That looks amazing!

well done.

Thanks fellas, I was and still am nervous about painting the tub but I feel much better now with these panels under my belt. I'd give them a 7.5, maybe 8 out of 10 and figure that with a cut and buff I can get to a 9, 9.5. But it can't be too perfect; this is a driver first and foremost!

This is brilliant! I'm definitely going to give it a go. The way I figure is that underneath the seals is white and eventually when I do replace them I can airbrush some of the new white there or just leave it and have the new seals cover it up.

Indeed it is! I think It probably has to do with city code- when old factory windows are removed glass block usually goes in as it's cheaper and I think it has to be impact rated or something... I have 600 sf of glass block windows and when I got a quote to replace them I was SHOCKED so I said to hell with it and left them.

As a kid of the 80s and 90s I abhor it. But that's because I grew up in a time when glass block was inside the house and I just can't stand for that.

I have about 6000sf on one level split into two parts with an office and storage room. My old studio was under 1800sf and I would easily take another 1000 if I could. I do have about 3000sf of parking and unbuilt land but it's on the side with the loading dock so building out would be really tricky. I've thought about going up but that's not all that helpful for me unless I wanted a lounge or apartment up there. Plus I just put solar on the roof so...

Ha! Can’t agree more. I was a fan for a quick minute as a kid during the same time, but then it became ubiquitous and was accompanied by bright geometric shapes, grid graphics, squiggly lines, etc. That said, I like its application in Art Deco homes/buildings from the ‘20s and ‘30s and old factories, warehouses, etc. I like the finely fluted glass and safety glass with the embedded chicken wire, too.

Those are crimes against humanity.

Give me Mid Century Modern or give me death.

Window seals
 

I poked at the Rot Rod with a plastic trim tool to see what sort of results I could produce when trying to tuck the outer seal lip into the window apertures. Looks like you will be able to do it pretty easily most places. Like I said the front corners might already be done for you like mine:

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On the lower cowl:

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The lower part of the rear might not go, so for that I'd try shoving some nice thick wire under the seal to hold it off the paint then mask. Sorry I didn't have any contrasting wire. The blue tape I used to show the edge that needs to be covered. Should work like a charm.

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subscribed

Thanks Jonny, very helpful to see what you were talking about!

Julian, I admit that I think it would take less time to pop out the windows than it would to peel back and tape off.

I think you're right.

But dealing with that finicky, and incredibly delicate, trim adds a Q-factor I think Julian is eager to avoid at this time. Which is funny to me because it seems like it'd be right up Julian's alley to make perfect the brightwork. He's already shown incredible skill & talent with brass mesh and that can't be any less delicate than the window trims.

Damn.

I'm torn over whether or not to remove the glass right now.

On one hand, yes, it'll make painting easier and I'll get new rubber out of the process which is a good thing.

On the other hand, I've read the threads, watched the videos and have a real fear of taking the glass out only to face reinstalling it and all of the hell that it seems to be. I've seen windscreens crack and even fall out which would be pretty lousy given that I'm so. damn. close. to driving this thing! Plus the car is white already and I'm just adding a slightly different shade of white atop it so if it's not perfect, I can live with that- this car is so far from perfect that I don't want to sacrifice the good...

The old seals are really shrunk- much smaller than what Jonny's pics show (mine only extend to about where Jonny's tucked seals are) so I wouldn't even need to tuck them in to get paint where new seals will eventually cover. Plus, at some point, maybe next winter or the winter after that, I'll redo the interior in leather and will have to take the glass out for that. I know, I'm doing everything bass-ackwards but a.) I want to get this on the road asap and b.) I'm ok with having a project car for years to come so long as the projects are winter time only.

Also, I'm only good at things when I don't know how difficult or stupid they are from the outset. ;)

I'll have to think on it.

I normally wouldn't want to be seen as complicit in any such halfassery like painting with windows in, but I support the plan to get some paint on it and drive it. Make it shiny and one colour, why not? Good practice, good fun.

I do notice that he's skipping quite a few weeks (months?) of panel fitting and block sanding but assume he's factored that into his expectations.

This is all a good chance to learn by doing, and if/when the redoing happens, he'll be that much better prepared.

Oh this is by no means a “proper” project and it wasn’t ever meant to be. I plan on driving the living hell out of this car: from the first road-cleaning rain in early spring to the first road-salting in fall I’ll be driving this car every day if I can. Anything more than what I’m doing would be wasted on this car.

I’ll save the detailed work for the next one ;)

Well you know after I insulted your dedication to block sanding and prep I thought I should go back and review the parts of this thread that might have covered it.....

I owe you an apology!!!! Sorry. I think you're well ahead of the game and you will be more than happy with the results of your paint job, proper or not!!!!!!!!

Haha, it’s ok- I’m sure I’ve insulted the Way of Porsche plenty with my approach. But you’re right, this one is practice- get familiar with a cheap one, make my mistakes and plan for a much longer Heavy Metal type comprehensive build while I’m flogging this one.

Isn’t the correct number of Porsches N+1 where N is the current number of Porsches…

Even my cursory read through of your thread made a few things clearer for me.

I couldn't help but notice in your thread that you mentioned general fit and finish in the horn grill/light/hood seal area. It's a pretty sad commentary that the fact that you even HAVE a hood seal is remarkable:

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Not to mention that there is less gap than seal.

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BOTH of those cars are magazine cover cars. I don't like to be negative about anyone's work, but this this annoys me to no end.

Good job on yours!

Thanks Jonny, yours is a compliment that I very much appreciate.

I’m realistic about what I can do with the limited budget and time I have, not to mention the stunningly comprehensive lack of experience.

In Yiddish there’s a word: chutzpah. A mix between audacity, nerve, balls, a foolish stubbornness and being diluted just enough to believe it’s possible. It’s a compliment an, insult and the fuel that’s propelled me for the past 6 months.

My hope is that if I put enough care into specific areas of the car: the dash, the horn grills, the mirrors, engine bay, etc… that it will translate into a precise vision that reflects what I want out of the car and give enough character to overcome what it isn’t.

My favorite builds here are those where someone eschews what’s expected, accepted or easy and makes a car that reflects them, a car that embodies their crazy, whether that’s going berserk with MFI, a rat rod, or simply choosing to not accept what is and look for what’s possible.

But yeah, messing up the lights/horn grills or seals is like getting a $3000 suit only to put on a dime store tie.

Well, sometimes in life you think you're in charge and making all the decisions only to find out that you're just along for the ride.

I went ahead and started to try and tuck the seal under per Jonny's approach only to find that 45 year old neglected rubber doesn't tuck, it crumbles.

So, looks like I'm pulling the glass.

I suppose this will color whether or not I tackle the interior next winter. Easy in and out and I'll be ready to do it again. If it's anything like I've seen or fear, maybe the interior is juuuust fine for a few years.

Here's to being the masters of our own destiny... ha!

LOL.
Your indomitable spirit is one of my favorite things about this thread.

ALL THE CURSE WORDS.

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It was going to happen sooner or later. Glass is a consumable for those who rally their hoopties. Kool Katz to the rescue!

Ouch. Awful luck.

Ah geez. If it makes you feel any better you probably will never do that again...

PLUS nothing beats having a nice new non-sandblasted front window. Money well spent.

Hopefully I can console you by overwhelming you with information about installing glass. Here's a post I put on focker's thread:

...until next winter when I decide to redo the interior and need to pull the dash to wrap it in leather...ha!

Thanks for the tips. Luckily I have a Citroen friend who has done this a dozen or more times and is willing to assist.

Good news is I didn't fork up the rear glass...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652387519.jpg

When Well Enough Can't Be Left Alone; Backdate, EFI/ITB, AC, and more!
 

So, I pulled the shattered glass and removed the rear glass without breaking it.

I was happy to find not a single iota of rust anywhere around the window frames, so that’s a good thing.

There was a lot of what looked like rubber adhesive from the factory in the tracks which made removal of the seals tricky.

In anticipation on eventually recovering the dash with leather I removed those nightmare screws that can only be accessed with the glass removed. I think I’m just going to delete them (weight savings, right) as my dash sits very nicely and with them gone I’ll be able to remove it next winter without removing the glass. Someone’s trying to think ahead.

New glass and a whole lot of seals and whatnot inbound so I’ll be ready when I’m done painting.

Cleanup and masking this weekend and Still aiming to paint this mofo next weekend [emoji869]

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We all need more masked up, ready for paint, pics in our threads :D

Bummer on the glass shattering! The glass and seals are easy enough to deal with. I've done the windows several times at this point. If you have both some helpers to push on the windshield and some suction cups to pull from the inside, you'll get it done.

Hahaha, so true.

I found a local glass guy that sourced glass from Mygrant glass. I remember them being ~$150-$200 depending on what style windshield you wanted and that was delivered.

Heck yea! Excited to hear/see how it turns out.

Day 28

Gentlemen, it was brought to my attention (by my 26-year-old assistant who’s into crystals and the like) that this week Mercury was in retrograde and Friday was the 13th. As such, it’s pretty clear that my windshield stood no chance and was merely a small sacrifice to ward off more serious ills.

But I digress.

I’ve gotten over breaking the glass… who cares. I’ve done some terrible things to this car already (we have what, 12 pages of it!) so what’s a little broken glass. New glass, seals, and lots of other stuff is on order from our host and hopefully it’ll arrive promptly.

After Glassgate and a wee bit of destruction I felt like producing something. So, I did.

One thing that’s always kind of bothered me were the carbon fiber rain hats with the RHD embossed logo; they just don’t fit this car. Yes, RHD ITBs aren’t carbs or Jevney ITBs but there’s no reason they have to look SO out of place.

So, I decided to do something about it.

I replaced the aluminum filter holding plate with a piece of lexan, cut out a window (and the RHD logo) from the rain hats, painted them satin black, and tossed in a piece of brass mesh. Much better methinks.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg
Mise en place, or operatory ready.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg
Successful surgery!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg
The intakes aren't red- that's just tape protecting them from my mess..

I took a shot a cutting and buffing the engine lid just to see what that was all about. I cut the paint with 3000 and then buffed it with Meguiar’s ultimate. I’m pretty sure I didn’t do it perfectly because now I have glass-like paint with fine scratches. The paint is really smooth and shiny and the waviness and dust specs are gone, but the scratches bother me. I’ll have to audit my process before doing any more. I’m pretty sure the fault lies with the crappy generic Chinese polishing pads I bought because I only wanted to spend $20 not $40 on pads, like an idiot. If anyone has thoughts on a better process/products, I’d much appreciate them.

I also finished one piece of the car! After “polishing” the engine lid I installed the brass mesh and polished aluminum bars. This piece is done and while it’s nothing major it feels really good to have at least one piece of the car complete. We’re getting close, very close.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg
One down, lots to go!

Oh, I also masked and taped the living hell out of the car in anticipation of painting next weekend. Suffice it to say this took way longer that I expected but luckily it wasn’t all that hard. While I’m not happy I broke my glass, removing it was in fact the right call, I’m glad you boys wouldn’t let me coast….

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg
All dressed up for the big dance


And surprisingly all of that took 4 hours.

Now I must rest and meditate, for next week we paint.

Oh, this happened about 10 mins ago:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1652713434.jpg

Julian,
nice job with the rainhats. Very cool!

al

Great progress!!

Not sure what "ultimate" is - it might be too aggressive. Is it a compound (like 105) or a polish (like 205)?

Either way, when you cut the paint with 3000 you might be best to let it cure for a few days before polishing it as you've taken off the hard outer layer (I know it's catalysed paint but it still hardens faster on the surface I find). All depends on the paint. Don't drive yourself too crazy with it - take your decklid outside and look at it away from the fluorescents, you might be more pleased with it!!!

Day 29

I painted a car this weekend. Holy $h!t, I painted a car!

Honestly, the hardest part was the setup- creating a spray room and getting everything clean took a lot of time and effort but so it goes.

Even though I successfully pained the lids and realized that I’ve shot hundreds of gallons through my gun, I was still really nervous to the point of my heart rate elevating when I started.

It’s a lot to manage; a full car. I can understand why people break them down into pieces. I considered removing the front fenders and doors but honestly, I feel like if I did that, something would come up, go wrong or I’d decide to add louvers or turret guns and it would push the project back another month. If you hadn’t gathered, I like to do stuff and when presented the opportunity to do so, I usually take it, even if it’s ill advised. This time, I guess I left well enough alone.

But back to the point…

I. Painted. A. Car.

I’ll have to cut and buff (I’ve ordered the 3M perfect-it system of compound and polish) but I’m very satisfied with the results. Very.

Did I mention that I PAINTED A CAR!

Dudes, I haven’t rebuilt an engine yet so I can’t compare that feeling, but this one is amazing. That, or my ventilation wasn’t so good and I’m high as hell. Either way, feels pretty alright.

I setup my kill room on Friday and that took longer than I thought. I have 13’ ceilings and climbing up and down the ladder to get all the plastic in place was a pain but necessary as I couldn’t have paint all over my work studio full of equipment and paintings. If I were to do this again, I would consider renting time in a spray booth.

I woke up Saturday morning rearing to go… and then the skies opened up. With the humidity sky high and the wind whipping around I decided to wait until fairer weather on Sunday.

Sunday came after the longest Saturday I’ve ever experienced and I got to work, gave the car another wipe down and proceeded to spray.

I used an Anest Iwata LPH400 gun with a 1.3 tip and the Devilbiss Dekupps system at 29psi with an Eastwood 30/60 silent scroll compressor. The gun and the compressor worked wonders and laid down a totally acceptable factory paint finish. I think I laid down 5-6 coats; plenty for wet sanding. I avoided orange peel but there is some waviness in the paint; nothing that wasn’t in the engine lid and that I was able to remove with a wet sand. The dust on the other hand…. Lots of little dust nibs that will need to be sanded. But again, I anticipated all of this; without a proper spray booth it was inevitable.

I will have to make a decision on whether to assemble the car and get to driving it with all of its imperfect paint and cut and buff it next winter, or go ahead and cut and buff the paint now while it's not put together, perhaps a bit easier and have the paint perfect when I start driving it...?

The only real bummer was that I dripped sweat onto the car in several places and that made a mess. Again, a cut and buff will get it out and if not, I can airbrush some more paint in those areas.

But I digress.

I painted a car.


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FORK YEAH, Julian!!

Having completed a 'top-end' and more recently, a full rebuild, I can confirm I felt significantly more satisfaction the first time I saw my car together in one color.

Job well done!

I forget, are you bringing this to Ruchlos II?

Congratulations! Can't wait to see the pictures on a bigger screen!

Haha, maybe wait until I cut and buff it then [emoji12]

It’s a perfectly fine job- one that right now is a 7.5, but I can get it to a 9, I’m sure of that.

No Ruchlos for me this year- were finally getting back to traveling and making up for missed trips but I’m really hoping to be a check22. Only catch is that I leave for Belgium the next day so it will take some bartering with the family.

Heck yea! Congrats Julian.

If you can let it sit in the sun for a couple days to help the paint cure you'll be better off wetsanding and buffing prior to putting the seals, door handles, and glass back in.

Fantastic!

Funny how the stress of starting to shoot paint is the highest. And, to me, that is almost the easiest part compared to all the work that goes into the paintjob before paint. Sanding, blocking, more sanding, more blocking, taping, etc. It really adds up and those details determine the quality of the final paint. You have done well.

Now go bolt on some parts and start driving it. :)

I love the look of this. Does it bypass the filter and kind of diminish the rain hat functionality?

Sent from my Nokia 7.1 using Tapatalk

Not at all!

I simply replaced the piece of aluminum with a transparent sheet of Lexan and then cut out a window in the carbon fiber rain hats. The throttlebody’s and the filter are still protected from the elements by the Lexan