A day late and a dollar richer*, it's time for my WEEKEND UPDATE. (* I found a dollar on the ground yesterday. I am not rich.)
By now, we all know that I was able to start the hog over the weekend. And we know I have a failed alternator. We may also know that the new alternator is set to be delivered today. So that means that barring a Red Dawn-esque situation, I'll be running in cams tonight.
In the interim, I've been staying busy checking off other items on my list in an effort to make my bucket a little less of a bucket...
I know you guys expect buffoonery and madness when I make updates, but I'm going to try to let you down easy this time. In an effort to ward off the entropy that follows me everywhere, I installed...seatbelts. *gasp* No pics as they're just seatbelts. But I'd nearly forgotten about them. The webbing needs replaced (40 years of wear), but something is better than nothing. This will at least keep me legal, if not a tiny bit safer.
The seatbelts came about as I'd started fitting the interior carpeting and panels. I want you to look back into the far recesses of your memories and recall when I redid the door panels some year and a half ago. (Was it two years?) They're quite tidy and I really like them. But they did not look good next to the OE vinyl clad rear side panels. Something had to change.
That's right. The vinyl. With all the allure of cheese left on the kitchen counter for two weeks, it was deigned unworthy of a build such as mine. Seriously, it's got a gooey sort of feel to it. IDKWTF happened to this stuff, but it's wicked gross. Absolutely vile to handle.
Being a jack-of-many-trades, I set about replacing that rancid vinyl with the [dare I say perfect] tweed I'd redone the door panels in. The learning curve here is quiet steep and I reckon I'll be redoing the passenger side at some point. But there is a specific order of operations that ought to be adhered to if you intend to get the best possible result. I was in the ballpark for the first panel, but the second one came out much better.
Sticking to my methodology of using what I have about, I used a combination of spray adhesive (3M super 90), contact cement, and staples to hold the new coverings to the old panels. Whilst the adhesives were adhering, I reinforced their mighty grip like this.
With the first panel [somewhat acceptably] sorted, I started on the second. While the adhesives where drying on #2, I installed #1.
You can see quite clearly in this picture why I'm not super stoked with how this panel came out. It's loose around the bottom and has some weird dimples where I'd used glue on the front and then the clamps clamped a trifle too tight. All of these issues were resolved on the second panel. It's a masterpiece by comparison.
I also got the backseat heel panel of carpet installed. I needed to get it in to get the ECU mounted, but kinda forgot about not yet having an appropriate grommet/seal for the harness passing through the bulkhead. A quick glance through my stash of parts, odds, and ends, and this is what I came up with.
With panel #2 done, I realized it would be imprudent to install it without first installing the quarter window. With ever increasingly furious/sore fingers, I dug out the box, installed the seal, installed the [GDMFingIH8ThisThing] trim, soaped up a rope, and shoved the window home.
Next time:
fit a new alternator
run in cams
retrim the parcel self cover
install the rear window
install the driver's side side panel
install the parcel shelf cover
start working on the front kick panel carpets
actively seek out a sponsor for a new windscreen seal. (I'm more than a little concerned if I drive with a rear window, but no front window, the rear will pop out.)