71]

Put the tank back together with a new Foley fuel sock. The threads were a little gummed up from the red coat the shop used to seal the tank, so I had to run a tap through the holes to clean them out. The fiber washer on the small line was in bad shape so i picked one up at the local ACE hardware and modified it to fit.



Flash rust is a bitch! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/mad.gif) I understand that it has been humid and that my washer & dryer are in my garage, but this is ridiculous. This area was freshly welded just last week:



I took a look at all the other bare metal...it was happeneing everywhere. Time to treat with ospho and get some primer on:

[saigon71]

I wasn't in the mood to spray primer yesterday, but I must admit that finally seeing these areas a single color was motivating. Primer - inner long:





This project has become bigger than my one car garage can handle...teener parts now have a strong foothold in my shed as well:

[saigon71]

Shed - continued:

[saigon71]

[scotty b]

FWIW the panel fit issues you have encounterd are 100% normal. The aftermarket pieces just do not line up perfectly and will always need some reshaping to fit the car. Thanks for posting pics of those spots so everyone can see what they are in for. Keep up the good work (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[saigon71]

Got a decent amount done last weekend. Installed a section of the Restoration Design upper wheelhouse panel. I didnt need a whole lot of it, but I did need the indented section. Indexing this piece was a challenge. All I had to go off was matching up the curve on the indented section of the piece I cut out to the new panel and a bevel gauge to get the proper pitch of the rise. I opted to weld a bolt on to the piece so I could hold it in place and tweak it slightly while getting it tacked into place. The panel seemed to shrink along the bottom edge while tacking it in place, so I had to bend the back of it out and trim it down for a flush fit. I ended up with a non-weldable gap where the lower wheelhouse meets the original metal, so I had to cut up a small filler plate for this area.

[saigon71]

[saigon71]

[saigon71]

I was also able to get the rear chunk of floorpan (previously made) welded into the passenger side floor. After trimming it up a bit, it fit quite well! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/aktion035.gif)

[saigon71]

Finished up the repair of the front hood cable attachment point. One coat ospho, two coats Rust Bullet, seam sealer and two coats of brushed on acrylic enamel.

[saigon71]

FWIW the panel fit issues you have encounterd are 100% normal. The aftermarket pieces just do not line up perfectly and will always need some reshaping to fit the car. Thanks for posting pics of those spots so everyone can see what they are in for. Keep up the good work (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

Thanks Scotty B. Yep, while I am happy with the overall quality of the replacement panels, it seems that things need to be tweaked from time to time to get the best fit.